The sun rose high in the sky, but no matter how high it climbed, the thick clouds and frosty air left no room for warmth.

Outside the Pavilion, a man sat leisurely in his chair, sipping a cup of water. From time to time, he would open his eyes and glance around, but most of the time they remained closed.

’Such is life. Everything is boring at first and only truly becomes enjoyable once you start tasting the benefits.’

While it was true that he had received several customers today, with some even becoming members, Darius felt no excitement whatsoever. He was still short on the Spirit Stones required to complete the mission the System had given him.

"Gather one hundred Spirit Stones and one thousand Gold Coins within a week."

Looking at the prompt on his panel, he couldn’t help but think of Moon.

’Will he be able to do it?’

Darius frowned slightly.

He had inherited some knowledge from this body and knew a little about guilds. To be honest, they were nothing short of terrifying in both strength and influence. While the Demon Suppression Office was a behemoth across both Earth and the Sanctuary, the various guilds were by no means much weaker. They were not far behind.

This was precisely why he was worried.

While he wished for the mission to succeed, he was also realistic. Taking the head of a Team Leader was no simple feat, even for someone in the Qi Acupoint Realm. Even if Moon could accomplish it, it should have taken several days of planning and preparation, causing the Pavilion’s services to stagnate for a while.

Although he had only been here for four days, he already disliked the fact that the Pavilion currently provided nothing but cultivation rooms.

Mind you, everyone practically drooled at the chance to enter those rooms again after experiencing them. However, the limit remained one hour per day for three days unless a member accepted a mission. There was no way such a service alone would remain sustainable for long-term growth.

’But if he succeeds, I’ll have enough Spirit Stones to complete the mission.’

Feeling a sliver of hope, Darius smiled and opened his eyes.

The very next moment, he froze.

"Ding! Team Leader Kevin’s life has been successfully taken. Host may review the footage by clicking play." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Darius sucked in a cold breath.

His heart nearly stopped from excitement.

’He finished it? And in such a short amount of time?’

It should be known that only five hours had passed since Moon left.

Darius had never imagined the mission would be completed so easily, much less within a few short hours.

Suppressing his excitement, he quickly focused on the new feature displayed on the panel.

’Is this the emblem recording?’

Darius had initially thought the System would simply verify the mission itself. Instead, it had actually recorded everything and was even allowing him to watch it with sound.

With such a feature, there was no way for members to break the mission rules.

’Is the reason I didn’t receive this feature last time because I completed the mission personally?’

Shaking his head, Darius pushed aside the distracting thoughts and pressed play.

Soon, images began flooding his mind.

His body trembled.

’This...’

Darius was deeply shocked.

He wasn’t merely watching the recording through the emblem as he had expected. Instead, it felt as though he was standing in Moon’s shoes. For a brief moment, he even felt as if he had been teleported directly to the scene.

However, his attention was quickly drawn elsewhere, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the enormous King Colosseum floating in the sky. His breathing unconsciously quickened... while he already knew of its existence and could even see it from the Outer City, witnessing it from up close felt entirely different.

The colossal structure appeared majestic beyond words.

Then, he watched as Moon blended into the crowd and took several swift steps, vanishing and reappearing dozens of meters away like a living shadow.

Within moments, Moon arrived near an entrance and patiently waited, as though he already knew exactly where his target would appear. The ambush happened with frightening speed.

In merely three breaths, Kevin lost his life.

The priest beside him could do nothing but stand there in shock and fear.

Soon, the recording ended.

Darius once more found himself staring at the familiar white wall before him.

"No wonder..."

Taking a deep breath, he couldn’t help but laugh at his earlier concerns.

’No wonder he accepted the mission. For him, it was practically a walk in the park. The difference between realms is truly terrifying.’

Watching Moon’s actions and the ease with which he had killed Kevin caused the hairs on Darius’s body to stand on end.

For the first time, he truly realized something.

Without the Pavilion, he would have absolutely no way of protecting himself against stronger cultivators in this world. Much less protecting the treasures in his possession.

Taking another deep breath, Darius calmed himself.

However, his mind soon began racing again. ’No... It’s still unlikely that Moon would do something like this so casually and without concern.’ He knew that guilds were towering behemoths; even members of the Demon Suppression Office could not casually disrespect them, much less assassinate one of their important figures.

Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind.

His eyes lit up.

’System, does the emblem possess identity-concealment functions for members who undertake missions?’

"Correct. The emblem possesses numerous functions. Concealing one’s identity is merely a fraction of its capabilities. The black cloak it provides can shield the user from prying eyes and detection by anyone below the Third Realm."

Darius nodded.

He had expected something along those lines.

Moon’s actions had already told him that a handful of Spirit Stones, no matter how valuable, were not enough to make him risk his life. He must have already inspected the emblem’s functions beforehand and only accepted the mission after confirming its effectiveness.

If the sky truly fell and someone traced the operation back to its source, it would be Darius and the Immortal Pavilion that suffered the consequences.

Moon himself would remain safe.

As Darius sank deeper into thought, another notification suddenly rang out.

His eyes immediately lit up.

"Ding! Mission accomplished. Gather one hundred Spirit Stones and one thousand Gold Coins within a week. Does Host wish to view the rewards?"

Without a second thought, Darius selected yes.