Tiandou Empire, Heaven Dou City.
The Imperial Government Affairs Hall stood in a separate compound east of the imperial palace. Its gray-white stone walls rose high, and two imposing stone lions stood at the entrance. Civil officials in dark blue uniforms hurried in and out.
The entire hall exuded an austere atmosphere of rigor and busyness, standing in stark contrast to the bustling prosperity of Heaven Dou City's main streets outside.
At that moment, in a spacious room on the second floor of the Government Affairs Hall, a middle-aged civil official with graying hair was reviewing a stack of noble title applications that had been backlogged for over two months.
His name was Blair. He had worked in document review at the Government Affairs Hall for nearly twenty years and had handled countless title applications. Usually, he could tell at a glance from the name and rank whether an application would pass.
He had spent nearly half an hour going through the stack before him. Most were baron applications submitted by Soul Masters from various regions. The vast majority were around the level of a Three-Ring Soul Elder, meeting the minimum threshold for a baronial title, but none stood out in any particular way.
He processed them one by one, stamping those that needed approval and returning those that needed rejection. His movements were swift and practiced.
Then, when he came across an application from Nuoding City, his hand suddenly paused.
At the top was a letter of guarantee from the City Lord's Mansion. The signature and seal were complete, the format proper, and there were no issues.
He continued flipping through the documents, but his gaze lingered when he reached the applicant's Martial Soul.
Blue Silver Grass.
Blair had worked at the Government Affairs Hall for twenty years and handled countless Soul Master records and applications. There were only a handful of Soul Masters with Blue Silver Grass Martial Souls who could apply for a baronial title at the Three-Ring Soul Elder level.
His interest was piqued, and he continued reading the applicant's detailed information.
Thirty-three years old. Soul Power Level thirty-three. Soul Ring configuration: yellow, yellow, purple. Currently Chief Physician of Nuoding City, having provided medical services to the city guard and City Lord's Mansion for several years. Upright character and an excellent reputation.
After reading it, he nodded slightly. He pulled the application aside and placed it separately, reviewed several more documents, then gathered a sorted batch of approval papers and rose to leave. He passed through two doors along the corridors of the Government Affairs Hall and headed for the imperial palace's eastern inner study.
The current emperor of the Tiandou Empire was named Xue Zhou. He was just over fifty and sat behind a large desk in the inner study, slowly drinking a cup of tea at the perfect temperature.
Several newly delivered memorials lay spread across the desk. After entering, Blair bowed in salute, presented the approval documents in his hands, and waited quietly at the side.
Xue Zhou set down his teacup and began flipping through the files page by page.
Most were routine noble title grants, nothing worth paying attention to.
His gaze swept over document after document. To him, those names, Martial Souls, and ranks were merely symbols in a routine process. But when he reached the application from Nuoding City, his fingertips paused slightly.
Blue Silver Grass?
Thirty-three years old, a level thirty-three Soul Elder, with a standard two-yellow, one-purple configuration.
Xue Zhou read that line twice, set down his teacup, and looked up at Blair. "What do you think of this Lan Tian from Nuoding City?"
Blair bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, I carefully reviewed his materials. There is no record of his origins. He cultivated in the countryside from childhood and only broke through level ten at the age of twenty-five. He has now reached level thirty-three as a Soul Elder at thirty-three. Judging from his Soul Ring configuration and growth trajectory, this man's cultivation foundation is extremely solid. Furthermore, all three of his Soul Rings come from plants of the same origin, making them highly compatible with his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul. He has taken an unconventional but effective path."
Xue Zhou fell silent for a moment after hearing this.
He reread the detailed materials Lan Tian had submitted, from his cultivation history to his record of becoming Chief Physician, and then Alfred, Nuoding City's lord's personally written letter of guarantee. There truly was nothing to fault.
But the problem was Blue Silver Grass.
Xue Zhou leaned back in his chair, his gaze resting on the distant eaves outside the window as he weighed the importance of the matter.
Blue Silver Grass Martial Souls had always been regarded as useless Martial Souls across the continent. Their Innate Soul Power was low, their offensive power weak, and their defense poor. Throughout history, there had been so few cases of someone cultivating with Blue Silver Grass past the Soul Elder level that they could be counted on one's fingers.
This Lan Tian had managed to reach level thirty-three as a Soul Elder at thirty-three. To be honest, that was already something of a miracle and certainly deserved recognition.
But that was all.
A healing-type Soul Master.
A Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul.
No matter how perfect his Soul Ring configuration or how solid his foundation was, he was ultimately only a support-type character.
His offense was lacking, his defense was lacking, and his speed was lacking as well. Other than healing, he was almost good for nothing.
The empire did not lack healing-type Soul Masters. Even mutated varieties of Blue Silver Grass or support-type Martial Souls stronger than Blue Silver Grass were everywhere within the empire's upper-class network. There were plenty of support Soul Masters with higher ranks and greater strength. This level thirty-three Soul Elder might count as someone in Nuoding City, but in Heaven Dou City, he would not even make a splash.
So this Lan Tian was an awkwardly mediocre prospect.
If they granted him a baronial title, then given the natural limits of his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, he would be completely unable to take on any important role within the imperial system in the future.
Yet if they did not grant it, it would make the empire seem insufficiently tolerant toward those low-level Soul Masters striving to cultivate. It would not sound good if word got out.
Xue Zhou pondered for a moment, placed the materials in his hand back on the desk, and said to Blair, "Although this man's Martial Soul is somewhat poor, it was not easy for him to reach this point. His spirit is commendable. An example like him, cultivating Blue Silver Grass all the way to Soul Elder, would have a positive promotional effect on the empire's Soul Master system if spread around. It would give those with low Innate Soul Power some hope and let them know that even a useless Martial Soul can still have a future if one is willing to work hard."
He paused before continuing, "Approve him. Grant the baronial title as usual, and allocate him a standard parcel of fief land as well. However, hold this document for now before formally issuing it. Wait for my separate approval before making the final confirmation."
Blair bowed and answered, "Yes, Your Majesty. I obey."
He gathered the approval documents and withdrew from the inner study.
Xue Zhou lifted his teacup again and took a sip, pushing the application from Nuoding City out of his mind.
He was only a Blue Silver Grass Soul Elder, hardly worth much thought. Looking at it from another angle, if this man could cultivate to Soul Elder with Blue Silver Grass, then he could naturally become a living example of inspiration in the empire's remote towns, more convincing than any empty decree.
As for higher ranks and greater strength, those had long exceeded the limits of a Martial Soul like Blue Silver Grass.
Time passed in a flash.
The third month arrived.
On that day.
Lan Tian received an official document from Heaven Dou City.
He sat in the clinic, broke the wax seal, and unfolded the parchment within. It bore the official seal of the Tiandou Empire. Its contents were concise and formal: following review and approval by the Imperial Government Affairs Hall, Lan Tian of Nuoding City was granted the title of Baron. His fief was located in a hilly area roughly forty li north of Nuoding City, covering approximately eight hundred mu. It had been officially registered and would take effect immediately.
After reading it, he rolled up the parchment and stored it in his Storage Ring. The smile at the corners of his mouth could not be suppressed.
Eight hundred mu of fief land.
The location might be a little remote, and the land might not be particularly fertile, but it belonged entirely to him now.
His share of the fief's annual output, the baron's monthly stipend of one hundred Gold Soul Coins, Spirit Hall's monthly subsidy of one hundred Gold Soul Coins, and the income from his own clinic would bring his total yearly earnings to more than two thousand four hundred Gold Soul Coins. That was already a considerable sum.
He rose from his chair and walked to the entrance. Pushing open the door, he looked at the afternoon streets and sunlight of Nuoding City, then took a deep breath.
A useless Soul Master with a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul had only broken through level ten at twenty-five. Now, at thirty-three, he had become a Three-Ring Soul Elder and had even been formally granted a baronial title by the Tiandou Empire.
Back when he had first transmigrated here thirty-three years ago, he would never have dared to imagine something like this.
"Life will only get better and better."
He said it to the sunlight beyond the door, then turned around and went back inside to prepare the medicinal bath ingredients for that afternoon.
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