Chapter 26

"Flower Fox, the pet of Fairy Caiyi, has suddenly fallen ill, becoming increasingly irritable and refusing to eat. If anyone can cure it, they will be rewarded with 500 points of sect contribution."

This sect mission reminded Ye Zhen of the time he had accidentally seen Fairy Caiyi a month ago. At that time, Fairy Caiyi was holding Flower Fox and seeking medical help at the sect hall. Although he only caught a glimpse from a distance, Ye Zhen could still tell that something was wrong with Flower Fox.

To be precise, he could tell from Flower Fox's cries.

Ye Zhen never thought that after a month, the problem with Flower Fox still hadn't been resolved. Wasn't its life too miserable? Even its most basic needs couldn't be met.

Thinking about this, the corners of Ye Zhen's mouth curled up, and he couldn't help but show a strange smile.

Of course, what attracted Ye Zhen the most was the reward of 500 points of sect contribution. Fairy Caiyi, being a true disciple, was indeed generous.

After all, Ye Zhen had browsed almost all the sect missions. Even for those of the highest human-grade difficulty, which required the best inner disciples to complete, the reward of sect contribution points was at most 200 points.

Among the thousands of sect missions, the highest reward of sect contribution points was 300 points, and that mission required three months to complete.

500 points of sect contribution were a huge wealth for outer disciples. A Blood Essence Pill could be exchanged for just 20 points of sect contribution.

"Sir, I will take the last mission posted by Fairy Caiyi," Ye Zhen said, pointing to the last sect mission.

The sect officer in charge of missions, who was dozing with his eyes half-closed, was suddenly startled awake by Ye Zhen's words. He glared and scolded, "Are you running a fever, or are you blinded by those 500 points of sect contribution?"

"Do you know how many inner and outer disciples have taken this mission posted by Fairy Caiyi over the past 21 days?"

"Twenty-three outer disciples and eleven inner disciples have taken this mission. The lightest of them were kicked off Fairy Peak. The worst case was an inner disciple who is still bedridden and won't recover in less than three months."

"This is the result of my daily persuasion. Otherwise, the number of people would have increased several times over," the sect officer said.

"Huh, that bad?" Ye Zhen sighed lightly. When the sect officer thought Ye Zhen would give up, Ye Zhen said, "But I have confidence."

"Hmph!" The sect officer gave Ye Zhen a big glare. "Confidence? Before this mission was posted, several true disciples who were interested in Fairy Caiyi, especially Fan Chuyu, boasted loudly and said the same thing as you, but they all ended up with a nose full of ashes."

"Boy, let me tell you, this mission is Fairy Caiyi's last resort, treating a dead horse as if it were alive. Even the elders in the sect have examined her Flower Fox. You should go about your business and not seek trouble."

"Thank you for your concern, Sir, but I really have confidence!" Ye Zhen said again.

Ye Zhen's words made the sect officer's eyes bulge. "Boy, do you really want to take it?"

"Really want to take it!"

"Then I'll assign it to you. When you get killed by Fairy Caiyi's palm, don't blame me for not warning you!" Once the matter was settled, the sect officer quickly assigned the mission to Ye Zhen.

"Fairy Caiyi's Fairy Peak is not easily accessible. Even though you have taken this mission, you still have to wait for Fairy Caiyi to have time. I can only send a message for you. If Fairy Caiyi has time or is willing to let you treat her Flower Fox, she will come to find you," the sect officer said.

"Alright, thank you, Sir. But please add a sentence in the message, saying that I once observed Flower Fox from a distance and have an 80% chance of success," Ye Zhen said after some thought.

Not for any other reason, but to secure the next month's supply of pills and to earn those 500 points of sect contribution, Ye Zhen was determined to take the risk.

For an outer disciple to earn 500 points of sect contribution, even if they completely abandoned cultivation and worked day and night on sect missions, it would probably take two to three months or more.

Under normal circumstances, accumulating 500 points of sect contribution would take about half a year.

"Now, I believe you really have confidence." As he spoke, the sect officer took out a jade talisman. A beam of light shot up and disappeared in an instant.

"Alright, go back and wait for news. If Fairy Caiyi has time, someone will notify you!"

That was all he could do. However, Ye Zhen really hoped that Fairy Caiyi would come to find him within two days, otherwise, his next month's sect benefits would be in jeopardy.

Today's sect mission gave Ye Zhen a new path in cultivation—sect missions.

When he reached a bottleneck in cultivation, he could take on missions to hunt fierce beasts or even demons, which might help him break through the bottleneck.

Practical combat was actually the best standard for testing and the best way to improve.

Ye Zhen made up his mind that after completing this sect mission, he would go to the sect to claim the reward for breaking through to the fourth level of Blood Cultivation—a Cleansing Marrow Pill. With the reward for being the top in the Fish Dragon Path and 500 points of sect contribution as backup, he might be able to complete the Cleansing Marrow and Tempering Body process, break through to the fifth level of Blood Cultivation, and then go out for training.

While he was thinking, a figure suddenly rushed towards Ye Zhen at high speed, like a blade cutting through the air.

Instinctively, Ye Zhen's feet moved in a snake-like step, and his shoulder shook, deflecting some of the impact. He dodged a bit, but the person was extremely fast, and Ye Zhen still stumbled.

"Ye Zhen, are you blind? How dare you deliberately bump into me!"

With a roar, Ye Zhen saw a black mole on the side of Hong Bao's face, twitching as he roared.

Instantly, Ye Zhen understood that Hong Bao was deliberately looking for trouble. It was also his bad luck to encounter this bully on his way back to the peak.

In recent days, Ye Zhen had not secluded himself to practice. He had mingled with the outer disciples of Donglai Peak and learned many things about it.

For example, in the eyes of other outer disciples, it was fine to offend the first or third place on the Earth List, but the second place, Hong Bao, must not be offended.

Hong Bao could be described as a bully on Donglai Peak, having fought with fellow disciples dozens of times but rarely receiving real punishment. Instead, the outer disciples who were bullied and heavily punished.

Last year, an outer disciple named Shi Cheng accidentally bumped into Hong Bao and was repeatedly harassed. The last time, it escalated to the sect, and the result was that Shi Cheng was expelled for having a twisted mind.

Hong Bao was outstanding in strength and had the potential to break through to the True Essence Realm and become an inner disciple in a short time, which made him highly valued by the sect. It was said that an elder in the sect had a special relationship with Hong Bao.

With the elder's protection, Hong Bao could bully others on Donglai Peak without punishment.

Moreover, although the sect prohibited private fights among outer disciples, with 8,000 outer disciples, at least 6,000 of them were hot-blooded young men. Daily collisions and frictions were countless, and angry punches and kicks were common.

Therefore, the sect turned a blind eye to private fights among outer disciples as long as no one died or was seriously injured and no one reported to the peak officer.

"Ye Zhen, you deliberately bumped into me and didn't apologize. Do you think I, the second place on the Earth List, am made of mud? Watch me teach you a lesson!"

With a roar, Hong Bao's muscles bulged, and a terrifying aura rose from his body. His fist shadowed and struck towards Ye Zhen.

The massive fist heading towards Ye Zhen was covered in a layer of red light, which made Ye Zhen feel as if he was about to suffocate.

"True Essence?" Seeing this, Ye Zhen was greatly shocked. His heart sank. True Essence and Blood Qi were two different levels of power. Today, he might have to suffer a loss.

But understanding was one thing; Ye Zhen was not the type to stand there and let you beat him. If you hit him, he would definitely bite you back.

Ye Zhen's fist moved, and a fearless aura rose in his eyes. He used the Five Mountains Return technique, and his entire aura became extremely fierce.

In a narrow path, the brave win!

Only the fearless can survive in dire straits!

This was a truth Ye Zhen had realized while pondering his recent battles.

Sure enough, Hong Bao's eyes changed, and he was startled by Ye Zhen's fierce aura. However, in the next moment, Hong Bao's aura surged, and the red light around his body flashed intensely.

"Hmph, if you want to die, I'll grant you..."

Smack!

A beam of green light suddenly descended, like a slap, landing on Hong Bao's cheek. Hong Bao was struck as if by lightning, screaming and rolling backward.

Almost simultaneously, a burst of colorful light rushed towards Ye Zhen. Ye Zhen felt a sudden tremor in his body, and he couldn't move at all. "Are you Ye Zhen?"

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PS: The content was written long ago, and I was supposed to update on time, but the power went out at 9 PM and only came back now. I write on a desktop, and when the power went out, I couldn't retrieve anything. Now that the power is back, I'm sending it out immediately. Please bear with me, brothers!