"I have no objections either," Chen Jiang said. "I’m sure you’ve all heard about the Ten Heroes and the Top Ten. As for the Outer Disciple Grand Competition, the top three spots are probably in the bag for them. We shouldn’t even think about it."

At his words, everyone fell silent. Back in Qingyuan, they were all renowned geniuses. But after coming here, they hadn’t managed to secure a single one of the twenty spots among the Ten Heroes and the Top Ten. The gap was a bit hard to swallow.

Qin Ze nodded. "Since no one has any objections, let’s consider this pact settled. Next, if anyone has any information to share—and if you feel it’s important enough to charge a fee for, don’t be shy."

Yue Gui was the first to speak again. "I found a senior brother from last year’s Fist Hall. He told me that if you want to get good tasks, you can bribe a Steward at the Task Hall. He has a connection."

Everyone’s eyes lit up. For an Outer Disciple, tasks were the most important thing.

"How much money?" Chen Jiang asked.

Yue Gui held up one finger. "At least one hundred taels. The best quality tasks cost even more. If you’re interested, you can come find me privately."

The others didn’t seem too concerned. When they came to the Purple Sun Sect, their families had prepared over a thousand taels for them to bring.

Xu Yang shook his head to himself. He’d spent quite a bit these past few days, and he had less than two hundred taels left. ’I can’t afford to waste money like that.’

Liu Qian nodded and said, "My older brother told me something. Five li east of the sect gate, there’s a black market for Outer Disciples held on the first, tenth, and twentieth of every month. You can buy Elixirs, Cultivation Techniques, and even contribution points, but you have to be careful."

Her older brother, Liu Xiao, had placed third in Qingyuan County’s proficiency exam last year, a fact everyone knew.

"That’s very important information," Qin Ze said.

Xu Yang and the others nodded in agreement.

Chen Jiang said, "I’ll share something too. Be careful of an organization called the Dawn Association. They recruit new members under the guise of mutual progress.

Once you’re in, they’ll tell you to pool resources to help a small group enter the Inner Sect first. Then, those who get in are supposed to help everyone else. You’ll have to hand over twenty percent of the contribution points you earn from tasks. Anyone who’s unwilling to pay up ends up dying in all sorts of ’accidents’.

If they approach you, be sure to refuse them tactfully."

Qin Ze’s and Yue Gui’s pupils contracted.

Liu Qian, however, wasn’t very surprised. Her older brother, Liu Xiao, had already warned her about it; she had just forgotten to mention it.

By now, everyone had shared useful information except for Xu Yang. All eyes inevitably turned to him.

Although they had agreed to share information when they formed the alliance, if you just freeloaded off others’ intelligence every time, people would eventually grow resentful. Sooner or later, you would be ostracized.

Xu Yang thought for a moment, then said, "I’ll share a piece of information that might not be too important. The lists for the Ten Heroes and the Top Ten aren’t entirely accurate. Among the new disciples, there is at least one person with an A-class Root Bone who isn’t on the Ten Heroes list. So, it’s best for everyone to keep a low profile and not go around picking fights."

He immediately relayed the information he’d gotten from Jiang Fan. In reality, there should have been two such people—the other being himself—which was why he used the word "at least."

"There’s another hidden genius among the new disciples?"

Qin Ze and the others were stunned. A genius with an A-class Root Bone wasn’t even on the list.

"This information is also very important," Yue Gui said.

The information the others had shared could be discovered with a bit of time, but Xu Yang’s news was different. An A-class genius was hidden so deeply that unless he revealed himself, no one would ever know.

"Who is this person?" Chen Jiang asked curiously.

Xu Yang shook his head. "The person who told me this was unwilling to reveal their identity, but I can guarantee that this information is one hundred percent true.

Besides, I suspect there might be more than one person like that."

’Of course it’s true,’ Xu Yang thought. ’Even if Jiang Fan’s information was fake, I’m here to back it up. That’s why I can so confidently guarantee it.’

Unable to learn the hidden genius’s identity, the group was somewhat disappointed. Soon, the meeting came to an end, and the five of them walked out of the private room and departed.