Li Hai had previously taken it for granted.

As the head of the Demon Slayer Division, Old Lady Feng Heyue would always be surrounded by attendants wherever she went, and her food, clothing, daily necessities, and Cultivation consumables were all top-notch, giving off a very cool and imposing vibe.

However, only after truly understanding it did he realize how complex the matters Feng Heyue had to handle every day were, and the mental effort expended was beyond words.

Simply in terms of financial allocation, achieving a proper balance required Old Lady Feng to constantly weigh and adjust.

She could not use too little, nor could she overspend and incur deficits.

Because if too little money was used, it meant that many tasks or works that should have been completed were not, which was why the money wasn't spent.

But if too much was used, come the year-end Wu (Martial) Hall meeting, Feng Heyue would have no way to explain herself when facing inquiries from the Ge Zai.

And with so many branches, outposts, and personnel in the Demon Slayer Division, even if they did nothing, their mere existence constantly consumed vast sums of money.

Yet, the annual allocation from the Treasury Department was a fixed amount, so how much to use and how to use it became a rather profound field of study.

As the saying goes, 'Officials travel a thousand miles for wealth.'

Aside from Cultivation Technique, spellcraft, divine weapons, secret artifacts, and other merit-exchange items.

For instance, the simplest monthly stipends for various ranks of Commandant; Li Hai had only known that the lowest Wood Rank Commandant in the Demon Slayer Division received nine hundred Great Yuan, but he wasn't clear on more details.

However, after truly coming into contact with the Demon Slayer Division's finances, he learned much more.

First, the monthly stipend for a Wood Rank Commandant was nine hundred Great Yuan, which, if converted to purchasing power on Earth, Li Hai estimated would be equivalent to about one hundred thousand Chinese Yuan, enough for a family of three common people to live for over a year.

In other words, the lowest Wood Rank Commandant in the Demon Slayer Division would be equivalent to someone with an annual salary of over a million on Earth.

Is that a lot?

Actually, no, it's not much, after all, Demon Slayer Commandant risk their lives to slay ghosts and eliminate demons; earning a million or so a year is already considered very little.

And a Silver Rank Commandant, one rank higher, received a monthly stipend of one hundred thousand Great Yuan, equivalent to an annual salary of over one hundred million on Earth.

For a Steel Grade Martial Artist, this money is still not much.

Next was the Long Rank Commandant, whose monthly stipend was two million six hundred thousand Great Yuan, totaling over thirty million Great Yuan a year, equivalent to three to four billion Chinese Yuan on Earth, still not considered much.

Then came the highest Heaven Rank Commandant, which included Ming Yingjie and Li Hai's tier.

Their basic monthly stipend was fifty-five million Great Yuan, with purchasing power equivalent to over six billion Chinese Yuan, and an annual total equivalent to over seventy billion Chinese Yuan.

This looked quite substantial at first glance, and it was only the basic monthly stipend.

Beyond this, Heaven Rank Commandants would also receive large allocations and bonuses before and after participating in or leading various operations.

These two items alone were far higher than the so-called monthly stipend.

And the source of all this money was the allocation Feng Heyue received from the Treasury Department each year.

Li Hai roughly studied this allocation and found that, used this way, it was still quite tight.

From this, Li Hai also realized why Old Lady Feng was so good to him.

It wasn't just about the successor issue; it was also because she was pressured by financial stress.

“In short—”

Li Hai mused, flipping through the documents on the desk, “as long as I win the Tianjiao Ranking, all problems can be resolved.

However, hmm... I really should establish a direct subordinate force of my own.”

Although Li Hai was now a Perfection-level Void-Reality Grandmaster, and could even be said to be unrivaled below a Hegemon.

But ultimately, he was only one person, and had to do everything himself, which was not good.

Therefore, Li Hai needed a group of subordinates who could handle various complex matters for him, so that he could free up his hands and not have to work so hard.

And as soon as he thought about recruiting subordinates, Li Hai immediately thought of Longshan.

Longshan area, Sun Family Stockade, Tiequan Town.

On the dilapidated streets, amidst the sparse crowds, a middle-aged Mortal holding a divination banner was walking slowly.

As he walked, he also subtly kept glancing at the passersby, as if searching for something.

Just then, a yellow paper talisman bird suddenly flew from the sky, flying directly towards the Daoist.

“Oh?”

This Daoist, who was Zhang Miaoji, reacted quickly, immediately raising his hand to catch the talisman bird, then avoiding the crowd and walking to one side.

After he quickly opened the paper talisman and saw the signature at the top—'For Zhang Miaoji's personal attention'—he read it carefully:

“Zhang Miaoji, external talent recruiter of the Demon Slayer Division, from today onwards you are to—”

As Zhang Miaoji read the flying talisman message word by word.

His expression, which was calm at first, quickly turned to surprise, then bewilderment, and finally erupted into near-ecstatic joy.

“They want to transfer me from the Longshan area, transfer me back to—transfer me back to work at the Dajing Demon Slayer Division Zhan Mo Si Headquarters?!”

Zhang Miaoji put down the message and muttered dazedly, “And I’m being transferred to... to serve under a Heaven Rank Commandant? A Heaven Rank Commandant!”

After a second of stupor, he immediately leaped three feet off the ground, punching the air and shouting:

“Hahahaha, I, Zhang Miaoji—have finally made it! I can go to Great Jing! I don't have to stay in this godforsaken Longshan for the rest of my life! Hahahaha!!”

Zhang Miaoji's commotion was so great that it immediately drew curious glances from many passersby on the street, who even pointed and whispered, thinking he had gone mad.

But Zhang Miaoji had no mind to pay attention to them; after venting his joy, he hugged his divination banner and ran like a flash out of the alley, heading towards a Demon Slayer Division outpost in this small town.

Zhang Miaoji remembered that he had many personal belongings stored there, and he wanted to take them all.

Because in the foreseeable future, he might not be coming back.

At the same time, Gai Fu, Gong Shuo Hong, Zeng Ying, Pi Shangzhi, and Quan Xiang, who were spread across various areas in the Longshan region, all received flying talisman messages from the Demon Slayer Division Headquarters.

Like Zhang Miaoji, they were also overjoyed upon receiving their transfer orders.

But what was different was that these five had already roughly guessed the true identity of the Heaven Rank Commandant mentioned in the message, though they couldn't be entirely sure yet.

So, as various parties took action, time quietly flowed by, and after another ten-plus days, the day of the Tianjiao Ranking competition finally arrived.

Da Jing Zhong Jing (Great Jing, Central Capital), Zhan Mo Si Headquarters.

In an exquisite courtyard, Li Hai was leisurely chatting with Gai Fu and Gong Shuo Hong, who had arrived together a few days prior, each seated on a sofa.

“To be honest, Brother Li—”

Gong Shuo Hong sighed, “I had thought you would be promoted quickly, but I never imagined you would rise so fast.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than Gai Fu, sitting beside them, frowned and said sternly:

“Shuo Hong, don't keep calling him 'Brother' casually. In formal settings, you should address him by his position, as Young Military Supervisor.”