Investing in Returnees: The Insight of Accumulating Little by Little

On the road from the Autumn Water Pavilion to the Divine Armament Mountain.

After walking for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn,

the mountain gate came into view ahead.

At that moment, a long line had formed in front of the gate.

An outer sect steward sat there, receiving and sending off disciples, with a stack of identity tokens piled in front of her.

"Elder Disciple Li."

The elderly woman greeted Li Mo with a respectful bow upon seeing him.

Though an elder disciple held no real authority within the sect, their status was undoubtedly higher than that of an outer sect steward.

Li Mo found the old woman somewhat familiar.

She had once assessed his bone structure, assigning him a "Grade C" talent.

The surrounding outer sect disciples, upon seeing the white cloud-patterned robe he wore, all gazed at him with admiration and longing.

Yet none hesitated—one by one, they handed their tokens to the steward, shouldered their bags, and walked out of the mountain gate.

"What's going on with them?" Li Mo couldn't help but ask curiously.

At this time, it shouldn’t yet be the period for dismissing outer sect disciples.

Why were so many people lining up to surrender their tokens, as if preparing to leave the Qingyuan Sect?

"The sect trials are approaching. Since they’re called 'trials,' there’s bound to be some danger involved."

The old woman stretched out her left hand, revealing only three fingers where there should have been five.

"Ah, I see."

After a brief thought, Li Mo understood her meaning.

Not everyone had the confidence to compete for a place in the inner sect.

Those who stayed would have to participate in the trials.

If they ended up disabled yet failed to enter the inner sect, being expelled later would make even daily survival difficult.

Dying during the trials wasn’t out of the question either.

"Many disciples join the sect without ever intending to enter the inner sect."

The old woman shook her head, casually stacking the newly collected tokens.

Learning some skills in the outer sect, then returning home to open a martial arts school or become a constable—that was already considered a fine future in the eyes of many.

Li Mo couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

The path of martial arts was like swimming against the current—most weren’t even fish fighting upstream, just grains of sand swept along by the river.

If not for the advantage he held, his own future wouldn’t have been much better.

He’d likely have returned to his hometown and, under his father’s arrangements, secured a position as a town guard captain.

Just as he was about to leave,

something compelled him to use his ever-active Divine Eye of Fate to examine the crowd before him.

Instantly,

information about numerous individuals appeared before his eyes.

[Name: Wu Bing]

[Age: 19]

[Bone Structure: None.]

[Realm: Qi-Blood Realm, Three Meridians.]

[Fate: White]

[Evaluation: Wu Bing’s martial achievements are rather unimpressive.]

[Recent Events: Recently received a letter—the third husband of Widow Wang in his village has died. Preparing to return home to pursue love.]

......

Looking around,

most of the outer sect disciples voluntarily leaving the Qingyuan Sect had white or gray fates.

None held much investment value.

Take Wu Bing, for example.

Helping him pursue Widow Wang—what reward could that possibly yield?

At best, a few strings of copper coins; at worst, some peculiar item like Widow Wang’s undergarments...

Of course, exceptions existed.

[Name: Liu Hui]

[Age: 19]

[Bone Structure: None.]

[Realm: Qi-Blood Realm, Three Meridians.]

[Fate: Black]

[Evaluation: A perennial unlucky fool.]

[Recent Events: On his way home, fell for a honey trap. Failed to play the hero, got stabbed in the back by the woman, and was thrown into the river to feed the fish.]

......

After reading this, Li Mo let out a soft sigh.

A life was still a life.

He couldn’t bring himself to remain indifferent to all things.

Even if they were strangers, as long as no deep hatred existed, he couldn’t bear to see them die for no reason.

"Liu Hui!"

"Uh... me? Elder Disciple Li?"

Liu Hui pointed at himself, stunned that the famously fortunate Li Mo had called his name.

He racked his brain but couldn’t figure out any connection between them.

"May I ask what instructions Elder Disciple Li has for me?"

"On your way home, do you pass by Qinghe County?"

Li Mo stepped forward and asked.

"Uh... no, I don’t..."

Liu Hui was utterly confused.

Qinghe County? That wasn’t just out of the way—it was in the opposite direction entirely.

He could’ve taken a boat downstream straight home, but going to Qinghe County meant traveling by land.

Then something even more bewildering happened.

Li Mo pulled out a small gold bar, about the thickness of a thumb, from his sleeve.

"How about now?"

"Uh... yes! Absolutely on the way!"

Liu Hui wasn’t stupid—he quickly realized Elder Disciple Li wanted him to make a detour to Qinghe County.

That gold bar looked to weigh four or five taels—enough to buy a house back home.

"Good, since it’s on the way."

"Deliver a message to County Captain Li Dalong in Qinghe County for me..."

"Of course, Elder Disciple. Please speak."

......

Moments later, Liu Hui happily walked off with the gold bar.

Above his head, his black fate had turned white.

His recent events now read: "Took a detour home, met the head of Yangwei Escort Agency along the way, and became an escort."

Meanwhile, a crisp voice rang in Li Mo’s ears.

[Congratulations, Host. Successful investment—a life saved.]

[Investment Reward: Two Years of Martial Insight.]

Though Liu Hui was no chosen one, just an ordinary face in the crowd,

he still provided Li Mo with two years of martial insight.

"An unexpected windfall."

Li Mo’s lips curled slightly. He hadn’t expected much.

Martial insight was always welcome—no amount was too much, and even a little was worth having.

Every drop filled the bucket.

And so,

Li Mo repeated the process.

Five minutes later.

[Congratulations, Host. Successful investment—a life saved.]

[Investment Reward: Two Years of Martial Insight.]

......

Ten minutes later.

[Congratulations, Host. Successful investment—a life saved.]

[Investment Reward: Two Years of Martial Insight.]

......

Half an hour later.

[Congratulations, Host. Successful investment—a life saved.]

[Investment Reward: Two Years of Martial Insight.]

......

Honestly,

the world wasn’t peaceful—natural disasters and human calamities abounded. Many encountered misfortunes on their journeys home.

One man, upon encountering a tiger, thought his newly learned Six Harmonies Fist could handle it.

He attempted a slide-tackle... and became the tiger’s lunch.

Another stumbled into a black-market inn and ended up as filling for human meat buns.

All this made Li Mo understand why his father had spent a fortune hiring escorts when he traveled to Ziyang Prefecture City.

These unlucky souls also brought Li Mo substantial gains—

eight years of martial insight in total!

With another twenty or thirty years’ worth, he might even master one of his martial arts techniques.

"People will keep leaving the sect until the trials begin."

"I can come back daily to farm these investments."

Li Mo was in high spirits.

Thirteen days remained until the trials.

Even if fewer disciples left later, accumulating seventy or eighty years of martial insight was still possible.

Enough to elevate his core martial skills to the next level.

He scanned the crowd once more.

Hmm.

No more young men with black fates.

Satisfied, he strode toward the Divine Armament Peak.

No matter—he’d return tomorrow.

He had just asked earlier, and disciples returning home after leaving the sect would always come to the mountain gate in the morning.

In any case, he planned to visit the Divine Armament Peak every day recently, so he would pass by this place daily.