Dangerous Mission?

It all started when Liang Teng received an intriguing report from a disciple who had been patrolling the surrounding countryside. The disciple spoke of a young man selling strange contraptions: boxes that kept its contents cold and tubes held in the hand that could project light far into the distance, among other things.

Although such things wouldn't normally be so groundbreaking, what was amazing about these items was that even mortals with no cultivation could use them, and they were being sold at prices even some well-to-do commoners could afford.

Apparently all these contraptions needed to function was to be put out in the sunlight for a few minutes every day. Other than that, they were mostly controlled by simple switches and buttons, and even a child could use these tools with no issue.

If that was the end of it, perhaps Liang Teng wouldn't have paid it too much attention, but the disciple also reported this young man to have used strange techniques in the process of hawking his wares, while having no apparent cultivation of his own. Things like freely levitating objects with some unknown power, or pulling out extra stock from somewhere without the use of a storage ring.

So, in his curiosity, Liang Teng extended an invitation to meet with this young man as well as his companion, an action that would cause him many headaches in the upcoming weeks.

When they had first met, Liang Teng had a good impression of Caelus and Lilliana. They were polite, and although they didn't seem to have a good grasp of the language at first, they quickly adapted, speaking almost perfectly after a few days.

And, in the short time he was here, besides revolutionizing the day to day functions of the sect, Caelus also made many advances in things like alchemy, formations, and even the sect's cultivation techniques, all of which he freely shared.

However, all of these advancements were grounded on the basis of a thing called 'mana', and without a basic understanding of this force, all of this knowledge was useless.

In other words, without Caelus here to maintain things, they would be unable to continue making use of his advancements. He was also tight-lipped about the secrets of mana, frustrating Liang Teng to no end.

But although he was frustrated, he wouldn't dare to do anything that might drive him away. Not that he would be too beat up about losing out on Caelus's otherworldly knowledge; he simply couldn't let any of the other Great Sects have him!

Although the Dabang Sect was considered one of the Five Great Sects of the Eastern Region, they were honestly the lowest in power out of all of them. The knowledge Caelus brought them was nice, but they weren't in a position to make any moves, with it.

This was not the case for the other Great Sects. If they got a hold of the many technological advancements Caelus brought with him, they would then be able to use the newly freed up manpower to take action against the other sects... and their first target would most likely be the weak link of the Great Sects, his Dabang Sect.

The old man sighed and shook his head. At least before, the two of them had no plans to move until they had found their other friend, but now that Ryker had been found, there was a good chance they would leave. He couldn't guarantee one of the other Great Sects wouldn't take this chance to entice them; they should have spies in the sect that have slipped through the cracks, over the years.

Before that happened, he needed to give them a reason to stay!

It didn't help that Elder Jiang seemed to have developed a grudge of some sort with that Ryker fellow. Honestly, if it weren't for his position as chief of the Justice Enforcement Hall, he would have gone and smacked him silly, already! Didn't he know that they needed to stay on their visitor's good side?!

Luckily, the newcomer seemed to be a simple young man, and from the reports, he didn't even seem to consider the frequent challenges of the Justice Enforcement Hall's lackeys as harassment. If Disciple Cui could also ensnare him with some proverbial honey, then perhaps...

Well, it was too soon to make a judgement. He would just have to wait and keep an eye on the situation.

--

The next day...

"Hurry, Sir Ryker, it's getting away!

"I got it!"

Running lightly over the craggy terrain, Ryker doggedly chased a shadowy blur through a large, rocky valley, sweat flying off his face as he did. The shadow made to dive into a nearby crevice, but Ryker threw himself forward at the same time, just barely managing to wrap his arms around the wriggling creature before it absconded.

"Ha! Gotcha!"

"Yes! Good work, Sir Ryker!"

The bubbly voice praising him of course didn't come from Hu Long, but from a petite, young girl with braided twintails, who ran up to Ryker with enthusiastic applause. Hu Long also took this moment to approach, beads of sweat trickling down his face as he caught his breath.

"Phew, yeah, good job. Those bastards back at the Requesting Hall won't believe we actually caught one of these."

The 'bastards' Hu Long were referring to were the disciples in Han Qiuyue's pocket that were overseeing the sect missions for today. Naturally, when they saw Hu Long and Ryker walk in to accept a mission, they made it hard on them and refused to admit there were any missions suitable for their strength available.

It wasn't until the young disciple that was with them, Cui Feng, came and made a fuss that they reluctantly gave them a mission, but it was still the very difficult and troublesome task of capturing a Jeweled Lapin, small, rabbit-like creatures that were notrious for their ability to hide and evade capture. Their shimmering, mist-like fur had the ability to manipulate light, and they were quick on their feet, to boot.

As Hu Long strode over with a sweaty face, Cui Feng stifled a giggle with the hem of her sleeve, her almond eyes curving up in a teasing look as she spoke.

"Junior Brother, isn't it unseemly to be sweating so much when Sir Ryker is doing all the work?"

"Huh?! What are you talking about, with Ryker's terrible spiritual sense, we wouldn't even be able to find these pests, let alone capture one! And who are you calling 'Junior Brother'? I'm older than you."

"!!! W-well, I've been part of the sect waaaay longer than you have! *And* my cultivation is higher than yours, so there! Hmph!"

Hu Long sighed, making a derisive face and turning away as Cui Feng pouted and threw a tantrum. Why was this annoying girl even following them, anyway?

Well, with the way she was always buttering up to Ryker, he could make some guesses. She was the youngest daughter of one of the Dabang Sect's preeminent elders, Elder Cui, after all.

Assuming the sect had sent her, he could infer that they didn't want to let Ryker, or perhaps Sir Caelus, go.

So why was it that *he* was the one she kept pestering?

"Haaah, well, I can't expect Junior Brother to be as magnanimous as Sir Ryker is!" Cui Feng said with a mock sigh, looking at Hu Long with an infuriatingly condescending gaze.

"Surely, he wouldn't make a fuss over something so small, like how I addressed him!"

"Haha, well, 'magnanimous' is probably exaggerating a bit!"

Ryker laughed heartily with the struggling Lapin tucked under his arms, as Cui Feng and Hu Long continued to argue over their grievances. He didn't know why Cui Feng was sucking up to him like she was...

But he'd always been a sucker for baseless flattery!

However, a slight shiver went up his spine at that moment, as he felt something akin to a pinprick in his mind. What was that...?

"Ryker, watch out!"