30: Chapter 30 The Gray-Robed Clerk Goes Up the Mountain

The Border Wasteland by day hides knives even better than by night.

News of the fire at the Red Snake Sect's outer Beast Taming Ground leaked out first from two herb gatherers. By the hour of the dragon, the Yao Beast hunting teams down the mountain had already cycled through three versions: some said the Yao Beasts had retaliated, others said the Medicinal Pill cauldron had exploded, and some even claimed ghost fire had erupted in the mountain hollow last night, burning the Red Snake Sect Disciples until they wailed for their parents.

When the news reached the Taichu Sect, Sect Master Di Kun was holding a review meeting in the side hall of the Founders Hall.

Half of the side hall's door panel had been dismantled and temporarily used as a tabletop, propped up on two stone piers. A rough mountain map was spread across the table, its edges weighted down by arrowheads, gravel, a broken charcoal pencil, and a piece of Yao Beast bone. Outside the window, the sun climbed higher, and the light passed through the broken window lattice, cutting into several thin, bright diagonal lines that fell right between the circles and dots on the mountain map.

Sect Master Di Kun sat at the head of the table, the cloth bundle of evidence packed last night placed beside his hand.

He did not let anyone celebrate their victory.

"Mountain defense, night raid, withdrawal—go through them one by one," Sect Master Di Kun said, his fingertip tapping on the location of the Beast Taming Ground on the mountain map. "Start with the mistakes."

The Dark Souls Youth leaned against the wall, thick cloth cushioned behind his back, his face still somewhat pale. The broken wooden sword in his hand had been washed, but a few strands of black mud remained wedged in the cracks of the blade. Hearing Sect Master Di Kun's words, he raised his hand first.

"Me."

Everyone looked over.

The Dark Souls Youth grinned, his smile not as annoying as usual. "After respawning, I still wanted to hold the front line. The palm strike on my back wasn't treated properly, which almost slowed down the withdrawal rhythm. If the Life-Skill Player hadn't slapped medicinal powder on my back last night, I reckon I would've had to lie down again."

The Life-Skill Player kept a cold face. "You call that 'reckon'?"

The Dark Souls Youth immediately corrected himself. "I call that 'very likely'."

Sect Master Di Kun glanced at him and made a mark on the wooden board. "Respawning is not a 'get out of death free' card. Any suicide mission must be exchanged for sufficient value."

The Dark Souls Youth put away his smile. "Understood."

The Speedrun Player stood on the other side of the mountain map, holding a thin wooden stick, the tip pointing near the Beast Taming Ground's night patrol route. He had been responsible for the detour and withdrawal rhythm last night; usually, the player spoke quickly, but at this moment, every word was enunciated very clearly.

"I underestimated the changes in the night patrol. The Red Snake Sect's guard rotation time is not fixed. After the medicinal pool exploded, they didn't fill the positions according to the original route; instead, they sealed the iron house first, then the outer perimeter. I treated the native enemies as fixed mechanics, and I was wrong."

The Tower Defense Player immediately wrote this down on the side. "Enemy emergency priority: sealing resource points is higher than pursuit. The Abandoned Mine Warehouse might be the same."

Sect Master Di Kun's gaze fell onto the charcoal pencil in the hand of the Tower Defense Player.

The Tower Defense Player was already drawing a sketch of Abandoned Mine Warehouse B3 on another wooden board. The stone doors, wooden sluice gates, mine carts, bell lines, and crossbow arrays provided by Gu Heng were all broken down into different markers. In the corner of the board were a few small boxes labeled: "Spirit-Sniffing Dog Handling," "Accountant Capture," "Evidence Sealing," and "False Withdrawal Trails."

The charcoal pencil scratched rapidly across the wooden board, and the Tower Defense Player didn't stop even when black powder stained the fingertips.

"The warehouse is not the Beast Taming Ground; we can't just rely on arson to kill indiscriminately," the Tower Defense Player looked up. "The target is the accounts, not destroying the warehouse. We must cut the bell lines first, then block the dogs' noses. If we can't catch the accountant, the rewards will be halved."

Gu Heng sat by the door, watched by the Sect Protection Elder's gray thread. Hearing the words "block the dogs' noses," he couldn't help but interject. "Spirit-Sniffing Dogs recognize the spiritual aura of strangers; ordinary Breath-Concealing Powder isn't enough."

Sect Master Di Kun looked at him.

Gu Heng immediately added, "I can draw the points where they patrol their den. Just don't let me get too close."

Sect Master Di Kun did not praise him, only pushed a blank wooden piece toward him.

Gu Heng caught the wooden piece, his fingers pausing on the edge for half a beat, then he grabbed the charcoal pencil and began to draw.

The Chuunibyou Player crouched in the corner, writing with another piece of charcoal with a very serious face. Sect Master Di Kun glanced at it and saw it written crookedly: "Rule Number One for New Disciples Joining the Sect: Death is not the end, dying recklessly will deduct contribution points."

The Dark Souls Youth also saw it. "Is this a teaching guide or a threat letter?"

The Chuunibyou Player looked up, the eyes filled with a strange solemnity. "The server launch ceremony must have an epic feel. On the day the second batch of heroes descends, I want them to understand the Sect, contribution points, respawning, taboos, position discipline, and the Sect Master's majesty within three sentences."

The Life-Skill Player remained expressionless. "Three sentences? You usually recite three sentences just for a title."

The tension that had been pressing down on the side hall all morning was pried open slightly by this remark. Someone chuckled, then quickly stifled it.

Sect Master Di Kun did not interrupt this bit of laughter.

After a night of escape and battle, the Taichu Sect did not need to shout about victory; instead, it needed to grind fear, excitement, and exhaustion into the rules for the next strike. The players could be crazy, but the Sect could not be chaotic.

He tapped his fingertip on the tabletop three times.

Everyone looked up.

"Remember two ironclad rules for the review," Sect Master Di Kun said. "First, respawning is not free. Dying once consumes Sect resources and slows down the overall rhythm. You can go on a suicide mission, but you must exchange it for intelligence, time, or a breakthrough point."

The Dark Souls Youth laid his broken wooden sword horizontally across his knees and nodded.

"Second, the Taichu Sect does not fight battles without rewards." Sect Master Di Kun's finger moved from the Beast Taming Ground to the Abandoned Mine Warehouse. "Defending the mountain is for survival, the night raid was to get evidence, and the Abandoned Mine Warehouse is to cut the accounting chain. From now on, every time we strike, we must clearly state where the rewards are, who pays the cost, and how the retreat route will go."

The Tower Defense Player wrote these two rules at the very top of the wooden board, pressing the pen tip hard, leaving shallow marks on the wood grain.

The Sect Protection Elder stood by the window, the fatigue on his old face not yet dissipated. After hearing these two rules, he slowly lowered the talisman paper he had been twisting in his hands. He had seen too many small Sects die in a single breath—some out of anger, some out of greed, and some who gambled away their family fortune the moment they were provoked. Sect Master Di Kun's two rules were not passionate, but they could allow the Taichu Sect to survive for many more days.

In Sect Master Di Kun's vision, a transparent panel appeared once again.

The second check-in reinforcement has been activated. Today's reinforcement check-in is available for collection.

Sect Master Di Kun did not avoid the others; he lightly tapped his finger on the edge of the table as if confirming the review content. Silver ripples, visible only to him, expanded, and the reward text fell accordingly.

One Low-Grade Breath-Concealing Array Diagram. Three Basic Storage Pouches. Ten qi gathering pills.

The light of the rewards dissipated in his vision, then transformed into the images of the three types of items in the System storage. There were no earth-shattering phenomena or exaggerated Spiritual Pressure, but when Sect Master Di Kun looked at the four words "Breath-Concealing Array Diagram," the corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch.

Gu Heng had just said the Spirit-Sniffing Dogs were troublesome, and the System had given him a Breath-Concealing Array Diagram.

It wasn't an invincible reward, but it was perfectly suited for the current battle situation.

He raised his hand in front of everyone and took a thin roll of array diagram from the System storage. When the array diagram landed in his palm, the paper surface shimmered with light gray patterns, and the edges were pressed with the patterns of several tiny array nails. Following that were three gray cloth Storage Pouches, the openings tied with hemp rope, the spiritual patterns simple. Finally, a small porcelain bottle landed on the table, the bottle clinking softly, containing ten qi gathering pills.

Several gazes in the side hall immediately gathered over.

The Chuunibyou Player's eyes lit up as if they had been set on fire. "Did the Sect Master open a treasure chest again?"

The Life-Skill Player had already reached out and pressed his hand on the porcelain bottle. "Medicinal Pills go to logistics for registration."

The Tower Defense Player picked up the array diagram, and after only two glances, the speaking speed picked up. "Low-Grade Breath-Concealing Array. The coverage area isn't large, but it can mask the aura of living people and the smell of blood. It can be used for the infiltration of the Abandoned Mine Warehouse; the Spirit-Sniffing Dog part can be modified."

Gu Heng stared at the array diagram, the charcoal pencil in his hand dragging a crooked line across the wooden piece. He hurriedly wiped the line away and lowered his head to continue drawing, his movements much more obedient than before.

Sect Master Di Kun pushed the three Storage Pouches to the Life-Skill Player. "Distribute them. One for evidence, one for medicinal Materials, and one for backup. Give the qi gathering pills to the injured and key personnel first; no unauthorized claiming."

The Life-Skill Player gathered the items and began to register them. He wrote very quickly, the pen tip scratching across the paper, making a fine, dense sound.

Sect Master Di Kun looked at the Tower Defense Player again. "Copy the Breath-Concealing Array Diagram first; I'll keep the original. Give me a usable plan before tonight."

"Can do." The Tower Defense Player spread the array diagram flat and used arrowheads to weigh down the four corners. "I need array base Materials. The broken spirit fragments salvaged from the old array can be used."

"However much you dismantle, record it in the ledger," Sect Master Di Kun said.

The Tower Defense Player nodded. "After dismantling, it has to be reinstalled; the mountain gate cannot be left empty."

Just as the words fell, a ringing sound came from the mountain path outside.

It was not the Taichu Sect's warning bell. The sound was thinner, with the crispness of metal pieces colliding, traveling up step by step from outside the mountain gate. Everyone in the side hall stopped what they were doing. The Dark Souls Youth had already gripped his broken wooden sword, the Life-Skill Player pushed the medicine bottle behind him, and the Chuunibyou Player grabbed the short spear beside the wooden board armor.

The Sect Protection Elder walked to the door and squinted toward the mountain path.

A moment later, a servant ran over quickly, stood outside the hall, and lowered his voice. "Sect Master, someone has arrived outside the mountain gate. Gray robes, wearing a Sect Affairs Bureau wooden plaque, claiming it's a routine check on each Sect's losses after the beast tide."

The side hall suddenly went quiet.

Sect Master Di Kun's fingertip stopped at the edge of the Breath-Concealing Array Diagram.

The rumors that had spread in the morning had just begun to ferment, and people from the Sect Affairs Bureau had already shown up. The other party spoke of beast tide losses, not the fire at the Beast Taming Ground; it wasn't a large group of people, just a gray-robed official. This sense of proportion was like a needle testing the water, gently pricking the front of the Taichu Sect's mountain gate to see if it would bleed.

He pushed the cloth bundle of evidence to the Life-Skill Player. "Put it away, in the Storage Pouch."

The Life-Skill Player immediately took a Storage Pouch, the spiritual patterns at the opening flashing, and put the account pages, black bone fragments, medicinal liquid, dispatch talismans, and waist plaque inside one by one, his movements steadier than usual.

Sect Master Di Kun picked up the roll of Breath-Concealing Array Diagram, put it back into the System storage, and flipped the sketch of the Abandoned Mine Warehouse on the table over, revealing only the rough wood grain on the back.

"Gu Heng, take him to the back hall."

Gu Heng immediately stood up without even asking. The Sect Protection Elder tugged the gray thread in his sleeve and led him away from the side door.

Sect Master Di Kun adjusted his half-draped Sect Master robe; he did not wipe the old blood stained on his cuffs. That bit of blood, left there, was more suitable for the current Taichu Sect than clean robes. The mountain gate had just suffered a beast tide, the Sect Master had not slept all night, and the scars and disarray should be placed exactly where they belonged.

He walked out of the side hall.

Outside the mountain gate, the gray-robed official was already standing in front of the damaged memorial archway. The man was not old, with a thin, long figure, his robe hem washed to a pale white, and the wooden plaque at his waist was engraved with the four characters "Border Wasteland Sect Affairs Bureau." What was most eye-catching was the narrow booklet he held in his hands, the corners wrapped in copper; while walking, his thumb kept pressing on the spine of the booklet, as if ready to open it and record a note at any moment.

His attitude was very polite. Seeing Sect Master Di Kun come out, he bowed first.

"Sect Master Di Kun of the Taichu Sect? I am a Registrar from the Sect Affairs Bureau. I am here on duty to inspect the losses of each Sect following the beast tide and, by the way, verify the relief roster. The commotion in the Border Wasteland last night was not small. Is your honorable Sect still holding up?"

Sect Master Di Kun stood on the inner side of the mountain gate with a smile on his face. "My broken Sect has a tough life; it hasn't collapsed yet. Sorry to trouble the Sect Affairs Bureau for your concern."

The gray-robed official also smiled, but his gaze swept from the old blood on Sect Master Di Kun's cuffs to the newly repaired ropes at the mountain gate, and then landed on the pile of unprocessed Yao Beast corpse Materials by the wall. He looked very quickly; every glance was like flipping through a booklet, sweeping over and then withdrawing, not lingering.

The Tower Defense Player stood on high ground, the crossbow hanging down, not aimed at anyone. The Chuunibyou Player hid the short spear behind the door, revealing only half of the spear shaft. The Life-Skill Player passed by the side corridor, holding a medicine chest in his arms, his footsteps not chaotic.

Sect Master Di Kun took all of this into his eyes.

The gray-robed official stood outside the archway, not rashly stepping into the mountain gate. He rubbed the copper corner of the narrow booklet with his thumb, his smile remaining proper. "According to the rules, I need to go inside to take a look at the damaged areas and register the casualties, so that there are no mistakes in the subsequent relief distribution. Is it convenient for Sect Master Di Kun?"

Sect Master Di Kun took a step forward, stopping exactly at the boundary between the mountain gate's shadow and the sunlight.

"It is convenient."

The gray-robed official bowed to thank him again, then lifted his foot and stepped onto the first stone step. The wind from outside the mountain rolled in, carrying the fishy smell of medicine burned from the Beast Taming Ground last night, brushing past the damaged archway and also brushing past the patch of blood on Sect Master Di Kun's cuffs that had already darkened. Sect Master Di Kun turned sideways to give way by half a step, his fingertips gently pressing on the hilt of the short blade at his waist, the hilt shimmering with coldness in the morning light.