Chapter 192: Continuing the Inspection of the Spirit Herb Hall
Leaving the Spirit Beast Hall, Sun Yi proceeded directly to the Spirit Herb Hall.
Like its counterpart, this department was a recent addition to the sect’s organizational structure. However, unlike the internal divisions, the Spirit Herb Hall was primarily staffed by rogue cultivators recruited from the outside. Consequently, the Qingyun Sect had established its headquarters on a large mountain just outside the main sect’s defensive perimeter, creating a buffer zone while maintaining close proximity.
As Sun Yi approached the designated peak, he was physically startled by the scene below.
The mountain was teeming with life. It wasn’t just busy; it was a sea of people. The sheer volume of cultivators gathered there was staggering. Er Gouzi could be seen darting back and forth at the head of a team of Qingyun disciples, desperately trying to maintain order in the chaotic crowd.
Spotting Sun Yi’s arrival, Er Gouzi immediately abandoned his post and flew up to meet him.
“What is going on here?” Sun Yi asked, pointing at the swarming masses below.
Er Gouzi wiped sweat from his forehead, looking overwhelmed. “Headmaster, the recruitment terms you announced… they were too good. Practically every rogue cultivator in the Chaos Demon Commandery wants to join the Spirit Herb Hall.”
“Are the conditions really that extraordinary?” Sun Yi rolled his eyes.
He had designed the compensation package himself: a guaranteed annual base salary plus performance-based commissions on herb production. In his eyes, it was a standard corporate wage structure—fair, but hardly lavish. Compared to the benefits enjoyed by the internal disciples of the Qingyun Sect, the package for these external contractors was bare-bones. He wasn’t running a charity, after all.
Yet, what Sun Yi considered “bare-bones,” the starving freelance market considered a feast.
“Headmaster,” Er Gouzi sighed, his voice heavy with the reality of the cultivation world. “You have to understand. In the Chaos Demon Commandery, rogue cultivators live like wild dogs. Demon beasts hunt them, evil cultivators rob them, and they sleep with one eye open. They don’t even have a safe cave to meditate in.”
“Then the Spirit Herb Hall opens its doors. The job location? The Qingyun Sect’s protected herbal plantations.”
“These plantations are located on spiritual veins with rich Spiritual Qi. By joining the Hall, they not only get paid, but they also get to live and cultivate in a safe, Qi-rich environment. That alone is worth more than gold to a rogue cultivator.”
Er Gouzi gestured broadly at the crowd. “Furthermore, with the Qingyun Sect now the undisputed hegemon of the region, wearing our badge offers protection. It’s a status symbol. No one dares to bully a Qingyun employee.”
“And on top of that, you offered a base salary plus commission model? To them, this isn’t a job; it’s winning the lottery.”
“Even if you stripped away the salary, they would probably still fight to get in just for the protection and the Qi. That’s why it’s a madhouse down there.”
Listening to Er Gouzi’s breakdown, Sun Yi felt a pang of realization. He had applied Earth’s labor standards to a dog-eat-dog cultivation world and accidentally disrupted the market.
“I see. I underestimated how desperate the market was,” Sun Yi mused. “But no matter. As long as they manage the herb gardens efficiently, giving them a decent living is a small price to pay.”
“With such a large applicant pool, we should be able to cherry-pick some genuine talent, right?”
“Absolutely,” Er Gouzi nodded. “We’ve found some skilled herbalists already. The vetting process is slow due to the volume, but we are filtering them.”
“Give me the numbers on the Spirit Herb Hall’s infrastructure.”
“Right now,” Er Gouzi recited from memory, “we are establishing five Tier-3 Herb Gardens, thirty-five Tier-2 Herb Gardens, and one hundred sixty-seven Tier-1 Herb Gardens.”
“That many?” Sun Yi was genuinely surprised by the scale.
“These are all assets seized from the Black Wind Stockade and Evil Spirit Valley. We now control their territories completely. We are rushing to install formations and convert the land into productive plantations.”
Sun Yi nodded thoughtfully. Once these gardens came online, they would flood the Qingyun Sect’s warehouses with raw materials, securing the supply chain for alchemy and trade.
“Have you appointed a Hall Master yet?” Sun Yi asked.
“Yes, Headmaster,” Er Gouzi replied promptly. “His name is Lin Hai. He’s at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage. While his cultivation isn’t top-tier, he was previously the logistics officer for our internal herb gardens. He knows the agriculture side inside out. He’s also a veteran member of the War Hall, so his loyalty is vetted. I approached him, and he accepted the promotion.”
“Good. Take me to see him.” Sun Yi decided. A manager overseeing such a massive department needed to be personally vetted by the headmaster.
“This way, Headmaster.”
They flew down toward the main administration building of the Spirit Herb Hall.
The plaza outside was packed with over 3,000 cultivators. The vast majority were Qi Refining practitioners, with a sprinkling of Foundation Establishment cultivators. There wasn’t a single Golden Core expert in the mix—those were rare commodities, usually leaders of their own factions.
Under the watchful eyes of the Qingyun staff, the crowd was orderly, queuing in long lines for registration and assessment.
Suddenly, Sun Yi stopped in mid-air.
“With this many people, we’re going to have a massive rejection rate, aren’t we?”
“Yes,” Er Gouzi admitted. “Most aren’t skilled enough for the Spirit Herb Hall. They’re just trying their luck. Once they fail the assessment, they’ll be sent away.”
“That’s a waste of manpower,” Sun Yi frowned. “We just seized the mines belonging to the Black Wind Stockade and Evil Spirit Valley, didn’t we? Who’s digging up the Spirit Stones?”
“Since the Spirit Herb Hall has already done the work of attracting them here, why send them away? We should recruit the overflow right here and now. Turn them into miners.”
Sun Yi’s eyes lit up with the efficiency of the idea. “From now on, Qingyun disciples will only act as supervisors and security. We will outsource the manual labor of mining to these freelancers.”
Er Gouzi’s eyes widened. “That’s… brilliant. I was worried about diverting our own disciples to do menial labor, but this solves everything.”
“Don’t delay. Post the notice immediately,” Sun Yi ordered decisively. “Offer them a contract: they keep ten percent of everything they mine. The rest is turned over to the Sect. If anyone dares to skim off the top or steal, execute them on the spot.”
“Ten percent?” Er Gouzi hesitated. “Headmaster, isn’t that too high? The industry standard is much lower.”
“If you want the horse to run, you have to feed it grass,” Sun Yi said with a knowing smile. “The Chaos Demon Commandery is our territory now. We need to build a reputation as a benevolent, prosperous overlord. Generosity buys stability.”
“Understood, Headmaster! I’ll handle the announcement right after I introduce you to Lin Hai.”
They landed at the entrance of the Spirit Herb Hall. The interior was just as bustling as the outside, with Qingyun staff processing applicants at rows of desks.
A young cultivator in Qingyun robes spotted Er Gouzi and the Headmaster. He immediately dropped what he was doing and rushed over, his face flushing with excitement.
“Disciple Lin Hai pays his respects to the Headmaster! And to the Vice Headmaster!” Lin Hai bowed deeply, his voice trembling slightly.
Sun Yi smiled at the new Hall Master. Seeing the raw adoration in Lin Hai’s eyes, Sun Yi recognized the look immediately.
Another fan.
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