The Happy Farmer Wanderer-Chapter 682: Return to the Underground Palace_1
Hong Fang Zhenren looked at Li Qing with admiration and said appreciatively, "To uphold your previous promise after knowing how precious the Demon Spirit Elixir is, I truly admire you. However, I cannot let you suffer such a loss without your knowledge, so I must compensate you further."
"Among the many talismans, the Thunder Talisman is the best, the most precious of all. But the Thunder Talisman that I possess is nothing compared to your Thunder Method. It seems that you have a particular fondness for the Invisibility Talisman, so, I’ll compensate you with ten more Invisibility Talismans."
"However, I no longer have any Invisibility Talismans on hand, so it will take some time for me to make them."
Upon hearing this, Li Qing immediately broke into a smile.
Such good fortune naturally left no room for refusal.
As for Zi Ling, who was glaring fiercely, he completely pretended not to see and accepted the offer with great enthusiasm.
Although the Demon Spirit Elixir was very precious, after all, it was an elixir capable of forcibly enhancing one’s strength.
But with these thirty talismans, plus Zi Ling’s three little kisses, Li Qing felt it wasn’t too bad of a deal.
After accepting the talismans from Hong Fang Zhenren and learning how to use them, Li Qing asked curiously, "Daoist Long, is it possible to consume the Demon Spirit Elixir without any restrictions?"
Hong Fang Zhenren laughed, "That would naturally be impossible. Every elixir has its limitations, especially those that can forcibly enhance strength. There are two very important conditions that you must remember, otherwise, it could lead to disaster."
"The one who takes this elixir must be at least at the Qi Cultivation Stage, and can only consume one pill per month. At the Foundation Establishment Stage, one can take two pills per month, with an interval of ten days in between. Moreover, the upper limit of the strength enhancement from this elixir is the Golden Core Stage, meaning once one reaches beyond the Golden Core Stage, the elixir becomes useless."
"To be precise, this elixir is prepared for the Qi Cultivation Stage and the Foundation Establishment Stage. Within these two realms, this elixir can be called the elixir of the overlord, and a single bottle can normally realize a breakthrough."
Li Qing nodded secretly, glad he had asked the question; otherwise, it could have been really bad.
He had just been planning to share this elixir with the women of his family so that everyone could smoothly enter into cultivation.
"By the way, the limit for each person is one bottle. If you have more of this elixir, you should not consume more. Although taking more wouldn’t be a big problem and would still increase some strength to a certain degree, it would truly be too wasteful," Hong Fang Zhenren added a further reminder.
Li Qing nodded, noting down all these points.
So it seems, of the five bottles of Demon Spirit Elixir, he could actually make full use of only one.
Li Qing was going to show the remaining elixirs to Hong Fang Zhenren for advice, but after a moment’s thought, he decided against it.
An innocent man holds no blame, but possessing a jade brings guilt; sometimes having too many good things on one’s person is not necessarily a good thing.
Interest can sometimes turn a kind-faced and genteel elder into a bandit.
Although such suspicions might seem petty-minded, they weren’t redundant.
As for the other two types of elixirs, he would wait for that unreliable master’s call.
Compared to others, Li Qing actually preferred to trust his unreliable sect more.
Hong Fang Zhenren handed the bottle of elixir to Zi Ling, "Zi Ling, since Daoist Li has generously gifted it, you take it. Later, your master will teach you how to fully refine and assimilate this elixir, striving to step over the Foundation Establishment soon and become a true cultivator."
Zi Ling, still full of resentment, glanced sideways at Li Qing and accepted the elixir.
She really turned out to be a giveaway!
Seeing this, Li Qing couldn’t help but grin.
You little thing, those two kisses, you’re not getting away from them.
"Daoist Long, you just said ’to become a true cultivator’? Zi Ling is already at the Qi Cultivation Mid-stage, doesn’t that count?" Li Qing asked.
Hong Fang Zhenren nodded indifferently, "Without entering Foundation Establishment, one cannot be considered a true cultivator. Body Refinement, Qi Cultivation are merely stages between a mortal flesh and a true cultivator."
Li Qing instantly felt depressed.
Well, he had always thought that he was already a cultivator.
Only now did he realize that he was merely in a transition phase, which was a bit embarrassing.
"Everyone is almost ready; let’s head out as soon as possible, it’s getting late," said Hong Fang Zhenren. "If Daoist friend doesn’t have any other plans, why not ride in my car?"
"No, no," Li Qing shook his head.
He basically had nothing, he didn’t even have a driver’s license, so he was just a nominal local head without any real plans.
The group left the hotel and headed straight for North Fifty Stores Village, with Shisan driving.
Compared to the last time, this place had changed drastically.
There were countless tents across the mountains and rivers, with constant traffic coming and going.
There were also people in charge of maintaining order, guarding the perimeter with guns loaded.
Just as Li Qing and his companions arrived, they were stopped.
"What are you here for?" The on-duty police officer eyed the four warily and demanded sternly.
Li Qing took out his credentials and handed them over.
"The Ninth Bureau, what kind of unit is this? I have never heard of it," said the confused officer.
Li Qing had no choice but to take out his cell phone and call Wang Baichuan to ask him to let them in.
Without any surprises, Wang Baichuan should be here by now.
Holding the credentials in hand, yet being unrecognized was quite embarrassing.
While the Ninth Bureau was secretive, they didn’t do a good job in this regard; they should have made it known that this was a high-security unit.
People might not need to know the specifics of what the Ninth Bureau does, but at the very least, they should recognize them as one of their own.
A few police officers took turns examining Li Qing’s credentials when suddenly one of them recognized it.
"It’s a secret unit, let them in!" he said sternly and saluted Li Qing and the others.
Li Qing hadn’t learned how to return this gesture, so he just nodded his head in acknowledgment.
The group smoothly entered the outer perimeter of the cordon.
In the distance, Li Qing could still hear the officers discussing what the Ninth Bureau actually was.
"Brother Li, this Ninth Bureau, why have I never heard of it?"
"Kid, your level isn’t high enough. Work harder and you’ll know in the future. It’s a high-security unit; everyone inside is capable."
"How capable?"
"You know about the recent events here, right? They sound mystical. Unless I’m mistaken, they’re probably here to handle this. The Ninth Bureau... they exclusively manage these mysterious events. Now you understand, right? Don’t go snooping around unnecessarily; just focus on your own duties."
"So, we actually have such a unit? Are the people inside like those from S.H.I.E.L.D. that you hear about in legends?"
"S.H.I.E.L.D? That’s nothing. Our ancestral heritage can’t be compared with some mutations, can it? Just one person from the Ninth Bureau, I reckon, could wipe out that so-called damn Shield Agency."
