A young man dressed in the same attire as the woman stepped forward anxiously.

“Of course, it’s to maintain order.” The woman flashed a charming smile, then pointed her sword toward the crowd. “You over there, please help the person who fell! And you, and you, help them up!”

“Why should I listen to you?” someone protested.

“Hm?” The girl lowered her sword a bit.

The pressure instantly shifted onto the protester. Under the burning gazes of the crowd, the examinee who was called out obediently reached out to help the fallen person.

“Very good! The rest of you, come up one by one and get a bottle from me! Don’t worry, there are several more boxes of bottles behind this table—there are definitely enough. Senior brothers and junior brothers, don’t just stand there, come help me out.”

With just a few simple words, she completely dispelled a potential stampede without a trace.

Squeezed in the crowd and unable to move, Brian Carter finally managed to catch his breath. As he moved forward with the flow of people, he curiously glanced at the woman—she didn’t look very tall, at most fifteen or sixteen years old, her face still carried a hint of youthfulness, yet she already had the makings of a beauty. Especially her large, lively eyes, which seemed as clear as a spring.

Her brocade robe was equally eye-catching. The pale blue fabric was clearly expensive, and each shoulder was embroidered with a pair of feathered floral designs, every detail vivid as if real. Looking at the other examinees dressed like her, it was clear that this group was the “aristocratic disciples” mentioned by William Grant.

“They are... people from the Luo family of Youzhou?”

“The double feathers of the Vermilion Bird, it must be.”

Hearing the people around him whispering, Brian Carter couldn’t help but interject, “Hey, brother, is the Luo family really that famous?”

“You’ve never heard of the Luo family?” The man gave him a suspicious look. “They’re a powerhouse in the civil service exams. Having qualified candidates every time is nothing to them—one of the top three spots almost always goes to the Luo family.”

“Right, I also heard that this generation of the Luo family has many talented disciples, and one girl in particular is exceptionally gifted. Could it be her?” another person chimed in.

“No way... That was a pretty reckless move, doesn’t seem like something a genius would do. Didn’t you see even her senior brother was very displeased with her actions?”

“Indeed, if she weren’t from the Luo family, her participation in this exam would be over.”

“Heh, she’s offended so many people. Even as an aristocratic disciple, she might not get through the next few days unscathed.”

Brian Carter, however, didn’t agree with this view. The reason she was able to instantly control the situation had nothing to do with her status. The key was that she had grasped the examinees’ weak spot, and with just a few words, managed to subdue everyone with minimal effort.

Even if it had been an ordinary person, as long as they noticed the crucial point, they could have done the same.

With someone maintaining order, the flow inside actually sped up. Before long, Brian Carter, who had been at the back, received his own porcelain bottle.

By then, the girl had already stepped down from the table and was called aside by her senior brother.

Judging by their expressions, there seemed to be some disagreement, though the man’s face showed more worry than anger.

As Brian Carter passed by them from a distance, he overheard a few lines of their conversation; clearly, they hadn’t bothered to lower their voices.

“...You should know, we’re not the only family participating in the exam...”

“The Fei family, the Fang family, and even people from the palace are watching us...”

“Senior brother, I know.”

“Then why did you still do this?”

“We’ll all be entering the Privy Council... and the Privy Council’s greatest duty is to maintain order in this world. There’s nothing wrong with getting used to it early. Besides—” At this point, she turned her head, as if knowing that Brian Carter could hear her, and smiled at him. “At that time, we’ll be at the very center of the storm. If we just stand by and do nothing, we might get caught up in the chaos ourselves.”

Looks like the young lady is quite perceptive.

Brian Carter added another note to his evaluation of her keen insight.

Since you’re not lowering your voices, I’m not eavesdropping—after returning a justified smile, he shifted his attention back to the exam itself.

The porcelain bottle in his hand was pure white, with the Privy Council’s seal fired into the base. It was clearly prepared specifically for the exam, about the size of a mineral water bottle. Obviously, filling it would require quite a bit of bone powder—no, the source of spiritual fire. Considering there were about four hundred participants in this exam, the total amount of spiritual fire source needed was astonishing. Without a large cemetery, it would be hard to gather enough.

The problem was, Qingshan Town was so small that even if all the residents were buried, it probably wouldn’t be enough for the exam.

Of course, since it was an exam, some people being eliminated was normal. It seemed the first thing being tested was the examinees’ information-gathering ability.

Brian Carter also noticed that while most candidates were still questioning the exam content, a small group had already quietly left the central area. These people had probably realized that whoever found the spiritual fire grounds of Qingshan Town first would gain the upper hand—and asking the locals or having them lead the way would be an excellent choice.