After regaining his senses, Qin Li admired Zhou Fan even more.
In less than three months, he had risen from first-stage to fourth-stage; what a Heaven-Defying cultivation speed!
Not to mention in reality, even in the storybooks Qin Li had read, none of the protagonists had such an absurd cultivation speed.
Along the way, Qin Li chattered non-stop around Zhou Fan, his face flushed with excitement.
He felt that a person like Zhou Dage was even more astonishingly talented than a legendary Immortal Reincarnation, and would surely Ascend to the Immortal Realm in broad daylight in the future, taking a place among the Immortals and enjoying eternal life.
Zhou Fan waved his hand, saying that he had always been low-key, and that the matter of his cultivation Breakthrough to the fourth-stage had only been told to Qin Li and Ning Shuying, hoping they could keep it a secret.
Otherwise, with his current cultivation speed, once it became public, he would be too much in the limelight, and he feared that there would be an endless stream of people wanting to visit him, and troubles would follow one after another.
Qin Li and Ning Shuying heard this and immediately stated that they would keep their mouths shut and not reveal a single bit.
As for the Qiankun Sword Sect, Zhou Fan had never revealed his true appearance, and after advancing to the fourth-stage, his control over the elemental Qi of heaven and earth had reached a level of complete mastery.
He only needed to compress and twist the elemental Qi around his body layer by layer, and those of lower Realms would not be able to glimpse his true face.
The reason why the Old Sword Master was able to sneak into the Guiyuan Sect as if no one was around was because his strength had also reached the fourth-stage, allowing him to freely manipulate the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth, completely concealing his aura and figure.
He had also instructed Xiao Muqing before leaving not to reveal his true identity or cultivation to anyone.
Doing this was, on one hand, to hide some of his strength, as there were always 'old sixes' among the Son of Destiny, and on the other hand, to keep his reputation low-key.
He had already gained enough attention when he first entered the Cultivation World with a Heaven-sent anomaly and broke through two stages in one month. He had the Villain System, not a pretense System or a prestige System, so there was no need for his name to be known far and wide.
After chatting for a while, Zhou Fan asked the two what city they were currently in and what they were doing there.
Qin Li said that ever since Zhou Dage left, he and Shuying had rested in Qingyang City for a few days, and then traveled together through the Xuanyuan Dynasty.
Within this month, Shuying had also taken on a case, and the two of them worked together to solve it, eliminating a group of beasts who trafficked children.
Zhou Fan immediately toasted them, praising them for doing a great deed.
The two quickly returned the toast. Ning Shuying said it was their duty, while Qin Li happily said that he just wanted to be like Zhou Dage, a great hero who hated evil and upheld justice.
The reason they were currently staying in Sanshan City was mainly that they heard a School near Sanshan City—the Lingjian Sect—had been found to have treasonous letters within its Sect, and even a plan to assassinate the current emperor.
It was said that the current empress was furious upon hearing this and had personally led a large army, preparing to flatten the Lingjian Sect.
Zhou Fan listened to their narration and asked in confusion.
"Lingjian Sect? Is this Sect related to Lingjian Peak?"
"Actually, the Lingjian Sect can be said to be an affiliated Sect of our Luoyun Temple."
Qin Li had clearly gathered a lot of information these days and quickly replied, "More than two hundred years ago, the Temple Master of our Luoyun Temple was a Sword Cultivator, and also the Peak Master of Lingjian Peak."
"During his tenure, he greatly promoted the Dao of the Sword, not only supporting Lingjian Peak in many ways within the Temple but also establishing an affiliated Sect of Luoyun Temple outside the Temple. The Cultivators within this Sect could only practice the Dao of the Sword, and that was the Lingjian Sect."
"So that's how it is. Now that the Lingjian Sect is in trouble, did the people within the Lingjian Sect not ask Luoyun Temple for help?"
"They asked for help, but our Temple Master's reply was very heartless, and it became known throughout the city."
"The Lingjian Sect claims to be an affiliated Sect of our Luoyun Temple, yet for over two hundred years, it has not offered a single thread of tribute. Now that you have brought disaster upon yourselves, what does it have to do with Luoyun Temple?"
"Two days ago, this edict, personally spoken by our Temple Master, flew to the mountain gate of the Lingjian Sect, transmitting its voice for tens of thousands of miles, repeating three times. It just so happened that Shuying and I had just arrived in Sanshan City then, and we stumbled upon this matter."
"At that time, everyone in the streets and alleys was discussing this Immortal's oral edict. When I heard that this edict came from our Luoyun Temple, I stayed in Sanshan City with Shuying, gathering more information while waiting for this matter to unfold."
Zhou Fan pondered for a moment, feeling that the Lingjian Sect might have been framed by other Sects. After all, if the Sect Leader of the Lingjian Sect were a normal person, he would not possibly leave behind such incriminating evidence as treasonous letters and assassination plans.
But now, the die was cast, and the matter had reached the current empress. Could the empress pretend to be unaware of this matter, or remain indifferent after knowing about it?
There were probably also people in the court fanning the flames. He just didn't know which force the Lingjian Sect had offended to suffer such a cruel fate. It was estimated that when the empress arrived with her army in a few days, the Lingjian Sect would be completely removed from the map of the Xuanyuan Dynasty.
The three chatted about various topics for a while longer. After a table full of good wine and dishes was consumed, Ning Shuying's cheeks were flushed, and her originally heroic eyes were tinged with a hint of charm.
She slapped the back of Qin Li, who was pretending to be drunk, and then glared at Zhou Fan, wanting to say some harsh words.
But when she thought of her embarrassing performance that day, a hint of moisture suddenly appeared in her eyes, and she quickly walked into a superior guest room upstairs.
Qin Li's disguise was seen through. He awkwardly raised his head, wanting to say something to Ning Shuying.
But seeing that Ning Shuying had already voluntarily gone to the room, Qin Li's face also flushed slightly. He quickly called the innkeeper and skillfully opened another room next door.
Then, seeing Zhou Fan still leisurely leaning on a wooden stool, enjoying the sunset outside, he immediately lost his composure and sat beside Zhou Fan, saying,
"Zhou Dage, aren't you going up to rest?"
"Rest? It's not dark yet, is it?"
Zhou Fan's expression was teasing, and he asked knowingly, "Moreover, we Cultivators can remain awake even if we don't sleep for years. Why would we need to rest?"
"Oh, Zhou Dage, you know I don't mean that."
Qin Li was a bit anxious. Ever since Zhou Dage and Shuying had consummated their relationship that day, he had no longer had the chance to hear the details of their time together.
Although the short day Zhou Dage and Shuying spent together had brought him new stimulation, allowing his "Qing Ni Jue" to once again circulate rapidly.
But it was only for one day, so his cultivation remained at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, just a little short of being able to Breakthrough to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment.
For the past month, Qin Li dreamed every day of Zhou Fan, hoping that his strong and powerful Zhou Dage would suddenly appear and then pick up his confidante for a good beating.
Now, after enduring for so long, Zhou Dage had finally returned, but he was acting like a gentleman, which made Qin Li extremely anxious.