It was already deep into the night by the time Mo Mian left, but Zhao Yunxiao still made sure not to neglect his daily cultivation after that.
The cultivation path was a long and arduous one, and there were no shortcuts to the pinnacle.
Zhao Yunxiao fully understood that hard work was the only way for one to get there, especially for cultivators like himself who did not possess exceptional talent in this regard.
Come morning, he slowly opened his eyes as he exited meditation.
Unlike the day before, there were no important events lined up that day.
The only thing scheduled was his weekly duty at the Yellowshell Mines, but Zhao Yunxiao had already decided to skip out on that this time.
After all, he only had one day left to make preparations for the demon subduing trip, and he could always make up for the monthly mining quota another day.
Zhao Yunxiao quickly freshened up before leaving for the canteen, this time no longer carrying that reliable bamboo backpack of his.
In fact, Zhao Yunxiao was thinking of retiring his bamboo backpack for good, or at least for the foreseeable future.
After all, he was now a cultivator who possessed a spatial item of his own!
With the bamboo backpack no longer weighing down on his back, Zhao Yunxiao's steps were lighter than ever as he made his way to the canteen.
The canteen was nowhere near as busy as the day before.
In fact, there was hardly anyone around when he arrived at the canteen.
Gu Qiansi and Lu Zhiying seemed to have yet to arrive either, so Zhao Yunxiao silently took his seat while waiting.
Settling into an inconspicuous corner, Zhao Yunxiao nodded to himself in satisfaction.
By staying at this corner of the canteen, at least they would not attract as much attention when Lu Zhiying joined him later.
"You are here early, Junior Martial Brother Zhao," Nie Hanchang was the next to arrive, and he naturally sat down at Zhao Yunxiao's table. "Why is your table empty? Are you already done with your meal?"
"Unfortunately not," Zhao Yunxiao let out an irritated sigh. "I am still waiting for that Gu Qiansi."
"I see," Nie Hanchang nodded. "Since you are waiting for Junior Martial Sister Gu, let's wait together then."
"Please don't!" Zhao Yunxiao hurriedly waved his hand. "If you have something to do, then go ahead and have your meal and go. After all, who knows what time that woman will finally wake up and come over?"
Zhao Yunxiao understood that the hardworking Nie Hanchang usually packed his day full of activities, so he would hate to disrupt the latter's schedule for the day.
"I'm sure it will not take long," Nie Hanchang said with a smile. "Junior Martial Sister Gu is not someone who will sleep in. She will probably be here soon."
"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you," Zhao Yunxiao shrugged. "After all, she-"
"On guard!"
Zhao Yunxiao's eyes instantly sharpened as he leapt out of his seat, barely dodging the sword that slashed across where he had been just a few moments ago.
The sword user did not stop there, wielding the blade skilfully as she chased right after Zhao Yunxiao like a persistent viper.
Spinning around in mid air, the airborne Zhao Yunxiao flicked his wrists and a halberd appeared in his hands.
Bang-!
The halberd swept out in a wide arc, going completely unhindered even after colliding against the oncoming sword, and, as a result, blew the sword user's stance wide open.
"Tch!" Gu Qiansi clicked her tongue in irritation as she landed back on the ground.
She had forgotten that Zhao Yunxiao now possessed a spatial item.
Without it, Zhao Yunxiao would have been forced to react with something lighter like his daggers.
Should that be the case, the result of the previous clash would have been completely different!
"Try again next time," Zhao Yunxiao smirked as he sent the halberd back into his spatial pouch with a flick of his wrists.
"Don't worry, I definitely will. And trust me, it won't go as easily for you next time," Gu Qiansi grumbled while putting away her sword.
"We shall see," Zhao Yunxiao shrugged nonchalantly.
"Good morning, Senior Martial Brother Zhao, Senior Martial Brother Nie!" Lu Zhiying stepped forward to greet them after the exchange.
She had already seen this before, so Lu Zhiying was no longer surprised by their interesting manner of greeting each other.
"Did you have a good rest, Junior Martial Sister Lu?" Zhao Yunxiao asked with a smile.
It was yet another morning with a treat for the eyes.
"Yes, I slept soundly after the great meal!" Lu Zhiying nodded energetically.
"By the way, your Flying Shell Performance Group's performance was amazing last night," Nie Hanchang praised. "It was the talk of the night."
"It's all thanks to Junior Martial Sister Lu," Zhao Yunxiao replied. "She's definitely the difference-maker this time."
"I did well, didn't I?" Lu Zhiying smiled at the compliment.
"Yes, you definitely did," Gu Qiansi patted her head adoringly. "But before we continue, let's go get our food before continuing our chat."
No one had any objections.
But as they walked up to take their food, Zhao Yunxiao could sense multiple stares directed their way once again.
He let out a silent sigh.
What is the use of choosing an inconspicuous corner when they still have to walk up to the front to get their food anyway?
Luckily, there are not many people in the canteen right now. Otherwise, who knows what kind of commotion there would be?
Damn, it's tough to have a celebrity companion.
Perhaps it is really time to stop coming to the canteen for free food...
Wait, that actually sounds like a good excuse to get Gu Qiansi to cook for them regularly?
Now then, he just had to come up with an excuse to broach that topic!
"So, what will we be doing today?" Lu Zhiying asked as they settled back into their corner, this time with food in front of them.
"Right, I won't be accompanying you guys today," Zhao Yunxiao said in between mouthfuls. "I will be leaving for a sect mission tomorrow so I will be busy making the necessary preparations today."
"What mission is that?" Nie Hanchang asked.
"A demon subduing mission," Zhao Yunxiao replied. "I will be going with the Mystic Cavalry – that's Senior Martial Brother Zheng Biru's party. I will be replacing Senior Martial Brother Zhao himself since he won't be able to make it this time."
"Senior Martial Brother Zheng's party?" Gu Qiansi blinked in confusion. "Since when have you been involved with them?"
"Senior Martial Brother Zhao really seems to know everyone!" Lu Zhiying remarked.
"He asked me during the trip to the Origin Lake Sect, so I just thought... why not?" Zhao Yunxiao explained. "In any case, their party takes on such missions often, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem. I just need to make sure I pull my own weight to deserve the eventual mission rewards."
"How nice, I want to go on a trip as well..." Lu Zhiying sighed. "I won't even mind not getting anything in return as long as I just get to tag along."
"Don't worry. Once you clear your mandatory one-month stay in the sect, I will bring you out for a walk," Gu Qiansi said.
"Senior Martial Sister Gu is the best!" Lu Zhiying hugged her arm from the side.
"Be careful on your trip," Nie Hanchang said. "Demon slaying missions can easily go wrong."
"Yes, I will," Zhao Yunxiao nodded. "That is the reason why I will be spending today making preparations."
"So is it a demon subduing mission or a demon slaying mission? Why are the two of you saying it differently?" Lu Zhiying asked.
"It is a demon subduring mission this time," Zhao Yunxiao confirmed. "It is just that people generally interchange that with demon slaying missions since we usually end up just having to eliminate the demons in question anyway."
"That's usually the reason that we are being called in for, at least," Nie Hanchang added.
"So that's it..." Lu Zhiying nodded in understanding. "Well, what shall we do then, Senior Martial Sister Gu, Senior Martial Brother Nie?"
"I will be training today," Nie Hanchang answered without hesitation.
"What a bummer," Lu Zhiying complained, but the others were not surprised.
It was not just them either. Everyone in the outer sect knew just how hardworking Nie Hanchang had always been.
"Hmm, what shall we do indeed..." Gu Qiansi pondered.
"If you guys don't have anything particular in mind, you can consider going to watch the arrival of the subordinate sects," Zhao Yunxiao suggested.
"Ah, that's happening today, isn't it?" Gu Qiansi recalled.
"The arrival of the subordinate sects?" Lu Zhiying asked in confusion.
"On the second day of each year, the subordinate sects will come to pay their respects and offer their tributes," Zhao Yunxiao explained. "Each of these sects will usually be accompanied by a grand entourage, probably to show off how well they are doing and compete for the elders' attention. There are also some rivalries going on among the subordinate sects, though that is not really of our concern. If you are interested, you can go take a look at the arrival of the various sects' entourage as they parade in."
"Sounds interesting, let's do that then!" Lu Zhiying said.
"Sure," Gu Qiansi agreed. "You really aren't joining us? It won't take long, will it?"
"I'll pass," Zhao Yunxiao shrugged. "I'm really quite tight on time today. On top of that, I don't really want to encounter those from the Origin Lake Sect either."
Back then, those of the Origin Lake Sect had mistaken him for an important character of the Black Tortoise Sect.
He had then taken advantage of the misunderstanding to give some sort of warning to the disciples of the Origin Lake Sect, using it to protect Xia Wei in Jun Chuan's stead.
If they were to find out that he was just a simple outer disciple, then all of that would fall apart in an instant!
"What kind of trouble did you get into over there?" Gu Qiansi narrowed her eyes at him.
"What kind of trouble can I get into?" Zhao Yunxiao shrugged. "I just don't want to attract too much attention. You won't understand the pains of being an attrac-"
"Good morning, Junior Martial Sister Lu," a voice from behind Zhao Yunxiao interrupted his words.
The group looked over to see Zeng Fan, one of the first two outer disciples to have approached Lu Zhiying at the banquet last night.
"Good morning, Senior Martial Brother Zeng," Lu Zhiying answered with a smile. "Sorry but if you'd excuse us, Senior Martial Brother Zhao is in the midst of talking right now."
Gu Qiansi: "..."
Zhao Yunxiao: "..."
Do you have to say it like that?
It is not like I was offended or anything. By saying that, you are just going to create unnecessary misunderstandings!
As he had expected, Zeng Fan immediately narrowed his eyes at Zhao Yunxiao, starting to scrutinise him from head to toe.
Zhao Yunxiao was extremely familiar with the look in his eyes.
This was none other than the look of a man who was assessing his potential rival!