Chapter Seventy: Mission Assignment

Page (1/3) Shadow Pavilion – Mission Hall

After the written exam results were announced, nearly a hundred failed to meet the passing score, yet more than four hundred disciples lined up, waiting for their missions to be assigned.

“I didn’t expect so many people to queue up so early. Had I known, I would’ve come even earlier,” Xue Jiahuan puffed up her cheeks in protest.

“Let’s not kid ourselves. Every day after training, you collapse into bed and sleep. You only drag yourself up when I call you, grumbling all the while. If I called you any earlier, I dread to think what state you’d be in,” Gu Fanshuang teased with a sly smile. “I remember how you came back the other day…”

“Oh, stop!” Xue Jiahuan shrieked, seeing Gu Fanshuang about to spill more embarrassing stories, and hurriedly covered her mouth.

Su Bai and Gu Fanshuang exchanged a knowing smile and continued waiting in line.

These past two years of training had benefited Su Bai greatly. His skills in combat had improved, his knowledge of vital points and weaknesses had deepened, and he’d learned to concoct poisons and identify venomous insects. Yet he still hadn’t acquired a weapon he truly favored.

Gu Fanshuang loved playing the zither, and her family delivered a Rakshasa Guzheng to her the very next day. Strangely, she showed no joy at the instrument’s arrival; Su Bai even caught her weeping by the river in secret.

He guessed the zither’s original owner was someone deeply close to her—perhaps her mother, who had been besieged and killed by enemies.

At the time, Su Bai could only watch silently, unsure how to comfort Gu Fanshuang in her grief, remaining by her side until she left. Perhaps this was why he’d only ever had one short-lived romance; but he cared little for such matters now, as most of his thoughts were consumed by his increasingly sluggish progress in training.

For two years, he’d pushed his body to its limits at every moment, but the martial path was not something to be achieved by sheer force of will. Only last week had he broken through to the first layer of the Bone Refining realm. Most disciples were still at the Copper Skin stage, and even the teachers rarely spoke of Bone Strengthening techniques. He and Gu Fanshuang relied on each other, advancing purely through their own insight.

Su Bai hadn’t told Gu Fanshuang about his breakthrough, for both Bone Refining and Bone Strengthening were processes of tempering the body, further strengthening the flesh. Unless one was a transcendent expert, others could hardly sense the difference; only in combat would it become clear.

A reason Su Bai hadn’t revealed his advancement was the new mission at hand. For reasons unknown, he felt a strange sense of dread, an ominous premonition lingering in the depths of his mind.

Of course, it was only his subconscious at work, nothing he could openly discuss, but it made him extra cautious as the mission approached.

Looking ahead, there were well over a hundred people in line. Suddenly, Su Bai felt a presence and turned sharply, locking eyes with another.

Those eyes were filled with hatred and envy, as if wishing to flay alive the one they gazed upon. As their eyes met, the owner felt dizzy and lowered her head, then cautiously glanced up at Su Bai.

This was none other than Ni Hanyan.

Su Bai later confided in Gu Fanshuang about Ni Hanyan: Gu Fanshuang’s mother had been a renowned sorceress, nearly as famous as Su Bai’s own mother, Yu Nianci. Yu Nianci found a man she could entrust her life to—Su Qing.

But Gu Fanshuang’s mother, Gu Nianhan, was not so fortunate. She encountered a scholar heading to the capital for his exams, who was kidnapped by bandits. Gu Nianhan, intrigued by the hunt, decided to play along, disguising herself as a naive local girl and allowing herself to be captured with him.

The bandits intended to violate her, but the scholar spoke out in her defense, enraging them. They beat him savagely, and for the first time, Gu Nianhan felt protected by a weaker person, which delighted her.

After the scholar was knocked unconscious, the bandits lost interest in Gu Nianhan’s ordinary appearance (for she did not show her true face).

The scholar awoke groggily to find the girl sobbing quietly. Gu Nianhan spun a tale to fool him, cursing his gullibility inwardly, but smiling despite herself—nearly letting him notice.

He sharpened a stone to cut their bonds, freeing both himself and Gu Nianhan. They left the bandit lair together, not encountering a single sentry. In truth, Gu Nianhan had already dealt with the entire gang before the scholar awoke.

Later, the scholar failed his exams, but fate brought him and Gu Nianhan together again when she was pursued by enemies far from her clan. She turned to the scholar for help, and through repeated encounters, feelings blossomed between them—eventually leading to the birth of Gu Fanshuang.

Unfortunately, Gu Nianhan’s life was ruined by this scholar. Ni Hanyan’s hatred stemmed from the fact that, during her final siege, Gu Nianhan fought like a trapped beast, slaying many martial experts—including both of Ni Hanyan’s parents.

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Moreover, Su Bai’s analysis of Gu Fanshuang’s situation matched almost exactly: the intent was to divide their team, diminishing the chances of weaker members advancing.

Within the sect, they couldn’t possibly kill Ni Hanyan outright, but this action might present the perfect opportunity.

Su Bai regarded Ni Hanyan coldly, sensing her fear. Since his martial arts had deepened, his violet eyes had developed an uncanny spiritual attack. Normally, only experts at the Meditation stage could cultivate such abilities, and even then they were barely useful; only transcendent or higher-level masters could wield spiritual attacks effectively in combat.

Though Su Bai’s technique wasn’t especially powerful, few at this stage possessed such a skill. It made him wonder about the origin of the three blood-red characters on the stone tablet—it surely wasn’t as simple as Bai Yutang had claimed.

Shaking his head, Su Bai ceased pondering these mysteries and turned his attention to dealing with Ni Hanyan, determined not to let her return alive to the Blood River Pavilion.

It wasn’t out of cruelty or favoritism toward Gu Fanshuang, but because Ni Hanyan lacked ability and only bullied those weaker than herself—like a lump of mouse droppings in a pot of fine soup.

Some might hope to reform such a person, to resolve the past between Gu Fanshuang and Ni Hanyan, but Su Bai wasn’t a peacemaker; he preferred to accomplish his goals efficiently. He didn’t want the team to follow the second path, so Ni Hanyan would simply have to be “wronged.”

After half an hour, it was finally Su Bai’s group’s turn to draw their mission.

Su Bai eyed the box, recalling his own reputation as a “black hand” in a previous life. He coughed softly and tried to step back, only to be nudged forward by Gu Fanshuang.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and draw the mission!” Gu Fanshuang eyed Su Bai curiously.

“Uh, I… um…” Su Bai hesitated for ages before finally reaching into the box.

He stirred left and right, silently praying: “Give me an easy one, give me an easy one…”

Feeling a subtle intuition, Su Bai smiled confidently and seized a fleeting card.

His expression seemed to say to the spectators, “Watch me pull off a soul-draw!”

The moment he revealed the card, he was instantly petrified.

The mission assigner beside the box approached, glanced at the card, and said blandly, “Alright, Mission One.”

He patted Su Bai’s shoulder with an expression that said, “Don’t fake it, kid.”

Su Bai’s mouth hung open, his heart bleeding: “Luck changes nothing, money changes nothing. The ancients never lied. Woe is me…”

“Oh man, Lao Ming, your hands are truly cursed!” Baxia complained. “Should’ve let me draw. Who would’ve thought, after all those before us failed to draw Mission One, our group gets it on the first try.”

“Let’s not dwell on it. Our group’s strength is among the best here. This is just a stage test; they shouldn’t make it too hard for us. No point in complaining,” Gu Fanshuang said, smoothing things over for once.

This gave Xue Jiahuan the chance to tease, “Ah, as expected of Sister Gu, always looking out for the junior brothers!”

“Get lost!” Gu Fanshuang retorted, “Stop mocking me or I’ll make you sleep on the floor tonight.” She lightly slapped Xue Jiahuan’s shoulder, feigning punishment.

The two sisters were always like this, their friendship as fragile as plastic—Su Bai and the others didn’t bother to intervene.

They took their number cards to the mission desk and received their assignment. Su Bai immediately began reading.

At first, his brow relaxed, which put Baxia and the others at ease. But then his brow furrowed tightly, as if the mission was odd.

Baxia approached Su Bai and read the assignment: The villagers near Mount Dali have suffered from wolf attacks. Your task is to eliminate the wolf pack.

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Note: The blue-eyed white wolves have exceptional vision. The pack is estimated to contain over a hundred adult wolves. The alpha has not yet been located.

Deadline: Three months. Failure to meet the deadline counts as a failed mission.

Baxia read the mission, took a deep breath, and fell silent, his face serious. He understood Su Bai’s concern: an ordinary wolf pack would be easy for them. Set traps ahead of time, lure them in with beast powder, and the mission would be a breeze.

But the final line forced them to reconsider the mission's difficulty.

The alpha’s rank would directly affect their chances of success, and now the crucial information was missing. It made deciding whether to accept the task difficult.

Rejecting the mission wouldn’t bring heavy punishment, but few could resist the reward: a weapon of their choice from the first floor of the Divine Artifact Pavilion, or a battle companion from the Spirit Pet Pavilion.

These were the dreams of every young student, especially those without wealth. Everyone who came here aspired to become a pillar of the martial world someday.

To roam the world with sword in hand was the romantic ideal of every martial youth. Without a suitable weapon, their strength was limited, so everyone pondered how to complete the mission.

Su Bai sighed. “Perhaps this time we should…”

Just as he was about to suggest giving up the chance for a reward, an order was announced: “This mission is a test for you all. It will count toward your final grades, and no one is allowed to refuse. Those who decline will have one chance to receive a new task. If you truly don’t wish to participate, the doors of Blood River Pavilion are open to you.”

The meaning was clear: if you don’t do the mission, you shouldn’t stay.

Su Bai swallowed his words, turning to Baxia. “It’s fine. Risk and reward go hand in hand. Maybe we’ll earn even greater prizes when we return.”

Baxia heard the reassurance, nodded reluctantly. “Maybe we’re lucky; perhaps the alpha is already dead.”

Gu Fanshuang and Xue Jiahuan hurried over, asking, “We just saw the announcement in the mission hall—what’s our assignment?”

Su Bai handed the mission slip to Gu Fanshuang.

After reading it carefully, both agreed the risk was high: “If the blue-eyed white wolf leader is at the Bone Strengthening stage, the five of us are doomed.”

Before reaching the transcendent realm, humans rarely prevailed over beasts in combat, especially against an alpha commanding over a hundred adult wolves. If it was Bone Strengthening or higher, ordinary beast powder wouldn’t lure it out.

They might even be attacked by the whole pack—just imagining it was daunting.

As they discussed, Ni Hanyan turned away with a sly smile and slipped into the crowd.

Meanwhile, Su Bai’s nominal master met in a basement with a man wearing a fierce ghost mask, bowing respectfully, “Vice Sect Leader.”

“Is it done?” the masked man asked casually.

“All arrangements are made, but… isn’t falsifying the information risky?”

The masked man snorted, “If you want the elite among elites, you can’t get them without ruthless methods. This will be their most crucial test of life and death. I don’t expect all of them to return alive—I only hope those who survive will have hearts as strong as iron.”

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