“Mandatory Mission…”

“Purge the remnants of the Eastern Sage Sect operating near the sect’s borders?”

“Requirement: Each participant must retrieve proof of at least one kill related to the Eastern Sage Sect remnants… Duration: Six months.”

Wang Ba stared at the glowing text floating above his Heavenly Gate Token, his expression darkening.

The Heavenly Gate Sect was ruthless.

This wasn’t just a military operation; it was a loyalty test written in blood. The sect was forcing the Outer Sect Left-Path Cultivators—most of whom were former Eastern Sage Sect disciples—to sever their past ties violently.

For Wang Ba, who held zero sentimental attachment to the fallen sect, this was a non-issue. But for many others who had spent years cultivating alongside those “remnants,” this order was psychological torture. It was a command to hunt down their brothers and sisters.

Cruelty that targets the soul, Wang Ba thought. A classic conditioning tactic.

Of course, the morality of it didn’t concern him. If an Eastern Sage Sect disciple jumped him, he’d cut them down without a flicker of remorse. Survival was the only morality that mattered.

The problem lay in the risk assessment.

Any remnant forces daring to linger near the Heavenly Gate Sect after the collapse were likely hardened survivors or elites. He was a measly Qi Refining First Layer cultivator. Joining such an operation wasn’t combat; it was distinct suicide.

He scrolled down the projection.

[Mission Rewards]

Kill Qi Refining Layers 1-3: 10 Heavenly Gate Merit Points.

Kill Qi Refining Layers 4-6: 20 Merit Points.

Kill Qi Refining Layers 7-9: 40 Merit Points.

Kill Qi Refining Layer 10: 100 Merit Points.

[Mission Failure]

Penalty: Deduction of 100 Merit Points and one Major Demerit.

Consequence: Accumulating three Major Demerits results in immediate execution.

One Merit Point held the purchasing power of one Low Grade Spirit Stone within the market. To promote from a Level 1 to a Level 2 Left-Path Cultivator—unlocking market discounts—required accumulating 100 points.

Wang Ba glanced at his current balance: 44 points.

So, if I somehow manage to kill a Tenth Layer disciple, I instantly Breakthrough, he calculated rapidly. But if I fail to kill anyone, I lose 100 points and get a strike on my record.

The penalty was steep, but the threat of the “Major Demerit” was the real whip. Three strikes meant death. The Heavenly Gate Sect was effectively putting a gun to their heads, forcing them to fight desperately.

Most of the tenants here would scramble to complete this. No one knew if the next mission would be impossible, so they had to capitalize on the “easy” ones while they could.

But Wang Ba hesitated.

Risk assessment: High. Probability of becoming cannon fodder: Extreme.

He decided to adopt a wait-and-see approach. As the saying went: If you lack the diamond drill, don’t dare to work on porcelain. He didn’t have the tools for this job.

From that day on, the atmosphere in the Stone Cave Dwellings changed. The usually reclusive tenants began moving about, forming alliances and seeking partners.

Wang Ba’s door was knocked on frequently. However, the moment the prospective teammates realized he was merely at the First Layer of Qi Refining, they left without hesitation.

To high-level Qi Refining cultivators, a First Layer cultivator was barely distinguishable from a mortal. Useless baggage.

Wang Ba felt no sting from their rejection. In fact, he welcomed it. Being underestimated was a survival trait.

Unaffected by the frantic preparations around him, he continued his routine. Chicken farm. Stone Cave Dwelling. Cultivate. Repeat.

This was the life he had dreamed of back when he was a lowly Laborer Disciple.

Thanks to the Human Puppet, the farm work was minimal. The chicks were growing robustly, and the Yellow-throated Spirit Turtles were developing a rich golden hue.

His internal progress was equally steady. The gaseous Spiritual Power in his Dantian was thickening, gradually filling the available space. He could feel the ceiling approaching. Once his Dantian was saturated, it would be time to attempt a breakthrough.

One afternoon, a knock echoed through his cave.

Wang Ba opened the door and was surprised to see his neighbors, Chen Mian and his wife.

But they weren’t alone. Standing beside them was a young man with a lofty, arrogant aura.

Wang Ba’s internal radar pinged. Strange.

Since their awkward departure last time, Chen Mian and his wife had avoided him like the plague. They likely assumed his low cultivation meant he was destitute and feared he would ask to borrow money.

Yet today, they were at his door, smiles plastered on their faces.

It must be related to this stranger, Wang Ba deduced instantly, though his face remained a mask of polite hospitality. “Please, come in.”

“No need, Fellow Daoist Wang,” Chen Mian said, waving a hand dismissively. “Let me introduce you. This is Senior Brother Jing. In the former Eastern Sage Sect’s Outer Sect, he was a powerful expert at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining, second only to the Ten Great Disciples.”

Senior Brother Jing?

The name triggered a memory. Lin Yu, his former neighbor, had mentioned a “Senior Brother Jing.”

Wang Ba’s expression remained neutral, but his mind raced. Is this the same man who supposedly helps junior sisters?

The trio missed the subtlety of his reaction. The young cultivator, Jing Kuang, frowned slightly at the mention of the old sect.

“Junior Brother Chen, given our current circumstances, dwelling on past titles is meaningless.”

“Yes, yes, of course!” Chen Mian bobbed his head obsequiously.

Jing Kuang turned his gaze to Wang Ba, his expression softening into a practiced look of benevolence.

“Fellow Daoist Wang, I am Jing Kuang. Whether you have heard of me is irrelevant.”

“We are all fallen people now. Faced with the sect’s mandatory mission, it is only right that we unite to overcome this hardship.”

Wang Ba didn’t know what game they were playing, so he stayed silent, listening patiently.

Jing Kuang wasted no time. “I heard from Junior Brother Chen that you are only at the First Layer of Qi Refining. Forgive my bluntness, but with such meager cultivation, completing this purge mission on your own is impossible.”

“The truth is harsh,” Jing Kuang continued, his voice smooth. “The Eastern Sage Sect remnants active outside are almost all above the Third Layer. You have zero chance of survival.”

“But as I said, we must help each other. If you follow me, I will assist you in completing your quota early on. In return, I simply hope that when the group needs you, you will not hesitate to lend a hand.”

“That is my proposal. If you agree, give me a definitive answer now. I will be leading a group of Fellow Daoists out to hunt soon, and we cannot afford delays.”

Jing Kuang stared at him with burning, confident eyes. Beside him, Chen Mian and his wife beamed, clearly thinking they were offering Wang Ba a lifeline.

It was a compelling pitch. In a world this cruel, a Ninth Layer expert offering to carry a First Layer noob was akin to a god descending to offer salvation. There was no logical reason to refuse.

Back a big tree to enjoy the shade, as the idiom went.

Wang Ba pretended to ponder deeply. Then, contradicting every expectation in the room, he put on a look of profound fear and apology.

“I… I am terribly sorry. I’ve already decided to forfeit this mission. I’m just a First Layer cultivator… I simply don’t have the courage to step outside the sect’s safety zone.”

The three visitors froze.

They hadn’t expected cowardice of this magnitude.

Cultivation was an act of defying the heavens. Cultivators were supposed to fight for every scrap of resources. Even if he was weak, a Ninth Layer expert had just offered him a free pass! The danger was minimal!

Chen Mian’s face flushed red. He had evidently promised Jing Kuang he could recruit a body. He stomped his foot, looking at Wang Ba with frustration.

“Fellow Daoist Wang, you are confused!”

“This is only the first mission! Who knows if the next one will be harder? Can you guarantee you can pass the next two? Three failures mean death and the dissipation of your Dao!”

“With Senior Brother Jing protecting us, ordinary enemies can’t touch us! And even against strong foes, we have numbers! Surely that’s better than cowering here alone?”

Chen Mian’s wife stepped forward, her voice taking on a sticky, sincere tone. “Fellow Daoist Wang, don’t worry that we have ulterior motives. We are neighbors. Why would we harm you?”

“To be blunt,” she laughed lightly, “what does a First Layer cultivator have that is worth swindling?”

“You look young, so I’ll be bold and call you Little Brother. Little Brother, listen to your Sister-in-law. Opportunities like this don’t come twice.”

Facing their aggressive persuasion, Wang Ba looked deeply moved. His eyes shimmered with gratitude.

And then he refused again.

Jing Kuang’s benevolence vanished. His eyes turned cold as he shot Wang Ba a piercing glare. Without a word, he spun on his heel and walked away.

“You! Agh! Why are you so thick-headed?!”

“Foolish!”

Chen Mian stomped his foot again in exasperation before he and his wife hurriedly chased after their patron.

Wang Ba watched them leave, then gently closed the stone door.

Click.

He had thoroughly offended them.

But he didn’t regret it for a second.

A Ninth Layer cultivator personally coming to recruit a First Layer nobody?

Anomaly detected.

Wang Ba judged others by his own standards. If he were in Jing Kuang’s position, he would never burden himself with dead weight—unless that dead weight served a specific purpose.

Bait. Cannon fodder. A meat shield.

Maybe Jing Kuang truly was a saint with a broad mind. Maybe he just wanted to help the weak.

But Wang Ba recalled the rumors of a Senior Brother Jing who used spirit veins to lure junior sisters. He wasn’t about to bet his life on the moral baseline of a man like that.

In this world, moral baselines were flexible. Survival was not.

Time passed.

The stone door of the neighboring cave remained shut. Chen Mian and his wife had likely followed Jing Kuang into the wilderness to hunt.

Yu Changchun visited the farm once to collect eight Spirit Poultry. He seemed satisfied with the production rate.

Wang Ba took the opportunity to ask if Yu Changchun could help him complete the mission quota. He didn’t care about the 100 Merit Points, but he hated wasting one of his three strikes.

“This… my cultivation has reached a critical juncture recently,” Yu Changchun said, looking visibly pained. “If I go outside, I might not be able to track down those remnants quickly…”

It was an excuse. Wang Ba realized Yu Changchun simply didn’t want to waste his time or risk his neck for a business partner he could easily replace.

Wang Ba dropped the subject.

Two days later, he took a batch of culled chickens to the spirit beast shop in the market.

“One and a half Spirit Stones per male bird?”

Wang Ba stared at the shopkeeper, eyes wide. The price had plummeted.

The shopkeeper picked his teeth lazily. “What? You got a problem with the market rates? Feel free to use the teleportation array and sell them at a different branch.”

“Here, this is the price.”

The man’s predatory smirk said it all. He knew Wang Ba was low-level and restricted to this specific market. He was squeezing him because he could.

Monopoly tactics, Wang Ba noted cold-bloodedly.

Unless he reached Level 2 and gained access to other markets, he had no bargaining power.

He sold the batch for 24 Spirit Stones.

He didn’t spend them. He had a vague premonition that liquid capital would be more valuable than goods in the near future.

When he returned to the Stone Cave Dwelling, he was surprised to see the neighboring door—shut for days—standing wide open.

Chen Mian and his wife stepped out.

The change was drastic. Gone was the air of poverty and desperation. They now wore fresh robes, their faces glowing with health, faint traces of treasure light shimmering on their persons.

“Fellow Daoist Wang!” Chen Mian spotted him and laughed heartily, actively greeting him without a trace of the previous animosity. “Fate brings us together again. There is still half a month of rent paid on this cave. If you have a use for it, feel free to take it.”

Wang Ba blinked. “Fellow Daoist Chen, this is…”

Before Chen Mian could finish, his wife interjected eagerly. “Hehe, it’s nothing major. We just found this place a bit too cramped and quiet. We’ve moved to the Wood Tower Dwellings in the front district.”

Wang Ba immediately clasped his hands. “The Wood Tower Dwellings cost twenty Spirit Stones a month! It seems you two are like swimming dragons entering the sea—unstoppable.”

“Undeserved praise, undeserved praise! Haha!” Chen Mian laughed, unable to hide his pride.

His wife, however, looked at Wang Ba with a mix of pity and condescension.

“If Fellow Daoist Wang had followed Senior Brother Jing that day, you might not be moving into a Wood Tower, but you certainly wouldn’t be living like this. What a pity. Truly a pity.”

Wang Ba pursed his lips and offered a polite, silent smile.

To the couple, his silence looked like regret. This made them feel even superior.

“Well, let us part here. Farewell!”

The three exchanged bows.

Wang Ba returned to his stone room, his heart as calm as a millpond.

Others had their fortunes; he had his. Envy was a useless emotion.

The pawn advances only one square a day, he reminded himself. But the pawn never moves backward.

He sat cross-legged on his mat and closed his eyes.

He breathed.

“The Dantian is full.”

After more than two months of relentless grinding, the moment had arrived.

“Time to break through to the Second Layer of Qi Refining.”