Chapter 455: Chapter 427: The Lion Opens Its Mouth Wide
According to Zhou Qingang’s memory, under the rule of the Five Elders Organization, there are five different “heavenly realms” each governed by a different celestial lord.
Each “heavenly realm” has distinct characteristics that set them apart from the other realms.
His homeland is known as the [Land of the Noble].
Named due to the impossibility of lying within its borders.
Of course, that is how the residents of the [Land of the Noble] referred to it.
The cultivators from other areas under the Five Elders Organization prefer to call it the [Country of Truth].
No matter how it is named, it does not change its beautiful essence.
In that place, people are always honest, always revealing their true selves.
Whilst conflicts can occur inevitably from time to time, Zhou Qingang held a deep love for his homeland, preferring it to the outside world filled with lies.
To the north of the [Country of Truth], is a numerous cultivators’ Shangri-la, the [Realm of Blissful Ease].
As for the other three domains, Zhou Qingang was still young when he was chosen for espionage training, and thus was not privy to the information.
With the processing dream on the brink of breaking, Li Fan once again replayed the dreamscape.
To ensure the accuracy of the information obtained.
This process was repeated three times.
After collecting some physiological materials from Zhou Qingang, Li Fan began cultivating a clone modeled after him.
A few days later.
A body exactly the same as that of Zhou Qingang had appeared.
Li Fan nodded slightly, then used the same method to initiate the Mysterious True Spirit Transformation and transformed himself into Zhou Qingang’s likeness.
A peculiar scene unfolded in this small seabed secret room.
Three bodies with the same appearance had distinct demeanours.
“Wonderful, just wonderful!”
Li Fan nodded in satisfaction.
Looking at the unconscious Zhou Qingang with an upturned corner of his lips, a flash of peculiarity crossed Li Fan’s eyes.
“I won’t kill you in this world to avoid exposing any flaws.”
“Being forever immersed in dreams may not necessarily be a bad thing for you.”
Using local resources, Li Fan constructed a stone coffin for Zhou Qingang.
After placing him inside, he scattered a pile of Spirit Stones to maintain his vitality.
Li Fan then set up an Array Technique centered on the [Mistwater Mirage].
It can maintain the Illusory Realm for at least twenty years.
After that, he sealed the stone coffin with a large stone and buried it deep in the seabed.
“In this way, no one in the world but me should notice your disappearance.”
After covering his tracks, his gaze seemed to penetrate the seabed, looking at the dreaming Zhou Qingang, he spoke in satisfaction.
He took this approach after being inspired by the [Everlasting Wall of Immortality] in the future world line of the [Mystic Net].
When cultivators from the Xuanhuang World dies, the natural world will sense it and send out strange signs in the sky.
Li Fan has not yet mastered the method to avoid the occurrence of such signs.
And right now, he cannot let others discover the real Zhou Qingang is dead.
Adopting this approach seems most appropriate.
Upon completion of all these, the clone returned to Taian Island to continue guarding for the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals.
The original body then set off in the direction remembered by Zhou Qingang, towards the rendezvous point with his contact.
Zhou Qingang actually knew very little about his contact.
It had always been a one-way communication. Furthermore, the meeting location changed after each rendezvous.
Li Fan arrived on an uninhabited island, conducted a search, and indeed found an ordinary-looking stone.
Just that in a specific location, there were a few inconspicuous holes.
These small holes represented the [coordinates] of the Cloud Sea.
Based on the coordinates, Li Fan calculated this rendezvous location.
After crushing the stone, he flew directly toward that direction.
One day later.
Li Fan found his target amidst the ruins under the sea.
A seemingly ordinary broken stone.
Li Fan placed his hands on it, simultaneously operating a secret technique, emitting a yellow light from his palms.
Instantly, a similarly pale yellow light emerged from the broken stone, quickly scanning Li Fan’s entire body.
Upon verification, the light returned to the broken stone.
Shortly after, the surface of the broken stone became smooth as a mirror.
A vague image of a face appeared within it.
“What are you up to? Weren’t you told to lie low and avoid contact recently?”
The other party’s tone was cold, chiding him.
Li Fan imitated Zhou Qingang’s tone: “Boss! It’s an important information this time, that’s why I made an exception to contact you!”
“Important information?” The person on the other side clearly didn’t believe it and spoke in a disgruntled tone, “Let’s hear it.”
Lowering his voice, Li Fan leaned in and said: “A Daoist friend I made, according to him, he can get his hands on the test questions for this year’s Alliance of Thousands of Immortals’ entry exam.”
The face paused for a moment, then immediately scolded: “Another liar? You believe such preposterous things and even made a special report to me about it?”
“Zhou Qingang, Zhou Qingang, have you been in the Cloud Sea for too long, has water gotten into your head?”
Li Fan immediately put on a very wronged expression: “Boss, it’s really real this time! I can guarantee it!”
The person on the other side, seeing Li Fan’s earnest expression, started to waver a little.
“What do you mean?”
Li Fan said: “This Daoist friend of mine, he has connections up there!”
“I had reported to you previously that I made friends with He Zhenghao, the guard of Liuli Island. Like me, he’s also at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Not long ago, he was still complaining to me about how it’s so difficult to accumulate contribution points and how long it’ll take for him to change his cultivation technique.”
“But who would have thought, after not seeing him for a few days, he has already started practicing the Nascent Soul Cultivation Technique!”
Li Fan spoke with an exaggerated tone.
“Such anomalies naturally caught my attention. I had to use a considerable amount of Techniques to find out…”
By now, the face on the stone was somewhat drawn in by what Li Fan was saying.
Seeing him suddenly play coy, it immediately cursed, “Out with it!”
Li Fan chuckled: “This He Zhenghao, he’s not as simple as he seems! ”
“On the surface, he’s just an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator. In reality, his background is terrifyingly significant!”
“He has a daughter named He XinXin. Hmm, she should really be called Heng XinXin!”
“Have you heard of the Heng family from the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals in Tianyu Province?”
“Heng Ruoshui, the pearl of the Heng family, who has already become a Nascent Soul Weave Master at a young age, is He Zhenghao’s old flame!”
“Who would believe it if word got out! But it’s true indeed!”
“Before, it seems that because of He Zhenghao’s poor cultivation, he was forced to cut ties with the Heng family, and thus lived a rather destitute life.”
“But recently, it seems there’s been a turn of events.”
Li Fan paused for a moment, glanced at the stone face, then continued: “He XinXin is now grown up, she can’t bear to see her old father living so pitifully. But if she helps him openly, she fears it would be discovered by her family.”
“So, she had to change her approach and secretly pass on the news she overheard to He Zhenghao.”
“With his daughter’s help, He Zhenghao really turned things around!”
Li Fan spoke with a mix of excitement and envy: “He got wind of the [Ancient Ebony Luminous Stone] price surge in advance, so he invested everything he had.”
“After the price doubled, he sold immediately.”
“Back and forth, he made more than a hundred thousand contribution points!”
“Over one hundred thousand! Chief! That’s enough to cover my expenditure for many years!”
“He Zhenghao fears any leaks may harm his daughter. So, he made up some nonsense about being guided by a monk from the Ancient Sect of Heavenly Secrets and is spreading it around.”
“Bah! He thinks we’re fools!”
“Chief, luckily I was alert, and through persistence and coaxing, I managed to pry out the truth from him.”
Li Fan looked smug as he touted his accomplishment.
“The source of the leaked questions for the recruitment examination is also He XinXin.”
“Chief, do you think it’s credible?”
The figure on the stone didn’t erupt in anger, instead, he fell silent, seemingly searching for something.
After a long while, the voice of the stone face gradually came through.
“Heng Ruoshui indeed has a daughter; however, the identity of the father has always been a mystery.”
“Many years ago, she did return home with a young man, but not long after, this man vanished.”
“Let me see his face…”
“Indeed, it’s He Zhenghao!”
The face on the stone was shocked.
“Then there’s this…”
“Before the price of the Ancient Ebony Luminous Stone skyrocketed, unusual trading records appeared. Someone was buying up in large quantities and then sold at a high point.”
“The timing of his moves was too good, making it hard for one to believe it wasn’t due to inside information.”
“The buyer…”
“Again, it’s He Zhenghao!”
From the figure on the stone came a sound like a heavy thump on a table.
“So, does this mean that the questions for the Great Immortal Alliance’s recruitment examination could be real?”
The other party’s breath became noticeably quicker.
Li Fan nodded non-stop, “That’s why I hurried to find you! You must know the hiring examination is about to take place.”
“If we can get the examination questions in advance…”
“We could insert more of our men into key positions in the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals!”
Clearly understanding the gravity of the situation, the figure hurriedly asked, “What did he say?”
At this point, Li Fan suddenly seemed hesitant.
He stammered, “Chief, the price He Zhenghao is asking for this time is a bit high…”
The figure on the stone fumed, “Just tell me! It’s just some Spirit Stones, how can they compare to the exam questions?”
Li Fan extended his hand, gesturing, “he wants this amount?”
“Five hundred thousand contribution points? We could potentially…” The figure on the stone was cut off before finishing.
Li Fan quickly shook his head, interrupting, “No, it’s five million.”
The figure on the stone froze.
“Five million? Has he gone mad?!” its voice trembled slightly.
However, the figure soon collected itself.
His face darkened, and there was a hint of murderous intent in his voice: “Did you expose yourself?!”
“Facing an insignificant individual who is no more than a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, he would absolutely not ask for such an outrageous price.”
“Unless he already knows that behind you, there is an organization…”
The image on the stone flickered, seemingly on the verge of disappearing.
The figure watched Li Fan intently, waiting for his answer.
Li Fan seemed somewhat speechless: “Chief, in your eyes, am I really that unprofessional?”
“I only told him that I have some connections.”
“Everyone who works in the Alliance of Thousand Immortals has some connections.”
“Don’t worry, Chief, even if He Zhenghao has suspicions, he absolutely would not think of me as a spy.”
“In fact, He Zhenghao is just casting a wide net. He knows the risks of selling recruitment examination questions, so he’s only making a one-time deal.”
“He trades only with one party and limited the number of people who know the examination questions and will take the recruitment examination to no more than ten.”
Listening to Li Fan’s explanation, the figure gradually calmed down.
The image became bright and clear again, the figure analyzed the situation carefully for a while, then said, “A cost of five hundred thousand per person is a bit high, but it’s still acceptable.”
“It’s just that the amount is huge. If the examination questions provided by this He Zhenghao are fake…”
Li Fan was unconcerned, “He Zhenghao said, anyway, the recruitment examination lasts for seven days. He can first give us the questions for the first day for free. Once we confirm their correctness, we can proceed with the final transaction.”
On hearing this, the figure on the stone was admittedly taken by surprise and couldn’t help but be tempted.