Chapter 290 – Nanli City's District Seventeen, Great Thousand Mountains Lurking

“Xiao Lu, what should we do now?”

“Nothing much. Let’s think of another approach later.”

“Well… alright then.”

Due to Mu Xiaoye’s unexpected ‘matchmaking’, the Third Team’s Scripture Master, Jie Mingjing, had unexpectedly departed.

For Liu Shaohai, who had pursued Jie Mingjing for ten years and even gave up other opportunities for promotion to Scripture Master just to remain in the Li Province Shanhai Bureau, there was no reason not to follow when his goddess had left.

Thus, both the captain and vice-captain who could make decisions in the Third Team had temporarily gone AWOL.

This completely disrupted Lu Chen’s original plans.

Fortunately, the ‘joint operation’ didn’t necessarily require the Third Team.

After brief consideration, Lu Chen found a new partner.

The Ninth Team of the Li Province Shanhai Bureau.

“Brother Lu, you came to us just for this matter? Easy, easy. Take a look at which mission you want to take on, we’ll fully cooperate with you here.”

“As for the mission rewards, we can split them fifty-fifty.”

In the Ninth Team’s lounge, Jiang Yuanshan laughed heartily and patted his chest.

He indicated complete acceptance of Lu Chen’s proposal.

This wasn’t just because Jiang Yuanshan thought highly of Lu Chen, but also because he believed this matter would benefit their Ninth Team as well.

It’s worth noting that one of the assessment criteria for Scripture Masters in the Shanhai Bureau was the number of A-rank missions completed every three years.

Generally speaking, completing five A-rank missions would meet the minimum requirement.

This requirement could be met by completing missions independently with one’s own team, or through cooperation with other teams.

Therefore, cooperating with Lu Chen wouldn’t cause them any losses.

Lu Chen wasn’t surprised by Jiang Yuanshan’s immediate acceptance of his proposal.

After all, he had carefully studied the Shanhai Bureau’s rules and regulations before coming.

Overall, the Shanhai Bureau was quite humane.

They generally didn’t force Agents or Scripture Masters within the bureau to complete specific missions.

But just as there were assessments for Scripture Masters, Mountain and Sea Walkers, and even the Grand Scripture Masters above Scripture Masters, also had assessment requirements.

Therefore, his proposal offered nothing but benefits to other teams.

After all, a helper at the Golden Core Stage wasn’t easy to come by.

As for which mission to undertake jointly, Lu Chen had already decided before coming.

He took out his tablet and handed it to Jiang Yuanshan.

Taking the tablet, Jiang Yuanshan immediately saw the displayed mission.

[Mission Content: Investigate the source of ‘Secret Drug: Illusion’ in District 17 of Nanli City and destroy it if possible]

[Mission Difficulty: A]

[Description: Over the past three years, a special potion called ‘Secret Drug: Illusion’ has appeared in District 17 of Nanli City. According to investigations by our bureau’s Agents, while this substance can suppress the beastly nature of ‘Mutants,’

it also gradually increases the infection level of their Bloodline, further raising their likelihood of going berserk.

Over three years, there have been over a hundred incidents of Mutants suddenly attacking people, resulting in casualties among numerous citizens.

Our bureau has sent multiple Agents to investigate, including one Golden Core Stage Agent.]Yet without exception, all of these individuals ultimately vanished in the western district. It is therefore speculated that there is at least one enemy at the Golden Core Stage level behind this. Please proceed with caution.]

[Task Reward: A-rank mission evaluation, 1 million total contribution points]

Seeing the mission Lu Chen had chosen, Jiang Yuanshan’s expression turned somewhat peculiar.

“Brother Lu, I take it you’re not very familiar with the situation in District 17?”

Lu Chen shook his head and said, “I only have a general understanding. I know that District 17 is a designated area in Nanli City specifically established for non-human races and individuals affected by bloodline contamination. But I’m not well-versed in the specifics. Is there something inappropriate about this mission?”

“It’s not that there’s anything inappropriate, it’s just that cultivators in our bureau generally dislike missions that require venturing into non-human districts.”

“After all, since the establishment of the Immortal Alliance, while many non-human races have integrated into the alliance, not all are willing to accept this arrangement. The situation is quite complex and cannot be explained in just a few words.”

“Besides non-human races, District 17 also houses some ‘Black Mist infected individuals.’”

“The so-called Black Mist is a phenomenon unique to our Li Province, a byproduct of the Forbidden Ground: Great Dark Heavens.”

“Although the Vermillion Bird Great Wall stands as a barrier between the Forbidden Ground: Great Dark Heavens and our Nanli City, and is garrisoned year-round by a hundred thousand Vermillion Bird Army troops,”

“the protective formation of the Vermillion Bird Great Wall cannot be maintained indefinitely. Occasionally, some city residents are infected by diluted Black Mist.”

“Those with mild symptoms require only simple treatment.”

“But for those severely affected, with Black Mist penetrating their souls, even Nascent Soul Stage cultivators are powerless to help. Only a few Transformation Soul Stage cultivators possessing special Great Divine Powers have the ability to eradicate the Black Mist.”

“However, Transformation Soul Stage cultivators cannot dedicate their efforts to this matter. Compounding the issue, the Black Mist is highly contagious.”

“Thus, arranging residential areas for these Black Mist infected individuals and determining who should care for them have become persistent headaches for Nanli City.”

“Fortunately, the non-human races living in the Forbidden Ground: Great Dark Heavens seem to possess a natural strong immunity to the Black Mist. Therefore, Nanli City has delegated this part of the work to them.”

“Over time, District 17 has become a gathering point for non-human races and infected individuals in Nanli City.”

“And because most cultivators are reluctant to take up posts in this area, the entire District 17 remains relatively isolated. They only request assistance from our Shanhai Bureau when situations arise that they cannot control.”

“The mission you’re looking at is exactly such a case.”

“So, Brother Lu, are you really sure about choosing this mission? This mission… is a bit troublesome.”

In response, Lu Chen calmly said, “It’s alright, Uncle Yuanshan. This one will do.”

“Alright then, I’ll inform the lads in the team and notify you once everything is prepared.”

“Okay.”

After Lu Chen left, Jiang Yuanshan pulled up the mission details regarding ‘District 17’ himself, his brow furrowed tightly.

He had a feeling that Lu Chen’s choice of this mission wasn’t solely about making a name for himself and the 11th Brigade. There was most likely some other consideration behind it.

But as for what exactly that was, Jiang Yuanshan couldn’t guess.

After all, he would never dream that one of Lu Chen’s purposes in going to District 17 was precisely for those unfortunate individuals infected by the ‘Black Mist.’Although Lu Chen had never met those people nor visited the Forbidden Land Great Dark Heaven, he had roughly deduced the true nature of the so-called “black mist” through various channels and his own experiences in the game.

If his speculations were correct, this black mist should be identical to what he encountered in the Ancient Sword Tomb and Sword Formation Ruins instances. The reason Lu Chen had been able to penetrate the black mist surrounding the Sword Pavilion Ruins and enter the subsequent special instance—Sword Formation Ruins—was because he had not only achieved a breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment Stage at that time, but also awakened the special talent Fairy Lotus Womb, enabling him to convert the Ancient Fiend Power within the black mist. This granted him immunity to the black mist’s effects.

However, all of this had occurred within the game. Lu Chen’s purpose in seeking out those infected by the black mist was simple: he wanted to see if he could use the Ancient Fiend Power within them to activate his Nine Realms Token. Although he had yet to find an effective method to activate the token, after numerous attempts, he had formed a hypothesis.

The Ancient Fiend Power from instances could not be brought out, and Lu Chen sensed that the Ancient Fiend Power inside instances seemed fundamentally different from that outside. As a product of the Ancient Fiend World, the Nine Realms Token likely required sufficient Ancient Fiend Power to activate. If his theory held, this trip to District 17 might fulfill the conditions to activate the token, allowing him to enter the Ancient Fiend World through a Heretical Avatar.

As for using cooperation as a pretext to elevate the reputation of the Eleventh Brigade? That was merely incidental. Gaining legitimate access to District 17 was Lu Chen’s true objective.

Nanli City, District 17.

As an area shared by otherworldly races and the infected, District 17 exuded a noticeably oppressive atmosphere. Here, one could frequently encounter bizarre-looking otherworldly beings and infected individuals with “black crystals” on their faces. These black crystals on the infected were referred to as “Blackstones.” Most infected had only small patches of Blackstones, while a minority suffered from severe coverage—completely enveloping a limb. These severe cases were deemed incurable, as the physical manifestation of Blackstones was superficial; the true contamination lay in their Divine Souls. Since the Divine Soul affected the entire being, ordinary people dared not intervene lightly.

Otherworldly races, the infected, and regular cultivators…

Though District 17 appeared stable on the surface, it was divided into several distinct zones:

1. The gathering area for otherworldly races, mostly tribes from the Forbidden Land Great Dark Heaven who had sworn allegiance to the Immortal Alliance.

2. The infected gathering area, a relatively bustling district inhabited by a large number of the infected.

3. The cultivator garrison zone, which served as both the core of District 17 and the headquarters managing the entire district.

At that moment, in an underground space within the infected gathering area, over a hundred severely infected individuals had gathered inexplicably, continuously kneeling in worship toward a masked cultivator in Daoist robes standing in the distance.Their expressions were filled with utmost piety, their eyes carrying a madness born of despair clinging to the last shred of hope.

After kneeling in worship for an unknown length of time, the masked Cultivator seated at the head gestured with a wave.

Seeing this signal, the foreign girls beside the masked Cultivator immediately stepped forward, holding small vials of liquid, and approached the severely infected individuals.

Gazing at the small vials in the foreign girls’ hands, the expressions of the severely infected grew even more frenzied.

They took the vials handed to them and, without hesitation, opened them.

A thick, foul stench immediately emanated from the bottles.

The odor was akin to the stench of a corpse that had rotted for a long time.

An ordinary person would feel nauseated after just one whiff.

Yet, these severely infected individuals not only showed no resistance to the smell but instead wore expressions of intoxication.

As if it were not a foul odor at all, but some kind of enchanting fragrance.

After a moment of rapture, the first severely infected person to receive a vial promptly drank the ‘Holy Water’ inside in one gulp.

The black, viscous liquid flowed from the infected person’s mouth directly into their body.

Strangely, after drinking the Holy Water, the highly ‘Blackstone’-covered right hand of the severely infected person visibly receded significantly.

Similar situations occurred with the others as well.

A short while later, everyone present once again knelt in worship toward the direction of the masked Cultivator—or more precisely, toward the nine-headed Dragon statue behind the masked Cultivator.

Like the most devout believers.

This eerie ritual continued for about another hour before the masked Cultivator allowed them to leave.

After everyone had departed, a masked woman emerged from the shadows nearby.

The woman looked at the masked man seated beneath the nine-headed Dragon statue and said in a mocking tone, “Zhen Hu, you previously killed a Golden Core Stage Agent of the Lizhou Shanhai Bureau, and Nanli City is the Lizhou Shanhai Bureau HQ. Aren’t you afraid they’ll come for you?”

“You should know that even without the Grand Scripture Master, if just a few Scripture Masters are dispatched, you’d be absolutely doomed.”

Hearing this, the man named Zhen Hu removed his hood, revealing his bizarre, one-eyed tiger head.

He looked calmly at the masked woman and said, “The Grand Scripture Master won’t come to District 17. This was agreed upon by the Immortal Alliance and the Mahakala foreigners.”

“If this agreement is easily broken, it won’t be so simple for the Immortal Alliance to subdue the foreigners within Mahakala again.”

“As for just a few Scripture Masters, they don’t pose a threat to me.”

“After all, several foreign leaders in District 17 have now pledged allegiance to our Great Thousand Mountains. Even many within the infected zones are now our informants.”

“If the Shanhai Bureau makes any moves, I’ll be the first to know.”

“Oh, so confident?”

Zhen Hu looked at her expressionlessly and said, “It’s not confidence; it’s simply the truth.”

As if struck by a thought, the masked woman turned to look in the direction the severely infected had just left and asked with interest, “What do you think those people would think if they knew your method of ‘healing’ them was to use the power of one Celestial Being to replace that of another Immortal?”

Zhen Hu stood up, turned around, and devoutly bowed to the nine-headed Dragon statue.He then turned to look at the masked woman and said meaningfully, “Snow Fox, do you know when people are most devout?”

“When?”

“When they are about to die.”

“And what I do is give them a glimmer of hope.”

“As long as this hope remains… they will never betray me.”

With these words, Zhen Hu vanished into the dimly lit basement…

(End of Chapter)