Chapter 15: Outer Sect Trials_2

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He remembered what his master Daoist Kongming had said about the "negative effects of great fortune" and grew even more anxious.

Fortune could bring opportunities, yet opportunities often came with danger. The main beneficiary of fortune could turn bad luck into good, but those whose fortune was influenced by the main beneficiary might not be blessed with the same luck to seize these opportunities.

"Alas, the stubbornness in this child runs bone-deep, just like me, impossible to dissuade."

Li Dazhi sighed, a white cloud sprouting at his feet, carrying him slowly upward as he disappeared into the mist of the mountains.

He had made up his mind.

No longer suppressing his cultivation realm, he planned to advance to Yuan Immortal at will while Ping'an was away, striving to reach Heavenly Immortal as soon as possible and secure his standing within the sect.

Shortly thereafter;

In the Mundane Affairs Hall.

Several old True Immortals were hiding behind a screen, watching Li Ping'an as he drew lots.

The task of receiving Li Ping'an still fell to Xinhuai Wang, and the whole affair was "managed" by Xinhuai Wang.

Li Ping'an pulled a slip of paper from the wooden box, which predictably read "Yellow Twenty-Three";

Xinhuai Wang took the slip and, making a show of procedure, asked Li Ping'an to wait where he was. He then turned and went to a wooden cabinet, retrieving a Jade Talisman from the drawer labeled "Yellow Twenty-Three."

Xinhuai Wang returned to Li Ping'an holding the Jade Talisman, announcing, "This is the task you must complete."

Li Ping'an accepted the Jade Talisman with both hands, his Spiritual Sense probing into it, revealing a line of text in his heart.

[Wan'an City has been quite restless of late, and Gongmin Chen, the disciple stationed there, is quite anxious. Please deliver this Jade Talisman to Gongmin Chen. Return to the sect within two months to complete this trial.]

Li Ping'an took out a Storage Pouch, placed the Jade Talisman inside, and stored it close to his body.

Xinhuai Wang smiled, "Trials for outer disciples are not a matter of great concern, and the sect won't have too many requirements. There are two things you need to remember."

Li Ping'an bowed with his hands folded, "Disciple is all ears."

"First, you are a disciple of Wanyun Sect. During your travels, remember not to diminish the prestige of our Wanyun Sect."

"Second, although our Wanyun Sect is a right and proper cultivation faction, standing in opposition to those evil and demon cultivators, your cultivation is shallow for now. There is no need to insist on playing the hero; be cautious and prudent on your journey. If you encounter danger, preserve your safety above all else."

Xinhuai Wang added:

"You don't need to overthink. I give the same cautionary advice to any disciple going out to take part in the outer disciples' trial, not just you."

Li Ping'an smiled and nodded, "Thank you for the guidance, Officer."

"This item goes with you, bestowed by the elders. Remember to return it when you come back to the mountain."

Xinhuai Wang scanned the surroundings, drew a knife-coin shaped pale white Jade Talisman from his sleeve, with the characters Wanyun engraved in seal script, and stuffed it into Li Ping'an's hands.

"If you encounter danger outside, take this out. This is the proof of a Wanyun Sect member, anyone who dares to harm you is making an enemy of Wanyun Sect."

"If they still intend to make a move... if you encounter any danger at all, use the heart method of Wanyun Sect to activate this talisman."

"Remember, do not flaunt this token publicly!"

Li Ping'an solemnly said, "Disciple understands."

Xinhuai Wang gestured, "Go on."

Li Ping'an made another bow and turned to walk towards the hall door.

Streams of Immortal Sense followed his figure, and many Immortals within the hall watched this young disciple flying towards the sect entrance on his sword sheath, often bringing up Li Dazhi when joking around.

In the Mundane Affairs Hall, behind the screen.

Yansheng, the elder, summoned Weiyanzi to his side and meticulously instructed him.

Weiyanzi bowed and took the order, transforming into a streak of rainbow light and speeding away, rushing ahead of Li Ping'an's path.

Yansheng took a puff from his dry tobacco pipe and shook his head with a bitter smile.

One of the outer sect elders quipped with a laugh, "Brother Yansheng, when will you set off?"

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Elder Yansheng lamented with a smile, "I really shouldn't have drunk with Uncle Master Dazhi. Here I am, an old bag of bones, yet having to leave the mountain for this trip."

Having said that, Elder Yansheng stood up, stretched lazily, and with hands clasped behind his back, slightly bent at the waist, he took two steps, and his figure had already appeared outside the mountain gate, chasing after Li Ping'an like a wisp of cloud.

Wei Yanzier and Elder Yansheng were the two 'bodyguards' that Li Dazhi had asked to come along.

Not long after Elder Yansheng left the mountain gate, a streak of pinkish-white light flew out from the gate, heading southeast.

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Now, on Li Ping'an's side.

He stepped on his sword sheath, exited the mountain gate, took out the map to carefully identify directions, then descended into a ravine a hundred miles away.

With the mountain gate as the center, a radius of five hundred miles was considered to be within Wanyun Sect's territory, with sect disciples patrolling regularly.

This ravine used to be a plain, but because there were spirit veins hidden underground, an Immortal from the Wanyun Sect tore open the earth and moved the spirit veins into the Mountain Protection Array, thus leaving such a mark upon the land.

Li Ping'an slipped into the canyon while Wei Yanzier up in the air cast an Immortal Technique to transform into a cloud, floating above the canyon.

Hidden within the cloud was a yin-yang Precious Mirror.

This mirror was originally a pair, at this time one was in Wei Yanzier's hand while the other was being held by Li Dazhi; Wei Yanzier directed the mirror at the canyon below, sending back the image of the place to the sect.

A moment later, Wei Yanzier began to feel puzzled.

Why was there no movement from Li Ping'an after he entered the ravine?

He waited like that for half an hour until Elder Yansheng, hiding high in the sky, couldn't help but transmit his voice to curse:

"To the forest three hundred and sixty miles south!

"Is your Daoxian realm cultivation for nothing? You let a disciple in the Spirit-Gathering Realm slip away right under your nose! You infuriate me!"

Wei Yanzier was momentarily stunned.

Elder Yansheng was there too?

Wei Yanzier quickly used his Spiritual Sense to investigate and indeed, in a forest more than three hundred miles to the south, he discovered the middle-aged cultivator who was rushing close to the tree tops.

He took a closer look and several lines of frustration creased his forehead.

The cultivator didn't seem to have any flaws at first glance, clothed in a black robe, looking road-weary, displaying a cultivation level in the middle stages of the Spirit-Gathering Realm, much like an ordinary Loose Cultivator on the road.

But the problem was...

This man's face, not just somewhat similar, was identical to Wei Yanzier's!

Not just the face, but also the ornaments hanging at his waist, the expression in his eyes, and the style of his hairpin were all exactly the same as the true self, almost causing Wei Yanzier to think he had encountered a Heart Demon.

This!

"Well played, Li Ping'an, daring to swagger around under my guise!"

Wei Yanzier cursed and laughed a few words, immediately drove his cloud to catch up, and followed far behind Li Ping'an.

After traveling for two hours, Li Ping'an suddenly turned his head to look at the sky, and Wei Yanzier almost thought he had exposed his whereabouts.

Fortunately, Wei Yanzier soon concluded that he was overthinking it.

Li Ping'an carefully observed his surroundings, then once again slipped into a river valley, found a corner to hide in for a while to restore his mana, then used the Cloud Traversal Technique to transform into a wisp of white smoke and reach the hidden underground river, continuing his journey with Water Traversal.

An enormous question mark emerged from the tip of the cloud that Wei Yanzier had transformed into.

What is young friend Ping'an hiding from?

Wasn't it just a trip to deliver a letter? Why be so exceedingly cautious?

In fact, not only were Wei Yanzier and Elder Yansheng clueless, even Li Ping'an himself began to feel a bit perplexed.

'Outside this mountain gate, it's not really as chaotic as father said...'