Daily life of a cultivation judge

"What?" Yang Qing awkwardly asked in response to Sun Biya's intent-filled stare, which had lasted a whole thirty seconds without a single word from her.

"No, nothing," she said quickly, trying to regain some semblance of calm. Her lips twitched slightly, as if she wanted to say more, but with how jumbled her thoughts were, even stringing two words together seemed difficult at the moment.

"So is it enough?" Yang Qing asked softly with a touch of eagerness in his voice.

"Mmh," Sun Biya nodded, once again staring deeply into his eyes.

"Forgive me for asking this again..." she finally said as some semblance of speech returned to her. "Are you sure you want to hand this over?" she asked, gesturing to the jade slip.

"Yes, I do," Yang Qing replied easily, without the slightest hesitation.

Sun Biya stared at him once more, as if trying to peer into his thoughts, hoping it might give her some insight into the person standing before her. His actions and expressions were utterly baffling to her.

Looking at his awkward smile and those clear, unguarded eyes, her mind couldn't help but replay his earlier words:

"Well… it's just some thoughts I had. So, would that be enough to get me the access in place of the spirit stones?"

Just some thought! How is this just some thoughts?

How could what was in that jade slip be termed just some thoughts?

At first, she had assumed Yang Qing was simply playing meek—perhaps trying to raise his image in front of her. It was something she had seen often at the teahouse whenever people donated their works. Most did it to project a kind of plastic modesty—pretending their work wasn't a big deal, or that it was something they'd stumbled upon by chance—while deep down, they knew exactly how valuable it was.

Everything they said was part of a crafted narrative, meant to make themselves seem even more impressive or to draw extra praise from their audience.

The other reason was simpler: some just did it to catch her attention—or that of the other beautiful staff members working at the teahouse.

Being too direct about how amazing your work was could come across as haughty, and in scholar circles, haughtiness was often seen as tasteless. For those hoping to leave a lasting impression, being seen as tasteless was the last thing they wanted.

But as she looked at Yang Qing, she could genuinely tell he truly meant what he said—and that was what shocked her.

She might not have been a mind reader, but years of working at the teahouse, or even just living in Hebei, had taught her how to be discerning. Dealing with scholars daily—people never lacking in words or gestures—required a sharp eye. If you couldn't see through all the fluff to the person beneath, you ran the very horrid risk of being bamboozled.

And so, as inexplicable as it seemed, she could tell that Yang Qing was sincere. Whatever he said—however unbelievable it sounded to her ears—those were his true thoughts.

"What's his background?" she wondered incredulously. "It can't be a simple one, that's for sure. Not with what he's shown in that slip."

The "just thoughts" he shared—there was nothing simple about them. They were deeply profound, and more than that, they didn't feel like random musings someone casually put together. With how rich and detailed it was, Sun Biya strongly felt that the basis of his study had to come from something he had extensive contact with.

And if that was the case, then it meant their new guest had interacted with peerless jade physique holders, natural physique holders, and bloodline physique holders. Given the vastness and immersiveness of the research, it didn't seem like he had only limited access either.

And if that was so, then...

A solemness settled in Sun Biya's heart as she thought deeper on the matter.

Hebei Kingdom was a rank two kingdom with a rich history. Yet, for all its power and legacy—stretching back at least 50,000 years—it had only ever produced four peerless jade physique users in all that time.

And now, standing before her, was someone who, by the looks of things, had more than likely interacted with more than one.

His research may not have mentioned the names of any physiques or pointed to any one specifically—and while physiques weren't her area of expertise, she was a first-stage Palace Realm expert, and a sword cultivator to boot. That gave her a decent level of insight and understanding, even in fields outside her own.

And reading Yang Qing's report, even without having a background in the subject, she could immediately tell a few things: it was deeply profound, and part of that depth came from the source material it was based on.

If that was the case, then where exactly had he encountered those peerless jade physique bearers to study?

And from the way the report described the natural physique users and bloodline physique holders he likely used for comparison, it didn't seem like they were ordinary either. After all, to be compared against the peerless jade physique, only the best natural and bloodline physiques would be fit for the task.

"No! His background is his business. He is a patron and a special guest of the teahouse. Act with propriety!" Sun Biya hurriedly warned herself as she felt her thoughts slipping.

"Even he was a mysterious one…" she added, stealing a glance at the enigmatic painting behind her from the corner of her eye.

She had initially assumed the person who created that painting was simply skilled in the art itself—given the depth of technique and mastery it displayed. Only later did she learn that he was also profoundly talented in formations, just as much as he was with painting.

The formation arrays used in the Velvet Orchid Teahouse were his creations. And if she were being honest—as biased as it might sound—no one in Orchid City had better formations than theirs. She would even go further and say that perhaps, across the entire Yunnan Province, one would be hard-pressed to find formations as uniquely designed or as powerful.

The teahouse had thirty-six formation arrays, layered over one another like a web. Each functioned independently, yet at the same time worked in symbiosis to produce effects far beyond their individual ranks. Among the thirty-six, four were middle-tier blue grade, two were low-tier blue grade, and the remaining thirty were top-tier orange grade.

And yet, when combined—when all thirty-six arrays were activated as a single system—the resulting strength slowly approached that of a low-tier gold grade formation.

Not just any formation master could layer arrays in such a way and still maintain regular functionality, let alone harmony. It required tremendous skill.

Sun Biya took a silent breath to calm her swirling emotions and wandering thoughts. Focusing on Yang Qing as a guest and not someone whose background she needed to uncover, helped her quickly fall back into rhythm, and she moved to apologize for her conduct—even though her little interlude, with all the rushing thoughts and guesses it stirred, had taken no more than a minute. Still, to leave a guest unattended for even that long was an affront she couldn't abide by.