Chapter 97: Death Trap Of Mechanical Constructs

Sitting on a mountain and reaping its rewards. To think such a technique actually exists in this world.

What a pity he only mentioned it in passing without leaving the technique behind.

I wonder if Fellow Daoist He's remains can still be recovered...

The Mountain-Sitting Art was simply a perfect match for Li Fan. It could fully utilize his advantage of foresight provided by Return to Truth.

Not knowing about it before was one thing, but now that he was aware of its abilities, he was absolutely determined to cultivate this technique. Nothing could stop him!

He Zhenghao was already dead and appeared not to have passed the technique down.

But that didn't matter. Li Fan possessed the Heaven-Swapping Art, which allowed him to pilfer He Zhenghao's memories through the method of creating an avatar. With them, he might be able to reconstruct the Mountain-Sitting Art.

If he were truly unlucky and failed, Li Fan could simply try a different plan in his next life.

Considering this, Li Fan couldn't help but grow interested in the ancient cave dwelling where He Zhenghao had met his end.

The party of five Foundation Establishment cultivators had all perished, with only a single Golden Core cultivator surviving by sheer luck.

The news had caused quite a stir on Myriad Immortals Island, and for a time, rumors flew thick and fast.

After making some inquiries, Li Fan gradually learned the whole story.

The cave dwelling was located inside an underwater volcano. It had remained undiscovered while the volcano lay dormant, but a recent eruption had revealed the hidden cave to a passing cultivator.

This led to He Zhenghao and others forming a party of one Golden Core and five Foundation Establishment cultivators to explore it.

This was not a weak lineup. After all, according to the information they had obtained, it was the cave dwelling of a Golden Core cultivator from ancient times known as Tian Yang.

Logically, the dwelling of a Golden Core cultivator wouldn’t be too dangerous. He Zhenghao's group should have been able to return with a full harvest of treasures, or at the very least, escape unscathed if they encountered danger.

However, as they were venturing deep inside, they had accidentally triggered a certain mechanism.

While Tian Yang had indeed been a Golden Core cultivator, he practiced a mechanical construct technique that existed in ancient times but was now long forgotten.

Over a dozen firestone mechanical puppets were instantly activated, surrounding the entire party.

Only the Golden Core cultivator named Zheng Xiaoyun managed to escape, though he was severely wounded.

The other five Foundation Establishment cultivators all died tragically at the hands of the mechanical puppets.

Since three of the five deceased Foundation Establishment cultivators were guardians of islands in the Congyun Sea, the Myriad Immortals Alliance officially dispatched a Nascent Soul powerhouse to investigate Zheng Xiaoyun for the possibility of intentional entrapment and murder.

The conclusion was that it had indeed just been an unfortunate accident.

The deaths of the five Foundation Establishment cultivators did not dampen the enthusiasm of those thinking to explore the cave dwelling; if anything, it only made them even more eager.

Leaving aside the priceless mechanical puppets within the dwelling, the belongings of the five Foundation Establishment cultivators were enough to make many covetous.

It was said that a second exploration team was already being assembled. This time, it would be led by a Nascent Soul powerhouse, Eminence Gou Xuan.

This individual was obsessed with all manner of secret arts. Hearing that a lost art of mechanical constructs had reappeared, his curiosity was piqued, and he decided to go see for himself.

I wonder if this exploration team will succeed. But since those going are all Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators, I won't join the commotion.

There are so many treasures in there, surely no one would fight me for Fellow Daoist He's remains, right?

Perhaps I should post a bounty mission?

1000 contribution points? That might be too much. 500 should be enough...

Li Fan wasn't worried about the Mountain-Sitting Art being leaked.

Cultivators in this world never carried their technique jade slips on their person.

Typically, after mastering a technique, they would destroy the jade slip. When needed again, they would simply re-create it.

The term "when needed" naturally referred to technique transactions.

Since immortal techniques couldn't be shared, techniques were the most precious resource in the cultivation world.

For techniques like the Mountain-Sitting Art that were accidentally discovered in ancient cave dwellings, if one chose not to cultivate it themselves, they could sell it to the Myriad Immortals Alliance or other organizations for a good price.

As for techniques like the Lesser Water Manipulation Art obtained from the Tianxuan Mirror, if one switched to another technique after breaking through to a new realm, they could similarly choose to sell it back to recoup some losses.

After selling a technique, all memories related to it would naturally be erased from one's mind.

All techniques under heaven can generally be divided into two categories.

One category consists of newly derived techniques created after the Great Reformation, which have corresponding backups. Even if the cultivator practicing them dies unexpectedly, the technique won't be lost. It would simply be reclaimed and resold. Just like those two techniques from Qian Hong's tomb.

The other category consists of techniques that existed before the Great Reformation but, for various reasons, vanished from the world, known only to the single cultivator who practiced them. If that cultivator died without leaving a copy, it generally meant the technique was lost forever. The Mountain-Sitting Art and the Sea-Calming Sword Art both belong to this category.

And with my Heaven-Swapping Art, I can potentially recover these lost techniques from a cultivator's remains...

Perhaps this is the true purpose of the Heaven-Swapping Art?

Am I about to pick up my old trade again?

Li Fan fell deep into thought.

𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

After a while, he shook his head.

I’d better focus on retrieving Fellow Daoist He's remains first. Before that, I need to complete some missions and earn some contribution points.

The creation of an avatar had to be handled personally by the true self.

And since he'd already decided that the Lin Fan avatar wouldn't have any connection to his true self, it would be better for his true self to post this mission personally.

Other cultivators might take half a year of labor to earn five hundred contribution points. But for Li Fan, who knew numerous secrets of the Congyun Sea, it would only take a single mission task.

Three years had passed since he last submitted the Blueblood Coral task. Completing one or two tasks now wouldn't draw too much attention.

So, Li Fan began browsing the mission task list.

Soon, he found a suitable bounty mission with a 2000-point reward.

He accepted the mission and replied:

In the southwestern waters of the Congyun Sea, in the underwater cavern beneath Gonghai Island, you'll find the sea beasts you're looking for.

They possess power equivalent to late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators, but they travel in packs and are difficult to deal with.

Note: the cavern has two levels. You'll need to search carefully to find the entrance to the second level.

The sea beast pack is in the second cavern.

Once again, he provided only information.

When the better part of the day passed, the other party verified the information.

They proved rather generous, granting Li Fan 1000 contribution points.

With the contribution points in hand, Li Fan immediately posted a bounty of 500 points in the Tianxuan Mirror.

The notice stated that he and He Zhenghao had shared a close, unbreakable friendship for nearly forty years. Unable to bear the thought of his friend's body left exposed, he was issuing the bounty to have the remains recovered and given a proper burial.

He had assumed it would take some time before anyone accepted the task. To his surprise, it was claimed not long after it was posted.

The acceptor was a member of the expedition currently being assembled, a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

This individual even sent a follow-up message, asking if Li Fan wished to join them.

"A Nascent Soul powerhouse is leading the team. A safe return is guaranteed," the message assured with conviction.