Unfortunately, for now, Li Fan could only daydream about it.
The Heavenly Profound Mirror was a supreme treasure of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the very foundation of its existence.
It was simply not something a petty Qi Condensation cultivator like Li Fan could covet.
Taking on missions to earn contribution points was far more realistic.
Suppressing the greed in his heart, Li Fan opened the contribution mission list.
He filtered for missions suitable for the early Qi Condensation stage that carried little to no danger.
At a glance, they were all miscellaneous chores and errand-running tasks, and most offered a reward of only one or two contribution points.
Moreover, they tended to vanish after mere moments, making it clear that Li Fan was far from the only one keeping a close eye on them.
Once he removed the low-risk filter, quite a few new missions appeared.
Most of these required traveling to various islands across the Congyun Sea to carry out specific matters. But because they involved dealing with mortals, no combat was required, and the danger was not excessively high.
These missions offered rewards of around five to ten points.
However, using the teleportation arrays on Wanxian Island also cost contribution points—one point each way.
After deducting the two points required for a round trip, not much remained of a mission's payout.
Earning enough contribution points to dwell inside the Heavenly Profound Mirror and cultivate there from time to time was truly no simple matter.
Though earning contribution points would grow easier as one's strength increased, higher cultivation also demanded correspondingly more points to activate the auxiliary cultivation mode.
In the end, one would still be forced to scramble tirelessly for points.
On top of that, exchanging for cultivation methods also required a massive amount of points...
Li Fan suddenly understood why the Heavenly Profound Mirror made this auxiliary cultivation feature available in the first place.
Any cultivator who had experienced that incredible mode of cultivation would find it nearly impossible to resist trying it again.
Furthermore, given the same amount of time, gathering contribution points to activate auxiliary cultivation yielded overall faster progress than toiling away in solitary bitter cultivation.
Cultivation methods, resources, auxiliary cultivation...
The Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals truly had cultivators completely in the palm of its hand.
Li Fan mused on this while searching for a mission suited to him.
Earning contribution points was actually secondary. His primary objective was to find an opportunity to go outside and retrieve the Taiyan Boat hidden inside True Reversion.
Plenty of gold, silver, and jewels were still stored inside the Taiyan Boat, along with a wonder of heaven and earth: the Step-Halting Broken Stele.
Surely they could be exchanged for a substantial sum of contribution points.
As for why he did not release it directly on Wanxian Island...
He was no fool; doing so would essentially announce to everyone that he possessed an extraordinary treasure.
Li Fan had no doubt that every single inch of Wanxian Island fell under the monitoring gaze of the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
If he drew its scrutiny, things would become troublesome.
Even though True Reversion could convert reality into illusion, doing so required his conscious control.
What if an almighty figure intervened and directly immobilized his divine sense, leaving him unable to even think?
Wouldn't he be left entirely helpless, at their mercy?
Even if there were only the slimmest chance of that happening, Li Fan would not take the risk.
What was more, judging by the immense power demonstrated by the Heavenly Profound Mirror, experts of that caliber certainly existed in the cultivation world today.
In any case, caution was Li Fan's foremost rule of conduct.
...
Right at that moment, Li Fan's eyes caught several familiar characters among the pile of missions.
"Liuli Island."
Delighted, he quickly accepted the mission before doing anything else.
Then he carefully reviewed its details.
It turned out that the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals had exhausted its supply of Liuli Island's specialty: liuli pearls.
According to protocol, the next scheduled delivery was not due for another six months.
Since the Alchemy Chamber had an urgent need for them, it had posted a commission recruiting someone to travel to Liuli Island and collect at least twenty liuli pearls.
The reward would depend on their quality and quantity.
Li Fan had heard of these liuli pearls ever since arriving on Liuli Island; they occasionally formed within the bodies of liuli fish.
He simply did not know which pills they were used to refine.
Regardless, this mission could not have been more suitable for him.
After spending five contribution points to purchase the smallest storage ring as a cover, Li Fan wasted no time. He exited the Heavenly Profound Mirror and headed straight for the Dharma Transmission Plaza.
Retracing his steps, he arrived before the statue he had stood near before.
Li Fan now knew that each of the tens of thousands of statues in the Dharma Transmission Plaza corresponded to an island in the Congyun Sea.
The teleportation grand array was connected to the Island-Protecting Grand Formation of each respective island.
And the statue representing Liuli Island before him was shaped like a leaping liuli fish.
After one contribution point was deducted, Li Fan activated the teleportation array.
This time, the dizziness was indeed much milder, and he recovered before long.
"May I ask which fellow Daoist..." He Zhenghao's voice drifted over faintly.
"Huh? Why is it you?" Seeing who had arrived, He Zhenghao looked somewhat puzzled.
Li Fan immediately explained the mission he had accepted and his purpose in coming to collect the liuli pearls.
"Oh, liuli pearls. I'll have someone take you to fetch them," He Zhenghao said with a nod, unconcerned. "I must say, my young friend, you've adapted quite fast, heading out on missions so soon."
"Alas, driven by the hardships of life," Li Fan said, feigning helplessness.
He Zhenghao's expression immediately shifted to one of profound understanding.
Following a servant to Liuli Mansion, Li Fan met Manager Qian, who was in charge of finances.
Manager Qian bowed respectfully to the floor, leaving it unclear whether he recognized Li Fan.
After all, Li Fan had once overseen a fleet on Liuli Island and had met Manager Qian a few times.
Even if he did recognize him, however, Manager Qian would likely pretend otherwise.
Whatever the case, in the eyes of mortals, immortal masters were lofty beings who could never be offended.
Having received his orders, Manager Qian swiftly retrieved all the liuli pearls remaining in the island's inventory.
"Reporting to the Immortal Master, only twenty-three liuli pearls remain on the island. This is the entirety of what we have been able to gather recently. If the Immortal Master requires more, I fear you will have to wait six months to a year," Manager Qian said with some trepidation.
"Oh? Has something unexpected occurred?" Li Fan asked.
"I dare not deceive the Immortal Master. According to reports from the island's fishing fleets, it seems that due to excessive harvesting, the schools of liuli fish encountered have grown fewer and fewer. We will likely have to wait for them to naturally recover for a time before fishing can resume," Manager Qian explained.
Upon hearing this, Li Fan nodded.
In his mind, however, the words Zhang Haobo had once spoken to him suddenly resurfaced.
"I understand the situation." Li Fan stowed the liuli pearls into his storage ring. Instead of returning immediately, he headed first to Tingyou Building.
Entering his former residence, Li Fan waited a moment, then released his divine sense. Once he was certain He Zhenghao was not spying on him in secret, he released the Taiyan Boat.
He then swiftly transferred the gold, silver, and the Step-Halting Broken Stele out of the vessel.
With all this done, Li Fan returned once more to the grand formation.
Just as he was about to depart for Wanxian Island, a voice called out behind him.
"Little friend, please hold your steps!"
The hairs on Li Fan's neck stood on end. He spun around instantly, fixing He Zhenghao with a guarded glare.
Chapter 48