He Zhenghao was at a loss, having no idea why Li Fan had reacted this way.
Fortunately, He Zhenghao did not dwell on it. Instead, he smiled warmly at Li Fan and said, "No need to be nervous. I only wanted to ask whether you might have any interest in guarding an island, little friend.
"Of course, not this Liuli Island, but Tai'an Island to the west.
"The guardian of Tai'an Island is on good terms with me. He has hit a bottleneck in his cultivation and wants to head out in search of opportunity.
"However, bound by his duties, he cannot leave without authorization. So he asked if I had anyone suitable to recommend.
"As luck would have it, I ran into you," He Zhenghao explained.
"To guard an island, wouldn't one need at least the Foundation Establishment stage? I've only just reached the early Qi Condensation stage—can I really serve as guardian?" Li Fan asked, somewhat surprised to hear this.
Throughout the islands of the Congyun Sea, whenever the surrounding waters yielded specialties of some value, cultivators would be stationed to guard them.
A term as an island guardian lasted anywhere from ten to a hundred years.
Because guardians had to remain on the island and could not leave lightly, the restrictions were severe, making the compensation quite generous.
Depending on the size of the island, one could earn anywhere from several hundred to over a thousand contribution points each year.
As such, serving as an island guardian was a coveted assignment, virtually impossible to obtain without the right connections.
This was even truer for guarding fertile, prosperous islands, which were often reserved long before the previous guardian departed.
"Naturally, this isn't an official guardian post," He Zhenghao explained warmly. "My good friend would simply post a targeted commission for you, allowing you to temporarily act as guardian in his stead. Besides, Tai'an Island isn't very large. With the Island-Protecting Grand Formation in place, a Qi Condensation cultivator is more than enough to look after it for a while. You don't need to worry, little friend.
"And as the one introducing you, I'll naturally receive a portion of the compensation as well."
"While acting as guardian, what is the maximum amount of time one can leave?" Li Fan asked.
"The Island-Protecting Grand Formation usually cycles once every five days. If you have business outside, it's best to return within five days. And it's ill-advised to leave more than three times a year."
Assuming Li Fan was worried about disrupting his cultivation, He Zhenghao added, "After collecting your contribution points each year, you can go to the Heavenly Profound Mirror to exchange them for five days of auxiliary cultivation. Those five days are often worth more than half a year of ordinary bitter cultivation."
Knowing a good deal when he saw one, Li Fan agreed on the spot.
"However, I must first return to Wanxian Island to turn in my mission."
"Naturally. Go on ahead, little friend. Once things on Tai'an Island are arranged in a few days, I'll look for you on the island."
Afterward, Li Fan bid He Zhenghao farewell and returned to Wanxian Island.
There was no need to visit the Medicine Hall in person; he only had to submit the liuli pearls through the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
Moments later, the Medicine Hall inspected and accepted the twenty-three liuli pearls.
Because the quality of this batch varied, Li Fan ultimately received a payout of twenty-one contribution points.
Current total contribution points: 26.
"Too little. It's only enough for two days of cultivation." Li Fan shook his head.
Taking the gold, silver, and Step-Halting Broken Stele from his storage ring, Li Fan requested an exchange for contribution points.
Moments later, the result came from the Heavenly Profound Mirror:
"A batch of gold and silver: convertible to 235 contribution points."
"Wonder of heaven and earth: Step-Halting Broken Stele. Quality: Flawed. Convertible to 1,968 contribution points."
Li Fan opened the Heavenly Profound Mirror's exchange menu and looked up wonders of heaven and earth.
He found that an intact wonder of heaven and earth cost at least four thousand points.
The Heavenly Profound Mirror's buyback price had cut it straight in half.
What a rip-off!
Even if it had a minor flaw, there was no reason to slash the price by half.
Li Fan's cheek twitched, but after weighing his options, he still chose to trade it in.
The Heavenly Profound Mirror did not provide an anonymous trading function. To trade with other cultivators, one had to reveal their true identity.
Yet as a cultivator who had only just stepped into the Qi Condensation stage, rashly producing such a Foundation Establishment wonder would inevitably attract substantial attention.
It would very likely bring needless trouble.
Exchanging it directly with the Heavenly Profound Mirror carried no such worries.
The Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals was immense, home to countless cultivators who had encountered miraculous fortunes.
A Qi Condensation cultivator carrying a Foundation Establishment wonder might be exceedingly rare in the Congyun Sea, but across the entire cultivation world, it was nothing extraordinary.
"Confirm exchange."
The gold, silver, and Step-Halting Broken Stele slowly vanished, and Li Fan's contribution points rose to 2,229.
Having struck it rich overnight, Li Fan did not immediately go on a spending spree. Instead, he first asked the Heavenly Profound Mirror about his lingering worry.
"Will any disaster strike the Congyun Sea region in the near future?"
Li Fan recounted all the anomalous occurrences Zhang Haobo had previously described to the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
The mirror immediately fell silent.
Only after a long while did it reply:
"Cultivator, please rest assured. These are normal fluctuations of heaven and earth. By calculation, no major disaster will descend within the next ten years."
Since the Heavenly Profound Mirror had said so, Li Fan's mind was put at ease.
Afterward, he thought for a moment and searched for information regarding liuli pills.
Liuli pill: an auxiliary elixir, universally applicable from Qi Condensation through Foundation Establishment.
Upon consumption, the mind became like clear glass—limpid and transparent.
It granted an effect akin to "Spirit Enlightenment," enhancing comprehension of techniques and cultivation speed.
Furthermore, its effect could stack with the Heavenly Profound Mirror's auxiliary cultivation.
Because the vast majority of cultivators in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals spent their years rushing about outside to amass contribution points, cultivation time was precious.
Thus, the liuli pill, which increased cultivation efficiency, was all the more prized.
Liuli pills were in hot demand among Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment cultivators, fluctuating between five and six contribution points apiece.
Li Fan checked and saw that the current price was six points each.
"The liuli fish are virtually extinct for unknown reasons, so the price of liuli pills is bound to surge," Li Fan mused. With that, he spent 2,100 contribution points to buy 350 liuli pills from the Heavenly Profound Mirror all at once.
Only then did he report to the Heavenly Profound Mirror that the liuli fish population around Liuli Island had nearly vanished.
The Heavenly Profound Mirror lapsed into silence, merely giving off subtle ripples.
After a short while, Li Fan received a reward of one contribution point.
This indicated that the mirror had verified the news's authenticity.
Indeed, providing intelligence to the Heavenly Profound Mirror could also earn contribution points.
The greater the intelligence's value, the larger the reward.
Normally, the value of Li Fan's intelligence would surely have exceeded a single point.
Perhaps Li Fan's act of hoarding goods to corner the market struck the Heavenly Profound Mirror as somewhat distasteful, which was why it awarded him only one point.
Li Fan did not mind in the least.
With this maneuver, his objectives had already been met.
First, it proved that the Heavenly Profound Mirror did not know what took place after he left Wanxian Island. In other words, as long as he was off Wanxian Island, he didn't need to fear the mirror prying into his affairs.
Second, it proved that the Heavenly Profound Mirror indeed possessed a will of its own. This was evident from how it had granted only one point just to spite Li Fan.
Third, naturally, was to seize this golden opportunity to turn a handsome profit.
The market's reaction was swift.
Within a short span, the price of liuli pills skyrocketed, surging from six points apiece to nine points apiece.
Chapter 49