The official was fair-skinned with a sparse amount of facial hair on his face. After he entered the room, he clasped his hands together in salute and said with a smile, “My apologies for keeping you waiting, Upper Immortal Wei. However, Lord Sun is currently in secluded cultivation, so I shall receive you in his stead instead. I am Ren Youwei, county assistant of Quyang. What might you require of me today?”0

A county assistant was a reserve candidate for the magistrate position. Basically a ceremonial post, it held a high rank but wielded no real authority. That said, it would be folly to take his harmless appearance as weakness. He was a Dao Foundation stage cultivator.0

Wei Yuan rose to his feet and returned the salute. Then, he got right to the point, “I have come to seek justice for the three hundred militiamen of Flying Sand Village! It’s been months since they have answered the call to arms and fought many battles. However, they have not received a single tael of military pay or seen a grain of military provisions, much less compensated for their loss. I have come to ask where their pay, provisions, and compensations have gone!”0

Ren Youwei feigned a look of realization and answered,...0