Chapter: Military Merit
Inside the council chamber, the map of the Western Wastes still lay spread across the table.
The land southeast of the forward camp had just been marked by Hao Nhien with a red game piece. On the beast-hide map, it was nothing more than a yellow-gray patch between Tam Thành's defensive line and the vast sea of sand stretching westward.
Hoa Van Town.
Hao Nhien remained standing before the map. He stared at the red marker for a long while before finally turning toward Lieu Thien Van. The hesitation on his face was subtle, but Lieu Thien Van still noticed it.
He was gathering the sound transmission talismans scattered across the table. Seeing that Hao Nhien still had no intention of leaving, he laughed.
“If there is something else, just say it. There is no need to beat around the bush between you and me.”
Hao Nhien coughed lightly.
“Brother Lieu, I still have one more request.”
“Go ahead.”
Hao Nhien remained silent for a few breaths, as though arranging his thoughts before speaking.
“Our current manpower is still too thin. It is not only that we lack cultivators. We also lack people capable of holding key positions, such as leading teams, scouting, managing supplies, protecting transport routes, handling construction, and reclaiming land. Those people do not need powerful artifacts yet, but at the very least, they need enough equipment to protect themselves while carrying out their duties.”
Lieu Thien Van understood immediately.
“You need equipment.”
Hao Nhien nodded.
“Heat-resistant light armor, defensive artifacts, weapons suitable for the desert, reliable water containers, some route-finding artifacts, as well as tools for digging wells and opening up land. At first glance, none of those things are as valuable as Spirit Swords or high-level treasures, but for a force that has only just begun to take shape, they are far more practical.”
Lieu Thien Van did not object. He simply looked at the markings surrounding the red piece on the map and asked,
“What else?”
Hao Nhien was quiet for a moment before answering.
“Spirit stones.”
This time, he said it directly.
“The Fire Qilin Tribe currently has almost no meaningful reserves. There are seven hundred and twelve people at the temporary settlement, Lanh Hoa's group is still on the way, and if the network between the tribes truly takes shape, exceeding a thousand people will only be a matter of time.”
Hao Nhien looked at the red marker on the map.
“To start the experimental area for Hoa Van Town, we need materials, seeds, medicinal supplies, formation plates, labor, and at least several months of reserve food. Without spirit stones, everything we just discussed will remain nothing more than lines on a map.”
Even after saying it aloud, Hao Nhien still felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Until now, he had been used to finding opportunities himself, fighting for what he needed, and obtaining resources with his own hands. Asking others for resources had never been something he enjoyed.
But this was no longer a matter of his personal pride.
One person could endure hunger for several days. A cultivator could rely on pills or spiritual power for a time. But hundreds of people, perhaps thousands in the future, could not survive on willpower alone.
Lieu Thien Van watched Hao Nhien for a long while. The smile on his face gradually faded.
He walked toward the window.
Outside the council chamber, the steady ringing of hammers continued from the forging area. Several transport wagons were being inspected before leaving the camp, soldiers moved between rows of tents, and farther away, the defensive walls were still being reinforced after days of constant tension.
After a while, Lieu Thien Van finally spoke.
“I should have thought about this before you had to ask. You have already started thinking about how to build a place that can sustain itself, while I have still been focusing too much on walls, defensive lines, and troops.”
He turned back.
“But the truth is that Tam Thành is not wealthy right now either. Good equipment has to be prioritized for the front line. Most of the spirit stones supplied from the Eastern Plains already have designated uses: maintaining the grand formation, repairing the walls, purchasing pills, supporting the troops, and compensating patrol teams for their losses.”
Lieu Thien Van pointed toward the black markers in the northwest of the map.
“The Yin Soul Sect has only just revealed itself. Heavenly Eye is also moving people. Under these circumstances, I cannot simply take a large amount of military resources and hand them outside the existing system.”
Hao Nhien nodded.
“I understand. I do not want to take resources away from the soldiers at the front.”
“If all you need is enough for a small experimental area, I can provide some support. Food, ordinary medicine, several basic formation plates, a group of craftsmen, and some tools can all be arranged. But that will definitely not be enough to build Hoa Van Town on the scale you described.”
Hao Nhien's gaze darkened slightly.
He had already expected this answer, but hearing Lieu Thien Van confirm it did little to reduce the weight of the problem.
Lieu Thien Van saw his expression, and the corner of his mouth suddenly curved upward.
“Do not be disappointed yet.”
Hao Nhien looked up.
“Tam Thành may not have enough resources to support your entire plan, but you still have the Tieu Dao Sect.”
Hao Nhien paused.
“The Tieu Dao Sect?”
“Exactly.”
Lieu Thien Van returned to the table and poured more tea.
“The sects do not send their disciples to the border merely for training. When disciples complete missions, their military merit is officially verified. That merit can then be converted into sect contribution points, which can be exchanged for pills, artifacts, cultivation techniques, spirit stones, or access to special cultivation areas.”
Hao Nhien knew those rules.
But the missions he had accepted before entering the Western Wastes had originally been ordinary scouting and support missions. Their listed rewards could never be large enough for what he needed now.
Lieu Thien Van set down his teacup.
“Ordinary disciples accumulate military merit through the number of missions they complete. But what you have done this time cannot be calculated that way.”
He looked directly at Hao Nhien.
“At Heavenly Eye Forward City, you broke the situation open and created an opportunity for more than seven hundred people to escape Heavenly Eye's control. Luu Thanh then led them to safety, while you dealt with the pursuit and the dangers behind them.”
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Lieu Thien Van paused before continuing.
“You completed the Fire Qilin inheritance, gathered the surviving clansmen, and officially assumed the position of Clan Head. You brought Sand Thunder in as the first ally, discovered the Yin Soul Sect's Corpse Summoning Ritual near the forward camp, returned with physical evidence and valuable intelligence, and then proposed an early-warning network between the tribes.”
His gaze shifted to the red marker.
“And now there is the Hoa Van Town plan.”
With each event Lieu Thien Van listed, Hao Nhien grew a little quieter. Only when all of them were placed side by side did he realize how long this journey had become and how much had changed along the way.
Lieu Thien Van continued,
“Those things are no longer merely personal achievements. They have begun to affect the entire situation on the western front. I cannot casually assign you a number of military merit points, much less decide on behalf of the Tieu Dao Sect how much you deserve.”
He paused.
“But I can verify everything that happened.”
With that, Lieu Thien Van took a jade document from his storage ring, about the length of a hand.
The jade was gray-green, its surface completely blank at first. He placed it on the table and pressed one finger against it.
Spiritual power slowly flowed into the jade.
Rows of tiny characters began appearing one after another.
They were not words of praise or exaggerated accounts of glory. Instead, they formed a detailed record of when Hao Nhien had accepted the mission, the situation at Heavenly Eye Forward City, the number of people who had escaped, the confirmed battles, the reappearance of the Fire Qilin Tribe, contact with Sand Thunder, and the intelligence related to the Yin Soul Sect.
At the end of each section, Lieu Thien Van also recorded the impact of the event on Tam Thành's defensive line and the wider situation in the Western Wastes.
He wrote for a long time.
Nothing was exaggerated, and nothing was deliberately diminished.
When the final line was complete, Lieu Thien Van pressed his palm against the jade. A seal shaped like three cities appeared at the end of the document, while pale golden spiritual light spread through the written text.
His aura merged with every line, creating a layer of verification that would be extremely difficult to forge.
Afterward, Lieu Thien Van took out a silver token.
The front bore the emblem of Tam Thành's defensive line, while the reverse had a blank section used to record the identity of the person credited with the merit.
“This is a special Military Merit Verification Token.”
He placed it in front of Hao Nhien.
“It does not contain contribution points. The jade document records what you have done, and this token verifies that you are the person responsible for those achievements. When you return to the Tieu Dao Sect, the sect will make its own assessment.”
Lieu Thien Van looked at him.
“If they question any detail, they can contact me directly. I will take responsibility for verifying it.”
Hao Nhien picked up the two items.
They were not a storehouse filled with spirit stones.
Nor were they some token that could be exchanged for unlimited resources.
Yet their real value was greater than any arbitrary number Lieu Thien Van could have assigned.
They were proof.
They gave Hao Nhien the right to walk openly into the Tieu Dao Sect's Mission Hall and ask the sect to formally evaluate what had happened in the Western Wastes.
Hao Nhien asked,
“How do you think the sect will value all of this?”
Lieu Thien Van laughed.
“I do not know. It could be a great deal, or it could be less than you expect.”
He pointed toward the red marker.
“Although Hoa Van Town is connected to the defensive line, it is still only a plan that has not received official recognition. There will certainly be people in the Tieu Dao Sect who believe sect resources should not be used to support an outside force.”
Hao Nhien was not surprised.
“They would have a point.”
Lieu Thien Van raised an eyebrow.
“You are not angry?”
“No.”
Hao Nhien set the jade document back on the table.
“The Tieu Dao Sect has an entire sect to support. It cannot simply open its storehouses because I say I need resources.”
His gaze returned to the red marker.
“But I am not planning to ask for charity either.”
Lieu Thien Van understood at once.
“You want to make an exchange?”
“Exactly.”
Hao Nhien said,
“If Hoa Van Town is truly established, the Tieu Dao Sect could have a stable foothold near the border. Disciples entering the Western Wastes for missions would have somewhere to rest, a supply station, local guides, and a place where medicinal herbs and desert resources could be purchased directly instead of passing through several layers of middlemen.”
He continued,
“In return, the sect could provide formation masters, medicinal cultivators, seeds, tools, and some basic equipment. It does not need to be given for free, nor does it need to be treated as my personal reward. It can be viewed as an investment.”
Lieu Thien Van's eyes brightened.
“That is what you should say to the elders.”
He smiled.
“They may value you, and they may even be proud of you. But if you want the sect to commit resources over the long term, you must show them a long-term benefit.”
Hao Nhien nodded.
“I understand.”
Lieu Thien Van looked at the red marker.
“If Hoa Van Town truly succeeds, the Tieu Dao Sect will not be the only one interested. Other sects, merchant associations, clans, medicine halls, and artifact workshops will eventually turn their attention there as well.”
He lightly tapped the marker.
“But before anyone competes for a place inside, you need to make sure the town can survive. If it is nothing more than a good name on a map, no one will be willing to spend spirit stones on it.”
Hao Nhien lightly tightened his grip on the token.
“I will make them see it.”
Lieu Thien Van smiled.
“I knew you would say that.”
He folded back part of the map, then took out a small dark-bronze token. The front was engraved with the image of a city wall, while the reverse bore a small symbol resembling a flame.
“This is a Frontline Support Token.”
Hao Nhien looked at him.
Lieu Thien Van explained,
“Within Tam Thành and the camps under my authority, you may enter areas that are not classified as highly restricted, contact the officers in charge directly, and receive a limited amount of supplies while carrying out approved missions.”
He continued,
“In an emergency, you may also request assistance from the nearest patrol unit, but only for rescuing people, transmitting information, or escaping immediate danger. You have no authority to mobilize large forces, open military storehouses, or interfere in Tam Thành's internal administration.”
Hao Nhien picked up the token.
Its authority was not excessive, but every privilege it granted was practical and exactly the kind of support he might need while moving between Tam Thành, the Fire Qilin Tribe, and the tribes of the Western Wastes.
Lieu Thien Van continued,
“As for the Phong Van Squad, ask them yourself after you return to Tam Thành. If they are willing to participate in Hoa Van Town for a period of time, I can authorize it as a special mission.”
He looked directly at Hao Nhien.
“If they do not want to, no one is to blame them.”
“Understood.”
Hao Nhien replied.
“I will ask them myself.”
Lieu Thien Van remained silent for a while before speaking more slowly.
“Hao Nhien, you are carrying too many identities at the same time.”
Hao Nhien looked at him.
“You are a disciple of the Tieu Dao Sect, the Clan Head of the Fire Qilin Tribe, and someone now standing between Tam Thành and the tribes of the Western Wastes. On top of that, you now hold limited frontline support authority.”
Lieu Thien Van rested one hand on the edge of the table.
“If you do not keep those boundaries clear, one day those identities themselves will pull you in different directions.”
Hao Nhien fell silent.
He understood the warning.
The Tieu Dao Sect had the interests of the Tieu Dao Sect.
Tam Thành had the responsibilities of Tam Thành.
The Fire Qilin Tribe had desires of its own.
Sand Thunder and the other tribes could not forever rely on the decisions of a single person either.
If everything became tied to Hao Nhien, then the moment he left, the entire network he was trying to build might lose its direction.
“I will remember.”
He said,
“Hoa Van Town needs its own structure. The network between the tribes also needs people capable of handling matters without me. I cannot remain in the Western Wastes forever.”
Lieu Thien Van looked at him.
“Why?”
Hao Nhien's eyes changed slightly.
He did not answer directly.
Instead, he looked east.
“I still have a very long road ahead of me. But before I go farther, I need to make sure the people who trusted me can stand on their own without always waiting for me to return.”
Lieu Thien Van did not ask anything more.
He only nodded.
“Then return to the Tieu Dao Sect. Turn your achievements into what the people here actually need.”
He paused, and a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
“But before you return to the sect, you should go back to Tam Thành first.”
Hao Nhien paused.
Two figures immediately appeared in his mind.
Tieu Lan.
Quan Nha.
He had not been away for very long by a cultivator's standards, but in the Western Wastes, only a few days were enough for far too many things to happen.
Tieu Lan was certainly still waiting.
Quan Nha probably would not say anything, but Hao Nhien knew there was no way she had not been worried.
Just thinking of the small courtyard in Tam Thành brought a natural warmth into his chest.
Lieu Thien Van saw his expression and laughed.
“It seems I do not need to remind you.”
Hao Nhien stored the jade document, the Military Merit Verification Token, and the Frontline Support Token inside his storage ring.
Then he cupped his hands.
“Brother Lieu, I will have to leave matters here to you for now. The relief team has only just departed, the Sand Thunder communication post still needs to be surveyed, and the experimental area for Hoa Van Town needs its terrain and water sources inspected first. I will return after handling matters in Tam Thành and the Tieu Dao Sect.”
Lieu Thien Van waved a hand.
“Go.”
Then he looked at Hao Nhien and added,
“But remember this. The jade document in your hand only opens the door. How many resources you can actually obtain from the Tieu Dao Sect will depend on how well you can convince them.”
The corner of Hao Nhien's mouth slowly curved upward.
“Then I will try.”
Lieu Thien Van narrowed his eyes slightly.
“Every time you say you are going to try something, someone usually ends up with a headache.”
Hao Nhien seriously considered that for a moment before replying,
“This time, it will probably be Elder Bai.”
Lieu Thien Van burst out laughing.
“I am already starting to feel sorry for him.”
Hao Nhien laughed as well.
The heavy atmosphere inside the council chamber finally eased.
Outside, the sun had already climbed high into the sky. Light passed through the gap beside the door and fell directly across the red marker on the map.
Hoa Van Town still did not exist.
The network between the tribes had only just begun to take shape.
But Hao Nhien now possessed the first thing he needed to turn his plan into reality.
Not spirit stones.
Not artifacts.
But a path to turn what he had already accomplished into resources for the people who needed them.
He stepped out of the council chamber. Desert wind swept across the stone steps and lifted the hem of his gray robe. The Tieu Dao Sword left his back, turned into a streak of silver light, and stopped in front of him.
Hao Nhien stepped onto the sword.
His gaze turned southeast.
He was not returning to the Tieu Dao Sect yet.
First, he wanted to go home.