The End of the Immortal Path

"Yes. Word is, a mysterious person has contacted some of our people," the portly man said cautiously. "This person might be involved with other Immortal Spirits, but we don’t know what kind, much less what state their Immortal Spirit is in."

The Immortal Sect’s reaction would depend on the state of the Immortal Spirit.

Management of their kind of Immortal Spirit was the most lenient.

Even if they were caught, it wouldn’t cause too much of a stir.

But if it were an Immortal Spirit at large, it would become a primary target of the Immortal Sect’s investigations.

Once discovered, that would unleash a tempest.

"What’s their objective?" Chen Shi asked.

"They want to cooperate with our Immortal Spirit. They’re saying they want to test our Messenger’s strength first and want to meet in person to discuss it," the portly man said.

"Meet in person? How could that be possible?" Chen Shi knew without even thinking that it was out of the question.

"The condition they offered is that they can make our Immortal Spirit awaken quickly. And the meeting would only be in the misty dreamscape," the portly man said in a low voice. "It’s certain they can also enter that fog."

The offer to awaken the Immortal Spirit quickly was tempting to them.

But Jiang Man was an undercover agent; he certainly wouldn’t be tempted.

Taking such a risk was, of course, even more out of the question.

"And if we refuse?" Chen Shi asked.

The portly man was silent for a moment. "Then people like you will need to be careful. You might get reported."

Chen Shi: "..."

This was truly bad news for those hiding within the Sect.

Especially since they still had no idea who the other party was.

Chen Shi sighed. "I can only find a way to inform the Messenger. There’s nothing else I can do. You know the Messenger is an undercover agent; he’ll weigh this differently than the others would."

The portly man could only feel helpless.

Perhaps no one had ever expected someone to show up offering this kind of cooperation.

And using an awakened Immortal Spirit as a bargaining chip, no less.

This offer was beneficial to everyone else, but for Jiang Man, it held no appeal whatsoever.

The chances of him agreeing were slim to none.

But while they thought the chances were slim, the others didn’t know Jiang Man was an undercover agent.

————

「The next day.」

Jiang Man was reading a book when he felt his Evil God Token vibrate slightly.

But he chose to ignore it.

’Reading was far more important.’

Three days later, he’d finished a book.

After half a month, he’d finished six.

The Token vibrated again.

Jiang Man glanced at it. They wanted to discuss something.

He ignored it.

Then he went back to his books.

Five days later, in late August.

Jiang Man closed his book. He had finished the Thirty-Six Books of Ascension. It was time to begin absorbing them.

「September 1st.」

Jiang Man slowly opened his eyes. He had now completely absorbed the Thirty-Six Books of Ascension.

He had completed a new round of enhancement.

The only thing he now lacked to meet the requirements for the Unparalleled Celestial Pride Fate Chart was an increase in his Cultivation.

In total, one year and seven months had passed.

That was over 570 days in total, leaving him with more than 300 days until the 900-day deadline.

Nearly a year was more than enough time for him to advance to the Late Stage.

If he didn’t advance soon, Ting Fengyin would go from lamenting his lack of progress for a year to mocking him for failing to advance for two.

By now, the group had reached the Sect’s territory.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They had faced many dangers on their journey, and some had even been injured.

If it weren’t for their good luck, returning so quickly would have been much more difficult.

Just as they entered the Sect’s territory, Zhuo Qingcheng reminded them, "I’ve already informed the Sect of our return. We can go report the mission directly. Any issues can be brought to the Law Enforcement Hall."

"The Law Enforcement Hall?" Lin Fei asked curiously. "Do the people from your Law Enforcement Hall wear black?"

Zhuo Qingcheng looked puzzled. Just then, Han Meixue exclaimed, "Look! It’s people from the Law Enforcement Hall."

They looked ahead and saw members of the Law Enforcement Hall approaching.

Zhuo Qingcheng frowned. ’Why is the Law Enforcement Hall so interested in this mission?’

"Could it be that there’s more to Lingyue Sect than we thought?" Long Yangxia wondered aloud.

"That shouldn’t be it," Jiang Wen said, confused. "Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent us."

For a moment, they all grew concerned.

Soon, a group of four from the Law Enforcement Hall arrived before them.

Their leader was Ren Qian.

Before Zhuo Qingcheng could speak, Ren Qian turned to Jiang Man. "Junior Brother Jiang, you’ve returned?"

"Yes." Jiang Man nodded. "To the Law Enforcement Hall, right?"

"Yes, it seems you’re already aware. I must say, Junior Brother, you seem to have a special connection with us," Ren Qian said with a smile.

’He hadn’t expected to have to wait here for Jiang Man’s return.’

This whole affair was indeed a big deal. The boy had inexplicably become the Evil God’s Spokesman.

The repercussions were huge.

It was the first time a proper Student Cultivator had become so deeply involved with the Evil God.

Jiang Man then went with them.

Ren Qian turned to Zhuo Qingcheng and the others. "The people you brought back should also pay a visit to the Law Enforcement Hall, but there’s no rush. You can go report in yourselves."

With that, Jiang Man and the officers departed.

The others were left completely bewildered.

"Is he being arrested?" Han Meixue asked, puzzled. "But the Law Enforcement Hall members seem so polite. It doesn’t look like an arrest."

"It might be related to what happened last time," Zhuo Qingcheng said.

Lin Fei watched Jiang Man leave, momentarily at a loss for words.

’Is he so legendary that the Law Enforcement Hall has to personally welcome him back?’

He hesitated before asking, "Is this normal?"

Jiang Wen gave a slight nod and said calmly, "He got the same welcome from the Law Enforcement Hall when he returned from his last mission."

Lin Fei, the devastated undercover agent: "..."

’No wonder he’s so good at selling out his own people.’

’He’s a repeat offender.’

————

It’s the end of the month, the monthly tickets are going to expire.