"Many thanks, Sir Steward!" A faint joy rose in Zhou Xun's heart. He bowed to the middle-aged man.
This time, it was in the bag!
"Leave behind a wisp of your mana aura, and you may leave!"
Zhou Xun did as instructed, then took his leave.
The one behind Zhou Xun in line was Wei Shangren's third brother. Once Zhou Xun came out, they pushed open the door and entered.
"Shangli pays respects to Uncle!"
The moment he entered, before the middle-aged steward could speak, Wei Shangli stepped forward and bowed.
"So it's Shangli. What brings you here?" the middle-aged steward greeted him warmly.
After Wei Shangli advanced to become a first-tier talisman master, the Wu Family selected a woman from one of its collateral branches and took Wei Shangli in as a son-in-law.
Wei Shangli's wife's mother, however, was a member of the Lin family.
And this middle-aged steward before them was precisely his newlywed wife's maternal uncle.
After Wei Shangli married, he had brought his wife to visit several times.
This steward of Danbao Pavilion also thought highly of his young grand-nephew-in-law.
"I came this time to accompany my third brother to register. He possesses a Medium Spiritual Root and is only sixteen this year, yet he has already reached the third level of Qi Refinement!"
Wei Shangli replied, then introduced his third brother Wei Shangyi and his second brother Wei Shangren, who had come along.
After they exchanged greetings, they registered Wei Shangli's third brother.
"Shangyi is remarkably gifted, and with me looking after him, his selection this time is naturally beyond doubt!" the middle-aged steward said with a cheerful smile.
"We must trouble Uncle to give this matter some thought!" Wei Shangyi followed his eldest brother's lead and also addressed the middle-aged steward as Uncle, appearing extremely familiar with him.
"Of the three Wei brothers, aside from this second one, all are outstanding among men. With the added connection to my grand-niece, they are worth investing in."
The middle-aged steward nodded in satisfaction.
At that moment, Wei Shangren covertly glanced at his eldest brother and gave him several meaningful looks.
Naturally, Wei Shangli knew exactly what his brother had in mind.
His brother had long since offended Zhou Xun to the bitter end. If Zhou Xun were allowed into Danbao Pavilion, or even became a Pill Refinement Apprentice, he would surely create no small amount of trouble for them in the future.
Thus, he asked the middle-aged steward:
"By the way, Uncle, how was the person who came in just now?"
"That person just now... You mean that young brother? Haha, he too is a rare talent. Like you, he grew up in Red Leaf Square. He will certainly be selected this time."
"After Shangyi joins, he should spend more time getting close to him!" The middle-aged steward stroked his beard and laughed.
Hearing the steward say this, a hint of urgency appeared in Wei Shangren's eyes. He hurriedly tugged at his elder brother's sleeve.
Wei Shangli remained calm and smiled faintly, as though speaking casually.
"Come to think of it, I know that man as well. He used to be a Spirit Contract Laborer at our Mystic Talisman Pavilion, but he is sharp-tongued and mean-spirited, lazy and slippery in his work, and has often clashed with my younger brothers."
"Still, he has decent talent and is skilled at concealing himself, so he managed to muddle through at Mystic Talisman Pavilion for three years before being exposed. He was only recently dismissed and swept out the door. I never expected to encounter him here today."
"Uncle, do not let this man deceive you!"
The middle-aged steward stirred at these words. He had served as chief steward at Danbao Pavilion for many years, receiving guests and seeing them off, and had long been accustomed to the ways of the world.
The moment Wei Shangli finished speaking, he had already pieced together most of what had happened.
The dismissal had occurred recently. Counting back, was that not exactly when his grand-nephew-in-law had advanced to become a first-tier talisman master?
This matter must have been his grand-nephew-in-law's handiwork.
So be it. Since his grand-nephew-in-law had personally spoken, he would give him some face—but he could not work for nothing.
Thus, he said nothing, putting on an affected pose.
When Wei Shangli saw that his wife's uncle had yet to respond, how could he fail to understand what he meant?
This man truly had an insatiable appetite, but that worked out just fine!
He immediately patted his Storage Pouch, and a flash of white light passed by.
A milky-white jade bottle, about an inch in size, appeared in his palm.
"Oh, right. The last time I visited Uncle, I was in such a rush that I did not prepare any generous gift. Shangli has felt uneasy about it ever since. As it happens, I recently obtained a bottle of spiritual liquid. Why not offer it to Uncle?"
As he spoke, he extended his hand, revealing the small and exquisite jade bottle.
Upon hearing the words "spiritual liquid," the middle-aged steward was greatly moved.
This spiritual liquid was produced when Spiritual Qi condensed to its utmost limit. It could generally only be found at the eye of a spiritual vein of Tier 2 High-Grade or above.
It could assist cultivators in their cultivation and increase their cultivation speed, while carrying none of the side effects of pill toxicity. It was an excellent item for cultivation.
The eye of the Tier 2 High-Grade Spiritual Vein beneath Red Leaf Square was controlled by the Wu Family.
This bottle of spiritual liquid had likely been a reward from the Wu Family when Wei Shangli advanced to become a first-tier talisman master.
There were only about five drops of spiritual liquid in his bottle, but buying it on the market would cost at least five spirit stones, and even then, it was something with a price but no market.
The middle-aged steward's face instantly blossomed with smiles.
With a light sweep of his hand, the jade bottle entered his Storage Pouch.
Then he said with a beaming smile:
"Shangli, you are too courteous. I truly have urgent need of this item, so I will accept it with shame!"
Having said that, he walked to the table, picked up his brush, and began altering Zhou Xun's record.
"Dismissed Spirit Contract Laborer from Mystic Talisman Pavilion. Not recommended." At the end, he drew a large cross.
Seeing this, the three Wei brothers exchanged smiles and tactfully took their leave.
Before long, everyone had finished registering.
Under Lin Zhishan's leadership, the stewards in the wooden shed began discussing the preliminary candidates.
They soon selected twenty preliminary candidates for Pill Refinement Apprentices and thirty candidates for Spiritual Qi laborers, recording them in a new register. Zhou Xun's name was not among them.
Lin Zhishan then took all the registers with him to meet his Revered Teacher, who would make the final decision.
"Revered Teacher!"
Lin Zhishan bowed to an Elder dressed in worn clothing but still vigorous and imposing.
"Have the candidates been chosen?" The Elder was in a good mood and asked casually.
"They have. Here are the registers!" As he spoke, he handed over several jade scrolls.
"Revered Teacher seems to be in a fine mood today!" Lin Zhishan said with a smile as he watched the Elder carefully review them.
"Haha, I met an interesting young friend. He has quite the bearing you had in your youth!" The Elder chuckled.
What outsiders did not know was that Lin Zhishan's cultivation aptitude had also been ordinary. His fire-attributed spiritual root had an affinity of twenty-one points, barely reaching the Medium Spiritual Root grade.
"Could he also be a lad who refuses to accept his fate?" Lin Zhishan asked in surprise, greatly intrigued.
"Refuses to accept his fate... Yes, he refuses to accept his fate. Though his aptitude is somewhat poor, his temperament is excellent, and he possesses a strong heart for the Dao!" The Elder nodded, seeming to recall something from the past.
"It seems Revered Teacher has taken a liking to this person!"
The Elder merely smiled without answering and continued looking through the records with his head lowered.
"Eh?"
"That lad was not selected?" The Elder suddenly gave a soft cry of surprise.
He immediately began searching through another register and quickly found Zhou Xun's name.
Looking at the record above it—
"Dismissed laborer from Mystic Talisman Pavilion. Interesting, very interesting." The Elder revealed an intrigued expression.
As he spoke, he handed the register to Lin Zhishan.
Lin Zhishan took it and looked it over, then smiled as well.
"Revered Teacher, it seems this child has offended someone. Mystic Talisman Pavilion is one of the shops in Red Leaf Square that stands on equal footing with ours!"
"I will arrange for someone to investigate at once!"
The Elder nodded.
"Very well. Investigate exactly whom this lad has offended!"
"By the way, Revered Teacher, should I add this lad to this round's list?" Lin Zhishan asked.
"There is no need. You should..." the Elder transmitted through divine sense.
Lin Zhishan cast a surprised look at his Revered Teacher.
"Expand recruitment by that much?"
"Mm. Go make the announcement."
Before you continue