Appointment to Suotuo City, Balak Kingdom!

The protagonist was a local of Douluo and would obtain the original.

No seats!

Brain storage lockers, one hundred a day!

"Silence!"

At the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's sect plaza, the atmosphere was solemn.

An elderly man with white hair and beard, dressed in an elder's robes, stood at the center of the high platform. His booming voice echoed across the plaza.

"Today is the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's annual coming-of-age ceremony."

"Any disciple who has reached the age of eighteen must come forward to verify their Soul Power and be registered. The sect will then uniformly assign their future posts."

As the elder's voice fell, the hundreds of young disciples in the hall held their breaths.

"First, Ning Feng."

A tall, well-built young man stepped out in response and quickly approached.

The enormous crystal ball before the elder lit up faintly, clearly capturing the fluctuations of his Soul Power.

"Ning Feng, eighteen years old, Soul Power level thirty-seven."

The elder nodded, opened the roster, and recorded it with his brush.

"Assigned to the sect's Internal Affairs Hall to assist the elders with resource allocation."

"Thank you, Elder!"

Ning Feng bowed, a hint of joy on his face, then stepped aside.

"Next, Ning Yu."

Another female disciple stepped forward. She was delicate in appearance, with a slightly nervous expression.

The crystal ball lit up again.

"Ning Yu, eighteen years old, Soul Power level thirty-one."

"Assigned to the Tianluo City branch as a traveling deacon."

"Thank you, Elder!"

Ning Yu's voice was filled with obvious excitement. This was considered an excellent assignment.

After all, with the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda martial soul, the dozens of disciples who came up afterward mostly had Soul Power in the thirties.

Their assigned posts were either within the sect or as external appointees to merchant guilds in the major cities.

However, compared to previous years, they were all ordinary arrangements within the sect's system.

"Next, Ning Liu."

The moment this name was called, the whispers in the hall abruptly fell silent.

Then Ning Liu stepped out from the line. His figure was somewhat thin, but his back was straight.

He walked toward the high platform step by step and placed his hand on the crystal ball.

A faint glow appeared, dimmer than those of the previous few.

The elder looked at the number displayed on the crystal ball, and his brow twitched almost imperceptibly.

"Ning Liu, eighteen years old."

"Soul Power level twenty-nine."

Level twenty-nine!

This number brought another brief silence to the hall.

Yet after that brief silence came a burst of unrestrained laughter.

"Pfft, level twenty-nine? So he really is still level twenty-nine!"

"Hahaha, worthy of the Two Treasure Glazed Pagoda martial soul, a rarity not seen in the sect for ages! He'll never break through level thirty in his life!"

"Stuck before the threshold of Soul Elder—it's an absolute joke."

"I thought he might have encountered some opportunity over the past few years. Turns out he's still trash."

"Tsk tsk, what's the use of having Soul Power if his martial soul is useless? He's utterly disgraced the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!"

"I wonder which backwater the sect will stuff him into. Don't tell me he'll be cleaning toilets? Hahaha!"

For a time, all kinds of harsh, gloating voices drifted through the hall without the slightest restraint.

Ning Liu stood where he was, his eyes lowered as though he had heard nothing.

However, his slightly clenched fists revealed the turmoil in his heart.

On the high platform, Sect Master Ning Fengzhi looked down at Ning Liu, a complicated emotion flashing through his eyes.

What a pity.

Ning Fengzhi sighed inwardly.

He remembered clearly that Ning Liu had already reached level twenty-nine Soul Power at the age of thirteen.

Now, five whole years had passed, and his Soul Power had not advanced in the slightest.

If his martial soul had been the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda, then with his cultivation speed back then, he would likely have become a Soul Ancestor already, perhaps even stronger.

His own daughter, Ning Rongrong, was already exceptionally talented. At twelve years old, her Soul Power was only level twenty-six.

But... reality was this cruel.

The Two Treasure Glazed Pagoda was exceedingly rare even in the sect's records. There had never been a precedent of such a martial soul evolving again and breaking through Soul Elder!

The presiding elder looked toward Ning Fengzhi, his gaze carrying a question.

Ning Fengzhi gently shook his head, indicating that they should proceed according to the rules.

Understanding, the elder withdrew his gaze, cleared his throat, and spoke again, suppressing the noise in the hall.

"Disciple Ning Liu possesses passable talent, but is limited by his martial soul and cannot be entrusted with great responsibility."

This assessment was practically a death sentence for Ning Liu's future within the sect.

"After joint deliberation by the sect's Council of Elders and the Sect Master."

The elder paused and swept his gaze over Ning Liu.

"He is hereby appointed to Suotuo City, under the jurisdiction of the Balak Kingdom."

Suotuo City?

Quite a few disciples looked confused. It was merely an obscure little city.

"He will serve as the Field Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Grade D Auction House."

A Grade D Auction House?!

The moment this appointment was announced, a wave of barely suppressed laughter erupted across the plaza.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's businesses were spread throughout the continent. There were shops and Auction Houses, all divided into four grades—A, B, C, and D—according to scale and importance.

Grade D Auction Houses were usually established in small and medium-sized cities, with limited scale and scarce resources.

Though he would be called a Field Master, it was more like being sent away to watch over an insignificant little shop.

This was practically equivalent to exile.

Ning Liu's face instantly turned somewhat pale. His lips pressed tightly together, and bitterness and unwillingness flashed through his eyes.

Suotuo City, a Grade D Auction House...

The gap between this and what he had once hoped for was as vast as heaven and earth.

Ning Liu took a deep breath, suppressed the turmoil in his heart, and slowly raised his head.

Then, he deeply bowed to Ning Fengzhi and the elders on the high platform.

"Disciple Ning Liu thanks the sect for its cultivation!"

Ning Fengzhi looked at Ning Liu, and a trace of approval flashed through his eyes.

Several elders exchanged glances and nodded slightly.

"Mm, this child has quite a good mindset."

"Though he has no future as a Soul Master, this temperament is rare among the younger disciples."

"What a pity, what a pity..."

"Alright, next..."

The elder continued presiding over the ceremony, and the focus in the hall quickly shifted away from Ning Liu.

The coming-of-age ceremony then continued in an orderly fashion.

By the time the final disciple had been assigned and the elder announced the ceremony's conclusion, an inconspicuous carriage had already silently stopped outside a side gate of the plaza.

There were no farewells, no instructions.

Ning Liu walked alone out through the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's majestic mountain gate.

He turned back to look at the sect grounds shrouded in clouds and mist, like an immortal realm. This had once been his only home.

Now, it had become a place he had to leave.

Then he boarded the carriage. With a crack of the whip from the driver, it rumbled into motion and headed down the mountain, gradually moving away from that radiant glazed light.

The carriage interior was simply furnished.

Ning Liu was alone, leaning against the carriage wall.

He was an orphan. His parents had both died during a sect mission when he was young, and the sect had raised him.

Within the sect, aside from cultivation, he had almost nothing. Leaving directly was just as well.

For this external appointment, the sect had only given him this letter of appointment and a list.

Sect Personnel Assessment List—Ning Liu

Appointment location: Balak Kingdom—Suotuo City

Position: Field Master of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Grade D Auction House

Transferred resources: Ten Thousand Gold Soul Coins in startup capital

His brow furrowed tighter and tighter.

Suotuo City...

He had some impression of it. It was a small city on the border of the Balak Kingdom, and its city lord seemed to be only a Soul King.

In a place like that, Soul Grandmasters and Soul Elders were the main Soul Masters encountered on a daily basis.

What could a Grade D Auction House accomplish in such a place?

The meager startup capital given by the sect was simply a drop in the bucket.

What weighed even more heavily on his heart was the final item on the list.

He closed his eyes and leaned against the carriage wall, trying to rest. Yet the prominent line of black text on the list seemed branded into his mind.

Assessment task: During the Auction House's first month, monthly revenue must not be lower than One Million Gold Soul Coins. (If the assessment fails, his status as an Inner Sect Disciple of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will be revoked!)

One Million Gold Soul Coins!

In a small city guarded by a Soul King, a Grade D Auction House had to reach one million Gold Soul Coins in monthly revenue?

A bitter curve pulled at Ning Liu's lips.

This was not an assessment at all.

It was deliberate harassment.

Or rather, before the sect completely abandoned him, this was a "respectable" reason it had found for him to disappear on his own.

(The system appears next chapter!)