Enemy Attack

"As expected of an inner disciple's mission, a single one is worth three hundred contribution points. If I were still a menial disciple, it would take me three hundred months to accumulate that much."

Li Gan felt deeply moved.

This mission required a cultivation level of at least the fifth layer of the postnatal realm. The difficulty could be considered moderate, and the time frame was short, making it quite suitable for him.

There were other missions that required lower cultivation levels, but they often had very long time frames.

There were also some that offered higher contribution points with short time frames, but they required higher cultivation levels.

Higher cultivation meant greater risks.

He did not want to take risks.

If it weren't for the fact that inner disciples were required to participate in missions, he really wouldn't want to take the risk at all.

"The mission starts by escorting a batch of goods from Linjian City, with the destination being Baibi City in Zhanghe Prefecture, three hundred kilometers away. The departure time is in five days, with a gathering scheduled one day prior."

"Baibi City?"

Li Gan frowned slightly after seeing the destination. His predecessor came from the Li family in Baibi City, Zhanghe Prefecture.

Ever since he ran away from home, he hadn't returned in over three years.

If not for this mission, he would have almost forgotten that this body still had family.

"This is the predecessor's business, it has nothing to do with me. Besides, once I escort the goods to the destination, I will return immediately."

He had no feelings for the family of this body.

Even the predecessor had detested that home, which was why he had run away.

After reading through it, Li Gan returned the booklet and left the mission hall.

There were still a few days left, so there was no rush.

However, he still needed to prepare thoroughly.

Even if the mission risk was low, he could not be careless; he had to give it his all.

A few days later.

Li Gan descended the mountain. After reporting at the Divine Sword Sect gate, he mounted a horse and left the Divine Sword Sect.

This was his first time riding a horse.

Whether in his past life or his current one.

However, his predecessor knew how to ride, so he possessed the memories for it.

Plus, he was now a martial artist at the eighth layer of the postnatal realm. Although he was a bit rusty at first, he adapted quickly.

This was his first time going out since entering the Divine Sword Sect over three years ago.

Linjian City was about ten miles away from the Divine Sword Sect.

The city was quite large, with a population of over a hundred thousand, most of whom had some connection to the people of the Divine Sword Sect. It was said that a large portion of the menial disciples and official disciples recruited by the sect came from Linjian City.

After entering Linjian City, Li Gan had no interest in wandering around and headed straight to the mission assembly point.

Yongcheng Firm.

"Young Hero Li, you've arrived quite early, haven't you?"

Steward Lin, who was receiving guests at the firm, said in surprise.

"Is it early? Steward Lin, didn't the mission state that we should arrive at the assembly point one day in advance?"

Li Gan asked curiously.

"Actually, as long as you arrive before the departure time, that's fine. I estimate that the other inner disciples who accepted the mission won't arrive until tomorrow morning."

Steward Lin smiled.

He couldn't help but wonder if this Young Hero Li was doing a mission for the first time.

But that didn't seem right; the requirement for this mission was the fifth layer of the postnatal realm or higher, and inner disciples on their first mission wouldn't usually take on a task like this.

"Oh, are there others?"

Li Gan asked curiously.

"The mission our firm posted this time requires five to eight martial artists for escort."

Steward Lin chuckled.

"Then I'll head back first and come again tomorrow morning."

Li Gan nodded, and to Steward Lin's bewilderment, he mounted his horse and left.

If he delayed ringing the bell by a day, the advancement of the dharma tool Chen Bell would be delayed by a day.

Furthermore, it would also affect his cultivation.

The next day.

After Li Gan finished ringing the bell at the mao hour and practiced the Heartless Sword Art twice, he arrived at the Yongcheng Firm in Linjian City, feeling refreshed.

To his surprise, he was still the first one to arrive.

It was not until the si hour that the other inner disciples who had accepted the mission arrived one after another.

He was still too young.

He should have just struck the chen bell before coming here.

If he had practiced the heartless sword art a few more times, wouldn't his cultivation have improved by another fraction?

Including Li Gan, there were eight inner disciples in total.

Five men and two women.

Li Gan had never seen any of these inner disciples before.

"This junior brother looks very unfamiliar. Won't you introduce yourself?"

The speaker was a woman in white wearing a silver half-mask. Judging by the contours of her face, she had a standard oval face shape, and her figure was quite hot.

She carried a long sword on her back and wore her hair in a ponytail, giving her a heroic and spirited air.

"I am Li Gan. Greetings to all senior sisters and brothers."

Li Gan cupped his hands and said.

"Which peak are you from?"

Another person asked.

"I am just an ordinary inner disciple."

Li Gan replied.

"Heh, you need more than just a little strength to dare to take on this mission."

The man chuckled.

A cultivation level above the fifth layer of postnatal realm was enough to make many inner disciples lose their nerve.

For many inner disciples, the fifth or sixth layer of the postnatal realm was essentially their limit.

Only a portion of genius disciples could reach the seventh layer of the postnatal realm or higher; such individuals could at least become disciples under the ordinary elders of the seven main peaks.

Those who were even more outstanding could become personal disciples of powerful elders or even peak masters, thereby gaining the qualifications to compete for the status of a true disciple.

Generally speaking, the powerful elders, peak masters, and even the sect master of the divine sword sect were all drawn from the true disciples.

"I wonder, Junior Brother Li, what is your cultivation level?"

The woman in white asked, "Junior Brother Li, don't take it the wrong way. We are just getting to know each other so that we can better allocate responsibilities during the mission. My name is Ji Su, and I am at the seventh layer of the postnatal realm."

"Senior Sister Ji, I am at the sixth layer of the postnatal realm."

Li Gan said.

He certainly could not reveal his true background.

Following that, the others also stated their cultivation levels one after another; they were basically all around the fifth or sixth layer of the postnatal realm. In fact, Ji Su was the one with the highest cultivation level on the surface.

It was not until noon that the caravan began to set off.

Li Gan discovered a problem: the caravan itself did not actually have any specialized martial artist guards. Apart from the manager leading the transport, everyone else was just a groom or a laborer.

He only learned from the others that this Yongcheng firm was established by an elder of the Divine Sword Sect. By cooperating with the inner sect of the Divine Sword Sect, whenever they needed people to transport goods, they would post an escort mission within the inner sect.

The benefit of this was that the Yongcheng firm did not need to hire and train martial artist guards long-term, saving a large sum of expenses.

Although the cost of hiring inner disciples of the Divine Sword Sect was not low, compared to the alternative, it was still much more cost-effective.

In the blink of an eye, five days passed.

The caravan entered the territory of Zhanghe prefecture.

They were less than a hundred miles away from Baibi city; at their current speed, one day would be enough.

Throughout this journey, they had not encountered any trouble.

Because the caravan had hired inner disciples from the Divine Sword Sect, in addition to flying the banner of the Yongcheng firm, the caravan also carried a banner of the Divine Sword Sect.

This in itself represented a form of deterrence.

The influence of the Divine Sword Sect was immense, shaking three provinces and twelve prefectures.

Common petty thieves would not dare to target the caravan at all.

Night fell.

The caravan stopped to rest in a small town.

They would likely arrive at Baibi city by tomorrow afternoon.

Li Gan and the other seven, as usual, stayed beside the goods and slept in their clothes, with one person keeping watch each time.

Tonight was no exception.

As for the other grooms and laborers, they had all gone to rest.

Listening to the watchman's clapper outside, Li Gan, who was on night watch, knew it was already the first quarter of the chou hour.

He was still feeling quite energetic.

Every time sleepiness washed over him, he would strike the shadow of the chen bell within his mind, releasing a chime that allowed his spirit to perk up significantly.

The effectiveness of this bell chime diminished the further he was from the actual chen bell located within the divine sword sect.

Once the distance reached a certain point, the effect would stabilize at a fixed value.

Suddenly, Li Gan faintly heard some movement, coming from afar and drawing closer.

It was fast.

He snapped his eyes open.

It did not sound like a wild cat or anything of the sort.

At that very moment, a chill ran down his spine. His body moved, and he suddenly flipped to his feet.

Pfft!

A cold glint struck the spot where he had just been sitting cross-legged.

It was a crossbow bolt.