Chapter 1613: Flowers Bloom in Their Own Time (Part Three)

Faced with Jia Fugui’s direct rejection, Li Yan simply nodded. The man was only responsible for gathering information, and he had indeed fulfilled the task. Asking for anything more would be pushing it.

“Then, Fellow Daoist Jia, what was the other piece of news?” Li Yan asked, setting the first matter aside for later consideration. He suspected the second piece of news concerned the passage to the lower realm, as those were the only two things he had requested.

However, Jia Fugui looked hesitant. When he finally spoke, his words left Li Yan stunned.

“Fellow Daoist Li, the Guī Qù Lái Xī association you are looking for… is there a major problem behind it? Or is it controlled by some massive power?”

Jia Fugui didn’t answer immediately but countered with a question of his own.

Li Yan realized he had guessed wrong. The second piece of news was also related to Guī Qù Lái Xī. “That association likely has a powerful background, but I am unclear on its exact origins. Why do you ask?”

“Because the person who helped gather information on Guī Qù Lái Xī included an additional report. It seems that someone has also begun to investigate who is secretly inquiring about Guī Qù Lái Xī. I was wondering… could there be others inquiring about them at the same time? Or did they hear something and start looking for the person asking? If you have no ill intentions, this might be good news—it means they are looking for you, too! Otherwise, you should immediately stop your inquiries and avoid meeting the person who saw the shop!”

Jia Fugui had pondered various possibilities after receiving this report. Being a man of great cunning himself, he had immediately narrowed it down to a few reasons.

Li Yan’s heart stirred. He hadn’t expected the second piece of news to be like this. In an instant, many thoughts flashed through his mind.

‘If it is my inquiries that drew their attention, it is a normal reaction for Guī Qù Lái Xī to investigate who is asking about them. They are a business, after all, and must have rivals. They would naturally want to know the reason. Since I mean no harm, as Jia Fugui said, this might be an opportunity to find them sooner…’

Li Yan quickly considered several angles and then began to ask for more details.

Half a day later, Jia Fugui took a gourd of wine and departed. Li Yan learned that the man had achieved Spirit Transformation without the Grand Void Fruit, making it likely that he could one day reach the Void Refining Realm.

Jia Fugui had recorded the location of the sect where the cultivator who had seen the shop resided in a jade slip and given it to Li Yan. He also warned Li Yan repeatedly to be cautious. For a Spirit Transformation cultivator to travel such a distance through known dangers was simply too risky. Li Yan expressed his gratitude and stated he would consider it carefully.

After Jia Fugui left, Li Yan was in no mood to cultivate. He fell into a long period of contemplation. Several hours later, he finally reached a decision.

‘The locations of myself, the cultivator who saw the shop, and the shop itself form a line from west to east. I am at the start, the cultivator is in the middle, and the shop he saw is at the final destination. Now that Guī Qù Lái Xī has reacted, regardless of whether it is a normal response or the situation I suspect, I must go to them. Meeting the cultivator on the way won’t be a delay. However, bypassing the prairie takes too much time. If a century passes, that cultivator might not still be at his sect. Therefore, the best way is to cut across the Heaven-Slaying Prairie and take the shortest path!’

‘I should find Elder Hao and Elder Tang. Perhaps one of them can accompany me? If so, crossing the Heaven-Slaying Prairie shouldn’t be a problem. Since the goal is the passage to the lower realm, they shouldn’t object. I cannot delay; I must depart as soon as possible…’

A plan slowly formed in Li Yan’s mind. At the end of his thoughts, he pulled out a jade slip given to him by Donglin Tingyue and immersed his Divine Sense into it. Soon, a look of contemplation reappeared on his face.

“The Purple Divine Dragon Elephant tribe isn’t on my route. But if we bypass it, with the speed of a Body Integration expert, it should only take an extra six or seven years…”

Li Yan thought that if he could convince a Body Integration cultivator to accompany him, he could also investigate the situation with the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant tribe. If he could find a way to the lower realm there, he wouldn’t need to travel all the way to find the other cultivator or the shop. His goal was the lower realm; if he could solve it nearby, that would be the best result.

He had considered visiting the dragon-elephant tribe when he first got the jade slip years ago. But having just returned from the Earth-Truth Realm then, he knew the two elders had no time. Now that over a decade had passed, perhaps one of them was free? To find out, he would have to return to the Earth-Truth Realm.

Acting on his decision, Li Yan decided to head to the Earth-Truth Realm immediately. If things could be settled, he would return for Mu Guyue. Since Mu Guyue didn’t know the two elders, and since Elder Hao or Elder Tang would never reveal their status as soul cultivators—even covering their tracks during combat—he could simply tell them she was his Dao companion who knew nothing of the Hellsoul Clan. They would then find ways to hide their own identities. Mu Guyue, for her part, would certainly never mention the Earth-Truth Realm. Of course, this was all just a plan.

Six months later, when Li Yan returned to the Broken Army Sect, he went straight into his cave residence. His face was calm, making it impossible to see his thoughts, but inwardly, he felt a wave of frustration.

The trip had not gone smoothly. The arrays for the Soul Suppression Palace were only about forty percent complete. The two Supreme Elders truly had no time. Elder Tang had to guide the way through the yellow mist and was responsible for two arrays, while Elder Hao had gone to the perilous lands at the head of the formation to protect Master Blue as he worked.

Li Yan had met with them separately. After some discussion and estimation, they had set a fifty-year deadline. Li Yan could only accept this result with helplessness. The Soul Suppression Palace had to make their home base iron-clad before clearing out internal threats. Given how close they had come to total destruction twice before, Elder Hao and Elder Tang dared not leave.

“Fifty years! Another sixty-year cycle!” Standing in the hall, Li Yan sighed toward the ceiling. As he slowly established himself in the upper realm, he missed his family in the lower realm more and more. Whenever he had a break from cultivation, that longing grew stronger, making him want to bring them up as soon as possible.

After a moment of distraction, Li Yan re-entered his cultivation chamber. He couldn’t just wait; he had to seize the time to increase his strength. If he reached the Void Refining Realm, he wouldn’t need to ask others for help. He felt that at that level, he would dare to venture into the Heaven-Slaying Prairie alone.

Before his last departure, Li Yan had informed Shangguan Tianque that he would be away for a few months. Shangguan Tianque also updated him on the sect’s affairs. Li Yan learned that the sect had gained another Supreme Elder at the Spirit Transformation Realm—someone both Shangguan Tianque and his partner knew well. Li Yan was delighted; the sect’s growth only brought him more benefits. However, that Supreme Elder had already entered seclusion upon Li Yan’s return to digest the insights from years of traveling. Li Yan knew that refining such experiences was vital, so he didn’t seek a meeting.

Just as Li Yan was leaving, Shangguan Tianque handed him a storage ring. Li Yan was stunned until, under the other man’s smile, he checked the contents.

He was shocked. Inside were over twenty supreme-grade spirit stones, radiating dense spiritual energy. Before his last seclusion, he had told Shangguan Tianque that he didn’t need other resources and to convert what was possible into supreme-grade spirit stones. But how were there so many after only a dozen years?

Seeing Li Yan’s shock, Shangguan Tianque’s smile deepened. He said only one sentence: “The difference between a third-rate and fourth-rate sect is the difference between heaven and earth. Our sect… has only just begun to expand! I’ll give Mu Guyue her dozens of stones when she emerges from seclusion.”

Li Yan was very satisfied with the stones. They were part of his preparations for crossing several realms in the Immortal Spirit Realm. It seemed his support in the battle to elevate the sect had been well worth it.

However, after only a few days of cultivation, another event occurred that disrupted his plans for seclusion once more. Chongyangzi had sent a messenger with a jade slip. Although the messenger didn’t have Li Yan’s token, he produced a Pure Yang Hall command token and was quickly led to Li Yan’s cave.