The old man was portly and dressed in brocade. His name was Li Chuan, and he was the master of the Celestial Treasure Palace.0

His rank was roughly comparable to Tie Wenjing’s. 0

“Just as each radish in a field has its dedicated hole, the sect’s hierarchy is meticulously organized. Even if you’ve accumulated enough merit to advance, if there’s no opening, you can forget about a promotion,” Li Chuan said coolly. “To the best of my knowledge, there are currently thirty-seven people in the sect with enough merit to advance to vice palace master, but even now, there are no open spots.”0

He shook his head. “If the boy achieves an act of supreme merit, he might well bypass the usual system and advance. Otherwise, he’ll just have to wait in line. If he’s lucky, he’ll have to wait several hundred years. If he isn’t, he might well have to wait thousands.”0

“If I achieve an act of supreme merit, I can bypass the usual system and ascend directly to vice palace master?” Su Yi said thoughtfully.0

“That’s right,” said Li Chuan. He gazed playfully at Su Yi. “But supreme merit...1