110: Chapter 110 Sect Mission

In a quiet courtyard, the bamboo door was lightly closed.

Lin Tian had just finished a round of circulating the "Purple Qi Diagram." He was closing his eyes, savoring the warm, nourishing sensation of that trace of faint Internal Energy merging into his muscles and bones, when a soft knocking sounded at the courtyard gate, followed by the familiar voice of Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun.

"Junior Brother Lin, are you in?"

Lin Tian stood up and pulled open the courtyard gate to see Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun, dressed in pale purple martial attire, standing prettily outside. Her Face carried her usual smile, tinged with a hint of shrewdness and curiosity.

"Senior Sister Zheng, please come in." Lin Tian stepped aside.

Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun stepped into the courtyard, her gaze sweeping quickly over the simple courtyard before landing on Lin Tian. Seeing his aura was steady and his spirit was good—not at all like someone who was devastated or moping about—she was slightly surprised.

However, her smile deepened. "Junior Brother, how has this month been? Any difficulties with your Cultivate? Senior Sister happens to have some free time recently; if you need guidance, the price is negotiable."

Over this past month, she had first tasted the "sweetness" of teaching Lin Tian, easily pocketing one thousand taels of silver.

Later, when new Disciples entered the peak, she had intended to use her status as an "Inner Sect Disciple" to find a few more newcomers like Lin Tian who were "not quite enlightened" but "well-off," to resume her old trade and earn some extra money.

However, most of the new Disciples recruited this time were Geniuses who had fought their way through with real ability, and their Comprehension Ability was generally not low.

Especially that pair of Zhao siblings, who reportedly only took three days to successfully circulate the "Purple Qi Diagram," drawing the attention of many Elders on the peak.

There were even vague rumors that Peak Master Su Hanyan was quite concerned about this pair of siblings. From such Geniuses, Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun naturally found it hard to find opportunities for "guidance," let alone charge high prices.

After some twists and turns, she remembered Lin Tian, her "old customer." Although his talent was a bit lacking, he had the advantage of being "sincere," and he did not seem to have given up completely yet.

Hearing this, Lin Tian smiled and scratched his head, his tone carrying a touch of "honest" simplicity. "Many thanks for your concern, Senior Sister. This Disciple is dull; although progress is slow, it is still… going smoothly. I dare not trouble Senior Sister further for now."

Smoothly? Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun chuckled inwardly, assuming Lin Tian was just trying to save Face, or perhaps… he was short on funds.

One thousand taels a month was a huge sum even for an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple. Looking at Lin Tian, he did not seem to come from a wealthy background, so she guessed his previous savings were almost spent.

She sighed inwardly; it seemed this "stable income" was completely cut off.

"Since that is the case, Senior Sister will not disturb you." Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun nodded and, no longer pestering him, turned to leave.

After walking two steps, she suddenly remembered something, turned back, and said to Lin Tian, "By the way, Junior Brother Lin, a word of advice. Every Sect Disciple must complete a 'mandatory mission' each month to exchange for basic contribution points; this is also the basis for assessing whether a Disciple is diligent."

"You have just joined the Sect, so I am afraid you have not accepted one yet, have you?"

"Do not forget, if it is not completed on time, you will be punished. The light penalty is a deduction of your monthly allowance, and the heavy penalty will affect your future receipt of resources and acceptance of Advanced missions."

"Mandatory mission?" Lin Tian was stunned. He had been completely immersed in his Cultivate for the past month, ignoring everything outside his window, and had truly forgotten about this!

Recalling carefully, when he received his identity token and entry supplies, a deacon seemed to have mentioned it, but he was focused on his Cultivate at the time and did not pay attention.

"Oh no!" Lin Tian's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly bowed to Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun. "Many thanks for the reminder, Senior Sister! I will go right now!"

"Go quickly, today is already the end of the month." Junior Sister Zheng Xiaoyun waved her hand, said no more, and turned to leave, thinking to herself: This silly boy, so engrossed in his Cultivate that he forgot the Sect rules; it seems there is really no hope for him.

Lin Tian did not dare to delay. After tidying up slightly, he immediately left the courtyard and hurried towards the "Service Hall" on the mountainside of Zixia Peak, which was responsible for issuing and managing various missions.

The Service Hall was quite large, and at this time, people were coming and going, making it quite lively.

There were Disciples coming to hand in missions with joy on their Faces, some frowning and thinking while checking the mission board, and others whispering in groups of three or five.

On one side of the hall, there were several windows, behind which sat Elders or senior deacons responsible for registering and issuing missions.

Lin Tian found the window marked "New Disciple Mission Acceptance," and there were already several people queuing in front of it.

He waited patiently, calculating what kind of mission to find that would meet the requirements without delaying his Cultivate too much.

When it was his turn, behind the window was a middle-aged Elder with a thin Face, three long wisps of beard, and slightly sharp eyes.

Lin Tian handed over his identity token and said respectfully, "Disciple Lin Tian, I have come to accept this month's mandatory mission."

The Elder took the token, checked it against a thick book in front of him, and immediately frowned. He looked up at Lin Tian, his tone clearly displeased. "Lin Tian? A newly joined Disciple of Zixia Peak? Today is the end of the month at the Hour of the Rooster, and you are only now coming to accept a mission?"

"Sect rules state that you must accept and begin performing the mandatory mission before the tenth of each month! Are you treating Sect rules as wind in your ears?"

The voice was not loud, but it carried a sense of pressure, causing several nearby Disciples to look over, their eyes filled with the look of watching a show.

Lin Tian's heart tightened, and he quickly bowed, explaining with a sincere attitude, "Elder, please calm your anger! This Disciple is indeed a newcomer and has only recently joined. I have been immersed in my Cultivate and neglected this matter; it was by no means intentional negligence of the Sect rules!"

"I ask the Elder to consider that this is my first offense and give me a chance!"

"Newcomer? Neglected?" The Elder snorted coldly and tapped his finger on the desk. "Newcomers should be even more familiar with the Sect rules! If everyone uses 'newcomer' and 'neglected' as excuses, would not the Sect's affairs be in chaos?"

Sweat appeared on Lin Tian's forehead, and he pleaded again, "This Disciple knows I was wrong and is willing to accept punishment. But I ask the Elder to show understanding and give this Disciple a chance to make amends; this Disciple will certainly complete it carefully!"

The Elder stared at Lin Tian for a moment. Seeing his expression was fearful but not flustered, and his attitude of admitting his mistake was correct, he looked at the few words of remarks in the book like 'recommended for entry' and 'recommended by the Heishan City Imperial Guard,' and his expression softened slightly.

He reopened the book and ran his finger over the dense mission records, seemingly looking for something.

"Hmph, considering you are a newcomer and this is your first offense, I will not punish you heavily this time." The Elder pondered, then looked up from a certain page of the book.

Looking at Lin Tian, a trace of imperceptible relief flashed in his eyes, as if he had 'finally gotten rid of a hot potato.' "However, since you delayed receiving it, the mission time will naturally be extended accordingly as a punishment. How about this…"

He took out a cyan token from the drawer that was neither gold nor wood, engraved with strange patterns, and tossed it onto the window sill.

"Go to 'Baicao Valley' and report to Elder Qian on duty. Your mission is to assist in guarding the low-grade Spirit Medicine fields in Area A-3 for a period of… two months."

"This mission is not heavy, it just takes time. You need to patrol and take care of it regularly every day, record the growth of the Spirit Medicine, and guard against pests and beasts. For a newcomer like you, it is just right."

"It can help you familiarize yourself with some knowledge of Spirit Medicine, and it can also temper your temperament and help you remember the Sect rules!"

Guarding the medicine fields? Two months? Lin Tian's heart sank. This mission sounded not dangerous and not complicated, but the words 'time-consuming' and 'two months' were undoubtedly a huge interference for his Cultivate plan, where every second counted!

He had to patrol and take care of it every day; how much time would that waste? And it would last for two months!

He opened his mouth, wanting to strive for more, to see if there was a shorter-term mission.

But seeing the Elder's unquestionable gaze, and thinking that he was already in the wrong, he eventually swallowed his words and silently reached out to pick up the cyan token.

"This Disciple… obeys. Many thanks, Elder." Lin Tian put away the token, clasped his fists in a salute, and turned to leave the Service Hall with a heavy heart.

Watching Lin Tian's retreating back, the thin Elder could not help but curl his lips upward, picked up the teacup beside him, and took a comfortable sip.

Another chubby Elder beside him saw this, leaned over, and whispered with a smile, "Old Zhao, you are really something. You offloaded that 'guarding the medicine field' job? And for two months?"

"That old man Qian has a weird temper and demanding requirements. I heard there was a small problem with that A-3 medicine field recently, and they are short of hands."

"Ordinary Disciples, upon hearing they are going to him, and for so long, avoid it as much as they can. But you, you stuffed a clueless newcomer in there."

Elder Zhao put down the teacup, stroked his long beard, and said triumphantly, "Who told this kid to bump into me himself, and be so late? If I do not use him to fill the gap, who should I use?"

"Newcomers, they need to suffer a bit more and spend more time; it is also a form of training. Besides, although old man Qian is difficult to deal with, he will not really do anything to a newcomer. At most, he will scold him a few times; the work still needs to be done."

"Now it is good, at least for the next two months, I do not have to worry about who to send to the A-3 medicine field."

"That is true, finally pushed that troublesome job out." The chubby Elder nodded, and the two looked at each other and smiled, continuing to handle other matters.

Outside the hall, Lin Tian held the cold cyan token, looking at the direction of 'Baicao Valley,' which was shrouded in clouds and mist in the distance and whose location he did not know, and sighed helplessly.

"Two months… guarding the medicine field… I hope it will not delay things too much." He shook his head, identified the direction, and walked towards it.