Compared to the chaotic wilderness it had been three years ago, Lingxian Sect had now become a picturesque haven, with beautiful mountains and waters that could rival a painting.
Thanks to the nourishment from spiritual veins over the past few years, the vegetation flourished. The trees were so dense that their canopies blotted out the sky, while rare flowers and herbs covered the mountainsides. A faint white mist even began to encircle the area, shrouding the northern mountain where Lingxian Sect was located in an air of mystery.
In the grassy thickets and forests, small animals frequently darted around, scurrying from one place to another before vanishing into the thick foliage.
Ordinary birds and beasts, which had not yet developed spiritual intelligence, were not restricted by the sect's defensive formation. Attracted by the area's environment, many of them had come to make it their home.
At that moment, a young man dressed in the Lingxian Sect disciple uniform was walking briskly along the stone-paved road.
As he passed by the spirit fields, he spotted a middle-aged man energetically performing an irrigation spell.
"Uncle Dayou! Busy as always?"
Dressed in the elder's robes of the sect, Lin Dayou was crouched on the terraced spirit field halfway up the mountain, carefully examining the soil in his hands. Hanging from his waist was a smooth white jade token, the identity marker that every member of Lingxian Sect carried.
In the past three years, the sect had introduced subtle changes, including the differentiation of positions through their attire.
Though the overall design of the robes remained largely the same, the distinction lay in the jade belt tokens: ordinary disciples wore tokens of fractured jade, stewards had triangular tokens, elders had diamond-shaped ones, and the sect leader's was circular.
These changes were implemented for easier identification as the sect grew in size.
Hearing the greeting, Lin Dayou looked up, clapped the dirt off his hands, and stood up, laughing heartily:
"Ah, Manchang, you're back! How long will you be staying this time?"
Fang Manchang grinned as he replied:
"I'll probably stay for just two days this time. The escort agency needs people. Uncle Dayou, I'll go see Jianghe to deliver some things first."
Lin Dayou waved his hand:
"Go on then, get to your business!"
Fang Manchang continued on his way, greeting fellow disciples as he passed by, before arriving at the teleportation platform near the small secret realm garden. He used it to ascend to the floating island where the Finance Hall was located.
Over the past three years, the Finance Hall had been expanded significantly through renovations.
However, it still didn't feel particularly spacious due to the large number of file cabinets that now lined most of the walls.
Within these cabinets, storage bags containing the sect's financial documents were meticulously categorized. The most important documents, stored in smaller quantities, were preserved in jade slips.
These jade slips had been acquired after the sect made several trips to the cultivation world for trade. The reason for purchasing them in small quantities at first was due to their high cost—much more expensive than regular paper.
Later, through the joint efforts of Lin Xiao and Mo Yuanjiao, with the help of Tie Tou and Hu Liang, they were able to craft their own jade slips using formations and artifact crafting techniques.
By purchasing common jade and inscribing formations and artifact marks, they managed to test and refine the stability of these jade slips, eventually achieving success.
This accomplishment was made possible through significant contributions from the Basic Formation Inscription Guide, Fundamental Artifact Crafting Techniques, and Lin Xiao's system. Although it had taken considerable time and effort, along with some trial-and-error, the sect members agreed it had been well worth it.
By mastering the production of jade slips, the sect not only reduced its expenses but also gained a new source of revenue by selling them.
As a result, over the past three years, members of Lingxian Sect had become deeply invested in studying various cultivation-related skills, particularly artifact crafting.
Perhaps due to his experience as a carpenter, Lin Dayou had a natural talent for artifact crafting, quickly mastering the basics. This development put pressure on Tie Tou, who had only recently attained the rank of First-Grade Artifact Crafter last year.
To make matters worse for Tie Tou, Lin Dayou was joined by his two grandsons, Lin Yun and Lin Lei. While Lin Yun didn't progress as quickly as Lin Dayou in artifact crafting, his cultivation had advanced rapidly, making him the second-highest-ranking cultivator among regular visitors to the Artifact Hall, having reached the peak of Foundation Establishment. The highest-ranking was Mo Yuanjiao, who had already entered the early Golden Core stage.
As for Lin Lei, despite lacking innate talent, he had developed a deep passion for artifact crafting after successfully crafting his first item.
Whenever Tie Tou saw Lin Lei's dedication, he felt compelled to work even harder, unable to relax for a moment.
With these three constantly pushing him from behind, Tie Tou finally achieved the rank of First-Grade Artifact Crafter last year.
It's worth mentioning that after Tie Tou reached this level, Lin Xiao officially handed over the management of the Artifact Hall to him.
However, with Lin Dayou and the others still diligently working, Tie Tou didn't dare let his guard down and was already striving to reach the rank of Second-Grade Artifact Crafter.
On the other hand, Mo Yuanjiao, the head of the Formation Hall, had reached the level of a Second-Grade Formation Master two years ago and was now working towards the rank of Third-Grade Formation Master.
Therefore, Lin Xiao's task of "Training at least one professional in each skill to the rank of First Grade" had already been completed last year.
Back to the present.
Inside the Finance Hall, Qin Jianghe was busy organizing the ledgers and cargo manifests from recent transactions in the cultivation world, along with Jiang Youfu's second brother, Jiang Youdi.
At the same time, Lin Xiao's eldest cousin, Lin Yan, was sorting through the invoices related to the Pusi Kingdom's royal family, though she hadn't yet had a chance to balance the books.
Piles of documents stacked high on either side of the three, and they were so engrossed in their work that they didn't even notice when someone entered.
Fang Manchang couldn't help but smile wryly as he stepped in and took in the scene.
No wonder the Finance Hall was one of the two places in the sect most eager to recruit new disciples.
The other was the Spirit Field division.
Lin Dayou and the others felt that the current yield from the spirit fields was still insufficient, and each year they had to send people out to various villages to assist farmers, helping them improve their harvests. But with the limited manpower in the sect, even if each task only took an hour or two, there were so many places to cover that time was incredibly tight, especially during the crucial days of crop growth. Missing the optimal window would be a great pity.
Before, they had no choice, but now that they had the means, there was no way these seasoned farmers could sit idly by and do nothing to help others.
As a result, the Spirit Field team had been clamoring for new recruits just as much as the Finance Hall.
Fang Manchang entered the Finance Hall and pulled over a straw mat to sit across from Lin Yan's desk. He grabbed one of the untouched ledgers and immediately got to work, casually greeting the others as they finally noticed his arrival:
"I brought some snacks back from the capital. Once we finish, let's have a bite together."
The three smiled and responded cheerfully.