Demon Sword Sect’s Undercover
Chapter 410 - 410 409 Occupational Troubles

410: Chapter 409: Occupational Troubles 410: Chapter 409: Occupational Troubles In a secluded courtyard south of Jin City, Daoist Wang stood by the window, quite troubled.

With Capital Commandant Li gone, he had lost his main support.

Continuing in the role of a housekeeper seemed somewhat inappropriate?

A master of the Tongtian Realm would employ junior cultivators from Bridge Connection, but for a Golden Core Upper Cultivator to use a junior one seemed incorrect; normally, people in his role maintained cultivation one Realm lower than their master, otherwise many private affairs would be hard to handle, being beyond one’s ability.

Thus, he rationally declined the offer to follow Li Chuping to the Jade Capital, to avoid embarrassment for everyone.

Over the years, he had amassed some savings, and with Li Chuping’s help, he had just managed to ascend to the Tongxuan Realm three years ago, narrowly passing this checkpoint, and joyfully gaining an additional fifty years of life.

While outsiders saw this as a glorious celebration, only he knew of the reluctance hidden beneath the surface glamour.

His ascension was not normal; he had resorted to a method popular in the business circles, a kind of “water injection,” an ascension that cut corners.

He was driven to this by reality, because if he didn’t do it now, as he aged, even this type of diminished ascension might not be guaranteed.

This was a choice made after weighing several options, long accustomed to a comfortable environment and burdened by family obligations, so it was not surprising.

He had thought, with Capital Commandant Li’s influence, this level of cultivation could ensure a carefree remainder of his life in Jin City’s Capital Commandant’s Mansion, mostly dealing with paperwork that required no great power; but things had turned out to be far more complicated than he had imagined.

With a new officer’s zeal, Ouyang Mi, upon taking office, began promoting newcomers aggressively, cultivating his own direct sources of power; this trend left his former position as a private steward to the Capital Commandant quite awkward.

The new Capital Commandant was very capable and did not directly dismiss or transfer him, as that would have offended many potential powers in Jin City.

Instead, he adopted a seemingly fair method—an internal examination at the Commandant’s Mansion.

Inside the Shan Sect and Quanzhen Sect, each system has its own assessment system; there are no competitions between different systems within the Quanzhen Sect, supposedly to maintain unity since their duties differ and there’s no necessity for competition.

However, within the mansions of Sima, Sikong, and Situ, assessments are inevitable, self-regulated, and part of the system’s authority.

With major examinations above, there were minor ones below, specific to the government offices of the states, like the Shepherd’s Mansion, the Central Army’s Mansion, and the Capital Commandant’s Mansion, each following its own set of rules.

Of course, it wasn’t merely a simple test of competence—too crude a method; rather, it depended on the will of the different main officials, like You Sunzhi in the Shepherd’s Mansion, who implemented a merit assessment, a written examination;

Gao Jianli’s Central Army’s Mansion featured arena-style confrontations, a method accepted by most.

Li Chuping’s examination at the Capital Commandant’s Mansion was based on task completion, process, and results.

The three mansions were different, each with its own tradition.

After taking office, Ouyang Mi of course continued the Sikong line’s method, putting performance not entirely on literary contests nor as confrontation-intense as the Central Army’s Mansion, but still typical of the Sikong line, task-driven.

The difference was that the tasks during the era of Li Chuping were not as challenging as those under Ouyang Mi, who aimed to weed out some of the old guards with extremely tricky tasks, resulting in half of the old staff at the Commandant’s Mansion leaving within just five years.

Now only the stalwarts from Li Chuping’s era remained, including him, Daoist Wang.

It was finally his turn.

This was an out-of-province mission, no small challenge, somewhat akin to the duties of a Supervisor, but he knew his own capabilities, and such tasks were exceedingly difficult for him; Ouyang the Capital Commandant made it very clear—if he did well, he could continue working at the Commandant’s Mansion.

If not, he would have to consider transfer or internal retirement.

He was placed on the hot seat.

With long sighs, he began to reminisce about the carefree cultivation life under Capital Commandant Li, now gone forever.

Such matters, he couldn’t even mention to Capital Commandant Li in the Jade Capital—too embarrassing.

With a mind in turmoil, he seriously contemplated his situation if he chose retirement; this year he was approaching the critical age of sixty, a very awkward age where it was clear to any perceptive person that he had no hope of ascending further, but it was still a bit early to retire, truly a dilemma.

A servant quietly approached the door, “Master, there is a visiting Master from outside.

He says he is your friend from Yinling from over a decade ago.”

Daoist Wang was startled, then realized who it might be, his heart rejoicing, Could it be him?

“Quick, quick, quick, have him come to the study, prepare Dragon Tongue Tea, no, I’ll do it myself.”

In the study, the two sat across from each other and reflected.

Daoist Wang lamented, “It’s been a decade since we last met, and I never imagined Brother Hou would have reached the second Realm of Tongtian.

Truly concealed as a needle in a pouch, only to be revealed at the proper moment.

The Capital Commandant was truly divine; out of so many disciples, he chose you at a glance…”

Hou Niao smiled; the situation was not as simple as Daoist Wang thought, of course, there was no need to clarify that.

“Isn’t it the same for Senior Brother?

Just one more step up the ladder, and the path to the Great Dao is within reach.”

Daoist Wang waved his hand dismissively, “Let’s be frank, I can still put on an act in front of others, but there’s no need to lose face in front of a brother.

My cultivation in the Tongxuan Realm is merely bolstered by resources, my Sword Consciousness undeveloped, combat power sloppy, not to speak of any prospects, how can we talk about imminent success?”

Hou Niao of course knew; from the moment he saw his senior brother, he was aware—his aura unstable, Inner Secret impure, Mana insufficient.

He had seen too many such cultivators in Mirage City, all following the merchant’s methods.

But such methods could only promote one so far, saying nothing of reaching Golden Core, even the two realms after Tongtian seemed bleak; really, there was no promising future to speak of, but such thoughts remained unspoken.

“Senior Brother is just new to this realm and still not stable, that’s all.

As long as the Dao Heart is constant, nothing is impossible,” Hou Niao comforted.

Daoist Wang did not elaborate further, such matters were too complex to be clarified in words.

Ten years had passed, and there was too much to share, especially the matters of Da Feng Plain and Jin City which he knew much more about than Fang Yazi.

During their conversation, the events and people of those ten years gradually unfolded before Hou Niao.

Actually, very little was directly related to him; he had spent most of his time in Da Feng Plain in Yinling, a humble place of no great disturbances.

As for the rights and wrongs of Jin City, by the time he had the qualifications to be involved, he had already left for faraway Linhai, so he was actually unfamiliar with Jin City, and to Jin City he was even more a stranger.

This was why he was able to move in silence after his return; his friends had either left or dispersed.

He had no interest in getting involved; after encountering more cultivators at Lizhi Sea, his ambitions had grown beyond the affairs within Shan Country.

As he grew older, his heart had become wilder.