Qi Xuansu only had some vague sense of Sage Qingwei and the Imperial Preceptor’s schemes. But he knew nothing about what stage they had reached or in what manner they would proceed.0

This was hardly his fault, since he did not belong to the Taiping Sect nor to the upper echelons of the Daoist Order.0

Though many counted him as a high-ranking official, Qi Xuansu knew his own standing. Only when he was a Hall Master or Mansion Master would he consider himself in the upper echelons of the Daoist Order.0

This made sense, since there were hundreds of Deputy Hall Masters, Deputy Palace Masters, and Deputy Mansion Masters, but only 40 Hall Masters, Palace Masters, and Mansion Masters.0

Though it looked like a single step from a deputy to a full post, the gulf between them was actually four to five levels, with the Golden Tower Council standing as the threshold.0

Even within the Golden Tower Council, the Omniscient Sages were ranked into upper, middle, and lower tiers. Mansion Masters stood above Palace Masters, and Hall Masters...0