Chapter 1215: 代练和富婆

Chen Mobai didn't expose his daughter's lie directly, as he needed to consider her feelings. However, after hanging up the phone, he was already pondering how to deal with Chen Xingxing.

While monitoring the two with his divine sense, he called his trusted aide, Hua Zijing, who was in charge of the Three Great Halls.

Perhaps due to Chen Mobai's recent call, Chen Xiaohei said a few words to Chen Xingxing after returning, and then the two of them left the coffee shop.

Since it was during work hours, both returned to their respective workplaces.

Chen Mobai saw Chen Xingxing sitting at his workstation in the Sky-Net Geomantic Bureau and immediately signaled Yun Yangbing, who then promptly brought Chen Xingxing to his office.

"Oh, why is the old principal here at the bureau today?"

Chen Xingxing looked confused as he entered and saw Chen Mobai sitting in True Monarch Yunhai's seat.

"I've just come out of seclusion and had some matters to discuss with Director Yunhai. However, he's gone overseas to set up the Spirit Pivot grand formation. I remembered you were also here, and it's been a long time since we last met, so I asked you to come up for a chat." Chen Mobai thought of the care he had received from Qianxing previously, suppressed his various emotions, and spoke with a gentle smile.

"Thank you for your concern, Old Principal. This workplace is alright. Although it's incredibly busy when there's work, during quiet times, I can just slack off from morning till night. It's just that the salary is too low; it's not even enough for me to buy game microtransactions and gacha rolls."

Facing Chen Mobai, Chen Xingxing responded appropriately and appeared as usual.

It wasn't that he was unaware of Chen Mobai's identity as a leader of the Immortal Sect and a True Monarch of Divine Transformation. Rather, he was too familiar with him from their time at the Daoist Academy, and the Immortal Sect had a more open atmosphere, advocating for equality among all.

Furthermore, as a student of the Dance Artifact Daoist Academy, Chen Xingxing had never experienced setbacks or grievances in his life. Even after joining the Sky-Net Geomantic Bureau, he was fully looked after by Deputy Director Yun Yangbing, and True Monarch Yunhai, a Divine Transformation cultivator, was always amiable and considerate towards him. The work environment was extremely comfortable, so he had maintained his innocent heart to this day.

"Low salary? That shouldn't be the case. Although the Sky-Net Geomantic Bureau is low in rank, it has high authority, and with Yunhai as the leader, the benefits should be quite good..."

Upon hearing this, Chen Mobai looked at Yun Yangbing with surprise, and the latter immediately explained the composition of the bureau's salaries and benefits in detail.

"...Because many subsidies require field assignments to be obtained. And young Chen is currently single, with not much living pressure, so he has never actively applied for field work. With only his fixed monthly salary, it appears lower."

Fearing Chen Mobai's misunderstanding, Yun Yangbing pulled up Chen Xingxing's monthly performance attendance records to show Chen Mobai why his monthly salary was so low.

"Ah Xing, I heard from Yunhai that your array formation skills are very high. Why don't you apply for field assignments?" Knowing the reason, Chen Mobai continued to ask along this line.

"If I go on field assignments, I won't have time to play games. I have a slight obsessive-compulsive tendency; either I don't do something, or if I do, I have to do it perfectly, but that would waste a lot of time..." Chen Xingxing gave his reasons, which perfectly matched his personality.

"I see. Is your salary enough then?" Chen Mobai asked, concerned.

Yun Yangbing, standing nearby, misunderstood and immediately answered on his behalf: "That's right, the bureau provides dormitories and three meals. As long as Ah Xing doesn't spend extravagantly, his basic salary is sufficient for living here in Wangwu Immortal Cave."

"I was asking Ah Xing," Chen Mobai said, feeling Yun Yangbing was a bit lacking in discernment.

Chen Xingxing, however, nodded, indicating the situation was as Yun Yangbing described, but added: "The basic salary is enough, and I'm good at gaming. I occasionally take on jobs as a 'play-along' or 'power-leveler' for others. Recently, there's been a wealthy woman who keeps booking me; these extra incomes already exceed my salary..."

Chen Mobai's eyes lit up slightly upon hearing this, and he quickly followed up: "So playing games can involve 'play-alongs'? Isn't it more fulfilling to overcome challenges by yourself?"

"That's how we guys think; girls are different from us..." Chen Xingxing had his unique understanding of gaming. Under Chen Mobai's guidance, he began to speak volubly: "This wealthy woman I'm playing with has ridiculously high demands. The person she books not only needs excellent skills, a gentle and magnetic voice, and good looks. Even after I sent photos and video calls, it wasn't enough; she wanted to verify in person offline..."

After a few exchanges, Chen Mobai confirmed that this wealthy woman was his daughter.

This allowed his previously tense mind to relax slightly.

So, she had recently become obsessed with gaming, which parents view as a bad habit and would criticize. No wonder she lied.

"Ah Xing, playing for others and power-leveling aren't sustainable long-term options. Although your skills won't decline, games might shut down someday. You should still focus on your work and cultivation."

"Coincidentally, your combined years of service guarding the Daoist Academy's back mountain and working at the Sky-Net Geomantic Bureau are almost enough. I'll have True Monarch Yunhai apply for a Golden Liquid Jade Returning Pill for you, so you can achieve Core Formation first."

"After forming your Core, the basic benefits alone as a Kaiyuan Hall councilor will far exceed your current salary and 'play-along'/power-leveling income. And since you enjoy leisure, I can arrange a position for you as an array formation teacher at the Daoist Academy, where you'll only teach one day a week..."

After learning the truth, Chen Mobai spoke smoothly, detailing his arrangements.

Although Chen Xingxing and his daughter weren't dating, it was still better to transfer Chen Xingxing away from the Sky-Net Geomantic Bureau just in case.

Once they were in different locations, they wouldn't be able to meet. Moreover, Chen Xingxing would definitely need some time to form his core. By then, they would lose contact, and Chen Xiaohei would surely find another "play-along," thus naturally preventing any future issues.

It wasn't that Chen Mobai wanted his daughter to live a lonely life. Rather, having suffered from the pain of Bai Guang himself, he didn't want his daughter's marriage to be filled with the strange gazes of others.

"Really!"

Upon hearing Chen Mobai's arrangements, Chen Xingxing's eyes immediately sparkled, showing no sign of refusal. Although he was usually engrossed in games, he definitely had a need for cultivation advancement.

Especially after forming his Core, he would have a longer lifespan, allowing him to play even more games.

The reason he was willing to give up what he considered the best gate security job to come to the Sky-Net Geomantic Bureau was precisely to accumulate years of service and acquire a Core Formation spiritual medicine.

Chen Xingxing: "Oh, right, I just remembered. Wasn't a batch of Golden Liquid Jade Returning Pills refined just last year? According to the rules, it should be a few more years before another batch is made, and it should be a Five-Element Golden Core."

Chen Mobai, however, just smiled faintly and came up with an excuse: "After the expansion war with Pluto last time, the Immortal Sect's resource controls will gradually begin to relax. You don't need to worry about this matter; I'll arrange everything for you."

Chen Xingxing was very happy upon hearing this: "Thank you, Old Principal."

"You're a student of my Daoist Academy, and I've watched you grow up. Of course, I'll help you."

Seeing Chen Xingxing fall into his trap as expected, Chen Mobai immediately rose from his seat with a smile and personally escorted him out of the office.

"After you receive the notice from the Immortal Affairs Hall, submit Ah Xing's information according to the procedure. Zijing will handle the rest." Chen Mobai instructed Yun Yangbing, who immediately nodded. Afterward, the two went to a discarded satellite repair facility. Chen Mobai waved his hand, using a Dharma Realm to store the repaired satellites.

After Chen Mobai left, Yun Yangbing marked these items as "destroyed" on the inventory list.

Seven days later, the Three Great Halls issued an announcement stating that, in order to select more young talents, they had decided to refine an additional batch of Golden Liquid Jade Returning Pills this year.

Many factions were bewildered by this decision, but since it was jointly approved by the masters of the Three Great Halls, intelligent individuals knew that it must involve a high-level figure at the Divine Transformation stage.

Everyone wisely chose not to delve deeper. In any case, a portion of this batch of Golden Liquid Jade Returning Pills would surely be distributed to other waiting public officials, which was certainly great news for those in line.

Thanks to Chen Mobai, the Immortal Affairs Hall, which usually procrastinated, was uncharacteristically proactive under the urging of Deputy Hall Master Lan Haitian. They quickly gathered all the medicinal ingredients and then invited Yuan Xu to refine the pills.

Meanwhile, Chen Xiaohei, due to Chen Mobai returning home from seclusion, no longer dared to investigate her father's illegitimate son.

She knew very well that she was surrounded by her father's informants; any unusual behavior would be reported to Aunt Zijing and then to her father. Therefore, she only dared to meet Chen Xingxing during work hours.

She had her own private office. As a director, the General Forestry Bureau was relatively quiet on weekdays, so she often spent the entire day watching dramas and videos inside. Recently, to have common ground for communication with Chen Xingxing, she also started playing games. She would secretly slip out during work hours and had never been discovered by her subordinates.

At their home in Wangwu Immortal Cave, Chen Mobai and his daughter began to play this charade.

The former pretended not to know about her gaming addiction, or that she had booked a "play-along" who happened to be Patriarch Qianxing.

The latter, meanwhile, pretended not to know that her father had an illegitimate son outside, who was even arranged to be in True Monarch Yunhai's department under the care of Uncle Yun Yangbing.

While both father and daughter harbored their own thoughts, Chen Xiaohei also saw the distribution list for the Immortal Sect's newly refined batch of Golden Liquid Jade Returning Pills.

When she saw Chen Xingxing's name on it, she understood what was happening.

It seemed her father had come out of seclusion so quickly this time because her younger brother's cultivation had reached the point where he could form his Core!

After reading the list, Chen Xiaohei secretly speculated.

This time, Chen Mobai's seclusion, ostensibly to investigate the Three-Eyed Tribe, lasted less than two months. For a True Monarch of Divine Transformation, this duration was unusually short.

No wonder Chen Xiaohei made this connection.

Since Chen Mobai had discovered his daughter was sneaking out during work hours, he would definitely need to find a way to stop this.

"True Monarch, as for the General Forestry Bureau, our Daoist Academy truly has no one there apart from your daughter. Perhaps you could ask Principal Wenren; virtually everyone there is from their Jumang lineage..."

That day, while Chen Xiaohei was at work, Chen Mobai summoned his old subordinate Hua Zijing for a discussion. After hearing his thoughts, Hua Zijing made a somewhat difficult suggestion.

"Wenren Xuewei? No, never mind. She can't know about this."

Chen Mobai shook his head. If he asked Wenren Xuewei to handle it, even without revealing the reason, her meticulous mind might still uncover the truth.

Furthermore, secretly monitoring his own daughter was not exactly a glorious matter.

He hadn't even told Hua Zijing the real reason. He merely stated that his daughter had recently become addicted to gaming and was neglecting her cultivation, which was undesirable. Therefore, he wanted someone at her workplace to record her activities so he could have a better understanding during future heart-to-heart talks with her.

"Then we'll just have to figure out a way to arrange it. The General Forestry Bureau is fully staffed right now. To place someone from our lineage there, we'd first need to find a way to get someone to retire. If we want it to be seamless, it might take some time."

As a professional secretary, Hua Zijing immediately followed Chen Mobai's lead and proposed a solution.

"It seems that's the only way. Thank you for your hard work."

"Not at all, True Monarch. You're too kind."

After they finished discussing the matter, Hua Zijing began selecting suitable individuals from the Dance Artifact Daoist Academy's roster. However, Chen Mobai felt that someone from the Dance Artifact lineage would be too conspicuous and preferred someone from an affiliated academy or institution related to Dance Artifacts.

Hua Zijing immediately went to re-screen candidates.

It was at this moment that Chen Mobai received some bad news.

His high school classmate, Song Zheng, had passed away.

This news was conveyed to him by Yan Bingxuan.

Song Zheng's wife, Mo Simin, and Yan Bingxuan were best friends and still communicated frequently, even now.

Since Chen Mobai knew, he certainly had to go and pay his respects.

After all, familiar faces were becoming fewer and far between.

Among his high school classmates, those who hadn't achieved Foundation Establishment, like his deskmate Lu Hongsheng, had passed away over a century ago. Now, it was the turn of this group of Foundation Establishment cultivators, like Song Zheng.

The last time Chen Mobai saw Song Zheng was at the Heavenly Book Academy. Song Zheng had successfully achieved Foundation Establishment in the military and, after returning, became a teacher at the academy. His entire family had settled in Weiyu Immortal Cave.

When Chen Mobai arrived, Mo Simin was being supported by a delicate-looking woman with reddened eyes, who came forward to greet him.

"Greetings, True Monarch Chunyang!"

"Please, there's no need for such formalities between us."

Chen Mobai looked at the frail, aged Mo Simin before him and deeply felt the relentless passage of time.

Mo Simin was fortunate; she succeeded in her second attempt at Foundation Establishment and had a happy, fulfilling family life.

Unfortunately, the ultimate limit of lifespan is unavoidable, even for a True Monarch of Divine Transformation.

As classmates, they were peers. Song Zheng had departed first, and Mo Simin clearly had only a few years left to live.

"This is my daughter, Song Sisi..."

Mo Simin spoke tremblingly, pointing to the woman beside her.

"I've heard Brother Song speak of your esteemed niece. You have an outstanding daughter."

As Chen Mobai spoke, he nodded gently towards the delicate-looking woman, who also respectfully greeted him.