For now, given the situation, I can also offer you some small assistance." She held out a small white pill. "This is a low-level life-saving treasure, a Pill of Safe Return. When you take it, you will be teleported back to the sect. It won't work from a truly great distance, but it should work from anywhere in the Library's territory. It will also defeat most anti-teleportation measures.
In exchange, I would like your promise of discretion on this matter. The Blood Inquisition is no ordinary sect. They are a scourge, with presence across more heavens than the Mortal. Their presence in Library territory will only grow unless they are rooted out quickly, and the more attention is drawn to them, the deeper they will hide. If this news isn't handled in the right way, the consequences could be severe. The disciples must be informed, of course, but in a way that does not create panic."
"I understand completely, grand elder. Ah, there is one thing—"
She nodded slowly. "Ah, you mean the one from the Academy who came with you. Yes, you may discuss these matters with them."
"Uh, actually, there's a few of my old classmates, they're in other sects now, but if Outworlders are being targeted in particular, I'm worried about them."
"Hmm…word will be spreading in the rest of the sect within a few days. All right, I'll give you special permission to use the Library's mail service. I'll have a special token prepared and delivered to your room by the time you get back. When you have letters to send, show that token to a guard at the Inner Gate, and give them your letters to give to the office. No such letters should arrive before word is already getting out anyway."
"Thank you very much, grand elder," I said, reaching out my hand for the pill, "I swear I will not otherwise talk about this."
"Very good." She allowed me to take the pill from her hand. "You may go."
The Blood Inquisition did not launch a second attack. The further north the caravan reached, the more the disciples relaxed again. By the time we departed for the provincial capital, situated less than 50 miles from the sect itself, the atmosphere was like the working vacation Li Han had said the caravan mission was usually like.
Once the wagons, and their cargo that hadn't already been distributed in other cities, was safely in the capital, Elder Du took all of us aside for a concluding address. "Before I officially conclude the mission, I have determined your performances in the attack early on, and I have some contribution merits to award.
First, Inner Disciple Shin. You prevented several attempts by the enemy's Spirit Rank assailants from breaking through and slaughtering the Earth Realm disciples, and played a major role in preventing the one we killed from escaping. I award you 30 extra Contribution Points.
Second, Outer Disciple Li. You were instrumental in preventing the enemy's 9th Realm assailants from causing havoc, saving two other 9th Realm disciples from injury and preventing all of them from attacking the 8th Realm disciples. I award you 15 extra Contribution Points.
Finally, Outer Disciple Xu." I perked up. I wasn't sure how he'd found out about what we'd done, but I wasn't about to complain. "You decisively disrupted the initial charge of the enemy's Earth Realm assailants, reducing their numbers before the attack could properly begin. Thanks in part to that, you had the most confirmed kills out of all the Outer Court disciples present. I award you 10 extra Contribution Points."
Elder Du touched his own badge to mine. 42 points added to my balance. Then, he had the others line up to receive their own points and otherwise conclude the mission. "Overall, good work. You may all take the rest of today and tonight to enjoy yourselves in the capital, or you may return to the sect at any time, no later than tomorrow."
We bowed to Elder Du, who then headed in the direction of the capital's teleport formation. I took a few steps in the same direction before turning back to Li Han. "It's ready to test, so I want to get back as soon as possible. You coming?"
"Oho! All right. I admit, I've lost my taste for missions for a while, extra contribution or no."
"Although," he continued, once we were out of earshot of any of the disciples staying behind, "with this result I'm less than 50 points away from the 1,000 I need for the Heaven Rank technique."
"Less than 50, you say?" I said, getting an idea, "it just so happens I have exactly 64 points right now…is it possible to arrange to lend you points? I mean, in a way that's bound by the sect. Not that I don't trust your word of course, but you know I'm a careful person."
"Oh? There are ways to arrange something like that, yeah."
"You wanted to arrange something for Shokoya to borrow your technique too. Well, there you go. Let him borrow it and I'll lend you 50 Contribution Points. I'll even give you a whole year to pay me back."
"I don't know," said Li Han, slightly teasingly, "I wanted to arrange it with him, not you."
"In that case, you can owe me 60 contribution points for my 50. Still with a whole year to pay it back—since we are friends and all."
"Tchah! You're no fun. Fine, give Shokoya the scroll then. What's a technique I already know between a friend of a friend, after all?"
The rest of the day passed in a blur. Li Han wanted to stick around to see me use Blossom Ray Thrust for the first time, so I had to wait until after that, and until we'd arranged the 50 point loan with an elder to ratify it, to tell Shokoya about the Blood Inquisition Sect out in front of Building #242. "Do you think it might come down to us to deal with them?" he asked when my explanation was done, "it's the kind of plot that wouldn't be out of place in," he looked around us for a moment, and on seeing there were no other disciples around "the old Dive Games."
"Not for now, I don't think. Their Earth Realmers weren't even proper members. They were more like conscripted cannon fodder. It'll be way too easy to become targeted by a Spirit Rank cultivator if we try to take matters into our own hands, before getting quite a bit stronger."
"In other words, they're not early game content and we need to treat it as though the area within the sect is the sole early game zone."
I nodded. "Basically."
"Patiently grinding is what I'm best at." He smiled, and turned to head back to B district, holding a hand up to wave at me as he walked away. "You don't have to worry about me."
I stood there thinking for a while, watching Shokoya go until he turned around the side of another building. I started to open the outer door, when—
"So, can we talk?"