After the two exchanged a few pleasantries, Zhang Shan’s smile faded. He looked around and lowered his voice. "Junior Brother, I was waiting for you here today, and not just to show off. I wanted to ask, are you short on Daoist Merit lately?"
"Short? Of course I’m short!" Chu Bai didn’t hide it, pointing to his empty coin purse. "I can barely make ends meet. I just glanced at the price of Fire Element Spiritual Energy, and it nearly shattered my Dao Heart. Senior Brother, do you have a good opportunity?"
"Of course."
Zhang Shan gave a mysterious smile. "You know how it is. Once you reach the Qi Cultivation Third Layer, the costs for everything, whether it’s Cultivation Resources, Dharma Artifacts, or Talismans, are even higher. I recently joined an Elite Demon Hunting Squad, and we just accepted a ’Clear out the Rat Infestation’ mission posted by the Daoist School. We’re just short one person to meet the deployment requirement, and you were the first person I thought of."
"A rat infestation?" Chu Bai raised an eyebrow.
"Not ordinary rats, but a type of Demon Beast called the ’Burrow Rat’."
Zhang Shan explained, "Lately, the Evil Qi under Dayuan Prefecture has been surging, and these things are breeding extremely fast in the South City Abandoned Mine Area. Although their individual combat power isn’t high—at most, the level of Early-stage Qi Cultivation—their strength lies in their massive numbers. Plus, they’re good at burrowing and launching sneak attacks, making them very tricky to deal with. The Daoist School posted it as a long-term bounty to temper its students."
"What’s the reward?" This was the core question Chu Bai truly cared about.
"Extremely generous!"
Zhang Shan held up one finger and waved it in front of Chu Bai. "For killing one ordinary Burrow Rat, you can exchange its corpse or Demon Pill for ten Daoist Merit points. If we run into a Qi Cultivation Second Layer Elite Rat, that’s twenty points! Our five-person team will split the earnings based on contribution at the end. A Daoist School Instructor is acting as a guarantor, so there’s absolutely no chance of anyone skimming off the top."
’Ten points for one?!’
Chu Bai quickly did the math in his head. ’Since the Burrow Rats are an "infestation," there must be tons of them. If I get lucky and kill eight or ten in a day, that single day’s earnings would be equal to two months of work for the Dean!’
’These aren’t rats; they’re walking bags of Daoist Merit!’
"I’ll take the job." Chu Bai nodded immediately, then asked cautiously, "What’s the strength of the others on the team?"
"Don’t worry. The leader is a third-year senior sister named Wang Qingli. She’s at Third-Layer Perfection of Qi Cultivation. Her Mastery of Earth Element Techniques is incredible, and her defense is extremely strong—people have nicknamed her ’Iron Wall.’ The other two are also skilled hands at the Qi Cultivation Second Layer."
Zhang Shan patted his chest. "If it weren’t for me having some pull, and the fact that your combat power is truly outstanding, a team of this caliber would be hard to get into. Especially that Senior Sister Wang—her standards are incredibly high."
"Then I must thank you for the recommendation, Senior Brother."
A short while later, in the east district of the Daoist School, inside a high-level Cultivation Room reserved for squad practice.
Chu Bai followed Zhang Shan as they pushed the door open and entered.
The room wasn’t noisy; instead, it was filled with a grim aura. Three figures were sitting cross-legged in a triangular formation, seemingly engaged in some kind of coordination training.
At the head of the formation sat a tall woman in a pale yellow combat uniform. Her expression was as cool and detached as her name, Wang Qingli, suggested. On her back, she carried an enormous Turtle Shell Shield, clearly a master of the heavy-armored defensive style. She was currently meditating with her eyes closed, a faint, earthy-yellow halo of light swirling around her.
The other two were a man and a woman. The man, named Zhao Gang, was thin with sharp, nimble eyes, and a row of Willow Leaf Flying Sabers hung at his waist. The woman, Lin Xiaoyun, had a sweet-looking face and was toying with a Cyan Wood Staff in her hands; she was a rare healing support-type.
"Captain, I’ve brought him."
Zhang Shan took a step forward, breaking the silence. "This is the Chu Bai I told you about, the champion of the recent new student assessment."
"A first-year?"
The thin man named Zhao Gang frowned slightly. He didn’t even stand up, his gaze just sweeping over Chu Bai from head to toe with a critical eye.
"Zhang Shan, we’re going to the South City Abandoned Mine Area this time."
Zhao Gang’s tone was filled with clear distrust. "The terrain there is complex and the rat swarms are a plague. If we get surrounded, it’ll be a bitter fight. Bringing a first-year student... won’t he just be dead weight? If we have to split our focus to look after him, we might as well just go as a group of four."
The healer girl, Lin Xiaoyun, didn’t speak, but a hint of worry showed in her eyes. After all, by common logic, most first-year students were still stuck at the Qi Cultivation First Layer. They hadn’t even mastered many Magic Techniques; sending them out there would be like serving them up on a platter.
Wang Qingli slowly opened her eyes, her cool gaze landing on Chu Bai.
"I’ve heard of the ’champion’ title." Her voice was crisp but carried a hint of chill. "But in the abandoned mine area, a title can’t kill Demon Beasts. We need a teammate who can survive independently and contribute to our damage output."
With that, she glanced at Zhao Gang.
Zhao Gang understood immediately. He suddenly stood up, a provocative smirk playing on his lips. "Since you’re the champion, you must have a few tricks up your sleeve. Talk is cheap. How about a little demonstration?"
Before his words had even faded, Zhao Gang flicked his wrist.
SWISH!
A cold glint of light shot out like a lightning bolt. It was a Willow Leaf Flying Saber, flying with pinpoint accuracy toward the Profound Iron Wooden Stake in the corner of the Cultivation Room, which was used for testing power.
THUNK!
With a dull thud, the Flying Saber sank more than three inches deep into the wooden stake, its hilt still trembling slightly.
"Qi Cultivation Second Layer, Flying Saber three inches into wood." Zhao Gang crossed his arms and looked at Chu Bai. "That was just a casual toss. The hides of the Elite Burrow Rats in the abandoned mine area are no less tough than this stake. If you can’t even break through their defense, going there is pointless."
This was a show of dominance, and also the most direct form of an interview.
Zhang Shan looked a bit awkward and was about to step in and smooth things over, but Chu Bai stopped him with a raised hand.
Chu Bai’s expression was calm; he wasn’t angry. In the Cultivation Realm, strength was always the best passport. Wasting breath on words was meaningless.

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