Li Qianren stared at Gu Qingfeng for a long time before slowly saying, "Physical talent, soul talent, fire control talent—I find that you're pretty good at everything except cultivation."
"Uh... Lord Li, speaking like that might ruin your cool and ruthless image in my mind."
Li Qianren gave Gu Qingfeng a deep look. "Alright, you can leave now."
"Then, I shall take my leave. By the way, Lord Li, about my reward..."
"Someone will deliver it to you." Li Qianren said, turning back to his seat and picking up an ancient book to read it intently.
Seeing this, Gu Qingfeng didn't say anything more. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he suddenly remembered something.
"Lord Li, there's one more thing."
"Speak."
"Can I have the Ghost Tree Demon from the first level of the Demon Suppression Prison?"
"Sure." Li Qianren agreed without looking up, seemingly uninterested in why Gu Qingfeng wanted the Ghost Tree Demon.
Gu Qingfeng was secretly amazed. All the prepared explanations he had were swallowed back. He couldn't figure out what Li Qianren was thinking all day, but he seemed quite easy to talk to.
"Thank you, Lord Li. I shall take my leave."
Gu Qingfeng turned and left the hall. Now, only Li Qianren remained, and the hall was silent, except for the rustling of pages being turned.
After Gu Qingfeng had left far enough, a strange voice suddenly broke the silence from the shadows in a corner of the hall.
"He found me."
"Mm." Li Qianren responded softly, still flipping through the book.
"His soul is very strong. It's no surprise he could find you."
"He didn't find me through soul power. If he had used soul power to scan the entire hall, he would have sensed me, but he didn't."
"Oh?" Li Qianren's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Then how did he find you?"
"I don't know. When I was watching him from the shadows, his expression showed a hint of unease. Although he didn't look at me, I know he found me."
"It seems he has many secrets."
"It's not just secrets. It's very likely that his body has been taken over by another soul. I've never heard of anyone with soul talent strong enough to reach this level. It's more like he's been possessed by a powerful expert."
"As long as it's not a demon, it's fine." Li Qianren said calmly.
"When he used his soul power against you, there was no trace of demonic energy. The one who possessed him is likely a human grandmaster."
"Mm." Li Qianren seemed engrossed in his book, speaking less and less.
"He has so many secrets. Aren't you worried?"
"If he really is possessed by a grandmaster, then his chances of success will be higher. The rest doesn't matter. I only want the Elixir of Eternal Youth."
"That's why you defended him, cleared his suspicions, and guided him step by step to accept this mission. In fact, the moment you saw him, you sensed the powerful soul within him. Such a low cultivation level with such a powerful soul—he's the perfect candidate."
"Correct. I just didn't expect him to also possess such strong fire control talent. With that, the chances of success are even higher."
The voice from the shadows fell silent for a long time before suddenly speaking softly, "Is it worth it?"
Li Qianren didn't answer.
The voice from the shadows continued, "Do you know that once you do this, you'll be against the entire world? Is it really worth it? You're so young and already a grandmaster. You have a bright future ahead of you, even the chance to reach beyond grandmaster. But for this..."
"Shut up!"
Li Qianren, who had been calm all along, suddenly exploded in anger. He slammed the ancient book hard onto the table, making a loud noise.
He stood up, glaring at the shadows, and shouted, "Do you really think I won't kill you?"
"Ah." The shadows sighed softly, and then silence returned, as if the voice had never existed.
Li Qianren no longer had the mood to read. His expression cold, he pushed open the door and left the hall, disappearing without a trace.
At that moment, a gentle breeze blew in through the door, flipping the pages of the book on the table, one by one...
Until the cover closed.
And on the cover were two large words: [Alchemy Scripture].
...
After leaving the hall, Gu Qingfeng returned to his residence. As he walked, he kept thinking about the conversation with Li Qianren. For some reason, he felt something was off, but he couldn't figure out what it was.
There was also the person hidden in the shadows in the corner of the hall, who was also a congenital master!
Gu Qingfeng had a spiritual sense that allowed him to feel being watched, so when he entered the hall, he immediately sensed the presence of that person.
However, he didn't say anything. As the head of the Wutong Prefecture Demon Suppression Bureau, Li Qianren, who oversaw both the Light Bureau and the Covert Division, having someone secretly protecting him was normal. Probably someone from the Covert Division.
Sitting on his bed, Gu Qingfeng thought hard for a long time but couldn't figure it out. Everything seemed normal, but why did he feel something was wrong?
Suddenly, he had a flash of insight! He realized it.
It was the spiritual sense!
The spiritual sense was warning him that something was off! Spiritual sense is like a sixth sense; besides sensing being watched, it can also predict that something might happen.
So, Li Qianren really had something going on?
With this thought in mind, Gu Qingfeng analyzed carefully and finally figured out what was wrong.
Li Qianren was too nice to him.
Even though it was their first meeting, despite having achieved a great merit, killing one of the Seven Demon Commanders with just the fourth level of Qi Condensation was too unbelievable. A normal person's first reaction would definitely be disbelief. But during the time when others were questioning, Li Qianren maintained a neutral stance and analyzed the reasons why he could defeat the Mirror Demon.
It felt like he knew Gu Qingfeng could defeat the Mirror Demon and was just deducing the process based on the result.
When others suggested checking his body, Li Qianren didn't express whether he agreed or not. Instead, he explained on Gu Qingfeng's behalf, diverting the topic.
In fact, from the perspective of the Demon Suppression Bureau, the best approach would definitely be to check his body. No matter how good the words sounded, seeing is believing. A quick check would clear everything up, so why analyze?
But Li Qianren didn't allow the check and explained the reasons why Gu Qingfeng could defeat the Mirror Demon, as if he was deliberately protecting him.
However, after explaining clearly, there was no longer any doubt among the senior exorcists. But Li Qianren still raised a question, asking why he could resist the Mirror Demon's invasion.
Then came the soul confrontation, allowing Gu Qingfeng to display his soul talent, leading to the mention of the Elixir of Eternal Youth.
On the surface, it seemed like the leader was appreciating talent, but in reality, it was guiding him to the Jade Dragon Secret Realm.
The more Gu Qingfeng thought about it, the more he felt it was the case. It seemed that every word Li Qianren said was guiding the direction of the conversation, pushing things towards what he wanted.
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
spital. Good news: I've bound a system. Bad news: I'm still a baby. "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, do not bully the middle-aged for being poor — Divorce Comeback System." "Your marriage may have failed, but your luck in love has never run dry. Your childhood sweetheart, out of contact for twenty years, reappears. Her beauty remains, yet her eyes are brimming with tears." [Listen to the childhood sweetheart's sorrowful story.] Chen Zhi looked down at the diaper he was wearing, then at the little childhood sweetheart crying her heart out beside him, and fell into deep thought. Can anyone relate? I'm having a midlife crisis at an age where even rolling over is a struggle.
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
