Chapter Thirty-Four: Descending the Mountain

Although most of his time had been devoted to cultivation lately, Luo Tian did not neglect the daily simple tasks. Thus, paying for the premium district’s accommodation and leaving himself some savings was not an issue. However, he could forget about any earnings from teaming up with Bo Feng’s squad—since they parted ways on the very first day, Li Bo Feng certainly wouldn’t be foolish enough to hand over a share to Luo Tian.

Compared to the tight lives of other disciples, Luo Tian seemed rather different. Essential pills for cultivation, which most cultivators deemed necessary, mattered little to him; he relied on that mysterious cave, so he was indifferent to such things. Even if his tasks were neither as numerous nor as high-quality as others’, he still lived far less arduously.

After exchanging ten contribution points for ten gold coins at the Pill Treasure Pavilion, Luo Tian was somewhat puzzled by the strange looks from the inner sect managers, but he simply walked out.

“Brother Luo, what did you exchange for?” Zhao Lin’er naturally knew this kind of thing was relatively private, but seeing a flash of gold at the door, her curiosity was piqued.

What kind of treasure could it be?

Qian Bo also wanted to know, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask. He felt jealous of Zhao Lin’er’s closeness to Luo Tian and looked down on this useless servant who had stumbled into the fourth stage of the Qi Condensation realm by sheer luck. Thus, he kept silent, lest he encourage Luo Tian’s arrogant airs.

“Hmph! As if I’d help a petty man like him get ahead,” he thought.

“I exchanged for ten gold coins,” Luo Tian replied indifferently.

“Brother Luo, why did you exchange for money?” Zhao Lin’er asked, finding it hard to believe.

“One mustn’t be without money when traveling,” Luo Tian said, still a bit puzzled by her reaction, wondering if he’d overlooked something.

“Haha, what a joke!” Qian Bo finally couldn’t resist, his voice full of mockery. “We’re disciples of the Divine Sun Sect—when we go out, do we need to spend money? To requisition a carriage or eat in a restaurant is an honor for them!”

Luo Tian glanced at Zhao Lin’er, who wore an expression of agreement. Suddenly, he understood.

Divine Sun Sect was an immense power in the surrounding hundreds of miles. No wonder Chen Shuanghui had insisted they wear the outer disciple robes when going out—it was proof of identity.

With that robe, no one would dare ask them for payment!

Luo Tian took a deep breath, waved his hand, and strode ahead.

Qian Bo sneered and followed behind Luo Tian and Zhao Lin’er.

After leaving the sect gates, Luo Tian suddenly stopped.

“Brother Luo, what’s wrong?” Zhao Lin’er asked, puzzled—had he forgotten something important?

“Hmm, how do we get there?” Luo Tian was poring over the map, which only marked Qingfeng Town, Blackwind Town, and the surrounding terrain. The route from Divine Sun Sect to Qingfeng Town was just a single line.

Qian Bo almost burst out laughing—this guy really was amusing, never having left the sect before.

“It’s like this, Brother Luo: about five miles ahead is a relay station. We can get a carriage or horses there; once we arrive at Qingfeng Town, we just return them to the station over there,” Zhao Lin’er explained kindly. She was used to Luo Tian’s lack of worldly knowledge, having been famous for it as a servant, so she didn’t laugh—many common things were beyond him.

Luo Tian nodded. No need to say more—it was free, too.

The journey went smoothly enough. Five miles was nothing for a Body Tempering cultivator, let alone three at the fourth stage of Qi Condensation.

Their outer disciple status proved invaluable; the relay station staff, upon seeing them, wasted no time. With respectful smiles, they offered up the carriage, showing utmost reverence.

To enter Divine Sun Sect—even as a lowly servant—required considerable family background and physical aptitude, so even servants weren’t to be trifled with, much less the much higher-status outer disciples.

The Yang relay station’s attitude greatly satisfied Qian Bo, as if being treated so distinguishedly highlighted the gap between himself and Luo Tian.

The carriage’s interior was elegantly adorned and very comfortable; during the journey, the bumps were hardly noticeable.

“Lin’er, how many nodes are there in the Element Gathering Array?” Luo Tian asked curiously. From the way the mission was assigned, it seemed almost compulsory—either there were too many nodes, or too few willing to take on the task.

“I don’t know exactly, but I heard there are at least several hundred,” Zhao Lin’er replied, blinking her large eyes and appearing adorably thoughtful.

Qian Bo, watching from the side, felt his desire flare up. The fact that Luo Tian shamelessly called his woman by her given name, without her surname, made him furious.

“Several hundred? That many?” Luo Tian nodded. Disciples in the late stages of Qi Condensation got discounts on consumables, and the sect favored them heavily with contribution points. So, such external missions were often left to earlier-stage disciples, which made sense.

With three per team, even if each checked two nodes, sending all the disciples from the eastern district might still not suffice. It seemed the whole Purple Sun Mountain was mobilized.

What would these array nodes look like? Luo Tian wondered. With the elemental energy from hundreds of miles drawn by the array, its true form must be astonishing.

“Brother Luo, you really don’t know much!” Qian Bo said with a sneer. “Divine Sun Sect is in Tianfeng County of the Sunset Empire, technically under the jurisdiction of Myriad Winds City. These hundreds of miles practically cover all major areas within the city’s domain. After this trip, we’ll likely be sent out again—there’s plenty of ground to cover!”

“Then why don’t they have us check all the nodes in one go?” Luo Tian, ever tolerant toward his junior brother—after all, the boy was a walking contribution point and would eventually hand them over—asked sincerely.

“The death rate for outer disciples is so high; reporting in after one trip lets the sect keep track. If we checked ten nodes but died at the tenth, the sect would still need to send people to examine the first nine,” Qian Bo replied coldly. “The strong bully the weak, inner disciples oppress outer disciples—it’s perfectly normal.”

Luo Tian nodded slightly, then suddenly asked, “Lin’er, have you encountered any problems in your cultivation lately?”