Starting as dockworkers, they swept through Chongqing.

There were four other people beside her.

Xilun did not recognize two of them, but judging from the patterns on their robes and their posture, they should be senior disciples in the disciplinary academy.

A thin young man stood with his arms crossed, a faint smile on his face; a young man carrying a short spear stood silently a little further back, his eyes occasionally sweeping around as if trying to determine the exit of the square.

The fourth person is the most eye-catching.

He was tall, and his dark blue robe clung slightly to his body in the wind, revealing the outline of his strong shoulders and back.

He was handsome with bright eyes, but he always looked down on people with a condescending gaze, as if he had long been accustomed to others giving way to him.

As soon as Siron approached, Elena saw him.

A hint of apology flashed in her eyes, as if she wanted to explain something.

Before she could speak, the tall young man took half a step forward, blocking her view of Xilun.

This movement is very natural.

It was so natural, as if he was meant to stand there.

Elena's expression darkened slightly: "Samuel."

Samuel did not turn around, but only looked at Siron.

His gaze moved from Xilun's black outer robe to that excessively pale yet serene face, and then to the golden spear that Xilun had not brought with him.

A few breaths later, the corners of his lips curled up slightly.

"You're Xilun?"

Xilun stopped in his tracks.

He sensed that the other party's blood and qi were very strong, more complete than most of the third-tier beings he had seen in the Disciplinary Academy.

The aura of the Overturning Sea Technique is deep within the skin and flesh, its sound barely audible, yet capable of stirring up massive waves at any moment.

Not a weakling.

Xilun calmly replied, "Yes."

Samuel nodded, as if confirming something insignificant.

"I heard you come from the outer seas and once served as a retainer in the Langte family?"

"I stayed there temporarily for a period of time."

"The Ront family," Samuel murmured the name, a smile playing on his lips.

"The small trading houses on the Edge Islands maintain their dignity thanks to a small magic gathering place. Being able to make offerings there should certainly be enough to make them grateful."

The sound of the wind in the square suddenly became clear.

Elena frowned and said, "Samuel, Siren is a temporary team member I invited, and he's also on the registration list for this mission."

"I know." Samuel finally turned his head to look at her, his tone softening. "That's why I'm here to oversee things for you."

"I don't need you to vet my choices."

"Elena." Samuel smiled. "This isn't an ordinary night patrol mission. There's a Tier 3 expert behind the pirate procurement, and it might even involve higher-level information about shipping routes."

You are skilled in staff fighting, and you also have several life-saving tools given to you by your father. Of course, I believe you can handle most situations.

As he said this, his gaze returned to Xilun.

"Whether an outsider cultivator who emerged from a small family is qualified to share the same credit with us is another matter."

Elena's eyes turned cold: "Watch your words."

Samuel seemed not to hear the warning in her words.

He looked at Xilun, his tone still unhurried:

"I didn't mean anything by it. The Chaotic Sea is never short of Tier 3, especially on Star Ring Island, where you can find a handful in any major power."

Perhaps in a place like the Ronte family, reaching the third rank would be enough to warrant a celebratory feast, but in the Disciplinary Academy, the third rank is merely the starting point.

The thin young man stood to the side, his smile deepening.

The young man with the short spear on his back remained silent, but his gaze toward Xilun became more scrutinizing.

Elena's agitation intensified.

These past two days, she has been overwhelmed by the letters from the Sea Demon Temple. She finally managed to confirm the mission team, but unexpectedly, Samuel interfered again after his seclusion ended.

She knew Samuel's thoughts very well.

The other person had shown her an almost taken-for-granted closeness a long time ago, which, while not as frivolous as Aldrich's, still made her uncomfortable.

Samuel always liked to make decisions for her in the name of protection, as if she should accept whatever he thought was right.

Elena didn't like this feeling.

They dislike it even more when others involve Xilun.

Xilun was someone she invited, and someone whose strength she had personally tested.

She knew that this rogue cultivator from the outer sea had many secrets and a strong aura of killing, but at least when Xilun agreed to follow orders, he didn't use any unnecessary pressure on her.

That's a rare sense of boundaries.

Samuel, however, did not.

"Samuel," Elena said in a lower voice, "the list has already been submitted to the mission room; there's no need to argue about it anymore."

Samuel was still looking at Siron.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" he asked.

Xilun's expression remained unchanged.

From the moment he arrived at the square, he sensed that the relationship between these people was not simple.

Samuel's attitude towards Elena was unlike that of ordinary fellow disciples. The way he stood in front of her and the matter-of-fact tone in his words, "I'll keep an eye on things for you," were familiar to Siren.

In Victoria, many nobles also spoke in this manner.

It was as if others had already been placed in the right positions before they even spoke.

Xilun had no interest in these things.

He only cared about whether the mission would go smoothly and whether he could obtain the qualification to apply for the inner court.

So he said, "How will you know if you don't try?"

A very calm statement.

There was no provocation, no anger, and you could hardly detect any emotion.

But for this reason, Samuel's eyes darkened slightly.

He didn't like the tranquility of Xilun.

An outsider cultivator whose origins are questioned and whose strength is belittled will either become angry, explain, or back down.

Either way, it would allow him to take control of the situation.

But Xilun has nothing.

Those eyes were like deep water beneath an ice layer, chilling one's heart.

Samuel gently moved his right hand.

"Looks like you're not convinced."

Xilun said, "I just feel that talking too much is meaningless."

The smile on the thin young man's face froze.

Elena thought to herself, "Oh no!"

Samuel's eyes did indeed change.

"Very good." He nodded. "Third-tier extraordinary individuals like yourself are a dime a dozen in the Chaotic Sea. Perhaps they are rare in that so-called Ronte family, but they are not uncommon here."

He took a step forward, and the bluestone beneath his feet trembled slightly.

"I don't know what you're unhappy about."

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly clenched his right fist.

A deep rumble suddenly echoed through the air.

That wasn't a simple cracking sound from bones and muscles, but rather the instant when the power of the Overturning Sea Technique, layered deep within the muscles, was compressed to the front of the fist.

In a daze, Xilun seemed to hear the sound of a tsunami crashing against the shore in the distance.

The next moment, Samuel threw a punch.

There was no prior indication, nor was much time given for a reaction.

Before the fist even landed, the violent air pressure had already crashed in head-on.

Elena's pupils contracted slightly: "Stop!"

But Samuel acted extremely quickly.

He certainly wouldn't kill someone in public, nor would he truly inflict serious damage on Xiren.

But he wanted to make this outsider cultivator understand that in the Disciplinary Academy, one couldn't secure a position simply by having Elena's invitation.

Xilun did not back down.

The moment Samuel threw his punch, his skin tightened almost imperceptibly.

After the "Overturning the Sea" skill is fully mastered, the resulting skin membrane acts like a silent shore, dispersing the external air pressure layer by layer.

Immediately afterwards, the Great Thunder Breathing Technique, which had been suppressed deep within his body, briefly revived, and a faint rumble of thunder came from between his muscles.

Lei Ling trembled slightly.

Xilun also raised his fist.

There are no fancy moves.

It was just a fistfight.

boom!

It sounded as if muffled thunder was exploding beneath the bluestone of the square.

The two forces collided, creating a visible wave of dust.

Elena's cloak billowed backward in the gust of wind, and the thin young man squinted instinctively, while the young man carrying the short spear had already placed his hand on the spear shaft.

Xilun took a step back.

The sole of the boot left a half-inch white mark on the bluestone.

Samuel stood still.

On the surface, Samuel seemed to have the upper hand.

But his pupils contracted for a split second.

A tingling sensation spread from the knuckles to the wrist, and then up the forearm.

That force was neither pure brute force nor the tidal force of the Overturning Sea Technique, but rather like a thunderbolt compressed within flesh and blood, sharp, dull, and difficult to deal with the moment it struck.

More importantly, Xilun only took a step back.

A rogue cultivator, rumored to have mixed backgrounds and hailing from a small family in the outer seas, took a punch with 80% of his strength and only took one step back.

The disdain in Samuel's eyes finally faded a little.

Xilun lowered his hand, his fist slightly red, a slight stinging pain coming from deep within his skin.

The opponent was stronger than he had imagined.

If we only consider the orthodox foundation of the Overthrowing the Seas technique, Samuel is indeed superior to him.

The force in that punch was complete and continuous, unlike much of his current power which still needs to be layered and controlled.

But that's about it.

If it were a life-or-death battle, Xiren wouldn't have taken the first punch head-on like that.

He would draw his gun, change angles, and first cripple the opponent's knees, throat, and eyes before deciding whether to give them a second chance to breathe, depending on the situation.

Samuel withdrew his fist, his fingertips twitching almost imperceptibly, as if trying to dispel the lingering numbness.

A smile returned to his face.

"He still has some skill."

Elena said coldly, "Is that enough?"

"What's the rush?" Samuel said. "I admit he's not an ordinary Tier 3. However, we had already found the last person. We didn't know you would invite someone else at the last minute."

Elena frowned: "That's your team, not mine."

Samuel seemed not to have caught the refusal in his voice.

"In that case, the fairest approach is to make a comparison."

He turned to the side and looked at the other side of the square.

There stood a man who hadn't spoken a word.

He was wearing a gray short coat, with no large weapons on his back, only two short blades hanging at his waist.

He wasn't particularly tall, and was even a bit thin, but his posture was extremely stable, like an iron nail driven into the ground.

His face was indifferent, his eyelids were half-closed, and he had not shown much expression since Xilun appeared.

Xilun looked at him.

The other person also looked over.

Those eyes were calm, devoid of contempt or anger, only displaying a cold indifference as if they already knew the purpose of their trip.

Like someone who has accepted a friend's request to do a simple favor.

Samuel smiled.

"Roel, also a Tier 3 fighter, is skilled in close combat. If you can defeat him, I will acknowledge your qualifications to join this team."

Elena's face darkened completely.

"Samuel, I told you, I'm in charge of the team."

"I'm doing this for the mission too." Samuel turned to look at her, his tone gentle, yet his words firm.

"Elena, raiding pirates isn't a classroom exercise. One unsuitable person could kill all your teammates."

Suddenly, Xiren asked, "If I win, will the mission continue as before?"

Samuel looked at him.

"certainly."

"What if he loses?"

Samuel's smile faltered slightly.

Xilun's tone remained calm: "The people you brought in lost. Doesn't that prove your judgment was flawed?"

The air in the square had cooled down a bit.

The gaunt youth's face turned ugly, and the youth with the short spear on his back also raised his eyes.

Samuel stared at Xilen, and after a moment, suddenly laughed.

"You're bolder than I thought."

Xilun did not respond.

He doesn't have guts.

I'm just annoyed.

In Victoria, he had seen too many people use status, rules, personal relationships, and background to intimidate others.

Upon reaching the Sea of ​​Chaos and the monastery, these things changed their names, yet remained the same.

Xilun was unwilling to waste time explaining.

Things that can be confirmed with a fist require the least effort.

Roel finally took a step forward.

His voice was a little hoarse: "With weapons, or not?"

Xilun looked at the short blade at his waist.

Use what you're good at.

Roel's eyebrows twitched slightly.

This statement is not insulting, but rather conveys confidence.

A cold glint flashed in Samuel's eyes, and he took two steps back.

Elena looked at Xiren and whispered, "Roel is ruthless. He was a sea monster hunter for three years, not an ordinary student."

Xilun nodded.

"I will be mindful of my actions."

Elena's feelings became even more complicated upon hearing this.

If Xiren is injured, it will not only make him lose face, but also make Elena lose face herself.

The center of the mission plaza was quickly cleared out.

Several disciplinary disciples who were passing by heard the commotion and stopped to watch from a distance.

Samuel was quite famous in the Inner Court, and Elena was the daughter of the Dean; the two of them standing together were already quite eye-catching.

Now, there's also the news of a rogue cultivator from the outer sea who defeated Elena in the martial arts arena right after being admitted to the hospital. The news spread like wildfire, and soon more than ten people gathered at the edge of the square.

Elena grew increasingly agitated.

She didn't like being watched.

She disliked even more that the team she should have been in control of was forcibly dragged into conflict by Samuel in an almost gentle manner.

But now that things have come to this, if she continues to obstruct, it will only make Siron appear to be someone who "only stayed because of Elena's protection."

For an outsider at the third level, such rumors are more troublesome than an injury in the correctional facility.

Xilun clearly understood this as well.

He stood in the center of the square, his expression still calm.

Roel walked ten paces away from him and took two short blades from his waist.

The short blade was unsheathed, its body dark gray, and the edge lacked any luster, as if it had been soaked in the blood of sea monsters for many years, carrying a faint fishy smell.

"I owe Samuel a favor," Roel said, "so I'll step in."

Xilun nodded: "Understood."

Roel glanced at him: "But I won't kill for others, nor will I cripple anyone."

"That would be best."

Roel fell silent for a moment, seemingly understanding the hidden meaning in those words.

If he hadn't crippled people, Xilun wouldn't have either.

If he were to consider using someone who could be rendered useless, then the outcome would be different.

The seafaring hermit's tone was so calm that Roel couldn't tell whether he was offering a reminder or stating a fact.

Samuel stood to the side, his hands behind his back, a faint smile still on his face.