"Just joined the Sect half a month ago? Why would a newcomer take on this task, are you in a hurry to feed the Fire Rock Snakes? Our team doesn't need a burden, nor are we responsible for collecting corpses!" The dark-skinned man's face darkened as he spoke bluntly.

"Junior Brother Yuan, Agula and the others have a point, collecting Fire Jade is quite dangerous, and if we encounter an attack from a Fire Rock Snake, we might not be able to look out for you. You should focus on cultivating for a while longer and improve your strength before taking on tasks," the beautiful woman advised, her gaze also carrying a hint of disdain.

"Thank you for the reminder, Senior Sister, and this Senior Brother. Though I'm of humble skill, I believe I have enough power to protect myself and I won't cause trouble for you," Yuan Ming nodded slightly to the beautiful woman and the dark-skinned man, saying with a smile.

He seemed not to see Agula at all.

The beautiful woman's eyebrows lifted slightly, and the dark-skinned man huffed a low sound, but neither said anything more.

At this moment, Agula, who had been ignored, was already as red-faced as a pig's liver and stepped out from the crowd: "That's quite the attitude. If you want to join our team, let me see your strength first!"

"If Senior Brother Agula wishes to enlighten me, then please make your move," Yuan Ming said calmly.

"Good, take my arrow first!" Agula formed a magical gesture with his fingers.

A stream of crystal-clear water materialized out of thin air, quickly twisting and transforming into a strangely shaped two-foot-long Water Bow, with a brightly shining Water Arrow automatically appearing on the bowstring.

With a sharp whistling sound, the Water Arrow tore through the air, heading straight for Yuan Ming's chest, its speed far surpassing that of ordinary arrows.

Agula had secretly played a trick, silently casting before speaking, and by the time his words had ended, the Water Arrow had already been shot.

"Water Arrow Technique?"

Yuan Ming remained unflustered, pushing his right hand through the void, a rich green light emerging in his palm.

A thick Wooden Thorn protruded, cutting off the Water Arrow's path despite being released later.

In these days, Yuan Ming had been diligently practicing the Moonlight Technique. Although his Divine Soul Power hadn't much increased, his reaction speed had greatly improved.

With a loud "bang," the Water Arrow shattered and the Wooden Thorn was also largely fragmented.

"What!" Agula's expression froze.

He had struck first with a sneak attack, using the swift Water Arrow Technique, and yet it had been blocked by the Wood Stabbing Technique!

"Is that enough?" Yuan Ming asked indifferently, as a surge of green light in his palm instantly restored the broken Wooden Thorns to their original state.

Agula's face turned ugly. His hands formed gestures at great speed, and a flash of light passed over the Water Bow, summoning out no less than five Water Arrows.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh! This chapter was made possible by the * community.

The five Water Arrows shot out together, winding their way toward Yuan Ming with the intent to kill.

"Five arrows fired in succession! When did Agula's Water Arrow Technique reach this level?" the beautiful woman exclaimed softly.

The dark-skinned man and the triangle-eyed young man were also surprised at this sight.

It isn't difficult to master the Water Arrow Technique, but to simultaneously cast five arrows was not easy. This required sufficient mana depth and powerful control over that mana.

Yuan Ming's expression grew more solemn, but he remained composed as he began to cast, his fingers moving to form a spell.

Green light flickered continuously in front of him, and three thick Wooden Thorns burst out from the ground, each one about a foot in diameter and lined up in front of him, covering his figure altogether.

Yuan Ming did not have enough mana, and could only summon three Wooden Thorns at the same time.

The Water Arrows hit the Wooden Thorns, easily piercing through and leaving five large holes, but Yuan Ming, who had been behind them, was nowhere to be seen.

Agula looked around with a mix of shock and suspicion. Just then, a sharp gust came from the side, and Yuan Ming's figure suddenly appeared with a Green Fish Sword in hand, slashing down from above.

The treasure sword turned into a cold gleam, falling like lightning.

Agula's face changed drastically. His right hand crushed something in a flash, and a layer of green airflow appeared around him, quickly dodging to the side.

However, he suddenly felt pain under his foot, as a small Wooden Thorn unexpectedly burst up without warning, stabbing into the sole of his boot.

Agula had worn a specially made pair of boots for today's task, crafted from the skin of crocodile-like Fierce Beasts and unusually tough. The Wood Stabbing Technique did not pierce the sole, but it caused him to stagger slightly, pausing his attempt to dodge for a brief moment.

The light of the Green Fish Sword enveloped one of his arms, seeming almost certain to cleave it off.

At that moment, a streak of silver light shot from the side, moving too fast for anyone to see, and with a "clang," it struck the Green Fish Sword.

Yuan Ming's wrist went numb; the Green Fish Sword flew out of his hand, and he was pushed back a couple of steps.

The silver light also revealed its true form, a silver chain bracelet, which was from the beautiful woman's wrist.

Swish!

An elegant figure flashed by, and the beautiful woman appeared between the two.

"Hehe, both of your Five Elements Magic displays were quite an eye-opener. We still have a task to perform later, so how about we consider the sparring finished for now?" the beautiful woman said with a smile, her eyes on Yuan Ming no longer carrying that previous suspicion, clearly acknowledging his strength.

"Of course, Senior Brother Agula and I were merely exchanging pointers," Yuan Ming laughed, picking up the Green Fish Sword from the ground and putting it away.

Agula remained silent, his face a shade of iron blue.

"Junior Brother Yuan has exceptional abilities. With him joining our task squad, I assume there are no objections, right?" The beautiful woman turned her gaze towards the dark-skinned man and the triangle-eyed youth.

"Junior Brother Yuan's cultivation is quite impressive, and I am certainly welcoming of his participation," the dark-skinned man said, grinning and shedding his previous arrogance.

The man with triangular eyes didn't say anything but nodded in agreement.

"In that case, let us prepare to depart," the beautiful woman said and nodded her head.

"Could you all wait for me a moment? I left something at my place, I'll go fetch it and be right back," Yuan Ming suddenly spoke.

"No problem. I was about to head to the Refining Furnace Hall to buy some things, and Mu Li and the others need to go rent immortal cranes for the journey. We'll disperse for now and meet up near the mountain gate in a quarter of an hour," the beautiful woman said after a moment's pause.

"Renting immortal cranes? Are we going to ride cranes to Tali Volcano?" Yuan Ming asked.

"Of course. Tali Volcano is a hundred miles away from the sect. If we were to walk on foot, when would we arrive?" the beautiful woman explained.

Yuan Ming looked troubled; he had just joined the sect, and he was penniless and without any contribution value to rent a spirit beast.

"Junior Brother Yuan needn't worry. You can ride with me later," the beautiful woman said, noticing Yuan Ming's embarrassment.

"Thank you, Senior Sister," Yuan Ming replied, relieved, and bowed in gratitude.

"It's nothing," the beautiful woman shook her head.

Yuan Ming nodded to the others and quickly left, heading for the Fire Refining Hall.

He jogged all the way and soon returned to his room, retrieving a grey bundle from under his bed.

The bundle contained two Furred Beast Skins, that of the White Ape and Black Toad. It was his first time on a sect mission, and he couldn't afford to fail, so he brought the two Furred Beast Skins just in case.

Although he was no longer a Fur Beast Slave, he didn't have many good offensive or self-protective methods besides the Green Fish Sword and the Wood Stabbing Technique. The increase in combat power provided by transforming into a White Ape could play a significant role in a critical moment.

Yuan Ming shoved the bundle into his chest and headed back the way he came, speeding toward the mountain gate.

...

In the grand hall of the Refining Furnace Hall.

The layout here was similar to that of the Execution Hall, with a long stone desk at the front where four or five disciples of the Refining Furnace Hall sat, and rows of grimy, whitish stone counters that were about one zhang tall, laden with jade bottles and porcelain containers of various colors.

The entire hall was filled with the fragrance of medicine, which seemed to invigorate anyone who walked in.

"I'll have a bottle of Water Marsh Pill," the beautiful woman said, approaching a short, plump young man.

"Ten contribution points," the short, plump young man replied after a glance at the woman.

The beautiful woman clearly knew the price of the elixir and took out her Identity Plate, handing it over.

The young man took a white Jade Talisman, tapped it lightly on the woman's Identity Plate, and a white light flowed from the plate into the talisman.

"Just a moment, I'll get the medicine," the young man said, then turned and walked toward the counters at the back.

"Junior Sister Lan Ke, it's been a while," said a woman in a red dress, approaching; it was Chen Wan.

"Senior Sister Chen Wan, have you come to buy an elixir too?" Lan Ke said with surprise as she greeted Chen Wan.

The woman was evidently older but behaved respectfully as if she was the younger in presence of Chen Wan.

"I came especially to see you; is that not allowed?" Chen Wan said with a smile, taking hold of Lan Ke's hand.

"Senior Sister has been promoted to an Inner Sect Disciple and is extremely busy. I dare not have such high hopes," Lan Ke replied with a coy smile.

"I am here on my master's orders to take care of some business at the Refining Furnace Hall," Chen Wan explained with a smile.

"Do you need any help? I'm quite acquainted with a few deacons of the Refining Furnace Hall," Lan Ke offered quickly, her eyes flashing.

Being under the Beast Taming Hall with no prestigious background, she was ambitious and always strived to climb upwards. She was smooth in dealings and had made many connections within the sect. Getting known by the Three Cave Masters through this matter could be very beneficial for her future progress.

Chen Wan shook her head and said, "No need. It's just a small matter. It seems Junior Sister Lan Ke is buying Water Marsh Pills; are you going on a mission to collect Fire Jade?"

Lan Ke was disappointed but didn't show it. She caressed the Silver Snake Chain and replied, "Yes, I'm planning to add another rune to my Silver Snake Chain soon, but I'm short on contribution points and need to gather some."

As she said this, the image of Yuan Ming appeared in her mind.

"Speaking of which, Senior Sister Chen Wan, has your Fire Refining Hall recently taken in a young disciple from the Central Plains named Yuan Ming?" Lan Ke inquired.

"Yuan Ming? Yes, there is such a person. Have you heard of him?" Chen Wan asked, a bit surprised.

"I've assembled a team for a mission to collect Fire Jade, and Yuan Ming is part of it. He's quite strong; he fought several rounds with Agula and actually got the upper hand," Lan Ke shared.

"Really?" Surprise flitted across Chen Wan's face.

Agula was a senior disciple of the Fire Refining Hall. Although not gifted in Artifact Refining, his cultivation was not weak, having reached the sixth-tier Qi Refining. Chen Wan couldn't believe he was bested by Yuan Ming, who had just joined the sect.

She remembered that during the day of the trial mission, Yuan Ming was merely a fourth-layer Qi Refiner and a mere Fur Beast Slave. In such a short span of months, had his cultivation advanced again?

"Could it be that his exceptional talent is why the master personally took him in?" Chen Wan wondered.