Chapter 204: Turning A Mountain Into A Molehill

After spending most of the day comprehending the profundities of the complete Mountain-Sitting Art, Li Fan purchased a blank Technique Sales Contract from the Tianxuan Mirror.

It was largely identical to the one he had signed when selling the Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture to the Tianxuan Mirror before.

However, since most cultivators the techniques they practiced to remain confidential, the buyer on the contract could remain anonymous.

This type of contract cost five hundred contribution points each, significantly cheaper than the standard Commercial Contract priced at one thousand contribution points.

The format was fixed; he only needed to fill in the seller's name, the technique's name, and the selling price.

Li Fan altered his handwriting and sequentially wrote: He Zhenghao, Mountain-Sitting Art, 55,000 contribution points. He then sent it to He Zhenghao via the Tianxuan Mirror.

"Fellow Daoist He, the matter is settled. The other party is quite generous; the price is five thousand points higher than expected. Please sign the contract quickly."

Moments later, He Zhenghao's delighted voice came through: "Thank you, Fellow Daoist! I'll sign it right away!"

Not long after, a golden light tore through space and entered Li Fan's body.

From that moment on, He Zhenghao forgot the Mountain-Sitting Art entirely.

Li Fan then withdrew fifty-five top-grade spirit stones and sent them to He Zhenghao.

The transaction was thus completed.

Li Fan activated the Taishang Primordial True Scripture, converting all his cultivated techniques into pure cultivation.

Then, over the next half-month, he familiarized himself with each technique within the Mountain-Sitting Art one by one.

Following that, Li Fan conducted a series of experiments.

He transformed Return to Truth into different Foundation Establishment Curios within his dantian. With each transformation, Li Fan cultivated for a period, comparing how different Curios affected his progress in the Mountain-Sitting Art.

The results left Li Fan somewhat disappointed. None of the Curios of heaven and earth he currently possessed were particularly compatible with the Mountain-Sitting Art. Their effects on his cultivation speed were all roughly similar.

Fortunately, this wasn’t a big deal. What Li Fan valued about the Mountain-Sitting Art was its return-on-investment function.

In this lifetime, He Zhenghao was currently the only one whom Li Fan had invested in.

Upon closing his eyes and carefully sensing the changes in his cultivation, Li Fan found it after a moment. A stream of cultivation feedback seemed to emerge from nowhere. It was minuscule in quantity, and nearly undetectable unless examined closely. Yet it flowed continuously, like a babbling brook.

Li Fan smiled faintly.

It seems Fellow Daoist He is making good progress.

In my twelfth life, when I practiced the Mountain-Sitting Art, I focused on the quantity of my investments. Although my progress was rapid, it caused powerhouses to hunt me down.

This lifetime, I need a different approach. I'll prioritize the quality of my investments.

I'll invest in the prodigies I remember, without restraining them. I'll transmit techniques for free, allowing them to cultivate as they please and seek their own opportunities.

Given the providence of these prodigies, their cultivation speed will surely far surpass that of the previous lifetime.

Moreover, by monitoring them with Formless Killing Mechanism, the moment they comprehend any divine abilities, I'll immediately sense it. I can then observe and learn them for my own use.

Li Fan's thoughts churned as he pondered silently.

After testing, he had already confirmed that freely transmitting techniques was equivalent to exchanging contribution points for cultivation, guaranteeing a profit.

In this lifetime, his contribution points were relatively ample, sufficient to support the needs of Xiao Heng, Su Xiaomei, and the others up to the Foundation Establishment realm.

Li Fan calculated that by the time they all reached the late-stage Foundation Establishment realm, he should have broken through to the Golden Core realm himself.

Still, I need to devise a foolproof method. After all, things given for free aren't truly valued and often breed suspicion.

Just as Li Fan was pondering how to further maximize the effects of his reward-reaping ability, Zhou Qing’ang’s inexplicable disappearance finally attracted the attention of the relevant authorities on Myriad Immortals Island.

The Martial Hall promptly dispatched an investigative team of Golden Core cultivators, led by Elder Gongsun of the Heavenly Mechanism Hall.

When divination results revealed that Zhou Qing’ang had been devoured by fish, the news caused an immediate uproar.

A Foundation Establishment cultivator—killed by ordinary fish? That was simply unbelievable. Many immediately suspected foul play by the Five Elders Council, and preparations were made for a thorough investigation.

Upon hearing the news, He Zhenghao grew uneasy and invited Li Fan to Liuli Island to discuss possible countermeasures.

Li Fan calmly reassured him, advising him to remain composed and behave as usual.

Shortly thereafter, Li Fan submitted the recording he had made earlier with the Image Recording Stone.

However, the footage he provided only showed Zhou Qing’ang searching for the special stone on the nameless island while disguised. Everything that followed—his dive into the sea and his conversation with the stone-face entity—had been completely excised.

When turning in the recording, Li Fan explained that he had happened to witness Zhou Qing’ang altering his appearance and behaving suspiciously. Finding this odd, he had secretly followed him and recorded the footage.

As for what happened afterward, Li Fan claimed he had lost track of Zhou Qing’ang and knew nothing further.

The authenticity of the recording was swiftly verified.

Li Fan was then summoned for questioning by the Heavenly Mechanism Hall. They asked when the recording had been made, and why he had only submitted it after Zhou Qing’ang’s disappearance.

“The recording was made about twenty-three days ago,” Li Fan replied. “At the time, I didn’t think much of it, only that this person seemed to be hiding some secret.

“Who could have imagined that while I was in secluded cultivation, he would die in such an absurd way, eaten by fish?

“Once I heard the news, I realized something was wrong and immediately submitted the recording.”

As he spoke, Li Fan activated the Seven-Apertures Exquisite Heart, allowing a trace of nervousness to surface as he offered his “honest” explanation.

One of the Heavenly Mechanism Hall cultivators slowly nodded.

After a brief discussion among themselves, the investigators allowed Li Fan to go.

“Do not leave the island for now,” they instructed. “We may require your cooperation again.”

Li Fan nodded repeatedly in understanding.

Yet the anticipated follow-up never came.

A few days later, the once highly publicized investigation on Myriad Immortals Island abruptly came to an end. It was as though the matter had never existed, and Zhou Qing’ang along with it.

The strangeness of the situation inevitably stirred private speculation. Still, everyone understood that the authorities intended to bury the matter, and discussions remained confined to whispers behind closed doors.

“Fellow Daoist Li Fan, what exactly happened? Wasn’t Zhou Qing’ang a spy? How did he suddenly die?

“And why did the Alliance stop investigating so abruptly?”

Although the crisis had passed, He Zhenghao was still riddled with doubts.

After a brief pause, Li Fan calmly pieced together the chain of events.

Smiling faintly, he said, “In my view, the investigation ended because they confirmed Zhou Qing’ang was a spy.

“The various branches of the Myriad Immortals Alliance enjoy a great deal of autonomy. For the Congyun Sea branch to not only let a spy infiltrate their ranks, but even allow him to become an island guardian... that’s an enormous scandal.

“If word reached headquarters, punishment would be unavoidable. To protect their positions, the local authorities would naturally want to suppress the matter, turning a major issue into a minor one, and a minor one into nothing at all.

“Besides, Zhou Qing’ang is already dead. Whether he died by accident or was silenced makes no real difference.

“The key point is that he’s dead. Death closes the ledger. They can simply pretend the whole affair never existed.

“That’s the only outcome where everyone walks away unscathed.

“As for whether he stole or transmitted any classified information...” Li Fan shook his head lightly. “Do you really think the Five Elders Council would launch an operation over something like this?”

At first, He Zhenghao found Li Fan’s explanation unbelievable—almost absurd.

Yet the more he thought about it, the more it rang true.

In the end, he could only sink into a long, wordless silence.