Zu An was surprised that even the ignorant Chu Huanzhao knew so much about these intricate politics. In a way, it highlighted just how horrible of a situation the Chu clan was in.

The fact that they had appeared together meant that they weren’t afraid of the Chu clan finding out about their ties. To the rest of the world, it could be viewed as a message urging them to choose a side.

Sang Hong was a shriveled old man with a bit of a goatee. He looked far older than his actual age. He was said to be quite a competent official in the royal court, and could deal with ten times the amount of documents that an ordinary person could.

Despite his withered appearance, his eyes held a spirited glimmer, and he gave off an imposing air.

Zu An couldn’t help shaking his head at the sight. Wow, he really reminds me of all of those overworked programmers I have seen in my previous life. As I thought, 996 is really toxic.[1]

His son, Sang Qian, looked more normal in comparison. While Sang Qian wasn’t as eye-catching as Xie Xiu and Shi Kun, he had an air of militaristic gallantry around him that drew several excited shrieks from the fangirls in the crowd.

However, the attention of these women soon shifted to Shi Kun.

“Big brother Shi, big brother Shi~”

“Big brother Shi, I love you~”

“Waaa, so handsome. My gosh, I’m going to faint…”

… 

Zu An rolled his eyes in disdain. He really is like an ape. Wherever he goes, people just gape at him.

He tapped on Pei Mianman’s shoulders and asked, “Hey, tell me the truth. Is that fellow really that handsome? I don’t think he’s as good-looking as I am.”

“Do you want to hear the truth or should I lie?” Pei Mianman’s lips curved upwards.

“Do you even need to ask? Of course I want to hear a lie!” replied Zu An vehemently.

Pei Mianman burst into laughter. “You sure are an interesting fellow.”

Meanwhile, Chu Huanzhao eyed the two of them with intense suspicion. Why does it seem like something is going on between the two of them?

All of a sudden, Zu An’s face stiffened. An incredibly terrifying notification had popped up.

You have successfully trolled Qiao Xueying for 99… 99… 99… 99… 

He recoiled in shock. What’s going on? Is Snow nearby?

He shuddered as he remembered her eyes, filled with a vicious killing intent directed toward him. He scanned the area intently. 

As his eyes roved across the gathered crowd, he tried to puzzle out what Snow was doing here. Many experts were gathered here—not just all the fifth rank cultivators present, but eighth rank cultivators like Chu Zhongtian and Governor Sang Hong as well. Jiang Luofu was said to be an eighth rank cultivator too. 

Wasn’t it foolish for a spy like her—who was only at the fifth rank—to sneak in here?

Even though Sang Hong and the Chu clan were on bad terms, they still had their own reputations to manage. The Sang clan would find it hard pressed to justify helping a traitor of the Chu clan in public.

Despite Zu An’s furious searching, he was unable to find Snow anywhere. A thought suddenly came to his mind. He turned to look at Shi Kun’s entourage. Indeed, there was a fair-complexioned lad staring intently at him. 

Wearing a mask, huh?

Those familiar eyes, together with the inflow of Rage points, were more than enough evidence for Zu An to confirm Snow’s identity. Of course, unlike some of those dumber historical dramas where a female lead tried to fool everyone into thinking that she was a man just by changing her hairdo and wearing male clothes, Snow was far more thorough. Her entire face looked different, which probably meant that she was wearing some sort of mask.

That being said, the mask was an amazing piece of work. If not for the Keyboard’s identification feature, it was unlikely that he would have recognized Snow.

He turned to Pei Mianman and asked nervously, “Young miss Pei, is there a way to disguise your face entirely in this world?”

“Disguise your face?” Pei Mianman was surprised by the abrupt question, but she still gave a proper answer. “There is. Formidable runemasters have the ability to create masks that change a person’s face completely.”

“Doesn’t that mean that it’s extremely easy to impersonate another person?” asked Zu An anxiously.

“Based on what I know, it isn’t that easy,” replied Pei Mianman with a shake of her head. “Cultivators are exceptionally discerning when it comes to such things, since their sharpened senses makes it hard to fool them. If you try to disguise yourself as someone well-known, your attempt will most likely be seen through. Of course, given how huge the world is, there might just be someone who is able to pull it off perfectly.”

Zu An let out the breath he was holding. “I see. That’s a relief.” 

“Why are you suddenly asking about this?” asked Pei Mianman curiously.

Zu An casually answered, “I was just thinking about how horrible it would be if someone were to use my charming face to fool all the innocent young misses out there. That would really ruin my reputation!”

Both Pei Mianman and Chu Huanzhao rolled their eyes in unison.

Snow seemed to have noticed that Zu An was looking in her direction. She quickly averted her gaze to avoid his notice.

Zu An was in no rush to expose her. He turned to look at Shi Kun with a cold sneer. So, you really are the mastermind of it all. It seems my guess was spot-on. Well, let’s have a good game then!

All along, Shi Kun had been pulling strings from the shadows to deal with him, and had taken all of his wit just to survive. However, the tables were turned now. Zu An knew who the true mastermind was, while Shi Kun still thought that he was safe in the shadows. It was time to shake things up a little.

You have successfully trolled Wu Qing for 33 Rage points!

Yet another wave of Rage points came flowing in, delighting Zu An. I didn’t think that I was so popular. These people sure are in a hurry to send gifts my way.

Wu Qing was glaring at him discreetly from behind a middle-aged man. Zu An couldn’t care less about the tantrums of a haughty little ‘princess’. He chose to focus his attention on the middle-aged man walking with her instead. Judging by the way he carried himself, he should be the neighboring Sunspring Duke, Wu Wei.

He and Chu Zhongtian were chatting away with beaming smiles on their faces, as if they were old friends. Zu An secretly marveled at how wily these old foxes were.

While Wu Wei and Chu Zhongtian were chatting with one another, Sang Hong made his way over to the Zheng clan, where Zheng Yutang and Zheng Dan were already on their feet to welcome him.

“Good, good~” Sang Hong assessed his future daughter-in-law for a moment before nodding his head in satisfaction. She was perfect in every way, from her looks to her etiquette and her disposition. It was a pity that she wasn’t from one of the best clans, but the Sang clan had more than enough influence to make up for that.

Zheng Dan’s cheeks flushed red at her future father-in-law’s compliments, making her look even more feminine and dignified.

It took a few moments for everyone to settle down in their proper seats. Sang Hong took the center seat, flanked by City Lord Xie Yi and Principal Jiang Luofu. They were the judges of the tournament, and were thus given the most esteemed positions.

Chu Zhongtian and Wu Wei sat opposite one another. From their positions, it was clear that they both knew who their true opponents were in the upcoming tournament.

Below them were seated the patriarchs of the Yuan clan, Zheng clan, and Wang clan. Shi Kun, despite being a junior, was also seated in their midst, which was testimony to his esteemed position.

Pei Mianman smiled and looked towards the viewing platform. “I heard you offended the Sixth Young Master of the Shi clan,” she said to Zu An, transmitting her voice through ki. It seemed she had kept an eye on the events in the academy as well.

Zu An scoffed. “What do you mean, ‘I offended him’? He’s the one who offended me!”

Pei Mianman rolled her eyes. “You can put it however you want to. Still, as your ally, I should warn you that the Shi clan is not to be trifled with. Take that old man behind him, Shi Lezhi, for example. He’s Shi Kun’s protector, but he’s an eighth rank cultivator. He could destroy as easily as one would stomp on an ant.”

“Eighth rank?” Zu An was shocked. “Are eighth rank cultivators so common nowadays? I thought eighth rank cultivators were strong enough to be bestowed with the position of a duke or marquess. I mean, even a governor like Sang Hong is also at the eighth rank. Why would that old man content himself with being a bodyguard for a young brat?”

“You’re right to say that most governors are eighth rank cultivators, although they still lack the strength to be bestowed with the position of a marquess or duke. Certainly, there are some official positions that only eighth rank cultivators can take on. However, that doesn’t mean that any eighth rank cultivator will be automatically assigned a position. There are only so many official positions, and there are many people eyeing them intently. Whether you can get it or not depends on your ability, luck, and background.

“Plenty of experts work hard their entire lives, but are unable to obtain the official positions they covet. The earlier in life you manage to reach a certain rank, the more likely you are to be chosen for a corresponding official position over the rest of your competitors. Someone like Shi Lezhi, who barely managed to reach the eighth rank in his silver years, has no more potential left in him anymore. Therefore, he’s unable to obtain a good official position in the royal court. Remaining in his clan would be the much better option.

“Of course, even though I said that he has no potential, that’s only in comparison to the other eighth rank cultivators. A low-rank cultivator like yourself doesn’t stand a chance against a behemoth like him.”

Zu An nodded. He could more or less understand what she was driving at. 

Basically, reaching the eighth rank was like obtaining a degree. Theoretically, this degree could get you a job, but there were plenty of other people with similar degrees vying for the top jobs as well. Due to the stiff competition, some might wait until their deaths and still not get an official position.

However, if your degree was special—for example, a degree with first-class honors—others would recognize you as one with greater potential. Naturally, that increased your chances of landing a good job.

From Pei Mianman’s explanation, Shi Lezhi was of average aptitude compared to his fellow ‘degree holders’, which negated his chances of obtaining an official position with the royal court. Of course, his ‘average aptitude’ was only relative to his fellow eighth rank cultivators. Compared to most other cultivators, he was more than worthy of being labeled a prodigy.

For the first time, Zu An was getting a glimpse into just how competitive the world of cultivation was. To think that even someone who had managed to reach the eighth rank would be considered a failure… 

Wait a moment, why am I feeling bad for that old man? He’s an eighth rank cultivator, even if he’s barely stepped into the rank. He could squash me to death with a single finger!

Someone came up to them, shouting his name. They were gathering the tournament’s competitors, who were to be brought to a holding area to wait.

“Good luck. I believe that you’ll be able to win,” said Pei Mianman with a smile.

The two of them had sparred with one another the other night, and she had seen with her own eyes that this young man wasn’t as useless as others thought he was. He might just spring a surprise on everyone.

“You have good eyes,” complimented Zu An.

Pei Mianman only rolled her eyes.

Chu Huanzhao’s annoyance bubbled over. She pouted unhappily and said, “Big sister Pei, I’m participating in the tournament too! Why aren’t you rooting for me?”

Toward that, Pei Mianman smiled gently and said, “Little sister Huanzhao, isn’t your victory already assured?”

Chu Huanzhao maintained her unhappy sulk. She could sense the insincerity in Pei Mianman’s words.

She can’t be trying to seduce my brother-in-law, can she? Hmph! Just you wait, I’ll surely tell my big sister about this!

However, she thought about her big sister’s attitude toward Zheng Dan and hesitated. Her big sister was acting too nonchalantly toward her brother-in-law, as if his actions didn’t matter to her at all.

Forget it, I’ll just have to act as the doorkeeper then!

The two of them headed to the waiting area, where the other fighters from the Chu clan were already gathered. At the far end were Yuan Wendong and the other fighters from the Yuan clan. Afraid that Yuan Wendong would back out of their duel, Zu An made sure to shout loudly, “Hey, Yuan Wendong! I’ll be magnanimous and tell you to your face that I’ll be the last one to enter the ring later on. You’d better not back out! If you do, I’ll curse your balls to drop off!”

You have successfully trolled Yuan Wendong for 666 Rage points!

Yuan Wendong gritted his teeth, but made no reply. His face turned incredibly red. Despite the intense rivalry between the two clans, it was expected that they would maintain some sense of decency in public. It was beyond his imagination that someone would hurl insults at him in such a vulgar and uncouth manner.

However, with so many prominent figures watching him, he dared not return the insult. Keeping a tight lid on his anger, he remarked coldly, “Very well. I’ll look forward to testing out Brother Zu’s skills!”

Hmph! If I don’t cripple him later on, I shall renounce my clan name!