Chapter 102: Chapter 94: It Wasn’t Like This When I First Arrived
Su Ling’er’s words sent Wang Xiedi’s mind back to that scene.
She had been captured alive by the people from the Beast Taming House. That Jade-faced Mantis was still suffering in the dire straits of the Beast Taming House!
’I didn’t want this!’
’It was an accident, okay?!’
’She’s sentient! How could I be so irresponsible?’
Meanwhile, the surrounding chatter continued, growing even more intense.
"You should have seen it! That scene... tsk tsk. What he did to that mantis... Damn it! Why couldn’t it have been the mealworm Demoniun instead!"
"It wasn’t just the mantis! You guys didn’t see his Heart Demon Illusion Realm on the Asking Dao Ladder! I thought it was just Gintama, Otose, and MADAO memes. I never expected it to be mixed with *Temptation of Home* and that Shinpachi bug hallucination... Ugh, let’s not talk about it. The scene was too ’beautiful’ for me to even think about."
"You have to hand it to Wang Xiedi. With just a slight effort, he’s already reached a level we can’t even dream of."
"Don’t talk about it anymore, let’s go! I’m scared he’s going to turn me and my spirit beast into his next meme! It would be awful if it’s some kind of perverted one!"
As he spoke, a disciple from the Spirit Beast Garden’s Beast Taming House snatched up a spirit cat that was half his height and ran for his life without a second glance.
Listening to the gossip, Wang Xiedi felt the world spin, especially when he heard that the rumor about him and the "old man" had already spread.
He shot a pleading look at Su Ling’er.
But he found his dear Senior Sister had already subtly shifted to their Eldest Senior Brother’s other side.
She was even maintaining what she clearly considered a safe distance.
!!!!!
’Senior Sister, you’re avoiding me too?!’
’How can you prefer getting close to that moody, demonic Eldest Senior Brother over me!’
’It’s over... It’s all over!’
...
The atmosphere in the once-bustling Transmission Hall shifted abruptly the moment the three of them stepped inside.
The dozens of disciples inside, all in the middle of handing in or accepting missions, froze in unison the instant they saw Wang Xiedi.
The next second, a small commotion rippled through the hall.
"Hurry! Turn in your mission and get out of here!"
"Why is he here now? I haven’t even picked up my mission for the day!"
"Forget the mission! Your life is more important! I don’t want to end up in one of his fantasies!"
The disciples looked panicked, treating him like the plague itself.
Those who had just finished turning in missions bolted for the exit without a backward glance. Those who hadn’t yet accepted theirs simply gave up, terrified that staying a second longer would mean being tainted by Wang Xiedi, the terrifying avatar of perverted memes.
In the blink of an eye, the once-packed Transmission Hall became nearly deserted. Only a handful of people remained, steeling themselves to wait in line.
Wang Xiedi watched this bizarre scene, wanting to cry but having no tears to shed.
Only the mission elder, Qian Buyu, remained unmoved, sitting there with the same perpetual poker face and vacant gaze.
Seeing Mr. Qian, who seemed to hold no prejudice against him, Wang Xiedi felt a strange surge of gratitude.
This made things convenient for Lin Qingfeng, who led Wang Xiedi straight to the mission elder.
’This newcomer, Wang Xiedi, is devastatingly effective...’
’It’s only been a day, and he’s nearly cleared out the entire Transmission Hall.’
’Then again, that’s a good thing. No more lines. Very efficient.’
He then sent a sound transmission to Su Ling’er.
[Lin Qingfeng: Next time you have to wait in line for something, bring Wang Xiedi. You saw for yourself. The results are outstanding!]
[Su Ling’er: Er... Eldest Senior Brother has a point...]
She was too mentally exhausted from what she’d seen yesterday to even think of a comeback.
Lin Qingfeng turned to Wang Xiedi and said.
"This is the Transmission Hall, where you accept missions for the sect. Once you’ve accumulated enough contribution points, you can also find a transmission elder here.
"Give him some Spirit Stones, and he can randomly impart a Cultivation Technique to you."
"Your Senior Sister showed you around yesterday. Now is the time for you to contribute to the sect!"
"Go on!"
"Oh, right! Su Ling’er, you too! Chop, chop! Get to your missions!"
Wang Xiedi stepped forward respectfully and accepted a mission jade slip from Mr. Qian.
He had already resigned himself to spending the next few days sweeping floors and carrying water, his heart filled with the solemn feeling of a hero marching to his doom.
However, the moment his mind touched the jade slip, he froze.
Within the jade slip, light swirled as several lines of text appeared—
[Sweep the sect’s fallen leaves]
[Carry water and fill the nine cisterns on the back mountain]
[Chop a hundred bundles of dry firewood on the back mountain]
[Till the medicine fields of Hundred Herbs Valley]
[Cut down a hundred stalks in the Cyan Bamboo Forest]
[Slay the demon wolves on the third floor of the Demon-Locking Tower ten times]
Not only were there tasks like sweeping and carrying water, but also chopping wood, cutting bamboo, and even tilling fields and grinding mobs in the Demon-Locking Tower!
Furthermore, at the bottom of the list was a line of small print:
[You may choose one of the above tasks, or you may accept them all.]
Wang Xiedi was dumbfounded.
’Huh?’
’Wait a minute! This isn’t right!’
’Didn’t Senior Sister say I’d have to sweep floors and carry water hundreds of times, until the end of time, before I could unlock other missions?’
’What’s going on?’
’Could it be that my talent is so extraordinary that even this demonic sect has to give me special treatment?’
’Maybe... maybe they were avoiding me not because of some mantis or an old man, but because they feared my sheer brilliance and had to keep their distance!’
Su Ling’er leaned over to take a look and was instantly petrified.
???
’What is this??’
Su Ling’er felt the blood rush to her head.
’It wasn’t like this when I first arrived!’
’I worked my fingers to the bone, slaving away like an animal, completing five hundred mind-numbingly boring tasks before I unlocked the other options!’
’How does my Junior Brother get them all from the start?!’
’Is it because he wouldn’t even spare a mantis or an old man? Did the sect leaders see that and decide he’s some one-in-a-million demonic prodigy who deserves special treatment?!’
’No... Calm down...’
Su Ling’er forced herself to calm down.
’This can’t be simple preferential treatment!’
’These demons... their actions are always part of a larger scheme, full of intricate plots!’
’They’re doing this... to divide us!’
’Yes!’
’That’s it! They want to divide us!’
Her mind raced as the "vicious plot" of the sect leaders became crystal clear.
’They’re deliberately showing me this preferential treatment!’
’They want me to become jealous, to drive a wedge between me and Wang Xiedi, maybe even make me his enemy!’
’That way, we two low-level disciples will become suspicious of each other and start fighting amongst ourselves. We’ll never be able to work together again!’
’And they can just sit back and watch the show, enjoying the pathetic sight of us underlings fighting over the scraps they deign to give us!’
’What a vicious scheme!’
’What insidious intentions!’
’I, Su Ling’er, will not fall for it!’
With this in mind, Su Ling’er knew what she had to do.
Suppressing the towering indignation in her heart, she turned to Eldest Senior Brother Lin Qingfeng, her face instantly morphing into an expression of utter confusion.
"Eldest Senior Brother, this..."
"Why is this happening?"
