Chapter 697 Administrator Mo Guang's choice
Fang Wen being a spirit beast definitely put her at an advantage over the rest as the next successor as the branch chief of the Deer Mountain Branch. While the information about the obsidian serpent couple being spared wouldn't be revealed to the Deer Mountain Kingdom, it was not a guarded secret within the walls of the Order.
Whoever took the mantle of the branch chief of the Deer Mountain Branch would definitely know that the couple was alive somewhere. Despite their innocence, it would be heavy for anyone who took up that post to understand it, despite the verdict being a reasonable one.
Yang Qing assumed that whoever took over would be affected just as he was. The reason he didn't like to walk around the branch and just settled in predetermined locations such as by the lotus platforms by the river to meditate was that his mind would wander to the two inquisitors who died.
He could feel their traces all around the branch, which was understandable considering both had spent close to a decade in the area. The branch had been a home to them for so long, and now they were dead, with one of them dying at the hands of one of the female obsidian couple who ate him after killing him. He struggled with that image especially the period when the couple was here.
He always felt guilty, like that inquisitor who had been eaten was looking at him and asking why didn't he seek justice on his behalf. Why was his killer allowed to live? Didn't the Order promise to avenge the fallen, no matter who did it, the Order will always strike back several times over. That was a promise the Order made to its members, but the obsidian couple was allowed to keep their lives after what they did.
Even though Yang Qing, understood why they needed to be spared and supported the decision, especially after hearing their story and the daughter they lost, but his heart struggled with the judgment despite being in full agreement with it, a part of him was always conflicted about and that was something he had a feeling the next branch chief would struggle with.
It was, for this reason, that of the people he thought would choose not to return, the previous branch chief was high up his list. If Yang Qing struggled this much, he could only imagine what it would be like for the previous branch chief. Fang Wen as a spirit beast herself and a member of the Order was uniquely positioned to deeply understand both sides, so the burden on her would likely be lighter.
"What kind is she?" Yang Qing curiously asked.
"She is an ethereal swiftlark.." answered Xu Biya.
Yang Qing nodded in contemplation as he tried to recall any information he knew about the spirit beast. From what he could remember, he knew they had tremendous speed capable of even bypassing a cultivator's palace sense and protective mechanisms as though there was no one there.
The ethereal swiftlark's speed rivaled even that of a cloud-swallowing kite like Ellie. Yang Qing could only imagine how fast Fang Wen was at the quasi-domain stage. If she was to attack him, he had doubts about whether he would be able to sense the attack, his only hope of survival was relying on his body's regeneration and ability to take a hit but even then, his chances of surviving that first attack were slim to none, let alone a follow-up.
His thoughts of his sound defeat at the hands of his successor were immediately interrupted as Xu Biya announced the rest of the team.
"As for the rest of her team, replacing and moving about four inquisitors is liable to affect the operations around, we thus settled on sending the top four trainee roaming inquisitors.
The exposure and experience there will do them some good, especially under the guidance of one of their own..." said Xu Biya.
She paused slightly as her gaze fell on Mo Guang with a slight smile on her face.
"As for the administrator, Administrator Mo Guang has volunteered to continue his stay there, for which we are immensely grateful Administrator Mo Guang. I know the promise you made. You decided to settle back at the headquarters for stability for your wife and son. We are thankful for that.." said Xu Biya.
"We are thankful for your sacrifice.." said Long Enlai with his sentiments being echoed by Jiang Cheng and Jia Bohai.
"Thank you, but it's not much of a sacrifice, really," said Administrator Mo Guang with a genial smile.
"My wife is already in seclusion, who knows how long that will be, and my son already has a life of his own now after he graduated. It's only me at home, a little excursion would do me some good, and being here.." Mo Guang paused as he turned his gaze around with a nostalgic sigh.
"Being here made me realize how I missed this. As I said earlier, I will at most only be able to stay for three years which by my estimates should be how long Meilin's seclusion will last. After that, no matter how much I love being an administrator, I will have to leave.
She gave up a lot for me to pursue my heart's desires, and I want to do the same for her..." added Mo Guang with a tender gaze as he recalled that gentle-looking lady who despite her desire to work as a herbologist at the Medical Valley and how good she was at it, decided to shelf everything for almost 400 years as Mo Guang became a rotational administrator moving from branch to branch as per need basis.
Mo Guang always had an adventurous spirit and liked experiencing every novel thing under the sun. Before he joined the Order, he had been a rogue explorer of the Horizon Odyssey Guild, however, with a lacking background and training, he discovered how difficult it would be to travel around with his abilities, thus his paths led him to the Order.
The Order became a chance for him to realize his adventurous dreams. He had decided he would be a roaming inquisitor, but alas, his abilities couldn't match it, and he therefore settled for the next best thing, a rotational administrator which just like its name was an administrator who was sent from branch to branch to fill in.
Through various circumstances such as breakthroughs, reassignments and such, administrator posts in various branches would be left temporarily empty and it was the job of the rotational administrator to fill those gaps. Mo Guang got to visit different places because of it, and his wife went with him till eventually he made a promise that he would seek reassignment back at the headquarters once he hit the 400th-
year mark.
That mark came sooner than he expected, and no matter how reluctant he felt, he could not bring himself to deny his wife the chance to explore her dreams. It has been 30 years since, and even though he missed being out and about, he was glad he got to keep his word and his time at the headquarters was relaxing and entertaining as he got to instruct potential branch administrators.
He jumped at the opportunity to be a temporary administrator of this branch to scratch the longing itch that he had, and even though it felt just as good, being here made him realize how much he loved the job but also how much he ended up enjoying being still as an instructor, a husband and a father at headquarters.
Being here, helped him gain some clarity and peace of mind. At least now after comparing those two feelings, him here at the branch and him at home, he didn't feel like he was losing out or wasting away or settling for less.
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