Chapter 177: 20,000 Contribution Points
Chapter 177: Chapter 177: 20,000 Contribution Points
Chapter 177: 20,000 Contribution Points
The journey back to Stormveil City was entirely uneventful.
The towering gates of the Stormveil Academy came into view as the four of them crossed the final stretch of road leading back from the Thunder Beast Ridge.
They directly headed toward the Battle Arts Division.
The collection hall was located on the western wing of the division complex — a wide, bustling space where disciples regularly submitted their completed missions and received rewards.
When Rhain stepped through the doors, the hall was moderately crowded.
Dozens of disciples milled about, some waiting in line at the various counters, others eagerly turning in the spoils of their completed missions and collecting their hard-earned Contribution Points.
Rhain walked straight to the main submission counter at the center of the hall.
Behind the counter sat a stocky, middle-aged man with a thick beard and shrewd, appraising eyes.
He wore the administrative robes of the Division staff, and a small bronze nameplate on his chest read "Gareth."
Gareth was looking at a stack of reports as Rhain approached.
"What can I do for you?" Gareth asked in a bored tone without looking up.
Rhain produced the mission slip from his spatial ring and slid it across the counter.
Gareth picked it up, his eyes scanning the details.
The moment he read the mission name, his thick eyebrows shot upward.
He looked at Rhain, then back at the slip, then at Rhain again.
A knowing grin spread across his bearded face.
"Ah, so you must be the new Gold Badge disciple everyone’s been whispering about," Gareth said, leaning back in his chair with an amused chuckle. "The one Preceptor Fabian personally appointed. Let me guess — you picked this mission yesterday when you registered, and after spending a night thinking it over, you’ve finally come to your senses and decided to drop it. Am I right?"
His tone was almost sympathetic.
"It’s not uncommon, you know," Gareth continued, waving the slip lazily. "Plenty of ambitious young geniuses waltz in here on their first day, see the massive reward attached to this particular mission, and grab it without thinking. Then they go home, do a bit of research on what Violet Thunder Panthers actually are, and come running back with their tails between their legs. No shame in it. Better to lose a little face than to lose your life out there in the Thunder Beast Ridge! I’ll cancel the registration for you without a penalty."
Rhain looked at the man’s patronizing smile with a perfectly calm expression.
"I am not here to drop the mission," Rhain stated flatly.
Gareth let out a louder laugh, slapping his palm against the counter.
"Not here to drop it?" Gareth chuckled, "Don’t tell me you’ve actually completed it? In a single day? You want me to believe you waltzed into Thunder Beast Ridge this morning and came back with ten intact corpses of late-stage Spirit Manifestation Violet Thunder Panthers before sunset?"
Rhain didn’t bother wasting his breath with an explanation.
A glowing spatial ring materialized in his palm. He slid it across the counter, right next to the mission slip.
"Check it yourself."
Gareth rolled his eyes, clearly convinced that this arrogant newcomer was playing some kind of childish prank.
Shaking his head, he picked up the spatial ring and projected his Spiritual Sense inside.
The very next second, his face turned ghastly pale.
Lying neatly within the spatial space were exactly ten intact corpses of Violet Thunder Panthers.
Nine of them radiated the residual aura of late-stage Spirit Manifestation beasts.
And the tenth...
The tenth corpse was so massive, and its lingering lightning essence so extremely dense, that Gareth’s heart nearly stopped beating.
Gareth’s face went completely white.
"That... that last one..." Gareth stammered, his shrewd eyes bulging as he recognized the beast. "That’s a Level 9! A peak Spirit Manifestation Violet Thunder Panther!"
The loud exclamation instantly silenced the bustling Collection Hall.
Dozens of disciples turned their heads to look at Rhain, and Gareth.
"Impossible," Gareth muttered, looking back up at Rhain, his expression rapidly shifting from disbelief to suspicion.
He abruptly slammed his hand against the counter, his previous amusement completely replaced by strict outrage.
"Boy," Gareth said, his voice dropping low and turning stern. "I need to make something very clear to you. Academy’s rules explicitly state that all entrance missions must be completed by the disciple themselves. You cannot hire an outside expert — a Core Formation Realm cultivator, for instance — to do the killing for you and then claim the credit. If we allowed such blatant cheating, every wealthy disciple would simply buy their way to the top!"
Rhain’s eyes narrowed slightly, a trace of annoyance brushing past his calm face.
However, before he could even open his mouth to respond, a clear, young voice rang out from behind him.
"He killed them himself."
Gareth’s sharp eyes shifted to the speaker.
Jace stepped forward from behind Rhain.
"Every single one of those beasts was killed by him alone," Jace said, his voice carrying across the now-silent collection hall. "I personally witnessed him kill the Level 9 Violet Thunder Panther."
Gareth looked at Jace, and his stern expression instantly softened. But his face remained full of deep suspicion.
"Young master Jace..." He spoke, visibly conflicted, "Please do not joke with me. It’s impossible for a disciple to kill ten late stage Spirit Manifestation Realm beast within a day. Even if you say so, a Level 9 Violet Thunder Panther is simply too powerful. Are you truly certain he didn’t use some hidden expert’s talisman or array?"
Jace’s eyes turned cold. "Do I look like someone who jokes?"
He stepped closer to the counter, his tone unyielding. "If you are accusing him of cheating, you are accusing me of being a liar. "
Gareth’s brows knitted together as he heard Jace’s confident rebuttal.
Every single staff member in the Battle Arts Division knew the face of High Preceptor Octavius’s son.
Jace was notoriously arrogant, fiercely proud, and despised acknowledging anyone else’s superiority.
For a pampered genius with his background to openly admit that a newcomer had slain a beast he couldn’t even scratch...his pride would never allow him to lower his head and lie on behalf of a stranger
If Jace verified it so firmly, risking his own face to defend this youth...then it could not be a lie.
Beric and Quinlan also stepped up beside Jace, nodding heavily.
"It’s the truth, Deacon," Beric added, gesturing to his own broken, bandaged arm. "If not for Senior Rhain’s intervention, that Level 9 panther would have slaughtered all three of us."
Gareth stared at the three of them, his mind caught in a violent storm of cognitive dissonance for a while.
He then slowly exhaled, collapsing back into his chair.
"I... I see, apologies for my presumption" Gareth said weakly.
He took Rhain’s Gold badge, and with trembling hands, he channeled his essence, officially registering the mission as complete.
A golden light flashed across the badge.
"Your reward has been credited. Twenty thousand Contribution Points!"
Rhain calmly retrieved his Gold Badge, completely ignoring the awestruck stares of the surrounding disciples.
"Thank you," he said simply.
The surrounding disciples in the collection hall were still frozen in place.
Most Bronze Badge disciples earned a few hundred points per month. Even Silver Badge disciples rarely accumulated more than a thousand in the same period.
Behind Rhain, Jace, Beric, and Quinlan swiftly turned in their own Lightning Spirit Herbs, claiming their rewards.
Once finished, the trio walked up to Rhain
"Senior Rhain," Beric spoke with profound gratitude. "Thank you for saving our lives today. We will never forget this."
Quinlan followed suit, bowing deeply. "If Senior ever needs anything, please don’t hesitate to call on us."
Jace remained silent for a moment before looking directly into Rhain’s dark grey eyes.
"My father will definitely be informed of this life-saving debt. Our family does not forget favors. If you ever need anything in the Inner Palace, you have my word."
Rhain looked at their sincere expressions and gave a measured nod.
"There is no need for such heavy words," Rhain replied. "Take care of yourselves."
Without lingering any longer, Rhain turned around and walked out of the Collection Hall.
_____________
After leaving the Battle Arts Division, Rhain didn’t return to his courtyard.
He headed straight toward the residential sector assigned to the Silver Badge disciples, walking until he stopped before Residence Number 59.
This was where Neve lived.
Just as he wanted to knock, he heard an irritated voice from within.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why does it keep failing at the same point? The temperature was perfect! The timing was perfect! What am I doing wrong?!"
A loud clang of metal against stone followed — presumably a cauldron lid being tossed in frustration.
"Ugh... I should have asked for more from that rich idiot when I had the chance," the voice continued, muttering bitterly. "He was practically throwing money around like water! And I only got a single batch out of him, and I already ruined them all! I’m so stupid..."
A dramatic, self-pitying sigh drifted through the door.
"Now I’m completely broke again! I’ll never be able to attempt the Master Rank breakthrough! He probably realized I’m a shameless opportunist and is never coming back to make a deal with me again!"
Knock. Knock.
The sudden sound at her courtyard gate made Neve freeze.
Grumbling under her breath, she stomped over to the entrance and pulled the heavy wooden doors open.
Her hair was a disheveled bird’s nest, and a large streak of black soot was prominently smeared across her left cheek from her latest cauldron explosion.
"Who is it—"
Neve’s irritated voice stopped in her mouth as she raised her head to look at the towering man before her.
Standing with his hands casually folded before his chest was Rhain.
Rhain’s dark grey eyes casually swept past her, taking a quick glance at her residence.
Through the open doors, he could perfectly see the disaster zone behind her.
The floor was completely littered with charred herb stalks, and highly toxic waste pills scattered everywhere like garbage.
Rhain raised a single eyebrow.
Calling it messy would be a gross understatement..
"Y-You—!" Neve practically jumped in the air, completely ignoring the soot on her face. "You’re here! Do you... do you want to buy more herbs?!"
"I need more materials," Rhain nodded.
"Yes! Yes, of course!" Neve nodded eagerly, her eyes almost turning into the shape of Aetherium Crystals. "What do you need this time? I’ll use my Master’s requisition stamp right away!"
Rhain didn’t waste time listing them out verbally.
He reached into his robes and produced a list, handling it over to her.
"I am transferring fifteen thousand contribution points to your account," Rhain stated. "In exchange, I need you to buy a specific list of Rare, and Epic-Grade herbs for me."
"F-Fifteen... Fifteen thousand Contribution Points?" Neve shrieked, "Are you insane? Do you know how much this is worth?"
She stared at him as if he were an alien. "One Contribution Point is roughly equal to a thousand Aetherium Crystals! You just want to causally hand me the equivalent of fifteen million Aetherium Crystals! A Gold Badge disciple wouldn’t even earn this much in an entire year."
Rhain finally got a clear conversion rate. 1 CP = 1,000 Aetherium Crystals.
His twenty thousand points from the panthers equated to twenty million crystals.
For a few hours of work, it was an acceptable payout.
"Just buy the herbs," Rhain said indifferently, and transferred the credit to her badge.
Neve’s greedy instincts immediately kicked into overdrive as she saw the unbelievable number of credits in her badge.
A shameless, opportunistic grin stretched across her soot-stained face.
"Okay, okay, I will buy them!" Neve declared proudly. "But... this is a massive bulk order of Epic-Grade herbs! Uncle Luan is going to be incredibly suspicious! I need a processing fee to... um... bribe him to look the other way! Yes, a processing fee!"
She held up three fingers. "Three million Aetherium Crystals!"
Rhain looked at her dead in the eye.
"One million," Rhain countered flatly.
He wouldn’t be fooled, not after hearing her mumblings.
"Two million!" Neve argued back, waving her hands defensively. "Come on, I’m taking a huge risk using master’s name for this much bulk!"
Rhain didn’t argue. He simply extended his hand forward.
"One million, or I’ll go find another Expert Rank alchemist who likes money."
Neve’s eyes widened in panic.
The thought of losing this walking goldmine was physically painful to her.
"Fine! Fine! One million!" Neve immediately agreed, forcing a deeply ’disappointed’ pout onto her face as her shoulders slumped. "You are so stingy for a rich guy..."
Despite her Oscar-worthy performance of disappointment, Rhain could literally see her eyes sparkling with internal cheers.
One million Aetherium Crystals was more than enough to fully fund her next few attempts at the Master Rank breakthrough.
"Have them delivered to Residence 32 by tomorrow," Rhain instructed, turning to leave.
"Don’t worry, I’ll have them at your door tomorrow!" Neve called out happily, already rushing back into her messy courtyard to prepare for her shopping spree.