In the Cultivation Chamber, Ming Hao took out the monthly stipends he had seized that day and carefully examined them again.
He had just returned from Lin Zihan's place. She really did have a cat that could do backflips, and the plump little thing was rather adorable.
After a few cups of tea, Ming Hao politely declined Lin Zihan's invitation to stay and headed straight back. Of course, nothing had happened between them. They had simply drunk tea and chatted...
Once he returned, Ming Hao washed up immediately. He had wanted to cook himself a delicious meal, but the result was all too predictable.
In the end, he could only go hungry and run to the Cultivation Chamber to tally up the day's spoils, as though that were the only way to fill the emptiness in his stomach.
Only after a while did Ming Hao put everything into his Spatial Ring with satisfaction, keeping out some pills and spirit stones to begin cultivating on the spot.
That day's battle had made him much more comfortable with the cultivation methods and moves he had learned, while also enriching his combat experience.
He had also discovered a few shortcomings of his own. With just a little improvement, his combat strength could increase greatly.
Besides, his cultivation was still a little low. If he had been at the peak of the nascent soul realm, why would he have needed to steer clear of Wang Baishun, Luo Junhang, Hao Wu, and the others today?
With that thought, he swallowed a few pills, sat cross-legged, and calmly began cultivating.
Early one morning ten days later, sunlight streamed through the window into the kitchen, illuminating a scene of frantic activity.
Ming Hao stood before the stove, fumbling with all sorts of ingredients. He had exchanged for them while collecting his reward for completing a mission at the Hall of Missions just moments earlier.
Ming Hao's enthusiasm for cooking his own meals had reached the point of near obsession.
Although his cooking had improved somewhat and he no longer charred his food as badly as before, he still burned it.
Yet he was not discouraged. He kept doggedly tinkering away, seemingly unwilling to give up until he had produced a perfect meal.
Time ticked away, but Ming Hao's journey to becoming a master chef was anything but smooth.
His "masterpiece" ended in failure once again, leaving him thoroughly annoyed. In a fit of anger, he managed to get angry at himself.
Ming Hao turned and went outside, sending messages to Fatty Zhang, Lin Yong, and the others to invite them to a feast at the Dining Hall, saying that the meal would be his treat.
After receiving the message, Fatty Zhang made a token attempt to decline, but ultimately could not resist the lure of delicious food and gladly accepted Ming Hao's invitation.
Ming Hao introduced everyone to one another along the way, and the group rushed to the dining hall in a great hurry, afraid there would be nothing left to eat if they arrived late.
Ming Hao came over carrying a platter of steaming Spirit Beast Legs. He plopped into a chair and, without another word, grabbed one and began gnawing away, paying no heed to appearances.
Lin Zihan, seated beside Ming Hao, was much more refined. She ate leisurely, chewing each bite slowly and savoring the pleasure of the delicious food.
Fatty Zhang and Lin Yong, sitting opposite them, were a completely different sight. Like reincarnated starving ghosts, they took huge bites of their Spirit Beast Legs, mumbling nonstop, "Delicious. So delicious!"
After a while, Fatty Zhang put a piece of meat into his mouth. Once he had chewed it a few times, he said gravely:
"Have you heard? On the day next month's monthly stipends are issued, there's going to be an arranged battle at the Brawl Arena.
"I hear it'll be quite a spectacle. Inner disciples Luo Junhang, Wang Baishun, and the others have been recruiting people everywhere. According to the other disciples, they've already gathered close to eight or nine hundred.
"But there's been no movement from the other side. Apparently, there are only four of them, and they're in no hurry whatsoever to gather more people.
"It's bound to be lively. We might as well go join the fun."
Having said that, he could not help marveling at how fierce young people were these days. Four people actually dared to challenge eight or nine hundred.
Hearing this, Lin Yong nearly spat out a mouthful of rice. He had known Luo Junhang and the others would recruit more people, but he had never expected so many...
Lin Zihan and Lin Hao were also taken aback, then gave faint, bitter smiles.
"Junior Brother Ming Hao, do you know who they are? They're so fierce that I really have to admire their courage."
Fatty Zhang picked up another mouthful of rice as he asked.
Without even looking up, Ming Hao continued stuffing himself with food and drink as he answered:
"The four of us!"
"What?"
Fatty Zhang sprayed out a mouthful of rice. Fortunately, Lin Zihan reacted swiftly and blocked it in time, or none of them would have had any food left to eat.
"Junior Brother Ming Hao, you're not joking, are you?!"
Fatty Zhang's face was filled with astonishment.
"You heard correctly, Senior Brother Zhang. It's the four of us!"
Lin Zihan spoke with a helpless expression.
At her words, Fatty Zhang grew even more anxious and hurriedly asked:
"What on earth happened?! Junior Brother Ming Hao, how could you all be so rash? What are we supposed to do now?"
Lin Zihan then explained everything in detail, from beginning to end.
After hearing Lin Zihan's account, Fatty Zhang looked troubled as well. He fell silent for a moment before speaking.
"Then do you have a plan to deal with them?"
"We've approached plenty of disciples we're on good terms with, but whenever they learn that we'll be fighting Luo Junhang and his group,
"None of them are willing to come help. When the time comes, we'll just have to grit our teeth and fight."
Lin Hao spoke somewhat dejectedly. When they heard that Luo Junhang and the others had already gathered eight or nine hundred people,
They, too, had felt a little hopeless. But now, whether they stuck their necks out or pulled their heads back, the blade would fall all the same. There was no escaping it!
Ming Hao finally wolfed down his last mouthful of rice. Rubbing his stomach contentedly, he spoke.
"What's there to be afraid of? At worst, we lose and get beaten black and blue. What's the big deal? If you live by the sword, sooner or later you have to pay your dues."
Lin Hao and the others gave bitter smiles at his words. What else could they do? Nothing but take it as it came!
"Enough of that. When soldiers come, we'll send generals to stop them; when water comes, we'll build earthworks to block it. Talking more won't help!"
"Do any of you have plans for later?"
Ming Hao asked without the slightest worry.
"I've booked a practical combat class for later. It cost me fifty sect contribution points, so I can't skip it."
Fatty Zhang spoke with a pained expression.
"We're planning to attend a martial arts class and listen to an instructor's explanations. Would you like to join us, Junior Brother Ming Hao?"
Lin Zihan extended a sincere invitation. After all, they had only about twenty days before they would fight Luo Junhang and the others again. Learning a few more martial arts moves now would clearly be worthwhile.
Ming Hao thought it over. He had nothing else to do anyway, and every new disciple was entitled to three free lessons in any type of class. It would be a waste not to use them, so he agreed.
"I've been in the sect for almost a month, and I haven't attended a class yet. Let's go learn something together."
The group left the dining hall and parted ways. Fatty Zhang went to his practical combat class, while Ming Hao and the others headed to their martial arts class.
At the teaching building, Ming Hao watched the disciples coming and going and could not help remarking:
"The Misty Sect really knows how to do business. They never make a losing deal. Look at all these classrooms. Classes for each cultivation realm are held separately, and the lessons are different too.
"With so many disciples coming here to study, a single nascent soul realm lesson costs ten sect contribution points.
"And you only get so many contribution points each month. If you want more, you have to do missions or pay to top up your sect contribution points. Five lower-grade spirit stones for just one contribution point-isn't that an outrageous profit?"
Lin Zihan covered her mouth with a smile at his words.
"This is nothing yet. You might not know this, Junior Brother, but the sect's various secret realms, the Trial Tower, the Comprehension Stele, and places like those are where the real money is made. They're packed with people every day."
"Ordinary disciples like us, whose strength doesn't particularly stand out, can't compare at all to disciples with powerful backers and influential backgrounds.
"We work ourselves half to death just to save enough sect contribution points for a single lesson,
"While they can take whatever classes they like without having to worry about any of this."
Lin Hao, too, was filled with emotion.
"Class is about to start. Let's hurry inside."