Chapter 169
Chapter 169
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 169
Chapter Title: Triumphant Return (2)
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Odaerang was a renowned fixer.
He wasn't the type who handled debt collection.
His specialty was brokering sect transfers.
The assistant tidied up the cluttered desk as he asked.
"Investigator Oh, who's the client for this commission?"
"The most famous person these days. You must know who it is."
"If it's the most famous... could it be the half-human half-dragon Ryu Arbiter?"
Odaerang nodded.
"Yeah, that's right. A major sect made the request."
"A major sect?! That's a top-tier commission! I'll draw up the transfer proposal right now!"
"Forget it. A transfer proposal would be pointless."
The assistant (three months on the job) looked puzzled.
"You're not writing a transfer proposal? You've always done it that way. Find their terminal number, send the proposal, meet up, negotiate, and stamp the contract."
"This time, we're approaching it differently."
"Why?"
Odaerang glanced at his desk terminal as he replied.
"Ryu Arbiter's super popular right now, right? Bet he blinks and finds a hundred more proposals piling up. In this mess, you think ours would stand out?"
"Yeah, when you put it like that..."
"Everyone sending proposals to Ryu Arbiter's terminal right now? Total amateurs. Short on brokerage experience, don't know the protocols for big shots. Or just plain scammers."
The assistant asked.
"Scammers?"
"Yeah. Hoping the mark's a sucker. Kid's spent his life prepping for the Arbiter exam. They mass-send proposals with faked sender info, fishing for a bite. If they show interest, sweet-talk 'em."
"And then?"
Odaerang said casually.
"Then? Shove impossible terms down their throat, coo that no one else offers this kind of treatment. If they fall for it and sign, their life's ruined. Realize they got duped later? Too bad. Broker's already cashed the fee and vanished."
"Scamming an Arbiter? They got five lives or what?"
"No matter the terms, the final call was theirs. Might be unethical, but zero legal issues."
The assistant fumed.
"Still, they deserve a lesson!"
"How?"
"Uh, sue 'em for fraud...?"
Odaerang chuckled.
"Who you gonna sue? The client pushing absurd terms? Or the broker echoing them? Pick one."
"The broker...?"
"Yeah, the broker. How you proving deception?"
The assistant racked his brain before answering.
"I got it! That bit about 'no one else offers this treatment anywhere'! Call that out!"
"Deception because they said that with absurd terms?"
"Yes, exactly!"
Odaerang shook his head.
"Won't fly. Courts see it as negotiation tactics for leverage. If that counted as fraud, heaven'd have no non-criminals left. Every merchant trash-talking a bad deal'd be locked up."
"Man, that pisses me off."
"That's why you don't sign blindly."
The assistant sat pondering at his desk.
Pondering how to jail a hypothetical scammer.
Then a thought struck him.
The assistant asked.
"Investigator Oh, how do Arbiters even get scammed? A few words, and they know if you're lying."
"That's why they send proposals via terminal. Invite to meet? They'll dodge with excuses. No skin off their back. Sucker bites, great; no biggie."
"Unbelievable. What's heaven doing, not hauling off these crooks? Hey, Investigator Oh, what've you been doing all this time?"
Odaerang replied nonchalantly.
"Looking into Ryu Arbiter's background."
The assistant perked up with interest.
"Background check? Isn't that illegal?"
"Watch your mouth... This is totally legit."
"For real? Teach me how?"
Odaerang sighed deeply and shifted aside.
The assistant scooted over with his chair.
Two heads huddled over the desk terminal.
Odaerang pointed to the open document.
"This is Arbiter exam passer info. Name, age, final score and rank, affiliated sect—all listed."
"Yeah. Ryu Seoran, age 682... Barely older than me, and already Supreme Star Realm cultivator. I'm still Origin Spirit Realm."
"Cultivation's a battle with yourself. No need comparing to others. Age isn't key here—affiliated sect is."
The assistant peered at the screen.
"Golden Bamboo Sect... First I've heard of it."
"No surprise. Ryu's an ascender. Read some articles or something."
"I knew he's half-human half-dragon."
Odaerang gave him a truly impressive look.
"Anyway, not native-born, so public info's scarce. Start with sect details."
"Ooh... How you digging into Golden Bamboo Sect? We only got the name."
"Got ways."
Odaerang opened a new document.
Announcement for 342nd batch of new Arbiter assignments.
Ryu Seoran's post: Sector Im-6.
The assistant buzzed with excitement.
"Ah, right! Already sect-affiliated!"
"Top scorer picks a backwater like that over central heaven? No other reason. But here's something odd."
"What?"
Odaerang pointed somewhere on the document.
"Look. Passer clearance, post: Sector Im-6."
"Same as Ryu Arbiter?"
"Even same sect name. Huge heaven, sure not the only Golden Bamboo Sect, but awfully coincidental, huh?"
The assistant struck a detective pose.
"Definitely suspicious...!"
"Only makes sense they're from the same sect."
"Logical!"
Odaerang opened yet another document.
"So I accessed the Heavenly Net citizen portal for Sector Im-6 and requested registry access."
"Find anything?"
"Yep. Take a look."
The assistant did.
"Golden Bamboo Sect... Golden Bamboo Sect... Here. Settled in Polar Light Archipelago. Unclaimed land claim filed thirty-some years back."
"Matches the exam record. Next: Sector Im-6 weather logs, last 30 years."
"Aftermath detection, estimated Supreme Star Realm level. Seven years ago? Super recent."
Odaerang replied.
"I figure that's Ryu Arbiter's inner core ritual."
"If that's the inner core ritual, how'd he ascend? Dragonkin need the core complete to ascend."
"Who knows. Maybe mortal realm, he advanced human cultivator style. Assuming similar talent, humans hit high realms way faster."
The assistant asked.
"That allowed?"
"Not for me to say. I'm no half-dragon."
"So, ascended as human cultivator, hit Supreme Star as dragonkin? Via inner core ritual?"
Odaerang nodded.
"That's my take."
"If so, why ditch the familiar path for dragonkin method?"
"Dunno. Couldn't afford mist weapon manuals? Dragonkin don't need 'em till Supreme Star."
The assistant looked sharp.
"Then needed dragonkin Supreme Star manual, took Arbiter exam?"
"Fits perfect, right?"
"Investigator Oh, you a genius? How you know all this?"
Odaerang beamed at the praise.
"Used to be an official."
"Back in Origin Spirit days?"
"Yep. Four Spirit Root holder here."
Four Spirit Root holders, Five Spirit Root holders—most never reach mist weapon realm via normal cultivation before lifespan ends.
So they took official posts.
Trade piled merits for cultivation-boosting treasures.
The assistant asked.
"Reached mist weapon via official work? Heard merit farming's brutal..."
"Nah."
"Oh?"
Odaerang nodded.
"Saw merits crawling in—gonna die of old age on the job. Quit, became fixer. Figured if dying at Origin Spirit, might as well earn cash."
"Then how'd you hit mist weapon?"
"This gig suited me better than expected. Saved brokerage fees, bought heaps of pills."
Suddenly, the assistant wanted to stick with this life forever.
He was a Four Spirit Root holder too.
The assistant declared energetically.
"Let's nail this commission!"
"Pull up Heavenly Net articles on Ryu Arbiter? I'll check that Yeongbaek Island from the exam record."
"Yes, sir!"
The pair stared into their terminals.
The cramped office fell silent.
Moments later, the assistant shrieked.
Odaerang jumped.
"What, what! What's wrong!"
"Ryu Arbiter's real age isn't 682!"
"For real?! Show me!"
The assistant fumbled the terminal over.
He hadn't searched articles—instead, peeked at cultivation exchange Arbiter exam boards.
But Odaerang had no time to scold.
*'I'm from the same sect as Ryu Seoran, but Ryu Seoran's real age isn't 682.'*
Impossible not to click that title.