White Jade Token

More importantly, Zheng Yi had given far too much. Even for a Qi Refining Seventh Layer deacon, it was no small windfall.

Even in a cultivator sect, there were rules to follow—many of them unspoken. Taking money and not doing the job would earn one nothing but scorn.

Who would dare come to you for help afterward?

He had already told Zheng Yi the specific way forward, so he had not let the other man's tribute go to waste. Now it depended on how Zheng Yi chose.

Zheng Yi had been a businessman on Blue Star. With the other party's hints so obvious, how could he fail to understand what this middle-aged Outer Sect Deacon meant?

Though he cursed the man as a bloodsucker inwardly, he still greeted him with a smile and silently took out another Beginner Storage Bag.

Zheng Yi quietly stepped forward two paces and, without leaving a trace, handed the Storage Bag to the middle-aged Outer Sect Deacon.

Fortunately, he had always been cautious and prepared an extra copy. Otherwise, he would surely have been caught scrambling again.

Seeing how well Zheng Yi understood the rules, the Outer Sect Deacon swept his divine sense over the bag and immediately knew its worth. The more he looked at this boy Zheng Yi, the more pleasing he found him, and the smile on his face grew ever kinder.

These days, there were fewer and fewer junior disciples in the sect who understood the rules and knew how to be polite.

Elder Gongsun had been transferred away to hold the front lines.

The sect was especially short-handed now, so he had been urgently sent here to replace Elder Gongsun.

It could be said that in Blood Mist Abyss City, his status was now the highest and his position the greatest. Though it was only temporary, there was plenty of room to maneuver within it.

After all, Zheng Yi had now reached the minimum threshold of Qi Refining Middle Stage. He basically met the sect's requirements for recruiting Inner Sect Disciples.

There was no need to shut such talent outside the door.

As for family background and the like, those had always been concerns for Righteous Sect. Demonic sects had never cared about such things.

Even if you were a spy sent by the White Path, once you entered a demonic sect, the sea ran too deep; from then on, the Righteous Path would be but a stranger.

Black or white, once you made a few rounds through a demonic cultivator sect and became stained with Blood Sha Aura, turning back would be impossible.

There had always been demonic disciples who were turned, or who had been moles cultivated by Righteous Sect from the start, but no one had ever heard of any of them meeting a good end.

Once you entered a demonic sect, turning back was impossible.

Even if you rendered meritorious service, covered in Blood Sha Aura, you could never be accepted by Righteous Sect upon returning.

As time passed, Righteous Sect abandoned such thoughts altogether.

More importantly, the Soul Devouring Sect was merely a small sect within the Demon Domain.

The person with the highest cultivation in the sect was only the Grand Elder, with Foundation Establishment Late Stage strength. There was truly nothing worth coveting for Righteous Sect.

After weighing matters from every angle, the middle-aged Outer Sect Deacon decided to offer Zheng Yi a bit of guidance. For the Spirit Stones in his hand alone, he had to grant this favor.

Besides, since the man could use Elder Gongsun's connections, if he took the money and failed to act, he might instead offend Elder Gongsun. Since that was the case, why not go with the flow?

He was handling things according to the rules. It was only natural, and there was nothing to criticize.

Even if someone in the sect raised objections later, he could invoke Elder Gongsun's name and deal with them together.

"Alright. Since that is the case, congratulations, boy—you have officially joined the Soul Devouring Sect and advanced to become an Inner Sect Disciple!"

"I hope you cultivate diligently, share weal and woe with the sect, and add bricks and tiles to its growth..."

The middle-aged deacon rose to his feet, smiling at Zheng Yi as he handed him a White Jade Token.

"This is the proof of the sect's promotion of an Inner Sect Disciple. Keep it safe for now."

"With this token, go directly to the sect's residence and report yourself to the steward of the Internal Affairs Hall."

"Before that, I will use Flying Sword Message Transmission to smooth things over for you. You can simply report to the sect."

In truth, small sects like the Soul Devouring Sect were as numerous as the hairs on an ox in the Demon Domain. If they were not fierce dragons crossing the river, then they were local snakes, possessing their own mountain gate and geographical advantages as they occupied territory among the lowest ranks of power.

Their selection of sect members and disciples was not particularly strict.

Only, Inner Sect Disciples involved the sect's inheritance, so the requirements were comparatively more stringent, though still within acceptable bounds.

The Soul Devouring Sect allocated Inner Sect Disciple selection quotas to each branch station. Invisibly, this was equivalent to handing benefits to the deacons who controlled those branches.

These stations were far from the sect's residence, and most were clean-water offices. Without even a morsel of meat or a drop of grease, what higher-up would still be willing to go there and hold the fort in the future?

After all, the stations were temporary. Even the branch station in Blood Mist Abyss City could be dismantled at any time as needed.

The Sect Mountain Gate was a sect's foundation. Not only did it possess defensive grand formations and the presence of the sect's top experts, it also represented the orderly continuation of the sect's inheritance.

If the mountain gate was a sect's central hub, concealing the sect's most core strength and the location of its important inheritances,

then the branch stations scattered across various places were offices that handled all manner of miscellaneous affairs for the main sect—responsible for selecting disciples, contacting various forces, conducting business, and dealing with countless trifling matters.

The sect's residence was like a sect's brain, commanding the movements of every limb, while the branch stations throughout the lands were its veins, continuously transporting precious cultivation resources and talented people into the sect, maintaining the operation of the entire vast machine of power.

Correspondingly, these branch stations were scattered throughout the Demon Domain, stationed in the territories of other powers. They faced countless complicated and tedious problems, so sect deacons held far greater authority and could even have the final say in everything.

Pulling strings, slipping through the back door, selecting some talented people, even acquiring a little unexpected wealth—the sect generally would not pursue such matters.

"Many thanks, Lord Deacon. This disciple is moved to tears by your kindness!"

"When I achieve something in my studies in the future, I will certainly repay you handsomely."

Zheng Yi reached out and accepted the White Jade Token, turning to tuck it into his robes, when the deacon's reminder reached his ears.

"Inner Sect Disciples are different from Outer Sect Disciples. Whether in status or inheritance, the difference is as vast as heaven and earth."

"In a sense, only by becoming an Inner Sect Disciple can one be said to have taken the first true step into the sect's core."

"This Inner Sect Disciple Token represents your identity. It has undergone special refinement by the Artifact Refining Hall, and only after you drip blood to acknowledge it as master will it be bound to your identity."

"After you finish all that, set out immediately and head to the sect to report. I will use the secret art of Flying Sword Message Transmission to notify the sect. Only then can the Internal Affairs Hall confirm your identity."

Within the Soul Devouring Sect, only disciples at Qi Refining Middle Stage or above could enter the inner sect.

Zheng Yi's Qi Refining Stage Four cultivation had only barely met the standard.

Just as the deacon had said, to enter the sect, one normally had to temper oneself among the Outer Sect Disciples. Only after earning enough contributions would one be selected by the Internal Affairs Hall and finally receive the opportunity for promotion.

But wherever there were people, there was jianghu. Even Righteous Sect could not escape scheming against one another and exploiting each other, much less demonic forces that championed the naked law of the strong devouring the weak.