Chapter 280: Chapter 198: Grass Thief (Part 2)

’Anyway, the Five Poison Heart Devouring Curse can’t restrain me.’

Soon, Zou Feng followed the disciple who delivered the verbal summons to the “General Affairs Hall,” located near the peak of Biyou Palace’s mountain.

The General Affairs Hall could be described as the place with the most foot traffic in Biyou Palace.

Aside from some mandatory mission assignments, if Biyou Palace disciples wanted to earn extra cultivation resources, they could naturally come here to voluntarily accept various tasks.

But it was an Evil Sect, after all. The main hall of the General Affairs Hall looked like a large-scale gathering of oddballs. The various bizarre outfits were an eyesore, rivaling the likes of the Burial Love Clan.

The prestige of an Honored Guest Elder was quite decent. A Steward was already waiting respectfully for him and immediately came forward to greet him the moment he saw Zou Feng.

“Elder Zou!”

Hearing the words “Elder Zou,” the other disciples in the hall immediately realized this was the ruthless newcomer who carried a Demon Slaying Order, and they all turned to look at him with interest.

Amidst the murmurs, the Steward led Zou Feng to a small, well-soundproofed room.

The Steward then quickly spread a booklet open on the table in front of Zou Feng.

“Elder Zou, please take a look. These are all the available assignments for you to choose from…”

Nodding, Zou Feng focused his attention and looked.

The very first mission made his scalp tingle.

“Go to Qifeng Mountain and assist the Palace Master in taming poisonous creatures.”

Seeing Zou Feng frown at this mission, the Steward gave a dry laugh. “Elder Zou, this assignment is actually relatively easy.”

“You know our Biyou Palace Master’s reputation in the Jianghu…”

Zou Feng had heard about this long ago.

The Biyou Palace Master’s reputation in the Jianghu was indeed quite good. He was a top-tier expert who was known to be relatively rule-abiding.

This was also why, despite Biyou Palace being an Evil Sect with many Poison Cultivators, not many people in the Southern Border detested it.

The Palace Master’s biggest stain was simply the matter of backstabbing the Five Poison Sect’s Sect Leader many years ago…

But based on that alone, it would be a wonder if Zou Feng could feel at ease.

“The Palace Master is very easy to talk to. This assignment was just posted, and it requires more than one person. Many members of the Sect are fighting to accept it,” the Steward continued to persuade him.

Zou Feng smiled but didn’t respond, instead continuing to look down the list.

Seeing this, the Steward said no more.

The next mission was to travel to the Central Plains Region and assassinate an expert from the Celestial Essence Sword Sect.

This expert had recently traveled through the Southern Border and, under the pretext of “nurturing his sword,” had killed quite a few Biyou Palace disciples.

After reading this mission, Zou Feng couldn’t help but roll his eyes slightly.

’If this expert from the Celestial Essence Sword Sect were still lingering in the Southern Border, it might be worth a try.’

’But the guy has already returned to the Central Plains and is likely hiding inside the Celestial Essence Sword Sect. How the hell am I supposed to take that mission?’

However, the next mission was even more outrageous: Yin Suhong, the Valley Master of the Valley of Ten Thousand Snakes, required a dual cultivation partner who was young, strong, and at least Fourth Grade. The requirements were that he must be a primary practitioner of a Poison Skill, engage in dual cultivation at least seven times a day, and there was a guarantee that he would not die.

The Steward began to explain again, “Elder Zou, Master Yin signed a blood contract. There is absolutely no danger to one’s life with this mission.”

Zou Feng asked with a half-smile, “Then tell me, how long has this assignment been unaccepted?”

The Steward was suddenly at a loss for words.

’Heh, you won’t die, but what if it’s a fate worse than death? Or perhaps you’d be completely drained. You might go in as a Fourth Grade hero and come out as a Fifth or even Sixth Grade…’

As he continued reading, the missions grew progressively more absurd.

They either involved too many unknown dangers or required an exorbitant amount of time.

At this point, Zou Feng began to wonder if there were any genuinely reliable missions for him to choose from at all.

Fortunately, he wasn’t completely disappointed in the end.

“Recently, a ’Grass Thief’ has appeared in Qingchuan City, appearing and disappearing like a ghost. The Cultivation Skill they use is rumored to originate from Biyou Palace.”

“Ascertain this person’s identity and the origin of their Cultivation Skill. If they are indeed a disciple of Biyou Palace, bring them back to the palace to await judgment.”

“If a live capture is not possible, do your best to bring their body back to the palace.”

This mission looked decent, and besides, he had been planning to make a trip to Qingchuan City anyway.

It was practically tailor-made for him.

’But what’s a ’Grass Thief’?’

He asked the Steward and was told that the thief was a woman who specifically targeted handsome men.

Even the son of the Qingchuan City Lord, Murong Yunhai, with whom Zou Feng was well-acquainted, had nearly fallen victim.

’With my help before, Murong Yunhai has clearly reached the Fifth Grade Realm. If even he was almost a victim, doesn’t that mean the Grass Thief is undoubtedly Fourth Grade? But she can’t be Third Grade. If a Third Grade practitioner had made a move, Murong Yunhai would be long dead.’

“I’ll take this one!”

After hearing the Steward’s explanation of the mission, Zou Feng no longer hesitated. After all, he couldn’t find a more suitable task.

“Very well. May I trouble Elder Zou to hand over your Identity Token!”

Next, the Steward used Zou Feng’s Identity Token to register the mission and then went to the main hall to light an Everlasting Lamp that was clearly a Magical Artifact.

The mission’s deadline was one month, at which point the Everlasting Lamp would be extinguished.

If Zou Feng had not completed the mission by then, it would be considered a failure, and the palace would immediately make other arrangements for him.

From the Steward’s explanation, Zou Feng also learned that even if he failed the mission, there would be no punishment. However, he would be required to immediately choose and accept another mission.

In short, if he didn’t successfully complete a task for Biyou Palace, he could forget about continuing his Cultivation peacefully within the palace.

After completing a task, there would naturally be a grace period where he wouldn’t need to accept another one for a while.

With his first assignment for Biyou Palace settled, Zou Feng didn’t linger and left the General Affairs Hall.

However, he did not leave Cloud Mist Mountain immediately. Instead, he found a secluded corner to meditate, constantly paying attention to his surroundings to ensure he wasn’t being watched.

It wasn’t until dusk that Zou Feng went full speed, stealthily exiting the gates of Biyou Palace.

The journey was uneventful.

It seemed that the big sister from the list, Yin Suhong, had no intention of taking immediate action while he was out.

But just in case, Zou Feng was very careful as he traveled, engaging in a battle of wits with the empty air.

His current travel speed was not much different from flying, so by noon the next day, he had already returned to familiar grounds in Qingchuan City.

Not long ago, Zou Feng had spent three months in Qingchuan City, earning the nickname “Wandering Dragon Master.”

He had also participated in the struggle for the True Inheritor of the Silk Cave here, eliminating many experts of the Evil Dao.

Having contacted Tian Yun in advance with a Communication Jade Talisman, Zou Feng went straight to a martial arts hall after smoothly entering Qingchuan City.

This martial arts hall in Qingchuan City had been in decline and was already in the process of being sold off.

The Hongxing Gang had considerable savings, and with the help of the local power, Murong Yunhai, they easily purchased the hall.

Of course, the Hongxing Gang bought more than just the martial arts hall’s property; they also acquired several large mansions.

In addition, Zou Feng himself had already purchased a lot of property when he was practicing medicine here before, so settling several hundred members of the Hongxing Gang was no problem at all.

Arriving at the place originally called the Huo Yun Martial Arts Hall, he was naturally greeted by an endless chorus of “Greetings, General Leader!”

Zou Feng gave a quick look around and discovered that several more members of the Iron Blood Gu Poison Group had entered the graded ranks.

’This is great. Once I’ve fleeced Biyou Palace a bit more, and with the contributions from the Iron Blood Gu Poison Group, the advancement of my Five Poison Fire Lotus Skill to the Realm of Transcendence and Sanctity should be just around the corner. Using the opportunity of my Primary Cultivation Skill reaching the Extraordinary to Saint level, my chances of breaking through to the Third Grade True Qi Realm will also be quite high.’

After exchanging pleasantries with his gang brothers for a while, Zou Feng noticed that neither Bian Yixia nor Tian Yun had appeared.

Upon asking, he learned that the two women were currently sparring in the backyard.

’Sparring?’

Zou Feng was genuinely curious what their fight would look like, so he immediately headed over.

Before he even got close, he could hear terrifying impact sounds coming from the backyard.

’Are they fighting for real?’

Zou Feng quickened his pace and entered the backyard.

Perhaps they had given orders beforehand, as no other gang members were lingering in the backyard to watch. Only the figures of Tian Yun and Bian Yixia were there.

But the scene of Bian Yixia and Tian Yun’s spar was very different from what Zou Feng had imagined.

The two weren’t exchanging blows in a flurry of moves and counters; they were sparring in a turn-based fashion.

You punch me once, then I’ll hit you with a palm strike.

And they were both using Gang Qi. They weren’t holding back at all, which explained the impact sounds Zou Feng had heard earlier.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep