"That's the whole story. After falling out with my collateral family at the Calligraphy and Painting Examination celebration banquet, there's no place under heaven for me to go. I had no choice but to bring my sister to seek refuge with you." Ji Chen slapped the railing of the Seven Treasures Ship excitedly, "It's truly a desperate move. I beg Brother Song to help those in distress and take in us siblings!"
Song Qianji thought to himself, you're smiling like you just picked up a hundred thousand spirit stones for free. What part of this looks like a "desperate move"?
When Ji Chen first appeared, the outer sect disciples, including Meng Heze, were all tense.
After all, his flying boat looked magnificent and expensive, cutting through the night mist with a chilling wind and imposing presence.
But when Ji Chen put away his flying boat and actively jumped onto their ship, this vigilance quickly dissipated.
—Following behind him was a cute girl with double buns, barely thirteen or fourteen years old, with a well-behaved appearance and shallow dimples.
There were also two familiar faces—Xu Kanshan and Qiu Dacheng.
"It's you." Meng Heze found the girl familiar and said hesitantly, "Aren't you the one who helped distribute colored paper slips below the stage... Ji, Ji Xing?"
"That's me! Fellow Daoist Meng, you still remember me!" The girl with double buns brightened, quickly moving closer to him as if looking at some rare curiosity.
Meng Heze retreated repeatedly in alarm.
The girl giggled: "I didn't expect you to be so shy offstage. I thought you carried flowers and colored ribbons with you everywhere."
Meng Heze glanced at Song Qianji, seeking help.
Song Qianji thought, you chose this campaign strategy yourself—what can you do when you encounter enthusiastic supporters?
He cleared his throat lightly: "What about you two? What's your story?"
Xu Kanshan smiled bitterly: "Senior Brother Song, our story is even longer. Some bastard turtle spawn used our hands to bet ten thousand spirit stones at a gambling den in Huawai City!"
"Not one hundred, not one thousand—a full ten thousand," Qiu Dacheng added.
The outer sect disciples erupted in exclamations.
"Bet on what?" Song Qianji's curiosity was piqued too.
"On you!" Xu Kanshan said, "Betting on who you would take as master. Every gambler in Huawai City lost completely. Only that kid bet you wouldn't choose anyone, making us clean out the house—ten thousand multiplied tenfold to a hundred thousand!"
Song Qianji thought, such a good deal—profiting without investment.
Qiu Dacheng lamented: "We became famous overnight, but got blacklisted by every gambling den in Huawai City, big and small. Never being allowed to gamble again is worse than killing me."
"Even worse, when the news reached Huawai Sect, the Enforcement Hall wants to arrest us for Discipline Hall interrogation. They say since everyone else guessed wrong, only we had insider information—clearly colluding with you, being your planted spies. Plus that night at Star-Picking Platform when you were surrounded by Deacon Zhao and his men, we tipped off the young mistress first..."
Xu Kanshan cursed, "We really can't explain this clearly. That kid threw down the spirit stones and ran. We don't know his name, can't even remember what he looked like. Who would believe this story?"
The matter was so absurd that Song Qianji wanted to laugh.
What kind of spendthrift guessed his thoughts, betting ten thousand spirit stones so casually, throwing them away so recklessly, and causing such big trouble for others.
"They need charges to arrest people, right?" Zhou Xiaoyun asked.
The outer sect disciples were all indignant.
"Oh yes! The charge is 'Connecting with Song,'" Xu Kanshan said bitterly. "A freshly minted charge from Huawai Sect's Discipline Hall, still warm.""When we saw things going south, we asked about the direction Senior Brother Song had taken and immediately fled using Sword Kinesis Flight." Qiu Dacheng laughed, "On the way, we ran into Fellow Daoist Ji traveling by flying boat—what a coincidence! Who in this world doesn’t 'side with Song'? Hahaha!"
Ji Chen muttered, "I’m not a disciple of Huawel Sect—I came here openly and honestly. Whether or not he takes you two is uncertain, but Brother Song will definitely take me."
Ji Chen believed his friendship with Song Qianji was genuine.
Although their friendship had begun with a misunderstanding.
Still, sentiments like "Life is about participation" and "The harder you try, the worse it gets"—only Brother Song in this world understood him.
"Senior Brother Song, please take us along. Think of it as buying big and getting small for free." Qiu Dacheng pointed at Ji Chen and Ji Xing, "Buy these two big ones, and get us two small ones for free."
Song Qianji thought to himself, That’s not right—this is clearly a forced sale.
"Do you know where I’m going?" he asked sternly.
"Of course, to your fief! You’ve become an Immortal Official of a prefecture at such a young age—your future is boundless!"
Song Qianji’s expression turned cold:
"My fief is called Thousand-Ditch Prefecture, but now its water sources have dried up, and rainfall is scarce. Where are the thousand canals? It’s a place more terrifying than deserts or the Dead Sea. Barren mountains and treacherous waters, with fierce and unruly folk..."
His tone was grim as he exaggerated, painting Thousand-Ditch Prefecture as more horrifying than the eighteen layers of hell.
"Going there with me is no different from climbing a mountain of blades or plunging into a sea of fire."
So, you should take your sister somewhere else to play, and you two should find another place to gamble.
After hearing this, Ji Chen wore a resolute expression, ready to face death:
"Yes! Brother Song, you’re the first true friend I’ve made. Good brothers go through boiling oil together—no, fry me first!"
Meanwhile, Ji Xing’s cheeks flushed red as she clasped her face and exclaimed, "Wow, climbing a mountain of blades and plunging into a sea of fire with Senior Brother Meng—how romantic!"
Xu Kanshan said, "Senior Brother Song has always been lucky. As long as we’re with you, even if we’re heading to hell, we’ll have confidence."
Qiu Dacheng added, "Yeah, going to hell and rolling dice with the King of Hell is still better than being thrown into Huawel’s prison!"
"Well said!" Meng Heze praised, "Congratulations, you’ve passed Senior Brother Song’s test!"
Song Qianji was taken aback. What test?
The Outer Sect disciples, seeing the four newcomers express such determination, applauded in welcome.
Both sides spoke freely, considering each other "one of their own," as if they were just one step away from swearing brotherhood.
Amid the laughter and conversation, there was a bold, fearless spirit and an optimistic, open-minded attitude of "starting anew."
Only Song Qianji stood there, dumbfounded.
According to the plan, he was supposed to cultivate the entire prefecture alone.
Along the way, he kept gathering more people.
Now, he could only hope that Thousand-Ditch Prefecture had enough wasteland for him to cultivate to his heart’s content.
The Seven Marvels treasure ship advanced at full speed.
Unnoticed, the stars faded, and the night receded.
A morning sun leaped from the sea of clouds, its golden rays bursting forth, illuminating every young face on the ship.
...
Thousand-Ditch Prefecture was located in the northeastern part of the Western Sky Continent.
Its territory was vast, shaped like a jade belt, stretching six thousand li from north to south.
To the south lay the Great Desolate Marsh, where even feathers would sink, and to the north stood the Poison Barrier Forest, haunted by fierce beasts.
To the west was the natural chasm of □□ Mountain, with only the east bordering Hongfu Prefecture. However, the border was heavily guarded, and mortals could not pass without an Immortal Official’s written order.
Late at night, Zhao Ren, the 64th Immortal Official of Thousand-Ditch Prefecture, stood on the highest cloud tower in the entire prefecture, incessantly slapping the railing.
His face was contorted, his eyes bloodshot—not from pain, but from excitement.I can finally leave this godforsaken place, he screamed inwardly.
For the entire past year, his cultivation had shown no progress. He had written to Peak Lord Zhao to complain of his hardships, and the Peak Lord had told him to endure while promising numerous resources.
The matter of setting up the Heaven Net Spirit Absorption Array in Thousand-Ditch Prefecture to assist the ancestral elder's breakthrough was originally a family secret.
Hence, since then, the position of Immortal Official here had always been held by Peak Lord Zhao's trusted clansmen.
The current state of Thousand-Ditch Prefecture remained largely unknown to outsiders.
Zhao Ren had prepared himself to endure another difficult year, but unexpectedly, the situation had taken a turn. Now, he only needed to accomplish one final task to receive Peak Lord Zhao's reward.
—Smoothly hand over duties to the newly appointed Immortal Official.
This Immortal Official was no ordinary cultivator. He was Song Qianji—the dual prodigy who had written the Hero Summons, left behind the Star Plucking Puzzle, and nearly became a direct disciple of the Sage.
He would break convention to become the youngest and lowest-cultivated Immortal Official in the entire Western Sky Continent, and even the entire Cultivation World.
Zhao Ren forcibly suppressed his wild joy. He must first stabilize the difficult-to-handle Song Qianji and prevent this fellow from turning tail and running upon arrival.
How does one evaluate the quality of a fiefdom?
Local conditions, cultural wealth—these are secondary. What matters most to cultivators is, of course, the offerings of incense and worship.
"Relay my oral decree: by noon tomorrow, every village and every household must send one person to the God Temple in Tiancheng to kneel and worship the deity statue."
Behind him stood over ten people, all wearing respectful expressions with lowered eyes and bowed heads. They responded in unison upon hearing the command.
Zhao Ren thought for a moment and added, "To welcome the new Immortal Official, each village must offer ten livestock animals weighing over a hundred jin each to the God Temple."
He must make Song Qianji witness the sincerity of the common people and the prosperity of the territory.
The group assented once more, meek and compliant like a herd of diligent, bowing old oxen.
Zhao Ren felt thoroughly satisfied. "You've all worked hard. You may withdraw."
Cultivation is like sailing against the current—if you don't advance, you fall behind. Cultivators fight for every second; how could they have time to waste on mortals?
Although he was the Immortal Official, mundane affairs were handled by the Ministers of Rites, Agriculture, and Military Affairs. Each official position was backed by powerful gentry and influential clans of Thousand-Ditch Prefecture, requiring no time from him.
The "old oxen" withdrew silently, heads bowed and backs bent, stepping carefully without making a sound.
But as they descended the high tower and left the Immortal Official's residence—
With each step, their spines straightened a little more, their footsteps grew heavier.
Until beautiful maidservants came forward holding lanterns, and servants arrived with carriages. The streets were illuminated by countless lamps and crowded with over ten ornate carriages.
Attendants clustered like clouds, golden lanterns bright as day.
The lantern light illuminated their expensive, magnificent attire and their arrogant, disdainful expressions. The humble "old oxen" had completely transformed into authoritative, portly "dignitaries" holding substantial power.
They had considerable complaints about Zhao Ren's orders.
The Minister of Rites said, "How can we manage by noon tomorrow? Some villages are remote, with long journeys…"
"Use Flying Magical Artifacts to fetch them. And bring their offerings to the God Temple while you're at it!" A portly elder waved his hand. "Minister of Agriculture, check what taxes haven't been collected this year?"
A gray-haired elder hurried forward with an apologetic smile but then grimaced upon hearing this:
"Unfortunately, we've already collected everything possible this year—land tax, grass tax, market tax, poll tax, newborn tax…"
He rattled off forty tax names without pausing for breath, finally concluding:"The common people have already been skinned three times over, with no more grease left to scrape! It's still early before the autumn harvest—there's absolutely no way to collect the 'New Bounty Tax'."
Within the domain of Thousand-Ditch Prefecture, even ordinary households lighting a single lamp at dusk must pay the "Lamp Oil Tax."
A heavy silence fell. The night wind swept through, making the lamplight flicker as hardened resolve gleamed in everyone's eyes.
The Minister of Military Affairs gritted his teeth: "If the Immortal Official demands livestock, then livestock he shall have. If we can't gather enough, we'll use human offerings to settle the debt!"
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