"Chief Steward!"
At the man's appearance, even Master Artisan Yang, who had been seething with rage, was startled. He hurriedly bowed in greeting.
The others likewise bowed to the man. "Chief Steward."
The Chief Steward's surname was Pang. He was a close attendant of Grand Artisan Qi, a true trusted confidant.
In a sense, Grand Artisan Qi valued him even more highly than his blood descendants or disciples, for he was the son of a dear friend from before Grand Artisan Qi's rise. After that friend died in battle, Grand Artisan Qi adopted his orphaned son and devoted himself to raising him, treating him almost as his own.
Though limited talent and comprehension meant this orphan had stumbled his way into Foundation Establishment and ultimately failed to make a name for himself on the Puppeteer Dao Path, he still served as the Qi Family Army's chief administrator, keeping affairs at every level in good order.
Grand Artisan Qi trusted and relied on him deeply, placing him in charge of Mirage and the management of this rear headquarters. He even left many of the rules and personnel arrangements governing the Dao traditions, sects, and lineages under his command entirely to the Chief Steward, without intervening himself.
This covered not only the generals and disciples under his command, but even Grand Artisan Qi's own itinerary, expenses, and all the trivial details of his daily life. The Chief Steward made the decisions on those as well.
Grand Artisan Qi was a figure akin to an immortal walking the earth and paid no attention to mundane trifles. He had no inclination to oversee accounts or dealings, so in the end, the Chief Steward had to manage them all.
For precisely this reason, the Chief Steward had always wielded unquestioned authority that no one else