At the beginning, I cleaned the Sutra Library and completed the incomplete skills.

Chapter 195: Rising Fame

In the Chongshan Region, within the Tian Shu Pavilion.

Senior Brother Fan, who was responsible for issuing Sect missions, was, as always, busy with his work.

Suddenly,

An orange jade slip was thrown in front of him.

"By the Sect Master's order, this person is to be listed as the highest tier Sect mission,

Anyone who knows his whereabouts shall be rewarded with a Foundation Establishment Pill.

Anyone who can capture this person alive will receive cultivation rights for a year in a Medium-Grade Spirit Vein cave dwelling labeled Ding!"

Before Senior Brother Fan could even read the contents of the jade slip,

He was stunned into a daze by the generous reward.

It was no wonder he reacted this way,

After all,

Even seizing an entire Low-Grade Spirit Vein for the Sect only granted twelve hours of cultivation rights.

What was the background of this newly issued Sect mission target?

Was he actually worth the Sect offering a full year of cultivation rights as a reward?

He swallowed hard, asking again in disbelief:

"Senior Uncle Murong, did I hear correctly? Is the mission reward really set for a year?"

Murong Ziheng nodded indifferently.

Receiving confirmation,

While Senior Brother Fan was astonished, he couldn't help but become more curious.

Who was the target of this Sect mission?

Capturing him alive was actually a hundred times more important than seizing a Low-Grade Spirit Vein for the Sect?

A wisp of his spiritual sense sank into the jade slip,

After quickly scanning the contents,

Senior Brother Fan's eyes suddenly widened, as if they were about to pop out of their sockets.

He stood frozen as if struck by lightning, his face filled with disbelief.

"This—he, he's actually him?

Senior Senior Uncle Murong, are you sure the target of this Sect mission isn't mistaken?

Is the one to be captured this time really the former registered disciple, Li Jiangchuan?"

Under extreme shock,

Senior Brother Fan was speaking somewhat incoherently at this moment.

Regarding the target of this Sect mission,

He had many conjectures, even boldly including Executors from the Human Emperor Hall.

But he never expected,

The real target was actually Li Jiangchuan.

That silent, unassuming figure immediately appeared in Senior Brother Fan's mind.

What a joke, what was so special about this registered disciple?

Was he worth the Sect offering such a generous reward?

Senior Brother Fan immediately thought that the content of the jade slip must be wrong.

However,

Murong Ziheng looked at him seriously, saying word by word:

"That's right, it's him. You seem to be quite familiar with him?"

Upon hearing this, Senior Brother Fan had not yet recovered from his shock,

He subconsciously replied:

"Not very familiar, but I've seen him several times when issuing Sect missions in the past.

This fellow is extremely careful and cautious, always taking on relatively safe Sect missions and rarely taking risks,

That's why this nephew has a deep impression of him.

I haven't seen this fellow much in recent years,

I thought he was dead, but I didn't expect him to already be in the Foundation Establishment Stage. This fellow's advancement speed is a bit too fast, isn't it? The last time I saw him, he was clearly only at Qi Refining Great Perfection—."

Senior Brother Fan muttered to himself,

The scene when he first met Li Lan reappeared in his mind.

Who would have thought that this seemingly unremarkable Qi Refining Stage cultivator,

In just a few short years,

Had actually successfully established his foundation and surpassed most of the geniuses within the Sect?

This was truly too unbelievable.

"Tell me about this Li Jiangchuan. When did you meet him?"

Murong Ziheng stopped walking and asked in detail.

Sect missions targeting individual cultivators had not appeared in the Guangji Sect for many years.

The abnormality of this mission also piqued his interest.

The same scene was also playing out in various places throughout Jiuhua County.

Including the Three Great Sects,

All Sects and families had successively issued missions to capture Li Jiangchuan alive.

Even the Human Emperor Hall quickly followed suit by issuing a Demon Hunting Token.

For a time,

Li Jiangchuan's name became famous throughout Jiuhua County, reaching a point where everyone knew about him.

Almost everyone wanted to capture him alive and claim the reward.

However, after the various generous Sect missions were issued,

For a long time, not a single cultivator saw Li Jiangchuan again.

He seemed to have vanished into thin air, completely disappearing from Jiuhua County.

At this moment,

This famous person was hiding in a certain underground cave, cultivating diligently day and night.

The crystal-clear walls of the cave dwelling sparkled with an earthy-yellow halo,

Wisps of dense, fog-like spiritual energy drifted out from within, quickly being absorbed by a wooden stake covered in green sprouts.

After the impurities within were simply refined and peeled away,

This spiritual energy was then absorbed into the body by a middle-aged cultivator sitting cross-legged.

Beside him,

Stood a stone coffin with numerous magical artifacts embedded in its surface.

From a crack in this stone coffin, an endless stream of earthy-yellow liquid flowed out.

A human-like puppet stood by, holding a jade bowl container to collect this liquid,

Once filled,

It would pour it onto the surrounding walls, adding spiritual energy to this cave dwelling.

Behind the cultivator,

Were also many five humans, and many purple-skinned puppets, sitting cross-legged.

At this moment,

They were all tightly encased, like amber, by this solidified earthy-yellow liquid.

When these liquid spiritual energies became thin,

This puppet would occasionally distribute some liquid, pouring it onto them.

After an unknown period of time,

Li Lan's brow furrowed slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes, looking towards the top of the cave dwelling.

From his spiritual sense, he knew that three cultivators had discovered his underground cave dwelling.

What were these fellows trying to do?

After thinking for a moment,

Li Lan put away the purple sandalwood tree core, the Eternal Life Coffin, the solidified spiritual energy on the walls, the Spirit Bean Soldiers that restored magic power, and other items,

Seeing that there was nothing unusual left in this place,

He slowly walked out of the cave dwelling.

At this time,

On the surface above, three people were waiting.

"Executor Cui, is it perhaps inappropriate for us to do this?

Rashly disturbing other cultivators who are in seclusion is a great taboo.

If we encounter someone we can't afford to offend, the three of us might not even keep our lives."

One of the Red-Clothed Female Cultivators said with a worried expression.

"Don't panic,

I have already scouted the situation here. Most of the restrictions here are weak, only around the peak third-tier level,

In my opinion, the owner of this place has at most the Cultivation Base of Qi Refining Late Stage, not worth mentioning. You can rest assured.

Even if we take a step back,

What if the other party has some background and is a cultivator we can't afford to offend?

We are here under the Human Emperor Hall's Demon Hunting Token, acting on official business. It is expected that even if the other party is dissatisfied, they wouldn't dare to make things too difficult for us.

Wouldn't you agree, Executor Cui?"

A short cultivator, looking no different from a seven-year-old child, had a face full of fawning smiles.

Executor Cui, dressed in a black robe with gold patterns, stood with his hands behind his back, too lazy to say much to the two who were less cultivated than him.

While the three were talking,

Li Lan also flashed and arrived on the surface.

He cupped his hands neither humbly nor arrogantly and said:

"May I ask why the Executor of the Human Emperor Hall has come here?"

At this time,

Li Lan had changed his appearance and concealed his aura,

So he wasn't afraid of the other party recognizing him.

Executor Cui glanced at him,

And upon discovering that Li Lan was merely at the Qi Refining Great Perfection realm,

The look of contempt in his eyes grew even stronger, and he was too lazy to waste any more words with him,

He lifted his leg and walked towards the underground cave dwelling.

It was Shancai Tongzi behind him who cupped his hands and explained in a timely manner:

"Fellow Daoist, please don't be offended. The Human Emperor Hall has issued a Demon Hunting Token, and all righteous cultivators must cooperate.

Fellow Daoist, quickly remove the restrictions and let Executor Cui search for a bit.

If you haven't harbored that demon Li Jiangchuan,

The three of us will not make things difficult for Fellow Daoist."

Upon hearing this, Li Lan frowned.

"Senior, you wish to forcibly enter my cave dwelling with just a word? I'm afraid that's a bit inappropriate, isn't it?"

Executor Cui snorted coldly, raised his hand, and produced a blood-red token.

"What's inappropriate?

With this Demon Hunting Token, even the cave dwelling of a Golden Core Stage cultivator, this Executor will enter without fail.

You dare to stop me? Could it be that you are also a demonic cultivator, trying to harbor that Li Jiangchuan?"

With a big accusation thrown at him,

Li Lan found it difficult to say more,

He could only wave his hand to remove the restrictions, allowing the other party to enter the cave dwelling.

Fortunately, before coming out,

Li Lan had put away all sensitive items in the cave dwelling,

Naturally, the three of them found nothing at this time.

"Fellow Daoist, the range of your restriction formation is not small, but this cave dwelling looks quite simple."

Shancai Tongzi commented after glancing around.

"This humble Daoist has cultivated diligently for many years and is already used to it."

Li Lan's cave dwelling was only two or three zhang in size, and one could see the end at a glance. Besides a single cushion, there was nothing else inside.

He was not a person who indulged in extravagance,

If it weren't for the fact that those Spirit Bean Soldiers also needed the Eternal Life Coffin to restore their magic power,

Li Lan would have even made the cave dwelling smaller, just like when he was in the Taoyuan Mountains, leaving just enough space for himself to cultivate.

"As you Fellow Daoists can see, this junior is not a demonic cultivator, and there is no one else in the cave dwelling.

This junior still needs to contemplate the path to breakthrough, so I won't keep Seniors any longer."

Li Lan cupped his hands and said.

"Fellow Daoist, don't be in a hurry. Our purpose for coming here isn't just to inspect the cave dwelling.

May I ask what Fellow Daoist's name is? And which family do you come from?

This place is not located on a Spirit Vein, and the spiritual energy is thin. Why did you set up restrictions and open a cave dwelling here?"

Shancai Tongzi inquired about his background.

"This junior is Xu Miaohai from Qingjiang Weir. I was instructed by my elders to go to Jiuhua County City. Recently, I had some insights into cultivation, so I temporarily opened a cave dwelling here to cultivate."

Li Lan had already prepared his excuse when he created his false identity,

So he answered fluently at this time.

Shancai Tongzi asked many other details, all of which he resolved one by one.

After pondering for a while, Shancai Tongzi couldn't find any faults,

Immediately,

He took out a portrait and asked Li Lan to identify it.

"Fellow Daoist Xu, have you ever seen this person?"

Li Lan looked closely,

The person depicted in the portrait was precisely himself.

Li Lan's expression remained unchanged, and he gently shook his head.

A hint of disappointment clearly flashed in the eyes of Shancai Tongzi and the Red-Clothed Female Cultivator,

But they were not discouraged by this.

If Li Jiangchuan's whereabouts could be found so easily,

Then this good fortune wouldn't have fallen to them.

"Since Fellow Daoist Xu has no issues, then Executor Cui, shall we—"

As Shancai Tongzi spoke, he looked towards Executor Cui.

At this moment, the latter was carefully examining the walls inside the cave dwelling. "Xu Miaohai, it is true that the spiritual energy here is thin, but the density of the spiritual energy in your cave dwelling is quite unusual."