It meant he worked for the Yunqian Bureau.

That put him leagues ahead of most people.

Of course, within the entire Yunqian Bureau, it didn’t amount to much.

He was about on par with the gate guards.

"Of course it’s important," a younger man to the side sneered. "He said it’s a friend from the Sect, after all.

"How could he not come and wait a few days in advance?"

Hearing this, the middle-aged guard asked curiously, "Someone from the Sect? A fellow cultivator from the Qi Refining Courtyard?"

The young guard laughed again. "What Qi Refining? What if he’s Foundation Establishment?"

Song Qing shook his head, rather embarrassed. "Neither of those."

"Then he must be a fellow cultivator who works for the Sect? That’s not bad, actually. They have much better prospects than we do," the middle-aged guard said with a hint of envy.

"Not bad, sure, but some people make too big a deal out of it. They act like some big shot from the Sect is coming, shamelessly groveling and waiting for days. The fool is probably still thrilled about it," the young guard said sarcastically. "He probably thinks he’s hot stuff right now, so proud that his ’fellow cultivator’ from the Sect is coming to see him. Putting on a show for all of us."

The middle-aged man immediately cut him off, saying he’d gone too far.

Song Qing didn’t say anything, just giving an awkward smile.

He didn’t bother explaining further.

Since Jiang Man seemed to be here on a special mission, he didn’t dare say too much.

If he jeopardized the mission, it would be disastrous.

He just brazened it out, sitting there and waiting quietly.

He had thought he would have to wait the entire day and come back tomorrow.

But before long, he saw a figure appear at the main gate.

The man stood there, looking somewhat sentimental.

Seeing this, Song Qing immediately stood up.

Jiang Man...

He was here.

Jiang Man had used Wandering Dragon to travel all the way from the city wall.

His clothes were as plain as ever. It wasn’t intentional—he was simply used to them and hadn’t bothered to change.

Since no one ever mentioned it, he just went with the flow.

Now that he was a Golden Core Ancestor, he no longer needed to use such petty tricks to earn Spiritual Source.

Gazing at the familiar gate, Jiang Man recalled the past.

"It’s been four years."

he murmured, feeling a wave of nostalgia.

Four years ago, he had tested into the Sect with the highest score.

Back then, he had been a legendary figure in the Yunqian Bureau.

Everyone who saw him was so dazzled by the brilliance of his first-place rank they had no choice but to lower their heads.

Now, four years later, the Student Cultivators were an entirely new batch.

He doubted anyone would recognize him.

Only Mr. Zhao and Mr. Fu were unlikely to have forgotten him.

He didn’t plan on bothering them, though. His priority was to find Song Qing first.

Then, there was the Sect’s assessment in two days.

According to the documents he received, they were to accept one hundred people this time, with the discretion to recruit five more or five fewer depending on the situation.

This was within his authority.

Additionally, there were some verbal instructions regarding the surrounding area.

As was customary, he also had to find time to conduct an inspection tour.

In short, there was a lot to do, but it could all be finished in a day.

The difficult part was still the mission.

’Where is Song Qing, though?’

’I forgot to ask where he works. I should have just gone to find him myself.’

Just as he was wondering how to find him, Song Qing’s voice called out from the side, "Jiang Man."

Watching the other man walk out from the guards’ station, Jiang Man asked in surprise, "Aren’t you a transport guard for the Sect? Since when did you get such an easy job?"

Song Qing was taken aback. ’I get an easy job, and you’re not happy about it?’

"You’ve grown lazy. You haven’t been focusing on your Cultivation, have you?" Jiang Man said, shaking his head and sighing.

This laziness made him quite uncomfortable. ’What’s wrong with suffering together?’

Song Qing felt ashamed. He had been waiting for the past few days, so he hadn’t been able to cultivate properly.

"So this is your friend with the job in the Sect? Waiting here for days... how grand of you," the young man said mockingly as he stepped out.

His words, however, were laced with ridicule.

Jiang Man looked at the young man and breathed a sigh of relief.

’So he wasn’t here enjoying himself, but getting the cold shoulder. That’s good.’

"You’ve been waiting for me these past few days?" Jiang Man asked.

"I didn’t know when you’d arrive, so I could only wait around the expected time," Song Qing said honestly.

Jiang Man sighed. "What a waste of Cultivation time."

Song Qing was speechless.

"Have you discovered anything?" Jiang Man asked.

As for the sarcastic guy, he paid him no mind.

He didn’t understand what the man meant by "a friend with a job," and saw no need to explain.

Soon enough, the guard would find out who he was.

When he stood on the high platform for the assessment with the Courtyard’s dean by his side, that scene would be more powerful than any words.

"I have a bit of news. It’s about the back mountain outside the city," Song Qing said, recalling the details. "The area has been sealed off. The Yunqian Bureau has people guarding it, and they’re probably waiting for someone from the Sect to handle it.

"Swarms of Demon Beasts have appeared inside three times.

"A few managed to escape.

"They’re said to have Cultivation at the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment.

"There are even some at the Middle and Late Stages, but thankfully they haven’t gotten out.

"Although the Yunqian Bureau has Foundation Establishment Cultivators, they’re no match for a swarm of beasts.

"They can only use some Magical Treasures to cover the area and ensure nothing goes wrong.

"But the Demon Beasts have become more active recently. I’m not sure if there will be a bigger incident."

Jiang Man decided to go take a look.

So far, there shouldn’t be any Golden Core Level Demon Beasts.

’It would be quite troublesome if there were.’

He wasn’t considered particularly strong among Golden Core Cultivators.

He was still in the process of improving his Golden Core Skill.

The same went for his Magic Skills.

He still had to rely on his old techniques.

Of course, this was when comparing himself to Golden Core Cultivators with pure, unadulterated cores.

If he were up against someone still refining the impurities from their Golden Core, the sheer weight of his Spiritual Qi could overwhelm them.

"Let’s go take a look." With that, Jiang Man led Song Qing away.

Watching them leave, the ignored young man snorted coldly.

In the end, he didn’t say anything else.

After all, the man worked for the Sect. He didn’t dare to be too presumptuous.

He only dared to make a few harmless remarks; he’d have to think twice before saying anything too harsh.