Recruiting Menial Servants

The sun had already climbed high in the sky. Qin Jishi had been in the city for quite some time, and the novel sights around him brought a smile to his face.

Perhaps he was tired.

Or perhaps he was weary.

Qin Jishi arrived at a teahouse and went up to the second floor. The waiter quickly brought over a pot of fragrant tea.

Savoring the tea in his cup as he watched the passersby, Qin Jishi muttered to himself.

"Black and White Academy... how should I get there? Should I openly reveal my identity? That would be unwise. Liang Simeng is involved with that bastard Qin Tian now. Wouldn't that expose my identity?"

"My wings are still too weak. I can't go head-to-head with the Qin Family."

"Should I send word to that old fellow Liu Wuxie? Forget it. Last time I sent him a voice transmission, that old fellow insisted that I teach him the God Slaying Needle Technique. If he learned I was entering Black and White Academy, would that do me any good?"

"Not go?"

"No. I've stayed in World-Saving Pavilion for so many years. Freedom is right before my eyes—how could I give up?"

"How can I find a suitable reason to join Black and White Academy?"

"..."

Back then, the Qin Family had spared Qin Jishi's life not only because they considered him worthless trash, but also because of Old Man.

Now that Old Man had been gone for three years, if the Qin Family learned that he could cultivate, would they let him off?

Black and White Academy was unlike other factions. The Sacred Domain Liang Family stood behind it.

If Liang Simeng discovered Qin Jishi's true strength, would Qin Tian remain unaware?

Just as Qin Jishi was deep in thought, considering how to enter Black and White Academy—

"I heard Black and White Academy is recruiting menial servants in the south of the city. Should we go and try our luck?"

"Us? I think we should forget it. Even the position of a menial servant at Black and White Academy has nothing to do with people like us. Do you think those who failed the assessment will let such an opportunity slip away?"

"..."

The conversation between the two men caught Qin Jishi's attention.

Menial servants?

Qin Jishi's eyes lit up. He seemed to have an idea.

He immediately rose and walked over to the two men. "Friends, did you just say that Black and White Academy is recruiting menial servants?"

The two had been talking animatedly when someone suddenly interrupted them, and they were clearly displeased.

"Are you talking to us?"

"Yes. I hope you can tell me." Qin Jishi casually placed ten Gold Coins in their hands.

Oh~

The two exchanged a glance. It was their first time meeting someone so tactful. They immediately smiled. "Meeting is fate. Come, come, have some tea with us."

After Qin Jishi took a seat, the two poured him a cup of fragrant tea.

"This friend may not know."

The two found Qin Jishi much more pleasing to the eye without realizing it. "Besides recruiting disciples every year, Black and White Academy also recruits some additional menial servants."

"Though they are called menial servants, it would be more accurate to say that it gives those eliminated martial artists another chance."

"You should know that Black and White Academy is the supreme academy of our Azure Wave Continent. Becoming a disciple is recognition of one's own strength."

"Likewise, even for menial servants, the competition is equally fierce."

As they spoke, faint smiles appeared on their faces, and longing shone involuntarily in their eyes. Even becoming a menial servant of Black and White Academy was an unparalleled honor.

"Mm." Qin Jishi casually asked, "Based on your experience, how many people usually participate?"

"Generally speaking, around ten thousand."

"Ten thousand?" Black lines appeared across Qin Jishi's forehead. Since when had being a menial servant become so sought-after?

"Of course, it isn't just the eliminated martial artists who take part. Some elders from various factions are included as well."

The two gently shook their heads and sighed softly. "If we could enter Black and White Academy as menial servants in this lifetime, we would die without regrets."

Qin Jishi thought that made sense. No matter what, Black and White Academy's standing was there. Even a menial servant was not someone others would dare provoke casually.

"I wonder how many people they are recruiting?"

"Three hundred!"

"Three hundred?"

Qin Jishi scratched his forehead.

Three out of ten thousand?

Impressive!

After learning the general details, Qin Jishi smiled. "Thank you, you two. I won't trouble you any longer."

Walking out of the teahouse, Qin Jishi pondered to himself. "A menial servant? Excellent."

"This way, I won't draw Liang Simeng's attention, I can complete the task Old Man gave me, and I can cultivate to improve my cultivation. It's killing several birds with one stone."

"It's settled, then!"

"..."

As the passersby watched this muttering young man, the gossipmongers pointed and whispered about him.

The south of the city was the paradise of martial artists in the Azure Wave Imperial Capital.

Streets of flowers and willows!

Gambling houses and beast-fighting halls!

Assassins and mercenaries!

Black-market trading grounds!

Anything one could imagine could be found here.

After the time it took for an incense stick to burn!

Qin Jishi noticed that there were fewer and fewer ordinary people around him. In the end, there were only martial artists left, without a single ordinary person in sight.

It was as though the south of the city was a forbidden ground for ordinary people, not allowing them to step inside even an inch.

When Qin Jishi stepped into the southern district, it was as if he had entered two entirely different worlds.

The former had many ordinary people and was peaceful.

The latter had many martial artists; even the air carried the sensation of blood boiling.

After leaving a desolate street, Qin Jishi entered a main road.

Uh!

The scene before him made him blink.

"Come on, keep going! Ten thousand mystic stones—do you still have anything to gamble with me?"

"I... I... I'll gamble my life with you."

"..."

"You... yes, you... don't run! Someone has offered a thousand mystic stones for one of your arms."

"Stop!"

"..."

"Sir, come on in. We've got some newcomers lately, tender as water."

"..."

The endless avenue was filled with unceasing clamor, making black lines appear on Qin Jishi's forehead. No wonder this place was forbidden territory for ordinary people. Without some confidence, what good could come from entering here?

As the old saying went, the more prosperous a place was, the greater the darkness hidden within it.

That was absolutely right!

Gambling houses!

Brothels!

Too many to count!

Qin Jishi observed his surroundings as he walked. Whenever he encountered something that interested him, he would even stop for a moment, entirely unaffected by the noisy din.

Very soon, Qin Jishi reached the end of the avenue, where the uproar was even more intense.

A plaza large enough to hold one hundred thousand people came into view. Cheers periodically erupted from the densely packed crowd.

"Elder Chen, now that you've become a menial servant of Black and White Academy, don't forget us in the future."

"Hahaha... certainly... certainly..."

"..."

"Ah, I was just a little short. If I had held on for one more breath, I might have passed."

"..."

It was not hard to infer from their conversations that Black and White Academy's recruitment of menial servants was taking place here.

Relying on his strange movement technique, Qin Jishi weaved through the crowded masses and quickly reached the front.

There was an enormous circular platform. Apart from a transparent ring of light, a pot-bellied middle-aged man stood atop it; there was nothing else.

At that moment, someone within the ring of light was struggling to hold on. The pain and ferocity on his face showed exactly what kind of pressure he was enduring.

Thud!

Three breaths later, the man dropped to his knees and was flung out of the ring of light.

"You failed to last ten breaths. Eliminated."

"Next!"

The fat man was presumably Black and White Academy's selector. As his voice fell, the contestant trembled all over and walked down from the circular platform in a daze of disappointment.

At the same time, while Qin Jishi was examining the platform, someone not far away looked over. That person's gaze suddenly settled on him, and a sharp glint flashed through his eyes...