Chapter 445 - 281: Endless Surprises

’Still, I got ninth place and four thousand Immortal Fate points. What are the rewards for the higher ranks?’

Zou Feng was quite curious about this. He tried looking it up and found that there were, in fact, specific rules for reward distribution.

First place on the points leaderboard received a reward as high as thirty thousand Immortal Fate points. Second place got twenty thousand, and third place, ten thousand.

From there down to tenth place, the reward decreased by one thousand for each rank. That was why Zou Feng, in ninth place, had only received four thousand Immortal Fate points.

Below tenth place, the decrease changed to one hundred points per rank, then to tens of points... In short, the further down the rankings, the smaller the increments of decrease for Immortal Fate points.

At first, Zou Feng had felt pretty good about getting four thousand Immortal Fate points.

But when he saw that the first-place reward was a staggering thirty thousand, he couldn’t help but feel it was a little unfair.

’In fact, it wasn’t just first place. All of the top three spots received rewards of over ten thousand.’

’Since this is a monthly exam, it means that every month, the top three are basically hitting the jackpot.’

Zou Feng finally understood why some of the top talents in the Outer Sect stubbornly refused to leave.

’Once you enter the Inner Sect, the competition becomes even more intense. There’s no guarantee you’ll have the same opportunities to rake in points like this.’

’So naturally, there would be plenty of old-timers who, using the excuse of needing to "accumulate more resources," would rely on their strength—which had long surpassed the Outer Sect level—to just keep farming Immortal Fate from the monthly exams.’

’It was even possible that many organizations from the Inner Sect, like the Purple Cloud Association, were indirectly involved, meddling in the distribution of these benefits.’

’You wouldn’t even need to violate the sect’s rules. Just get an organized, disciplined group of sufficiently strong Outer Disciples together. If they team up and dominate the monthly exam, they can secure a high rank.’

’No wonder. In the Forest Sea, I fought my heart out and my luck was off the charts—I found one Alien Race nest after another and went on a killing spree like something out of a hack-and-slash game.’

’In the end, I was so exhausted I nearly collapsed, putting myself in an incredibly dangerous state, and I still only managed to get ninth place.’

’So those guys ranked ahead of me were basically participating in the monthly exam as a "raid party"...’

’All they had to do was pick one person to land the final blow, and all the points would be concentrated on them, guaranteeing a massive reward.’

’Of course, it’s also possible that there really are some lone-wolf badasses who can tear through the Alternate Space all by themselves.’

’In that case, doesn’t that mean that I, a complete rookie who just joined the Immortal Sect, have already upset their racket by suddenly showing up and snatching a top-ten spot in my very first monthly exam?’

’Fortune and misfortune really are two sides of the same coin. I’ll have to be extra careful about having upset their little arrangement.’

’In other words, I need to create my ideal Spirit Body as soon as possible.’

Four thousand Immortal Fate points was more than enough to buy the Elixirs he needed to create his Spirit Body. He could even afford to buy some better resources to help with the process.

Next, Zou Feng didn’t immediately buy the Elixirs he needed. Instead, he opened a message from Leng Jing.

"Younger Brother Zou, congratulations! I’ve got some good news to tell you in person. Be there in a minute!"

The message had been sent a while ago. Figuring Leng Jing was already on his way, Zou Feng didn’t bother replying.

The other messages were mostly congratulations from old acquaintances like Su Qingyu.

Su Qingyu even suggested that after Zou Feng rested for a couple of days, their group from Great Yan who had joined the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect together could all get together.

Su Qingyu was clearly aware that even though they were all just low-level Outer Disciples, there were benefits to be had if they could stick together to some extent.

The huge bet they’d placed on Zou Feng winning at the Dao Discussion Platform was a perfect example.

Anyone who didn’t know the situation wouldn’t have dared to bet everything they owned right after joining the Immortal Sect.

Zou Feng replied to all the congratulatory messages from his old friends and agreed to Su Qingyu’s suggestion.

In fact, even before this, he had planned on finding Su Qingyu before creating his Spirit Body, preferably for a private meeting.

His desire for a private meeting wasn’t because he was lusting after Su Qingyu’s promise to thank him properly with her "foot poison" after winning the bet.

Rather, it was because he genuinely needed the toxins from her Calamity Poison Body to add more variations to the Spirit Body he was about to create.

’So, it’s very likely that, however reluctant I might be, I’ll have to... interact... with Su Qingyu’s feet, or other parts of her body.’

Zou Feng’s expression turned rather awkward as he checked the last message.

"Brother Zou, where on Taian Mountain do you live? How about we cultivate the Cloud-Rainbow Phoenix-Guiding Art together?"

This message was, of course, from Qin Fengwu, his temporary teammate during the monthly exam.

Although Qin Fengwu had mentioned wanting to dual cultivate with him back in the Forest Sea, Zou Feng hadn’t had the time for that.

Besides, he was now aware that many Female Cultivators used dual cultivation techniques as a form of capital, hoping to find a powerful backer.

’The problem is, if I open that floodgate, who knows how many Female Cultivators will be knocking on my door all day long.’

’After all, I’m not primarily focused on dual cultivation. The Dragon and Tiger Kan and Li Skill is enough for now.’

’Besides, just cultivating the Kan and Li Skill already takes up a lot of time each day. Add on the other Cultivation Skills and Skills I need to practice, and there’s simply not enough time.’

Therefore, Zou Feng automatically ignored the content of Qin Fengwu’s message.

But he didn’t forget his previous promise. He transferred five hundred Immortal Fate points to Qin Fengwu.

This was her payment for helping him as a teammate in the Forest Sea.

Meanwhile, Qin Fengwu, who had been anxiously awaiting Zou Feng’s reply, was utterly dumbfounded when she suddenly received a transfer of five hundred Immortal Fate points from him.