Junior sister, I really need to control you.

Under the scorching sun, inside the Xuanzhen Temple.

Li Yinsheng sat on the futon, shifting his attention from Mu Xiaoyu, who was still eating dried dates, to the golden characters on the scroll in front of him.

Upon seeing the cultivation aspirations that had appeared, he was first taken aback, then sighed inwardly—

These aspirations for spiritual practice, though richly rewarded, are by no means simple.

Although the time limit for this training is ten times longer than that for the previous "wealth" training, the difficulty has increased by far more than ten times.

Over the course of ten years, I have elevated my status within the community.

My junior sister is fifteen years old this year, which is considered quite late for starting the program.

Generally speaking, Taoist temples accept disciples between the ages of seven and thirteen.

Ten years, that is, from seventeen to twenty-three years old.

At this age, most are still formal disciples. Very few can become true disciples. They are basically all people with outstanding talents who have been reserved by the deacons and even the abbots and deputy abbots early on.

As for becoming a direct descendant before reaching this age...

This level of genius might be far inferior to his senior uncle, but he is definitely a second-class genius who could pass the Shaoyang Dao exam.

In some ways, becoming a direct disciple of a steward in one's early twenties is even more difficult than winning a second-class grade in the Shaoyang Dao Examination.

Because direct disciples are to inherit the position of steward, the test for direct disciples is not only their talent and cultivation, but also their ability to perform the job well.

Generally speaking, before selecting a direct disciple, the steward will test each true disciple for seven or eight years or even more than ten years, and then select the one who best fits his position based on his overall talent, cultivation, temperament and position.

For a normal cultivator, being able to become a direct disciple of a Taoist temple within ten years is basically a sign of a promising future, with a very high chance of becoming the abbot.

But such examples are extremely rare, and even with the addition of shady deals and complex backgrounds, they are not so easy to find.

Li Yinsheng had heard of a certain Taoist temple where the deputy abbot and a steward in charge of the treasury had a secret affair, with the deputy abbot's direct blood relative being made the steward's direct disciple.

At that time, the deputy abbot's direct blood relative had only been a disciple for twelve years and was just twenty years old when he became a direct disciple.

After this incident was exposed, it caused strong dissatisfaction throughout the Taoist temple, eventually alarming the true master of that temple, who stripped the steward of his cultivation and expelled him from the temple. The deputy abbot was also severely punished; although he could remain in the temple, he was no longer allowed to serve as a steward.

This clearly demonstrates just how difficult it is to become a direct disciple within ten years.

After all, although the direct disciples are still disciples in name, they have already stepped into the management of the Taoist temple with one foot in the door.

As for those who advance further, they must become a butler within ten years...

I've never heard of Li Yinsheng before.

Even someone like my uncle started cultivating at the age of four and only achieved first-class status in the Shaoyang Dao examination when he was almost twenty.

She might have been qualified to serve as a deacon at that time, but if we consider a ten-year period, she was actually five years over the age limit.

Therefore, a newly initiated disciple can only be considered a direct disciple within ten years at most, and it is impossible for him to "be promoted to steward".

As for the subsequent promotion to deputy abbot and becoming abbot, that's just wishful thinking.

Unless... someone can open a back door for this new disciple without any scruples!

Seeing Mu Xiaoyu, who was trying to slack off by the water tank with a shifty look on her face, Li Yinsheng's lips curled up slightly.

Coincidentally, he is now the acting abbot of Xuanzhen Temple.

Moreover, he doesn't need to worry that the only True Person in the temple will punish him for "favoritism and corruption".

"Ahem!" Li Yinsheng coughed twice, put away the scroll, and said seriously, "Junior Sister!"

"Senior brother!" Mu Xiaoyu immediately stood up straight. "I didn't slack off, senior brother!"

"I didn't say you were slacking off," Li Yinsheng said. "I've just thought about it carefully, and making you a formal disciple is actually a bit inappropriate..."

"Senior brother, I really didn't slack off!" Mu Xiaoyu interrupted him anxiously, "I was just thinking about it in my head, I didn't slack off at all..."

"What's the rush? I didn't say I wouldn't promote you," Li Yinsheng stood up. "Junior sister, do you think you're confident you can take on the position of deacon?"

Mu Xiaoyu was first puzzled, then stunned and confused, and then tried to think, but she fell into an even deeper state of daze.

Li Yinsheng didn't want to directly promote Mu Xiaoyu to deputy abbot, but promotions in a Taoist temple aren't something that can be done with just a few words.

Each position has a corresponding Dharma seal and Dao certificate, and the name must be registered in the corresponding "register," just like ordinary officials are registered.

Although Taoist temples under the Zhengyang lineage have a high degree of autonomy, the appointment and removal of abbots and deputy abbots cannot bypass the lineage.

For those holding positions below the rank of steward, their "registers" are recorded in the Taoist temple, and their Dharma seals and Taoist certificates are also issued by the temple. The lineage is not interfered with.

However, the Dharma seals and Daoist certificates of the abbot and the deputy abbot are issued by the Dharma lineage, and the corresponding "registers" are also in the Dharma lineage.

Therefore, Li Yinsheng was merely a "proxy abbot" —

Although he was in charge of everything at Xuanzhen Temple, and the Dharma seal and Daoist certificate of the previous abbot had not been taken back by the lineage and were still in his hands, he was not qualified to have his name registered as the "Abbot of Xuanzhen Temple" in the "Registers" of the Zhengyang lineage.

He himself has not even made his name in the lineage register. If he dares to drag his junior sister to the lineage and say, "Excuse me, I would like to have my junior sister, who has only been a disciple for a few days, made her name in the register and registered as the deputy abbot of Xuanzhen Temple," people will just kick them both out.

Fortunately, the abbot had the Dharma seal and Dao certificate in hand, so appointing a steward was perfectly in accordance with the procedure for him.

As for the deacon's own cultivation level...

unimportant.

The appointment and removal of mere stewards is something the lineage not only doesn't want to get involved in, but it doesn't even want to know about; it simply doesn't care.

Although he currently has no way to reach the level of deputy abbot, he can still gain thirty-four years of cultivation in one go by helping his junior sister reach the level of steward!

The only small obstacle between him and his thirty-four years of cultivation is that he needs to remember the process of appointing stewards, as well as where the stewards' seals and certificates, and the registers of Xuanzhen Temple are kept.

For more than a decade, these things have never been of any use and have never been put to any use.

If it weren't for his ambition to cultivate, Li Yinsheng would never have remembered the existence of those things.

While Li Yinsheng recalled where the Dharma Seal and Register were, and the investiture process, Mu Xiaoyu remained lost in thought, her face blank.

What happened? Who am I? Where am I? Why did my senior brother say he wanted me to be a steward? Aren't stewards supposed to be very powerful? Am I dreaming?

Eh... a dream? Come to think of it, this is similar to my dream last night.

Hmm... Am I actually still asleep?

Or maybe my senior woke me up this morning, but I didn't actually get out of bed and am now taking a nap?

That's right! I've only been cultivating for a few days, how could my senior brother possibly ask me to be a steward?

I must still be dreaming!

Since it's in a dream, what do I have to be afraid of!

Feeling that she had understood everything, Mu Xiaoyu straightened her back, strode up to Li Yinsheng, and asked, "Senior Brother, are you really going to let me be a steward?"

"Of course..." Li Yinsheng paused halfway through his sentence.

He noticed that Mu Xiaoyu's expression had changed.

Suddenly, a strong sense of confidence appeared on her face, seemingly out of nowhere, as if a reincarnated great being had suddenly regained the memories and cultivation of her previous life, her aura soaring tenfold or a hundredfold!

"What kind of steward am I! Being a steward is not enough!" Mu Xiaoyu shouted, "I want to be the abbot! From this day forward, I am the abbot!"

"As for you, Senior Brother..." She thought for a moment and said, "You will also be the Abbot, but I will no longer cultivate. You will cultivate for six hours every day! You also have to prepare snacks for me every day! I will eat 70% of them, and you can eat the remaining 30%!"

Li Yinsheng stared dumbfounded at Mu Xiaoyu, who had suddenly become erect.

"Junior sister, have you gone mad from practicing? The Qingxuan True Scripture shouldn't have such side effects..." Li Yinsheng reached out and covered Mu Xiaoyu's forehead.

"How rude!" Mu Xiaoyu pushed Li Yinsheng's hand away: "You're the senior brother in my dreams, so you have to listen to me!"

"In a dream?" Li Yinsheng was stunned for a while before he reacted, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "You think you're dreaming?"

"Holy crap! It's true that Fan Jin passed the imperial examination!" Li Yinsheng gasped inwardly.

Before Mu Xiaoyu could say anything, Li Yinsheng made a hand seal, instantly doubling the weight of the Tempering Yuan Lock on her body.

Mu Xiaoyu promptly lay down on the ground.

Mu Xiaoyu lay on the ground in silence for a long time before looking up at Li Yinsheng. Her voice was neither happy nor sad, as if she had let go of everything.

"Senior brother, I'm still dreaming, right?"

Li Yinsheng squatted down and gently stroked her head: "That's right, junior sister. In a sense, you were just daydreaming."

"Waaah—"

Mu Xiaoyu wailed and buried her face in the soil.

……

Late at night, at midnight, in the main hall of Xuanzhen Temple.

Li Yinsheng walked toward a cabinet in a room in the side hall—he finally remembered the procedure for appointing stewards and where the necessary items were.

Having exhausted her last bit of strength, Mu Xiaoyu staggered behind Li Yinsheng like a walking corpse.

"Senior brother... I was wrong... I really know I was wrong..." Mu Xiaoyu's voice trailed off, because she no longer had the strength to speak properly. "Please let me go back and rest... I'll never be naughty again..."

"Shall we go back and rest now?" Li Yinsheng turned and asked with a smile. "Junior Sister, don't you want to be the abbess anymore?"

"No, no, no!" Mu Xiaoyu, exhausted, shivered and instinctively took two steps back, her face filled with terror. "Senior brother, I'll never dare to do it again!"

"Don't be afraid," Li Yinsheng gently comforted her. "You'll be able to become the abbot sooner or later. I believe you have the potential, but unfortunately, you can't do it now."

"However, although I can no longer be the abbot, I can still continue to serve as a steward."

As Li Yinsheng spoke, he waved his hand to open the cabinet, from which an old scroll flew out and landed in Li Yinsheng's hand.

Then another set of deacon seals and white jade Dao tablets, which govern the affairs of slaying demons and eliminating evil, flew out and fell into Mu Xiaoyu's hands.

Li Yinsheng unfolded the registers on the table and took out a cinnabar pen, a box of inkpads, and the abbot's seal.

"Come on, junior sister," Li Yinsheng greeted with a smile to Mu Xiaoyu, who was holding the seal and certificate and looked completely at a loss, "Come over and sign your name and put your fingerprint on it."

……

A moment later, Mu Xiaoyu's name appeared in the register of Xuanzhen Temple.

Mu Xiaoyu's blood was dripped on both a magic seal and a Taoist certificate.

At the same time, Li Yinsheng's vision blurred, and he reappeared on the familiar white jade platform in the center of the lake.

The wind remains the same, the water remains the same, and the moonlight over the lotus pond remains the same.

Li Yinsheng looked down at the golden characters that appeared on the white jade platform.

[Through his arduous and extraordinary efforts, the Lord of the Grotto-Heaven has been promoted to a steward of the sect, partially achieving his cultivation goals. This reward is thirty-four years of cultivation; please cultivate and claim it yourself.]

Knowing this would happen, he smiled with relief and sat down cross-legged without hesitation.

practice!