The arrival of Qin and the others had, in the end, made Mount Shu far more lively and prosperous.
At present, the inner sect already had close to twenty disciples.
There were also two Peak Masters, and one Elder of the Hall of Discipline.
It was still some distance away from the flourishing Mount Shu Jiang Yan envisioned, but at least a solid first step had been taken.
But true prosperity for Mount Shu would only come after the Grand Opening Ceremony.
Ningguang and the others were all top-tier geniuses—such people were rare even across all of Teyvat.
For this opening of the sect, Jiang Yan expected to recruit a thousand disciples.
At most, fewer than a hundred of them could hope to qualify as inner sect disciples—perhaps even only a few dozen.
This time, Mount Shu would be taking in nearly a thousand outer sect disciples in one stroke.
That was indeed a good thing.
The Grand Opening Ceremony meant Mount Shu's prosperity was imminent. With so many disciples, the sect's strength and prosperity would grow, and rewards would naturally descend.
But with that, trouble came as well.
Outer sect disciples could not possibly enjoy the same treatment as inner sect disciples.
Their promotion system would also need to be established.
All these scattered matters boiled down to one key issue—
management of the outer sect disciples.
At this thought, Jiang Yan felt a headache coming on.
Who would be in charge of managing the outer sect?
Ningguang and the others could do it—their original profession was exactly that.
But they were meant to cultivate immortality. They were geniuses of the highest grade; Jiang Yan could not allow them to waste precious time on such matters.
In a sect, ordinary disciples formed the foundation, while geniuses were the soul.
To be blunt, every sect proclaimed that every disciple mattered.
But in truth, the sect only had eyes for geniuses.
Ningguang and the others were born for far greater things; putting them in charge of mundane administration was meaningless.
Yet the management of the outer sect could not be left unattended.
For a while, Jiang Yan was troubled.
"Jiang Yan, may I come in?"
Suddenly, Ganyu peeked into the great hall of the sect.
Jiang Yan's expression softened. He beckoned her over.
"When it's just me, there's no need to be so formal, Ganyu."
"This is to preserve the authority of the Sect Master," Ganyu said with a little smile as she walked to his side and took his arm.
She looked at him softly and asked,
"I saw you frowning just now—what's troubling you?"
Jiang Yan nodded slightly. There was no need to hide anything from her.
So, he explained his worries.
Ganyu thought for a moment, then said gently:
"I don't know much about sect management, but with so many disciples, their promotion, assessments, and everything else is indeed a big matter."
"How was Mount Shu managed in the past?"
Jiang Yan gave a helpless shake of his head.
"In the past, Mount Shu had strict hierarchies.
The Sect Master held supreme authority, overseeing everything. But the actual management of disciples was always the responsibility of the elders, who reported to the Sect Master.
"The Seven Saints Council of Elders oversaw all matters of both inner and outer sects, as well as the elders of each peak and lineage. Elder Alice, for instance, answered to the Seven Saints Council.
"The Inner Sect Elders were the pillars of Mount Shu—each of them carried heavy responsibilities.
"The outer sect disciples, meanwhile, were governed by the Outer Sect Elders.
"Usually, those who applied to be Outer Sect Elders were inner sect disciples who had no hope of breaking through further. After assessment, only those at least at the peak of Spirit Transformation could become Outer Sect Elders.
"But right now, we don't have anyone who qualifies. Every inner sect disciple we have is a genius; I can't let them waste their cultivation time on this."
Ganyu mulled it over, then suddenly brightened. She clapped her hands.
"I've got it!"
"What is it?"
Jiang Yan glanced at her curiously. She stuck out her tongue playfully.
"I'll tell you later. For now, let's finish solving the remaining issues first."
Jiang Yan chuckled, tapping her forehead.
"You've even learned how to tease me now—before, you were always so soft and gentle."
Ganyu flushed, nestling against him.
He didn't press her further, but said softly:
"The two biggest issues for the outer sect are promotions and benefits.
Other management details are easier to solve.
"Before, outer sect disciples had only two paths of promotion: either through great contributions, or by breaking through to the Spirit Transformation stage.
"Clearly, that doesn't suit Mount Shu's current circumstances."
Ganyu thought about it and said:
"That's actually easy to resolve. Jiang Yan, Teyvat isn't the cultivation world. Ordinary mortals here know very little about immortal cultivation.
"Most of them have no special abilities at all—not even the Foundation Establishment stage.
"You can't compare mortals of Teyvat with mortals of the cultivation realm."
Jiang Yan blinked, then realization dawned. He smiled and ruffled her hair.
"I was being too rigid in my thinking. In that case, reaching the early stage of Refining Essence into Qi and passing through the Heart-Testing Array will be enough to enter the inner sect.
"That way, the bar isn't too high, but it still ensures quality.
Without both strength and mental cultivation, there's no future.
"Inner sect disciples of Mount Shu should all be paragons."
Ganyu nodded with a gentle smile.
"If you've decided, then that's best."
"As for benefits…" Jiang Yan shook his head.
"Right now, Mount Shu can't even provide benefits for inner sect disciples, let alone the outer sect.
"Still, considering that outer sect disciples don't have the same talent, we can't overwhelm them with too much either.
"Let's say outer sect disciples can enter the Sutra Pavilion once every six months."
Truthfully, that was already generous.
But since this was a developmental period, it could serve as a temporary measure.
Once the sect stabilized, Jiang Yan intended to emphasize mastery of cultivation methods rather than quantity.
At that time, even inner sect disciples would see reduced access, let alone the outer sect.
As for whether disciples would complain about such changes later—
Mount Shu prized strength above all. Jiang Yan was the strongest; his word was law.
Besides, those who passed the sect's trials might have differing personalities, but they all understood the reason.
To be able to cultivate at all was already a blessing beyond measure.
If anyone complained over something like this, the Hall of Discipline had ways to deal with them.
The more disciples there were, the stricter the Hall of Discipline had to be.
When this thousand-strong intake was complete, Mount Shu's numbers would be thriving. Jiang Yan planned to let everyone cultivate for a while, then officially open Mount Shu's First Seven Peaks Martial Tournament.
Only with overflowing martial vigor would Mount Shu truly be the Sword Sect it was meant to be.
Having settled on the near-future plan for Mount Shu, Jiang Yan turned back to Ganyu.
"Now, can you tell me your idea for managing the outer sect disciples?"
Ganyu chuckled softly, covering her mouth. She pointed outside.
"You've forgotten—besides us, there are many others who still cling to the dream of cultivation. Some of them understand it deeply.
"They also happen to fit exactly what you described—people who can't easily progress further, but who do have some ability to manage.
"If we give them the chance to join Mount Shu, they'll surely devote themselves wholeheartedly to managing disciples."
Jiang Yan followed her finger, then suddenly understood.
"The Archons!"
Ganyu nodded happily, her heart leaping. This seemed to be the first time Jiang Yan had asked for her opinion on such matters.
To be able to help the one she loved—this was the happiest thing in the world.
"Many of those Archons were either banished from Teyvat, or had lived for ages in the dark seas beyond.
"They already have experience managing followers and even nations.
"And I heard Peak Master Zhongli once say—the source of every Archon's power is love for their people.
"If they were to manage Mount Shu's outer sect of disciples, Jiang Yan, you would have far less to worry about. I think they've long yearned for a place in Mount Shu, haven't they?"
Jiang Yan sighed slightly, realizing he had completely forgotten about them.
The Archons' talent for cultivation was poor, but not nonexistent.
Even those with five-element crippled constitutions could still cultivate—the problem was simply that no sect would invest in such hopeless talent.
Cultivating disciples was essentially an investment. Who would invest in a stock that had no future?
Stories of waste turning into genius were few and far between in history.
Most Archons were dual-, triple-, or even quadruple-rooted. Such talent was mediocre at best.
Not useless—but destined for limited achievement.
Jiang Yan had grown accustomed to Ningguang and the others' brilliance. To him, the Archons were little more than "training dummies" he had brought in for his true disciples.
Thus, he had forgotten them entirely.
But now—
For cultivation trials, these Archons could no longer keep up with Zhongli and the others.
And with the outside world crawling with beasts and monsters, there was no shortage of foes for low-level disciples to train against.
That made the Archons just right for the role of outer sect administrators.
They had been in Mount Shu long enough to witness the mysteries of cultivation and the beauty of the sect.
If they were cast out now, they would surely cling desperately to stay.
They already understood the sect well. In terms of knowledge and strength, they were fully qualified to serve as Outer Sect Elders.
Given the chance to join Mount Shu, they would certainly devote themselves to their duties.
In this way, the management of the outer sect could finally be settled.
Moreover, the Archons were still strong in their own right. With a shift in cultivation, they could even become pillars of the sect.
Jiang Yan thought it over, then nodded in approval.
"Those Archons, though lacking in talent, are indeed very well-suited to be Outer Sect Elders.
"Your idea is excellent, Ganyu."
Ganyu beamed, asking softly:
"Shall I summon them here?"
"No need for you to trouble yourself."
Jiang Yan smiled faintly, raising his hand to tap the void.
In the next moment, dozens of enormous figures of all shapes and sizes appeared within the great hall.
It was fortunate the hall was vast; otherwise, it could never have contained them all.
The Archons, suddenly transported here, were dazed for a moment.
But when they saw the surroundings—and the figure seated serenely upon the meditation cushion before them—
they snapped to their senses, dragging their massive bodies forward, and prostrated themselves.
"Greetings, Sect Master of Mount Shu!"
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