Chapter 222
Chapter 222: Black White Heaven Club
After Wu Yuan left for the Hanhai Sea battlefield, Wang Jie and the others continued toward the Central Core.
After traveling for some time, the Central Core finally appeared in the distance.
They were home at last.
The battles in the Hanhai Sea truly made Wang Jie understand what it meant to race between life and death. Had he not been lucky enough to meet Yan Xiao Nian, perhaps his life would have ended there.
Li Tong He approached his side and asked softly, “How was it? Would you ever return to the Hanhai Sea battlefield again?”
Wang Jie smiled bitterly, replying, “If I can avoid it, naturally I won’t go.”
Li Tong He laughed lightly and said, “I thought you would be like those people, always rushing to wherever danger awaits.”
“Those people?”
“Six Dao Wanderer and his companions,” Li Tong He explained.
Wang Jie responded calmly, “This disciple is different from them.”
Li Tong He gazed thoughtfully at Wang Jie and gently shook his head, “No, you’re exactly like them. It’s just that you’re more cautious, and perhaps carry a bit more responsibility.”
[Cautiousness, I’ll admit. But responsibility?] Wang Jie had never truly considered himself to carry any particular burden—unless one counted Blue Star itself.
Li Tong He sighed, eyes distant. “Every cultivator speaks of contending with the heavens, the earth, other beings, even with all creation. But how many lives have perished along this path of contention? They say the more you fight, the stronger you grow, that the universe belongs only to those who fight. Yet, in the eyes of this old man, to abstain from fighting is also a kind of contention.”
Wang Jie stared in surprise at Li Tong He, not expecting such words from him.
It was a somewhat pessimistic thought; voicing it openly on a battlefield would likely be labeled cowardice.
Li Tong He’s eyes held deep complexities as he continued, “The resources of the universe seem infinite, but the closer you approach the peak, the scarcer they become. Perhaps at the very pinnacle, the greatest resource of all is simply being alive.”
Wang Jie nodded thoughtfully. “Elder’s words have merit.”
Li Tong He smiled faintly, “Such thoughts I’ve only ever shared with you. Most in the sect would never agree. Wu Yuan is no exception. They firmly believe that only through struggle can the future be won.” He glanced warmly at Wang Jie, adding gently, “But you’re still young. There’s no need to adopt this old man’s pessimism. Fight when you must. Everyone fears death, yet every escape from death grants rewards from heaven, does it not?”
Wang Jie chuckled softly. “Not just heaven; the sect rewards us as well.”
Li Tong He laughed heartily. “True enough—the sect does reward bravery. Besides ensuring Elder Ming stops causing you trouble, how about this old man gives you another reward?”
“What reward?” Wang Jie immediately asked.
“You really don’t stand on ceremony, do you?” Li Tong He’s expression turned serious. “But whether this reward can truly become yours, I cannot say yet. This old man wishes to recommend you for entry into the Black White Heaven Club.”
Wang Jie’s eyes sharpened instantly. [The Black White Heaven Club?]
He had not expected such a prestigious offer from Li Tong He.
Clubs were small but powerful groups active throughout the universe. Initially formed to hunt cosmic giant beasts, they arose naturally due to humanity’s need to fight and survive amid the countless beasts roaming the stars. Organizing large-scale exterminations was never cost-effective, so these clubs became the solution.
[Not unlike Blue Star’s hunting teams from the old days.]
Yet as cosmic giant beasts gradually became scarce in human-controlled regions, clubs found new roles: securing resources, fame, talent, and territories for the powers backing them.
Black White Heaven Club, for instance, controlled the Fourth Star Cloud. It oversaw major battles between star clouds, but not every conflict could be settled on the battlefield. Many disputes and rivalries were handled by the club’s members secretly, far away in other star clouds. The club became Black White Heaven’s blade, acting openly on behalf of the sect, a direct reflection of its strength.
They wielded absolute authority to do anything Black White Heaven itself could. In fact, they were Black White Heaven.
This practice was not unique to Black White Heaven; nearly every sect and great power had their own clubs. Most conflicts rarely escalated to war, instead resolved at the club level. Only when clubs failed did matters grow more serious.
Outside, a faction’s strength could clearly be measured by its clubs. One member from a strong club could easily sweep through a smaller one, showcasing not the difference between clubs, but the disparity in the powers backing them.
Of course, there were individual clubs as well, established solely to protect personal interests.
Wang Jie had learned about clubs before the Devour Star conflict. He’d bought intelligence on Black White Heaven’s elite disciples and discovered many had membership in the Black White Heaven Club. He had briefly questioned Du Xian about this, but had not pursued further at the time.
He had only scratched the surface of their significance.
If Heavenly Light Pavilion was the hidden hand of Black White Heaven, silently supported and cultivated in secret, the Black White Heaven Club was the openly acknowledged, publicly supported face of the sect, receiving the best of all resources.
Even the famed Six Dao Wanderer himself was listed as a member of Black White Heaven Club, along with Ye Huang, Young Master Yun Ju, Li Cai, Wen Yuan, and other extraordinary disciples.
This club represented the pinnacle of Black White Heaven’s talent.
Li Tong He looked intently at Wang Jie. “Well? Are you interested in joining?”
Wang Jie met Li Tong He’s gaze steadily, declaring without hesitation, “I am.”
Great Elder Xing Xue had not recommended him for membership before, leaving him puzzled. But if he could join the Black White Heaven Club now, it would mean far more than entering the Heavenly Light Pavilion. His status would truly transform, making it much more difficult for Zhi Qing and her faction to trouble him.
Li Tong He nodded approvingly. “Good. I will send your records immediately to Wu Yuan for review. He will submit it to the sect.”
“Elder Wu Yuan?” Wang Jie asked in surprise. “He’s in charge of the club?”
Li Tong He smiled faintly. “He himself is one of its members.”
Wang Jie’s eyes widened slightly in astonishment.
Li Tong He explained, “At first, there were no restrictions on who could join the clubs, and it caused great chaos. Clubs battled each other wildly. Even the sect masters and patriarchs of powerful forces joined in. Later, to stop the universe from turning into one giant battlefield, they imposed an age limit.”
“Wu Yuan is within that age limit.”
Wang Jie finally understood, asking, “Then our Black White Heaven Club must be pretty strong.”
Li Tong He smiled and said, “Naturally. After all, it gathers Black White Heaven’s strongest disciples. Although they’re usually scattered, if there’s ever a major event requiring the club’s full strength, they’ll all assemble. Still, we’re far from being the strongest.”
Wang Jie immediately thought of the Star Guardian.
The Star Guardian was also very young, so he likely belonged to a club too. No matter how strong Black White Heaven Club was, it couldn’t surpass the club the Star Guardian belonged to.
Moreover, considering overall strength, the Fourth Star Cloud ranked lowest among the four major star clouds under Big Dipper Bridge Pillar.
After reaching the central hub, Li Tong He immediately went into secluded cultivation to heal.
Wang Jie instead went to the Decree Platform. When he handed over the identity tokens of the Full Star Realm cultivators he had slain, the disciple handling exchanges at the Decree Platform stared blankly in shock.
He had never seen a Star Breaking Realm cultivator hand in this many Full Star Realm identity tokens at once. [Did he really kill all these Full Star Realm cultivators himself? That’s incredible! Or was someone protecting him?]
“Senior Brother, do you have a Star Integration card?”
“I do.”
“Alright, I’ll transfer five million five hundred thousand starstones to you right away, Senior Brother.”
To advance from a common cultivator to a battle soldier at the Full Star Realm, one had to kill ten other Full Star Realm cultivators, each with a different blood-drop count. A cultivator with one blood drop was worth one hundred thousand starstones, two drops were worth two hundred thousand, and so forth. Killing ten cultivators granted a total of five million five hundred thousand starstones.
This was the most basic reward for advancing to Battle Soldier.
Additionally, every time someone advanced, they were given the chance to leave the battlefield. There was also a reward for defeating enemies, an extra bonus from the sect equal to the full promotion reward—another five million five hundred thousand starstones by Wang Jie’s standards, but that would be collected elsewhere.
Altogether, Wang Jie received eleven million starstones from this single advancement.
Given what Wang Jie had previously earned, this amount wasn’t much. But for ordinary Full Star Realm cultivators, it was vastly different.
A common Full Star Realm cultivator could buy a suitable Two-Tribulation Star Artifact starting at just two hundred thousand starstones, rarely surpassing four million because beyond that was the realm of Three-Tribulation Artifacts.
The suitable pills for the Full Star Realm were also around two hundred thousand starstones, with precious ones like Truth Speaking Pills or Swift Movement Pills priced at five hundred thousand.
Thus, a Full Star Realm Battle Soldier receiving eleven million starstones at once had enough to buy star artifacts, pills, formation books—everything necessary. Spending it all would perfectly match the reward given.
The sect calculated rewards extremely precisely.
If he could advance again to Battle Guard, he would receive twenty-two million starstones. Battle Hero and Battle General naturally received even more.
“Senior Brother, do you wish to leave the battlefield?” asked the Decree Platform disciple.
Without hesitation, Wang Jie answered, “Yes.”
The Decree Platform disciple immediately checked. Soon, his expression changed; he glanced at Wang Jie, then checked again.
Wang Jie’s heart sank. [Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy.]
How could his cheap master toss him onto this battlefield and let him leave after only becoming a Battle Soldier? He just wanted to confirm at what level he could finally depart.
“I’m sorry, Senior Brother, but you’re not allowed to leave yet.”
“What rank must I reach before I can leave?”
“I can’t find that information.”
Wang Jie walked away. [Can’t find it? The disciple simply didn’t have the authority.] He was somewhat disappointed, though it was within his expectations.
However, after returning from the Hanhai Sea battlefield and submitting his mission, he didn’t immediately receive another task. Clearly, Elder Li Tong He had intervened, canceling Elder Ming’s schemes against him.
Now it was time to contact Elder Xing Xue.
The Yin Yang Battlefield also had a way to contact the sect, similar to the Four Great Training Fields, though it wasn’t through shops. It was at a spot near the Decree Platform, watched over by a middle-aged man.
When Wang Jie arrived, he saw that very few people were there. He expected lines of people like at the training fields, but here only a few stood waiting.
He soon learned why: only Battle Soldiers or higher ranks could contact the sect. Anyone below this rank didn’t even have the right.
“Zhi Upper Realm, contacting Xing Xue.”
When the middle-aged man heard whom Wang Jie wished to reach, his expression immediately turned solemn, carefully studying Wang Jie.
Wang Jie took out his identity token to show him.
The man nodded and quickly began connecting the communication. “Please wait, Senior Brother. I’ll inform you once the connection is established.”
Wang Jie moved aside and waited quietly.
Others around him did the same. This wasn’t instant communication—it needed relays.
“It’s you?” someone nearby suddenly called out in surprise, staring at Wang Jie.
Wang Jie looked over, replying, “It’s been a while.”
Back then, Wang Jie had wanted to join a team at the Decree Platform to avoid being manipulated into dangerous missions by Di Zi. Yet no teams had wanted him. This man was among those who had rejected him.
That man scrutinized Wang Jie carefully and said, “Not bad, Brother. You’ve already reached Battle Soldier in such a short time. If I remember correctly, you were a Lock Force cultivator, weren’t you?”
Wang Jie responded, “You’re doing well yourself. I recall you weren’t a Battle Soldier either.”
“Our captain was the Battle Soldier. This time he gave me identity tokens from our kills so I could contact the sect. He has to keep watch over the Decree Platform,” explained the man, before asking curiously, “Brother, what mission did you receive to advance to Battle Soldier so quickly?”
“Hanhai Sea Battlefield.”