The Terrifying Path of Immortal Cultivation

Li Qing quickly left the task hall, still feeling a sense of horror in his heart.

"Damn, there's such an eerie presence in the task hall. That old man is definitely not human."

"Do others know about it?"

Feeling unsettled, Li Qing's expression changed.

"Never mind, I'll go ask Elder Zheng and see if he can let me see the case files."

Soon he arrived at Elder Zheng's room.

"Knock, knock, knock."

After knocking on the door, Elder Zheng's voice came from inside.

"Who is it?"

"It's me, Li Wushuang. I have something to ask you."

Elder Zheng opened the door, looked at Li Qing, and a hint of strangeness appeared on his face.

"Come in and talk."

Li Qing entered the room and sat on a chair at the table.

Elder Zheng sat opposite him, with a look of doubt. "Why are you here so early? You've been missing for the past few days. Where have you been?"

Li Qing chuckled, "I've been in seclusion for the past few days, causing you to worry, Elder Zheng."

Upon hearing this, Elder Zheng suddenly realized, "So that's it. Have you made a breakthrough now?"

Li Qing nodded slightly, "Yes, I have indeed made some breakthroughs."

"Congratulations," a sincere expression appeared on Elder Zheng's face.

Li Qing thought for a moment and said, "Elder Zheng, I want to ask you something."

"What's the matter?" A hint of curiosity flashed across Elder Zheng's face.

"Do you know about the task hall?"

"Yes, what about it?"

"Is there an old man managing the task hall?"

"An old man? No, why do you ask?" Elder Zheng's eyes showed a hint of puzzlement.

Upon hearing Elder Zheng's words, Li Qing was greatly shocked. He didn't expect that even Elder Zheng didn't know about the strange old man in the task hall.

Feeling the strangeness of the task hall, Li Qing continued, "In the task hall, there's a chair, right?"

"Tasks are received from there. Isn't it managed by anyone?" Li Qing asked in confusion.

Elder Zheng suddenly realized and smiled, "You mean the table and chair? That's a special item."

"You can call it an anomalous item, imbued with strange power."

"These items have fixed characteristics."

"The effect of that item is to complete various office tasks."

"Because the task hall is troublesome and tedious, a transformed item was later found to replace manual work."

"As long as you receive the task token and place it on that table, detailed case files will be automatically gathered."

"After completing the task, the case files will be reorganized and stored in that desk for safekeeping, to prevent unauthorized access."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing finally understood what was going on.

"Is that transformed item dangerous?"

Elder Zheng smiled, "Don't worry, that transformed item has been around for over two hundred years, and there have never been any issues."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing nodded in realization, "So that's it. I thought someone was managing it."

"The last time I went to receive a task, it felt quite strange."

"Don't worry, the academy conducts strict inspections of these things, and they are re-investigated at regular intervals."

"Is there anything else you want to ask?" Elder Zheng looked at Li Qing and asked.

"One more thing. I want to see all the case files related to Dragon Path City within the past year."

Upon hearing this, Elder Zheng furrowed his brow slightly. "Why?"

"Case files are not to be accessed casually."

"Each case file represents a case related to anomalies."

"Each completed case represents a complete story, and within these stories lie dangerous information."

"Even for us, knowing too much complete information can exacerbate the appearance of anomalies."

"And once you reach a certain level and know too much about anomalies, the impact will be even more severe."

"A mishap could even directly plunge your mind into the abyss, turning you into an anomaly."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing was shocked and furrowed his brow slightly. "Can't there be any flexibility?"

"No, these are the rules of the academy."

"No one can violate the rules."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing sighed and realized that he had been constrained by the rules, just as he had used the rules to trap the Zhou family.

"As a wandering inspector, don't I have the right to access all information?"

Elder Zheng's expression turned serious. "No, you don't."

"Your authority is limited to normal scripture practice, various schools of thought, and so on."

"You cannot view anything forbidden, such as these case files or the diaries of some mad cultivators."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing couldn't help but sigh. "Alright, thank you, Elder Zheng, for guiding me."

Elder Zheng smiled slightly, "You're welcome. If you have any more questions in the future, you can come to me."

...

Li Qing left Elder Zheng's room, his eyes showing a hint of caution.

"I can't go to the task hall anymore. That strange desk must have a problem."

"No one else can see it, only I can. This is very abnormal."

"If I want to get more information, I'll have to go to the library."

With that in mind, he returned to his room, grabbed a jug of good wine, and headed towards the library.

Guarding the library was still Elder Xu, Xu Wentai.

Elder Xu looked at Li Qing, who came with the wine, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Li Inspector, you're here again."

"Haha, I have no choice. When I encounter a difficult problem, I can only come to Elder Xu for advice."

After speaking, he placed the jug of wine in front of Elder Xu.

"Bang."

Elder Xu opened the jug of wine and smelled a fresh aroma.

"It smells so good. Peach Blossom Manor's peach blossom wine is truly captivating."

After closing the jug, he looked at Li Qing and said, "Tell me, what do you want to ask? I will tell you everything I know."

"Elder Xu, you've been here for quite some time, haven't you?"

"About ten years. I've been here since I retired after getting injured."

Li Qing nodded, "Here's the thing. I have a friend who has reached the Human Tribulation realm. He says his Human Tribulation seems to be in this Dragon Path City."

"He wants me to help him find more information about Human Tribulation and Dragon Path City."

"He wants to see what his Human Tribulation is related to."

Upon hearing this, Elder Xu looked at him in surprise. "Your friend wants to Transcend Tribulation? This is very dangerous. Most people choose to avoid it."

Li Qing shrugged helplessly, "I've advised him, but he doesn't listen. As a friend, I can only seek some information to see if I can help him succeed in Transcending Tribulation."

Elder Xu nodded, "Alright, there's a special bookshelf in the library that records all known information about Dragon Path City from ancient times to the present."