Iron Hand reflected on his own suspicions as he returned to the cabin with Huo Qing, who had just finished practicing martial skills and was planning to rest.
He checked the account balances and found everything in order, barely different from when he managed it himself, perhaps even a bit more succinct.
—This kid is clever, no wonder he picked things up so quickly, no wonder Big Spear used him till he was almost dead...
Indeed, upon closer inspection, Iron Hand found there was quite a bit of extra income—naturally, it was the profits the boy from the Wilderness brought in.
Honestly, every recycling shed should have a channel in the Wilderness, where they don’t need any high-end goods; retired, second-hand products are enough.
If it weren’t for Iron Hand being cautious, not wanting to get involved with the old roots of the Guiyi Army in the wilderness and maintaining his role as an infiltrator, he would have liked to cooperate with a few familiar tribes long ago.
Since he now planned to enter the city, leaving the management of this business to the clean family background Huo Qing didn’t seem to be an issue.
"You’ve done very well."
Having confirmed all this, Iron Hand patted the chair next to him, signaling Huo Qing to sit down, "Collaborating with people, managing properties, reselling second-hand products, recycling valuable magic artifact debris... you’ve already got the knack for it."
"I actually wanted to scold you for recklessly partnering with someone to buy property... because you are the property owner, and if he commits a crime, you’re the one who would suffer."
"But seeing that you’ve grown so much and have your own opinions, capable of deciding your own life... I won’t bother you about that anymore."
"An... An Xuan also helped me a lot!"
An Jing had already revealed his real name to Huo Qing, but the name on the Xuanye City city entry pass was still An Xuan, which Huo Qing managed not to slip up; he explained further, "Besides, he taught me the basic formations from their sect... truly incredible!"
With that, Huo Qing excitedly activated a formation he had set up.
Suddenly, a surge of spiritual power flowed, and a pale purple halo lit up, enveloping both Huo Qing and Iron Hand.
As soon as Huo Qing’s formation activated, Iron Hand, an array master, felt shock along with disbelief and shame—how could he have been trapped by an array set up by a novice? That was too careless of him!
—Moreover... it was theoretically impossible! His own Hundred Vines Binding Spirit Formation was already set up here, how could Huo Qing have managed to install his formation?
As Iron Hand became tense, Huo Qing joyfully pointed to the formation on the ground, "This is the special Spirit Gathering Array I have learned recently!"
"This formation is quite special. Although its effect is not high, it has a ’nesting’ feature that allows it to be placed within other formations to provide them with additional spiritual power. Moreover, it can be stacked up to nine times, and by just stacking it three times, its effectiveness surpasses that of the more common Spirit Gathering Arrays!"
Huo Qing, oblivious to Iron Hand’s discomfort, exuberantly introduced the Spirit Gathering Array he had learned from the Great Abyss Scripture. After talking for a while, he finally noticed his uncle’s dark expression.
"Dammit, don’t ever suddenly set up a formation in someone else’s house and then activate it without warning next time!"
Iron Hand, not pleased, gave Huo Qing a smack on the head with his iron hand, "If I weren’t your uncle, anyone else would have chopped your head off for this sort of thing!"
Actually not using much force, Huo Qing winced and quickly nodded—realizing himself how dangerous his action was. Soon after, he chuckled, "Look, uncle, this Spirit Gathering Array is quite impressive, isn’t it!"
Iron Hand, whose formation skills were already sophisticated, carefully examined it and murmured, "You’ve practiced a lot... and have a high proficiency."
"That warehouse is really useful!" Huo Qing said, his face relaxing, "There are too few suitable terrains around the recycling point, I can’t fully expand myself. With a large, quiet, and unoccupied space, I can practice formations dozens of times a day and correct the mistakes by referring back!"
"Moreover, the knowledge about arrays that An Xuan gave me is truly useful... I always feel that the textbooks from school seem incomplete, no wonder I felt stuck before."
—Nonsense, textbooks that are widely circulated, if they contain one or two sentences of truly valuable information, that’s already not bad. How can you expect them to teach everything? If it wasn’t for me personally guiding you into the entry-level, what could a loose cultivator learn on his own!
Iron Hand complained internally, but his mouth praised, "It seems you indeed have a talent, perhaps you really could get into a top college, even the Daoist Academy."
This was originally just a perfunctory remark, but after saying it, he fell into contemplation.
This might... not be perfunctory?
So far, Huo Qing’s potential seems better than I imagined?
Martial Skills are well-formed, and under my guidance, he can even learn those strange formations taught by cultivators in the Wilderness... That being said, does my nephew have some potential that I haven’t noticed?
...Forget it, never mind that.
Lifting his head, Iron Hand changed his mind.
He originally planned to hand over this small recycling cabin to Huo Qing, and fully commit himself to the Guiyi Army’s cause, change his identity, act as if he had died, and no longer involve his younger brother’s child, leaving him some inheritance.
But now... Iron Hand looked at Huo Qing with a highly complex expression.
Maybe... he has the potential to become someone superior.
—To stand at a high place in Xuanye City.
But, without backing, family, or a company behind him, no matter how much potential he has, there is no ladder for him to climb to the top.
"Hehe... Great Uncle?"
After receiving praise from Iron Hand, Huo Qing was initially very happy, but then, noticing Iron Hand had fallen into silence, he asked somewhat anxiously, "Is my formation interfering with the Hundred Vines Binding Spirit Formation? Should I dismantle it?"
He actually felt it wouldn’t affect anything, but if Iron Hand was not pleased, then Huo Qing wouldn’t insist.
Having snapped back to reality, Iron Hand looked at the Spirit Gathering Array in front of him. This special Spirit Gathering Array wasn’t rare; in the Tianyuan Realm, there are thousands of completely different Spirit Gathering Arrays with various principles and effects.
But an Array Master who can independently set up a qualified Spirit Gathering Array could actually start working professionally and earn money.
Huo Qing was not an ignorant student, although he might have some defects, he had long been a capable gang member on his own, experienced in blood and fire, and unafraid of fighting.
Maybe... Huo Qing was already capable of handling some more important tasks.
Letting out a breath, Iron Hand said gravely, "I have insider information, next year at this time, one of the four main Daoist Academies, Tai Ming Daoist Academy’s subsidiary training college is going to have a special admissions for specific majors, including formation-related subjects."
"I have... some connections in the city. Maybe I could recommend you to go as an auditing student."
—Originally, a position was supposed to be arranged by a Guiyi Army infiltrator inside the city... but considering your parents sacrificed themselves for the mission, along with my elder sister and I also pulling some strings from behind, you should be able to get this advisory position.