It was Zhou Yan's turn, and he also casually drew a slip of paper from inside.
To be honest, Zhou Yan felt a bit nervous now, just drawing like this without using any of his abilities.
If he happened to draw an ancient poem or sage saying from this world, he would truly be in trouble and people would laugh at him.
Although Zhou Yan didn't care, he found it quite interesting at this moment.
It was like a max-level player mistakenly entering a bronze-tier match and then not knowing how to play, wouldn't that be awkward?
Zhou Yan still felt that everything should go with the flow; even if he drew one, he could only say it was his fate.
Zhou Yan handed the paper to the elder, but Lady Luck was still on his side, as it wasn't an ancient poem or sage saying from this world.
Instead, it was a riddle.
Riddles, too, were a standard for testing a person's literary talent.
Zhou Yan actually breathed a sigh of relief.
This feeling of being an ordinary person seemed quite interesting.
Zhou Yan had only been cultivating for a little over two years, but the actual time he had experienced was far more than two years. If he were to truly count the time spent in various dimensions, he had now lived for hundreds of years.
Zhou Yan's mindset had always been that of a top expert, and he had forgotten what it was like to be a nobody in the past.
Returning to being a nobody, the feeling immediately became different. He would feel nervous, scared, worried, and even care about what others thought.
This was precisely how a normal person should behave, wasn't it?
Zhou Yan seemed to have gained many insights from this, which was a way of life for "being human."
Seemingly small matters held a different significance for Zhou Yan.
It was difficult for those who hadn't reached Zhou Yan's level to comprehend.
The elder held the paper and said to Zhou Yan, "This is a riddle, it has four characters: 'Half of the Spring and Autumn Annals.' It asks you to guess one character."
Although the script of Luoyun Kingdom was very different from what Zhou Yan had learned, it was quite similar to ancient Chinese characters. Most of the characters were the same.
Zhang Xiyan was also thinking carefully about what this riddle meant, constantly pondering.
Zhang Hua, with his quick mind, already had an answer in his heart, but he didn't speak, not wanting to disturb Zhou Yan.
Zhang Hua felt that such matters shouldn't be difficult for an immortal master.
Zhou Yan, based on the riddle, also came up with the answer and said, "It's the character 'Qin,' isn't it?"
The elder nodded and said, "That's right, it is indeed the character Qin."
"Congratulations to the three of you, please come in." the elder said.
The three of them walked in, finding the test quite interesting, at least Zhou Yan found it extremely amusing.
This was probably the joy of ordinary people. To Zhou Yan, who had never experienced such activities, everything was novel.
From Luoyun Kingdom, Zhou Yan could see that the country was prosperous, and many officials emerged from humble backgrounds. He wondered how long such a country could last.
There were no eternally undying imperial dynasties, nor empires that lasted forever. Even divine kingdoms would eventually be destroyed.
Upon entering, Zhou Yan saw that many people were already present.
Zhang Hua took the initiative to introduce, "The Poetry Appreciation Assembly is divided into many types, and there will also be a 'Poetry King,' which is someone whose poems are unsurpassed..."
Zhang Hua began to explain some of the rules of the Poetry Appreciation Assembly to Zhou Yan. Although it was a poetry appreciation assembly, there were still many literary activities.
For example, titles like "Poetry King," "King of Couplets," "Riddle King," and so on.
No one could continuously hold the title of champion, because some outstanding individuals would emerge at the Poetry Appreciation Assembly each year. The strongest person only managed to win the "Poetry King" title for three consecutive years before being defeated.
Zhou Yan listened to these matters and found them very interesting, far more engaging than the poetry-writing activities he had encountered before.
Moreover, there were many participants this time, with no distinction between the wealthy and the poor. Everyone engaged in literary discussions, and no one cared about whether others came from humble beginnings.
Zhou Yan casually deduced the national destiny of Luoyun Kingdom and was somewhat surprised, "A national destiny of a million years!"
Zhou Yan also discovered that all of this seemed to be related to him. Zhou Yan felt that this was likely because he was going to help them solve the great disaster of the Xuan Yin Hall.
However, a national destiny of a million years truly shocked Zhou Yan.
Even in the myriad realms, there wouldn't be many countries with a national destiny of a million years, and he had just discovered one.
A country like this indeed attracted Zhou Yan, and he was very eager to understand what qualifications it possessed to have a national destiny of a million years.
Overall, the country seemed quite good. Although the common people were not very wealthy, the country was peaceful and prosperous. At least, Zhou Yan had not found anything he found unpleasant so far.
However, the country was so large that it was impossible for it to be without some pests. If there were none, it would be contrary to the heavenly dao.
Don't ask why; this was a natural occurrence, something that could not be eradicated. If it were eradicated, you would find that the entire country was too peaceful, so peaceful that the country might not even be necessary.
Why are there yin and yang sides?
If there were no yin side, how would you know that the yang side is white and the yin side is black?
If there were no bad people, how would you know that you are a good person?
The concept of "good person" was not established on the basis of the existence of "bad people" and "evil people"?
This was a kind of "dao."
It was an inevitable connection.
But evil would not overcome good; the positive side would always triumph over the evil side, and this too was inevitable.
It was precisely because of the existence of the bad side that we choose to be good people, to be positive people, which was the general trend, and this was also inevitable.
These were all insights gained by Zhou Yan after reaching his current level, a kind of "enlightenment" to his realm.
As the three competition modes began, Zhang Hua asked, "It seems like you also want to participate?"
Zhang Xiyan looked at her brother and frowned, asking, "Brother, you are so respectful to him. He isn't from the Xuan Yin Hall, is he?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? How could your brother have a good impression of the Xuan Yin Hall?" Zhang Hua quickly said.
"Don't worry, I will help deal with the Xuan Yin Hall. You can continue to be your happy little princess," Zhou Yan said.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiyan rolled her eyes at Zhou Yan and said, "As if that's true. If you can really destroy the Xuan Yin Hall, I'll treat you like an ancestor and have future generations offer incense to you forever."
"That's not a bad idea. You better keep your word," Zhou Yan said jokingly.
"King of Boasters, I don't believe you," Zhang Xiyan made a face. She was indeed very cute, like a cheerful little rabbit.
Zhang Hua was helpless. He suspected his sister might actually have to do that. The words and actions of royalty could not be taken lightly.
However, if Zhou Yan truly annihilated the Xuan Yin Hall, even if the entire country honored Zhou Yan for generations, it would be deserved.