Chapter 635: The Final Matters Of The Congyun Sea

Before his departure, Gao Yuan also handed over the task of "cleaning the identities of the cultivators from the ancient secret realm" to He Zhenghao.

Zhou Qing'ang once again produced a sum of hush money to show his sincerity.

Since they were old colleagues, He Zhenghao agreed without hesitation. Along the way, he also asked Zhou Qing'ang if he had any plans to leave Congyun Sea.

Zhou Qing'ang laughed heartily and said there was absolutely no such thing.

Hearing this, He Zhenghao immediately relaxed. Even Zhou Qing'ang, the most trusted man in the Secretary-Envoy's inner circle, had no intention of fleeing the coming disaster. That meant the descent of the Soul Arbiter of heaven and earth, whatever risk it carried, probably wouldn't be too severe.

Reassured in his own choice, he stopped dwelling on it. He simply talked his daughter into leaving, then turned to the matter of integrating the cultivators of the secret realm into the Alliance.

To him, this was essentially no different from his old days as guardian of Liuli Island, smuggling mortals from the Li World across.

He charged by the head, and the process went as smoothly as ever.

His nerve, too, far exceeded Gao Yuan's; he felt no fear whatsoever of the Immortal Alliance investigating him.

So the Medicine King Sect cultivators joined the Alliance and had their identities cleaned at a rapidly accelerating pace.

Batch after batch of sleeping cultivators underwent Bloodline Transference, joined the Myriad Immortals Alliance, and received the contribution points Li Fan had secretly transferred to them.

Even so, set against the hundred million contribution points Li Fan possessed, it amounted to no more than a drop in the bucket.

To transfer all his contribution points before the Crimson Flame Sea Scorching event, Li Fan worked two fronts at once. On one hand, he quietly bought up standard spirit stones from other cultivators.

On the other, he reached out to the Five Elders Council once more.

He again used Zhou Qing'ang as his intermediary. This time, the other side responded far more quickly than before.

Soon, Zhou Qing'ang met again with the Five Elders Council's representative.

The man's features were hidden beneath the usual black robes, but it was clear he remembered the details of their last transaction.

The first thing he asked was, "Have you gotten results on the matter from before?"

Zhou Qing'ang smiled slightly. "It seems this is truly important to you. All this time, and you still can't let it go."

The "matter from before" was, of course, the Five Elders Council's commission to "Zhou Qing'ang" to investigate the identity of the ancient cultivator unearthed from the ruins of the Purple Firmament Sect.

Li Fan had already gotten the full story from Jiao Xiuyuan, which made for the perfect bargaining chip in this transaction.

The Five Elders Council cultivator spoke frankly. "Both sides are in a ceasefire for now, but everyone knows peace won't last. No one can say when the fighting will start again. And even this peace isn't absolute. In some places, the Myriad Immortals Alliance and we are still at a standoff.

"As for the Alliance's Xuantian Spirit-Sealing Array, we've only found a way to counterbalance it so far. Dismantling its effect entirely will take more intelligence."

Zhou Qing'ang's eyes flickered, but he showed nothing outwardly, only nodding.

"Regarding the identity of that unearthed ancient cultivator, I already have clear results." A smile curled at the corner of his mouth. "What price is your Five Elders Council willing to pay this time?"

"You mean it?" The question seemed to catch the man off guard; he actually stood up abruptly, staring hard at Zhou Qing'ang.

Zhou Qing'ang nodded, a note of pride in the gesture.

"Excellent! Excellent!" the man repeated. "The methods of your Heaven-Toppling Society really are something else.

"Wait a moment. I'll report this to my superiors right away."

The black-robed cultivator turned away and fell silent.

Zhou Qing'ang studied him closely but couldn't detect how the man was reaching the Five Elders Council's official channels. He had to admit that a spy organization under the Five Elders Council was not to be underestimated.

Before long, the man turned back around.

This time his voice carried real confidence as he began negotiating terms.

"The last batch of Truth-Binding Fruits and Man's Dao Stardust were both extremely useful. We'll need more of each..."

After a round of haggling, they settled on a price both sides found satisfactory.

"We're in a hurry. The sooner this is done, the better." Zhou Qing'ang's words carried a deeper meaning.

The Five Elders Council cultivator stared at him a moment, then nodded to show he understood.

"Oh, one more thing."

Just before the contract was finalized, Zhou Qing'ang added, "I have some contribution points of inconvenient origin. I need them converted into standard spirit stones. Clean, traceable, with no connection to me. Can you help with that, as a favor?"

The man startled, thinking for a moment that Zhou Qing'ang was backing out. Once he understood, he laughed it off. "That's a small matter. No problem at all. How much do you need?"

"Not much. Just two or three hundred million." Zhou Qing'ang said it as if it were nothing.

The Five Elders Council cultivator froze solid.

"How... much?" For a moment, he wondered if he'd misheard.

Zhou Qing'ang repeated himself.

"This... Fellow Daoist, please wait. I need to consult my superiors again." He wiped cold sweat from his forehead, his voice trembling.

Zhou Qing'ang waved a hand, urging him to get on with it.

This consultation took even longer than the first. By the end, the black-robed cultivator looked ready to collapse from exhaustion.

"Ah... the higher-ups have agreed to your request. However..." He hesitated. "The list of resources we discussed earlier may need some adjustment."

"Mm?" Zhou Qing'ang's face darkened, and he turned to leave.

"Wait! Wait!" The man rushed forward and grabbed his sleeve.

"Everything else is negotiable! But the number of standard spirit stones you're asking for is simply too vast, Fellow Daoist. And doing it without drawing the Myriad Immortals Alliance's attention is nearly impossible!"

"If it weren't difficult, why would I come to you? I'd handle it myself." Zhou Qing'ang gave a cold snort.

The man nodded repeatedly, not daring to argue further.

They negotiated on, and at last reached an agreement.

A streak of golden light flew into Zhou Qing'ang's body, and the black-robed spy slowly dissolved into that same golden light, vanishing completely.

Yet there was not a trace of fear or panic on his face.

He simply reminded Zhou Qing'ang of the time and place for their next meeting before he disappeared.

Once the spy had vanished entirely, Zhou Qing'ang surveyed the area for a moment, then shook his head slightly.

Using a person as the contract itself, making them feel no fear even in death… Truly sinister arts.

He erased every trace of his presence and slipped away unnoticed.

Ten days later, Zhou Qing'ang met another black-robed spy. The man's aura felt strikingly similar, though he was clearly someone else entirely.

As before, the spy handed over a Void Matrix Stone containing everything listed in their agreement.

All the required supplies were there.

After a brief inspection, Li Fan revealed the identity of the unearthed ancient cultivator.

"A Dharma King of the Xuantian Sect?"

The other party was clearly shocked to learn this.

But they seemed to have anticipated the possibility, and quickly recovered their composure.