Upon returning to the sect, Fang Huai went straight to the Outer Sect Hall.
The Zheng Family had been wiped out, and the mission had failed, but according to the rules, he still had to report back.
After speaking with the disciple on duty, Fang Huai learned that Liu Xiange had already reported the events of their mission to the sect—
The Zheng Family had been destroyed in an attack by a Qi Refining eighth-layer demonic beast, and Lin Qian and Wu Sanli had died fighting to protect the Zheng Family.
The fabricated story was full of holes, so the peaks Lin and Wu belonged to naturally refused to let the matter rest.
For some reason, a Foundation Establishment elder from Curse Insect Peak had personally stepped in to mediate. After returning the Corpse Sha Bird and the Storage Bag, the elder had also paid some Spirit Stones in compensation. Only then had the two peaks let the matter drop.
Even more surprising, the Foundation Establishment elder had then personally gone to the Outer Sect Hall to plead their case, sparing Liu Xiange and Fang Huai the punishment for failing their mission.
"Curse Insect Peak really does go all out to protect its own disciples," the disciple on duty remarked.
Fang Huai nodded in agreement, but didn't expose the real reason behind it.
Looking back now, the Zheng Family's brutal demise was most likely the handiwork of the three peaks and the Outer Sect Hall.
The Zheng Family had already been teetering on the brink, barely able to pay its annual tribute in full.
Under the circumstances, using a demonic beast attack as an excuse to swallow the Zheng Family whole was exactly the sort of thing the Corpse Sha Sect would do to maximize its profits.
What's more, they'd also gotten the Water Spirit Pearl and the demonic beast's eyes as unexpected bonuses.
"Senior Brother, could you check how much annual tribute our mission was supposed to collect from the Zheng Family?"
"Oh, there's no need to check. The annual tribute for a small family like the Zheng Family is set.
One thousand Spirit Stones a year, and five Qi Refining disciples every three years. They can pay more Spirit Stones and provide fewer disciples, or provide more disciples and pay fewer Spirit Stones."
One thousand Spirit Stones and five Qi Refining disciples?
Lin Qian had said two thousand Spirit Stones and ten Qi Refining disciples!
No wonder the Zheng Family had been driven to desperate measures and risked killing them. They'd been pushed to the edge.
After saying goodbye to the disciple on duty, Fang Huai returned to Skinning Room No. D-27.
Wu Liu was lashing a disciple who'd made a mistake. When she saw someone push open the door, she said irritably:
"The sun's already high in the sky, and you're only showing up to work now? You're this lazy, so why bother cultivating immortality at all!"
Fang Huai smiled. "Senior Sister Wu, it was my fault. I'm sorry for the trouble!"
"Junior Brother Fang!" Wu Liu stared at Fang Huai in disbelief.
She rubbed her eyes several times before exclaiming in delight, "I heard you ran into a Qi Refining eighth-layer demonic beast and two people died. I thought you might be one of them. I can't believe you actually made it back alive."
Suddenly, her eyes widened. She hurried over to Fang Huai, slipped a hand beneath his clothes, and rubbed his abdomen twice.
"You've broken through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining?"
"Just luck," Fang Huai said with a calm smile.
Their voices weren't loud, but in the Skinning Room, they landed like thunderclaps.
The old hands in the Skinning Room all knew Fang Huai was a cultivator without a Spirit Root.
When handling demonic beasts in the past, he'd had to hold a Spirit Stone in one hand while working with a Skinning Knife in the other.
For someone with such poor aptitude to break through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining was simply unbelievable.
"Senior Sister Wu, I came to ask you to recommend me for a transfer to Class C Skinning Room."
Wu Liu's face instantly turned cold.
A cultivator at the middle stage of Qi Refining was indeed qualified to move to a better Skinning Room. But Fang Huai was her money tree, and besides, he'd promised to give her an extra one thousand Contribution Points every year.
Now that he wanted to leave, she couldn't stop him. But she naturally let her displeasure show.
"Junior Brother's cultivation has improved, and he wants to move somewhere better. Senior Sister certainly won't stand in his way."
Wu Liu took out a sheet of white paper and made a show of reaching for her brush.
Fang Huai noticed the strange look in her eyes and quickly handed over his Identity Token. "Please deduct two thousand Contribution Points, Senior Sister."
"Junior Brother, what's this for?" Wu Liu asked, confused.
Seeing her puzzlement, Fang Huai explained, "One thousand is what I promised you this year. Even though it's not the end of the year yet, I should still give you what I owe.
The other thousand isn't much, but it's a small token of my gratitude for all the care you've shown me over the years."
Wu Liu was touched.
Even though Fang Huai had already mastered skinning, earning two thousand Contribution Points would still take him quite some time.
Besides, skinning was a young person's trade. Years of contact with demonic beasts inevitably left one tainted by Poison Sha, resentment, and curses.
Once they grew old, they were highly likely to suffer a backlash and meet a tragic end.
"Junior Brother Fang, I'll only take one thousand." As she spoke, she took out another sheet of yellow paper and prepared to write.
"Senior Sister Wu, you may be the manager of Skinning Peak, but you've treated me like your own little brother. It's only right for a younger brother to show his older sister some appreciation.
If you refuse to accept it, I won't acknowledge you as my big sister anymore."
Fang Huai met Wu Liu's gaze with complete sincerity, even a glimmer of tears in his eyes.
Wu Liu was moved, and her arm trembled slightly.
She'd struggled for decades in the Corpse Sha Sect, but no one had ever remembered her kindness the way Fang Huai did.
She put away the yellow paper, took out a red sheet instead, and wrote:
"Fang Huai, formerly a disciple of Skinning Room No. D-27, is diligent in cultivation, conscientious in his duties, and highly skilled at skinning. I hereby recommend him as a disciple of Skinning Room No. C-03. Please treat him well."
"Senior Sister!" The tears in Fang Huai's eyes glimmered even more brightly. What he wanted was a place in one of the top ten Skinning Rooms.
After spending years on Skinning Peak, he knew that the lower the number of a Skinning Room, the higher the quality of the demonic beasts it handled.
"Go on. Don't come back. You belong in a much wider world."
Wu Liu personally saw him off. Watching Fang Huai's retreating figure, her eyes grew a little moist.
"Fang Huai really is a man of loyalty and affection. What a pity. Even if he had a four-element Spirit Root, I'd have devoted everything to cultivating him..."
Fang Huai naturally couldn't hear Wu Liu's words. At that moment, he was being stopped outside Skinning Room No. A-03.
"You came from Junior Sister Wu?"
The manager looked Fang Huai up and down, but saw nothing unusual. "You didn't get in through Junior Sister Wu's back door, did you?"
[Lin Yan] [Qi Refining ninth layer] [Sha Qi Infusion (White)][Skinning Mastery (White)]
Fang Huai looked at [Skinning Mastery] on Lin Yan and murmured, "So he's a real doer?"
"What did you say?"
"Nothing. I said I earned my place through hard work."
Lin Yan led Fang Huai inside and explained, "The Class D Skinning Rooms only handle demonic beasts at the middle stage of Qi Refining. Skinning beasts at the fourth, fifth, and sixth layers earns fifty, sixty, and seventy Contribution Points, respectively.
"Of course, you'll have to pay a monthly contribution here too: one thousand Contribution Points a month."
He paused, then continued, "Since Junior Sister Wu recommended you, I won't reject you and embarrass her. But our standards for skinning technique are high. If you think your technique is decent, I'll give you a demonic beast to try on;
"if you think your technique isn't up to scratch, you'd better head to a Skinning Room numbered fifteen or higher."
"Of course!"
Fang Huai was entirely confident. If his technique wasn't good enough, he could simply borrow the other man's skill tag.
A demonic beast called a Cloud Stone Python lay before him. Its hide and flesh were tough, making it difficult to cut.
Even after Fang Huai switched to Lin Yan's [Skinning Mastery], he still struggled to handle it.
From the moment he took on the beast until dusk, he'd completed only one-fifth of the job.
"Stop," Lin Yan said, shaking his head. "You have a decent foundation, but your technique is too poor. This place isn't right for you."
"Senior Brother Lin, please give me some pointers. How can I improve my technique?"
Fang Huai was confused. He'd clearly switched to Lin Yan's [Skinning Mastery], so why couldn't he handle a demonic beast at the fourth layer of Qi Refining?
Lin Yan fell silent for a moment, then sighed. "For Junior Sister Wu's sake, I'll point you in the right direction."
Before you continue