Immortal Reincarnation Tribulation

Chapter 52 Sect Rewards

"Nephew Wang, you should go back first. You can rest assured about the reward; it will be more than promised. However, this matter must not be told to anyone." A Foundation Establishment deacon to Shen Hong's left was the first to recover from his shock and gave Wang San this instruction.

"Thank you, Uncle Zheng, I understand!" Wang San had already guessed that Du Fan must have encountered something extraordinary these past few days, but he was still shocked when he heard the news. However, after the steward surnamed Zheng spoke, he was overjoyed. He glanced at Du Fan, bowed deeply to the three Foundation Establishment stewards, and then withdrew. Before long, his figure disappeared into the distance.

"Junior Nephew Du, this matter... is of great importance. Please come with us to meet the sect leader." The three deacons exchanged a few words in whispers, their expressions solemn. The white-haired old man, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.

"Yes!" Du Fan's heart skipped a beat, and he could only reply.

……

An hour later, Du Fan was brought to the front of a towering mountain. At the foot of the mountain was a huge plaza covering thousands of acres, built against the mountainside. The ground was paved with neat large blue stone bricks. In the center of the plaza stood a magnificent green palace. When viewed from above, its shape resembled a giant leaf, which was quite spectacular. The palace was several hundred feet long and wide, and seventy or eighty feet high. At first glance, it looked like a small leaf-shaped mountain sitting there, which was very majestic.

In front of the main hall, there is a huge incense burner. The burner is dark gold in color, seven or eight zhang long and wide, and three zhang high. Inside it are three huge incense sticks, as big as trees, which emit wisps of smoke that seem to reach straight into the clouds.

There were dozens of people in the square sweeping fallen leaves with brooms. Judging from their clothes, they were all inner disciples.

Du Fan was shocked after just one glance at the outline of the main hall. He knew that this was the main hall of the Kongsang Sect. In the past, he would not have been qualified to come here with his status. After calming his mind, he followed the three stewards to the main entrance of the hall.

"Disciple greets the three senior uncles." Several inner disciples stood at the main entrance of the hall. One of them stepped forward and bowed upon seeing Shen Hong and his two companions.

"Please inform our sect leader that we have important matters to discuss with him," Shen Hong nodded, giving the order without giving a clear answer.

"I will go and inform them immediately. Please wait a moment, my three senior uncles." The disciple bowed and was about to enter the main hall.

"My three junior disciples, please come in." A loud voice suddenly rang out, as clear as a bell, so loud that it was clearly audible to everyone outside the hall.

The inner disciple bowed slightly and then retreated.

Shen Hong and the other two led Du Fan straight into the main hall.

The main hall is equally grand and magnificent, with a sense of opulence.

On the high platform at the deepest part of the main hall, one can vaguely see a middle-aged man dressed in a dark green Taoist robe sitting upright. On either side of him sit two men and a woman, all dressed in dark green Taoist robes.

In the Kongsang Sect, green is the most revered color, representing their status as Golden Core Elders. They are not only the most prominent figures in the Kongsang Sect, but also renowned top experts in the entire cultivation world of the Northern Qingzhou Region.

Du Fan dared not look any longer and quickly followed the three stewards to the depths of the main hall.

"Junior nephew greets Sect Leader and three senior uncles. This is the recovered mysterious token. Please take a look, Sect Leader." After the group walked up to the four Golden Core cultivators, Shen Hong and the other two bowed respectfully, their expressions solemn.

At the same time, Shen Hong remotely handed the mysterious token to the person in the main seat.

Du Fan's heart skipped a beat. He quickly glanced ahead and saw a middle-aged man sitting in the main seat. He was slender, with a peaceful face and a green jade crown on his head, looking like a scholar.

Du Fan thought to himself, "That must be He Yinghua, the head of the Kongsang Sect. Legend has it that his cultivation level has reached the late Golden Core stage, and his cultivation and supernatural abilities are unfathomable. In the Kongsang Sect, he is the number one person after the patriarch and the Supreme Elder, and his name is renowned throughout Qingzhou."

At the lower end of the table, two men sat on one side. One was an elderly man with white hair and beard, smiling and with an air of otherworldly wisdom. The other was a burly, red-haired man with wide-open, copper-bell-like eyes and a somewhat ferocious face.

On the other side was a beautiful young woman, in her thirties, with a graceful figure, wearing a leaf-shaped green hairpin, exuding elegance and a refined air.

Du Fan dared not speak carelessly and could only bow respectfully.

"The token is fine, well done. You may all rise. Nephew Shen, I received your secret message earlier, informing us that the group from the Land of Scattered Lands has retrieved the mysterious token. We are very pleased. However, from what you said, it seems there were some unexpected events. Let's talk about them now while the elders are here."

Master He glanced at the token in his hand, smiled with satisfaction, put it away, and spoke gently.

"Yes, Master Uncle, apart from one outer disciple of our sect, the rest of the people on this trip were all inner sect servants. However, only two of them came out alive. He was a servant under my nephew, and he was one of those two. It was he who discovered something important." Shen Hong bowed again and pointed to Du Fan behind him, speaking respectfully.

"Oh? After years of sweeping by outer disciples, the Dispersed Lands should not be in great danger. Yet, out of more than ten people, only two survived. This is truly unexpected. Something special must have happened."

"Little one, don't be nervous. Tell me everything you know. If it's true, you'll be rewarded. If you're lying, you can imagine what will happen." Headmaster He's expression was somewhat moved, but he only paused for a moment before looking at Du Fan expressionlessly.

The three Foundation Establishment deacons, including Shen Hong, moved a few steps to the sides, revealing Du Fan's figure.

The other three Golden Core elders also looked at Du Fan with different expressions.

Upon seeing this, Du Fan broke out in a cold sweat.

"How dare I lie in front of the sect leader and the elders? The matter is like this..."

Du Fan felt a chill run down his spine and recounted his previous conversation with the three deacons in greater detail. Of course, after a moment's thought, he gritted his teeth and didn't mention the matter of killing the Five Elements Beast without permission to refine the Invisibility Ring.

After a full two incense sticks' worth of time, Du Fan wiped the sweat that was faintly visible on his forehead, stood there with his hands clasped, motionless.

Although Sect Leader He and the three Golden Core elders were shocked, they were all old monsters who had lived for hundreds of years, so they did not reveal their inner thoughts.

After a long while, Sect Leader He suddenly smiled and said to Du Fan, "You little fellow are quite lucky. You've done a great service this time. But before rewarding you, could I take a look at the cultivation manual you obtained from Gui Yuan?"

"Of course." Du Fan answered quickly without thinking, and at the same time patted his storage bag, taking out all the books inside. Before he could make a move, the items in his hand were snatched away by Sect Leader He from a distance.

He had no choice but to do this because he knew that the four people in front of him probably already knew exactly what was in his storage bag.

With this in mind, Du Fan had already placed the invisibility ring somewhere else in the Land of Dispersion.

The classic texts and techniques such as "Spirit Devouring Technique", "Ghost Curse Technique", and "Miscellaneous Chapters on Weapon Refining" all fell into the hands of Sect Leader He.

Sect Leader He quickly flipped through the document, his expression gradually changing. Finally, he took a deep breath and smiled slightly at Du Fan.

"Little guy, these are all secret techniques from the Burial Ghost Sect, especially the 'Ghost Curse Technique,' which is an extremely profound secret technique of the ghost path. It shouldn't belong to the Burial Ghost Sect; it was probably obtained by that kid Gui Yuan by chance."

Before your trip, Junior Nephew Shen and the others promised that everything you obtained would belong to you. Don't worry, I will not break my promise. However, these things are special. Once the sect has made a copy of these cultivation manuals, they will be returned to you.

However, I must remind you that the Ghost Path techniques are mysterious and unpredictable, and the dangers involved are beyond your comprehension. Studying and researching them is fine, but it's best not to have any intention of practicing them privately.

Headmaster He looked at Du Fan, his eyes flashing, and said something meaningful.

"This junior will respectfully follow the sect leader's teachings!" Upon hearing that the sect leader had no intention of confiscating these techniques, Du Fan immediately felt relieved and bowed respectfully.

"Originally, if your trip had been successful, you would have each received several hundred spirit stones as a reward. However, it seems that this reward is clearly insufficient. So, let me ask you, is there anything you desire? Feel free to speak up."

Upon hearing this, the other three Golden Core elders did not react, but Shen Hong and the other two deacons immediately turned their gazes toward them, their eyes filled with surprise and envy.

"This junior has no other requests. I only wish to obtain the formulas for a few low-level pills so that I can study them in my spare time. That would be enough for me." Upon hearing this, Du Fan was delighted. After pondering for a moment, he made a statement that surprised everyone present.

"Oh? No wonder. I heard you manage the Spirit Garden, so it's normal for you to be interested in pills. No problem, I'll send someone to deliver a few low-level pill formulas to you later."

"However, I must make this clear beforehand: although low-level pill formulas are not particularly precious, they are confidential and must not be divulged. You must not reveal them, or you will be punished according to the sect rules." Sect Leader He hesitated only slightly before agreeing and giving a solemn warning.

"Yes, junior obeys." Du Fan was delighted and answered without hesitation.

"Furthermore, from this day forward, you will be an outer disciple of my Kongsang Sect, enjoying all the privileges that outer disciples are entitled to. As for the Spirit Garden, you may choose to continue managing it or simply ignore it and focus on your cultivation from now on."

The sect will also reward you with one thousand spirit stones. If there are no further problems, you may proceed.

Headmaster He felt that it was somewhat unreasonable to reward Du Fan with only a few pill formulas for his tremendous contributions. After pondering for a moment, he promised some additional benefits and, feeling that there were no problems, ordered Du Fan to leave.

"Thank you, Sect Leader. This junior will take his leave." Overjoyed, Du Fan bowed and slowly departed.

"My three junior disciples, the outer sect disciples' competition is currently underway. You should pay close attention to it. Also, you must keep what Du Fan said a secret. Alright, you may all leave now." After giving his instructions, Sect Leader He waved to the three of them.

"Yes, nephew, we take our leave!" Shen Hong and the other two bowed and left the main hall.

Once only himself and three elders remained in the spacious hall, the composure on Sect Leader He's face vanished instantly, replaced by a dark and gloomy expression.