58: Chapter 57: A Huge Uproar 58: Chapter 57: A Huge Uproar When Hou Niao returned to the Detention Room, the attitudes of the other five people in the room were somewhat subtle.

All natives of Jin City with family serving in the Quanzhen Sect, they were quite sensitive to certain matters.

Just as Hou Niao had brewed his first pot of tea for the day, someone already stood in front of him.

It was Jiang Nanying, whose father held a position in the Central Military Mansion,

“In the fourth brigade of the Prefecture Office’s Inspectorate in South City, the ‘A’ team has never had a leader.

From today onward, it does.

We are willing to honor Senior Brother Hou as our leader.”

Jiang Nanying had barely finished speaking when Yu Guanglie also came over.

His background was somewhat similar to that of a few women from Tianxiang Building, but fortunately, his father had several life-and-death brothers within the Sect, so his journey had been smooth sailing, and he didn’t feel the hardships of daily life and cultivation,

“Senior Brother Hou, on behalf of those fallen Quanzhen brothers, I thank you.

If you have any demands in the future, just say the word, and Guanglie will not hesitate to oblige.”

Hou Niao felt a bit embarrassed.

His actions weren’t entirely selfless, and now this adulation made him feel undeserving.

Then came Ma Rujun, a small and thin figure, seemingly not fully grown, but in fact, he was the oldest among them besides Hou Niao.

His grand-uncle presided over a very important city on the Tianfeng Plain.

His way of expressing goodwill was quite amusing,

“Senior Brother Hou, are you married?

I have a cousin who remains in the ladies’ chamber, skilled in zither, chess, calligraphy, painting…

and she possesses a face that could launch a thousand ships…”

Zong Qian was an extremely handsome young man, tall and strong.

His background was unclear, rumored to be from the Mu Shuai Mansion, yet nobody could confirm it,

“Please take me with you next time you exercise your authority, Senior Brother Hou.

I will give it my all!”

Last came Wang Mian, a silent person.

It was said that he wasn’t from Tianfeng Plain but an outsider from the Capital of Jade?

“I want to spar with you!”

Hou Niao was quite troubled.

He himself hadn’t even cleaned up his own mess, so how could he find the time to lead a bunch of juniors?

And each of these juniors was extraordinary.

He also wondered how they all ended up in South City?

Regarding Realms, to knowledgeable cultivators, they didn’t place too much importance on what level one reached before the age of twenty.

Being exceptional as a child but average as an adult was a common state in the world of cultivation.

Some young people raced ahead in their cultivation, a testament to their attitude towards training; others deliberately suppressed their growth, aiming to develop a foundation as solid as possible, preparing for their future soaring to great heights—another approach to cultivation, each with its strengths.

In Hou Niao’s view, given their family backgrounds, it would not have been difficult for them to enter the Essence Building Realm before the age of fifteen.

Yet, they deliberately dragged their progress, still in the Energy Induction stage nearing twenty.

The reasoning behind this was quite intriguing.

Unlike him, it wasn’t a matter of suppressing his realm but of having no choice in the matter.

“Hehe, let’s learn from each other and improve together…”

What else could he say?

But Hou Niao’s embarrassment was short-lived.

Inspector Huang came over with a cheery smile, carrying a teapot,

“Senior Brother Hou, here’s the thing.

Considering that you’ve only arrived in Jin City recently and might not have fully handled all the trivial matters of life, several superiors, out of concern for their subordinates, feel it’s best to give you more time to adapt to life in Jin City by giving you a leave…

You go back and rest for now, and wait for further notice…”

Hou Niao was somewhat speechless.

Was this how the authorities of South City decided to shirk responsibility or perhaps to keep him from causing trouble?

So they planned to put him on ice?

Not bad, the most standard solution in officialdom.

…A significant uproar rose in Jin City.

The Mu Shuai Mansion and the Capital Commandant joined forces for a strike, causing chaos throughout Jin City, leaving the populace in a state of anxiety.

However, the instigator appeared to be unrelated.

No one sought him out, fearing they would be implicated, suspected as the puppet master behind the relief case.

This was exactly what he wanted, to be free from disturbances and to concentrate on his cultivation.

There were indeed unmentionable reasons for his actions at Tianxiang Building.

Since joining the Quanzhen Sect, as he gradually integrated into the Quanzhen system and became more and more familiar with this colossal entity, he started to question his own experiences.

If the Quanzhen Sect were a completely ascetic cultivation organization, unconcerned with worldly affairs and unmixed with mundane conflicts, then his situation might be understandable.

After all, cultivators are capricious, and some inexplicable actions by chance are quite normal.

But the Quanzhen Sect was different, being a cultivation organization with unusually close ties to the secular world, naturally, it would not be so lofty and indifferent.

Each operation of the organization had its own patterns and purposes, seldom making headless decisions.

Under such premises, how could he, with his low realm, a foreigner without any connections or background, have gained the favor of Jin City’s top three magnates, Capital Commandant Li?

He didn’t have the habit of self-indulgence and did not believe he was so enchanting that everyone would love him; nor did he consider himself to have outlandish luck, blessed by heaven.

If Capital Commandant Li had a purpose, then what was it?

Considering the nature of the office he held, some things began to become quite obvious.

To see a person’s true nature, one should not push them away but observe them closely, right in front of their eyes.

If one has a guilty conscience, they will think a lot, which is what is meant by “suspicious minds breed dark demons”; if he had genuinely joined the Quanzhen Sect, he would not have thought so much, but he didn’t, he was an utterly contemptible mole.

So at Tianxiang Building, when he was dragged in by those bailiffs, at first he was completely unwilling, even having the mindset to ignore everything and let the ‘big dragon’ fend for itself; but when he saw the various characters in the main hall, and Daoist Wang attending downstairs, he knew this was an opportunity not to be missed.

The biggest trait of a mole is to keep a low profile, but since he had already caught the eye of Jin City’s biggest intelligence boss, Capital Commandant Li, keeping a low profile no longer held meaning— even if he tried to tuck his tail between his legs, someone would still want to spread his legs open to see what exactly he was hiding.

There was only one path left— to do the opposite, to act with high visibility!

That was why he killed people and tore off the veil of shame that no one in Jin City’s cultivation world wanted to lift.

Was he the only one who knew something like this?

That would indeed be absurd!

If he, a newcomer, could sense the fishiness, then were those native Jin City cultivators, having lived for decades or even a century, completely unaware?

It was nothing more than that the implications were too broad, so they turned a blind eye and a deaf ear, staying aloof…

Perhaps they could even gain some benefits from it?

The purpose was simple, no need for you to secretly watch me—I’ll jump out myself, all right?

And it was done with sincere intentions, earnestly advocating for the vulnerable group among the Quanzhen disciples!

You can hate me, but in this scenario, you still have to respect me, because I stand on the side of righteousness!

The cause of justice!

As for offending many people?

What does it matter?

Others care because they plan to spend a lifetime in the Quanzhen Sect, but does he, someone who plans to switch back to the Daoist Sect in a few years, need to care?

He thought it was perfect, thus came about the righteous bailiff at Tianxiang Building.

By the way, to pretend to be…