After completing their residence, Maria and Mira finished their registration at the registration office. They had to undergo the same treatment as the Trial Disciples during their registration. However, aside from a plaque, they were also given a token to place outside their residence.
This token is technically just a tracker that will allow the higher-ups to find Mira easily without wasting so much time if they ever need to talk with her personally or need her for something.
Mira also picked up the books Elder Sandra said she'd give her as a reward.
After settling everything, the two of them spent the rest of the day relaxing until it was finally time for them to go to the Mission Hall to accept their first mission.
This was what Mira was the most excited about! She'd finally get a chance to test out her new powers!
"Welcome to the Mission Hall! You two must be new Outer Court Disciples! Since this is your first time in the Mission Hall, let me explain more about your monthly quota, how you can earn Merit Points, what Merit Points are for, and what'll happen should you fail a mission." The receptionist greeted Mira and Maria with a smile, not minding Mira's fox tails or ears at all.
The two of them nodded, motioning for the receptionist to continue.
"So, your monthly quota isn't actually in missions like you thought it might be, but it's in Merit Points, which is four Merit Points per month. That's the minimum you need just to stay in the Sect. That is to say, you won't get kicked out of the Sect immediately should you fail to meet that quota. You will be immediately expelled from the Sect if you fail to meet the quota three times. However, this resets every three years. So, it could be said that every three years, you have three strikes, but unfortunately, you can't accumulate strikes."
"Now, onto how you can earn Merit Points. Of course, one way is to take on missions. Merit Points will be given to you by the Sect itself as one of the rewards for completing the mission, but that's not the only way to gain them. You can earn Merit Points in duels or make products such as weapons, pills, arrays, etc., and sell them to the Sect. You can also earn them by teaching others an ability or technique that you've learned. In truth, Merit Points can be earned in any number of ways. You can also passively earn Merit Points per month for ranking in the Top 10."
"Now, you might be wondering, what's the point of doing missions if you can earn Merit Points by doing something else? Well, that's where there's a little bit of a grey area. You see, although we understand that some people aren't suited for combat, and their abilities are better used elsewhere, we don't care. We are all cultivators here. Thus we need to know how to protect ourselves. That's where the quota of four merit points comes into play. As long as you do enough missions worth four merit points per month, then you'll meet your quota."
"Furthermore, we value talent and recognize strength here at the Battle Maiden Sect. Therefore, if you are able to complete missions meant for those above your cultivation, you'll earn bonus Merit Points. Generally, for every stage above you, you'll earn 100% more Merit Points."
"HOWEVER! This is also the case should you fail a mission! Any Merit Points you would have gotten if you completed it will be taken away. For example, let's say you take a mission worth 2 Merit Points, and it's recommended for those one stage higher than you in cultivation, making it worth 4. Should you fail this mission, you'll lose 4 Merit Points.
"As for what you can use your Merit Points on… Well, you can basically use them on anything! Hell, with enough Merit Points, you can even buy your way to become a Core Disciple! Weapons, pills, techniques, mentorship, information, arrays, materials, formations, access to Secret Realms, and much more! You can literally buy anything!"
"I'll also give you one piece of advice. Try to earn more than 4 Merit Points per month. If you only do the bare minimum here, the Sect will definitely kick you out by the end of the year."
"Well, since I've gotten that out of the way, you're free to choose whatever mission you like. Oh! By the way, you look through all of the missions available over there." The receptionist pointed to something similar to a projection containing all kinds of missions.
Mira and Maria nodded and began searching for a mission. It didn't take long for them to find something they liked.
The two of them didn't want to start out with anything too serious since this was their first time on the Ancient Beast Mountain Range. Who knows what sort of terrifying existences are lurking around? It's better to be safe and scout out the area a bit before taking on any dangerous missions.
Plus, the reason Mira's excited right now isn't that she can earn Merit Points, but so she can understand her power.
So, Mira took a Mission to kill a Low-Rank 6 Rocky Boar. The reason she took this mission despite knowing she can easily crush a Low-Stage Rank 6 beast is that she wanted to understand if maybe beasts in these mountains are stronger than the beasts on the rest of the Continent.
She doesn't want to accept a mission to defeat a Mid-Stage Rank 6 Beast only for them to be overpowered existences and not something she can easily face without making a huge mess.
Ever since she entered this Mountain Range, her instincts have been telling her not to underestimate this place. She's not exactly sure what she should be weary of besides some of the peak-level existences living on this mountain, but she was going to listen to her instincts nonetheless.
Meanwhile, Maria did something similar and accepted a mission to kill a Low-Stage Rank 6 Nightwalker Snake.
These two missions are both worth 1 Merit Point each and will also reward them with 1,000 Low-Grade Spirit Stones each.
Returning to the Receptionist, they successfully accepted their first missions!
Looking at their plaque, they saw that their missions appeared underneath the [Active Missions] section.
After choosing their respective missions, the two of them left the Mission Hall to start hunting immediately.
***
A/N: Thank you, Nyviria, for the 5,000 coins! Here's one of the two bonus chapters! I really appreciate all the support!