“If it were an ordinary official of the Great Xia, facing the terrifying aura of the Empress Dowager, they would probably have been scared out of their wits and fallen to their knees, begging for mercy.

But Lu Chen gritted his teeth, stubbornly enduring in such a way.

His slightly frail body trembled and swayed, as if he could collapse at any moment.

However, his knees and waist remained unbowed!

Even though he swayed like a candle in the wind, he never fell.

His face was full of determination, without a trace of wavering.

Under the suppressive force of the invisible terrifying aura, he laboriously lifted his head and then struggled to open his mouth, uttering each word with great effort:

‘I, Lu Chen, a scholar of the Engineering Department…’

Hearing these extremely strained yet unyielding words, the gathered courtiers felt their scalps tingle.

Could this young man have gone mad?

As the saying goes, ‘Enduring hardship for over a decade of study, suffering innumerable autumns of cultivation.’ To earn an official position after enduring countless hardships, who would willingly give up such a position of power and the opportunity that comes with it?

Considering the Empress Dowager’s current control and authority over the court, not to mention a mere seventh-rank court official, even the Grand Academicians in the Cabinet would have to accept her decisions without question.

Moreover, the Emperor was a hopeless puppet… hardly worthy of loyalty.

Just because she nominated you for the imperial examination and said a few encouraging words during the palace exam, does that mean you have to give up everything for her?

How foolish must someone be to treat their future as a game?

Didn’t he desire this promising official position?

In reality, their guesses were spot on!

The present Lu Chen didn’t want an official position at all.

The reason for emphasizing the word ‘present’ was that he wasn’t originally a genius Confucian scholar who passed the imperial examination at a young age. He was a transmigrator from Earth.

Yes, a transmigrator.

He was pushing so hard now not because of unwavering loyalty to the female Emperor, but because after assimilating the memories of his predecessor, he accidentally activated a system named ‘The Way of Serving as an Official’.

Judging by the name, it seemed to be a system that would grow stronger as one gained ranks.

But the reality was quite the opposite!

This system was like it had a bug. Not only was it not artificially intelligent, unable to communicate, and had a mechanism that was rather bizarre.

In simple terms, the reward mechanism was reversed from a promotion system.

As long as he didn’t gain ranks and maintained his current position, he would become stronger.

At the end of the first small cycle, he directly received a yellow-tier Sixth Transformation Immortal Pill, five top-grade Great Returning Pills, and a Bone-Cleansing Marrow-Washing Pill from the system. Additionally, his spiritual veins expanded, his inner spiritual energy became purer, making him instantly stronger than the original owner who had practiced for years.

And if he were demoted, the rewards would multiply by a hundred!

If dismissed, the system might even transform into the Great Dao, allowing him to become an immortal instantly, reigning as the Immortal King!

Furthermore, if he died while in office, he could also ascend to immortality immediately, provided his death was related to his official duties.

Of course, unless it was absolutely necessary, who would willingly die? Given the choice, being dismissed comfortably would still be preferable.

In the current situation, it wouldn’t be difficult to achieve dismissal.

Of course, the system also listed many other…”]