"The more this cultivation technique progresses the more I feel how extraordinary it is. From the enlightenment ability to this golden shadow energy that protects me and is becoming stronger every time it advances. I am eager to see what will become of it once it gets completed." After checking the dormant golden shadow energy laying in his abdomen, Ling Xu slept right away as he was exhausted from overusing his qi while entering enlightenment and perfecting his sword technique.
The night came to an end pretty fast as the first rays of light shone upon the outer sect, indicating that the day had begun as it bathed upon the few disciples who were already awake.
Ling Xu overslept as he only woke up three hours after the sun rose, something he would normally avoid doing since he preferred to start the day the moment the sun rose.
After coming out from his room, he headed directly to the outer sect's gate where outer disciples could pass through to leave the sect and complete their missions in the forest of Profound Roots Mountain Range.
Of course, since they were outer disciples they still had a limit of how far away they were allowed to travel. This was a rule made by the higher ups of the sect to protect the disciples from the wild.
At Profound Roots Mountain Range the deeper you went the stronger the beasts that you would encounter, but there was also the chance of entering the territory from a spiritual beast even in the outermost part.
To avoid this from happening, the sect subjected outer disciples to travel through the area where they had secured that only beasts in the Qi Refining Realm resided.
Heading in the opposite direction that he previously went to when meeting with Xie Jian and the rest of the group for the previous mission, Ling Xu had already reached the gate that led to the outside.
This gate was on the other side of the outer sect and it pointed towards one of the other sects that ruled over Profound Roots Mountain Range. The Formless Sword Sect was just one out of the three sects ruling over it and was located on the left most part.
The other two sects are the Wind Tempest Sect and Sword Mountain Sect. The first one is next to Formless Sword Sect and is in the middle of the mountain range, while the latter is located next to it at the right most part.
"Ling Xu, there you are. Now that you have arrived we can finally depart on the mission." Once he arrived, Lu Wenjie was the first to greet him as he had a bright smile shown from one eye to the other.
"It is as clear as day what kind of intentions he has." He thought while looking towards the person that previously tried to cripple him. Although he had already apologized and even gave him compensation, he didn't believe for a second that he really meant it.
And once he looked at the other members that were behind him he confirmed it as he could feel their cultivation levels.
Lu Wenjie noticed his glance over the pair of disciples he had brought along and gave a sheepish smile. "Ah, forgive my manners. These are the other members of the group I've selected for the mission. They are…"
Ling Xu didn't catch their names, nor did he care to. He already knew why they were here and had no intention of pretending to be friendly. Still, he gave them a look as he felt that one was on the seventh stage of Qi Refining while the other was at the eight.
Both carried swords sheathed at their sides, refined weapons that gave off a stronger presence than his own low-grade treasure sword. Judging by the craftsmanship and aura, they were likely middle-grade treasures.
The one from the disciple at the eighth stage drew most of his attention. His sword emitted a faint red glow, exuding a subtle warmth, almost like the blade had its own breath.
"It is a pleasure, junior brother! Let's do well in the mission and return safely." Both of them came forward and saluted amicably, giving a sense of warmth towards their fellow disciples.
"Fortunately, he has already shown hostility towards me, or I wouldn't have managed to see their true intentions." Ling Xu thought having the feeling that the smiles from these two had hidden hostility directed towards him.
Once they greeted him, he responded with the same energy, showing the same politeness they showed. "It is an honor for this junior to accompany my senior brothers on the mission."
"There's no need for such formality, junior brother." The senior disciple in the eight stage responded very friendly. "Just keep up, and we'll handle the difficult parts."
"Then I am in your care, senior brothers. I hope I don't become a burden to you." He said a face of concern as he gave the impression that he didn't feel good about slowing the rest of the group.
After both of them gave him a sense of security telling him that it didn't matter and that it was only right for seniors to help their juniors, Ling Xu looked at the remaining member of the group.
"Sun Qinglan greets brother Xu, I hope you have been well." She said respectfully, trying to show the least of emotion as if they didn't know each other.
"She must be concerned that showing any kind of emotion will put me in danger." He recognized her intentions right away, noticing the sudden difference in her tone towards him compared to every time they met in the sect and talked.
But this wasn't something that only he could sense since Lu Wenjie had a slight twitch in his face, showing a bit of surprise when seeing this. Then he became more angered towards Ling Xu as he realized that his fiancée was trying to protect another man from him.
"Ah, Sun Qinglan… my deer Sun Qinglan," He thought to himself. "One day, you'll understand that we are destined to rule Bright Moon City. With the union of our families, we'll seize control, and the path ahead in cultivation will only become smooth sailing."
In an instant, he calmed down and his expression relaxed as he started explaining the mission to the rest of the group. "Listen up everyone, the mission we are going to do is related to the Ashen Fire Wolves…"
The explanation was much simpler than Ling Xu thought, as the mission didn't seem to be very hard. They only needed to find enough Ashen Fire Wolves and kill them so they would be able to collect their fangs which had a very special ability.
This type of beast was typically in the third and fourth stage of Qi Refining and bore a dull, grey hide that blended into the wilderness. Though not particularly fast, it was very tough for its level. However, its true danger lay in its fangs, razor-sharp and laced with latent, burning energy. Even the slightest scratch could cause a victim to burn from the inside out, turning into a cripple or even dying unless their qi was strong enough to resist the venomous heat coming from them.
Because of this, the beast's fangs were highly valued as alchemical ingredients, used in a few pill recipes crafted by the sect's alchemy refiners. As such, it had become a common mission assigned to outer sect disciples, although dangerous it was necessary.
This was true for ordinary middle-stage cultivators who went in alone. But Ling Xu's case was different, he was part of a five-person group led by Lu Wenjie, who was at the sixth stage, while the others were at the seventh and eighth stages.
"This mission should have a lower reward than the one with Xie Jian." He thought, comparing the difficulty levels. The more he analyzed it, the more abnormal it seemed. The task assigned to Lu Wenjie's group was far too easy for their strength level. Eventually, Ling Xu realized it wasn't a real mission. It was just an excuse to get him out of the sect.
After leaving the sect, Ling Xu watched as the surroundings gradually changed, the vegetation grew denser, and the number of beasts steadily increased. At first, they encountered only a few beasts in the Blood Qi Realm, but soon they were facing several at a time.
After walking far enough they ran into beasts that were in the Qi Refining Realm. They appeared every few minutes but they posed little challenge. The beasts were only at the first or second stage and they were smoothly handled by the senior brothers leading the front.
"This distance should be about right." Lu Wenjie said as he came to a stop, signaling to the rest of the group that they had reached the territory where the Ashen Fire Wolves roamed.
Before the rest could talk, he continued. "Let's split up into two groups so we can find them faster and end with the mission as soon as possible. I don't want to spend the night here just for a few wolves that are in the fourth stage of Qi Refining."
Sun Qinglan's expression twitched as she heard his idea. "Do we actually need to separate? We still have several hours before nightfall." She said, afraid of what words would come out from his mouth next.
"She's trying to protect him again." The more he sensed her concern for Ling Xu's safety, the brighter his smile became. Although behind it, he carefully hid his anger which was continuously rising.
Over the past few hours, he had watched his own fiancée stay just a few steps away from another man, while keeping more than two meters of distance from him even though they were engaged.
This filled him with a deep sense of humiliation, especially with the two senior brothers present, clearly aware of what was happening. They could more or less guess the reason behind the task they had been assigned, watching as Ling Xu had a closer relationship with her compared to him.
"It's okay, although we don't need to rush the beasts within this territory are just the Ashen Fire Wolves. We are more than enough to go in separate groups without getting in any danger." He said, looking towards the person next to her as he wanted to hear what he thought about it.
"It's fine, although we don't need to rush the only beasts in this area are the Ashen Fire Wolves. We're more than capable of handling them even if we split up," Lu Wenjie said, glancing at the person beside Sun Qinglan, clearly wanting to hear his opinion.
Seeing his gaze falling on him, Ling Xu assured her that nothing bad was going to happen. "You don't need to worry, Sister Qinglan." He replied firmly. "With the senior brothers here, we won't have any trouble. Let's divide ourselves into two groups."
But Sun Qinglan could see through Lu Wenjie's intentions. She had already warned Ling Xu once, and now she couldn't speak up again since it was clear he still wasn't taking her seriously.
While she didn't believe he had any chance of winning against them, she could only hope Ling Xu wasn't foolish enough to walk into danger without a plan in mind.
The groups were soon formed, and Ling Xu found himself separated from Sun Qinglan, now walking alongside the two senior disciples, one at the seventh stage and the other at the eighth stage of Qi Refining. As the one with the lowest cultivation level, he was placed in the middle, with the eighth stage disciple leading at the front and the seventh stage one covering the rear.
"Don't worry, junior brother. With us here, nothing will happen to you." the man in the front said loudly, his voice brimming with confidence, but Ling Xu could clearly hear the contempt placed beneath his words.
It didn't take long for the mood to shift. The atmosphere within the group had turned almost completely, a full one-eighty. Ling Xu could feel the pressure closing in from both sides, a silent but unmistakable sign.
"They are going to move at any moment... I need to act first!" He thought, bracing himself as he quickly weighed his options and decided on taking the initiative.
Behind him, the seventh-stage disciple revealed a sinister smile as he slowly unsheathed his sword, which had remained untouched until now since they hadn't encountered a single beast ever since they split up.
"I really want to see the stupid face he makes once I stab him from the back. I can't believe he actually trusted that we would protect him. From what Lu Wenjie told us, they have already had a fight before."
Slightly increasing his pace, the senior brother covering the rear got closer to Ling Xu as he asked in a low voice. "Junior brother, why are you…"