All eyes were on Li Qiye due to his previous promise of a grand salary for the tree demon’s killer - one billion Golden Sovereign Refined Jades.

Of course, the monarch didn’t finish the job by himself. Nonetheless, it seemed that Jian Sanqiang and the mysterious old man had no intention of claiming the contribution. He became the only one eligible for the reward.

Nonetheless, he was definitely the main fighting force and certainly contributed to the demon’s demise.

“I am a man of my word. From today henceforth, you shall be under my banner. The salary is as stated prior.” Li Qiye smiled.

“!!!” The crowd clamored after hearing the confirmation.

“One billion Golden Sovereign Refined Jades…” Reality still struck them hard.

“This should be the highest-paid position in the world?” One expert calmed down and asked.

Most sects in Sword Continent couldn’t produce this sum but now, the monarch gets to have it each year. Most importantly, it wasn’t a big deal for Li Qiye.

“I don’t think the first elder of Sword Emperor got this much.” Another jealous soul said.

“Even the city lord of Nine-wheel pales in comparison each year.” An older cultivator shook her head.

The lord of Nine-wheel Citadel certainly had enough authority and prestige in Eight Desolaces. However, even this existence couldn’t have such an insane salary.

“I’ll be his horse and ox for this much money without uttering a single word of grievance.” Someone wouldn’t mind licking Li Qiye’s shoes for this sum.

“You need to be capable enough.” An ancestor responded: “Everyone had the chance earlier but only the monarch gave it a shot. He earned it by risking his life so no need to be jealous.”

The others exchanged glances and found this logical. None dared to step up earlier; some ancestors were certainly strong enough but they had their own plans. In the end, the monarch became the victor.

“I’ll quit being an ancestor right now for this job.” Nonetheless, people were still envious.

After all, they could work for their sect for a lifetime and still wouldn’t earn this much. Jealousy was unavoidable.

The monarch himself didn’t expect Li Qiye to say yes. In fact, he would have been more than happy with a one-time payment or even just a salary of one hundred million. 

He was just a Six Dao Sovereign so the salary was a monstrous sum. All of his wealth right now didn’t come close to it. Thus, he just became rich overnight.

“My lord, from now on, my life is yours. I will do all of your biddings.” He got on his knees and prostrated.

“Rise.” Li Qiye smiled.

He then got up and came over to stand behind Li Qiye while others watched with envy.

Not long ago, Li Qiye was just a nobody. Others viewed him with disdain and contempt. Not to mention a Six Dao Sovereign, even regular disciples had contempt for him.

Everything had changed in one day. It seemed that being able to work for Li Qiye was a true privilege. As the saying goes - everything has a price.

Two scenarios existed for a “priceless” treasure. One would be that it wasn’t for sale. The other being that it wasn’t worth a coin, completely undesirable.

“What do you want?” Li Qiye then stared at the old man in gray.

The old man hasn’t said a word ever since he got here. He helped out greatly and managed to save Li Qiye from the tree demon. Thus, he should enjoy a reward similar to the monarch.

He became the center of attention. Everyone wanted to hear his desired salary.

“I am incapable and do not dare to ask for anything.” The old man bowed towards Li Qiye: “I am more than satisfied with daily meals as my payments during my service.”

Many became frozen after hearing the response. Everyone could see that he was extremely strong and Li Qiye owed him his life.

Thus, he could even ask for something grander than the monarch’s salary. There was a high possibility of Li Qiye agreeing.

On the contrary, he chose to be illogically humble and ask for nothing. This was akin to throwing at least one billion jades away for nothing. Given his immense power, he would have no problems taking care of daily meals. Thus, he was viewed as crazy.

“May I ask for your name, Sir?” Lu Qi stared at him and asked. She couldn’t see through him so intuition told her that she was weaker than him.

“My memory has gotten worse with age.” The old man slightly bowed and said: “I do not recall my name, Young Noble. If you don’t mind, you can call me A’zhi.” [1]

Lu Qi couldn’t pry any further since the old man was being as humble as can be. It would be awfully impolite.

As for the crowd, they were still confused by his strange choice.

1. A is usually the prefix for servants’ names.