Scripture of Days Past

"Does that mean there are many people in the Demon Vanquishing Department who are worthy of cultivating the four orthodox arts?" Chu Qiguang asked.

"No," Yang Ling replied with a shake of his head. "It's already been twelve years since any trainee on Jade Face Mountain was deemed worthy of cultivating one of the four orthodox arts. However, there are many people in the Demon Vanquishing Department.

“They may have been deemed unworthy during their time on Jade Face Mountain, but they've continued to grow and develop after leaving the mountain, and if they've made some significant contributions as well, then there's no reason why the Demon Vanquishing Department wouldn't at least give them the opportunity to try cultivating one of the four orthodox arts.

"None of the trainees on Jade Face Mountain in recent years have been deemed worthy, but that doesn't mean there are no worthy candidates in the Demon Vanquishing Department."

According to Yang Ling, the four factions of the Demon Vanquishing Department provided resources to their most elite talents so that they could attempt to cultivate the four orthodox arts. These people were known as Dao Comprehension Seeds.

Even among Dao Comprehension Seeds, there was a pecking order, and those closer to the top naturally received more resources from the Demon Vanquishing Department.

"The four orthodox arts aren't easy to cultivate," Yang Ling continued. "Without the resources provided by the Demon Vanquishing Department, it'll be next to impossible for you to prepare the medicinal baths and bodily refinement by lightning required to cultivate the Lightning Screech on your own. If you think the pecking order is determined by aptitude alone, then you're far too naive.

"Hundreds of thousands of taels of silver go into this every year, along with all kinds of priceless pills, talismans, armor, weapons... Every Dao Comprehension Seed needs the backing of at least a provincial thousand-man commander."

At the mention of the concept of provincial thousand-man commander, Yang Ling provided further explanation.

At the head of the Demon Vanquishing Department was the Demon Vanquishing Envoy, and below him were the two assistant envoys. They were followed by fifteen thousand-man commanders, each of whom presided over a province.

However, the actual number of thousand-man commanders far exceeded fifteen, and those other thousand-man commanders received their official titles through various means, such as inheritances, honorary titles, and so on.

The Demon Vanquishing Department had existed for close to two hundred years. Even if each emperor had granted only several dozen thousand-man commander titles, that number added up over time.

Efforts had been made to get rid of some of these thousand-man commanders and make the Demon Vanquishing Department less bloated, but it was a very touchy subject, and there was always a risk of making enemies out of certain people.

Due to the excessive number of thousand-man commanders, the term "provincial thousand-man commander" had been coined to describe those who actually presided over a province.

"If you want to thrive in the Demon Vanquishing Department, then you need to find a good backer, and right now, the head instructor is your best choice. He's a Dao Comprehension-state martial god and one of the most respected figures in the Fiend Assassin Faction, so he holds a very lofty position in the entire Demon Vanquishing Department."

After speaking with Yang Ling, Chu Qiguang gained a much clearer understanding of the hierarchy within the Demon Vanquishing Department.

Chu Qiguang pulled a bag out of his pocket and handed it to Yang Ling, who opened it to discover five thousand taels' worth of silver notes inside.[1]

"Can that much money really be embezzled from procurement assignments these days?" Yang Ling exclaimed.

"I haven't embezzled so much as a single copper coin from the procurement assignments," Chu Qiguang scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I earned this money through business. You're being transferred to the capital tomorrow, right? You're going to need money if you want to build connections in the capital."

Yang Ling didn't know what to say. He had never been given this much money before, and the feeling was exhilarating. However, the thought that the largest sum of money he had received during his time in the Demon Vanquishing Department had come from a fiend was a rather... strange pill to swallow.

"What do you want from me in exchange?" Yang Ling asked.

"When you reach the capital, write me a letter with your address," Chu Qiguang requested. "You can use these five thousand taels of silver however you see fit, but make sure you remain in the capital. If you need more money, you can come to me."

"That's it? You don't need me to do anything for you?" Yang Ling asked.

"Not for now," Chu Qiguang replied. "If I had to give you a task, I suppose it would be to establish more connections in the capital and keep an eye out for useful information."

"Is there anything else?" Yang Ling asked.

"Ah yes. Can you tell me what the head instructor likes?" Chu Qiguang asked.

***

Sixteenth year of the Yong'an Era, late September.

Inside the archive building, Chu Qiguang had just finished reading a page from the Corpse Codex, one of the books kept on the second floor.

It was an ancient scripture filled with astounding and bewildering images. Its contents were arranged in a very chaotic fashion, resembling the ramblings of a madman written down on paper, yet it contained many secrets about ghosts that were far darker and more profound than what Yi Shuang had taught him.

As soon as he finished reading the page, Lin Lan turned to him with wide eyes, as if she were staring at a lavish feast.

Just as Lin Lan was about to pounce on him, everything he had just read was absorbed by his Ring of Ignorance, following which a new boon surged into his eyes.

Moments later, he opened his eyes, but the world that he saw through them didn't appear any different.

Was that an ineffective boon? Wait, no...

A memory began to take shape in his mind, and he sensed that his Dao pursuer eyes had gained a new ability.

***

Dragon ocular power.

Dragons have always been regarded as envoys of the gods. Their eyes are always able to see the way forward, and it's said that the gods bestow special ocular powers upon the dragons that catch their fancy.

***

Sixteenth year of the Yong'an Era, early October.

Autumn had arrived, and the forest floor on Jade Face Mountain was blanketed with yellow leaves.

Chen Gang had just cracked an egg onto a stone slab, and it immediately began to sizzle and cook.

Chen Gang hurriedly backed away to avoid being burned.

Meanwhile, Chu Qiguang was cultivating the Sumeru King Scripture, and waves of intense heat were radiating from his body.

All of a sudden, a black tentacle shot out of his shadow and wrapped itself around his leg.

That's the ninth one.

At the same time, a new line of text emerged from the Sumeru King Scripture.

"4,920 days 16 hours 23 minutes 24 seconds."

"4,920 days 16 hours 23 minutes 23 seconds."

Is this a countdown showing how much longer I have to cultivate the Sumeru King Scripture before I reach the Dao Comprehension state? Is this what it meant when it said that the dragon ocular power can always see the way forward? But this is way too long! Even though Iwould surely undergo demonification if I had to cultivate the Sumeru King Scripture for this long.

Over the next few days, Chu Qiguang conducted several experiments, and discovered that every new Buddhist scripture he read reduced the countdown by twenty hours.

1. Silver notes in ancient China were basically the equivalent of cheques today. ☜

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