A goddess dwells in my heart.

Chapter 18: Repay Me Slowly with the Rest of Your Life

Yin Siyue had previously said that if his written exam results hadn't been invalidated, he would have just barely made it to the bottom of the list.

This made Lu Zheji realize some things.

Huang Siye once said that the imperial examination was just a formality for him, which meant that the big shot who invested in him would be waiting to reap the rewards during the examination.

But if his grades originally gave him a chance to pass the exam, what made Huang Siye so certain that he would fail the court exam?

You must understand that entering the academy is equivalent to becoming a disciple trained by the imperial court. If one proves unfit for important tasks, they can be reassigned to a sect that is on good terms with the court. But once you leave the academy, you are branded with the imperial court's mark, and from then on, you have no say in many things.

Some students, not wanting to be constrained by the imperial court, would deliberately manipulate their scores to avoid failing the exams, but this was limited to those from powerful families with average talent. For someone as gifted as Liu Changtian to manipulate scores would be tantamount to slapping the imperial court in the face.

Lu Zheji's academic performance on paper was so good that only passing the exam would be considered an exceptional performance, thus it wasn't subject to that limitation. Did Huang Siye not remind him to control his score before the exam because he was certain Lu wouldn't pass?

Not long ago, the Moon Guardian who invalidated his score sat in the examiner's seat during the court examination and even stated the score that his exam paper, which had never been graded, should have received.

If Lu Zheji still can't figure out who the big shot who invested in him is, then he'll probably never be able to shake off the label of being mentally challenged.

A smile appeared in Yin Siyue's charming eyes: "It seems that your mind is indeed fine. It was worth my hard work in going to the Yellow Springs to find the Soul-Nourishing Grass for you."

Although Lu Zheji did not understand the hardships involved, he guessed that it was by no means easy. He straightened his expression and said, "Sister Yin's kindness is like giving me a second life. I will never forget it."

At this moment, the new examination has begun. The student named Wang Chongming pushed open the door and entered, bowing tremblingly to the person in the main seat.

Yin Siyue waved her hand casually: "Let's go, don't block the way."

Lu Zheji thought she was about to leave the examination room, but she didn't walk towards the door. Instead, she swayed gracefully and went straight to the waiting doctor's seat on the side of the examination room.

She found an empty seat next to Su Wan Ning and sat down. She picked up a piece of osmanthus cake from the porcelain plate in front of the petite girl and took a bite.

"Hmm, it tastes good. It's freshly made by Defangzhai. Would you like to try some?"

Faced with Yin Siyue's generosity towards others' money, Lu Zheji took a piece without any qualms.

Osmanthus cake melts in your mouth, sweet but not cloying, with the delicate fragrance of osmanthus filling your mouth.

"That's really good. As always, my junior sister doesn't treat herself badly."

Curious, he picked up the last piece of porcelain, along with the oiled paper, and examined it closely as Su Wan Ning sat upright.

The girl's gaze remained fixed on the examination hall, as if the two people beside her who had stolen her pastries didn't exist at all.

Lu Zheji waved the last piece of osmanthus cake in front of her, but Su Wan Ning just blinked and looked down blankly at the empty porcelain plate:

"Strange, why did I eat so little osmanthus cake today? Has my appetite increased?"

Lu Zheji clicked his tongue in amazement: "What profound and mysterious supernatural power!"

"Not only that." Yin Siyue chuckled and reached out to pinch Su Wan Ning's little face. The girl's fair and tender cheeks were gently pulled up, but she was completely unaware. She remained sitting upright, her gaze fixed on the student in the center of the examination room who was introducing himself.

Lu Zheji found it amusing and couldn't resist giving the girl's head a good rub.

Su Wanning remained motionless, like a delicate porcelain doll, allowing him to manipulate her as he pleased.

There's a feeling that time has stood still on campus...

Lu Zheji thought to himself, "If someone with ill intentions were to learn this, tsk tsk tsk, what would happen then..."

"How about it, want to learn?" Yin Siyue's charming voice rang out at just the right moment, full of seduction. "Once you learn this, you can steal kisses and do whatever you want."

Lu Zheji almost spat out the osmanthus cake he was eating.

No, how come you can still connect with me on the same wavelength?

Yin Siyue glanced mockingly at the Empress, who sat regally in the main seat, and continued to urge, "If you learn this, you can even defile this Empress, who holds the reins of power, without anyone knowing, and have the Emperor raise your child. Aren't you even a little tempted?"

Lin Xiwei wore a magnificent phoenix crown and luxurious robes. Her cold and beautiful face held a distant and noble expression, and her dignified figure resembled an inviolable jade statue.

She was currently reviewing the case files with her eyes down, seemingly oblivious to these outrageous remarks.

Lu Zheji finally couldn't hold back any longer: "Aren't you a highly respected person who demands strict discipline from your disciples? How come you're not what I imagined?"

Yin Siyue raised her chin confidently: "I have always been lenient with myself and strict with others."

Lu Zheji: "..."

Yin Siyue tilted her head and looked him over: "Even though it was just a joke, you're not even tempted. Is there something wrong with you?"

Lu Zheji was so cornered by this female hooligan that he didn't know what expression to make, but before he could even speak, Yin Siyue's next words instantly sent chills down his spine:

"Is it because you can't use it that you don't want to learn it?"

Since he was going to have to explain anyway, Lu Zheji obediently lowered his head and replied, "Yes, for some reason, after breaking through to the second realm, I encountered some problems releasing spells."

Su Wan Ning, who was pretending to be a wooden doll, quickly gave the beauty in the red dress a wink—Don't betray me!

Yin Siyue didn't even look at her, and said indifferently, "I already guessed what was going on when I saw that you challenged Liu Changtian to a pure close-quarters combat match, rather than demonstrating your spells as a magic cultivator. You should have become the Holy Son of our sect. How do you plan to repay this investment?"

Lu Zheji met her gaze frankly: "I know I have let Sister Yin down, but I have been working very hard to improve myself. As Sister Yin just saw, I am already at the level of being a disciple of the sect leader in other sects."

"The sect leader's personal disciple?" Yin Siyue sneered, her alluring face full of disdain. "I've already said it, the threshold for our sect is extremely high. Those elders who offered you such a price, they themselves might not even be qualified as outer disciples of our sect."

Ah... now that I hear it this way, it seems like it's not so bad for outer disciples.

Lu Zheji raised his head and declared, "I will prove that my worth is far greater than that of a mere Holy Body!"

Yin Siyue replied lazily, "What's the use of being good at fighting? Our sect is a sect of Dharma cultivators. If you can't inherit our sect's lineage, what use are you if you're good at fighting?"

Su Wan Ning, standing to the side, muttered to herself: "What kind of magic cultivation sect are you? No, compared to this, where did your female cultivation sect get a holy son? Junior Brother was clearly sent by Northern Wei for a marriage alliance. All you do is fool children all day long."

Lu Zheji's heart sank slightly. Just as he was pondering how to respond, Yin Siyue added another sentence unhurriedly.

"Unless you can reach a certain level. Emperor Wu of the past made an exception to become an outer disciple of the Dao Xuan Sect because of his poetic talent, and later became an invincible emperor. If you can show potential comparable to Emperor Wu, what's wrong with making you a holy son?"

Lu Zheji's heart stirred slightly, and he was about to speak when he saw Yin Siyue extend a fair and delicate hand in front of him.

"But before that, you still have to pay back the money."

Lu Zheji was speechless for a moment. Although Su Wanning had said she would repay him with her dowry, how could he possibly accept it?

"I don't have that much money right now, but I will in the future..."

"It's alright, you can pay it back slowly."

Yin Siyue interrupted him, her tone meaningful:

"You'll spend the rest of your life repaying what you owe me..."