YIN-YANG DEVOURER

"That was great~"

"You're telling me... My skin has been craving this for a long time."

"I-I wish all missions were this cost-effective" Sefia's group finally came out of the hot springs feeling completely refreshed.

The hot springs were one of the services offered by the Sect, but unfortunately their cost was quite high for most outer courtyard disciples. Its high cost of one hundred contribution points per person made it a luxury.

It should be noted that the average income of the outer courtyard disciples was around three hundred contribution points per month. No doubt coming here was a luxury for most and this of course included Sefia's group.

"Shall we go get something to eat later?" asked Lens with a smile.

"Forget it~ I just want to go to my place to sleep" Rayna said as she lazily stretched her arms. They had barely gotten any sleep during the mission.

"I-I'm very tired too" Said the shy Mendy.

"What about you Sefia? I'm counting on you, right?" asked Lens in a hopeful voice after all she had just been rejected twice.

"Mmm sorry but I have to go run a few errands" Sefia said with an apologetic smile.

"And why don't you go by yourself?" Rayna questioned.

"Forget it... I don't want to be harassed again by another group of drunken disciples. If it wasn't for Elder Yurie I'm afraid I would have been raped that night" Said Lens with a voice full of fear. It was evident that the memories of that night still continued to cause her nightmares.

"Well girls here we part ways then..."

"Be careful on your way back Sefia."

"That's right sister Sefia, take care" The girls said goodbye to Sefia as they walked back to their dorm.

"Well... Finally some time alone to be able to think" Sefia muttered to herself as she began to walk through the streets of the always bustling outer courtyard.

Sefia had gotten to where she was because of her own ingenuity... From a young age she was never blessed with any remarkable talent, nor with looks that attracted stares. She was always at best an "average" girl.

Born in a small village she had to carve her way in the bosom of an eminently macho family which only gave opportunities to the male members. This was Sefia's shitty destiny if she didn't do something different to change it...

It was thanks to her cunning that she was able to sneak in as an apprentice to a small local cultivator who taught her the basics to start on the path of cultivation. From there, through all kinds of schemes and intrigues, she was able to carve her way to the impressive Hidden Flower Sect.

According to her, her future would be assured, but the reality was different...

Upon entering she realized that the state of the Sect was far more deteriorated than she had ever imagined. Corruption was found in every corner of the Sect.

It was here that she met her friends after all they had been assigned as her dorm mates along with the other girl named Bryana. At first Bryana worked hard just like them, but tired of a life of poverty and hardship, she decided to turn herself in to one of the gang leaders who lurked in the outer courtyard.

Yes, you heard that right. There were several gangs operating inside the outer courtyard, whose purpose was to extort money from the disciples by deducting a high percentage of their contribution points. 

These "gangs" grew to such an extent that a large number of Elders within the Sect ended up being part of these criminal structures. Although there were still good people within the Sect, the reality was that little by little corruption was eating away at the Sect from within.

It was at this time of difficulty that Sefia's brilliance kicked in, leading the group of girls in her dorm through the various difficulties of the Sect. Since then she and her friends had managed to survive for the year and a half they had been living in the Sect.

'The situation is becoming more and more untenable' Sefia thought to herself as she remembered how little by little these gangs kept increasing the number of extortions towards the disciples. The outer courtyard disciples were now even having difficulty simply subsisting. Buying cultivation resources was already out of the question.

As a result of all these problems, a large number of female disciples decided to sell their bodies to these gang members in exchange for cultivation resources and above all a much more comfortable life within the Sect, just as Bryana had done.

The problem with this was that the stories of abuse and mistreatment of the female disciples by their "partners" were not uncommon, on the contrary, it was a common theme. It was for this reason that Sefia and the girls had decided to refrain from seeking the protection of any member of these gangs. Even Bryana would come back with the occasional hit at night.

'It seems that Elder Clarice's friend also refused to accept me as her disciple.'

Sefia had managed the odd friendship or two with people of some influence within the Outer Yard but unfortunately her mediocre talent always ended up hindering her.

As Sefia walked thoughtfully, a large group of people had gathered around a pair of female disciples. Sefia's curiosity got the better of her and she subtly approached them discreetly. Finally after a couple of light pushes she ended up to the front of the crowd.

"So you're saying that he really is the Sect Master's Personal Disciple?"

"If so..." 

"Big sister Yu-Hee confirmed it" Said the disciple while nodding her head like a chick. If Ruvan saw this girl he would recognize her as one of the disciples of Elder Yurie's group.

"And is he as strong as the rumors say?"

"Strong? He's incredibly strong... He just finished off one of the Elder protectors of the son of the Wandering Beak Sect's sect master" the girl said with a certain pride as if Ruvan's achievements belonged to her as well.

"Besides he single-handedly managed to capture the Sect Master's son alone with the help of his spirit beast" said the other female disciple who accompanied her in the story.

"Wow~ Impressive..."

"As expected from the Sect Master's personal disciple."

"But since when did the Sect Master have a personal apprentice? Has she been training hiddenly within the Sect?" Asked a girl who was part of the audience.

"No~ From what Ruvan told us, he has never lived in the Sect".

"Yes~ He said he has only been involved in training elsewhere".

"So he's a core disciple too, now?" asked Sefia who while raising her hand. Her question attracted the attention of the crowd after all core disciples were the very celebrities within the Sect.

"No~ That's the most unbelievable thing of all."

"Ruvan is still a disciple of the outer courtyard..."

"That's right... Since he's never been tested he's still part of the outer courtyard even though his strength is like that of a core disciple"The female disciple said at that moment with stars in her eyes.

"He sounds like a cool guy~" Sefia said loudly trying to get more responses from this pair of girls.

"He's really cool... He's incredibly strong and over all handsome."

"And he's also someone quite gentle... He himself delivered a sky rank pill to Elder Shion to save her life."

"Unbelievable~"

 "Hopefully I can meet him someday~" 

"Heck I need to go shopping for makeup" Several girls started shouting excitedly as they imagined a magical meeting with the new celebrity in the outer courtyard.

"If you see him don't hesitate to talk to him~"

"Yes, he didn't hesitate to talk to all of us. He's someone really approachable" Said the girls who self-declared themselves to be Ruvan's new fans.

'Mmm interesting' muttered Sefia to herself just before walking away from the group of girls with a thoughtful look on her face.