Aunt Yun, a mountain man has his own clever plan

"Not good!"

"Feasting on Rosy Clouds mid-stage can't withstand it!"

Daoist Xuanqing was like a startled beast, the hairs on his back standing on end as his composed expression vanished in an instant.

Two dazzling streaks of light suddenly burst from his pitch-black, profound eyes.

In that instant, Daoist Xuanqing hurriedly released the cultivation he had been suppressing.

But it was still too late!

A deafening thunderclap exploded in the rear courtyard.

Like a bolt of thunder striking flat ground.

Or the first rumble of spring awakening after winter.

Boom!

A sound like great bells and grand chimes spread in every direction.

Terrifying shockwaves, mixed with azure lightning, swept outward.

Everywhere they passed was covered in thunderbolts.

Within a hundred paces, the area became a Thunder Pool in that instant.

The ground beneath Daoist Xuanqing's feet looked as though it had been plowed by cannon fire, collapsing downward and turning pitch-black with scorch marks.

Farther away.

The jagged ornamental rockery shattered in an instant.

The pond burst apart, and mist filled the air.

Even the flowers and trees painstakingly tended by the gardeners became broken branches and ruined stumps, leaving a scene of utter devastation.

"Thunder?"

"It's His Highness!"

In the study, Yun Menglan, who had been sorting through scrolls, suddenly raised her head and looked out the window.

A faint trace of surprise and suspicion rose in her bright eyes.

Within that lightning, she sensed His Highness's aura.

"When did His Highness learn lightning arts?"

Yun Menglan parted her red lips and cried out in astonishment.

Fang Heng's Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning.

Came swiftly and vanished swiftly.

Within the span of a breath, the lightning dispersed.

The sky above the rear courtyard returned to normal.

Daoist Xuanqing stood with his hands behind his back, still maintaining the bearing of an exalted master.

Only, his right hand behind his back trembled uncontrollably, seemingly charred black.

"This talent..."

Daoist Xuanqing drew a deep breath and forced out the words.

Fang Heng looked at the rear courtyard, which had nearly become wreckage, and felt somewhat shaken.

It was also his first time using Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning. He had not known his own strength and had never expected to cause such a commotion.

"Master, how have I cultivated my Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning?"

"Disciple, you are exceptionally gifted. You have already reached the perfected realm."

"However... you must not become arrogant."

"Our lineage has always possessed deep insight into cultivating Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning."

"Back then, when my master imparted the method to me and I cultivated Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning, I too achieved perfection in a single attempt." Daoist Xuanqing lied without so much as a blush or a racing heartbeat. To keep Fang Heng from becoming overly complacent, he had truly gone to great pains.

"You may be considered to have inherited your master's talent. You have not disgraced the prestige of our lineage."

"For now, consolidate your cultivation. Next month, I shall teach you the other three supreme arts."

Having said that, he did not give Fang Heng a chance to ask anything.

Daoist Xuanqing directly transformed into a streak of azure light and vanished from the Ninth Prince's Manor.

Only after leaving Yujing City.

Did Daoist Xuanqing stop and raise his right hand.

His right hand was charred black all over.

Like a roasted pig's trotter.

A faint scent of cooked meat lingered in the air.

For ordinary people, such an injury would be severe. Even for a Martial Artist, it counted as a grave wound.

Yet to Daoist Xuanqing, it was nothing serious.

He circulated Evergreen Temple's supreme secret art, the Evergreen Indestructible Body.

Green light flickered over his right hand, and vitality surged forth.

In less than three breaths, his right hand had fully recovered.

After healing himself, Daoist Xuanqing let out a long breath of stale air.

He recalled when he had cultivated Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning.

Achieving major success in ten days had already earned him praise from his master as a once-in-a-millennium genius, the most talented person in the history of their lineage.

Thus, Daoist Xuanqing had always been proud of his talent for cultivation.

He considered himself to possess peerless aptitude within Great Qian.

Now and then, he heard rumors circulating among the people about immortal-cultivation prodigies who learned something at a glance or reached perfection in a day.

He had always scoffed at such tales.

How could there possibly be such a genius beneath the heavens?

Until today, he had finally seen something so astonishing it was like using a small knife to cut one's backside—his eyes had been opened!

His gaze toward Yujing City was filled with satisfaction, praise, and even fervent excitement.

"Such a piece of fine jade ought to enter my sect."

"Without my guidance, his talent would be wasted."

Fang Heng watched his master leave in such a hurry and shook his head.

Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning at perfection?

No!

He had merely cultivated it to the flawless realm.

Because of the enhancement from his Wood-Thunder Body, the power of his Wood-Thunder Divine Lightning was three times that of an ordinary cultivator's, which was why Daoist Xuanqing had misunderstood.

However, Fang Heng did not correct Daoist Xuanqing.

With his understanding of the Wood-Thunder Cultivation Method, one month was enough for him to advance to the perfected realm.

Yun Menglan carried a stack of scrolls and walked up to Fang Heng.

Her steps were graceful and delicate, swaying with a uniquely alluring charm.

"Your Highness, these are the dossiers of all the officials in the Seed Selection Department."

"Aunt Yun, thank you for helping me organize them."

"This is this servant's duty."

Yun Menglan gave a curtsey.

Her every movement was restrained and proper, perfectly displaying what it meant to be a dignified noblewoman before others.

If only she could show a seductive side as well.

Fang Heng sighed inwardly, collected his thoughts, and began reading the dossiers of the Seed Selection Department officials.

As the saying went, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will fight a hundred battles without defeat.

Fang Heng was not going to the Seed Selection Department merely to gild his résumé, nor was he going there to slack off.

He intended to accomplish something.

Something great that would benefit both the nation and its people.

Therefore, understanding the officials throughout the Seed Selection Department was indispensable.

Especially their backgrounds.

Who stood behind them?

Which prince? Or which grand minister? Which minister?

All of this had to be made clear.

Yun Menglan finished arranging the dossiers and sorted them according to rank.

At the very top was the Seed Selection Department's Director—Xu Xingzhi.

Xu Xingzhi, Principal Fifth Rank, chief official of the Seed Selection Department.

He could also be considered Fang Heng's nominal immediate superior.

Seeing the evaluation in Xu Xingzhi's dossier, Fang Heng was somewhat surprised.

An incorruptible official, upright and impartial.

He was actually the sort of man Hai Rui had been.

That was truly rare.

In a feudal dynasty, he was even rarer than a giant panda.

As for his background...

He had no background at all.

After reading Xu Xingzhi's dossier, Fang Heng's assessment of him could be summed up in eight words.

Virtue in abundance, ability in shortage.

He had served as an official for twenty years, remaining clean-handed and impoverished, to the point that his wife had repeatedly complained about him.

On the other hand, during Xu Xingzhi's ten years in the Seed Selection Department.

The Seed Selection Department had not produced a single achievement.

This showed that calling his ability mediocre would already be praise.

After setting aside Xu Xingzhi's dossier, Fang Heng read the dossiers of the other officials.

The more he read, the more astonished Fang Heng became.

Every official in the Seed Selection Department had no background whatsoever.

"Aunt Yun, are you certain there are no omissions in these dossiers?"

"Every official in the Seed Selection Department truly has no background at all?"

Fang Heng frowned and asked.

Yun Menglan nodded lightly, her red lips parting.

"Your Highness, the Seed Selection Department is a poor, unprofitable office to begin with. It also requires traveling over mountains and across rivers, making it extremely arduous."

"Anyone with even a little backing would have long since been transferred to another department."

"So that's how it is!"

After hearing Yun Menglan's explanation, Fang Heng stroked his chin.

Then he curled his lips and sighed.

"Before long, the profits of the Seed Selection Department will be enough to stuff people until they burst."

Curiosity appeared on Yun Menglan's stunningly pretty face.

"Your Highness, what profits could the Seed Selection Department possibly have?"

"A mountain man has his own clever plan!"

"Aunt Yun, you'll find out soon enough."

Fang Heng smiled mysteriously and offered no further explanation.

Fang Heng knew all too well just how outrageously profitable seed companies like Monsanto would become in later generations.