Chapter 4081 — Forming a Team to Head Out

Listening to the exclamations and chatter of the people around him, Wei Zhao merely glanced indifferently at the names on the ranking board, then shook his head. None of this had much to do with him, nor was he interested in any of it. A single look was enough.

Turning his gaze to the mission board, Wei Zhao began searching for missions related to Hucai Tianwu Mountain. Only through such a mission could he obtain the corresponding map routes and intelligence from the guild.

Searching back and forth among the densely packed mission boards, Wei Zhao finally spotted one that fit his requirements: "Mission issuer: Haomen Metropolis. Mission location: Hucai Tianwu Mountain and the surrounding ranges. Seeking to purchase one hundred Bitter Relief Fruits, one hundred stalks of Phoenix-Eyebrow Heartless Grass..."

A purchase order for spirit herbs in such massive quantities already counted as no small mission in this Foundation Establishment mission zone; for anyone else, it would be difficult to take on alone. But Wei Zhao had the Heavenly Thunder Pig. So long as he went to the right place, gathering however many spirit herbs would merely cost him a bit more time. That was no problem at all.

Yet just as Wei Zhao stepped forward to claim it, he saw a guild staff member stamp a conspicuous check mark on that mission board.

A mission he had found only after such difficulty had been snatched away just like that. Wei Zhao's face darkened at once. He could only curse his bad luck, and with no other choice, turned to keep searching the mission zone.

Just then, he suddenly heard someone nearby say, "Captain, Junior Brother Li Kubao isn't here today. He was called away to Qingyun Pavilion for a temporary mission. We're short a man now. Should we find someone else to join us?"

The one addressed as captain was a masked woman. Hearing this, she nodded in agreement. "That works too. With so many spirit herbs to gather at Hucai Tianwu Mountain this time, the three of us alone really won't be enough."

At those words, Wei Zhao's heart stirred. He walked over to the group and deliberately muttered to himself, "It's already this late, and that fellow Old Xiao still hasn't shown up. There's no way I can take on any mission by myself. What a wasted trip this turned out to be. That fellow really is unreliable..."

Sure enough, the group exchanged glances, and their gazes promptly fell on Wei Zhao, carrying a fair measure of scrutiny. Seeing that Wei Zhao had a rough, rugged look about him—a typical martial man—they nodded to one another in relief.

The masked woman stepped up to Wei Zhao in two strides and spoke. "Fellow trial participant, I happened to overhear what you said just now. You're looking to take on a mission too?"

Seeing that she had taken the bait so smoothly, Wei Zhao was delighted. He nodded hurriedly. "That's right. I'd arranged to go with a companion, but that fellow is always running into trouble. Seems he can't make it again this time. I'm at my wit's end over it."

"What a coincidence, then. Our squad just took on a mission to gather spirit herbs at Hucai Tianwu Mountain, and we happen to be short one person. Would you be willing to join?" The masked woman promptly extended the olive branch.

"Join your squad?" Wei Zhao feigned hesitation for a moment, then agreed. "Well, sure. I've got nothing to do on my own anyway. I was just thinking the same thing!"

From his earlier observations, Wei Zhao had already noticed that many people in this great hall took on missions in groups—like this trial squad before him, with the captain leading and the others assisting, the several of them working together to complete the task.

By comparison, trial participants who worked solo did exist, but they were not many. After all, high returns meant high risks; the bounty missions posted by the great merchant houses were all quite difficult, impossible for one person to handle. At most, a lone participant could take on small, unremarkable tasks.

When a mission was claimed as a squad, the contribution points earned upon completion all went to the captain, while the bounty rewards were divided among the members. Each squad had its own way of splitting things, some taking more, some less.

For trial participants of modest strength, joining a squad was far more dependable than doing small missions alone—at least in terms of rewards, it far surpassed the latter.

Seeing Wei Zhao agree so readily, the masked woman said happily, "Wonderful. Let me introduce myself. I'm Huang Xiaotao, captain of this trial squad. My current strength is late Foundation Establishment."

Pausing a moment, Huang Xiaotao then introduced the two beside her. "These two are Junior Brother Chen Muzhuang and Junior Brother Cong Zhima. Both are skilled hands at mid Foundation Establishment. The three of us are all disciples of Qingyun Pavilion."

So they were all fellow disciples, then? Wei Zhao nodded inwardly, though on the surface he put on a bluff, hearty manner and cupped his hands to the three of them. "I'm Ling Yi, just a loose cultivator. I'll be counting on everyone's kind guidance!"

Normally, when people agreed to cooperate and introduced themselves, they would state their strength, since that was the most basic foundation for working together. But Wei Zhao did not say, and Huang Xiaotao and the others did not mind much. They simply assumed Wei Zhao's strength was not high, that he could not compare to the three of them, and so he had been too embarrassed to mention it.

Even if Wei Zhao said nothing, though, they could at least be certain of one thing: this Ling Yi, whom they had just met, was definitely a skilled hand at Foundation Establishment. Otherwise he could not have passed the assessment and become a guild member.

In any case, this was not some dangerous mission against powerful spirit beasts—just gathering spirit herbs. So long as he had some ability to protect himself, it would be fine. Even if his strength was not great, having an extra pair of hands to carry things was still good. Wei Zhao's joining would be quite helpful to their three-person squad.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the three did not linger long in the guild. Led by Huang Xiaotao, they left the guild at once and made ready to set out.

Holding the map route provided by the guild, Wei Zhao roughly gauged their position and found that Hucai Tianwu Mountain was fully several thousand li from this place. He could not help asking in puzzlement, "Captain Xiaotao, Hucai Tianwu Mountain is so far away. How are the four of us going to get there? Walking would take quite a lot of time, wouldn't it?"

At this, the three exchanged smiles and did not answer. Huang Xiaotao walked to an open space and gave a whistle toward the sky. Moments later, a flying spirit beast came shrieking down in a spiral, landing before the four of them.

Wei Zhao was rather surprised at the sight. This was a large spirit bird with quite brilliantly colored tail feathers—gentle in temperament and extremely fast, an excellent choice for a flying spirit beast. If it were sold, it would likely fetch an astronomical price. Huang Xiaotao's wealth was no small thing!

Even a figure like Nan Tianguan had never been seen with a flying spirit beast of his own, yet Huang Xiaotao, merely a disciple of Qingyun Pavilion, possessed one. It was clear that Chen Muzhuang and the others were willing to attach themselves to her for good reason.

Of course, another possibility could not be ruled out: that Huang Xiaotao had gritted her teeth and paid a hefty sum for this large spirit bird to make bounty missions more convenient.

Seeing Wei Zhao's surprise, Huang Xiaotao explained with a smile, "Brother Ling Yi, there's no need to be suspicious. This spirit bird, I subdued during a trial back when I was still a newcomer at Yingxin Pavilion. It has followed me ever since."