"How soon can you get your hands on the formation diagram?" the Five Elders Association spy pressed impatiently before Li Fan could even speak.
Li Fan pondered for a moment, then answered, "At least twenty days."
The spy across from him grew anxious at once. "Too slow! On the battlefield, situations change in the blink of an eye. In over twenty days, who knows—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Then he stated plainly, "We cannot wait that long!"
Li Fan narrowed his eyes and sneered. "It seems your Five Elders Association truly is in a rush.
"Even if it is only an initial draft of the diagram, it isn't something easily stolen. It requires meticulous plotting over time. How could anyone fetch it at a moment's notice?"
Hearing this, the spy's expression turned rather sour.
"However..." Li Fan's tone suddenly shifted. "There are slow methods, and there are fast methods.
"If you wish to obtain the formation diagram as soon as possible, it all depends on your sincerity."
Seeing Li Fan unashamedly hike up the price on the spot, the spy blurted out, "What else do you want?"
Li Fan showed a look of displeasure. "What we agreed upon just now was the price for the diagram. What we are discussing now is the price for making an exception to speed up the process.
"Is there a problem with that?
"If you aren't willing to make the trade, then forget it..."
With that, he turned to leave without a second thought.
"Hold on! Let's talk this through!" Panicking, the spy flew forward and invited Li Fan back.
"Fellow Daoist Zhou, there is no need to be so impulsive. As I said, everything is open for discussion," he coaxed with a forced smile, gritting his teeth.
Li Fan sat back down and said calmly, "Our organization is taking immense risks by agreeing to trade with you this time.
"Naturally, we must receive sufficient benefits in return."
Using his finger as a brush, Li Fan wrote several lines of small characters on the stone table, then continued, "Forget contribution points. Certain specialties from your Five Elders Association are in extremely tight supply and very popular on our side. They can serve as trading chips."
The spy focused his gaze and saw written on the table: Dao Comprehension Pills, Puxian True Boats, Carefree Crystals, Humanity Stardust, Truth Enticement Fruits...
His eyelids twitched erratically.
When Li Fan had traveled to the Five Elders Association using Jiao Xiuyuan's puppet body earlier, he had gained more than just the tender moments inside Senior Sister Zhao's illusion; he had also acquired a general understanding of the basic conditions and local customs across the Five Elders Association's territory.
Dao Comprehension Pills, Puxian True Boats, and Carefree Crystals went without saying.
Humanity Stardust was a specialty of the Heavenly Realm of Humanity, corresponding to the myriad stars formed by cultivators in the firmament.
Within that heavenly realm, only by reshaping Heaven and Earth could cultivators ascend to the azure vault and transform into starlight. By absorbing the stardust, one could clearly perceive the process of Heaven and Earth being transformed.
Reshaping Heaven and Earth within the Heavenly Realm of Humanity was, in truth, a lower-tier form of "defying the principles of Heaven and Earth" under the system created by the Heavenly Venerable of Humanity.
Though its tier could not compare to defying the principles of the Xuanhuang Realm, using it for cultivation comprehension could not be better.
The shifts in laws involved within were precious not only to Dao Integration cultivators;
cultivators of any other realm would benefit enormously from studying it as well.
As for the Truth Enticement Fruit, it was an item unique to the Country of Truth.
One could preset the information contained within the fruit beforehand.
Once swallowed, it could distort a cultivator's thoughts, making them firmly believe in what they had originally considered "false matters."
Turning falsehood into truth held inexhaustible utility.
Below the Longevity realm, even Dao Integration cultivators could not escape its influence if they consumed it.
...
Shifting his gaze from the stone table, the spy looked up at Li Fan, who sat with his eyes closed in silence, and felt his throat go utterly dry.
"Wait a moment, Fellow Daoist Zhou."
Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, he turned away once more.
This time took even longer than before.
His entire body trembled continuously, as though subjected to an immense shock.
It was not until dusk fell that an answer finally arrived from that end.
As if he had just endured an exhausting, grueling battle, the spy was utterly drained, nearly stumbling off his feet.
Taking a deep breath, he spoke in a faint, reedy voice, "We agree. However, the quantities of each item must be carefully negotiated."
Li Fan, who had been resting with his eyes closed the entire time, opened them abruptly and smiled.
"Excellent!"
Next came the bargaining phase between the two parties.
After a long while, when both sides finally reached an agreement, the spy took a deep look at Li Fan. "Next, it is time to sign the covenant."
Then, something that slightly startled Li Fan occurred.
Radiant golden light welled from deep within the spy's body.
While completely submerging the spy, it condensed into a covenant sheet, floating quietly before Li Fan.
As for the Five Elders Association cultivator, he completely vanished, as if dissolving into the golden light.
Suppressing the unease in his heart, Li Fan took the golden covenant and read it carefully.
The writing was a faint dark gold.
The terms of the transaction listed on it were no different from what the two had agreed upon earlier.
What caught Li Fan's attention was that while one party to the transaction was naturally left blank for Li Fan to sign, the other party was already engraved upon the covenant—five profound, flashing symbols that continually surfaced.
Although he did not understand the specific meaning of these symbols, the moment he saw them, Li Fan understood that they represented the five Longevity Heavenly Venerables of the Five Elders Association.
Recalling what the scholar responsible for brainwashing had spoken about back in that valley within the Five Elders Association, Li Fan had an epiphany.
*This covenant seems somewhat similar to the soul covenant of the Five Elders Association. One party is the Longevity Heavenly Venerables in both cases; only the content of the transaction is different.*
As Li Fan touched the covenant, he still hesitated over which of his names to sign.
Suddenly, an inexplicable resonance welled in his heart.
*Confirm,*
Li Fan answered in his mind.
The resonance did not dissipate; instead, it surfaced once more, stronger than before.
Li Fan confirmed again.
After doing so three times, a ray of golden light leaped deep into Li Fan's soul body, while the rest tore through the void and vanished to places unknown.
*The covenant is complete; anyone named upon it cannot violate it.*
Li Fan narrowed his eyes, sensing it faintly.
*Even a Longevity Heavenly Venerable...*
*Cannot break it either.*
*The only existence capable of making an unfathomably powerful figure like Senior Sister Zhao yield is likely a Longevity Heavenly Venerable of the same realm.*
*Or perhaps this one's cultivation is even slightly stronger.*
At this point, regarding the final unidentified Longevity Heavenly Venerable of the Five Elders Association, Li Fan had finally verified his conjecture.
It was precisely the presence of this being's power of covenants that maintained order within the Five Elders Association.
Ten thousand li away, after his avatar Zhou Qing'ang signed the covenant, Li Fan's true body closed his eyes and concentrated, carefully examining the anomalies appearing within his own body.
Nothing seemed to have happened.
Yet Li Fan harbored a faint premonition in his heart.
If he ever breached the covenant, the corresponding punishment would likely trace through the avatar and strike him.
Chapter 567