Hidden Dragon Trials

## Summary

The heirs and rulers of each dukedom had gathered in order to participate in the vicennial Hidden Dragon Trials.There were 108 dukedoms in the Eastern Kingdom, but the rulers of these dukedoms were not carved in stone. The Hidden Dragon Trials that took place every twenty years were a test for the designated heirs.Only if the heir successfully passed the Hidden Dragon Trials was he allowed to retain command over the family’s dukedom, territory and heritage.If he failed, the family would have to relinquish command, have their lands seized and their title revoked. They would revert to being a wealthy family with no power or prestige.If they became a family with no might or clout, then their collapse and eventual demise would be very likely. Just as monkeys scatter when a tree falls, it would be a foregone conclusion that their influence would be diminished, and that people would abandon the family.

After all, losing the dukedom meant that the family had lost all trappings of power and many sources of income. The family would have to subsist on their savings, and that was not enough to feed an army of underlings and guards. The royal family would also not allow those who had lost their dukedoms to thrive and grow stronger than the current dukes. The Hidden Dragon Trials were quite lengthy as they spanned over three years.

At the end of the three years, a ceremony of inheritance would be held in the capital for the heirs who had successfully passed the tests. This meant that the power of a duchy and its lands were retained for another twenty years.And after twenty years, a representative from the new generation must be sent to participate in the Hidden Dragon Trials. The purpose of the Hidden Dragon Trials was to ensure that each dukedom maintained a situation of cultivating a plethora of talents, and to avoid halts on the path of self-improvement.If you couldn’t pass, then you lost the family’s dukedom.These were the rules of survival in this world.

Simple. Direct. Brutal. Violent!

## Staff

* **Main Organizer :** Eastern Gouyu
* **Assistant Organizer :** Du Ruhai
* **Examiners:** Examiner Hua, Examiner Zhao, Organizer Ma

## Part 1 : Exam Missions

Exams are missions divided into nine levels. The missions of different levels represent each dukedom’s rank, there were 108 dukes in the Eastern Kingdom that were divided into nine levels of ranks. Each rank consists of twelve dukes, and so on and so fort. For instance, dukes ranked one through twelve were all dukes of the first rank, and there were naturally levels within the first rank.

Levels one through four were the four great dukes of the kingdom and honored with the title of utmost first rank. Levels five through eight were honored with the title primary first rank. Levels nine through twelve were labelled auxiliary first rank. When it came to second rank and dukes ranked even lower, there was no title of “utmost”. Each rank was also divided into three levels. With second rank as an example, they were divided into upper second rank, middle second rank, and lower second rank.

And the Hidden Dragon Trials were a contest to determine the rankings of the next generation of nobles. The 108 heirs could apply for a mission of any rank. Of course, each heir candidate only had two application chances. If both times didn’t result in a completed mission, that meant one had failed the exam and had to handover the dukedom, to allow the big and powerful aristocratic families to continuously take their place. Many of the heirs would be exceedingly cautious because there were only two application chances, and sought to make the best out of these two chances.

According to the rules, each heir must complete three missions to pass this particular exam. If a single mission is failed, that will be deemed as failing this application. The three missions had to be completed within three months. One month for each mission at most.

When the exams were over and the 108 nobles were present again, after weeding out and replacing the appropriate ones, the ranking contests would commence according to each rank. This was to say that, when rank were decided, the twelve heirs of the first rank would only be able to challenge others within the first rank to determine the final rankings. The competitions within each rank were for the final rankings. The heirs could leave after selecting their first mission. They only needed to come back when they had completed a mission in the future to select their second mission.

The participating heirs had to absolutely keep their identities a secret. They could not mobilize any connections. If they used any connections without authorization, they would immediately be judged as failing the mission if discovered. As a punishment for cheating, their dukedom would be confiscated.