"My apologies... master!"
Xu the Third continuously pleaded with a face full of grief.
Xu the Fourth looked at his brother angrily: Can you stop running your mouth about things you don't know anything about?
Even while they owe, they still continue to blabber.
"The assassins of our Great Qin Empire's Heavenly Judge, strictly speaking, should actually be considered official, or at least a semi-official organization."
Speaking of this, Xu the Third forgot about his embarrassment, a bit more pride and honor surfaced on his face.
Xu the Fourth's face also showed a smug expression, it was a kind of déjà vu feeling of 'I am actually an official.'
"Official?" Feng Yin looked as if he had discovered a new land.
In his heart, he was indeed deeply shocked.
This... I am actually a civil servant deep down?
In a formal position?
How... how did I not know about this?
Where are the benefits?
What are the privileges?
Where are all the perks of a civil servant?
Who should I take bribes from?
...
"This issue is naturally not recognized by the official authorities, but the Great Qin has a 'Dark Guard', you know about this, right?"
"Dark Guard... is essentially the headquarters of the Heavenly Judge of the Great Qin."
"I have to say our Great Qin is really farsighted and wise... It is rumored that many years ago, there was a martial arts genius in the Qin royal family. After he joined the Heavenly Judge, his cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds, and he accomplished many tasks that were originally deemed impossible. His rank kept rising and it pointed straight to the top...Then somehow, he independently established this territory of the Great Qin."
"Of course, even for Great Qin's side, the vast majority of the tasks in all levels are still issued by the Heavenly Judge, but there are also a small number of tasks issued by the Dark Guards. The targets are naturally those official matters that are inconvenient to handle on the surface... the corresponding rewards for these tasks seem to come from the Heavenly Judge, but there is actually another channel for transfer, and the real source is the headquarters of the Dark Guards."
"At this time, everyone knows this is the case. Even if the Dark Guards categorically deny this matter in public, everyone already knows the truth. Right, you get what I mean?"
"Assassins of the Heavenly Judge can choose to disclose their identity and increase their popularity. Once they reach the rank of Silver or above, they may also receive placement from the Dark Guards or some form of support... but this situation is very rare."
"Those who retire from the Heavenly Judge with ranks of Silver and above can choose to join the Dark Guards, and thus become real officials of the Great Qin. Even though they still cannot hold official positions and their status is not as high as that of the Six Fan Gate and the Heavenly Clothes, they are nonetheless enjoying national benefits and wages, even pensions... and these people will no longer become assassins, because their Heavenly Judgment has been converted into a Dark Guard Tag on the first day they joined the Dark Guards. It is said that once this procedure is done, the original abilities of the tags are not lost, but from then on, they can no longer see the tasks of the Heavenly Judge, completely breaking the connection with them..."
Xu the Fourth sighed: "Whenever I think of this, I have to praise Qing Ming. His methods are truly extraordinary and he managed to do the impossible..."
"Qing Ming?"
Feng Yin quickly asked.
"Yes, that martial arts master I mentioned earlier from the Qin royal family was Qing Ming. His honorable title is The Great Qing Ming, he is the number one assassin and the foremost martial artist in the world today."
"The number one martial artist? Isn't there a higher rank than the honored ones? How did he become the number one martial artist?" Feng Yin asked again.
"The two divine ranks... only exist in legends. Heavenly Judge has been established for so long, but there is no relevant information about these two divine ranks, even... there are no legends..."
"Oh... does anyone know the true identity of this Great Qing Ming, beyond the fact that he is a member of the Qin royal family? Aren't there any rumors or guesses?"
"Of course there are, it's rumored that the most slothful ninth prince of the royal family, who always wastes his time, is actually Qing Ming... but upon detailed examination, no one believes this...after all, the Hawk King, is only over seventy years old this year...but the legend of the Great Qing Ming is at least hundreds of years old, right?"
"Then you might as well not mention it, there really is no need for comparison and exploration..."
"Isn't this about us gossiping... if you take it seriously, you lose. Did you actually think I understood many things?"
Xu the Third said this with an unabashed attitude.
Feng Yin pondered silently for a while, then asked, "What about the martial artist ranks? Are there any similarities with the Heavenly Judge ranks?"
"What similarities? They are totally, absolutely different matters."
Xu the Third rolled his eyes, evidently with sincere contempt for Feng Yin's ignorance, but after the previous incident where he was almost kicked out, he dared not show his true colors...
(4)
"Oh?"
"The main direction of the Heavenly Judge's mission is to kill, if an assassin has excellent skills, it's great, if they don't, it doesn't necessarily mean they can't accomplish the mission, and there is no necessary connection with cultivation... For example, a scholar, who poisoned enough targets and accomplished enough tasks... then he would also be a gold assassin, the real deal."
"Of course, the chance of this happening is very slim, high-ranked assassins are generally extremely powerful."
"I see. What about above the gold rank?"
"Doctor, you are really pushing me too hard, I am only at the Iron rank level, how would I know about anything above the Gold rank?" Xu the Third rolled his eyes.