"This is yours." "This is yours." A blue-clad youth, an embroidery of a flame motif stark against his chest, stood in the logistics department, handing out robes to the stream of people arriving. These outer disciple garments for the Scarlet Extinction Sect were entirely fire-red, intricately threaded with golden cloud patterns—they were classified as mid-grade Ghost Treasures!
Accompanying each set was a standard-issue longsword, also a mid-grade Ghost Treasure!
Ye Chen’s eyes flickered slightly as he observed this. Only a massive sect like the Scarlet Extinction Sect would have the audacity to issue every single outer disciple a complete set of mid-grade Ghost Treasures!
One or two items were insignificant, but consider the sheer scale of the Scarlet Extinction Sect’s power: the outer disciples numbered as countless as the hairs on an ox, conservatively estimated to be in the hundreds of millions. If each received a set of mid-grade Ghost Treasures, that amounted to hundreds of millions of sets!
"This is yours." The blue-clad youth retrieved a set of clothes from the cabinet and passed it to Ye Chen. These garments were impervious to common dirt; if soiled, one could simply visit the Purification Chamber and use a Dust-Repelling Bead to clean them.
Ye Chen accepted them casually, paying them no mind.
These clothes were merely gifts from the Sect and were forbidden from being sold; discovery would lead to severe punishment. If one already possessed superior equipment, these robes were practically a liability rather than an asset.
Beep-beep!
The optical computer on Ye Chen’s arm suddenly chimed, and simultaneously, the tens of thousands of people collecting their robes did the same.
Everyone paused, then quickly lowered their heads to check.
"Respected Mr. Ye Chen, you have been assigned to the hall designated as: The Ore Hall! If you have any queries, feel free to inquire at any time."
Ye Chen frowned slightly upon reading the message, then utilized the exclusive function on his optical arm-guard to investigate further.
"The Ore Hall: Specifically responsible for the ore mining operations of the Scarlet Extinction Sect!"
"Within the territories governed by the Scarlet Extinction Sect, there are numerous Ghost Mountains and Divine Mountains! These hide rich mineral veins available for procurement."
Ye Chen grasped the situation with a quick glance.
The cultivation routine within the Scarlet Extinction Sect was remarkably simple: mine ore on the designated mountains for eight hours daily, with one day off per week for free movement and activity! Furthermore, at the end of every month, outer disciples would be organized to enter a dedicated Cultivation Ground for one full day of training! Ye Chen had initially braced himself for stringent training regimens, but this proved unexpectedly straightforward—the only true unknown was that Cultivation Ground!
"Only one entry allowed per month; the effect of each session must be absolutely extraordinary!" A strange light glinted deep within Ye Chen’s eyes.
Once the clothing distribution concluded, numerous personnel arrived to escort Ye Chen and the others to their residential quarters.
Ye Chen’s assigned residence was located in Star-Moon Bay, the residential complex for outer disciples of the Scarlet Extinction Sect, specifically in Building 18, Unit 9, Apartment 901!
Every newly initiated disciple received a Sect Introduction Letter detailing the basic structure of the Scarlet Extinction Sect. For example, the letter informed the outer disciples that if they felt weary from labor, they could enter Blue Moon Lake for immersion, which not only strengthened the body but could also heal common fractures and injuries.
Ye Chen also learned his task for the following day: to accompany the others assigned to the Ore Hall under the guidance of their supervisor, heading to a Three-Star Ghost Mountain!
Among the many mining mountains controlled by the Scarlet Extinction Sect, the mountains were graded from one to nine stars!
Ranging from one to three stars were the Ghost Mountains: Low-grade, Mid-grade, and High-grade Ghost Mountains!
Four to six stars were the Half-Divine Mountains, and seven to nine stars were the Pseudo-Divine Mountains!
As for the even higher tier—the True Divine Mountains—whether they existed within the Scarlet Extinction Sect remained a secret, inaccessible to Ye Chen with his current clearance level.
After a night of rest, the next day, sunlight bathed the vast plaza, chasing away the gloom of Azure Water City.
On the protective barrier above Azure Water City, two artificial suns and moons alternated, mirroring the day-night cycle of Earth. If one left the city and ventured into the wilderness, the sky would permanently display only the blood-red moon!
The immense plaza teemed with figures. Above, a First-Tier Pseudo-Divine Realm flying vessel descended, trailing radiant streams of light, appearing as if arriving from ancient times, tearing through the clouds to hover overhead.
"To the Three-Star Ghost Mountain!"
"Board the ship!"
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The gathered figures on the plaza surged upward, streaming directly through the gaps in the energy shield projected from the vessel. Standing inside the ship was a man of formidable stature, broad-shouldered and barrel-chested, his face obscured by a thick tangle of beard. His skin was dark, and his muscles bunched powerfully beneath his robes, radiating faint waves of divine energy.
The disciples, Ye Chen included, stood before this man, forming a square.
"Little new recruits!" The stout middle-aged man laughed heartily, looking at the assembly. "Consider it bad luck you were assigned to our Ore Hall! From this day forward, you belong to the Ore Hall!"
Bad luck? The crowd felt a collective weight settle on their hearts.
The burly man smiled slightly. "I am the Deputy Overseer of the Three-Star Ghost Mountain, and I need to impart a few rules. When mining in our sector, the absolute first rule is: absolutely no stealing of ore!"
"The ore mountains are riddled with precise instrumentation and mechanisms. Outsiders cannot enter without the access codes—attempting to force entry will trigger the traps! Furthermore, monitors are installed throughout every mining tunnel, and the Mountain Headquarters possesses a sensor capable of observing the movements of everyone on the entire ore mountain!"
"Therefore..."
"If anyone selfishly steals ore and is discovered, they will face severe penalties. Exceeding two offenses will result in immediate expulsion from the sect!"
The burly middle-aged man gazed at the young faces before him, sighing. "You are still young; do not do anything foolish that could ruin your future!"
The crowd remained silent.
The vessel traveled at incredible speed, reaching the ore mountain managed by the Scarlet Extinction Sect in about three hours.
This was the first time Ye Chen and the others had been here. Standing in the ship, peering through the energy shield, they saw distant skies shrouded in mist, where starlight was extinguished. Massive mountains, kilometers—even tens of kilometers—in diameter, hung suspended in the air.
The sight of all those mountains floating overhead stunned everyone into silence.
The hulking man chuckled. "This is the Ghost Mountain Sector. The area suspended highest, separated by designated flight paths, is the Three-Star Ghost Mountain; the lowest level is the One-Star Ghost Mountain! This entire expanse falls under the jurisdiction of the Scarlet Extinction Sect, guarded by immensely powerful deities. Very few outsiders know the established flight routes, and even if they did, they couldn't do much about it!"
"Here in Azure Water City, our Scarlet Extinction Sect is supreme! Even across the entire White Lotus Divine Continent, no faction dares to provoke us."
"The underlying structure of this space is rather peculiar—the gravitational pull is counteracted and reflected by instruments, causing this entire region to be weightless. Thus, all these mountains can float, requiring only small thrusters to keep an entire mountain aloft!" The burly middle-aged man looked at Ye Chen and the others with pride. "Once you cultivate for a time and reach the Half-Divine Realm, you can become Inner Disciples! Your future prospects are limitless. If you manage to reach the Pseudo-Divine Realm, you will be assigned to the Genius Hall!"
"The Genius Hall?"
Everyone blinked in surprise.
The burly middle-aged man nodded. "Indeed. The Genius Hall gathers the true core talents of our Scarlet Extinction Sect; they are the elite, with the lowest cultivation base being the Pseudo-Divine Realm!" The crowd couldn't help but feel a surge of awe.
At that moment, the flying vessel entered the zero-gravity zone and ascended directly to the uppermost floating mountain. Looking around, this Ghost Mountain was vast, spanning perhaps ten kilometers in diameter, slowly rotating silently in the air.
"Disembark."
The burly man led the way, plunging downward.
The crowd followed.
The group arrived at a cluster of buildings situated beneath the Ghost Mountain. These structures possessed a certain Greek style, hinting at Western influence, and were guarded by many warriors at the Ghost God Realm cultivation level standing at the entrances.
As Ye Chen and the others looked up at these colossal structures, they couldn't help but feel insignificant. They lingered only briefly before following the burly middle-aged man inside.
"First, a test," the burly middle-aged man instructed. "Stand here. The intelligent system will scan this area to detect if any of you have activated Relic Spaces or are concealing Boundary-Sealing Stones." He pointed toward a platform.
The platform was entirely metallic, ten zhang in diameter, with a metal pillar in the center adorned with numerous buttons.
Urged on by the middle-aged man, the group stepped up one by one to undergo the testing.
"Passed!"
"Passed!"
"Boundary-Sealing Stone!"
After each person stood motionless on the platform for three minutes, the system's judgment would sound. After several consecutive passes, one handsome youth, hailing from the Atlantean civilization, was flagged for carrying a Boundary-Sealing Stone!
The burly middle-aged man’s expression darkened slightly. He addressed the youth, "Considering it your first offense, hand it over!"
The handsome youth’s face grew pale. Slowly, he fumbled in his robes and withdrew a small, jet-black stone, shaped like a teardrop and the size of a river pebble. Its surface was smooth, emanating faint, peculiar fluctuations. If viewed from underneath it in sunlight, one could see a rainbow refracted through the stone.
"Leave it here; you can claim it after your tasks for the day are complete." The burly man’s hand shot out, snatching the Boundary-Sealing Stone and placing it into a nearby cabinet.
The others remained silent.
The testing continued. Nearly a hundred people were scanned. Most passed without issue, though a minority with stronger foundations had brought Boundary-Sealing Stones, some kept in their personal Spatial Folding Bags.
These Spatial Folding Bags required a Boundary-Sealing Stone to be opened within the highly restrictive spatial environment of the Ancient World; without the stone, the bags would seal shut.
After scanning everyone, the burly middle-aged man had confiscated twenty or thirty Boundary-Sealing Stones in total.
Ye Chen passed the test flawlessly. Although he possessed the Relic Spaces of both the Fire Civilization and the Rune Civilization, without a Boundary-Sealing Stone, those spaces could not be activated, rendering them undetectable.
"Testing concluded, everyone disperse!" Seeing the tests finished, the burly middle-aged man waved his hand, ushering the crowd out of the building. "Eight hours a day; don't be lazy. The monitoring system will be watching."
The thousands present could only offer wry, silent smiles.
Under the guidance of several foremen, Ye Chen and the others collected their assigned hoes and mining shovels. Directed by the foremen, they entered the depths of various mining tunnels to begin their procurement work.
The moment Ye Chen gripped the hoe and the shovel, he was shocked to find that the hoe was forged from an unknown material, yet weighed over ten million kilograms!
The mining shovel weighed a substantial five million kilograms!
A powerhouse at the Ten Thousand Level of physical constitution possessed a total strength of only five million kilograms.
Many whose physique barely reached the Ten Thousand Level could only drag the hoe along with great effort, and as for the small mining shovel, they could barely manage to lift it with both hands—and merely holding it was enough to make them break out in a heavy sweat.
"No wonder three years of daily mining here is enough to reach the Half-Divine Realm," Ye Chen muttered, feeling the muscles in his arms bulge and tremble slightly as he held the heavy tools.