The Speedrun Begins with Choosing Hunter

Chapter 356: Chapter 350: Entering the Capital

Time flew by.

As the war in the Northern Territory gradually subsided, Ling Province surprisingly began to show signs of stability.

The growing population recorded in the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office’s household registers was the best evidence of this.

To facilitate taxation, Xuan Yang required everyone to be registered and assigned a household status. During times of war and chaos, however, many commoners would flee deep into the mountains to live off the record, only re-emerging after peace was restored.

Aside from a small number of people from the Outer States, most of the new additions to the household registers were actually refugees who had previously fled into the mountains.

The attitudes of various government offices toward these people differed greatly.

In the Central Plains, where governance was strictest, these refugees would have certainly been branded with a lowly status or even convicted of serious crimes.

In comparison, Kong Sen’s approach was much gentler. As long as a person was not a fugitive fleeing from a crime, they were allowed to return to their hometown. After all, Ling Province currently had very little to its name.

Thanks to these lenient measures, the population of Huanglong Prefecture grew, and it began to resemble its prosperous past.

As the General, Bai Yuan naturally did not need to concern himself with such matters.

Under his suppression, demonic disturbances in Ling Province had become almost unheard of. Otherwise, even if Kong Sen had wanted to be lenient, the circumstances would not have allowed it.

In the Bai Mansion.

"Master, look!"

Fang E’s voice was sweet and lively.

She moved as gracefully as a swallow, gliding effortlessly over rooftops and eaves. Her Lightweight Technique had already reached a decent level of mastery.

Bai Yuan smiled with gratification.

This new disciple he had casually taken in truly had heaven-defying talent, not at all inferior to his first disciple, Murong Fu.

Murong Fu was the genius of his generation in the Murong Family, a surefire future Sensing Grandmaster. For Fang E to be his equal, her aptitude could only be described as monstrous.

Thanks to her "Water-Soft Bones," Fang E’s cultivation of Daoist techniques was completely natural, and her realm advanced with incredible speed.

Her Lightweight Technique was particularly impressive.

A skill that took others ten years to master, this little girl had achieved in just a few months.

Fang E leaped from the roof, landing as light as a feather before Bai Yuan.

She had undergone a profound and subtle transformation, blossoming into a graceful young woman. If her parents from the Fang Family were to see her now, they would surely not recognize her.

Bai Yuan put on a stern face. "These are just elementary tricks. You haven’t even crossed the threshold."

"Oh."

Fang E replied with an obedient "oh."

Though she said as much, she was likely still unconvinced in her heart.

Bai Yuan felt a headache coming on as he looked at his disciple.

Compared to Murong Fu, Fang E’s personality was far more energetic and unrestrained, so Bai Yuan felt he had to rein in the little girl’s wild streak.

Just as Bai Yuan was exercising his duties as a master, Yang Fangyu walked over.

"Getting another lecture, Little Mo’er?"

Yang Fangyu had a gloating look on his face.

He had long been familiar with Bai Yuan’s new female disciple. Unlike her deference to Bai Yuan, Fang E paid no mind to seniority when it came to Yang Fangyu, and the two often bickered.

Seeing this "bad uncle" Yang Fangyu, Fang E pouted.

Yang Fangyu took a document from his robes. "Ah Yuan, the missive from the Ministry of Personnel has arrived."

Bai Yuan took the gilt-edged letter from Yang Fangyu’s hand.

This was the official order transferring him to the Capital City to serve in the Court.

Now that he was on the Hidden Dragon List, this was inevitable.

Although provincial officials could become major figures like a Jiedu Envoy, they still needed experience serving in the capital. Otherwise, how could one expect to be entrusted with great responsibility without ever having met the Emperor?

This document had been personally drafted by the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and approved by the Emperor.

As for why a Holy Decree wasn’t used... you think they hand those out like candy?

Someone like Bai Yuan, who had already received three Holy Decrees, was already a top figure in the Court.

Yang Fangyu looked reluctant to see him go. "When do you plan to leave?"

"It should be tomorrow."

"I won’t see you off, then."

Bai Yuan nodded.

Of course, he hadn’t just learned about his appointment. In fact, for official appointments and dismissals, the Ministry of Personnel usually gave advanced notice. The official document was merely the final step in the process.

He, Li Huan, and Yang Fangyu had already gotten drunk together several times, so there was really no need for a formal send-off.

Fang E blinked.

’The Capital City?!’

Of course, she knew her master was heading to the Capital City to take up an official post.

Back on Dan Mountain, she had often heard Grandpa Zhou tell legends of the Capital City. It was the capital of Xuan Yang, a city whose streets were paved with gold!

Bai Yuan’s first disciple, Murong Fu, was a member of the Murong Clan and would naturally be staying on Shenfu Mountain.

Fang E was still young and her foundation was shallow, so she had no choice but to follow Bai Yuan to the Capital City.

For this, Murong Fu had been fiercely envious for a long time.

Yang Fangyu forced himself to lift his spirits. "That fellow Li Huan has unfortunate timing; he had to return to Ling Province on business. Ah Yuan, when you get to the Capital City, you can look for Yang Ting, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works. He’s my clan uncle."

But he had barely finished speaking when he gave a self-deprecating laugh.

With the backers Bai Yuan currently had—Dong Wanjun, Xu Dingchun, Yan Shao’an—the mere mention of these powerful figures’ names was enough to scare anyone to death.

Bai Yuan nodded seriously. "If I run into trouble, I will."

Yang Fangyu blinked. "On second thought, Ah Yuan, maybe let’s just forget I said anything."

He suddenly realized that if there was a problem even Bai Yuan couldn’t solve, his clan uncle most likely couldn’t solve it either. In fact, his uncle might even get dragged down with him.

The members of the Yang Family’s current generation had not had smooth sailing in their official careers.

The highest-ranking among them was merely a second-rank Vice Minister, who would be of limited help to Bai Yuan.

...

「The next morning.」

Bai Yuan tucked the missive from the Ministry of Personnel into his robes and left Huanglong Prefecture with the young girl, Fang E.

His roots in Huanglong Prefecture ran deep, so he had no need to worry about leaving.

Never mind the power of the Divine Mansion Sect or the fact that Yang Fangyu was the Vice Governor of Lingzhou; his status as a quasi-disciple of Yan Shao’an alone was enough to make most people back off.

Even when a new General took office, they would most likely not cause trouble for the Divine Mansion Sect or anyone close to Bai Yuan.

As the saying goes, a fish swims in shallow water, but a dragon soars in the nine heavens.

As a hidden dragon, he was naturally destined for a wider world.

The Northern Territory was too small for the Bai Yuan of today; only the Central Plains was a stage large enough for him to truly display his prowess.

.....

Of all the fortune in the Xuan Yang Martial Dao, the Central Plains laid claim to six-tenths, leaving the rest of the world to share the remaining four.

Even a region as prosperous as Jiangnan had to admit its inferiority in matters of martial prowess.

Perhaps it was precisely because of the great sects of the Central Plains, with their ten-thousand-year legacies, that the Grand Ancestor Emperor established the national policy of ruling alongside them.

As the heart of the Central Plains and, indeed, the entire Xuan Yang, the Capital City was naturally a land of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.

Even the common folk in the streets would speak casually of Sensing Grandmasters—a sight that could only be witnessed in the Capital City.

In Ling Province, an Advanced Martial Artist was regarded as a god-like figure, someone people wouldn’t dare to speak of lightly.

This alone was enough to hint at the magnificent atmosphere of the Capital City.

Most provincial officials who came to serve in the capital had to walk on eggshells, terrified of offending some powerful figure they couldn’t afford to cross.

The area before the Capital City’s gates was a bustling stream of people and carriages. The line to enter the city already stretched for over a mile.

One long, dragon-like procession was particularly eye-catching.

Disciples from prominent clans, mounted on Demon Horses or even stranger beasts, were, of course, an exception.

They did not even need to have their identities verified, and certainly did not have to wait in line under the scorching sun.

Due to the intense sun, the commoners waiting in line all looked somewhat listless.

But the young girl beside a certain young man was exceptionally lively.

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