I have to get lucky right away.

Chapter 471 People can only think about things within the scope of their own cognition.
After rounds of selection, only eight ghosts—four men and four women—remained before Feng Xue.

Of the four men, one was a businessman, one was an assassin, and the other two were secret agents. The four female ghosts, however, all had the same profession—they were all palace maids.

Well, living in an ancient royal palace really tests one's acting skills.

However, whether it's a coincidence or not, all eight of them are "unqualified" or "unskilled".

Well, this isn't meant to be an insult, nor is it to suggest that these eight people had any strange side jobs in their lives. Rather, it refers to the star official they chose when practicing the Ziwei Cantong Qi, named "Wild Chicken" (ν Canis Major), belonging to the Jing constellation of the Vermilion Bird's seven mansions. The Kaiyuan Zhanjing states—

"When the pheasant star is bright and active, spies will be out in all directions; when it is dark, their infiltration will be fruitless."

Simply put, he is a star official symbolizing espionage.

Feng Xue was overjoyed by this coincidence, as it almost clearly indicated that his Ziwei Cantong Qi had indeed been endowed with metaphysical characteristics. Only in this way could the situation arise where the strongest actors were all "Wild Chicken Star Lords".

Whether it was the "wildcat star" that enhanced their acting skills, or whether it was their outstanding acting skills that allowed them to be drawn as "wildcat stars," is not important.

The personnel are in place, but the whole city has entered a tense state. Although the selection process did not specify what the actors would be doing, this sudden talent selection process itself signifies that something big is about to happen.

But none of the city's residents asked any questions; they simply cultivated in silence, seemingly hoping to gain more power before trouble arrived.

Gui Shan was sent by Feng Xue to appease the people. Although a sense of tension is a good thing, it would be undesirable if he were too eager for quick success and instant benefits, leading to the physical erosion of his body.

The ghost kings dispersed again. Feng Xue gave them greater freedom, allowing them to recruit more ghost kings and gather more resources. She also helped him control the surrounding environment to ensure that he could get the news faster when that tiger girl, Delis, appeared nearby.

……

Walking leisurely on the road to the underworld, Minghui was in a very pleasant mood. After ten years as a tax officer, she had finally landed a lucrative job!

There are differences between tax officials. Some patriarchs are ambitious and have obtained official positions or attained the heavenly realm, ascending to the Pure Land. Naturally, their disciples will be given good jobs when they come down to earth.

Those like him, who have no lineage to inherit, could at least make a living in the mortal world by relying on a dilapidated temple and a certificate of ordination to earn some incense offerings. But once they descend to the mortal realm, they can only start by working their way up from the bottom as administrators.

He worked in management for three years before he had enough money to make as a tax official, and then it took him another five years before he was finally able to move around in the relatively stable urban area.

Fortunately, he understood the principle that troublesome little devils were difficult to deal with, and he had taken good care of the spirit guides in his jurisdiction. Now that he heard that a wealthy man who could provide high-purity spiritual power had bought the city management rights, he immediately applied for the qualification to investigate taxes.

That is, the 1744th branch city was just wiped out, and there's not much profit to be made there now. Otherwise, even with inside information, he might not have been able to take it down.

Now that he had the token, he relaxed and walked briskly toward Branch City 1744.

He wasn't worried about being robbed. Even if there were ghost kings around the branch city before number 2000, they were all materialized ghost kings. They were cunning and wouldn't rob a tax collector like him who had no money in his pocket and even the Earthly Treasury Seal on his body. As for running fast... that was purely to have more time to collect taxes. After all, collecting taxes is a skill! As a veteran tax collector with ten years of experience, he was confident that he could squeeze enough money out of him. His only worry now was whether this rich man had some powerful backing.

While normally someone with powerful connections wouldn't go to such a despicable place to become the city lord, what if it's a rich second-generation heir looking for fun?

Thinking of this, Minghui slowed his pace. He had previously thought that the Soul Guide was so generous as to give him this information for free. Now he realized that the boy had probably thought of this possibility and was worried about offending people, so he didn't ask other tax officials to auction it off, but simply gave it to him for free!
But then Minghui thought about it again and wasn't so worried anymore. There are advantages to being a second-generation successor. As long as it can be confirmed, breaking even is definitely possible.

"Yes, after entering the city, we should first check the governance situation to make it easier to determine our identities."

Having made up his mind, Minghui's steps became lighter again, and sensing his will, the Yellow Springs Road quickly transported him to City 1744.

"Pretty much as I imagined?" Minghui stood outside the city gate, and just as the thought arose, she saw a resident walk past in her field of vision.

Although it seemed normal, as a tax officer with ten years of experience, he immediately sensed something was wrong.

"Why are this ghost's eyes so clear? Is it a new ghost? But it's number 1744..."

Thinking of this, Minghui's expression suddenly changed, not out of worry, but out of excitement!

Over the course of ten years, he had met all sorts of city lords and naturally had some understanding of their methods of exploiting the city. One such method involved directly handing over the old ghosts in the city to the Ghost King and then plundering the newly deceased ghosts.

However, this method is generally more common after the 2000th Fengdu. After all, before the 2000th Fengdu, the inhabitants were the ghosts of families who worshipped their ancestors year-round. The main approach was to kill the ghosts directly and refresh them. Although this could bring in a lot of money in the short term, it would not bring in long-term benefits.

If a city lord had done this in Fengdu before number 2000, he would definitely have been punished. But thinking of his previous guesses, he couldn't help but wonder if the new city lord here was a spoiled brat who didn't care about the consequences at all.

"If that's the case, you'd better watch your words. Hmm, say a few more flattering words and some nice things, and you might even get some tips."

Minghui pondered in his heart, but his eyes kept scanning the roadside. More and more ghosts came into his field of vision, and he became more and more certain that the ghosts in this city must be new ones!
"Could this mean they've wiped out all those millions of old ghosts? But with such a commotion, there's no way the main city of Fengdu wouldn't have heard! It seems this person's status is higher than I imagined! I wonder which family's disciple they are... They can't possibly be a reincarnated spirit..."

Thinking of this, Minghui shook her head vigorously, completely discarding that rebellious idea. There are some things you can't even think about. If you accidentally trigger his telepathy, you won't even know how you died.

"It's about time to go and pay respects..."

Just as he was thinking about sending a signal, Minghui suddenly found himself surrounded by the group of new ghosts. Although he firmly believed they wouldn't dare harm him, knowing exactly what kind of people these new ghosts were, he still angrily shouted:
"Make way, everyone! I'm here to see the city lord! One of you stay here to lead the way, the rest of you hurry up..."

Before she could finish speaking, Minghui suddenly froze, her eyes bulging out as an incredulous thought welled up inside her—

"This is... the Sealing Technique? Impossible! How could these new ghosts possibly know the Sealing Technique?!"

(End of this chapter)