"Besides, the number of Small Medicine King Cauldrons seems to be far more than just two.
"Without sufficient strength, a Small Medicine King Cauldron is no opportunity—it's a death warrant.
"Yet standing by and watching such treasures lie buried deep underground, only to be taken by someone else in the end, sits ill with me.
"Perhaps I can use this as a catalyst to stir up some storms. If I could also uncover the secret of the returning Medicine King Cauldron along the way, that would be even better."
Thoughts surged through Li Fan's mind.
"Still, before that, I should have Jiao Xiuyuan make a move and dig out a Small Medicine King Cauldron first.
"Come to think of it, just how much did Jiao Xiuyuan lose? Why hasn't he replied to me yet?
"Thousand Li Hall has remained closed this whole time as well."
Feeling a bit helpless, Li Fan had no choice but to use his clone to send Jiao Xiuyuan another message.
To his surprise, a reply came back swiftly this time.
His tone even carried a hint of innocence.
"What? I didn't reply to you? How could that be!
"My injuries healed long ago! But a small issue came up, so Thousand Li Hall temporarily can't reopen."
Li Fan was somewhat speechless. "Go back and check your message history yourself."
A moment later, Jiao Xiuyuan hurriedly apologized, "Oh dear, my oversight! I truly didn't notice! But you can't blame me. Right now I have a thousand tangled threads—a thousand tangled threads to untangle!"
"I thought you had lost so much that you'd skipped town entirely, Daoist friend," Li Fan teased.
"Hehe, you jest, Fellow Daoist. The word 'commerce' is the very foundation of my Dao. How could I give it up so easily? It's just that the current circumstances are rather peculiar. Relying on my strength alone to manipulate tens of thousands of puppets is simply too strenuous. I can't keep up. To avoid bungling trades and incurring even greater losses, I had no choice but to temporarily shutter some of the less important shops."
Jiao Xiuyuan spoke haltingly, his words stuttering in a manner reminiscent of the lagging state Li Fan was familiar with.
Li Fan couldn't help asking, "Oh? Could it be that something went wrong with the cultivation technique you practice? May I ask what happened?"
"Hehe, there's nothing that can't be shared. You are my business partner, Fellow Daoist. Last time, because of my doing, you suffered no small loss, yet you didn't voice a single word of complaint. I still feel a bit uneasy about it in my heart." Jiao Xiuyuan was quite courteous.
"As you know, the cultivation technique I practice is called the Dao of Myriad Puppets. By controlling tens of thousands of puppets to purchase supplies, gather intelligence, and negotiate deals, I keep the operating costs of Thousand Li Hall down to the absolute minimum.
"Yet a person's focus and mental energy have their limits after all. Splitting one's mind in two or three can still be maintained more or less normally. But wanting to flexibly and simultaneously direct tens of thousands of puppets exceeds my natural capacity."
Jiao Xiuyuan spoke slowly, pausing between phrases.
Li Fan chimed in just then, asking, "So what method did you use previously to keep such a vast number of puppets running properly? Could it be some multitasking cultivation technique?"
"The effect is indeed multitasking, but what I relied on wasn't any cultivation technique—it was an ancient wondrous art!" Jiao Xiuyuan said with a touch of pride. "Back then, in search of this wondrous art, I practically turned more than half the cultivation world upside down."
"An ancient wondrous art?" Li Fan's eyes narrowed, and he couldn't resist asking.
Seeing that Li Fan seemed quite interested, Jiao Xiuyuan didn't beat around the bush and asked directly, "Do you know of the ancient Taiyan Sect, Fellow Daoist?"
"The Taiyan Sect?" Li Fan was slightly startled, unbiddenly recalling the tomb of Yi Xing buried deep beneath the earth in Great Xuan.
That Yi Xing had been an outer disciple of the Taiyan Sect.
Furthermore, Li Fan had once pretended to be a descendant of the Taiyan Sect before Kou Hong and Dao Xuanzi, tricking the two into repairing the Taiyan Boat for him.
To think that the multitasking method he had sought in vain was actually connected to the Taiyan Sect?
Seeing Li Fan freeze without answering, Jiao Xiuyuan assumed he knew little about it and offered a brief explanation. "This Taiyan Sect was renowned across the world in ancient times for its arts of deduction and divination.
"Its sect-guarding manual, the Nine Scrolls of Heavenly Deduction, was extraordinarily profound and held boundless might. When mastered, it was said to be capable of deducing every person and every event within a thousand years.
"Hehe. Of course, this wondrous art of mine doesn't have much to do with those Nine Scrolls of Heavenly Deduction."
Jiao Xiuyuan's abrupt turn of topic caught Li Fan off guard, making his breath hitch.
"However, this wondrous art was something every disciple of the Taiyan Sect was once required to learn," Jiao Xiuyuan explained.
"Oh? How so?"
"Think about it, Fellow Daoist. As the saying goes, pull one hair and the whole body moves. In this world, every person and every matter is influencing each other at every moment.
"One change begets a hundred changes, and a hundred changes beget ten thousand changes. And how vast is this world?
"The sheer number of variables is truly unimaginable.
"Even with the might of a Dao Integration cultivator, trying to sort through every single one of those variables is an impossible feat.
"And the number of variables one can grasp is directly linked to the accuracy of the deduction's result.
"Therefore, every member of the Taiyan Sect devoted their life to improving their ability to command these variables."
Jiao Xiuyuan explained methodically.
"To put it plainly, this ability is a cultivator's computational capacity for deduction. Some cultivators are exceptionally gifted, endowed with extraordinary computational power. Though faced with thousands of tangled threads, in their eyes, all variables remain orderly and crystal clear.
"Yet such cultivators are exceedingly rare after all. Even within the Taiyan Sect of the ancient era, they were few and far between.
"So how were ordinary disciples of the Taiyan Sect supposed to improve their computational capacity for deduction?"
Jiao Xiuyuan paused.
Li Fan cooperated by asking, "That is where your wondrous art comes in?"
"Exactly!" Jiao Xiuyuan revealed the answer with excitement.
"'A cultivator's nature is not inherently different; they are merely adept at making use of external things!' If one isn't born with the ability, why not borrow the aid of external objects?
"This wondrous art is called Spirit Unity with Dao Transformation.
"In ancient times, the Taiyan Sect possessed a supreme treasure known as the Dao Transformation Stone.
"On the surface, light flowed within the Dao Transformation Stone, and in the snap of a finger, countless worlds seemed to be born and destroyed inside it.
"Yet in truth, those worlds rising and falling were not mere illusions.
"They were the visual manifestations of the Dao Transformation Stone deducing and calculating on its own. Though illusory, they were not truly unreal.
"This art of Spirit Unity with Dao Transformation uses a secret technique to fuse one's mind and soul into one with the Dao Transformation Stone.
"Thereby borrowing the stone's terrifying computational deduction capacity for oneself, reaching the realm of peering into the heavenly secrets and probing karma."
Jiao Xiuyuan's speech grew increasingly fluid.
"Back then, almost every member of the Taiyan Sect held a Dao Transformation Stone in hand. They were all cleaved from the largest one, the Dao Transformation Mother Stone.
"The higher the quality of the Dao Transformation Stone, the stronger its computational deduction ability.
"The reason I was previously able to easily manipulate those tens of thousands of puppets was precisely thanks to the Dao Transformation Stone and Spirit Unity with Dao Transformation.
"And the reason I've run into a bit of trouble now is also tied to the Dao Transformation Stone.
"During the last price collapse of Spirit Mist Grass, my losses were simply too devastating. Tens of thousands of puppets suffered a simultaneous, violent mental shock. The quality of the Dao Transformation Stone unified with my spirit wasn't particularly high to begin with. Unable to withstand the strain, it cracked straight open and lost its deductive function."
Recalling this painful past, Jiao Xiuyuan couldn't help sighing repeatedly.
"To smoothly control those tens of thousands of puppets again, I need to find a new Dao Transformation Stone.
"This is a rare treasure—priceless and unobtainable.
"When the great tribulation descended long ago, the Taiyan Sect was destroyed, and the Dao Transformation Mother Stone vanished without a trace. Now that so much time has passed, finding another Dao Transformation Stone is truly as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
"However, I recently uncovered a bit of information. If everything goes smoothly, the day I resume business shouldn't be far off."
Jiao Xiuyuan's spirits rose once more.
"Dao Transformation Stone... Spirit Unity with Dao Transformation..."
Li Fan turned the matter over in his mind for a moment, then probed, "The Taiyan Sect fell thousands of years ago. How is it that you know so much about the sect's various secrets, Daoist friend? Could you be a descendant of the Taiyan Sect?"
"Don't joke with me, Fellow Daoist. Of course I'm no descendant of the Taiyan Sect. The reason I know these secrets is simply that I happened to dig up the grave of a Taiyan Sect disciple..."
Hearing this, Li Fan fell completely silent.
A bizarre quiet fell between the two for a time.
"Haha, don't misunderstand, Fellow Daoist. Grave-robbing is only something I do on occasion. The goods in my Thousand Li Hall come from clean sources—only a tiny fraction ever come from tombs."
"Hehe, rest assured, Daoist friend. I'm not particularly averse to such matters. My creed is that regardless of where it came from, as long as it works, it's good," Li Fan said.
"Tsk, tsk! What you say aligns completely with my own beliefs!" Jiao Xiuyuan grew excited again.
Remembering his original purpose in contacting Jiao Xiuyuan, Li Fan took the opportunity to say, "Speaking of which, I actually have a favor to ask of you, Daoist friend."
Jiao Xiuyuan replied at once, "Speak freely, Fellow Daoist. If it's within my power, I will certainly help."
"You must know of the ancient Medicine King Sect, right? Today, while consulting ancient records, I discovered that members of the Medicine King Sect back then would use a kind of small cauldron to plant and nurture various spiritual plants and herbs.
"These small cauldrons form their own internal spaces and can even automatically generate wood-attribute spiritual energy to accelerate the growth of herbs.
"I happen to need such a small cauldron to cultivate a scarce medicinal herb.
"However, the ruins of the Medicine King Sect seem rather dangerous, so I'd like to trouble you to make a trip and retrieve a few of those small cauldrons for me.
"Of course, you won't be shortchanged on compensation. Though you and I share common ideals and enjoy each other's company, business is business and cannot be muddled," Li Fan said slowly with a smile.
Upon hearing this, Jiao Xiuyuan voiced hearty agreement.
"Well said, Fellow Daoist! Business is business! On account of those very words, I am definitely helping you with this! Small cauldrons, was it? Something distributed to every disciple that isn't particularly precious shouldn't be hard to find.
"Just wait for my good news, Fellow Daoist." Jiao Xiuyuan agreed without hesitation.
"In that case, I'll be troubling you, Daoist Jiao!" Li Fan thanked him in advance.
After exchanging a few more pleasantries without mentioning the Dao Transformation Stone or Spirit Unity with Dao Transformation, Li Fan ended the communication.
"The tomb of a Taiyan Sect disciple... a Dao Transformation Stone..."
Within the Heavenly Profound Mirror, scenes from back when he was still a mortal Grand Preceptor leading a party to explore Yi Xing's tomb surfaced in Li Fan's mind.
"Back then, as a mortal, I didn't pay it much mind.
"Looking back now, that tomb of Yi Xing seems to have had more to it than met the eye.
"In the land severed from immortality, all spiritual energy was extinguished. Yet inside that tomb, mountain peaks stood in rows, and a sea of clouds lingered for a thousand years without dispersing.
"That clearly wasn't any mortal contraption—it must have been some kind of formation or restriction."
Li Fan rose abruptly to his feet.
"In that case, it's time to make a trip back to Great Xuan!"
Chapter 211