I Cultivate in a Government Office

Chapter 168: Chapter 108: Straight to Great Accomplishment in the Fifth Refinement, Opening the Sixth Refinement’s Divine Sense

In East City, within Zhang Qiming’s county residence, a small, elegantly furnished hall was brightly lit.

Zhang Qiming was hosting a banquet for two vice directors from the Civil Affairs Bureau. The spread was exquisite, the fine wine fragrant. Director Zhang wore a warm and welcoming smile, and his conversation with the two vice directors revolved around the engineering progress in Lingshan Town, resource allocation, and potential future administrative integration.

After several rounds of drinks, just as the host and guests were thoroughly enjoying themselves, the sub-bureau police badge in Director Zhang’s pocket suddenly emitted a fluctuation of Spiritual Qi. His smile never faltered as he excused himself, "A small, urgent matter at the bureau. I’ll be right back."

He left the table and walked into a quiet study nearby. Activating the Communication Array on the badge, he immediately heard Gao Zhen’s voice. "Director Zhang, I’m not disturbing you, am I?"

The professional smile on Zhang Qiming’s face faltered for a moment. A trace of surprise flickered in his eyes, but his voice remained steady. "Director Gao, calling so late. Is something important?"

The two of them normally only contacted each other for extremely important official business. The rest of the time, they practically acted as if the other didn’t exist.

Vice Director Gao immediately replied, "Director Zhang, my apologies for the interruption. There’s something I need to report. Wenqing has had a breakthrough in his cultivation. He has successfully advanced to the Fifth Refinement, ’Opening Channels and Expanding Meridians.’ According to the file previously established for him by the municipal bureau, he now qualifies for the rank of Police Specialist. I need to take him to the municipal bureau tomorrow to confirm the information."

A muscle in Zhang Qiming’s face twitched almost imperceptibly, and a flash of displeasure and astonishment shot through the depths of his eyes before he replied in a tone filled with just the right amount of surprise and affirmation:

"Good news! This is great news! Please congratulate Team Leader Wenqing for me. To achieve this at such a young age... he is truly a pillar of our bureau. Director Gao, please don’t spare any effort. Take him to the municipal bureau to finalize the paperwork as soon as possible, so we can add such a capable officer to our ranks sooner rather than later!"

His response was very positive, even encouraging and urgent—the perfect posture of a leader happy to see success and prioritizing the bigger picture.

"Yes, Director Zhang."

"I’ll make the arrangements here at the bureau to ensure full cooperation," Zhang Qiming continued cordially.

The two exchanged a few more pleasantries before ending the call. Judging by their tones, an outsider would have thought they were lifelong friends.

After the call ended, the smile on Zhang Qiming’s face vanished without a trace. He didn’t immediately return to the banquet. Instead, he stood alone before the study window, gazing at the swaying shadows of the trees in the courtyard outside.

’He knew, almost instantly, what Gao Zhen’s next move would be. He might have cared about the leadership position of the Major Case Team in the past, but he didn’t care so much anymore.’

The sub-bureau’s upgrade was imminent, and the position of Director required a Foundation Establishment cultivation level. He had been stuck in the Marrow Cleansing Realm for many years; without a great stroke of fortune, he had no hope of breaking through anytime soon. His only way out—the escape route his family had planned for him—was the position of Security Chief in Lingshan Town. After Lingshan Town’s promotion, its status would be on par with the current Qianjiao County, and it boasted abundant Coral Ore resources.

For this, he had to focus all his energy on stabilizing the situation in Lingshan Town and smoothing things over with all the relevant parties. He couldn’t afford the slightest distraction.

Still, a part of him refused to accept it, and he wracked his brain for a countermeasure. Yet, no matter how he looked at it, he realized that on the political chessboard of the county bureau, he had no effective moves left.

"Sigh..."

A nearly inaudible sigh echoed in the silent study.

Zhang Qiming rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling a wave of exhaustion and a faint twinge of regret. He regretted not recruiting Yang Wenqing to his side sooner.

’It’s too late for that now. With Yang Wenqing’s promotion, Director Qin from the municipal bureau would surely place even more importance on him. He might even formally take him on as a disciple.’

’At that point, Yang Wenqing won’t just have Gao Zhen’s support, but a major figure from the municipal bureau backing him as well.’

’You all can have your little games in the sub-bureau.’

A sharp light returned to Zhang Qiming’s eyes as he suppressed the last vestiges of regret and frustration. He straightened his collar, put that gentle, infectious smile back on his face, and pushed open the door, returning to the hall still filled with laughter and conversation.

"Gentlemen, sorry to keep you waiting," he said, raising his glass with a smile.

...

In the Quiet Chamber of a manor outside the city, the faint glow of the Gathering Spirit Array cast a soft, gentle light.

Yang Wenqing glanced at the clock on the wall. It was only around one in the morning. The violent fluctuations of qi and blood from his breakthrough had already subsided, replaced by an unprecedented sense of peace and fullness within his body.

He closed his eyes again, carefully experiencing this brand-new realm.

The first thing he noticed was that his Spiritual Qi recovered and was absorbed twice as fast as before. The moment the gathered Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi entered his body, it flowed into the Spiritual Veins and his Qi Sea, replenishing them. The entire process was smooth and natural.

More importantly, he could now use the Spiritual Qi refined by his five viscera to cast some Five Elements Seals. These were only minor forms of magic, however. True Five Elements Magic required cultivating a Five Elements Spiritual Vein, and one could only choose a single type of vein to cultivate, not all five at once. But that was a concern for the Foundation Establishment Stage or the late-stage Marrow Cleansing realm. He didn’t need to worry about it now.

But the truly shocking, almost unbelievable discovery was still to come...

When he projected his consciousness into the Golden Core World to carefully observe the circulation of his own microcosmic orbit, he made a discovery. The core qi channels in his body closely connected to his five viscera, as well as the initial and key sections of the yin and yang meridians in his hands and feet, were all remarkably wide and resilient. The Spiritual Qi flowed through them with unparalleled smoothness.

’This is clearly the state of Great Completion for the Fifth Refinement, ’Opening Channels and Expanding Meridians,’ as described in the Secret Technique!’

He thought he must have remembered it wrong and quickly reviewed the description of the Secret Technique recorded in his badge. There, he read the description for the initial stage of the Fifth Refinement: "Minor acupoints at the extremities of the hands and feet, or those connected to the viscera, will show a faint Spiritual Light. They will appear on the verge of opening, but remain closed. The barriers within them, however, will be extremely thin, requiring subsequent, patient effort to gradually break through."