Garrison

"My name is Li Shiming. I came to the Central Capital to take part in the Spring Examination, and I'm also preparing to attend next year's Immortal Ascension Gathering!" Li Shiming did not dare make the slightest unusual move. He honestly stated his identity and his purpose in coming to the Central Capital.

"Where did your cultivation come from? And why were you loitering near the Imperial City?" When Gu Jia heard that he had come to attend the Immortal Ascension Gathering and was also taking the Spring Examination, he did not quite believe it and pressed him further.

"I found a book in the back garden of the Government Office in Nanling Prefecture and cultivated according to the methods in it. I came to the Imperial City only because I wanted to see it for myself!" Li Shiming replied with nine parts truth and one part lie.

"Nonsense. Without an environment containing spiritual qi, you couldn't even enter the path. How could you have reached Qi Refining Second Level?" Gu Jia's face darkened. A wave of pressure fell on him as he shouted in a low voice.

Li Shiming only felt his whole body grow heavy. He involuntarily shrank down, almost sprawling inside the carriage.

"Two months ago, two immortals came to Nanling Prefecture to investigate a case, then later left for reasons unknown. At the time, those two immortals were staying in the Government Office. After they left, I found some spirit stones in the room, and I used those spirit stones to cultivate a spiritual qi vortex," Li Shiming hurriedly explained.

Gu Jia was stationed in Great Xia, so he naturally knew about the matter in Nanling Prefecture where cultivators had requested aid.

Comparing the sequence of events, he knew that Li Shiming's words were mostly true.

"How did you learn the term 'spirit stone'?" A light flashed in Gu Jia's eyes as he noticed a flaw in Li Shiming's words and asked.

"I met a cultivator from Sky Ocean Sect named Fan Yiyang. He told me many things about the cultivation world!" Li Shiming answered.

"You know Fan Yiyang too!" Gu Jia said in surprise. Then he withdrew his pressure and said with a smile, "I'll investigate your matter, but you don't need to worry. As long as you haven't lied, this will be beneficial for you in attending the Immortal Ascension Gathering!"

"Thank you for showing mercy!" Li Shiming let out a long breath in his heart, straightened up, and cupped his hands.

"Did Fan Yiyang not tell you that cultivators can't casually approach the Imperial Palace?" Gu Jia waved his hand to stop his salute and asked.

Li Shiming could only shake his head with a wry smile. He had not told Fan Yiyang that he was coming to the Imperial Palace, so how could Fan Yiyang have thought to mention such things?

He also understood why he had been stopped by Gu Jia, this powerful cultivator. It turned out he had delivered himself right to the door.

"Do you have a grudge against Prince Shun?" Gu Jia suddenly asked.

"This..." Li Shiming did not know how to answer for a moment. He did not dare deceive Gu Jia.

"What's there to hide? He's nothing more than a worldly prince!" Gu Jia said, laughing loudly.

From his words, Li Shiming heard the disdain he held for the worldly royal family.

Li Shiming simply could not understand why, since he looked down on the worldly royal family, he still had to remain stationed here. "Last night, I was assassinated by killers sent from Prince Shun's Residence!" Having understood Gu Jia's attitude, Li Shiming did not conceal it and answered.

"Haha!" Gu Jia laughed loudly again, as though he had heard something ridiculous.

Yes, to Gu Jia, it was ridiculous. The worldly Prince Shun had sent assassins to kill a cultivator. Even if this cultivator was only at Qi Refining Second Level, it was still an utterly ridiculous matter.

The ridiculous one was naturally Prince Shun. In Gu Jia's view, if Prince Shun knew that his assassination target was a cultivator, he probably would not even sleep peacefully anymore.

"You cannot take action near the Imperial Palace. Also, if you have other methods, try not to use spiritual power. That way, even if you cause trouble, it won't fall under my jurisdiction!" After laughing, Gu Jia said indifferently.

Li Shiming was stunned when he heard this. He did not expect Gu Jia to help him.

"Thank you, senior!" he said, bowing in thanks.

"Don't call me senior. We're both in the Qi Refining Stage. Call me Dao Brother. Once you join Sky Ocean Sect in the future, you'll have to call me Senior Brother!" Gu Jia said, waving his hand.

He was old and shrewd. He could hear that most of Li Shiming's words were true, and it would be very easy to investigate as well.

As long as Li Shiming's background was clean, then combined with the aptitude he had shown by reaching Qi Refining Second Level after cultivating alone for just over two months, joining Sky Ocean Sect would not be a problem.

On this point, Gu Jia and Fan Yiyang held the same view.

The cultivators who could be assigned to the secular world were either cultivators like Fan Yiyang, whose talent was poor to the extreme, or half-retired cultivators like Gu Jia, who had no more room to advance in this life.

The task of being stationed in the secular world was not dangerous, and it also allowed one to obtain rewards as well as offerings from the royal family.

Such cultivators all shared one characteristic: they hoped to form friendships with talented seedlings, and might even invest in them.

Cultivators had to remember old ties. Whether this remembrance was done for others to see or to stabilize their own Dao heart, after cultivators achieved success in their cultivation, they would express gratitude to those who had helped them.

"Thank you for your guidance, Dao Brother!" Li Shiming changed his form of address.

"Little friend, go back first. We'll contact each other again in a few days!" As Gu Jia spoke, he waved his hand at Mo Yan.

Then his figure inexplicably vanished, leaving no one in front of the carriage.

Li Shiming was secretly shocked. He had been watching the entire time, yet he had not seen how Gu Jia left.

If a conflict had broken out, he estimated he would not even have known how he died.

Somewhat helplessly, he sent his consciousness into the Server Room Space. In the boxes there were five white phosphorus bombs and five thermite bombs, but earlier, he had not even been able to move.

Even if he had taken out the white phosphorus bombs and thermite bombs, he would not have been able to throw them. He could only have perished together with him.

He was not even confident in mutual destruction. Gu Jia was too fast, so fast that he could not see clearly. Under such circumstances, the odds of hitting Gu Jia with an explosion were far too low.

"Young Master, someone is blocking the road!" Mo Yan woke up, his mind still somewhat muddled, and the words were still coming from his mouth.

"Huh, where is he?" He soon discovered that there was no one ahead and cried out in surprise.

"Don't make such a fuss. Go back!" Li Shiming did not explain it to him and ordered in a low voice.

Mo Yan drove the carriage, looking back at the place from just now from time to time. His mind was extremely confused. What had happened earlier seemed to have occurred, yet also seemed as if nothing had happened at all.

Li Shiming sat inside the carriage, thinking about Gu Jia.

Unlike Fan Yiyang, Fan Yiyang had only been someone he encountered by chance on the road. Who knew how long it would be before they met again?

Gu Jia, however, was stationed in the Central Capital long-term. Most importantly, Gu Jia was also connected to the Immortal Ascension Gathering.

Just the fact that he was related to the Immortal Ascension Gathering meant Li Shiming had to maintain a good relationship with Gu Jia.

The things he could present, aside from spirit rice, were spirit tea.

He did not especially want to take out spirit rice, because as long as Gu Jia investigated his past, he would know that Li Shiming had no way of growing spirit rice.

The hundred jin sold to Fan Yiyang could still be explained as something he had obtained by accident, but if he took out a lot more spirit rice, it would be somewhat difficult to explain.

Although the spirit tea was fake spirit tea, in the end, it was still the best thing someone of his status could bring out.