Outside the immortal cities of the Great Yi Dynasty, vast stretches of wilderness still existed. With Great Yi's current strength, if it truly desired, pacifying these wild lands and wiping out the alien tribes there was entirely possible. Yet, it had not done so.
Why?
Firstly, because alien races were never divided merely by tribes — they were bound by race. Annihilating the alien tribes within Great Yi's borders today would invite the wrath of the myriad races across the heavens tomorrow. That would mean a war of no return, a life-or-death struggle against the entire world. Any external expansion would only attract the fiercest of enmity and the bloodiest of resistance. It would result in Great Yi becoming the enemy of all.
The consequences of such a path were far too terrifying.
No race in existence could claim it could stand alone against all others.
Moreover, the alien tribes scattered across the wildlands, the ferocious beasts and birds, even the sea monsters from coastal regions — all these served as resources for the people of Great Yi to grow stronger. And more importantly, they were renewable resources. As long as one had the courage and luck, rising from the common people was not just a dream.
As for cultivation techniques? The Sutra Pavilion held hundred of thousands of manuals and battle techniques. Anyone with the ability could exchange for divine abilities and secret arts — the ladder to the heavens was already at one's feet. The only question was whether one could seize the opportunity.
Among the common folk, there had never been a lack of extraordinary talent. The only variable was whether they could rise.
Now, from Zhang Hai's example alone, it was clear: many had already learned how to seize these opportunities. They could rely on their strength to grow stronger. And now, they understood how to grasp a second chance — the military examination — to ascend to the Great Yi stage, to become commanders, even generals of armies. If they could seize this chance, their future achievements would be immense — no less than the famous generals of history.
Some might even be monstrous talents, surpassing the historic legends themselves.
"One called Yi Zixuan isn't bad either. He's reached the peak of the Life Map realm. His life map is especially interesting — it's a chessboard, black and white pieces spread across it. Each piece moves like a meteor, appearing unpredictably and striking as fast as lightning. Moreover, each one contains a different divine art or spell."
At this moment, on one of the many dueling stages, a battle had caught the attention of the gathered women.
A young man stood on the platform. His bearing was elegant, exuding a keen intelligence. Above his head floated a chessboard, black and white pieces placed on it. At his will, a black piece would drop and explode upon the opponent — like a divine talisman — unleashing spells: some turned into searing flames, others into sticky marshes, or deadly toxins.
When a white piece dropped, it morphed into a combat technique — a battle axe cleaving down, or a blade light sweeping wide, unstoppable.
It was dazzling to the eye, a storm of offense and unpredictability.
"Interesting. Black pieces evolve into divine arts, white pieces into battle skills. The way he commands them — weaving the battlefield like a chess game — is masterful. A life map in the form of a chessboard… that's not ordinary."
Yi Tianxing nodded in appreciation. Chess was, after all, a representation of intelligence and wisdom. Creating a chessboard as a life map undoubtedly showed that Yi Zixuan's wisdom exceeded the norm. And the life map seemed far more complex than what appeared on the surface.
This life map wasn't even in the Sutra Pavilion. How did he create it?
Clearly, it had to be the result of an extraordinary fortuitous encounter.
Still, it only sparked Yi Tianxing's interest — not greed. A life map, after all. There were exceedingly few life maps in the world that could compare to his Heavenly Emperor Dragon Diagram. This chessboard map didn't seem to reach that level — otherwise, it would have triggered a heavenly response.
Still, Yi Zixuan's name now entered Yi Tianxing's sightline.
And in this examination ground, there were many others like Yi Zixuan, all displaying exceptional talent.
In both innate talent and combat performance, their brilliance was undeniable.
"But individual strength is only one aspect," said Cai Yan with a smile. "What truly matters when selecting military officers is their ability to command troops. Can they lead an army? That's what we must measure."
Individual strength could always be raised. With resources and fortune, even a pig could become a monster. But the ability to command troops relied far more on innate talent. Whether they possessed battlefield intuition, adaptability, charisma — that was what mattered. Pure theory was useless in actual war.
The individual duels moved swiftly.
Over a million candidates had completed their matches in just half a day. During that time, StarNet recorded all the results in real time, archived them, and handed them over to Zhuge Liang and the others for review and scoring.
Naturally, this round didn't involve any eliminations.
It moved straight into the second round — command-based combat.
This time, the battlefield was within the King's Domain, where each side had a crystal as their base core. Candidates would now choose from Great Yi's standard base troop types:
Spearmen
Sword and shield infantry
Cavalry
Archers
Crossbowmen
Blade infantry
Rune soldiers
And more...
Though these were only base units, different combinations could produce unexpected outcomes. The ability to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary was the mark of a true general — and the essence of commanding troops.
Each examinee would have ten opportunities to engage in battles against different opponents. Win or lose, every battle would be recorded and archived for scoring.
All would command armies of equal value, though the actual troop numbers varied depending on chosen unit types.
This round took much longer than single combat.
Yi Tianxing did not stay to watch. With Zhuge Liang and Jia Xu overseeing things, he knew there would be no errors.
Within StarNet, time was accelerated.
What took one day in the outside world actually equated to a much longer period within StarNet. Dozens upon dozens of simulated battles played out continuously — army against army, war after war.
The use of tactics and strategies was nothing short of spectacular.
Some candidates excelled in reconnaissance, using scouts to probe the enemy, setting up ambushes in treacherous terrain, cutting off bridges across the Tongtian River, and winning with positional advantage.
Others favored head-on clashes — deploying solid formations like iron walls, pushing through with sheer might, forcing decisive engagements that ended the match in a single blow.
Many stunning performances emerged from these battles.
After a full day, the military exam concluded.
What followed was a meticulous review of the recordings by Zhuge Liang, Jia Xu, and countless officials — especially focusing on the commanding phase. The brilliance of the battles left them all deeply impressed.
The strategists of the Celestial Strategy Hall nodded in quiet admiration.
Though some of them might not lead a battlefield themselves, their ability to evaluate military maneuvers was unparalleled. Discerning strengths and flaws in battle came easily to them.
Even Zhuge Liang and Jia Xu were deeply impressed by the commanding ability of several candidates. As they watched more and more, smiles gradually appeared on their faces.
These military talents, once assigned to the army, would become capable generals — strengthening Great Yi's legions and greatly enhancing its war power.
A cause for celebration indeed.
The reviewing and scoring process lasted a full half month.
After all, reviewing over a million candidates was no easy task.
In the Hall of Knowledge and Action, Zhuge Liang and Jia Xu stood before Yi Tianxing, who sat reviewing a memorial — a list of the final candidates selected.
"Xue Rengui, Yi Zixuan, Kuang Zhongtang. These are your top three?" Yi Tianxing's eyes glinted with surprise.
Of the three names, only Xue Rengui was familiar. A legendary talent from military history, a general of great renown. Yi Tianxing had not expected him to appear in this examination, but with his presence, his abilities could be assured — on par with any general within Great Yi.
The other two were unfamiliar — clearly civilians, not historical figures.
Unexpected, yet not surprising.
"These three are all exceptional military talents," Zhuge Liang said. "That Xue Rengui has a masterful command of troops. He's especially brilliant in cavalry tactics, wielding soldier-based divine arts with incredible finesse. Ten battles, ten victories — each achieved with minimal casualties. His grasp of timing and terrain is unmatched. He's easily on par with any of our existing legion commanders — a man who can lead an army on his own."
Zhuge Liang then shared several of Xue Rengui's simulated battles from StarNet.
Jia Xu added, "Yi Zixuan is also exceptional. He commands like playing chess — always planning several moves ahead, bringing calculation to the battlefield. He's adept at finding weaknesses and breaking formations, his troop arrangements as fluid as a game of Go. His life map also contains elements of formation arts. If integrated into real warfare, it might become a powerful killing formation."
Jia Xu, naturally, favored Yi Zixuan most.