Unfortunately, Li Fan could only dream about it for now. The Profound Mirror was the treasured foundation of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, not something a mere qi refining stage cultivator like Li Fan could covet. It was more practical to take on tasks and earn contribution points.
Suppressing his greed, Li Fan opened the contribution points task list. He filtered out tasks suitable for early qi refining stage cultivators with no danger involved. At a glance, they were all menial tasks, errands, with rewards mostly offering only one or two contribution points. Moreover, these tasks disappeared quickly, indicating that Li Fan wasn't the only one eyeing them.
After removing the low-danger filter, many new tasks appeared. These tasks often required traveling to various islands in the Congyun Sea to handle certain matters. However, since the tasks involved dealing with mortals, they didn't require combat and weren't too dangerous. The rewards for these tasks were around five to ten points.
Using the teleportation array on Ten Thousand Immortals Island also required contribution points, one point per use. After deducting the two points needed for a round trip, not much reward was left from a task. Earning enough contribution points to stay in the Profound Mirror and cultivate occasionally was not easy. Although earning contribution points would become easier as one's strength increased, the contribution points required to activate the auxiliary cultivation mode would also increase with higher cultivation levels. Thus, one still had to run around for contribution points.
Moreover, exchanging for cultivation techniques also required a large amount of contribution points. Li Fan suddenly understood why the Profound Mirror offered this auxiliary cultivation function. Any cultivator who experienced that super cultivation mode would find it hard to resist trying it again. Additionally, given the same amount of time, accumulating contribution points and then activating auxiliary cultivation was overall faster than cultivating alone.
Cultivation techniques, resources, auxiliary cultivation... The Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals truly had cultivators tightly in their grasp. Li Fan thought as he searched for a suitable task. Earning contribution points was secondary; Li Fan's main goal was to find an opportunity to go out and retrieve the Taiyan Boat hidden in [Return to Origin]. The Taiyan Boat contained a considerable amount of gold, silver, and jewels, as well as a rare artifact: the Fragmented Stele. It should be able to exchange for a significant amount of contribution points.
As for why not release it directly on Ten Thousand Immortals Island... He wasn't foolish. Doing so would be like announcing to others that he had a rare treasure.
Li Fan believed that every inch of Ten Thousand Immortals Island was under the surveillance of the Profound Mirror. If he attracted its attention, it would be troublesome. Although [Return to Origin] could turn reality into illusion, it required his conscious control.
What if a powerful being immobilized his divine sense, rendering him unable to think? He would be powerless and at the mercy of others. Even with the slightest possibility, Li Fan wouldn't take the risk.
Moreover, judging by the power displayed by the Profound Mirror, there were certainly experts of that level in the current immortal cultivation world. In any case, caution was Li Fan's first principle in action.
...
At this moment, Li Fan suddenly saw a few familiar words among the tasks.
"Glass Island."
He was delighted and quickly accepted the task. Then he carefully reviewed the task details. It turned out that within the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, the Glass Pearls from Glass Island had been used up.
According to regulations, the next submission was due in half a year. The pill room urgently needed them, so they issued a commission for someone to go to Glass Island and retrieve at least twenty Glass Pearls. The reward would be determined based on the quality and quantity of the Glass Pearls.
Li Fan had heard of these Glass Pearls since arriving at Glass Island, occasionally found inside Glass Fish. However, he didn't know which kind of pill they were used for. Nonetheless, this task was perfectly suitable for him. After spending 5 contribution points to buy a small storage ring as a cover, Li Fan didn't delay and left the Profound Mirror, heading straight for the Transmission Square.
Following the original route, Li Fan arrived at the statue he had seen before. Li Fan now knew that each of the ten thousand statues on the Transmission Square corresponded to an island in the Congyun Sea. The teleportation arrays were connected to the island protection arrays of each island. The statue representing Glass Island was a leaping Glass Fish. After deducting one contribution point, Li Fan activated the teleportation array. This time, the dizziness was indeed much weaker, and Li Fan quickly recovered.
"Which fellow Daoist..." He Zhenghao's voice faintly came through. "Oh? It's you?" Seeing who it was, He Zhenghao was a bit puzzled. Li Fan explained the task he had received and his purpose of retrieving Glass Pearls. "Glass Pearls, huh? I'll have someone take you to get them." He Zhenghao nodded, not minding. "You're adapting quickly, eager to take on tasks already."
"Ah, necessity of life," Li Fan feigned a helpless expression. He Zhenghao immediately showed an understanding look. Following a servant, Li Fan arrived at the Glass Residence and met Treasurer Qian, who respectfully bowed to the ground, though it was unclear if he recognized Li Fan. After all, Li Fan had previously been in charge of a fleet from Glass Island and had met Treasurer Qian several times. However, even if recognized, Treasurer Qian would likely pretend not to. In their eyes, immortal masters were high and mighty, not to be offended.
Upon receiving the order, Treasurer Qian quickly brought out all the Glass Pearls in the island's inventory. "Reporting to the immortal master, there are currently only twenty-three Glass Pearls left on the island. This is all we have been able to collect recently. If the immortal master needs more, it might take a year or so," Treasurer Qian said with some trepidation.
"Oh? What happened?" Li Fan asked. "Not daring to deceive the immortal master, according to reports from the island's fishing fleet, it seems that due to overfishing, encounters with Glass Fish schools have become increasingly rare. It might take some time for them to naturally recover before they can be caught again," Treasurer Qian explained. Li Fan nodded at this, recalling what Zhang Haobo had told him.
"I understand," Li Fan said, storing the Glass Pearls in the storage ring. Instead of returning immediately, he first went to the Listening Pavilion. Entering his home, Li Fan waited for a moment, released his divine sense to ensure He Zhenghao wasn't secretly observing, and then released the Taiyan Boat. He quickly transferred the gold, silver, and the Fragmented Stele from the Taiyan Boat. After completing everything, Li Fan returned to the protection array.
Just as he was about to return to Ten Thousand Immortals Island, he heard a voice from behind. "Please wait, young friend!" Li Fan's hair stood on end, and he turned around, looking at He Zhenghao with a wary gaze.
(End of Chapter)