Lion opens his mouth wide

Chapter 429: A Lion's Mouth

According to Zhou Qingang's memories, the Five Elders Association governed five major 'Celestial Domains,' each under the jurisdiction of a different Heavenly Lord.

Each 'Celestial Domain' had distinct characteristics that set it apart from other places.

His hometown was called the 'Land of Gentlemen.'

It got its name because no one within it could lie.

Of course, that was what the people of the 'Land of Gentlemen' called themselves.

Cultivators from other parts of the Five Elders Association preferred to call it the 'Land of Truth.'

Regardless of the name, it did not affect its beautiful essence.

There, people always treated each other with honesty, always showing their truest selves.

Although occasional skirmishes were inevitable, compared to the outside world full of lies,

Zhou Qingang deeply loved his hometown.

To the north of the 'Land of Truth' lay the dreamland of countless Cultivators, the 'Worry-Free Paradise.'

As for the other three domains, Zhou Qingang was still young when he was selected for spy training and never learned about them.

…

The evolving dream was about to shatter, so Li Fan replayed the dream again.

To ensure the accuracy of the information.

He repeated this three times.

Taking some physiological Materials from Zhou Qingang, Li Fan began refining a Clone using him as a template.

A few days later,

a body identical to Zhou Qingang appeared.

Li Fan nodded slightly, then, following the same method, activated the Mysterious True Spirit Transformation and turned himself into Zhou Qingang's likeness.

A rather eerie scene appeared in this small underwater secret chamber.

Three bodies with exactly the same appearance, but with different expressions.

'Wonderful, wonderful!'

Li Fan nodded in satisfaction.

Looking at the still-unconscious Zhou Qingang, whose lips were curled up, a strange glint flashed in Li Fan's eyes.

'I won't kill you in this life, to avoid leaving any clues.'

'Being forever immersed in a dream might not be a bad thing for you.'

Using local Materials, Li Fan crafted a stone coffin for Zhou Qingang.

After placing him inside, he scattered a pile of Spirit Stones to sustain his vitality.

Li Fan then set up a Formation centered on 'Cloud Water Dream Illusion.'

It could maintain the illusion for at least twenty years.

Then he sealed the stone coffin with boulders and buried it deep in the seabed.

'This way, besides me, no one in the world should ever discover that you've disappeared.'

After cleaning up the traces, Li Fan's gaze seemed to pierce through the seabed, seeing Zhou Qingang sleeping in the dream, and said with satisfaction.

He had been inspired by the 'Eternal Immortal Wall' from the future 'Xuan Net' timeline.

After a Cultivator in the Xuanhuang World dies, the heaven and earth respond, and an anomaly appears in the sky.

Li Fan had not yet mastered a method to avoid such anomalies.

And for now, he couldn't let anyone discover that the real Zhou Qingang was dead.

Adopting this method was truly the most suitable.

After doing all this, the Clone returned to Taian Island to continue serving as the Guardian of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.

The main body, meanwhile, headed toward the rendezvous point with his handler as remembered by Zhou Qingang.

Zhou Qingang actually knew very little about his handler.

Communication had always been mostly one-way.

And after each meeting, the location for the next encounter would change.

Li Fan arrived at an uninhabited island, searched it, and indeed found an ordinary-looking stone.

Only at a specific spot were there a few inconspicuous small holes.

These small holes represented the 'coordinates' of the Congyun Sea.

Li Fan calculated the meeting point based on the coordinates.

After crushing the stone, he flew directly toward that place.

A day later,

in a ruin at the bottom of the sea, Li Fan found the target.

A seemingly ordinary broken stone.

Li Fan placed both hands over it and activated a secret technique, causing his palms to emit a yellow glow.

In an instant, the same pale yellow luster emerged from the broken stone, quickly scanning Li Fan's entire body.

Verification passed, and the light returned to the broken stone.

Soon, the surface of the broken stone became smooth as a mirror.

A blurry human face image appeared within it.

'What's going on? Didn't I tell you to lie low and not contact me recently?'

The other party's tone was cold, scolding him.

Li Fan, imitating Zhou Qingang's tone, said, 'Chief! This time I have important information to report, so I'm making an exception to contact you!'

'Important information?' The other party clearly didn't believe it and spoke with a harsh tone. 'Let's hear it.'

Li Fan lowered his voice and leaned in, saying, 'A Fellow Daoist I befriended said he could get the exam questions for this Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance recruitment exam.'

The face was stunned for a moment, then immediately cursed, 'Which fraud is it this time? How can you believe such an absurd thing? And you're reporting it to me?'

'Zhou Qingang, Zhou Qingang, have you been in the Congyun Sea so long that your brain is waterlogged?'

Li Fan immediately put on a very aggrieved expression: 'Chief, this time it's as true as can be! I guarantee it!'

The face, seeing Li Fan's earnest appearance, became somewhat hesitant.

'What do you mean?'

Li Fan said, 'This Fellow Daoist of mine has connections above!'

'I previously reported to you that I had made acquaintance with He Zhenghao, the Guardian of Liuli Island. He's at Foundation Establishment, just like me. Not long ago, he even complained to me that Contribution Points were hard to accumulate and that it would take forever to switch Cultivation Techniques.'

'But who would have thought, a few days later, he had already obtained a Nascent Soul Cultivation Technique!'

Li Fan said in an exaggerated tone.

'Such an anomaly naturally caught my attention. I went to great lengths to find out…'

The face was now somewhat attracted by Li Fan's words.

Seeing him suddenly hold back, he immediately cursed, 'Spit it out!'

Li Fan chuckled: 'This He Zhenghao is no simple man!'

'On the surface, he's just an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator. But in reality, his background is terrifying!'

'He has a daughter named He Xinxin. Hmph, actually, she should be called Heng Xinxin!'

'The Heng Family of the Tianyu State in the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance—have you heard of them, Chief?'

'Heng Ruoshui, the pearl of the Heng Family, already a Nascent Soul Formation Master at a young age, is actually He Zhenghao's old flame!'

'Who would believe that? But it's true!'

'Before, it seems that because He Zhenghao's cultivation was too poor, he was forced to cut ties with the Heng Family. So he lived quite a difficult life.'

'But recently, it seems things have taken a turn.'

Li Fan paused, glanced at the face, and continued, 'He Xinxin has come of age. She knows her old father is living so miserably and feels very sorry for him. But if she helps him openly, she's afraid her family will find out.'

'So she had to find another way, quietly passing on the news she overheard to He Zhenghao.'

'Relying on his daughter's help, He Zhenghao has completely turned his life around!'

Li Fan's tone was somewhat excited and envious: 'He found out in advance that the price of Wugu Obsidian was about to skyrocket, so he sold everything and bought a huge amount.'

'After the price doubled, he immediately sold it off.'

'In one go, he earned over a hundred thousand Contribution Points!'

'Over a hundred thousand, Chief! That's enough for my expenses for many years!'

'He Zhenghao was also afraid of leaking information and harming his daughter. So he made up some nonsense about being guided by an Ancient Tianji Sect Cultivator and spread it everywhere.'

'Pfft! They really think we're fools!'

'Chief, luckily I was sharp. I pestered him by all means and finally squeezed the truth out of him.'

Li Fan boasted with a proud expression.

'The leak of this recruitment exam's questions also came from He Xinxin.'

'Chief, what do you think? Is it reliable?'

The figure on the broken stone did not get angry this time but remained silent, as if searching for something.

After a long time, the face's voice came through.

'Heng Ruoshui indeed has a daughter, but the father's identity has always been a mystery.'

'However, many years ago, she once returned home with a young man. But shortly after, that young man disappeared without a trace.'

'Let me see what he looks like…'

'It really is He Zhenghao!'

The face was shocked.

'And this…'

'Before the Wugu Obsidian price surge, there were unusual trading records. Someone bought up large quantities and then sold at the peak.'

'The timing was too perfect, making it hard to believe they didn't have inside information.'

'The buyer…'

'It's He Zhenghao again!'

A loud noise like a forceful slap on the table came from the face's side.

'So, the exam questions for the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance recruitment exam might actually be real?'

The other party's breathing also became rapid.

Li Fan nodded repeatedly: 'That's why I rushed to find you, Chief! You know the recruitment exam is about to be held.'

'If we can get the questions in advance…'

'We can plant more spies in key positions in the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance!'

The face clearly understood the seriousness of the matter and quickly asked, 'What did he say?'

At this point, Li Fan suddenly became somewhat hesitant.

Stammering, he said, 'Chief, He Zhenghao's asking price is a bit high this time…'

The face scolded, 'Just say it! It's just some Spirit Stones; how can they compare to the recruitment exam questions?'

Li Fan stretched out his hand and gestured, 'He wants this much?'

'Five hundred thousand Contribution Points? That's not impossible…' The face hadn't finished speaking.

Li Fan quickly shook his head and interrupted, 'No, it's five million.'

The face froze instantly.

'Five million? Is he crazy?!' His voice trembled.

But soon, the face reacted.

His expression suddenly darkened, and his voice carried a hint of Killing Intent: 'Have you been exposed?!'

'For an individual, and just a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he would never ask for such an outrageous price.'

'Unless he already knows that behind you is an organization…'

The image on the broken stone flickered, as if it might disappear at any moment.

The face stared intently at Li Fan, waiting for his answer.

Li Fan said somewhat speechlessly, 'Chief, in your heart, am I really that unprofessional?'

'I only told him that I also have people behind me.'

'Who doesn't have connections when serving in the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance?'

'Rest assured, Chief, even if He Zhenghao suspects something, he will never think of me as a spy.'

'In fact, He Zhenghao is just casting a wide net. He also knows the risks of selling exam questions, so he's only doing a one-time deal.'

'He'll only trade with one party and will limit the number of people who know the questions and take the exam to no more than ten.'

…

Listening to Li Fan's explanation, the face gradually calmed down.

The image became bright and clear again. After analyzing carefully for a while, the face said, 'Fifty thousand per person—though the cost is a bit high, it's still acceptable.'

'But given the huge amount, if He Zhenghao's questions turn out to be fake…'

Li Fan said dismissively, 'He Zhenghao said that since the exam lasts seven days, he can give us the first day's questions for free. Once we confirm they're correct, we can proceed with the final transaction.'

Hearing this, the face couldn't help but feel tempted.