"Junior Brother Song."

Senior Brother Lin’s eyes were deeply sunken, and he had a golden vertical line on his forehead, which appeared at some unknown time.

Perhaps he had Cultivated some Cultivation Technique... Song Yan asked with concern, "Senior Brother Lin, you..."

"It’s nothing."

Senior Brother Lin waved his hand, "A while ago, in my eagerness to Breakthrough, I was a bit too hasty..."

"I had a slight mishap during Cultivation, but I’m fine now."

"Oh, that’s good."

Song Yan nodded.

"This is your first time here since I was promoted to Inner Sect Disciple, isn’t it?"

Senior Brother Lin welcomed Song Yan into his Immortal Cave courtyard.

He glanced at the sword box on his back with interest but said nothing.

"Don’t be shy, come in and sit down."

Song Yan felt a little embarrassed, "Senior Brother Lin, please don’t be offended. A while ago, I was sent by the Sect to the Flower Festival at Bei Ya Mountain."

"I only returned to the Sect a few days ago."

Senior Brother Lin suddenly understood, "Oh..."

Then he showed a look of regret, "It’s a pity that I had my Cultivation mishap during those very days, which is why Senior Brother Lu Ziye went instead."

"Otherwise, I really would have liked to see the world."

It was better that Senior Brother Lin didn’t mention it.

As soon as he mentioned Lu Ziye, Song Yan remembered that Senior Brother Lu had once exposed Senior Brother Lin’s past in front of them.

Thinking of this gentle and refined Senior Brother Lin, who was infatuated with Senior Sister Qin, Song Yan felt a slight urge to laugh.

Perhaps sensing Song Yan’s strange expression, Senior Brother Lin asked, "Junior Brother Song, what’s wrong?"

"No, nothing."

"Come, have some tea."

Senior Brother Lin placed some simple tea sets on the table in his Immortal Cave and poured a pot of Spiritual Tea.

"Tell me, what brings you here to visit me this time? You’re not just here for a chat, are you?"

...

Only then did Song Yan state the purpose of his visit, "Senior Brother Lin, to be honest, I came here to ask..."

"Does Senior Brother know any news about the Breakthrough Pill..."

"Breakthrough Pill?"

Senior Brother Lin chuckled and scolded, "You brat, I haven’t even broken through to Level 9 Qi Refining yet. If I really had news, why would I tell you!?"

"Hehe..."

Song Yan gave a dry laugh, "Just trying my luck."

"However..."

Senior Brother Lin suddenly fell into thought. After pondering for a moment, he slowly spoke.

"I actually do know some information, and I can tell you about it."

"Because it’s not a secret, and this news will spread throughout the Sect very soon."

"Therefore, telling you in advance won’t hurt."

Song Yan was a little confused, but he listened quietly.

"I have some reliable sources of information, so I just got it a bit earlier, and I wasn’t planning on going anyway."

"A while ago, a large number of Demonic Cultivators appeared at the border between our Chu Country and Qi Country."

"A large number of Demonic Cultivators?"

Song Yan was startled.

He had encountered quite a few Demonic Cultivators, but they were all just a few scattered individuals, not amounting to much.

They should have only formed by chance, having obtained some fragmented Legacies.

But once Demonic Cultivators appear in groups, it’s something that the Cultivation World of various countries should be wary of.

He actually didn’t know much about Demonic Cultivators; most of what he knew came from Senior Brother Lu Ziye’s casual chatter.

Another part was revealed in his conversation with Senior Yu Zhen after she killed the Yellow-Robed Daoist.

"That Yellow-Robed Daoist seems to have originated from a branch of Demonic Cultivators called the ’Yellow Springs Path’..."

It seems that Demonic Cultivators are also divided into many branches.

For example, the three Early Stage Qi Refining Demonic Cultivators outside Shiliang Town before, and this Yellow-Robed Daoist, did not seem to be from the same group.

However, he was somewhat similar to Real Person Jiang Hui from Peach Blossom Dock.

He wasn’t sure about other places, but in Chu Country, Demonic Cultivators had not appeared in large numbers for many years.

Occasionally, a few troublemakers would pop up, but they would quickly be eliminated.

"Qi Country has already dispatched Cultivators to guard the Border Region, but since it’s mainly in our Chu Country, all Six Major Sects must send people."

"The border between Chu Country and Qi Country..."

Song Yan pondered for a moment, "Changping?"

"Yes, Changping."

Senior Brother Lin exhaled softly, "On the surface, it’s just a rotation of shifts to guard Changping, but in reality, it’s hard to say whether there will be conflicts with the Demonic Path."

"This mission takes a long time, and there are high potential risks, plus the Spiritual Qi in Changping is relatively barren..."

When Senior Brother Lin said this, Song Yan understood immediately.

"If it were just ordinary mission rewards, then very few Disciples would be willing to go."

"Therefore, this time, the Six Major Sects jointly established Spiritual resource rewards specifically for this mission, and one of them is the Breakthrough Medicinal Pill."

"The mission cycle is two years, divided into four rotations. If one can participate in two rotations, they will have enough contribution to exchange for a Breakthrough Pill."

"Of course, if one can discover some movements of Demonic Cultivators, or kill Demonic Cultivators, there will be additional contributions, allowing them to exchange for the Medicinal Pill in advance."

...

"So that’s how it is..."

Song Yan nodded, "But, Senior Brother Lin, if Inner Sect Disciples participate in this mission, wouldn’t they be unable to participate in the Sect’s Grand Competition?"

He vaguely remembered that the Inner Sect Grand Competition was about to begin.

He himself was still an Outer Sect Disciple and couldn’t participate anyway; he just had this question.

Senior Brother Lin shook his head, "That’s not the case."

"There have been significant changes to this year’s Inner Sect Grand Competition. For one, the Inner Sect Grand Competition has actually been canceled..."

His words were astonishing, making Song Yan’s eyes widen.

"The competition, originally limited to Inner Sect Disciples, is now open to the entire Sect."

"The original competition for Inner Sect Disciples remains unchanged, and Outer Sect Disciples can also participate in open competitions similar to Inner Sect Disciples, with a chance to ultimately obtain Breakthrough Medicinal Pills, Breakthrough to Late Stage Qi Refining, and be absorbed into the Inner Sect."

Upon hearing this, Song Yan first expressed his regret for those Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters who had traveled thousands of miles back to the Sect to prepare for the Grand Competition.

Secondly, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of joy.

This way, even if he didn’t participate in the Changping mission, he would still have a chance to win the Medicinal Pill.

Just as he was calculating in his mind, he heard Senior Brother Lin pour cold water on his hopes.

"On the other hand... the time for this all-Sect Grand Competition has been postponed due to the appearance of Demonic Cultivators."

"Postponed? Until when?"

"Postponed until that mission ends." Senior Brother Lin gave a wry smile, "Which means, two years from now."

...

Song Yan sighed softly, thinking, ’Why do these Demonic Cultivators always cause trouble?’

"Alright, then... Senior Brother Lin, do you know when this Border Region mission will begin?"

"It’s still early. All the mechanisms and arrangements are still being coordinated and planned. By the time the mission actually starts, it might still be a few more months."

"Understood."

There was nothing that could be done about it.

He took a sip of the Spiritual Tea in his cup; its clear, bitter aroma dispelled some of the gloom in his heart.

After a brief chat, he stood up to take his leave.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Lin, for the information."

"No problem. It’s all going to be public anyway. It’s better to tell Junior Brother early and do you a favor."

"May Junior Brother’s Immortal Dao flourish in the future; don’t forget Senior Brother’s small kindnesses."

"Hahahahaha..."

Senior Brother Lin was still as fond of joking as ever.