Chapter 1467: An Unexpected Visitor

About half an hour later, Li Yan, who had been sipping tea in deep thought, suddenly stirred. He then raised his eyes and looked towards the entrance of his cave residence.

A short while later, a deep voice sounded from outside the cave residence. “I have taken the liberty of visiting. I wonder if the young master has already retired for the night.”

Upon hearing this, Li Yan did not rise, nor did he show any surprise on his face. While taking another sip of tea, he waved his other sleeve forward. A shimmering light flickered at the entrance of the cave residence, and then the stone door silently opened. A figure flashed and appeared inside Li Yan’s cave.

“I greet the young master!” The visitor saw Li Yan looking at him with a smile and immediately bowed respectfully.

The visitor was a stout man dressed in fine clothes, with a pair of small eyes that glinted sharply. It was the same burly man who had been the first to push open the main gate of the Heavy Peak Battalion’s side hall during the day.

“Seeing you today was quite a surprise. Why are you here too? Could it really be such a coincidence?” Li Yan looked at the visitor, put down his teacup, and asked in a gentle voice.

The visitor was none other than Sun Guoshu. He seemed to have expected Li Yan’s question and gave a wry smile.

“With the four great sects conscripting like this, how many of us rogue cultivators can escape? After I received the conscription order, because I had the voice transmission talisman Miss Bai gave me before—it was so that I could notify Miss Bai the first moment I found what the young master needed—I thought I would try to see if I could escape the conscription order through Miss Bai’s help. But the result was far more severe than I expected. Miss Bai replied that even she had to go out on missions. Trying to escape would only result in being hunted down by the Malevolent Spirit Sect. But later, Miss Bai still found a way to have me transferred from another place to Windy Cool Mountain and join her Ninth Squad. I suppose this is much better than taking orders from someone else.”

Sun Guoshu briefly recounted his story. Li Yan nodded after hearing it. “This is already the best solution. Even the disciples of the Malevolent Spirit Sect themselves cannot avoid it, let alone outsiders. Well, you didn’t come here just for this, did you?”

Li Yan was pleased that Sun Guoshu had not immediately come out to greet him during the day to show off his extensive connections. He felt that Sun Guoshu was a seasoned individual, befitting his background as a rogue cultivator who had long navigated the martial world. If used well, such a person could be quite reliable for handling certain matters.

“Of course not. As for the matter the young master entrusted to me, after two years of tireless visits and inquiries, I finally obtained another item last year. However, that item was given to Miss Bai at the time, and the Spirit Stones were also paid for by her.”

“Oh, you obtained another item? What is it?”

Li Yan’s heart leaped with joy. It seemed his initial judgment of Sun Guoshu had not been wrong. People like him feared power, could read situations, and would work diligently when tempted by benefits. In the past, Li Yan had, of course, thought of more than just temptation, but with his cultivation at the time, coercion was out of the question.

“Reporting to the young master, it is a second-rank Ice Cloud Feather. This material is extremely rare and valuable. At the time, even if I had exhausted my entire fortune, I could not have hoped to purchase it. In the end, it was Miss Bai who spent the astronomical price of twenty thousand low-grade Spirit Stones to obtain it…”

This time, before Sun Guoshu could finish, Li Yan interrupted him. “You said an Ice Cloud Feather?”

Hearing Li Yan’s question, Sun Guoshu’s initial excitement sank. With his experience, he could already sense something from Li Yan’s tone. Could it be that the item he had worked so hard to find was no longer needed by Li Yan? He looked up at Li Yan and saw that his face was still calm, with no sign of dissatisfaction, but also no excitement. For a moment, he didn’t know what Li Yan meant.

He thought to himself, ‘If you say you don’t want it later, even if Miss Bai paid the Spirit Stones, for such a large sum, if Miss Bai blames me later, wouldn’t I be wronged?’

But he quickly replied, “Yes, young master. Someone was secretly offering the Ice Cloud Feather for auction at the market. I found out in advance and went to their door that very night. If it had gone to the market, the final price would have been hard to say. I estimate that twenty thousand Spirit Stones would not have been nearly enough. After I learned that the other party was in urgent need of a sum of Spirit Stones, I spent a great deal of effort persuading them, and they finally agreed to give me only half a day to raise twenty thousand low-grade Spirit Stones, otherwise it would be handed over to the market for auction…”

Li Yan couldn’t help but feel disappointed. It seemed that luck was not all concentrated in one person. He had just obtained two Ice Cloud Feathers from his master, and they were both from third-rank demonic beasts. However, he didn’t care about this amount of Spirit Stones now. Since the other party had diligently carried out the task he had given, how could he discourage him? And Sun Guoshu’s detailed account of his efforts made it clear to Li Yan what he was getting at.

Li Yan waved his hand, stopping Sun Guoshu’s words. He patted his waist, and a storage pouch flew out. He now had several storage pouches hanging from his waist, a deliberate choice, as most Foundation Establishment and above cultivators did so. Then he said to Sun Guoshu, “Here are three thousand Spirit Stones, consider it your fee for the hard work. As for Senior Sister Bai’s side, I will pay her another twenty thousand Spirit Stones. You did well. If you have the chance, keep an eye out for a Jade-Horned Serpent for me, it needs to be at least second-rank.”

When Sun Guoshu saw a storage pouch flying towards him and heard Li Yan’s words, his heart leaped with joy. ‘Three thousand Spirit Stones, plus a seemingly high-grade storage pouch.’ He had made a small fortune this time, and at the same time, he felt his luck was truly good for having followed the right person. Thus, Sun Guoshu quickly reached out and took it, then repeatedly expressed his thanks.

How could he know that Li Yan wouldn’t even bat an eye at giving him thirty thousand low-grade Spirit Stones now? But Li Yan wouldn’t do that. A few hundred Spirit Stones could surprise a rogue cultivator for a while. This was a reward for Sun Guoshu’s dedicated work, and he had given him quite a bit more. All in all, this amount of Spirit Stones seemed reasonable.

“A second-rank Jade-Horned Serpent. I once heard it appeared in the Peiyang Market, but by the time I found it, it had long been purchased. I never managed to track down that person. Although I am no longer at the market, the Jade-Horned Serpent is actually easier to find than the other materials the young master gave me. The chances are much higher. It’s just that the cultivation world has been in turmoil for the past two years, so many cultivators have been going out on adventures less, and they also deliberately hoard some raw materials, so materials like the second-rank Jade-Horned Serpent have become rare. However, I have been at Windy Cool Mountain for some time now and have started to get to know some cultivators. I will definitely be diligent in inquiring about this raw material for the young master.”

Having received a good number of Spirit Stones, Sun Guoshu felt a surge of confidence. The Jade-Horned Serpent could be found in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains of the Malevolent Spirit Sect. It was just that he had been focusing on rarer raw materials before, and had missed an opportunity due to carelessness. However, Sun Guoshu felt that with his social skills, he might be able to find news of the Jade-Horned Serpent among the cultivators at Windy Cool Mountain.

Li Yan nodded, then he pointed to the stone chair next to him. “Have a seat. I have another matter to ask you.”

With that, he pushed another cup of tea to the side of the stone table.

Seeing that Li Yan had another matter to ask, Sun Guoshu naturally became enthusiastic. If he handled it well, there might be another reward. At the same time, he thought to himself, ‘This is Senior Wei’s direct disciple. His word carries far more weight on Windy Cool Mountain than Miss Bai’s. This is the surest way to protect my life now.’

So he walked a few steps forward and sat down to one side, looking at Li Yan. However, looking at Li Yan at such a close distance, Sun Guoshu felt a sudden shiver in his heart. He didn’t know why a sudden chill ran through him. He had carefully inquired about Li Yan’s cultivation before. The first time he met this brat, he had been tricked by him. At that time, the other party should have been a true Qi Condensation stage cultivator, but he probably had some treasure on him that made him suffer a loss. He had always been convinced of this guess. A direct disciple of a Peak Master of the Malevolent Spirit Sect would have numerous treasures.

It wasn’t until later, when he couldn’t find Li Yan, that he learned from Bai Rou that he had successfully established his foundation. Counting the time, it had only been a short two years. How had he reached the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, the same as him, when he saw him today? He had exhausted all his assets to barely break through to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, and he had been stuck at the peak of the Initial-stage Foundation Establishment for a full thirty years. Thinking about the few decades of lifespan he had left, Sun Guoshu had no hope of forming a core. It was likely that even the Late-stage Foundation Establishment was a chasm he could never cross.

‘Could this be the foundation of the four great sects? With their superior cultivation methods, how can the unranked methods I cultivate compare? If I could obtain a mid-grade cultivation method, perhaps my cultivation could also advance by leaps and bounds.’

In just an instant, many thoughts arose in Sun Guoshu’s mind. He had always thought his aptitude was decent, just that his Immortal Fortune was too thin. When he saw Li Yan today, he had been shocked by his cultivation. How had a mere Qi Condensation cultivator suddenly become his equal? This made Sun Guoshu feel a considerable amount of jealousy. But now, being so close to Li Yan, a very weak pressure suddenly emanated from Li Yan. It was this wisp of pressure that made Sun Guoshu feel as if he were sitting on pins and needles, as if he were lying next to a ferocious beast.

In fact, this was deliberately done by Li Yan. Before, his ability and cultivation were limited, so he couldn’t coerce Sun Guoshu. Now that he had confirmed Sun Guoshu’s ability to get things done, how could he let him go? If he could make this person serve him wholeheartedly, then he could save more time for cultivation. So he let Sun Guoshu come closer and deliberately released some pressure to intimidate him.

Of course, with Li Yan’s true strength now, he didn’t need to deliberately call Sun Guoshu over to make him tremble. But Li Yan would never easily reveal his true strength to others. As long as it was enough to intimidate him, that was sufficient. And he had no intention of subduing him in one go. A person like Sun Guoshu, though he looked rough, was actually as cunning as a fox. Before Li Yan completely erupted with his strength and showed his absolute crushing power, he could only make Sun Guoshu suspicious.

However, for now, achieving this was enough. A suspicious person who also wanted to rely on him for protection would think more and more afterwards. The more he thought, the greater the mystery would become. At a certain point, if he could shatter the last line of his psychological defense at a critical moment, it would be possible to completely subdue this person.

Just as Sun Guoshu shifted uncomfortably in his seat, the heart-trembling feeling suddenly vanished, as if everything just now had been his imagination.