"Hmm?" Li Fan turned to look at Manager Zhao.
Facing a legendary Immortal Master, Manager Zhao couldn't help but feel somewhat nervous.
He considered his words before cautiously asking, "Immortal Master, you seem to have a rather good relationship with Immortal Master He?"
Li Fan was about to respond when he suddenly remembered something. He pondered for a moment before saying, "Fellow Daoist He and I have been acquainted for over forty years. He showed me much kindness. I was away on business and had no idea he had passed away. Seeing Fellow Daoist He's memorial tablet today came as a tremendous shock.
"I could only offer him a stick of incense..." At this point, Li Fan shook his head and sighed.
Manager Zhao also sighed with emotion. "It has been twenty-six days since I learned of Immortal Master He's passing and set up this memorial. You are the first, and only, person to come pay your respects.
"Dozens of Immortal Masters from the island have come, but they were either searching for his belongings or vying for the position of Guardian Immortal Master of Liuli Island.
"Now that the new Guardian Immortal Master has taken office, I fear I won't be able to keep my position as manager either.
"All this time, I’ve been unable to fulfill the task Immortal Master He entrusted to me before his death, and it weighs heavily on my conscience.
"Fortunately, you’ve come."
Manager Zhao looked as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
"Fellow Daoist He's task?" Li Fan was taken aback.
"Yes. Before his passing, Immortal Master He gave me an item and instructed me that if anything were to happen to him, I should give it to the first fellow cultivator who came to pay their respects after his death," Manager Zhao replied truthfully.
"Why would he give it to a mortal like you?" Li Fan asked, surprised by Manager Zhao's answer.
"To be honest with you, Immortal Master, in my younger years, I happened to save Immortal Master He's life. He originally wanted to take me on as a disciple, but I was afraid of the hardships of cultivation and only asked for a job.
"Over the years, I've served by Immortal Master He's side. That's why he trusted me greatly." Manager Zhao spoke with a mix of pride and sorrow on his face.
Li Fan vaguely remembered hearing Manager Zhao mention this in his previous life, and nodded.
"Besides, it’s quite safe in my possession. After all, who would expect an Immortal Master's belongings to be entrusted to a mortal? The Immortal Masters who have come and gone these past days never even glanced my way..." Manager Zhao caught himself mid-sentence, realizing he might have spoken out of turn, and quickly stopped.
He hurriedly turned around and retrieved a small square box from beneath He Zhenghao's memorial tablet.
The box seemed to have the effect of blocking divine sense. Even when standing right in front of it earlier, Li Fan hadn't detected its presence.
"The item inside this box belonged to Immortal Master He. As for what use it has, that is beyond my knowledge." Manager Zhao handed over the box, his voice tinged with anxiety.
Li Fan opened the box to find a spirit talisman engraved with the word "Myriad."
It looked somewhat familiar.
Wasn't this...
Li Fan took out an identical one from his storage ring, though the aura emanating from the talisman was different.
It was none other than the passage talisman that non-members of the alliance needed to carry when entering or leaving Myriad Immortals Island for the first time.
Li Fan still remembered when He Zhenghao had explained it to him. This talisman was worth 100 contribution points.
But what use could this thing possibly have?
Li Fan was momentarily puzzled. Nevertheless, he stored the wooden box away.
Looking at the nervous and uneasy Manager Zhao, Li Fan thought for a moment and said, "I'll speak to the new guardian on your behalf. But I can't guarantee you'll keep your position."
Manager Zhao was overjoyed to hear this and immediately dropped to his knees, kowtowing repeatedly.
Li Fan waved his hand dismissively and flew off.
Manager Zhao remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to move.
After a long while, he slowly rose to his feet.
Looking at He Zhenghao's spirit tablet, he said quietly, "I’ve finally managed to pass off that hot potato. Watching all those Immortal Masters flying overhead, I couldn't even sleep properly these past few days.
"That man who just left didn't lie, and he was the first to come pay his respects to you. Passing your belongings to him aligns with your final wishes.
"It also resolves my unease.”
After a long silence, Manager Zhao murmured again, "Cultivation... in the end, you died earlier than me. No one even collected your bones.
"What's the point of it all?"
***
Li Fan entered the island protection array, where he met the unfamiliar cultivator once again.
The newly appointed guardian of Liuli Island cultivator was named Ning Wenxing, who had taken up the position after some political maneuvering.
Li Fan didn't mention Manager Zhao's relationship with He Zhenghao, simply stating that Manager Zhao was an old acquaintance and asking if he could retain his position as Liuli Island's manager of personnel.
After some thought, Ning Wenxing nodded in agreement. It was just a mortal position after all.
Li Fan expressed his thanks.
After exchanging communication talismans, Li Fan hurried back to the Tianxuan Mirror.
After some searching, Li Fan finally figured out the purpose of that passage talisman.
Besides serving as a pass to enter Myriad Immortals Island, the talisman could also be used as an item retrieval token.
The items weren't stored in the Tianxuan Mirror, but in a place called the Myriad Vault.
The items stored there typically weren’t particularly valuable. They were inheritances that cultivators left for their mortal relatives, just in case something happened.
Only after the cultivator's death could their mortal relatives retrieve the inheritance using the spirit talisman.
Thus, the Myriad Vault wasn't located on Myriad Immortals Island, but on Youlan Island in the northern region of the Congyun Sea.
Having figured out the talisman's use, Li Fan didn't delay. He made a trip to Youlan Island and finally retrieved He Zhenghao's belongings.
It was a jade slip.
At first, Li Fan thought it might be some kind of technique.
But after reading through the jade slip's contents, he understood—the jade slip contained an unfinished work by He Zhenghao: Detailed Explanations of the Hundred Veins Array Diagram .
The book meticulously recorded He Zhenghao's various unique insights into arrays over the years, along with some innovative ideas.
Accompanying the book was a message from He Zhenghao.
He said that in all his life, the only thing he had ever truly loved was the path of arrays.
For decades, he had devoted himself to it wholeheartedly, advancing step by step and enduring countless setbacks, before finally managing to complete just over half of the Detailed Explanations of the Hundred Veins Array Diagram .
This trip to explore the cave dwelling wasn’t especially dangerous, but caution was always better than regret.
If something unexpected happened, death itself was a small matter. What he truly feared was that his life's work, Detailed Explanations of the Hundred Veins Array Diagram , would be forgotten and buried forever.
So he had made arrangements, hoping that the cultivator who acquired the talisman could deliver Detailed Explanations of the Hundred Veins Array Diagram to any array master on Myriad Immortals Island, in hopes that they could complete it.
Finally, He Zhenghao couldn't help but vent some frustrations.
He spoke of the various benefits of the Mountain-Sitting Art he cultivated.
A pity it was just too difficult to practice.
If it weren't for that, he wouldn't have needed to risk his life exploring that ancient cave dwelling just to change his cultivation technique.
The Mountain-Sitting Art? Fellow Daoist He, you've truly presented me with a difficult problem.
As Li Fan stored the jade slip away, a strange, unreadable light flashed in his eyes.