The instant that thought appeared in Chen Yan’s mind, his heart seemed to skip half a beat.
If he wasn’t currently within the Chenping Continent, then…
“Old man.”
Chen Yan continued toward the man standing beside the ridge between the fields. The man was slightly hunched but looked sturdy, his skin darkened from years of farming, and Chen Yan asked,
“What exactly is this place?”
The old man blinked for a moment at the question, then answered as if it were obvious:
“Li Family Village.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Chen Yan shook his head.
The old man wore an expression of sudden realization.
“Yongzhang Commandery, Immortal Master, this is Nanfeng Yongzhang Commandery!”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Chen Yan still shook his head.
“What I want to know is what this world is called by people.”
“This world…”
After thinking for a moment, the old man—who had been resting by the ridge—offered a slightly apologetic smile. The wrinkles on his face, carved like knife marks, raised as he smiled.
“Immortal Master, this old fool doesn’t quite understand what you’re saying.”
“That’s all right, thank you for your trouble.”
Realizing he probably wouldn’t be able to get more information about this world from the old man, Chen Yan said as much.
“By the way, old man, when is the next time Qingxuan Immortal Sect opens its mountain gate to recruit disciples…”
Chen Yan continued, asking the question.
“Let me think carefully.”
Saying that, the old man wearing a wide straw hat lifted his pipe to his mouth and puffed a few times.
“The last time Qingxuan Immortal Sect recruited disciples, Er Niu from the village was chosen. He was about thirteen then, so if I figure carefully…”
As he spoke, the old man’s face lit up with recognition.
“Eight months, at most no more than eight months. Qingxuan Immortal Sect will open its mountain gate to recruit disciples!”
“I understand.”
Chen Yan replied, then raised his right hand and activated the Great Derivation Art. With a slight twist of his fingertips, several small silver coins appeared in his palm.
He glanced up briefly to observe the old man’s reaction. When the old man saw the silver, his jaundiced eyes immediately brightened, confirming that silver still served as hard currency in this mortal world.
“This is a token of thanks.”
Saying that, Chen Yan extended the few silver coins toward the old man on the ridge.
“Immortal Master, how can I accept this!”
The smile on the old man’s face grew even broader than before, deepening the grooves in his skin.
His calloused hands reached out, hesitated as if embarrassed, then finally took Chen Yan’s small coins carefully.
“Farewell.”
Chen Yan said.
“Please walk slowly, Immortal Master!”
The old man bowed respectfully to Chen Yan and watched his back until he was out of sight.
Gold and silver meant nothing to Chen Yan, who had mastered the Great Derivation Art. To him, they were no different from dung.
Whether it was a few silver coins or several gold ingots, Chen Yan saw no difference.
But sudden wealth could be a burden for ordinary people.
A few silver coins were the best reward.
...
As Chen Yan walked along the country road, he sorted through all the information he had gathered in his mind.
Twelve thousand li to the north of Nanfeng stood a cultivation sect called Qingxuan Immortal Sect. Every five years they opened their mountain gate to recruit disciples, and their recruitment range covered all mortal youths within a five hundred thousand li radius of Qingxuan Immortal Sect.
Qingxuan Immortal Sect was very likely the only cultivation sect within that five hundred thousand li radius.
Even the old man in the border village of Nanfeng knew of Qingxuan Immortal Sect, and even understood some of the customs and etiquette toward cultivators.
Yet scanning across the whole of Nanfeng, Chen Yan’s spiritual sense detected no cultivators at all, not even a single rogue cultivator.
It was highly probable that this was all Qingxuan Immortal Sect’s doing.
The most important task now was to gather enough intelligence.
Qingxuan Immortal Sect would be Chen Yan’s first stop in this world.
However, he didn’t want to visit Qingxuan Immortal Sect openly as a cultivator. Given that there might be no cultivators at all within the five hundred thousand li range of Qingxuan Immortal Sect, recklessly approaching them as a cultivator could invite unnecessary trouble.
Chen Yan’s knowledge of this world was nearly zero.
Although his own cultivation level was at the peak of Unity, no one knew how much the upper three realms in this world were respected compared with the Chenping Continent.
Thinking this through, Chen Yan activated the Great Derivation Art again while walking on the empty road, using it to transform his plain white daoist robe into an ordinary plain white garment.
Eight months from now, Qingxuan Immortal Sect would open its mountain gate to recruit disciples.
Chen Yan’s current appearance was only twenty years old. He planned to use the Hidden Immortal Art to conceal his cultivation level, then enter Qingxuan Immortal Sect as a mortal to gather as much intelligence as possible.
Of course, even if he could hide his cultivation, those at the Ascending to Immortality realm and above still seemed capable of detecting the cause and effect tied to him.
Emptiness Annihilation Art.
Although Emptiness Annihilation Art couldn’t completely strip away the cause and effect attached to Chen Yan, he could leverage his understanding of the Hidden Immortal Art to make the cause and effect he bore undetectable as connected to him when scrutinized.
In other words, Chen Yan could make himself appear to be an ordinary mortal.
That said, Chen Yan did not plan to head straight to Qingxuan Immortal Sect. He wanted to first go to the capital city of the Nanfeng secular dynasty to collect scattered intelligence and learn the common knowledge of this world.
More importantly, Chen Yan needed to create a fully plausible identity for himself so he wouldn’t arouse suspicion and could smoothly enter Qingxuan Immortal Sect.
Chen Yan did not continue to fly through the sky. Instead, he walked along the dirt road toward the nearest town to Li Family Village, as sensed by his spiritual perception.
He planned to buy a horse first, then travel to the Nanfeng capital.
Chen Yan deliberately slowed his pace. His fair skin and slender frame made him look like an ordinary scholar.
Only as the sun tilted westward did he finally step into the small town called Cangru.
The town was small, and most streets were dirt roads. He followed the signs of taverns and headed toward the town’s inn.