Chapter 106: SPECIAL MISSION(1)

Since Gu Jun was not in the habit of wandering around without reason, Li Yan assumed he would probably be in his room, either eating or sleeping, as his roommates had once described.

When Li Yan reached the residence, however, he found only Gu Jun’s two roommates. After greeting them, he asked where Gu Jun was, and one of them told him that Gu Jun had left the sect with several disciples from the Battle Arts Department to carry out a mission.

Li Yan found the news strange because Gu Jun had not mentioned anything about leaving, and he could not understand why his friend would suddenly disappear without telling him. Even if the mission had been arranged in a hurry, Gu Jun could have found a moment to say something before leaving. While wondering about it, Li Yan remembered that he had not heard from Hu Bai either, which was even more unusual because Hu Bai was normally all over him whenever they were both in the same place.

Since Hu Bai might know what had happened, Li Yan decided to go to his residence and ask him directly. He made his way to Purple Mountain, but when he reached Hu Bai’s residence, he found the place empty. He waited for a while and looked around, hoping someone might appear and explain where everyone had gone, but there was nobody there.

"Where the heck is everyone?"

With no one around to answer him, Li Yan could only sigh and leave. He decided to return home and wait until they came back. If Gu Jun had really left on a mission, Li Yan would eventually hear from him, while Hu Bai would have to show himself sooner or later.

The following morning, Elder Mo gathered the disciples and made the announcement about the Rewards Pavilion and its point system. He explained that disciples could earn points by completing missions and use those points to exchange for cultivation resources, spiritual pills, manuals, and other items that could help them with their cultivation and training.

The announcement became even more interesting when Elder Mo informed them that every disciple would receive two bottles of sect elixir for cultivation and training. Li Yan listened carefully because the elixirs would be useful to him, especially since he could keep his points for other resources instead of spending them on something the sect was already providing.

Elder Mo then revealed that a group of selected disciples had already been chosen and sent out on a special mission. And another batch would be selected for a second special mission, which immediately caught Li Yan’s attention.

He could not help connecting the announcement to Gu Jun’s disappearance from the previous day. If the first group had already left, then Gu Jun had probably been among the selected disciples, and Hu Bai might have been selected as well. That would explain why Li Yan had been unable to find either of them.

After considering the matter, Li Yan decided that he wanted to be part of the second selection. He had no intention of watching other disciples gain experience while he remained inside the sect, especially when the mission could give him an opportunity to learn things that could not be taught through ordinary classes.

As soon as the announcement ended, Li Yan went to find Fu Hanzheng. When he reached his master’s residence, he explained what he wanted without wasting time.

"Master, I want to be part of the second selection."

Fu Hanzheng immediately refused, explaining that Li Yan had no experience fighting and had only recently begun learning martial arts. His knowledge of sword techniques was even more limited, so Fu Hanzheng could not understand how Li Yan expected to protect himself if he encountered danger during the mission.

Li Yan understood his master’s concern, but he had already considered the matter before coming to ask for permission. "It will be fine, Master. I will be fine, and when the time comes, I will be able to protect myself."

Fu Hanzheng was still skeptical because confidence could not replace actual experience. Li Yan had only recently begun thinking about learning martial arts and sword techniques, and although he had talent, he had not yet spent enough time practicing either one to prove that he could handle a real fight outside the sect.

"Yan Yan, you know that I am not refusing you without a reason. You have barely begun learning martial arts, and you still need more time to understand sword techniques. If you encounter an opponent during the mission, you cannot simply rely on the belief that you will be fine. You need to know what you are doing before you put yourself in that situation."

Li Yan listened to his master before answering with the same determination. "I understand, but I will be careful. I know that I am still learning, but I will be able to protect myself when the time comes. I would not ask you to let me go if I believed that I could not handle it."

Fu Hanzheng remained doubtful as he considered his disciple’s request. He knew Li Yan was stubborn when he had made up his mind, and the more he looked at him, the clearer it became that Li Yan would continue asking until he received an answer he could accept.

After thinking about it for some time, Fu Hanzheng finally agreed.

"Fine. I will get you on the list."

Li Yan’s expression immediately brightened, since he had not expected his master to agree after refusing him at first. Fu Hanzheng, however, was not finished explaining the situation, so he continued before Li Yan could become too pleased with himself.

"The next team is supposed to leave in three days, so there is not much time. I will arrange for your name to be included in the second selection, and get back to you before then."

Li Yan nodded with a satisfied expression; the answer was enough for him. Now he needed to prepare for the mission. His master was the sect master; regardless of what happened, he would be the one to approve the list of disciples going, so there was no way he would not be on it.

Three days passed before Li Yan received a message asking him to meet the other disciples at the training hall. He arrived shortly afterward and found Li Hanye standing with Li Wei, four other male disciples, and two female disciples. Since he did not recognize most of them, he took a place among the group and waited for the meeting to begin.

Li Hanye waited until everyone had arrived before speaking. "Now that everyone is here, I will explain the mission. The sect selected this mission for our group, and we are required to travel to Baidun and slay a level-nine lizard demon before retrieving the treasure it is guarding. The reward for completing the mission is six hundred jade points, which will be divided among everyone in the group."

Li Yan listened to the announcement while quietly observing the disciples around him. Everyone except him appeared to be an inner disciple, while Li Hanye and one of the girls were core disciples. He was the only outer disciple in the group, which made him wonder how the others would react once they noticed.

Before Li Hanye could say anything else, one of the male disciples stepped forward and looked at Li Yan.

"What is your spirit root? Isn’t it absurd to send an outer sect disciple on such a dangerous mission?"

Everyone turned towards Li Yan; the disciple had a condescending expression on his face, as if his being there was an insult to him.

"I have a yellow spirit, senior brother..." Li Yan replied calmly; yes, he had used his connections to get onto the list, but he wasn’t going to apologise for it. To be the best, one also had to be shameless.

"Who added you to the list? Are they mad? How do they expect a newly admitted outer sect disciple to fight against a level nine demon?"

Li Yan didn’t say anything; it would be stupid to answer such a ridiculous question. The disciple frowned and turned to Li Hanye, crossing his arms. "Senior brother Li, Brother Li, I get that he is your younger brother, but this favouritism is too much!"

Li Wei obviously did not want to involve himself in Li Yan’s business, but he knew he also had to act like a caring older brother.

"Brother Cui, maybe you don’t know, but everyone on the list was recommended by the elders. My older brother and I had nothing to do with it. If you have any complaints, please bring them to the sect master..."

Hearing the sect master’s name, Cui Ahjun immediately kept quiet; if he looked for any more trouble, he might be taken off the list.

Li Hanye cleared his throat to avoid any form of malice; he would clear the air. "If you still are not convinced, let me say the names of the elders and the disciples they recommended..."