Bai Yujing!

Ascension Tower!

Quan Xiaotong was lying on the table reviewing the sect documents, and on his right side, there was a large stack of documents piled half a man's height waiting for his review and confirmation before they could be archived.

These were all intelligence gathered from various Inspectorates across different regions, including strange tales and major cases in the Cultivator Realm, important news from major State Prefecture sects, and so on.

First, they were sorted and classified by the Ascension Tower, and finally reviewed by Quan Xiaotong. One can imagine how tedious his day must be.

In recent years, he had thought about training someone to sit in his place so that he could free himself, but unfortunately, this job was too testing of one's resolve, and it was extremely difficult to find a suitable candidate among the younger generation in the tower.

"I don't know how things are going in Huaizhou Prefecture. Ever since that Han kid went over there, my heart has been pounding nonstop."

After a while, Quan Xiaotong finished reviewing another dossier and placed it on his left side. He raised his head, showing a trace of weariness. The group heading to the Southern Border should now be halfway there.

The Corpse Refining Lineage is ultimately a hidden danger. If it only targeted the Cultivator Realm, there would be nothing to fear. But its methods are cruel without any restrictions, and if allowed to revive, the world could fall into chaos.

On this point, the Imperial Court could not tolerate it.

At that moment, a cultivator from the Ascension Tower hurriedly walked in, holding a Communication Bird in his hand.

"Sir, there's a message from Huaizhou Prefecture."

As expected, Quan Xiaotong feared having no news from Huaizhou Prefecture the least, and feared the return of news the most.

A return message meant something had happened.

He set down the dossier he was about to pick up, stood up abruptly, walked over, took the Communication Bird, extracted the letter, and handed the bird back to the cultivator before reading the letter.

His initially gloomy face abruptly changed, eyes filled with shock. Then, as if to confirm, he read it several more times before crumpling the paper tightly in his hand.

"Damn it, even I can't handle this!"

Fortunately, the message wasn't about any incident in Huaizhou Prefecture; rather, it was an emergency communication from Sikong Du.

While Sikong Du was technically praiseworthy this time, Quan Xiaotong still felt like punching him.

The content of the letter was simple: it mentioned the pill Han Yu had brought out and described its primary and secondary effects.

Now, he truly understood Zhao Yulin's helpless feeling. Even though he knew damn well it was a trap.

But you have no choice but to step into it.

The Awakening Ear Pill, capable of hearing all sounds within a hundred-mile radius, seemed almost born for the Inspectorate.

Once the Inspectorate had this capability, all ghosts and monsters would have nowhere to hide. Even if the Inspectorate wanted to track someone in the future, unless they could traverse a hundred miles in an instant, there's no escaping the Inspectorate's grasp.

When it came to intelligence gathering, it was even more terrifying...

Quan Xiaotong had already made a decision the moment he first read the letter.

This pill, the Inspectorate will take it. Anyone who tries to snatch it will have their hands chopped off.

But the only issue is, who will take the pill?

The side effects were clearly stated: the ability bestowed could not be controlled normally and could only be passively accepted.

In other words, all sounds within a hundred miles would continuously echo in one's ears, and even thinking about it was terrifying.

Then there was the ten-meter range of deafness.

The effect was terrifying, and so was the price.

It's typical of Han Yu.

This bastard couldn't make a proper pill, could he? Why did he have to torture people like this?

Thinking of it made him grit his teeth, an old man whose rioting emotions disrupted his Qi Cultivation, swore out loud.

"Go, whoever in the Inspectorate dares to take this pill will be promoted three ranks. Within the tower, they may choose ten Magical Artifacts, or if they don't want Magical Artifacts, they can choose one Magical Treasure. Hurry up, I want an answer in one two-hour."

What angered him the most was that Sikong Du mentioned in the letter that the pill was near expiration.

To hell with that! I'm almost in the grave, and the pills I couldn't finish when I was young aren't expired yet, but yours are about to be?

The cultivator took the letter, initially eager because his master offered too much, but after clearly reading the contents, he bolted away with the letter.

Others might not know the power of Han Yu's pills, but these long-time intelligence-gathering cultivators are all too aware of their potency.

If it were something like Zhao Yulin's body-strengthening pill, maybe more people would just bite the bullet and take it. After all, despite the side effects, it also grants power.

But the Awakening Ear Pill's strength lay in strategic significance, not personal, requiring too much sacrifice, and offering no enhancement in cultivation.

It was supposed to be a two-hour allocation, but within just an hour, the cultivator who ran off with the letter returned, gingerly handing it back to Quan Xiaotong.

Was there really no cultivator in the entire Inspectorate daring to take it?

Quan Xiaotong stared at the now-empty hall except for the returning cultivator, and a surge of anger welled up inside him.

The immense Ascension Tower didn't have a single person daring to take the pill—simply ridiculous.

"You're all cowards more scared than Zhao Yulin, absolutely pathetic."

The cultivator felt wronged because his master hadn't said this before. Only days ago, Zhao Yulin's actions were used as a cautionary tale in the tower, but now it was being backtracked.

As Quan Xiaotong was still fuming, an aged voice suddenly echoed in.

As the voice fell, an elderly figure gradually walked in, with an eleven- or twelve-year-old child following beside him. The child had rosy lips, white teeth, and notably large protruding ears.

"Elder Gao!"

Quan Xiaotong, upon seeing the newcomer, was slightly stunned but swiftly stood up to greet him.

The man's name was Gao Feng, over seventy now, Vice Tower Master of Ascension Tower, currently semi-retired, rarely intervening in the Inspectorate's affairs.

When the Ascension Tower's Inspectorate was first established and struggling, this Vice Tower Master had devoted himself entirely, exhausting his spirit, which now makes dealing with matters increasingly difficult. Consequently, he gradually relinquished duties.

He had long thought of resigning as Vice Tower Master, but Quan Xiaotong kept pressing him to stay.

This man, after working hard for most of his life, now saw the Inspectorate getting better, and Quan Xiaotong wanted him to stay and see it improve.

It's just that it was rare to see him come by, especially today.

"Old Quan, I want my grandson to join the Inspectorate,"

As he entered, Gao Feng spoke with an aged voice.

With Gao Feng's authority, bringing someone into the Inspectorate wouldn't require him to personally come. He could make the decision himself.

But bringing a child into the Inspectorate, that was unprecedented. Given Elder Gao's disposition, it seemed unlikely he'd pull such a move.

Quan Xiaotong was still wondering when he inadvertently glanced at the child's conspicuously large ears, and suddenly recalled something.

This Elder Gao's grandson was born deaf. For this, the Light-shaking Tower had made numerous efforts to treat him over the years to no avail and eventually gave up.

"Elder Gao, please don't act rashly. You might not be aware of Han Yu's matters..."

Quan Xiaotong quickly tried to stop him, knowing this was no trivial matter.

Unexpectedly, Gao Feng waved him off, sighed, and said, "Though I don't handle matters anymore, I can't help but worry about our tower's business, and I do know a bit about this Han kid."

"Since you understand, you should know this pill is no joke. None of our tower cultivators dare take it. How can young Gao Jue bear it if he takes it?"

Quan Xiaotong earnestly implored.

Gao Feng looked at the silently standing young Gao Jue, a child of such an age who should have been lively and boisterous.

Yet, this child remained serene, quietly pitiful.

"Gao Jue is already in the Divine Bridge Realm. He's been fond of reading Taoist and Buddhist Scriptures since childhood, so his mindset should withstand the pill's side effects."

Regarding his body, this is his only chance.

With that, Gao Feng patted the child's shoulder, held up two fingers, flexed them slightly, and the child, understanding, knelt down quietly.

"Please, give the child a chance!"

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