Chapter 125: The Nine Strikes of Thunder, a Legendary Masterpiece!!

"Oh?"

Commissioner Fan’s eyebrows shot up violently upon hearing this. He turned around, his gaze burning with hope as he looked at Song Mu.

"You can finish it right now?"

Song Mu nodded. In truth, this was a small precaution he had taken. Previously, to avoid stirring the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, he had always written the *Three Character Classic* in short segments, then carefully deliberated and revised them. Even today, what he had brought to Commissioner Fan was merely an initial version. Unsure if the revisions were perfect, he had intentionally left the final lines unwritten.

"Come, step forward and finish it right here in front of me."

Commissioner Fan, quite agitated, gestured for Song Mu to approach. He vacated his own seat and helped gather the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone from the academy hall for him. Song Mu offered a polite apology before lifting his robes and stepping forward.

Staring at the paper spread out before him, with Commissioner Fan standing close by, watching intently, Song Mu took a deep breath. He picked up a brush and lightly dipped it into the ink.

"Dogs guard the night, roosters announce the dawn."
"If one does not learn, how can one be a person?"
...
"Diligence has its rewards, play has no benefit."
"Take heed of this, and strive with all your might."

Song Mu wrote in one continuous flow, his brush dancing rapidly across the page. In mere moments, he had completed the final lines of the *Three Character Classic*.

The moment his brush moved, ripples of literary energy began to emanate from the paper, surging into the surrounding space. The sensation grew increasingly intense; even Commissioner Fan could feel the sudden shift in his environment. The instant Song Mu finished the *Three Character Classic*, the entire hall was enveloped in a dense, surging tide of literary energy.

The thick, concentrated energy turned their surroundings into a world of pure white, to the point where one could not even see their own hand before their face.

The extraordinary nature of the event did not end there. The very moment the work was completed, a clap of thunder suddenly erupted from the overcast sky. Then came a second, then a third...

Autumn thunder—it was truly alarming!

The thunder did not cease; it rang out nine times in total! Each peal was deafening, each louder than the last. Students within the prefecture academy stopped in their tracks, looking up at the sky with faces full of bewilderment.

Almost immediately, the instructors of the academy rushed out. Two instructors, both holding the rank of Tongjinshi, rose into the air. Even Tao Fengming, who had been reading leisurely in the courtyard, suddenly looked up at the sky.

"Nine peals of thunder? This is..."

Tao Fengming murmured, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the surroundings. His figure suddenly blurred like a double image and vanished from where he stood.

The two Tongjinshi instructors were already hovering above the academy. Xiao Li’s gaze was immediately drawn to the school hall not far away. Boundless, swirling white mist was pouring out of it, and the literary energy in the surrounding sky had turned into a gale, rushing madly toward the hall.

"This..." Xiao Li frowned. The other instructor, Lin Jie, looked over and asked, "Brother Xiao, what is going on?"

"I am not sure. Autumn thunder—unless someone has used a forbidden technique that offends the heavens, it must be that a monumental literary work has been birthed!"

"Could it be that the Commissioner has written a heaven-shaking masterpiece?" Both men wore expressions of astonishment. On the ground, a dozen Juren scholars were also rushing toward the scene.

"Xiao Xiong, tell everyone not to approach the school hall."

Xiao Li’s voice descended from the sky. Xiao Xiong, who had been about to speak, froze. He bowed and nodded, "Understood, Father!"

Xiao Li and Lin Jie then shot toward the school hall.

Inside the hall, the surging literary energy was erupting violently from the parchment. The sheer force blew Commissioner Fan’s beard and hair back, making him look like a lion with its mane caught in a gale. Yet, his gaze remained fixed firmly on Song Mu. His eyes were wide, nearly bulging from his head, as he muttered, "Seventeen years old, a monumental work passed down through the ages, nine peals of thunder."

"Good! A heaven-gifted talent! Good!"

Commissioner Fan exclaimed in praise. By this time, Song Mu had closed his eyes. Although the tip of his brush had left the paper, the literary energy flowing from the scroll, combined with the energy gathered from the heavens and earth, was clinging to the pages and pouring incessantly into Song Mu’s body.

Song Mu felt a massive influx of energy flooding his system. He did not need to guide it; the energy surged through his meridians, and under the influence of his Dantian, it began to condense into solid channels of literary power. His internal strength was growing at a visible rate—a sensation that was truly terrifying.

Song Mu could not control the process; he could only close his eyes, calm his heart, and patiently wait for all the energy to be absorbed.

However, at that moment, the unexpected occurred.

The stone table holding the *Three Character Classic* could no longer support the weight of the paper’s energy and shattered into pieces.

The immense wave of literary energy had now spread from the hall to the entire academy. Numerous students stopped what they were doing; they looked up at the sky, then slowly raised their hands, feeling the air, their faces filled with shock.

"Why do I feel like my own literary power is automatically absorbing the energy and circulating on its own?"

"Yes, I feel it too! What is happening?!"

The students erupted in shouts of surprise. Some immediately sat cross-legged on the ground, seizing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a breakthrough. The academy became a scene of jubilation; even the trees surrounding the school hall began to sprout new buds in the middle of autumn.

The literary energy cleansed everything it touched, nourishing all it encountered!

Throughout the entire Shiyang Prefecture city, several masterpieces written by great Confucian scholars on the city walls began to glow. Characters and light shadows flickered, and gusts of wind blew from all directions. The city guards braced themselves as if facing a formidable enemy.

Qiu Buchu suddenly landed on the city wall. Seeing the scene, he calmed the men.

"This is not a demon attack!"

Qiu Buchu said composedly, though his heart stirred as he looked toward the city center.

"This is the manifestation of a monumental work. Once such a piece is written, it invites the jealousy of Heaven, causing thunder to roll and the works of the hundred schools to resonate in harmony!"

"Who could this be? My Shiyang Prefecture actually possesses such a literary talent?!"

Qiu Buchu said, filled with awe and shock. In the next instant, his figure vanished from the wall.

Back in the school hall, Xiao Li and Lin Jie had arrived before Commissioner Fan. They stood in the courtyard, seeing that the surging energy originated from a single scroll, which had already sunk several inches into the floor. A familiar figure stood before them.

"Commissioner, this is... could this have been triggered by Song Mu?"

Xiao Li asked Commissioner Fan in disbelief. The Commissioner wore a wry smile, mixed with a sense of wonder.

"Yes, it was him."

"Then he... has he written a work that will be passed down for generations?" Lin Jie asked, his face equally filled with fear and reverence.

Commissioner Fan had slowly calmed down, his eyes filled with admiration as he watched Song Mu, who was still meditating with his eyes closed.

"Indeed. A monumental work, a poem for the ages. The Song family of Shiyang has endured seventeen generations, losing so many brilliant literary minds, but at last, they have achieved rebirth from the ashes."

"This time, I fear even the great Confucian Song Wenrong could not have imagined that Heaven would send a Star of Literature to the Song family."