With the matter in the Red Dust Pure Land settled and the Red Dust Fairy still unconscious, Jiang Li no longer lingered there. Instead, he instructed them to keep the news of the Red Dust Fairy confidential and not spread it, as her charm could stir up much trouble if known.
He went to the Daoist Sect and requested a long-distance communication token from the Sect Master.
"Hmm? Every time I've asked for a communication token from you in the past, you've always looked pained. Why are you so happy this time?" Jiang Li observed the smiling expression of the Sect Master with suspicion, feeling that he had ulterior motives.
The Sect Master of the Daoist Sect appeared to be around the same age as Jiang Li, exuding a youthful and flourishing aura.
With hands behind his back, he smiled and said, "The Daoist Sect has produced a brilliant and extraordinary disciple. As the Sect Master, how could I not be happy?"
"If you praise someone as brilliant and extraordinary, they must be quite outstanding. I wonder who this extraordinary talent is. If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to meet them." Jiang Li also became interested. If he could witness the growth of such a talented disciple, as the Guardian of the Nine Provinces, it would be quite an achievement.
The Sect Master of the Daoist Sect continued to smile and said, "It's not a trouble at all. This person is someone you are familiar with."
"Oh, someone I'm familiar with?"
The Sect Master of the Daoist Sect's smile faded, and he solemnly said, "Jiang Li, as a disciple of the Daoist Sect, why haven't you paid your respects to your master?"
Jiang Li's smile froze.
Later, according to the descriptions of the Daoist Sect disciples, there were strange cries heard in the sky above the Sect, with vague shouts of "I am not in agreement with Ji Zhi."
Soon, the Sect Master of the Daoist Sect came forward to clarify that it was either vague or outright falsehood, and then the contemporary Emperor also came forward to call for not spreading or believing in rumors.
...
Jiang Li gave the long-distance communication token to the Red Dust Pure Land, telling them to inform him if there were any changes with the Red Dust Fairy.
Naturally, Red Dust Pure Land agreed. Their Red Dust Ancestor was a high-level celestial being, and if she caused any trouble, perhaps only Jiang Li could handle it.
Jiang Li returned to Dayu, not to cause trouble for Emperor Zhou and Ji Zhi, but to complete the tasks given by the system.
Fortunately, this task was very simple. Yu Bo of the Huayun Sect was still alive, thanks to the Longevity Pill, which granted him an additional two hundred years of life, and he still looked like a middle-aged man.
Cultivators had a long lifespan, and their appearance changed not due to age, but due to their state of mind.
For example, both Jiang Li and the Sect Master of the Daoist Sect looked youthful, indicating their youthful state of mind, full of vitality and vigor, which was the spiritual realm that cultivators advocated. However, very few could achieve this state.
For example, the female cultivators of the Red Dust Pure Land all had the most beautiful appearances of a young woman.
For example, Yuan Wuxing, due to the setbacks he had experienced in the martial world, had changed from impulsive to calm, resulting in a middle-aged appearance.
And then there was Jiang Yixing, who had died seeking immortality, and as a result, his appearance had aged significantly.
With the pretext of visiting an old friend and guiding his cultivation, Jiang Li easily completed the task with Yu Bo.
[Congratulations, Host, for defeating Yu Bo, would you like to settle the reward?]
[Reward for this task: An opportunity for spiritual enlightenment, a premium spiritual artifact of any style (upgradeable), a mysterious map fragment]
[As the Host defeated Yu Bo at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement during the Foundation Building stage, the achievement "Defeating Qi Refinement with Qi Refinement" has been accomplished.]
Jiang Li couldn't be bothered to comment on the mismatched words of the task's settlement. If there were a fast-forward button, he would definitely skip the settlement.
"Settle the reward."
Once again, a pure force descended from the void and poured into Jiang Li's body.
This time the force was terrifying, enough to make a nine-layered Qi refining cultivator advance to the Foundation Building stage.
A leaf fell, and Jiang Li blew air at the leaf, stripping the force away once again.
【Please choose the style of high-grade spiritual weapon】
"Swiss Army knife."
【...No match for "Swiss Army knife", please choose again】
"AK47."
【...No match for "AK47", please choose again】
"Tiger tank."
【...No match for "Tiger tank", please choose again】
"Kitchen knife."
【...No match for...matched to the high-grade spiritual weapon "Blood Bath Bone Knife"】
The system instinctively replied "no match found," but then realized that this time, it seemed possible to match the corresponding spiritual weapon.
A kitchen knife with a faint cold light appeared in Jiang Li's hand.
【"Blood Bath Bone Knife", high-grade spiritual weapon, bathed in a large amount of blood, draws vitality from the blood, can be advanced to a medium-grade artifact】
【Way to recognize the master of spiritual weapons: recognize with blood】
This wave of rewards from the system was quite plentiful. For a cultivator who had just stepped into the realm of immortal cultivation, a high-grade spiritual weapon was an extremely rare weapon that could be used up to the Golden Core stage. A medium-grade artifact was even more remarkable, and some Nascent Soul cultivators were using it.
For Jiang Li, who had just been infused with energy by the system and become a Foundation Building cultivator, this was simply an unparalleled weapon!
Oh, I'm at the Great Vehicle stage now. That's settled.
Jiang Li looked at the system's display of "draws vitality from the blood, can be advanced to a medium-grade artifact" and "recognize with blood", and fell into contemplation.
"Are you sure you can recognize with blood?"
【Please do not doubt the professionalism of this system】
Jiang Li understood, bit his finger, and a drop of blood fell onto the surface of the kitchen knife.
The kitchen knife kept trembling, emitting a visible light, and its momentum kept rising: high-grade spiritual weapon… top-grade spiritual weapon… low-grade artifact… medium-grade artifact… high-grade explosion...
With a bang, the kitchen knife couldn't bear the vitality contained in Jiang Li's drop of blood and exploded directly.
"Professionalism"
"...I said you can't recognize with blood, but you didn’t believe me. I said you're a useless system. Do you have any objections?"
The system pretended not to hear Jiang Li's complaint.
【Please receive the map fragment】
A map fragment emitting a golden light appeared in Jiang Li's hand. The golden light slowly disappeared, gradually revealing the appearance of the fragment.
Impatient, Jiang Li dispersed the golden light and directly examined the appearance of the fragment.
The fragment was palm-sized, made of sheepskin, with very few markings indicating a location on the map.
【Qianyuan Secret Realm Map (1/3), obtaining the remaining fragments by completing subsequent tasks】
Jiang Li scratched his chin, took out a jade plate from the storage ring, injected spiritual power, and the entire Nine Provinces map appeared in front of him, including mountains, rivers, cities, and every detail.
He scanned the map with his divine sense and compared it with the Qianyuan Secret Realm map fragment, and soon found the location of the Qianyuan Secret Realm, situated on a mountain in the Great Wei Empire.
【Congratulations to the host for accidentally finding the Qianyuan Secret Realm. The rewards for subsequent tasks have been changed】
It was a coincidence that Jiang Li sensed a strong sense of frustration from the system's prompt sound.
【System prompt, the Qianyuan Secret Realm is too dangerous for the host. Please explore it after reaching the Yuanying stage】
Jiang Li suddenly lost interest in this Qianyuan Secret Realm.
Danger and rewards are equally associated. A secret realm that can only be explored after reaching the Yuanying stage must contain treasures that even Nascent Soul stage and Great Vehicle stage cultivators would be tempted by, isn't it?