'The morning sun filtered through the windows of Alana's courtyard, casting long golden bars of light across the polished stone floor. One and a half years had passed since Gabriel first stepped into the ranks of being a proper formation master.
He was fifteen now, taller, broader in the shoulders, and the soft features of a child finally disappeared, letting him blossom into a handsome young man. And in the last three months, he reached Qi Condensation Level 11, which was not that surprising.
He stood before his master in the quiet of her study, hands clasped behind his back.
"I'm going to the Mission Hall today," he said simply.
Alana's silver eyes studied him for a long moment. She did not smile, but something softer than usual settled in her expression.
"I know. You've been restless for weeks."
She rose from her seat and walked to a lacquered cabinet, opening it with a soft click.
"Before you leave the mountain, listen carefully."
She spoke as she worked, her voice low and measured.
"Outside these walls, no one will care that you are my disciple. They will only see a young cultivator with a storage ring and a pretty face. Do not flaunt your wealth, because that is a way to court death. If you must fight, end it as quickly as possible and leave no traces. Trust your instincts more than your strength. And if something feels wrong, run. Pride is a luxury only the dead can afford."
She turned and held out a long, slender object wrapped in dark green cloth. When Gabriel took it, the cloth fell away to reveal a straight-edged spirit sword of deep earth-brown steel, the blade faintly inscribed with flowing runes that pulsed like slow vibrations. It was an Earth-grade spirit weapon.
"This is Rootcleaver," Alana said.
"It drinks earth qi from the ground itself when you stand upon solid earth. You'll discover how to utilize this perk. Use it well."
She then placed three small jade bottles and a thin silver talisman into his hands.
"These are some life-saving treasures. One for escaping certain death, one for sealing a fatal wound long enough to flee, and one that will hide your presence for the time it takes to cross a mountain range. These don't give you the right to be careless; stay sharp."
Gabriel bowed deeply. "Thank you, Master."
Alana's hand held against his face for a moment, almost hesitant.
"Come back alive, Gabriel. That is an order."
He left her courtyard with the weight of the sword and the treasures settling into his storage ring. The corridor outside was quiet; the morning was still young. He had only taken a few steps when three familiar figures appeared around the corner as if they had been waiting for him.
Seraphina leaned against the wall, arms crossed, her usual sharp smile tempered by something almost fond.
"So, the little formation genius is finally leaving the nest."
She pushed off the wall and walked closer, voice dropping.
"Listen to me, missions may look simple on paper, but they never are. Watch the people who smile too easily. Watch the ones who offer help without asking for anything in return. And if you find yourself outnumbered, don't try to be a hero. Break their formation, create chaos, and vanish. You're better at that than most of the seniors already."
Liora stepped forward next, her soft features marked by quiet concern. She pressed two porcelain bottles into his hands.
"High-grade healing pills. And these are qi replenishment pills. I refined them myself last night. Don't be frugal if you're injured. Take them when needed."
Her voice was gentle, but her eyes held a firmness that brooked no argument.
"Come back in one piece. I still need someone to test new recipes on."
Kaelira, the tallest of the three, simply reached out and ruffled his hair the way she had done when he was a child.
"You've grown so fast," she said, a rare, genuine smile on her lips.
"Go show them what a proper disciple of this peak looks like. And remember, if anyone gives you trouble, you have three senior sisters who will make them regret it."
Gabriel felt warmth in his chest, equal parts gratitude and embarrassment. He bowed to each of them in turn.
"Thank you, elder sisters. I'm off."
They watched him go.
Back in his own courtyard, Gabriel changed into travel robes of muted gray and black, the kind that would not draw eyes. He checked his storage ring one final time—sword, treasures, pills, formation flags, and mountain spirit stones—then stepped out into the open air.
The sect stretched before him like a vast, layered mountain kingdom, peaks and valleys connected by winding paths that would take an ordinary cultivator days to cross on foot.
He waved his hand. A sleek, azure flying sword shot from his storage ring and hovered at his side, humming with restrained power. Gabriel stepped onto it without hesitation. The wind caught his robes as the sword rose, carrying him high above the courtyards and training grounds, toward the distant Mission Hall that waited on the far side of the sect.
The azure flying sword descended in a smooth arc, cutting through the morning mist that clung to the lower peaks of the Celestial Haven Sect.
Gabriel stepped off the blade the moment it hovered a foot above the wide stone plaza before the Mission Hall. The structure rose before him like a fortress of pale jade and dark timber, its massive doors already open to the steady stream of disciples coming and going.
Banners bearing the sect's celestial motif fluttered in the high wind, and the air itself hummed with the restrained qi of hundreds of cultivators.
Inside the hall, rows of mission boards stretched along the walls. Gabriel walked up to the boards and started looking for a suitable mission. His eyes locked onto a posting of an Earth-grade mission marked in bold crimson characters.
Mission: Exterminate Bandit Stronghold