Testing the Waters

Supreme Mystery Mountain.

Li Chengxuan had let Liu Zhijian descend the mountain to gain experience and fulfill his potential.

Back in the Ancestral Master Hall, Li Chengxuan began carefully studying the texts in the library concerning the High Shaman Dao lineage.

The High Shaman was also an ancient Dao lineage.

Though not as exalted as the lineage of Supreme Mystery Mountain, it could be traced back to High Antiquity, when the five elements had yet to manifest and the various forms of Qi had yet to be divided.

Back then, the ancestors still ate raw flesh and drank blood.

They were merely weak tribes on the wild lands, settling wherever they found water.

Not until some of the ancestors gained wisdom and learned the arts of shamans and ritualists from heaven, earth, and nature did they gain the power to protect themselves.

When the Human Emperor established his rule and united the nine continents, he owed much to the aid of the great shamans.

Later, the Dao Ancestor descended into the world, separated yin and yang, divided the five elements, distinguished the various forms of Qi, and established Dao lineages to be passed down through the ages.

The Dao Ancestor's first disciple once visited the Human Emperor and the great shamans, praising them: "Though the arts of shamans and ritualists are bloody and savage, they revere heaven and honor earth, and have earned merit by bringing peace to the people and protecting the nation." He personally sorted out their Dao traditions, dividing the chaotic and obscure arts into five lineages: the Three Wu and Two Zhu.

The High Shaman ranked first.

After the great tribulations of heaven and earth and the struggles between immortals and demons, the High Shaman Dao lineage had strayed considerably from its original direction, nearly becoming part of the Purple-Gold Demonic Dao.

When the conflict between the new and old methods ended, the Purple Mansion Golden Core Dao lineage had still managed to cling to life.

The Three Wu and Two Zhu, however, had perished one after another.

"The immortal foundation Drink the People's Blood could actually mean receiving sustenance from the people and protecting the tribe, but it could also be understood as plundering the common people and enslaving mortals..."

"Could it be that High Shaman cultivators are also divided into good and bad, black and white?!"

Li Chengxuan put down the text and frowned in thought. "That Duanmu Ren is most likely following the path of a black shaman."

Liu Zhijian cultivated Kan Water and could be left to his own devices.

Duanmu Ren's cultivation would require careful planning.

After all, it concerned his own Dao Path.

Earth, Stone Ridge County.

Duanmu Ren saw off the renowned psychologist he had invited from the capital, then sat at his desk, frowning in thought.

"Buddhist monks and Daoists only know rituals, not Law Techniques."

"Even hypnosis in psychology is closer to a trick, nowhere near as miraculous as the stories make it out to be."

"Calling someone's name to control their body, manipulating them like a puppet on strings, is even more the stuff of fiction. There has never been any evidence of it in real life."

Duanmu Ren had even invited an old police officer over to ask about mind-bending drugs and obedience potions.

The old officer had looked at him oddly and sworn to heaven that they were all internet rumors.

In reality, there was nothing that potent.

As the head of a county, Duanmu Ren had resources beyond imagination at his disposal.

In just a few days, he had disproved his various guesses one by one.

All the evidence proved that Li Chengxuan was a fraud!

But was that really the case?!

Duanmu Ren calmly recalled the details of the encounter and confirmed that his experience had been absolutely real, not a confused memory.

Duanmu Ren picked up the file on his desk.

It contained a detailed account of everything about the Li family.

The others were utterly ordinary, merely impoverished people at the bottom of society, the one thing this country had no shortage of.

Only Li Chengxuan was extremely strange.

He had mysteriously disappeared more than ten years ago, and no word of him had been heard since.

Some said he had drowned and been swept away; others said he had been trafficked overseas.

A month ago, he had abruptly appeared, as though he had fallen straight out of the sky.

Afterward, people had seen him visiting the Peony Residential Complex and wandering around the county town, and surveillance cameras had caught him too.

But after their chance encounter at the restaurant that day, he had mysteriously vanished again, leaving no trace whatsoever.

The phone on the desk vibrated softly.

Someone had sent a message.

Duanmu Ren opened it, and his expression immediately grew solemn.

Li Chengxuan had asked to meet him.

At the Lijiawa Subsidence Area on the outskirts of the county town.

Lijiawa Subsidence Area.

Li Chengxuan stood on the bank, fishing with Liu Zhijian's gear.

Without using his Divine Sense, he had fished for a full half hour and caught nothing.

"You can't blame me for this."

"Even a veteran angler like Liu Zhijian can get skunked for days on end."

"Maybe there really aren't any fish here."

Li Chengxuan comforted himself, but he couldn't resist using his Divine Sense to take a look underwater. He immediately frowned.

Just then, a car pulled up nearby.

"Enjoying yourself, Daoist?"

Duanmu Ren looked far calmer and more at ease than he had last time. Smiling, he asked, "How's it going? Any fish?"

Li Chengxuan glanced back and shook his head. "There are big ones, but they won't bite."

Duanmu Ren nodded and smiled as though chatting with a friend. "Maybe the fish aren't hungry."

Li Chengxuan chuckled.

With a light flick of his finger, he sent a medicinal pill into the water.

Fish and shrimp swarmed toward it, frantically fighting for the food and churning the water into a noisy, splashing froth.

The smile gradually faded from Duanmu Ren's face.

"Well?"

Li Chengxuan put down the fishing rod and clapped his hands. "County Magistrate Duanmu, have you finished looking into me?!"

Duanmu Ren's expression remained unchanged. After a moment of silence, he shook his head. "I thought I had some idea of what was going on. Now it seems I was a frog at the bottom of a well, and I underestimated you, master."

Li Chengxuan nodded and said earnestly, "You needn't be nervous or afraid. I have no intention of harming you. On the contrary, I want to offer you an immortal opportunity."

"An immortal opportunity?!"

Duanmu Ren turned the words over in his mind and asked, "Could it be that you're the successor of a hidden sect, wandering the mortal world and taking on disciples to pass down the Dao along the way?!"

"You're half right."

Li Chengxuan was not surprised by Duanmu Ren's caution and quick wits. He explained, "I do come from a sect, but I have no interest in wandering the mortal world."

Understanding dawned on Duanmu Ren, and he asked, "Then may I ask what is so special about me that you regard me differently?"

Li Chengxuan chuckled, finding Duanmu Ren far more interesting than Liu Zhijian, and patiently explained, "A rich potential has gathered within you."

"The specifics are rather troublesome to explain."

"You only need to know that only those who possess such potential can seek immortality and pursue the Dao."

"I've met many people, but very few have it."

"You're the second."

Duanmu Ren lowered his head in thought, then asked curiously, "Who was the first?"

"An angler."

Li Chengxuan briefly told him about Liu Zhijian.

Duanmu Ren glanced at the fishing rod beside him and nodded in understanding. A thought occurred to him, and he asked hesitantly, "Then he... where has he gone now?!"

"Haha."

Li Chengxuan couldn't help laughing. As expected of a county magistrate, an exceptional man well acquainted with the dark recesses of the human heart-he actually suspected Li Chengxuan of killing someone to refine pills. "Rest assured. He's safe and sound, and his life is in no danger. He learned a cultivation method from our sect and went down the mountain to gain experience."

"Down the mountain..."

Duanmu Ren looked around at the vast plains, unconvinced, and cautiously objected, "But there aren't any mountains around here."

Li Chengxuan nodded and said openly, "The sect isn't here. To be precise, it isn't in this world."

"If you're willing, I can take you to see him."

"Not in this world..."

Duanmu Ren's breath caught. For the first time, he was so shocked he was left speechless. He took a deep breath to calm himself, then said slowly, "So, it's transmigration and immortal cultivation? Like the things written in those web novels?"

Li Chengxuan had never read web novels, but he had a general idea of what Duanmu Ren meant. He nodded. "More or less."

"Well? Are you willing to give up your mortal wealth and status to seek immortality and pursue the Dao?"

Duanmu Ren was digesting this enormous, unexpected revelation. He lowered his head and thought for a long time before cautiously probing, "What if I said no?"