Mount Taixuan.
Li Chengxuan sent Liu Zhijian down the mountain to gain experience, allowing his aura to mature fully.
Returning to the Ancestral Hall, Li Chengxuan began carefully thumbing through classic texts in the Scripture Library related to the 【High Shaman】 legacy.
The 【High Shaman】 was also an ancient legacy.
Though not as noble as that of Mount Taixuan, it could be traced back to the primeval period before the Five Elements manifested and the various qi had yet to separate.
At that time, the ancient ancestors still ate raw meat and drank blood.
They were merely weak and small tribes living along the waters of a wild and untamed land.
It was not until some among the ancient ancestors gained wisdom and learned the arts of the 【Shaman-Invocator】 from heaven, earth, and nature that they finally acquired the power of self-preservation.
When the 【Human Emperor】 established the realm and unified the Nine Provinces, it was also thanks to the assistance of the 【Grand Shaman】.
Later, the Dao Ancestor descended into the world, dividing Yin and Yang, separating the Five Elements, and distinguishing the various qi, establishing legacies to be passed down through the ages.
The Dao Ancestor's chief disciple once visited the Human Emperor and the Grand Shaman, praising, “Though the arts of the Shaman-Invocator are bloody and savage, they revere heaven and honor earth, possessing the merits of protecting the country and bringing peace to the people.” He then personally organized their spiritual lineages, dividing the chaotic and obscure arts of the Shaman-Invocator into five legacies: the 【Three Shamans and Two Invocators】.
The 【High Shaman】 ranked first among them.
Having endured great tribulations of heaven and earth as well as battles between immortals and demons, the path of the 【High Shaman】 legacy strayed significantly, nearly merging into the Purple Gold Demonic Dao.
As the conflict between the New Method and the Old Method drew to a close, the 【Purple Palace Golden Core】 legacy could still barely eke out an existence.
The Three Shamans and Two Invocators, however, perished one after another.
“The Immortal Foundation 【Drinking People's Blood】 could actually signify receiving offerings from the people to protect the tribe, yet it can also be interpreted as plundering commoners and enslaving mortals...”
“Could it be that cultivators of the 【High Shaman】 legacy are also split between good and evil, black and white?!”
Li Chengxuan put down the text and pondered with a frown. “That Duanmu Ren is likely walking the path of a dark shaman.”
Liu Zhijian cultivated 【Kan Water】, so he could still be left to grow freely.
But Duanmu Ren's cultivation required careful planning.
After all, it concerned his own Dao path.
...
Earth, Shiling County.
Duanmu Ren saw off a renowned psychologist invited from the capital and sat at his desk, frowning in deep thought.
“Monks and Daoists only know rituals; they don't understand magic spells.”
“Hypnosis in psychology is more akin to sleight of hand, nowhere near as magical as in legends.”
“Calling someone's name to control their body and manipulating others like puppets on a string is pure fiction; there's never been any empirical proof in reality.”
Duanmu Ren had even called in a veteran police officer to inquire about mind-control drugs and truth serums.
The old officer had looked at him with an odd expression and sworn to heaven that those were all internet rumors.
In reality, no such powerful substance existed.
As the head of a county, Duanmu Ren possessed resources beyond imagination.
In just a few days, he had disproven each of his guesses one by one.
All evidence pointed to one conclusion: that Li Chengxuan was a fraud!
But was that truly the case?!
Duanmu Ren calmly recalled the details of that encounter, confirming that his experience was absolute reality, not a memory disorder.
Duanmu Ren picked up the dossier on his desk.
Inside were detailed records of all the information regarding the Li family.
The others were completely ordinary—nothing more than the low-level poor of whom this country lacked no shortage.
Only Li Chengxuan was bizarrely anomalous.
He had mysteriously disappeared over a decade ago, with no news of him ever since.
Some said he had drowned and been swept away; others claimed he had been trafficked abroad.
A month ago, he had suddenly popped up, practically falling out of thin air.
Afterward, his visits to Mudan Community and strolls around the county seat had been witnessed by locals and captured on surveillance footage.
Yet after their chance encounter at the restaurant that day, the man had vanished mysteriously once more, leaving behind no trace whatsoever.
The phone on his desk vibrated slightly.
Someone had sent a message.
Duanmu Ren unlocked it, his expression instantly turning solemn.
It was Li Chengxuan, inviting him to meet.
At the Lijiawa mining subsidence zone on the outskirts of the county seat.
...
The Lijiawa mining subsidence zone.
Li Chengxuan stood by the shore, fishing with Liu Zhijian's tackle.
Without using his divine sense, he fished for a full half-hour and caught nothing.
“Can't blame me for this.”
“Even a veteran angler like Liu Zhijian gets skunked for days on end.”
“Maybe there really are no fish in this place.”
Comforting himself, Li Chengxuan couldn't resist activating his divine sense to scan under the water, and his brow instantly furrowed.
Just then, a car pulled up not far away.
“What fine spirits you are in, Daoist.”
Duanmu Ren's expression was far calmer and more natural than last time. Smiling, he asked, “Well? Any fish?”
Li Chengxuan glanced back and shook his head. “There are big fish, but they aren't biting.”
Duanmu Ren nodded and chuckled casually like friends chatting. “Perhaps the fish aren't hungry.”
Li Chengxuan let out a laugh.
With a gentle flick of his finger, an elixir pill dropped into the water.
The fish and shrimp in the water swarmed over, frenziedly fighting for food and churning the water into a splashing commotion.
The smile on Duanmu Ren's face gradually faded.
“What do you think?”
Li Chengxuan tossed aside the fishing rod and clapped his hands. “Has County Magistrate Duanmu thoroughly investigated me by now?!”
Duanmu Ren's expression remained unchanged. After a moment of silence, he shook his head and said, “I thought I had a fair grasp of things. Looking at it now, I was merely a frog at the bottom of a well, underestimating a master.”
Li Chengxuan nodded and said earnestly, “You don't need to be nervous or afraid. I have no intention of harming you. On the contrary, I wish to bestow an immortal chance upon you.”
“An immortal chance?!”
Duanmu Ren pondered the phrase carefully before asking, “Could it be that you are the heir to a reclusive sect, Daoist, wandering the mortal world to enjoy yourself while taking on disciples and preaching the Dao?!”
“You got half of it right.”
Unsurprised by Duanmu Ren's caution and sharp mind, Li Chengxuan explained, “I indeed come from a sect, but I have no interest in wandering the mortal world.”
Realization dawning, Duanmu Ren asked further, “Then may I ask, Daoist, what is special about me that caught your eye?”
Li Chengxuan chuckled softly, feeling that Duanmu Ren was much more interesting than Liu Zhijian. Thus, he explained patiently, “Your body gathers a dense, powerful aura.”
“Explaining the details would be rather troublesome.”
“You only need to know that only those possessing such an aura can seek immortality and pursue the Dao.”
“I have seen many people, yet extremely few possess this aura.”
“You are the second.”
Duanmu Ren lowered his head in thought, asking curiously, “Then who was the first?”
“An angler.”
Li Chengxuan briefly recounted Liu Zhijian's situation.
Duanmu Ren glanced at the nearby fishing rod and nodded in realization. A sudden thought struck him, and he asked hesitatingly, “Then he... where is he now?!”
“Haha.”
Li Chengxuan couldn't help laughing out loud. As expected of a county magistrate, a brilliant man accustomed to the sinister depths of human nature—he actually suspected that he had killed the man to refine pills! “Rest assured. He is safe and sound, his life in no danger. Having learned our sect's cultivation technique, he has gone down the mountain to gain experience.”
“Down the mountain...”
Duanmu Ren looked at the vast plains all around them, not quite believing it. He cautiously countered, “There are no mountains in this place.”
Li Chengxuan nodded and spoke frankly, “The sect is not here. To be precise, it is not in this world.”
“If you are willing, I can take you to see him.”
“Not in this world...”
Duanmu Ren's breath hitched. For the first time, he was shocked into speechlessness. Taking a deep breath to compose himself, he said slowly, “So... transmigrating to cultivate immortality? Just like what's written in web novels?”
Li Chengxuan had never read web novels, but he roughly understood what Duanmu Ren meant and nodded. “Pretty much.”
“So how about it? Are you willing to abandon this mortal wealth and power to seek immortality and pursue the Dao?”
Duanmu Ren spent a long moment mulling over this unexpectedly vast amount of information. Lowering his head in thought for a long while, he cautiously tested the waters, asking, “What if I say I am unwilling?”
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