In a spacious hall inside a residence in Section B of the Inner Disciple dormitories, nearly thirty boys and girls sat together.
Every face held a trace of doubt, their gazes all fixed on Ming Hao, who stood in the center.
"Young brother, the mission we posted called for a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, and one with exceptionally formidable combat strength at that. Did you misread it?"
Lin Hao, seated at the head, spoke first. His voice was low and powerful, carrying a hint of authority.
Hearing this, Ming Hao could not help feeling helpless.
He had been asked this question many times already. Each time, he gave the same answer, yet no one seemed to believe him.
"I didn't misread it. My cultivation really is at the Nascent Soul Realm." Ming Hao took a deep breath, trying to make his tone sound more convincing.
He knew their doubts were not unfounded. After all, with his fair, youthful appearance, he looked only twelve or thirteen, hardly like someone who had already reached the Nascent Soul Realm.
Yet that was the truth. Ming Hao really was at the Nascent Soul Realm, and his strength was certainly not weak.
Half an hour earlier, in the Hall of Missions, Ming Hao had searched for a long time without finding a suitable mission.
Either someone else had beaten him to accepting it, or its requirements were too high for his current strength.
After a painstaking search, Ming Hao finally chose a mission that had gone unclaimed for a long time.
The mission was to protect more than fifty Nascent Soul Realm Inner Disciples seven days later, when they collected their monthly sect stipends.
He had to ensure they could safely return to their residences and receive their stipends without having them stolen by other disciples.
This mission was no easy task. Besides requiring Nascent Soul Realm cultivation, it demanded someone capable of withstanding attacks from at least five opposing disciples at the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm.
For an ordinary Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, that was undoubtedly an enormous challenge.
If more than three disciples were robbed during the escort, the mission would count as a failure!
Completing it would count as the annual major mission, exempting him from sect missions for a year. There was also an additional reward of one hundred lower-grade spirit stones and one hundred sect contribution points!
Lin Hao's expression was so dark it seemed water might drip from it. Words could hardly describe the anger in his heart.
These Inner Disciples went to collect their stipends every month, yet almost every time they came out afterward, other Inner Disciples robbed them clean.
As a result, their cultivation progress had fallen far behind that of the disciples who had joined alongside them.
The robbers were stronger and far more numerous. They had even formed coordinated robbery teams and were extremely experienced.
Whenever they were robbed, Lin Hao and the others had no power to fight back. They could only endure the beatings in silence and watch helplessly as their stipends were taken.
It was not that they had never tried to resist. They had once banded together in an attempt to fight off the robbers.
But it had all been futile. They simply could not unite their hearts.
Under the overwhelming pressure of their opponents, their resistance proved fragile and was easily crushed.
This time, Lin Hao and more than fifty other disciples who were frequently robbed finally resolved to change their lot of passively taking beatings.
Each contributed ten lower-grade spirit stones and five sect contribution points, pooling their funds to post a mission and recruit an expert to help.
They had hoped to attract a true expert at their cultivation realm who could help drive off those hateful robbers.
But when they saw the person who had answered their request, everyone froze-it was actually a little brat!
They were bitterly disappointed, their hopes shattered in an instant.
An Inner Disciple's monthly stipend was not particularly generous, but it still included one hundred lower-grade spirit stones, two eighth-grade pills, and one hundred sect contribution points.
To obtain more resources, they could only take on sect missions.
So, to Lin Hao and the others, paying just ten spirit stones each to keep this month's stipend was well worth it.
Most importantly, keeping those two pills would prevent their cultivation from falling too far behind.
"Then, young brother, do you have any other helpers?"
Looking at the young boy before him, Lin Hao asked with a lingering shred of hope.
"There's no one else, just me. If you think I'm not strong enough, we can spar right here."
Ming Hao could no longer be bothered to explain. He rose and walked into the middle of the courtyard, unleashing his aura. The pressure of an early-stage Nascent Soul Realm cultivator washed over them.
Indeed, Ming Hao was only at the third level of the Nascent Soul Realm. No wonder Lin Hao and the others had remained doubtful.
Although many monstrous geniuses could fight several peak Nascent Soul Realm cultivators while still at the early stage, this fair, tender-looking young brother hardly seemed like one of them.
"I'll fight you!"
A thin young man charged straight at him, his aura erupting to reveal the fifth level of the Nascent Soul Realm. Sending someone of the same cultivation level to spar would hardly prove much.
Everyone hurriedly set up several formations to keep the fight from affecting anything else.
Ming Hao remained where he stood. As the disciple thrust a palm straight at his face, Ming Hao swiftly blocked with his left hand and drove his right fist into the disciple's waist, sending him flying aside in an instant.
Everyone froze. It had been too fast, over in a single exchange. They could not tell whether the young man was too useless or Ming Hao was too strong.
"Next," Ming Hao said calmly.
"I'll go."
A disciple at the ninth level of the Nascent Soul Realm stepped forward.
"Be careful, junior brother."
With that, he swiftly closed in and aimed a kick at Ming Hao's legs.
Ming Hao leaped clear, then swept a leg across. The disciple blocked with both arms, but the powerful kick drove him back several steps.
Ming Hao pushed off hard enough to shatter the paving beneath his feet, surged toward the disciple, and threw a punch. The disciple swiftly answered with a punch of his own, but it was no use. He was sent flying backward.
For a moment, the courtyard fell rather quiet.
After a while-
"I'll test you myself."
A burly young man jumped forward, unleashing his aura. He was a body cultivator at the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm.
Everyone watched eagerly. This burly young man, Lin Yong, was not only at the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm but also a body cultivator with formidable strength.
He was usually the standard-bearer among them, capable of driving back seven or eight ordinary peak Nascent Soul Realm disciples single-handedly.
He was far beyond ordinary cultivators. If Ming Hao defeated Lin Yong, no one would question his strength again.
Once again, his opponent made the first move.
Lin Yong unleashed more than a dozen punches in an instant, each carrying a surge of fist force.
Ming Hao met him fist for fist. Both stepped back several paces before gathering their strength and closing in again for hand-to-hand combat. Punches and kicks flew, and for a time, neither could gain the upper hand...
After a hundred exchanges, Ming Hao seized an opening, took one of Lin Yong's punches head-on, and kicked him several meters away.
"Thank you for going easy on me, senior brother," Ming Hao said, cupping his hands.
Everyone had held back their strength during these sparring matches. Had they fought outside with everything they had, victory might not have come so easily.
"You're impressive, junior brother. My skills fell short."
Lin Yong showed no sign of being a sore loser. Instead, he spoke with a delighted expression.
"With you joining us this time, junior brother, we can unite our strengths. Maybe we can even rob them back."
"Let's hope so. Does anyone else want to spar?!"
At that, Lin Hao and the others burst into laughter.
"You jest, junior brother. Come have some tea, and we'll discuss the details."
"The teams that usually rob us are led by more than twenty peak Nascent Soul Realm disciples, with nearly a hundred other members."
"They rely on their numbers and high cultivation. Anyone they set their sights on is pretty much robbed clean."
"Large-scale fighting is forbidden in most parts of the sect. But along the route we have to take back, there's a vast area enclosed by a formation.
"That's the Brawl Arena. Aside from weapons and spells with immense destructive power, everything else is allowed..."
Lin Hao continued explaining, anger occasionally showing on his face...
"Those are all the things you need to watch out for, junior brother."
"In that case, I understand the situation. I'll take my leave for now and return in seven days as agreed!"
Ming Hao cupped his hands in farewell.