That night, in a large tent outside the town of Castle Peak.

The curtain was lifted with a bang, and two figures, one tall and one short, walked in.

Shen Chun, the invigilator guarding the table, looked through the candlelight, and saw that both of them were wearing pitch-black high-necked robes with half-cut silver masks on their faces, which was the standard attire of Privy Council officials. Among them, the tall man has three red threads embroidered on his shoulders, which is already the symbol of the town guard in Fuzhong, which is equivalent to the three rank members in the six departments.

Obviously, the person who came was the Inspector he had been waiting for for a long time, Lord Tyrant Heaven.

It's just another person...... Shen Chun quietly cast his gaze on the short man, he hadn't heard before that there would be two inspectors to supervise the exam this time. Moreover, there is only one white line on that person's black robe, which is equivalent to a beginner in terms of grade, and it stands to reason that he is not qualified to enter the Shikao important place at all.

However, he didn't even say anything to his immediate boss, so he decided that it would be better not to see it at the time.

"Phew, this mask is really suffocating," the tall man said the first thing he did after entering the tent was to pull the silver mask off and throw it aside, "Do you have any drink?"

"Lord Ba," Shen Chun said helplessly, "There is only tea here." ”

"Tsk," the latter took a sip and sat down at the table, his burly figure making the chair creak like it was about to fall apart, "then a pot of tea, it's going to be cold!"

The short man did not take off his mask or speak, but sat down next to the tyrant.

This means that the two are at least equal in terms of identity.

Shen Chun couldn't help but have more respect for the latter, and although the other party didn't say anything, he still poured a cup of herbal tea for him.

Although the Privy Council is mainly responsible for dealing with evil incidents, it is different from the officials of the six departments of the Eight Classics, but being an official is being an official, and you must have basic vision, otherwise you will not feel guilty of sinning, and you will not know where to go to avenge your grievances when you are arranged to die in the line of duty.

Ba Xingtian directly brought a pot of tea to his mouth and poured it upside down.

After drinking, he sighed, wiped his sleeve casually, and finally got down to business. "What's the general situation of the taxi exam?"

"Lord Hui," Shen Chun immediately replied, "Qingshan Town has allocated four hundred and twenty-seven candidates, and four hundred and one people have actually arrived, and everything is going smoothly so far, and nothing abnormal has happened for the time being." ”

"There are even four hundred people in Qingshan Town?" "Ba Xingtian looked satisfied, "It seems that there will be many new faces in the Privy Council this fall." ”

"With so many people, won't the qualification standards be raised?"

"It's not easy not to lower it. He shook his head, "The impact of the locust plague last year is still there, and the Qi and Gao countries are ready to move, and people are needed everywhere." There was also a lot of pressure from above. ”

This has already involved national affairs, and Shen Chun couldn't say anything more, so he had to nod. The greater the calamity, the more frequent the evil will appear, and sometimes the harm caused is even greater than that of the war, and these need to be dealt with by the monks. It's just that people who can't even pass the assessment, how can they expect them to make a difference in the face of these major threats? Coupled with the fact that the cost of training a monk is not low, he does not think that lowering the standard will really solve the problem.

Ba Xingtian didn't say much on this issue, he pointed to a list spread out on the table, "Those crossed out names...... Is it someone who has been eliminated?"

"Yes!" Shen Chun replied, "There are nine of them now. ”

"Nine, eliminated on the first day?" the short man finally spoke, his voice unexpectedly light, not too big for his age.

At this age, you can be on an equal footing with Lord Ba? Shen Chun suddenly became a little curious about the identity of the other party.

"The reasons are all written in the notes. They were anxious to inquire for clues, and spent all the money in one afternoon, and did not notice the meaning of the money until dinner. For the taxi, they couldn't survive the seventh day hungry, so they chose to abandon the test. ”

"Guy without perseverance. Baxingtian commented, "If you don't have it, you can rob others!"

"If they have the strength of yours, they can. Shen Chun smiled, "Xia Guan thinks that they can give up the exam by themselves, and they can be regarded as a little self-aware." Those who try to hold on will only make their failures more ugly. ”

The short man picked up the list and flipped through it, "So these people who are at the back of the money are facing elimination?"

"Back to adults, it is easier to be eliminated than others. Shen Chun was more serious about his question than answering Ba Xingtian, "When Fang Shi is on a mission, he often encounters unexpected situations, and only those who make reasonable and full use of the resources at hand have a chance to turn the danger into a disaster. ”

"But isn't it unfair that this man only had half a bag of silver in the first place?"

Shen Chun looked at the position of the other party's finger and found that the word "Xia Fan" was filled in that column. Compared with the ten taels in a row of other candidates, his less than five taels is indeed particularly eye-catching.

"We can only guarantee that the rules are generally fair, and whether or not the preparation is adequate is itself a sign of the degree of attention. He paused, "In addition, this person's expenses are not less than others, which proves that he is not aware of the extremely disadvantaged position, and it is normal for him to be eliminated." ”

The short man nodded, as if in agreement with him.

However, Shen Chun felt a little pity, he still had a little impression of this candidate named Xia Fan, after all, it is extremely rare for candidates to not be able to make up ten taels of silver, and it is difficult not to notice it. At that time, when everyone whispered ridicule, he was not affected in the slightest, and his response was quite mature, and his heart was commendable.

But in just one night, he spent all the money he had, and even the dinner was the most expensive one, as if he didn't know that he only had half of other people's belongings, and he had no vigilance at all.

It can only be said that he looked away.

"What is there to discuss about these incompetent people," Ba Xingtian waved his hand, "It's better to talk about the top three candidates this time." Who do you think they will be?"

The short man also flipped to the top of the list, and Shen Chun noticed that the time he spent on each page had become significantly longer, as if he wanted to write down the names of these candidates.

"Not surprisingly, Fei Nian of the Fei family, Fang Xiandao of the Fang family, and Luo Qing of the Luo family will be the top three in the examination room in Qingshan Town. Shen Chun reported word by word.

"One family?" said Ba Xingtian with a playful smile, "You can be considered a qualified invigilator." ”

"Adults have won prizes. Shen Chun bowed his head, and after many years of invigilation, he already understood that the taxi examination was not only in the selection of talents, but also in the distribution of benefits. What's more, these three people are indeed extremely talented, and they have been exposed to the cultivation of qi earlier than other candidates, so their performance cannot be any worse, and it is difficult to pick out the thorns inside and out. "Of course, the final result will have to be decided by the adults after the exam. ”

"Isn't there a single one who doesn't come from a family?" the short man suddenly asked, "not to mention the top three, even if it's within the top ten or twenty." ”

"This ......" Shen Chun hesitated, he seemed to hear some dissatisfaction in the other party's tone, "The ranking of the list does not represent the actual results, and in the end, it has to ......be based on the performance of the exam."

"Hehe, it's normal if you don't. Ba Xingtian interrupted him with a smile, "Think about it, if they are all good seedlings, one person is born poor, and he can only read and write at the age of ten, and the other person can read and write at the age of three, and he is angry at the age of five, which one has a greater prospect? If the former is stronger than the latter, it is inevitable that the word genius will be too valuable." ”

The short man did not answer again, as if in deep thought.

The Ombudsman cleared his throat and stood up.

This is something important to order, Shen Chun hurriedly stood up, arching his hands.

"I don't care about the exam rankings, you just look at it. Ba Xingtian turned his back to him and said, "Compared with the Shikao, the more important thing is to eliminate hidden dangers." You should be clear about the purpose of the Privy Council's sending us to oversee. ”

Shen Chun's heart jumped, he licked his lips, and then said tentatively, "Because of the 'listener'?"

"Well, you know. Ba Xingtian's tone sank suddenly, "Ten years ago, it was a felony for the invigilator to just know this word. ”

"The lower official has overstepped the ......"

"No problem, there's no secret that can never be divulged - unless anyone who knows about it is dead. Ba Xingtian waved his hand, and returned to his previous dismissive tone, "You have to keep your mouth shut, and you have to be on guard at all times, how can there be such a good thing in the world." If you notice anything unusual, good or bad, report it to me immediately. ”

"Yes, my lord!" Shen Chun bowed his head and promised. "But...... I've only heard the word listener mentioned, but I don't know what his characteristics are or how to tell them. I wonder if you can give me some more detailed clues?"

"Nothing. Because the listener is not a person, but a class of people. ”

Baxing Tian picked up a talisman and raised it casually, and then a breeze blew, and the surrounding insect chirping suddenly disappeared without a trace.

Shen Chun realized that it was a soundproof note.

"In fact, I don't know much about listeners. Only the four Heads of the Privy Council know the details. ”

"You...... Can't?"

"All I know is that they can hear something...... Something incredible, like a secret that no one in this world should know, or a magic that has never been seen before. "Tyrant said slowly, "But more than that, it was a completely incomprehensible whisper. This is also where the name of the listener comes from. ”

"Whispering?"

It's the kind of words that look at nothing on its own, but when it is connected together, the meaning is not clear. So they usually don't live long, they are either murdered or they go into madness, but before they go mad, they are enough to wreak astonishing damage. If there is an uncontrolled listener in my Great Apocalypse......"

"What will happen?"

Ba Xingtian looked at him deeply, "There is a danger of losing the country." ”

Shen Chun shuddered involuntarily.

He began to regret asking about it a little.

"Although anyone who can sense qi can become a listener, the probability is highest between the ages of ten and twenty - after all, it is during this period that most monks can steadily grasp the absorption and use of qi, so the Privy Council will start to focus on the shiko. Overlord stared at him, "You understand now?"

"Yes!Xiaguan will do his best!" Shen Chun bowed.

"Don't worry so much," the Ombudsman patted him on the shoulder with a fan-like palm, "I'm just doing what is customary." As far as I know, there hasn't been a suspicious listener in the last 10 years, which is why the ban on news has been relaxed. Guarding is guarding and guarding, and the taxi examination still has to be presided over concentratingly. ”

After hearing this, I was afraid that it would be difficult to ignore it anymore, Shen Chun smiled bitterly in his heart. The only thing he was glad about was that he was past and unlikely to go crazy one day. It's the short one......

He couldn't help but glance at the other person—according to the age of his tone, this person was probably under twenty years old, obviously in the high-risk range, but he didn't react at all from beginning to end, as if he didn't care about the listener's business at all, and this kind of state of mind could not even be described as calm.

Who the hell is he?

After hesitating for a moment, Shen Chun finally pressed this question into his heart.