Zhao Ya didn’t mind the middle-aged man’s unpleasant attitude and casually opened the booklet to take a look, seeing it filled with numerous tasks.
"The weeds in front of the rear hall’s door are overgrown, creating a fire hazard. Clearing the weeds can earn one sect contribution point."
"The kitchen is running low on firewood. Providing one thousand pounds of firewood can earn one sect contribution point."
Tasks like these, tedious and trivial, were plentiful, ranging from weeding to chopping wood, repairing houses to cleaning sewers—a veritable jumble of sect chores.
Zhao Ya found it both amusing and frustrating.
It’s no wonder the other disciples had been complaining—these tasks were indeed dull, and the contribution points offered were minimal, hardly worth the effort.
To access the second floor of the library, at least one hundred sect contribution points were needed, and each hour consumed two points.
As for the third floor, a full thousand sect contribution points were required, with each hour consuming five points.
Initially, when the temple was founded, there wasn’t a sect contribution system; back then, any disciple of the Azure Dragon Temple could enter the library any time, and even Fourth Realm Martial Artists could go to the third floor.
But this led to many issues.
First, some overambitious individuals ignored their capabilities and forcibly practiced powerful cultivation techniques, resulting in self-injury.
Second, some with ulterior motives joined the Azure Dragon Temple not for anything else but to access its vast collection of books.
After joining, they would sneak up to the second and third floors, secretly copy those precious cultivation techniques, and take them out to sell for a high price.
Such chaos increased, eventually prompting the Grand Elder of the Azure Dragon Temple back then to restrict access to the library for disciples, strictly ordering those without the appropriate realm or who hadn’t been in the temple long enough to not enter the second and third floors.
But this was merely a temporary fix, as rules inevitably had loopholes.
If you said those without sufficient realm couldn’t enter, then you couldn’t stop those with enough realm.
As for the time since joining the Azure Dragon Temple, that was even less of a problem—if one year wasn’t enough, they’d wait for two; there would always come a day meeting the conditions.
Hence, such chaos didn’t change, only grew worse.
Until later, when an elder proposed a brilliant idea, which was to establish the sect contribution system.
This not only stopped those with ill intentions but also significantly increased the sect’s cohesion.
Things some elders found inconvenient or disdainful could be accomplished through sect tasks.
Moreover, sect contributions weren’t just for library access; they could also purchase specialty items from the Azure Dragon Temple, such as elixirs and weapons.
Because it benefited all parties, this idea was accepted and, once introduced, gained approval from everyone within the Azure Dragon Temple.
The key was that this system was one of the few that, even now, hasn’t changed much.
Many other rules that were initially well-intended became riddled with loopholes over time due to the greed of humanity, even turning into money-making tools for some, with the Martial Arts Hall being the most obvious example.
Zhao Ya thought this was likely due to two additional rules when the sect contribution system was introduced.
The first rule was that sect contributions could only be earned through completing sect tasks and couldn’t be exchanged in any other way.
The second rule was that sect contributions couldn’t be traded, gifted, or inherited; they belonged to individuals only.
These two seemingly unreasonable rules ensured the system’s continuation to this day.
Even if Zhao Ya now had a good relationship with the elder guarding the library, Guo Luming, he still had to abide by this rule—without enough sect contributions, he simply couldn’t go to the second floor.
Zhao Ya had to admire the elder who established the sect contribution system; this person truly understood human nature, effectively plugging all loopholes.
Even the release of sect tasks followed a rigorous process, especially major tasks, which required the consent of the majority of elders.
However, this also led to a consequence: tasks with appropriate difficulty and good rewards for contribution points were highly sought after and quickly taken once released.
What remained were either these menial tasks or some very challenging ones.
Zhao Ya quickly flipped through the first half of the booklet and finally saw some tasks that weren’t menial work.
"Three hundred miles to the east, there’s a report of a powerful exotic beast roaming the forests. Killing it and bringing back the body will reward sect contributions based on the beast’s level: one hundred for a Fifth Realm exotic beast, two hundred for an ordinary Meridian Opening Realm exotic beast, and any Meat Field discovered will belong to the task executor."
In small print, it noted that this task was only for Martial Artists of the Fifth Realm or above and recommended forming a team.
There are exotic beasts appearing three hundred miles from here? Zhao Ya was a bit surprised.
But since it suggested forming a team, it proved this exotic beast was no ordinary one; thus, Zhao Ya wisely chose to abandon it.
Continuing to look further, the tasks became increasingly difficult.
Though the rewards for sect contributions were high, some even offering seven or eight hundred for a single task, Zhao Ya understood that such tasks were beyond his current capability.
While he was pondering his choice, the middle-aged man at the desk glanced at Zhao Ya and, seeing him flipping through the latter part of the booklet, chuckled lightly.
"Kid, with your current strength, you shouldn’t aim too high by looking at those later tasks. Start with the weeding and woodcutting tasks at the front, gradually build up your strength, and then consider those later ones."
Zhao Ya looked up at the middle-aged man and saw that, although he smelled of alcohol, his eyes were very clear.
And this reminder was indeed well-intentioned, so Zhao Ya nodded.
"Thanks, but I think this task suits me quite well."
Zhao Ya placed the booklet on the table and pointed to one of the tasks.
The middle-aged man leaned forward for a look, a peculiar expression appearing on his face, and then looked up at Zhao Ya.
"Are you sure you want to take on this task?"
"I’m sure."
"Alright then, give me your waist token."
The middle-aged man no longer tried to dissuade him and, after completing the routine registration, said to Zhao Ya.
"Good luck."
"Thank you!"
Zhao Ya took the waist token and the sect task slip, and then turned and left.
Watching his back, the middle-aged man shook his head privately, not believing at all that this ridiculously young Martial Artist had any hope of completing the task.
But what did that have to do with him? He had already done his duty by trying to dissuade him once; the rest was up to Zhao Ya.
Thinking this, the middle-aged man took out a wine bottle and continued drinking.
Meanwhile, after leaving the large courtyard of the Contribution Department, Zhao Ya found a secluded place and took out the sect task slip, pondering carefully.
The description on the task slip was quite brief, only a few sentences.
"Eighty miles down the mountain, near Xiushui Town under this temple’s jurisdiction, there is a bandit group. The leader goes by the nickname Hei Yunzi, who possesses Fifth Realm strength, with approximately twenty followers. This bandit group is elusive and extremely cautious; several encirclement and pursuit attempts have failed to locate their hideout."
"Those who manage to eradicate this bandit group will be rewarded with two hundred Contribution Points from the sect, in addition to the gratitude of Xiushui Town and nearby merchants."
After reading through the slip, Zhao Ya let out a long breath and put it away.
The reason for choosing this task was, first and foremost, the generous reward.
Two hundred Contribution Points were enough for him to reach the second floor and read for fifty hours.
Additionally, although the task seemed dangerous, it was extremely suitable for Zhao Ya.
This was because the bandit leader Hei Yunzi had only Fifth Realm strength.
Zhao Ya was confident that within the Fifth Realm, he had no equal.
Moreover, this bandit group only consisted of about twenty people, barely a small-scale gang of marauders, and he should not have too much trouble handling them.
Of course, this only applied to Zhao Ya. Anyone else would prefer the task of slaying Exotic Beasts over this one.
This was due to the bandit’s elusive behavior, making it extremely difficult just to track them down, let alone completely eradicate them.
But for Zhao Ya, it was not a problem, as the task required tracking and stealthy assassination, both of which Zhao Ya excelled in.
Also, these marauders were often a disorganized mob, appearing vicious but ready to collapse once the leader was slain.
As for the Exotic Beast hunting task that seemed simpler, the suggestion to form a team indicated its true peril.
However, Zhao Ya dared not be careless and returned to his courtyard to prepare carefully, bringing along all necessary items before quietly leaving the Azure Dragon Temple.
The temple’s rule allowed ordinary disciples to descend the mountain but not to stay out overnight.
Of course, there was an exception for those with a sect task slip, but they had to report their itinerary to spend the night outside.
Zhao Ya did not report his plans because he would only scout the situation this time and not spend the night outside.
Leaving the Azure Dragon Temple, Zhao Ya headed straight for Xiushui Town, eighty miles away.
A distance of eighty miles was nothing for Zhao Ya now.
Soon, the outline of a town appeared faintly ahead.
Zhao Ya didn’t rush in but found a secluded grove and took out a small bundle.
Upon opening it, he found various tools for makeup and disguise, as well as a set of clothes prepared in advance.
Zhao Ya began changing his appearance skillfully.
This was all learned from Cong Bo, and the set of tools was specially prepared according to Cong Bo’s instructions for contingencies.
It was now coming to good use.
In just the time it takes to sip a cup of tea, a middle-aged man dressed in blue walked out of the woods, carrying a small brass gong.
This was the typical equipment of a Traveling Doctor, which, when struck, signaled to people that a doctor selling toothache medicine and offering acupuncture services had arrived.
The disguise was naturally for the convenience of gathering information.
The towns in these times were relatively isolated, and outsiders suddenly appearing could easily arouse the wariness and hostility of the local residents.
In contrast, a Traveling Doctor or peddler was different; these were itinerant tradesmen, so people would not pay much attention to them.
And so, Zhao Ya leisurely strolled toward Xiushui Town.