I have an Apocalypse City

Chapter 641: Chapter 641: Summoned

Song Jian was unaware that annihilating Blackwind Village had aroused suspicision among the higher ranks of the Qingyun Sword Sect. In spite of this, the village, being the closest bandit hub to the Qingyun Sword Sect, was inevitable in Song Jian’s path to a fast recovery of his powers.

Rather than sneaking there, he considered it more sensible to openly accept the mission, and once the battle was over, Blackwind Village was reduced to ashes by Song Jian’s hand. He doubted anyone would manage to unearth any evidence from the piles of ash.

In the aftermath of his assault on Blackwind Village, the looted gold, silver, and jewels alone were worth hundreds of thousands of Doomsday Coins. The regular bandits didn’t drop much, mostly gray miscellaneous items and ordinary goods which Song Jian couldn’t care less about. However, the bosses surprisingly dropped some valuable items.

Each of the five bosses dropped two to three golden tickets for Song Jian which could be exchanged at any shop in the game for either a hundred liang of gold or ten thousand Doomsday Coins. Besides, the chief boss dropped his skill book, “Ghost Howl Blade Skill”, which was of blue quality. Although Song Jian could not use it, he could sell it for a good price;

Song Jian planned to exchange this skill book for a sword skill book of the same grade. He had already mastered many skills, but was stuck due to a lack of skill points for upgrading. If he passed the test mission, he would receive a lot of skill points. At that time, he could merge his maxed out skills to create an even more powerful one. As such, his demand for sword skills was growing.

The mission rewards for wiping out Blackwind Village offered by the Sect were also tempting. He could become an inner sect disciple directly and even get a significant amount of pill cultivation and custom weapons.

Song Jian didn’t care much about the status of being an inner sect disciple nor the weapon, but he was quite interested in the cultivation pills. Alchemists held a prestigious position in this world, as they were not only capable of creating pills that rivalled Advanced Healing Potions, but could also create pills that could recover Spirit Points during battles or even permanently increase his attributes, a true eye-opening experience for Song Jian.

If it weren’t for needing to focus completely on the examination tasks, he would have contemplated learning the Alchemy Skill;

The next day, Song Jain dressed in a clean grey robe and made his way towards Qingyun Hall, the conference hall of the Qingyun Sword Sect.

As he neared the hall, Song Jian was led into a side house which served as the reception of Qingyun Hall. It was required to wait here until being summoned by the Sect Leader or the Elders.

Also seated in the side house were a few other disciples, all clad in white robes, much more luxurious than the grey one Song Jian wore;

“Inner Sect disciples…” Song Jian thought to himself;

These were the top performers in the inner disciple examination. Upon seeing Song Jian arrive, a peculiar light flickered in their eyes, observing him up and down as if he were some exotic creature.

Under their probing gazes, Song Jian remained indifferent, instead proceeding to sit down at a tea table nearby. He poured himself a cup of tea and began to leisurely have his snack.

The other inner sect disciples were nervous in anticipation of the summons from the Sect Leader and the Elders. Even while sitting, they maintained an upright posture, sitting impeccably straight and properly.

Observing how Song Jian casually helped himself to refreshments, drew both contempt and admiration from the inner sect disciples.

“You must be Younger Brother Song Jian,” said a man who looked to be in his twenties. “We’ve heard about how you single-handedly annihilated Blackwind Village, and demonstrated your might in the disciple examination, defeating over nine hundred opponents alone. We admire your courage,” he complimented Song Jian with a bow and a smile;

“You flatter me, elder brother,” responded Song Jian, returning the polite gesture.

The second phase of the mission required Song Jian to destroy the entire Qingyun Sword Sect and even kill the Sect Leader. Having been operating around the base of Qingyun Mountain for the past three years, his knowledge of the Sect was nearly non-existent. He didn’t even know who the Elders were, let alone their individual strengths.

With such scarce information and no knowledge of the Sect’s high-ranking members, attempting to destroy it was laughable. This was why Song Jian had decisively attacked Blackwind Village, not only to restore his Combat Power, but also to draw the attention of an Elder or even the Sect Leader, in hopes of being taken in as a direct disciple. This would allow him to learn more about the Qingyun Sword Sect and devise a plan to annihilate it.

Song Jian had already become more or less part of the inner disciples after he destroyed Blackwind Village. Taking into account his performance in yesterday’s examination, he was likely to be summoned by the Sect Leader and the Elders, potentially becoming a direct disciple. So, while the successful inner disciples held some distaste for him, they always maintained a friendly expression, hoping to establish a congenial relationship with Song Jian.

The atmosphere in the side house was harmonious, with everyone discussing which Elder was most powerful and who was the best at mentoring disciples. Compliments were freely given.

Song Jian listened attentively, enjoying their conversations about the Qingyun Sword Sect Elders and subtly gathering information from them.

About half an hour later, another disciple entered and said indifferently to everyone, “The Sect Leader and all the Elders have summoned you. Follow me.”

“Thank you, brother!” The inner disciples promptly rose and bowed to the man who was dressed in a purple robe. Song Jian also stood up and followed suit, showing respect.

Wearing a purple robe was a privilege for only the Sect Leader’s and Elders’ direct disciples. Although they didn’t recognize this disciple, his status as a direct disciple was enough for them to show respect.

The disciple barely acknowledged them with a nod and led them out of the side house. The group hastily followed him.

They soon arrived at Qingyun Hall, one of the most important buildings in the Qingyun Sword Sect where regular official discussions and receptions took place. The grandeur of the building was awe-inspiring, especially the plaque above the main entrance bearing the inscription “Qingyun Hall”. It radiated an extraordinary aura and the vigorous strokes of the inscription hinted at a violent Sword Intent that set the heart pounding upon viewing.

The mere sight of the inscription made Song Jian go cold. It seemed that the second mission was far more challenging than he had anticipated.

…