"Heh, those Beast Soul Beads you gave us last time were truly useful."
"Especially the one sealing the remnant soul of Chi Jiutou—it was genuinely extraordinary. That fellow Lan Yuchang was originally just a mortal who was slightly stronger than average and knew a bit of martial arts."
"Yet after absorbing it, his combat strength skyrocketed. When sparring, the ordinary Soul Formation cultivators on our side weren't his match at all."
"According to Lan Yuchang, that was even with him holding back."
"If he went all out, tsk-tsk..."
Li Fan rattled on without restraint or reservation, talking non-stop.
When Xiao Qing heard the name Chi Jiutou, her expression shifted slightly.
And hearing Li Fan say that someone had actually withstood the monstrous malevolence of the Nine-Headed Bird and successfully absorbed that Beast Soul Bead, her delicate frame shuddered, and she blurted out, "Impossible! How could a mortal endure that fellow's ferocious baleful aura..."
Li Fan immediately showed a look of displeasure. "Fussing over nothing! Our Myriad Realms Association produces talent in droves. What kind of extraordinary eccentrics don't we have?"
"Just because your Empire couldn't find a suitable candidate doesn't mean we can't."
"You don't seriously think that having traded with us once puts you on equal footing with us, do you?"
Li Fan acted just like an inexperienced, reckless hothead who blurted out whatever came to mind, completely oblivious to tact.
With disdain written across his face, he continued, "Our Myriad Realms Association only conducted transactions with you to help you."
"There are so many pocket worlds around the Xuanhuang Realm—we aren't lacking for yours."
"It is you who need the Myriad Realms Association's help, not us who cannot do without you."
...
Hearing Li Fan's grating words, Xiao Qing's face turned exceedingly grim.
Yet in the end, she held back and did not lash out.
As for Li Fan, seeing no reaction to his rambling, he perhaps felt bored and stopped mid-sentence.
Xiao Qing looked at Li Fan with an unfriendly gaze.
Yet after this incident, she no longer harbored any doubts about his identity.
Returning to the previous topic, she asked softly, "Fellow Daoist, since everyone agrees the transactions are mutually beneficial, why make the sudden decision to suspend them?"
Li Fan sighed and spoke with apparent candor, "It's truly due to circumstances beyond our control."
He leaned slightly forward, drew closer, and whispered, "According to our intelligence, a massive war is very likely to break out between the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association soon."
"You must know that the period leading up to war is often the most tense time for both sides."
"As the saying goes, to fight outside, one must first pacify within—if the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals catches wind of any trace of our Myriad Realms Association at this time, who's to say they won't concentrate their strength to wipe us out first before fighting the Five Elders Association, just to eliminate internal threats?"
Li Fan wagged his head, showing not the slightest embarrassment. "To be practical, although our slogan has always been to reclaim the cultivation world, as of now, there is still a gap in strength between our organization and the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals or the Five Elders Association. We can't deny that."
"We still need to build up our strength, so for now we can only steer clear of the brunt."
Suddenly, Li Fan's expression turned eager again. "Besides, this is a once-in-a-millennium opportunity. The Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association haven't come to major blows in many years."
"This battle will definitely be unprecedented in scale and brutality. While they tear into each other like dogs, we can hide in the shadows and fish in troubled waters."
"Who knows, we might even reap the spoils of their clash and grab some benefits while we're at it."
Watching Li Fan's smug demeanor, Xiao Qing felt somewhat dubious about this supposed "imminent war."
The Empire had its own intelligence sources.
Over the years, although the Dharma thieves were few in number, they were scattered across the Xuanhuang Realm.
During the time since her return to the cultivation world, Xiao Qing had re-established contact with the vast majority of them.
It was precisely because of them that she maintained a fair grasp of the Xuanhuang Realm's current situation.
As the saying goes, a great wind rises from the tip of the duckweed.
For war to erupt, there had to be a reason, didn't there?
If the impending war was truly as horrific as he claimed, then some preludes to its outbreak should already be discernible.
"Perhaps they missed some details..."
While Xiao Qing was lost in thought, Li Fan could not care less about what she was thinking.
Instead, he brazenly asked her for Beast Soul Beads.
"Aiya, before I came out this time, the brothers were drooling with envy. They insisted that I bring back some local specialties while I'm at it."
"Lady Qing, Saint Teacher Qing."
"You have as many of these things in your Empire as you want anyway, so just toss a few my way to brush me off. That way I can have something to report back with."
Looking at Li Fan's grinning, insolent face, Xiao Qing almost laughed out of sheer exasperation.
Yet there was no point in arguing with someone like him.
Thinking this, Xiao Qing produced two Beast Soul Beads equivalent to Golden Core strength and handed them over.
Yet he was actually still not satisfied and brazenly pestered her for more.
This time, Xiao Qing did not hold back any longer and issued an eviction order.
"I truly have no more Beast Soul Beads on hand. Fellow Daoist, please take your leave!"
Li Fan changed his tune just as swiftly.
A moment ago, he had been fawning over "Saint Teacher," but upon hearing Xiao Qing say this, his face immediately dropped.
With a cold snort, he flew off directly without even saying goodbye.
"How can the Myriad Realms Association have someone like this?"
"If he were in our Empire, he would have been thrown to feed the Realm-Rifting Whales long ago!"
Xiao Qing gritted her teeth in irritation.
"The fellow Daoist from last time was far better."
She recalled how during their previous transaction, both sides had been thoroughly pleased with each other.
The subsequent handover of materials had also been handled with great propriety.
"A pity that man is probably busy and couldn't spare the time," Xiao Qing thought with regret.
Pulling her thoughts back, she began contacting the Empire's undercover agents, inquiring whether there had been any abnormalities within the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals lately, and whether there were any signs that a war was on the verge of erupting.
Soon, replies came pouring in from the Dharma thieves under her command.
Everything was just as usual; there was no news whatsoever of any impending war.
Now, it was Xiao Qing's turn to be uncertain.
"Is it true or false?"
——
While the Empire's Saint Teacher was racking her brain, He Zhenghao's hands were already cramping up from counting all the money.
A beaming smile spread across his face. Every time he received a transfer of contribution points, he would diligently record it and dutifully reply to the creditor.
"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Qin! The contribution points have been received. Just wait in peace to strike it rich!"
"Little Brother Wei, I've noted down your ten thousand contribution points. Aiya, I know you emptied your family coffers to scrape that together—who hasn't? Don't worry, do you really think the Secret Emissary would ever shortchange you?"
Chapter 546