"Really, can you tell me?"
"Hmm, no," he shook his head. "You'll know soon enough, and what I know isn't that important, but I can give you a hint. It's about our Patriarch's youngest son, Hao Yun."
He knew Hao Yun. In this sect, every disciple had to become an outer disciple before becoming an inner disciple, then a core disciple, and Hao Yun was no exception. Usually, people who successfully became outer disciples were between thirteen and eighteen years old. Liu Xing himself was accepted at sixteen. But Hao Yun became an outer disciple at six years old and was accepted as an inner disciple just a few weeks later. Liu Xing and Hao Yun were accepted in the same year and the same batch. They had even exchanged a few brief words. That kid was a genius, and since about four years had passed, that meant Hao Yun would be around ten this year.
Remembering this, Liu Xing sighed. Hao Yun was the definition of a genius, but he'd heard Hao Yun was actually the least talented compared to his two older brothers, which meant most people would be nobodies compared to them.
If Yuan Tao was right and this announcement was connected to Hao Yun, then Liu Xing didn't see how it related to all the outer sect disciples.
Deciding to wait and hear the announcement, Liu Xing followed the crowd and tried his best to act normal. He also tried not to touch his belly too often, afraid someone would notice the book inside his robe. But it seemed like no one noticed his stolen technique, and he arrived at the Outer Hall with everyone else. His position at the back of the crowd made it easy for him to run if anyone tried to steal his technique.
Focusing his mind, he checked his surroundings. The Outer Hall was huge. The roof was high, with few pillars supporting it, making the hall look spacious. There was a stage at the front, and even though he was hundreds of meters away, he could see a man standing on it calmly.
Despite his young appearance, with silky black hair, sharp eyebrows, and gleaming eyes, Liu Xing knew that Zhan Zhenking was hundreds, maybe thousands of years old. He wore a white robe with a purple sash at his waist and carried a big red sword on his back.
As the last disciple arrived at the Outer Hall, the double gates suddenly closed. The hall's lighting dimmed, with hundreds of lights floating in the air like stars illuminating all the disciples. Soon after, each light transformed into a floating screen displaying the serious face of Elder Zhan Zhenking.
"There are still fools who dare to be late despite knowing this gathering is urgent." As he spoke, the screen right above Liu Xing suddenly changed, showing three disciples banging on the door of the Outer Hall. Their faces were pale, and sweat dripped from their foreheads.
Liu Xing sighed. His decision to rush to this hall had been right. If he had decided to put his technique in his cave first, there would have been four disciples banging on that door.
The screen now showed Elder Zhang Zhenking's face again, and Liu Xing knew he would announce why he had gathered all the outer disciples here.
"This announcement is important, so pay attention," he paused for a moment. "Our patriarch has three sons, and the youngest is Hao Yun. Soon he'll be ten years old, and when his birthday comes, we'll hold a party."
After he spoke, some disciples chatted and whispered, asking and wondering about this birthday party. Liu Xing himself wondered what was so special about it. Sure, a birthday party for the patriarch's son was a big deal, but it was usually only for the most important people of the Purple Moon Sect, the vassal sects, vassal countries, and allies. There was usually no reason to include outer disciples.
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"This party is special because not only will we celebrate Hao Yun's birthday, but it will also be the day he officially gets engaged."
Around Liu Xing, the disciples started to chatter. They wondered the same things Liu Xing thought: Who was the woman Hao Yun would be engaged to? Why was he getting engaged so soon? And other questions about this event.
"You don't need to know about his engagement. Most of you won't even be attending the party. No, the reason I have gathered you all here, even though it is related to the party, is because we need to prepare gifts. That is where you all come in. Since this party is going to be special, the gifts have to be special, too, and in order to follow the Patriarch's instructions on how to train disciples, you will be competing with each other to get the best gifts for the party."
After he spoke, the murmurs grew louder. Some were eager to compete, and some wondered what the best gifts for Hao Yun would be. Liu Xing himself was excited about this competition because every competition in Purple Moon Sect had great rewards, and while Liu Xing already had the best weapon in the world, he wouldn't turn down another treasure that could help him become stronger.
A red light suddenly appeared above Zhan Zhenking, forming a large, tall screen. Liu Xing looked at the screen and saw a list of items. There were many herbs, like Heavenly Dragonroot Lotus, Celestial Phoenix Feather Herb, and Azure Moonflower Petal. There were also treasures such as the Luminous Dragon Pearl, and the list even included items like the Celestial Silk Robe of the Heavens, Eternal Nightshade Cloak, Thunderstrike Gauntlets, and Sacred Phoenix Feather Mantle. Each treasure sounded expensive and could probably change the life of an ordinary cultivator.
"This is the list of gifts we need to get. In total, there are three thousand gifts."
"Amazing," commented a disciple.
"Three thousand gifts! And that's only from us. How many gifts will the inner disciples get for Hao Yun?"
"The real question is, how many mountains of gifts will Hao Yun get this year?"
Three thousand gifts sounded a bit much, but it just showed how important this party was.
A yellow light soon appeared around Zhan Zhengking, turning into a yellow screen. Unlike the red screen full of items, this one was empty.
"Each of you needs to get an item. If you fail, you'll be punished. But that's not all. You can, and should, get more than one item. While each item on the list is valuable, it's not that hard to find. The reward for the three disciples who get the most gifts will be instant promotion to inner disciple."
After he said that, the Outer Hall, which was already noisy, suddenly erupted. Usually, only a handful of outer disciples would become inner disciples based on talent alone, but in this competition, everyone had a chance.
Liu Xing was eager too. Before, he had wanted to go to his cave and learn the Statue Summoning Technique, but now he wanted to rush out of the sect to find every treasure on the list.
"Not only that, but the first hundred disciples will also get rewards, whether it's a technique, spirit stones, pills, or other resources. So I suggest you take this mission seriously."
Suddenly, the double doors of the Outer Hall opened. The three people who were knocking on the doors were startled, and Liu Xing and everyone else got ready to run.
"You can see the list, item descriptions, and rankings from your token. There's no time limit, but if you dawdle, you won't get even a single treasure."
Some people said "Yes sir!" to Zhan Zengking.
"Now, go!" shouted Zhan Zengking, and like a starting gun, that shout made every single disciple in the Outer Hall run like their lives depended on it.
Liu Xing was at the front of the pack. He passed the confused three disciples and ran as fast as he could, heading for the main gate of the outer sect.
As he ran at the front, Liu Xing was tempted to summon his gun and use Lightning Cloak, but he chose not to since he wanted to think for a moment. First things first, part of him wanted to go to his cave, put away his new technique, and start packing. He thought this race would last at least for at least a week, and it would be smart to prepare food and emergency pills. But another part of him thought that if he wasted time, he would lose his chance. This part also reminded him that aside from clothes and one or two pills, there was nothing in his cave.