Proxy

Amid calm waters and gentle winds, the Prosperity pulled up against the shore of Tianshu. In the dead silence, even the sound of footsteps gradually approaching from the deck rang out with absolute clarity. Under the gaze of countless eyes, the tardy artisan walked down from the bow step by step. Far in the distance, behind the boundary separating the Association from the Profound, the remnants of the flames had yet to dissipate. Ash drifted down like snow. "Excuse me, where do I check in?" Ji Jue looked up at the staff member on guard by the shore. The Association clerk froze, looking blank for quite a while before finally realizing Ji Jue was speaking to him. "Ah, uh, over there... ahead is the... the registration..." The young man stammered out an answer, his voice growing fainter and fainter as he spoke. At this awkward juncture, an older colleague beside him finally snapped to his senses, squeezing out a smile. "Please, follow me, sir. I'll handle everything for you." Ji Jue nodded and followed behind. The process was lightning fast. In reality, all he did was write his name. The real verification had been completed long before he even docked. The artisan license he carried, that piece of lapis lazuli issued to every artisan, was the key. Without it to guide and verify him, Ji Jue wouldn't even have been able to set foot on Tianshu, which currently hovered between the virtual and the real. Just as he finished writing, Jiang Tongguang ambled over. He seemed to have just downed a couple of drinks, looking radiant and high-spirited. "How does it feel, 'Mr. Ji'?" he asked with a half-smile, teasing, "Such a grand, illustrious spectacle truly makes me, the examiner who acted as your proctor, feel honored by association." "Why do I feel like you're taking a jab at me?" Ji Jue smiled in response. "It couldn't be because I acted recklessly with no regard for the bigger picture and nearly ruined everything, could it?" "The mediocre follow the rules; true talent is naturally unconstrained." Jiang Tongguang waved a hand nonchalantly. "When it comes to artisans, they talk a big game and can lecture you until they're blue in the face, but if you asked them how to spell 'bigger picture,' they'd probably have to consult a dictionary... If you'd really obeyed every rule and spoken in soft, gentle whispers, those old-timers wouldn't have even bothered to look you in the eye." The two chatted as they walked, following the broad avenue forward. Ji Jue surveyed his surroundings. There was no trace of its former prosperity; instead, it felt somewhat desolate. After everyone unaffiliated with the Association had been cleared out, Tianshu, now in a state of war, looked more like some colossal contraption, completely stripped of the warmth and bustle of urban life. When Ji Jue had first come here, he had been a mere apprentice earning his artisan status. Arriving once more today, he noticed that the gazes directed at him were completely different from the past. The clerks who usually wore stone-faced expressions while running through formalities had all turned warm and genial. In fact, one could even say... they were walking on eggshells, trembling with caution. They were terrified that Ji Jue might so much as knit his brow or clear his throat. No matter how genial he appeared on the surface. "It's not like I eat children. Is there really any need to shake like a leaf just talking to me?" Ji Jue mused ruefully. "Aren't people being a little overly anxious?" "If all you did was eat children, they wouldn't be this nervous." Jiang Tongguang sighed. "Who told you to pull off something so brutal? Over all these years, the Association has seen every kind of freak imaginable, but today, you really blew their eyes wide open." There was no helping it; it was terrifying. It was too goddamn terrifying! Even though everyone knew Ji Jue was absurdly overpowered, none had ever imagined an artisan at the Regeneration rank could be broken to this degree... Granted, an artisan's destructive capability depended solely on their attainments and heritage, bearing no absolute correlation to rank or tier. But being this outrageous was downright horror-inducing. With the noxious wind still raging and the Thousand Islands shaken and sealed off, news of what Ji Jue had pulled off in the Seven Cities hadn't had time to spread far. As for the death of Dragon Poison, it was locked away in the archives of the Damnation Squad, accessible only to a select few. And now, right under the noses of a bunch of old fogies, a rookie had charged headlong into the fray like a lunatic chopping high-voltage power lines with a meat cleaver, blazing with sparks and lightning. He'd brazenly invaded the Profound's territory, dropped a massive taunt, and fought his way back out without losing a single hair. If that weren't enough, every single tool he pulled out was ridiculously lethal. From Chunjun to Pan Ying, from Zhanlu to Juque, nearly every one of them lived up to a Masterwork rating, yet prior to this, not a single one had ever been filed in the records. Hiding away weapons this dangerous—what the hell are you planning to do with them? Confess honestly: do you, like your master, harbor thoughts toward your peers that the Association strictly forbids?! Director Jiang, say something, Director Jiang... If it had ended there, it might have been fine. After all, if people couldn't afford to provoke him, they could always avoid him. At most, it was the barkless dog that delivered the scariest bite. Yet at the very end, what Ji Jue brought out was Chixiao—or more precisely, the Veil mandala that served as the vessel for Spirits of Creation after merging with Chixiao. That was an unadulterated horror story. With the coordination of countless Spirits of Creation, the effect of Non-Offensive's barehanded transmutation was amplified without limit. Within a domain almost akin to a bounded realm, the Deus Ex Machina mandala replicated at a perfect one-to-one ratio, executing tens of thousands of transmutations in the very same instant... A single person acted as dozens, even hundreds of assembly lines. Under the enlightenment effect of Deus Ex Machina, alchemical constructs erupted outward at the scale of multiplying Sea Locusts! Though crude in quality, the sheer quantity was mind-boggling! In just a dozen-odd seconds, sixty-four thousand seven hundred and eleven swarmed out! No, seriously, bro, what the fuck are you trying to pull?! It was only because artisans congregated within the Profound, possessing an abundance of sinister tricks and every conceivable countermeasure, that they held on. If this had been unleashed anywhere else... Caught off guard, an entire Central City could easily have been leveled to the ground! What was truly terrifying wasn't even this destructive power, but the sheer productivity Ji Jue had demonstrated... If he could churn out Sea Locusts, could he not churn out anything else?! In other words, as long as Ji Jue was willing, his production efficiency could effortlessly deal an unprecedented blow to the entire low-end alchemical market of the mortal realm. Given enough time, a total monopoly wouldn't even be out of the question. Fortunately, though the scale of this move was absurd, its consumption was equally astronomical. Otherwise, who knew how many struggling small workshops would have been driven straight into bankruptcy, and even large workshops wouldn't have emerged unscathed. "It's just for show—looks crazy, that's all. In reality, anyone running the input-to-output ratio can see it's impossible to sustain long-term. Where in the world could I find that much quintessence and masterless material? Besides, maintaining the Veil and nurturing the Spirits of Creation require massive investment as well." Ji Jue sighed lightly. "Aside from scaring people, it's pretty much useless." As for how Three-Phase Alchemy streamlined the process and minimized quintessence loss, how Non-Offensive's Transmutation and Regeneration ranks turned stone to gold, how cheap the Lord of the Flies was to feed, and how the Veil cost practically nothing to maintain... there was no need to let everyone in on that. Yep, that's right, I'm aiming straight for a monopoly on the low-end market! I'm thinking of dipping my toes into the mid-tier market, too! Kidding aside, he had no intention of letting the high-end market off the hook either! Whether he could do it and whether he would do it were two different matters. Even if he had no intention of driving his peers to ruin, that didn't stop him from preparing a few backup plans, right? Wasn't that just how an artisan operated? "Hey, don't be downcast. Keep up the good work! If you ask me, there's still plenty of room for improvement in this set of techniques. The Association isn't Stagnant Rot; when it comes to the growth and research of the younger generation of artisans, we maintain a supportive and tolerant attitude." Jiang Tongguang waved his hand dismissively, not stating whether he believed him or not, not even bothering to press further. He didn't give a damn. He was calm to an absurd degree. While pulling out such lethal tricks seemed crazy, considering your lineage's background, it made total sense and still fell within acceptable parameters. Even if someone truly wanted to impose restrictions, the Board of Directors would spend at least six months to a year bickering over it. After all, fine, untarnished gems like Ji Jue—with a pristine pedigree, extraordinary achievements, and boundless prospects—were exceedingly rare. In a mere two years, Ji Jue had risen as a new-generation artisan to heights that all his peers could only gaze up at in despair, completely beyond their reach. With Gustav's backing and Jiang Tongguang's endorsement ahead of him, Ye Xian behind him, and Tianlu above him, he practically walked around draped in layers of immunity tokens. With so many projects and credentials under his belt, skirted boundaries weren't even an issue. Even if Kanemoto personally penned a letter of accusation, it would be useless. That was what having a rock-solid spine got you. "A pity you arrived a bit late. You missed lunch, and there's a pile of business this afternoon." Walking in front, Jiang Tongguang suddenly asked, "Want to freshen up first and get some rest?" "No need. I rested on the way here. Didn't I just finish warming up?" "Fair enough. Let's go, then." Jiang Tongguang waved a hand, and an invisible force pushed open the final doors before them. "Meeting time." A crisp sound of movement echoed, and the bustling main hall of the Association headquarters abruptly fell dead silent. Countless artisans and clerks arguing between different counters or submitting reports instinctively turned their heads. They looked toward the grand double doors in the very center, which were rarely ever opened. Normally, everyone entered and exited through the side doors; this central entrance was almost never used. Even though it had been pushed open countless times over the past couple of days, when that crisp sound rang out, everyone still instinctively turned, pausing their work and their speech. What they saw was Jiang Tongguang before the doors, and behind him, that slightly unfamiliar young man. In that instant of dead silence, nobody uttered a word. "Isn't this a bit too grand?" Ji Jue asked, puzzled. "It is a bit, but keep your head high." Jiang Tongguang turned to look back at him. "Just moments ago, Ye Xian submitted a modification request, transferring all authority of Tide Sound Workshop within the Association to you. In other words, you represent not just yourself now, but also your master—the Association's Crown of Glory Master, Ye Xian. You will act as her representative, holding full proxy over all of Ye Xian's duties, responsibilities, and authority within the Association. Of course, if you feel the pressure is too immense or the burden too heavy, you can enter through that narrow side door... Holding the meeting somewhere else works just the same." He added, "If you want to back out, there's still time." In that split second, Ji Jue chuckled softly. The corners of his mouth curved upward. It wasn't the polite courtesy he'd displayed since arriving at Tianshu, but pure, heartfelt delight. He lifted his head, taking in the scene within the hall. "It would be my absolute honor!" And so, beneath the gaze of countless onlookers, Ji Jue held his head high and strode forward, entering the building's main hall through the central doors. Under the illumination of the lamps, every face shifted from a momentary daze to sudden realization. Then, as a matter of course, they bowed their heads slightly. A respectful salute. The crowd parted to both sides before him as they crossed the hall, climbed the steps, and made their way deeper into the headquarters. Behind one set of wide-open doors after another lay magnificent, quiet corridors, where artisans and staff proactively stepped to the sides to clear a path. Finally, an unadorned, solemn door appeared before his eyes. The core of power for the entire Association, the heart of the Ring of Taiyi, the place that dictated all affairs of the Ember Chosen—the Hall of Radiance—slowly opened before him. Within the magnificent, cavernous hall stood a single long table, nearly filled to capacity. And when all the attendees summoned to the meeting turned their heads, what they saw was the ever-smiling Jiang Tongguang, along with Ji Jue behind him. Among them were many familiar faces Ji Jue had crossed paths with before: Master Yellow Beard, the Veterinarian cradling a dachshund, Aignu seated beside the Veterinarian, Gustav, and more. In that brief instant of quiet, expressions subtly shifted. Some had anticipated this, while others offered an understanding smile and a slight nod. Far more, however, bore undisguised scrutiny and doubt. Yet in the end, when Ji Jue took his seat behind Ye Xian's nameplate, all whispers vanished. "Sorry, running a bit late. Traffic on the way." After taking his seat among the directors, Jiang Tongguang looked toward Gustav. "Didn't hold things up too long, did I?" "...Be more mindful next time." Gustav sighed, raised a hand, and rang the bell beside him. Instantly, the hall fell solemn and hushed; not another soul spoke. Only beside Gustav, on a chair that no one had even noticed before, did a seated figure silently materialize out of nowhere. "Is everyone here?" Tianlu, Foremost Grandmaster of the Age, rested his chin on his hand. His gaze swept across the hall, and he suddenly offered a faint smile. "It seems we can begin."