Little Pagoda shivered uncontrollably.

"

Hahaha.

" The white-robed man chuckled. "Master Pagoda, can we talk?"

Little Pagoda trembled and stammered, "Young Master, w-we don't need to talk! Just give me your orders, and I will obey."

"

Hahaha!

" The white-robed man laughed heartily and said, "It's nothing serious. It's just that from now on, can you tell my son more about my glorious exploits back in the day? Embellish the stories a bit, you know what I mean?"

"Yes, yes, yes! From now on, I'll make sure to highlight your glorious—I mean, your invincible past."

The white-robed man laughed. "Thank you for your trouble."

Little Pagoda hurriedly replied, "No trouble at all, Young Master! I will do my utmost to assist the little master in overcoming this ordeal."

The white-robed man nodded. "I leave it to you, Master Pagoda."

With that, he tapped lightly, and the tiny pagoda vanished.

A trace of worry flickered in the white-robed man's eyes as he muttered, "Qing'er, this battle for the Great Dao is going to be a bitter trial for the little one. I wonder if he can take it..."

The lady in a plain skirt gently replied, "He has to go through it, anyway. Don't worry."

The white-robed man shook his head and smiled. "I know. It's just that I suffered so much in the past, and I don't want to see the little one go through the same pain.

"However, cultivators ought to walk the path to the Great Dao by themselves. It's fine. He has such an extraordinary father, so he will definitely be extraordinary as well! He'll definitely make it!

Hahaha!

"

The lady in a plain skirt glanced at the white-robed man with her eyes brimming with boundless tenderness.

***

Ye Guan was confused by Little Pagoda's silence.

"Master Pagoda?"

There was no reply.

Just as Ye Guan was about to ask again, Little Pagoda exclaimed,

"Sell your blood!"

Ye Guan's face darkened.

Little Pagoda explained, "It's the simplest, quickest, and most hassle-free way to earn some money."

My bloodline?

Ye Guan frowned deeply. He could still sense them, which meant his three bloodlines were still present, but they were being suppressed at the moment. In other words, he couldn't harness their power.

However, he wasn't surprised.

"Can you read?" the girl sitting beside him asked.

Ye Guan snapped out of his thoughts, looked at the girl, and nodded. "Yes."

The little girl pointed to a passage. "How do you read this?"

Ye Guan glanced at the passage she pointed to and smiled. "'Do not be overly harsh in attacking others' faults; consider whether they can bear it. When teaching others to do good, do not aim too high. Instead, guide them in a way they can follow and practice.'"

"What does it mean?"

Ye Guan thought for a moment and explained, "It means that when you criticize someone's mistakes or bad behavior, don't be too strict—consider whether they can take it. And when teaching someone to be good, don't make the theory too advanced. Teach in a way they can understand and implement."

"You seem to know a lot."

"I've read a few books before."

The girl nodded and continued reading.

Ye Guan suddenly asked, "Why don't you go to the academy? I heard the academy has a free class for impoverished students."

The little girl looked at him. "You're so naïve."

Ye Guan was speechless.

Little Pagoda chimed in, "Your academy seems to have quite a few issues."

Ye Guan replied solemnly, "Can you elaborate?"

"No, it's meaningless."

Ye Guan pressed. "But I'm curious."

The little girl sized him up. Seeing Ye Guan's earnest expression, the girl hesitated briefly before saying, "Do you know how many poor people are in this world?"

Ye Guan shook his head. He had never thought about it.

The girl stared at him and said, "I don't know either, but I know that when it comes to the free classes, especially the free martial arts classes, tens of thousands of people will compete for a spot every time.

"However, the academy only accepts a little over a thousand people each time. At first, everyone had an equal chance because the selection was random, but later on, you had to pay ten spiritual crystals to secure your spot."

Ye Guan was stunned. "Ten spiritual crystals?"

A single bun was three silver coins, but one spiritual crystal was worth a thousand silver coins.

The little girl nodded. "Yes."

"So the ones who can attend these free classes aren't truly impoverished?"

"Certain families and clans have already monopolized those spots. The top-tier families and clans—like the Ye Clan or the Sword Sect—don't really care about them, but countless smaller families and clans do care about them.

"Their members might not be able to get into the academy, so those free classes are crucial. Every year, thirty students from those free classes can officially join the academy..."

"How preposterous!" Ye Guan suddenly erupted in anger. "How dare they behave so brazenly?"

Although Ye Guan no longer had his cultivation base, his presence was still intimidating. His outburst startled the girl, who stepped backward and stared at him in alarm.

Ye Guan's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot. He had never imagined that those families and clans would exploit the welfare programs he had proposed and created.

"They are daring because of the guaranteed profits," Little Pagoda remarked, "I mean, just think about it—a thousand spots, ten spiritual crystals each—that's ten thousand spirit crystals each session. This isn't the academy's headquarters. Ten thousand spiritual crystals a day is enough to tempt people into taking risks."

Ye Guan's expression grew even grimmer.

Little Pagoda sighed. "Honestly, I'm surprised. The corruption here actually runs so deep..."

Ye Guan took a deep breath and looked at the girl in front of him. "Has no one done anything about them?"

The girl glanced at him and replied, "Those who can intervene won't do it, as they don't really care about such a 'trivial matter.'

"The academy leaders are focused on finding prodigies for Qingzhou and winning glory at the triennial competitions. Those who can't intervene won't dare to make any attempts, as doing so will offend many people.

"Who would dare to do such a thankless endeavor?"

Ye Guan fell silent.

The little girl suddenly asked, "Why did your family decline?"

Ye Guan snapped out of his thoughts. "Because I was useless."

The little girl nodded. "I can tell."

Ye Guan was taken aback. "How can you tell?"

"You're naïve."

Ye Guan and Little Pagoda were speechless.

The girl suddenly packed up her book and hid it beneath a statue. She seemed to have thought of something and looked at Ye Guan.

Ye Guan smiled and said, "I won't steal it."

The girl nodded but didn't put the book down. Instead, she hugged it and walked outside.

Ye Guan's expression froze. The girl's actions really hurt his feelings!

Left all alone, Ye Guan leaned against the stone wall and muttered,

"Master Pagoda, I suddenly feel that my father should have been more thorough with his tough love approach."

Little Pagoda asked,

"Why?"

"Because I still ended up growing naive,"

Ye Guan said, laughing self-deprecatingly.

"I finally understand the look my aunt gave me back when I told her that I wanted to establish my own order. She wasn't doubting me. Instead, she saw countless problems at a glance—problems I was too blind to notice with my youthful zeal."

Ye Guan's gaze grew resolute.

"I must thank Clan Leader Jing. Had it not been for her, I wouldn't have been able to see those issues in my lifetime."

Little Pagoda said,

"She said if you can walk in darkness while still holding onto the light, she'll acknowledge and help you. You really need to work hard this time, you brat."

Ye Guan nodded and asked, "Master Pagoda, how am I going to get dinner?"

Little Pagoda had no idea what to say.

Ye Guan chuckled and walked outside. At first, he planned to go to the Sword Sect, but now, he had to adjust his plans. He needed to earn some money first.

Although he had no cultivation base at the moment, he believed finding a job wouldn't be too difficult.

With that thought, Ye Guan left and soon arrived at the main city of Qingzhou.

After thinking for a while, he decided to go to the Immortal Treasures Pavilion. They had money, and he wanted to apply for a managerial position there.

The Immortal Treasures Pavilion had a hierarchy. The highest rank in a branch was the External Committee Grand Elder, followed by the General Manager, and then the twelve Assistant Managers under them.

Ye Guan's target wasn't too high in his eyes. He wanted to become an Assistant Manager first. When he arrived at the Immortal Treasures Pavilion and expressed his intention to apply, a female supervisor asked, "What position are you applying for?"

Ye Guan replied, "Manager."

The female supervisor froze. "Manager?"

"Yes."

The female supervisor scrutinized him. "Do you have a résumé?"

Ye Guan was puzzled. "What résumé?"

𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

The female supervisor stared at him silently.

After hesitating for a moment, Ye Guan said, "I have work experience and believe I am qualified for this position."

The female supervisor glanced at him. "If you want to apply for a managerial role, you should have submitted a résumé in advance. We would then investigate your background to see if you're suitable, followed by an in-person interview.

"Finally, the upper management would have to approve your candidacy."

Ye Guan was surprised. He hadn't expected that applying for such a minor managerial position would be so complicated.

Pulling himself together, Ye Guan asked, "How do I submit a résumé?"

The female supervisor shook her head. "You don't need to."

Ye Guan was confused. "Why not?"

The female supervisor gave him a dismissive glance. "I've worked here for fifteen years. My performance and abilities are more than enough for me to become a manager, but I'm still not a manager. Do you know why?"

Ye Guan was perplexed. "Why?"

The female supervisor looked at him. "I don't want to talk to fools."

Ye Guan was speechless.

The female supervisor suddenly said, "There's a job opening. Are you interested?"

"What kind of job?"

"Cleaning the toilets."

Ye Guan and Little Pagoda had no idea what to say.

Seeing Ye Guan's expression, the female supervisor shook her head. "Having high ambitions is fine, but you need the ability to match. If you lack the skills, but you keep aiming high, you're only setting yourself up for failure."

Ye Guan was at a loss for words.

Just then, an elderly man nearby called out, "Yuya, come and handle this."

The female supervisor named Yuya gave Ye Guan one last look before turning around and walking away.

Ye Guan left the Immortal Treasures Pavilion with a grim expression.

However, he refused to give up. He wandered around the city looking for other opportunities, but no organization was willing to hire him. After all, he wasn't a cultivator, and he also had no legal documents to prove his identity.

By nightfall, Ye Guan stood on the streets, muttering,

"Master Pagoda, finding a job is really hard."

Little Pagoda was silent.

When Ye Guan returned to the dilapidated temple, he saw the girl again.

The girl glanced at him without saying a word.

Ye Guan sat down not far from her, and his stomach growled as soon as he sat.

Ye Guan felt embarrassed. He had spent the entire day job hunting, so he hadn't eaten anything yet.

The girl took out a steamed bun and extended it over to him.

Ye Guan asked sternly, "Did you steal this?"

The girl nodded.

Ye Guan was silent.

The girl glanced at him and was about to retract her hand, but Ye Guan grabbed the bun and said, "I was just asking."

With that, he ate the bun with relish.

Little Pagoda had no idea what to say.