Grinding Cultivation Toward Martial Saint

Then he said, "Brother Jiang, do you know what rank my position as a Patrol Envoy is at?"

Jiang Ning shook his head: "I don't know!"

And he truly did not know.

After joining the Inspection Office, he was basically acting as a hands-off Shopkeeper.

He never paid attention to the framework of the Inspection Office.

Thus, he was only somewhat familiar with the Inspection Office in Luoshui County and knew very little about the levels above it.

Bai Luoyu said, "Brother Jiang should also know that when the Inspection Office was established, the power granted to it was immensely great, holding the privilege to execute first and report later, whether it is in a County, a Dongling County, or even a Residence, the power and martial force of the local Inspection Office is undeniably the first, and the local Residence Master is like an uncrowned king."

Hearing Bai Luoyu say this, Jiang Ning nodded in agreement.

Not to mention other things, but just in Luoshui County alone, how many major events had the newly established Inspection Office handled?

The local snake, the Cao family, was eradicated by Hong Minghu on his word, and the structure of power and martial force left others powerless to resist.

Just the Inspection Office alone had several times the martial force of the entire County's local forces.

One Hong Minghu, at Martial Arts Fifth Grade, was able to press the entire County so they could hardly breathe.

Not to mention the Four Great Commanders with Sixth Grade Martial Artists and the Four Deputy Commanders at Martial Arts Seventh Grade.

More than ten team leaders were the cream of the Eighth Grade, and the ordinary members were also of ranked existence.

Also, all official members were of ranked existence.

Such a force was enough to suffocate all major powers within the city.

At the same time, the Inspection Office held special privileges, occupying both law and reason.

Law refers to the legal system, and reason refers to the truth.

Martial force is the truth.

Such an existence, Jiang Ning had long known that the Inspection Office's system was too problematic, it certainly could not last, and sooner or later chaos would ensue.

But this did not affect his joining the Inspection Office.

As the saying goes, where you sit determines how you think.

Being ruled by a privileged class is naturally uncomfortable.

But when you become the privileged class, it feels very good.

The current Inspection Office was precisely like this.

A typical privileged class, above other bureaucratic agencies.

From Hong Minghu's execution before reporting in dealing with Li Hong, it is also evident how outrageous the Inspection Office's privileges are.

A County Magistrate, in theory, is the local emperor and holds the power of life and death.

But now, they are executed on Hong Minghu's word, and afterward, it is only necessary to report upwards and bring evidence.

Anyone who thinks about it seriously knows that there's much that can be manipulated.

Framing, maliciously placing blame, there are too many methods.

With the Inspection Office's excessively exaggerated privileges and force.

In Jiang Ning's view, it wouldn't take many years for it to rapidly degenerate and become corrupt.

Thinking of all this in his mind was but the blink of an eye.

Then Jiang Ning nodded in agreement.

"Brother Bai is right, the power of the Inspection Office is too great."

Bai Luoyu said, "This is known to all officials and ministers, and there have been countless opposing opinions before. But since the Inspection Office is presided over by the Martial Saint, who assumes the position of the Royal Capital's Residence Master."

"In the face of such an existence that surpasses Immortals, the officials can't say much."

"But the Inspection Office does have oversight mechanisms."

Hearing this, Jiang Ning suddenly had an epiphany and looked at Bai Luoyu.

"Brother Bai's meaning is... you are from the oversight mechanism?"

"That's right!" Bai Luoyu nodded with a smile on his lips: "I am the County Patrol Envoy, the messenger inspecting the entire Dongling County, conferred the rank of Secondary Sixth-rank. Half a rank higher than the highest official in any County."

"Dongling County, as a majority of it is water and forest territories, is thus regarded as a small county."

"Even as a small county, Dongling County has jurisdiction over four County towns, including Luoshui County."

"In any County where an emergency occurs, as the County Patrol Envoy of Dongling County, I have the power to be stationed in a County, command military and political affairs, and lead everything."

"This is the power of a Patrol Envoy."

"At the same time, within the jurisdiction of the County, I have the right to supervise all personnel of the Inspection Offices, even the Residence Master of Dongling City Inspection Office, Zhao Yulong, who is ranked as a Grandmaster, I still have the power to supervise him and the channels for reporting him upwards."

"Therefore, though I am only a Secondary Sixth-rank, within Dongling County, who would not show me some courtesy?"

"Except for that Residence Master who has entered the level of Grandmaster, the other two Deputy Residents must also treat me as an honored guest."

Saying this, Bai Luoyu was quite proud.

Indeed, he had ample confidence to be proud.

Whether in terms of strength or status, he was the dazzling figure among his peers in Dongling County, like a leading personage.

"Brother Bai, I am impressed!" Hearing Bai Luoyu's words, Jiang Ning clasped his hands in respect.

Bai Luoyu smiled, "The second option for Brother Jiang, I believe Brother Jiang has also guessed a bit of it."

"I have a guess, but dare not be certain," Jiang Ning said.

Bai Luoyu said, "Brother Jiang's guess is correct! After my report, the authorities have also given Brother Jiang a choice, which is the opportunity to become the third Patrol Envoy of Dongling County."

"A County Patrol Envoy is also a Secondary Sixth-rank official position."

"Does Brother Jiang have any thoughts?" Bai Luoyu asked again.

"Of course, I have thoughts," Jiang Ning nodded, then said, "Brother Bai, what are the prerequisite conditions?"

"Within a year, Brother Jiang must step into the Martial Arts Fifth Grade, with Inner Breath like the sea. This is the requirement for Brother Jiang's strength," Bai Luoyu continued, "Without sufficient strength, one cannot press down the Residence Masters of the Inspection Offices in the various counties, and there's no qualification to inspect a county. That's reasonable, right?"

Jiang Ning nodded, "Reasonable."

Bai Luoyu said, "As for the second requirement, it's somewhat more difficult."

"Please speak frankly, Brother Bai," Jiang Ning said.

Hearing this, Bai Luoyu looked at Jiang Ning, "Firstly, you will need to obtain the honor of Military Scholar."

"No problem!" Jiang Ning nodded.

Bai Luoyu smiled, "This test is indeed simple for Brother Jiang, with your current strength. A Sixth Grade Martial Artist is more than enough to easily obtain the title of Military Scholar."

Then he spoke again, "As for the second requirement, it's much more difficult. You will need to participate in the Imperial Examination and seek the title of Scholar."

"Scholar?" Jiang Ning looked surprised, "Why is that?"

Bai Luoyu shook his head, "I don't know the specifics! But according to the higher-ups, a County Patrol Envoy cannot be a mere brute who relies solely on his physical strength. They need someone who is proficient in both literary and martial skills, someone with brains, to be qualified for this important responsibility."

Hearing this, Jiang Ning nodded slightly, grudgingly accepting the rationale.

But deep down, he still felt there was something amiss, an indescribable issue.

At that moment,

Bai Luoyu spoke again, "Has Brother Jiang thought it through?"

"I have thought it through," Jiang Ning put aside his miscellaneous thoughts for the moment and nodded slightly.

"What does Brother Jiang wish to choose?" Bai Luoyu asked.

"Definitely the second option," Jiang Ning said without hesitation.

After understanding it, he had no other thoughts.

A County Patrol Envoy was indeed a privileged class.

This aligned with his choice.

And the status was high enough.

This suited his choice even more.

Compared to the County Patrol Envoy, ultimately being a Deputy Commander meant being under someone else's jurisdiction, which consequently would greatly reduce his freedom.

After all, that would be the Inspection Office of the County, where there were bound to be many more affairs to handle compared to a small county like Luoshui County.

The more time his duties consumed, the less time he would have for martial arts practice.

Whereas, being a Patrol Envoy was different; there was evidently much more freedom.

And as for the tests put forth by the authorities for him to become a Patrol Envoy, they were not considered challenging.

He would achieve the Martial Arts Fifth Grade with Inner Breath like the sea.

As for the title of Military Scholar, with more than a month to go, it was merely a formality for him.

After all, whether for the Child Test, examination for scholars, or the main examination in Great Xia, there is a prerequisite condition that one must be under the age of thirty to participate.

Even one day over the limit would lead to disqualification from partaking in the competitions.

Due to the age restriction, obtaining the title of Military Scholar in the Child Test was not difficult for him.

After all, the competitors were all young talents from a county.

Generally, reaching the Martial Arts Seventh Grade gave one a chance to obtain the title of Military Scholar.

Stepping into the Martial Arts Sixth Grade would raise the chances of becoming a Military Scholar to over 95 percent.

The remaining half percent are culled due to poor results in the written examination.

But for Jiang Ning, this was not a problem.

Becoming a Scholar was also not difficult for him.

The Child Test in the Imperial Examination relied solely on memory and recitation.

For someone with the "unforgettable" ability like him, there was absolutely no difficulty in a test of memory.

Thus, none of these conditions posed any challenge to him.

Naturally, he would choose the second option offered by Bai Luoyu.

To become the third Patrol Envoy of Dongling County.

Although a County Patrol Envoy was also a Secondary Sixth-rank official position, comparable to that of a Deputy Commander, their power and status were clearly much higher.

Even in terms of freedom, it was significantly greater.

He had no reason not to choose the better option over the inferior one.