Silver Overlord

Time: The ninth day of the eighth lunar month in the 17th year of the Yuanping reign in the Great Han Empire.

Venue: Mountain gate of the Divine Sword Sect, Heavenly Realm…

Yan Liqiang bumped into Qiu Yi, or better known as Manager Qiu, again in Tianqiao Hall. He could not help but shiver when he saw the way Manager Qiu fake smiled at him.

This morning was just like any other usual morning for Yan Liqiang. He led Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng to Tianqiao Peak as they checked the stocks that were supposed to be placed in the store. While they were in the middle of the job, Attendant Huang appeared to deliver Yan Liqiang a message that Manager Qiu wanted to see him immediately. Yan Liqiang did not want to put Attendant Huang in a difficult spot, so he put down whatever was in his hands and obliged. He let Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng continue checking the stocks while he immediately left for the office in Tianqiao Hall.

Yan Liqiang had not seen Manager Qiu for quite a while. Come to think of it, it had been more than three months now. For the past three months, Yan Liqiang was like a free bird on Tianqiao Peak. His life was so carefree that he almost forgot about this person. Now that Manager Qiu was in front of him, Yan Liqiang realized that while he might have forgotten all about Manager Qiu, the latter obviously had not forgotten about him.

“Greetings, Manager Qiu!” Yan Liqiang only glanced at Manager Qiu once after he entered the room. For the rest of the time, he simply stared at the ground to avoid eye contact. He tried to keep a cool face while he courteously bowed toward Manager Qiu.

“Not bad, not bad at all! We have not met for three months, and look at you now, Liqiang! The profoundness of your cultivation is even deeper now!” Manager Qiu’s small eyes shone with an aura of despicable darkness as he observed Yan Liqiang closely from head to toe. Then, he faked his friendliness as he complimented Yan Liqiang as passionately as possible.

This was the perfect example of the idiom: the weasel paying a New Year Call to the chicken, with no good intentions.

“Manager Qiu, you are being too nice. My cultivation is nothing. I am one of the weakest external disciples. I don’t even deserve your compliment!”

“Oh, are you trying to imply that this job at Tianqiao Peak is a burden to your cultivation?”

“Please don’t misunderstand, Manager Qiu. This is not what I mean. I am really lucky to have been assigned to Tianqiao Peak under the care of Hall Master Su. Otherwise, I would still be cleaning toilets, let alone the chance to study the secret manual!”

“Hmm, it’s good that you understand!” Manager Qiu nodded in satisfaction. As he picked up the teacup in front of him and gently blew at the hot tea, his eyes swayed from the tea to Yan Liqiang, “Before I forget, what was the secret manual that you picked in the Hall of Scriptures? Is it the Violet Mist Divine Technique, the Origin Returning Divine Technique, or the Primordial Unity Geng Metal Internal Cultivation Technique?”

F*ck you, whatever I choose to cultivate is none of your freaking business!

Yan Liqiang was cursing in his heart, but he retained a calm and obedient look on his face, “I am a person without much talent, and this is my first time trying to cultivate an internal technique. So, I didn’t dare to pick those tough techniques. Instead, I picked the Ten Dragons Ten Elephants Divine Technique, which was an easier one. I just want to get a hold of the feel and perfect my basics so that I can become more confident. I would have chosen one of the three scriptures if only I had progressed into a Supreme Martial Warrior.”

“You are surprisingly mature in making decisions given your age. Everything was taken into consideration. Not bad at all!” Manager Qiu laughed as he sipped on his tea, “No wonder Attendant Huang praised you all this time. He said that everything was neatly managed ever since you took over the job. You monitored the account closely, and you left out nothing! Impressive, indeed!”

Yan Liqiang’s heart was beating like a drum as he heard the way Manager Qiu praised him. This was all too familiar to him. Figuratively speaking, someone who praised you in such a way would be the one pushing you into the grave.

“Thanks, Manager Qiu. You are too nice. I am new here, and there is still so much that I need to learn. There are certain aspects that I need to improve in. I really hope Attendant Huang would be willing to teach me!”

“No need to be humble, I have been watching you. Even Hall Master Su likes you,” Manager Qiu laughed a little before he continued, “Attendant Huang is getting old. He is no longer as active as you young people. Even your brain is faster than his. This is the time for you to take up more challenges and learn new things. We have a batch of stocks we need to send over to Four Seas Courtyard from Tianqiao Peak tomorrow. At the same time, we need a few men to deliver the stocks, from Four Seas Courtyard, up north. You, bring your two men along — Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng, was it? Get ready and head over to Four Seas Courtyard!”

The north. The stocks. Four Seas Courtyard. When Yan Liqiang connected the dots, the first thing that came to his mind was the Storm Army of the northern part of the Great Han Empire. From their location here at the Divine Sword Sect, they would need to travel through half of the Great Han Empire to the reach the Storm Army in the You, Liao, and Xing Provinces. This was an extremely long journey that would take them at least four months to travel back and forth. Any minor accident along the way could easily delay this journey up to half a year, not to mention all the hazards and dangers they might bump into.

“Manager Qiu, this… Not that we don’t want to take this job, but the three of us are all too weak to safeguard the stocks from any harm along the way…” Yan Liqiang said with a reluctant face.

“This is not what I ask of you…” Manager Qiu persuaded, “All you need to do is to follow the group until they reach the destination. Then, get our customer’s feedback and opinion on our stocks, that’s it. After all, Four Seas Courtyard is only our middleman — we can’t just trust everything they say. That’s why I need one of our own to do this. Out of all the servant disciples at Tianqiao Peak, I deem you guys as the best candidates.”

“What about the store?”

“You have already done your part, let Attendant Huang take over the job temporarily. It’s been decided. Get ready, all three of you. Gather here at the entrance around a quarter past five tomorrow morning. You will meet with the people from Four Seas Courtyard and depart from here.” Once Manager Qiu was done with the job assignment, he waved his hand at Yan Liqiang, signaling him to go away as if Yan Liqiang was an annoying housefly. “Go away. I have other jobs to attend to…”

When you are under pressure, learn to bow. Yan Liqiang clenched his teeth as he had no choice but to bow to Manager Qiu before he exited the room.

Manager Qiu watched Yan Liqiang walk away. With a cold smile, he sneered, “Just because Hall Master Su likes you, you think you are safe now? I barely even need to move my fingers to finish you off…”

Yan Liqiang’s heart was filled with anger and resentment as he was walking away. However, he knew that this was unavoidable. As a newbie with no background at all, it was necessary for him to face these challenges and tests before he could be taken seriously in the Divine Sword Sect. This was just like the old days when he was being bullied in his workplace. He could get used to it. The only thing that Yan Liqiang felt guilty about was that he had dragged Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng into this unintentionally.