Rainwater still clung to the dark tiles of the Spirit Warden Bureau when footsteps echoed faintly through the narrow corridor.
Ma Qin followed the direction of Wang Yang's pointing finger and turned toward the sound.
Two figures were approaching from the far end of the passage.
The corridor stretched long and dim, its wooden beams darkened by years of damp air and neglect. A pale ribbon of light slipped in from the open courtyard side, glinting faintly across the worn stone floor.
The pair walking toward them, however, seemed entirely unconcerned with the gloomy atmosphere.
The young woman walked slightly ahead.
She wore the black uniform of a Spirit Warden inspector, the dark fabric threaded with delicate silver embroidery that shimmered faintly whenever the light caught it. Though her frame was petite, the confidence in her stride lent her an unmistakable authority.
Her long hair was tied high behind her head, the ponytail swaying gently as she spoke.
Beside her walked a tall young man dressed in simple blue robes.
His clothing was plain—exactly the sort worn by junior clerks throughout the bureau. Yet something about him felt strangely composed.
His posture was relaxed.
His gaze is calm.
Even the faint smile resting at the corner of his mouth made him seem as though he had just stepped out of a quiet garden rather than a grim government office tasked with hunting ghosts and spirits.
Before Ma Qin could properly study him, Wang Yang had already rushed forward.
"Brother Li!"
The young man stopped.
Wang Yang grinned widely, his excitement completely undisguised.
"You finally showed up. I was just telling someone about you."
The man in blue glanced past him.
His eyes landed on Ma Qin.
Without hesitation, Wang Yang grabbed Ma Qin by the sleeve and dragged him forward.
"This is Ma Qin! He just arrived from Qingzhou Prefecture," Wang Yang said eagerly. "Earlier he was asking about the refined talismans in the storeroom and said he really admires people skilled in talisman arts."
Ma Qin stiffened slightly.
He hadn't expected such an abrupt introduction.
The young woman beside Li Shen folded her arms, watching the scene unfold with mild curiosity.
Ma Qin quickly composed himself.
He bowed respectfully toward the woman first.
"This humble warden greets the Inspector."
She gave a casual nod in acknowledgment.
Only then did Ma Qin turn to the young man.
"My name is Ma Qin. I serve under the Spirit Wardens of Qingzhou Prefecture."
The young man smiled faintly.
"Li Shen," he said simply. "Riverfall County."
The name struck Ma Qin like a thunderclap.
Li Shen.
The very same Li Shen listed on the Merit Ranking Stone.
The one rumored to have accumulated thousands of merit points within a single year.
And the same Li Shen who—
"Wait…" Ma Qin's thoughts stumbled over themselves.
"Are you the one who refined the Spirit-Banishing Talismans in the storeroom?"
Li Shen looked faintly embarrassed.
"I only made a few adjustments to an old design," he replied modestly. "Nothing worth mentioning."
Ma Qin felt as if someone had punched him squarely in the chest.
This was the talisman master?
This calm, soft-spoken youth?
For several seconds, he could only stare.
In his imagination, a talisman expert should have been an elderly scholar surrounded by dusty scrolls… or perhaps a half-mad cultivator obsessed with ancient diagrams.
Not someone who looked barely out of his teens.
Yet Wang Yang nodded vigorously.
"That's him! Brother Li drew those talismans himself."
Ma Qin's thoughts spiraled wildly.
So this young man cultivated quickly.
Completed missions nonstop.
And studied talisman arts on top of that.
Where did he find the time?
Even if he never slept, it shouldn't have been possible.
Li Shen noticed the strange expression spreading across his face.
"Are you alright?" he asked politely.
Ma Qin leaned weakly against a nearby wooden pillar.
"I'm fine," he muttered.
Just dizzy.
Extremely dizzy.
He had eaten breakfast earlier, yet suddenly his stomach felt hollow.
Perhaps it was the crushing realization that some people were simply born blessed by heaven.
Lin Qingyu finally spoke.
"If he's hungry, send him to the kitchen," she said calmly.
"Our cooks made fried bread this morning."
Wang Yang's eyes lit up immediately.
"Come on, Brother Ma. The food here is pretty good."
Ma Qin allowed himself to be dragged away, his mind still in turmoil.
Behind him, Li Shen watched quietly for a moment.
Then he turned to Lin Qingyu.
"Was he like that when you found him?"
She shrugged lightly.
"Probably shocked."
---
By the time the sun finally climbed above the rooftops of Riverfall County, the quiet streets had already grown crowded.
Word had spread quickly.
An examiner from the capital was arriving.
The wide stone road leading to the Spirit Warden Bureau had been cleared in advance. Guards stood along the sides, keeping the curious crowd at bay.
Drums echoed in a steady rhythm.
A procession slowly advanced through the street.
At its center was a six-carrier sedan chair draped in fine silk curtains that swayed gently with each step of the bearers.
Soldiers marched ahead, striking bronze gongs that rang sharply through the morning air.
Clang.
Clang.
The piercing sound forced pedestrians to step aside and lower their heads.
Imperial authority was passing through the city.
Within the sedan chair sat Chu Fengge.
He leaned lazily against the cushioned seat, eyes half-closed in boredom.
The journey had been thoroughly irritating.
His peaceful vacation in the capital had ended abruptly when the Chief of the Spirit Wardens summoned him and ordered him to travel all the way to this obscure county.
All for a simple promotion assessment.
"Ridiculous," Chu Fengge muttered under his breath.
Two minor wardens competing for a ninth-rank position.
Yet the chief had insisted that he personally oversee the test.
Which meant Chu Fengge had little choice but to obey.
Outside, the procession gradually slowed.
Moments later, the sedan chair came to a stop before the gates of the Spirit Warden Bureau.
Waiting there were several figures.
Yan Rui stood at the front, posture straight and expression composed.
Behind him stood Li Shen and Ma Qin.
Ma Qin's eyes sparkled with naked envy as he stared at the sedan chair.
"If I could experience such a procession just once in my life…" he whispered wistfully, "…I would die satisfied."
Li Shen said nothing.
He simply watched with mild curiosity.
A moment later, an attendant stepped forward and lifted the silk curtain.
A pair of embroidered official boots appeared first.
Then their owner stepped down.
Chu Fengge emerged from the sedan chair with unhurried elegance.
He looked no older than thirty.
His skin was smooth and pale, his features refined enough to resemble a portrait painted by a royal artist. His eyes curved slightly upward at the corners, giving him a naturally charming expression.
If Li Shen possessed a quiet kind of refinement…
Then Chu Fengge possessed a beauty that was almost unsettling.
The capital official clasped his hands behind his back and slowly surveyed the courtyard.
Then, with a dramatic sigh, he spoke aloud.
"In this life, I roam the world like a drifting wind."
"My gaze sweeps the land, yet no hero matches my brilliance."
He tilted his chin upward proudly.
"Why was I born in an age without rivals?"
Silence fell across the courtyard.
Even the morning breeze seemed to hesitate.
Li Shen blinked slowly.
Then, in the privacy of his own thoughts, he let out a quiet sigh.
So the capital sent them…a narcissist.