"Alright, first side mission: Defeat four disciples of another sect in combat...How do you propose we go at it?" Xiao Wu said, rubbing his palms together while standing at the edge of the floating island.

Tun Shi Tian had been dispatched below to look for a spatial crack on the other side of which, there would be a not-too-powerful sect. Han Xuhan was busy constantly summoning and unsummoning the owl.

"Easy. We go down, land on an island, and yell at them a challenge the same way Yaya shouted at our sect. Then we beat them up!"

Needless to say, this was Mu Ran's plan, and neither of his three martial siblings agreed to that exact plan of attack.

"Since this is our first day, I suggest we play it safe. We need to sneak around the island and locate smaller groups of disciples. While one or two of us stands guard, the others will fight. If anyone among us loses, or faces the possibility of getting fatally injured and captured, we retreat immediately. Together, we only need to win a total of 16 rounds of fighting."

Yuen Zhou's suggestion was quite reasonable. Even Mu Ran had to agree to it, grudgingly.

Han Xuhan chimed in with his contribution to the plan.

"Sneaking around will give us another advantage. We have other side missions too, remember? Brother Wu, what were the other three missions again?"

Xiao Wu read them out from a list.

"Carry back weapons, foods, resources, or other treasures weighing over 100 kilograms to our sect. Demolish a house. And if you face the disciples guarding the target treasure sets, then make at least one of them chase you for a minimum of 30 seconds before you attempt to rob the treasure or escape."

Han Xuhan nodded along. "See? Sneaking around the foreign sects will provide us with a massive opportunity to complete three of these side missions. Boss, if you want, we can always join the defender team of our sect and show off our real power openly. But in the territories of others, we need to be smart! I know you're not foolish enough to not comprehend this! A great man like you must know when to be flexible!"

Mu Ran's expression grew dark.

"Flexible?! Why would a man need to learn to be flexible? That's a woman's-"

"Mentally, boss. I'm talking about flexible strategies, and plannings!"

Face sour, Mu Ran nodded. "Alright. I'll see how effective that plan is. If it doesn't produce results...hmph! We'll do it like real men!"

All three of his martial siblings shared a complex look among themselves and walked to the very edge of the island, peeking below.

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A moment later, Xuhan canceled Tun Shi Tian's summon and summoned him once again.

"What was inside this one?" he said as soon as the owl flew out of his back.

"Not too many disciples. The island itself seemed kind of small too. I couldn't see any of the elders, but the disciples looked pretty disorganized, running to and fro, yelling among themselves. Some of them were fighting too."

Han Xuhan nodded in satisfaction.

"A chaotic situation like that is perfect for us to blend in. Which sect was it? Did you see any flags or insignias? Any odd elements on the island?"

Tun Shi Tian thought for a second before replying, "Yeah...I think I saw some of them wearing white bandanas that have a blue star drawn on them. Yup! That's it!"

Han Xuhan, Mu Ran, and Yuen Zhou simultaneously turned to look at Xiao Wu. He was the only one among them who actually knew something about the world of cultivators outside their sect, a benefit of being born in clans of cultivators.

Xiao Wu pulled out a booklet from his pocket and went through it for half a minute or so before he shouted, "Yeah, looks like that sect is known as the Stardust Sect!"

Han Xuhan was about to nod with the rest of his martial siblings when a shard of his memory hit his heart like an arrow.

"Star...Stardust Sect? That sect actually exists?!"

"Do you know this Stardust Sect?" Mu Ran said, puzzled at his reaction.

"Not just me. You do too," Han Xuhan replied.

Mu Ran's face scrunched up as he tried in vain to recall any such memory.

"Boss, remember back when we entered the Holy Land of Laws for the first time and faced a zombie?"

"...Yeah, and?"

"The people who helped us at that time said they were from the Stardust Sect."

"....Oh!" Mu Ran's eyes lit up. "Didn't those bastards plan to use us as meat shield scouts? At that time, it was you who saw through their intentions, underling. I remember!"

Yuen Zhou suddenly intervened and said, "Why did you question its existence, then, brother Xuhan?"

Han Xuhan laughed awkwardly.

"Those guys told me they were using a false name to tool people. That there is no such sect named the stardust sect."

Yuen Zhou snorted.

Mu Ran grinned with relish. "We're gonna have so much fun exacting our vengeance for that night!"

Han Xuhan wanted to ask why he would seek vengeance for a mere plan that those guys hadn't even had the chance to execute. But then he realized how futile an attempt that would be. Mu Ran wouldn't care that no actual crime against them had been committed.

"Alright. We need to hurry if we want to invade that sect. The spatial fissure will probably move if we don't make haste. Let's go!"

Tun Shi Tian received Han Xuhan's order to hover over the spatial crack that led to this Stardust Sect so that they could determine the exact trajectory of their leap below.

The first person to jump was, of course, Mu Ran. Yuen Zhou followed him after seeing his successful disappearance below Tun Shi Tian.

Xiao Wu took his time to muster up the courage. Once he had disappeared inside the invisible fissure, Han Xuhan looked around shiftily, making sure no one was nearby.

"Tun Shi Tian!"

"Yes, master?"

"You can tell me about what the scroll showed you during your mission."

He hadn't had the chance to chat with the owl since sending him off on the mission to uncover who Fang Xie's target was among the disciples of the Abyss Guild. After seeing his martial siblings off, he had finally gotten the chance to speak to the minion alone.

Tun Shi Tian flew up a bit closer to him and replied, "Some woman named Qing Ya. The scroll also showed her cultivation level, the name of her cultivation technique, and her usual fighting style."

"...Oh?!"

"Yeah. She's apparently at the peak of the Seventh Layer of the Physique Transformation Realm. She cultivates a technique titled Abyss's Breath, which makes use of a concept called...Buo...Buo...."

"Buoyancy?" Han Xuhan said sympathetically.

"Yeah, THAT! Who the fuck comes up with a word like that? Fuck his ancestors!" Tun Shi Tian vehemently cursed.

"Anything else?"

"She has mastered fighting with daggers, which makes her a formidable opponent in close-quarters combat."

Han Xuhan knelt down on one knee, expression complicated.

Fang Xie wanted to control the minds of young, talented disciples of powerful sects. It wasn't unusual that Qing Ya ended up becoming his target. Rather, what made his hair rise up was the fact that despite losing her Celestial Blessing- the Twin Devil Physique, Qing Ya could still become one of the most talented disciples of the Abyss Guild, leading their invasion team from sect to sect.

Back then, Lady Caizhi had told him that the reason their Guildmaster had taken Qing Ya in as a disciple was because of pity and guilt.

At that time, Han Xuhan had trusted that fact. Indeed, why else would a renowned, powerful sect master take in a mortal as her personal disciple after she had lost the only thing that made her special? The only factor that gave her unlimited potential as a cultivator?

Now, seeing Fang Xie's heavy evaluation of Qing Ya's talent, Han Xuhan realized why.

The Celestial Blessing in the form of a rare Physique wasn't the factor that made Qing Ya special. There was something else...something that Lady Caizhi had hidden very well, or something that not even she knew.