Chapter 867 Taking office
Lin Xuan told Li Hongyi everything that had happened between him and Li Hongyi. Of course, Lin Xuan did not tell Li Hongyi that the female protagonist he was talking about was Li Hongyi herself.
Li Hongyi looked at Lin Xuan, her eyes completely unmoved.
"It seems this woman is madly in love with that man."
Lin Xuan was secretly delighted, and seemed pleased, but Li Hongyi immediately continued:
"Love and affection will only be stumbling blocks to cultivation, Deacon Lin. You need to figure out what you need. Don't let love and affection bind you. With your talent, reaching the Immortal King realm is a sure thing. If you work a little harder, reaching the Immortal Emperor realm is not impossible. You can't ruin your path because of momentary lust."
Li Hongyi's words were exceptionally resolute, and the weight of her voice was like a sledgehammer striking Lin Xuan's heart.
The Supreme Forgetfulness Technique is truly powerful.
Lin Xuan was certain that Li Hongyi had indeed been somewhat persuaded by him earlier, but the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique must have been interfering, causing Li Hongyi's attitude to change drastically at once.
Furthermore, Lin Xuan remembered that there seemed to be a guy who had cultivated the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique living inside Li Hongyi's body. It was that guy who had bewitched Li Hongyi into also cultivating the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique.
The main reason is that Lin Xuan doesn't dare to do anything to that guy, because she and Li Hongyi are now one, and if she harms her, it will also harm Li Hongyi.
"Alright, Deacon Lin, the main reason I called you here today is to tell you about our Holy Flame Hall."
Li Hongyi has completely reverted to her identity as the incomparably aloof and cold-blooded leader of the Holy Flame Hall.
Lin Xuan knew that it was pointless to say anything more at this point, and it would only anger Li Hongyi, so he simply skipped the topic.
"Appreciate further details."
Li Hongyi stood up, placing her hands behind her back.
"Our Holy Flame Hall is one of the nine halls under the Li Department. In terms of strength, among the nine halls of the Li Department, our overall strength should be the first. If we were to place it among the seventy-two halls, it would definitely be among the top three."
"Our Eight Immortal Palaces' opponents are the Nine Heavens Immortal Palace of the Nine Heavens Universe, the Taihe Heavenly Gate of the Taihe Universe, and the Qiankun Empire of the Qiankun Universe. Of course, these are just our opponents. Our true enemy is only one: the Evil Race."
Li Hongyi explained everything to Lin Xuan in detail, as if she were truly the head of the Holy Flame Hall of the Eight Immortal Palaces.
Lin Xuan sensed that something was wrong.
Li Hongyi, who has cultivated the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique, and who also has another woman who has cultivated the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique residing within her, how could she possibly be willing to reside in the Eight Immortal Palaces?
While the Eight Immortal Palaces are indeed a powerful force, they are truly unable to accommodate practitioners of the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique.
There's definitely something fishy going on here.
However, Lin Xuan is no match for Li Hongyi now. If he could, Lin Xuan would really like to capture Li Hongyi alive and force out the woman living inside her body to question her about what exactly happened.
"In a few years, there will be an exchange meeting between our Eight Immortal Palaces and other forces. At that time, our Holy Flame Hall will naturally need to be prepared."
"Ok, I see."
Lin Xuan immediately agreed.
Li Hongyi didn't say anything more and waved her hand.
"Okay, you may leave now."
"Master, I have something else I'd like to ask."
Lin Xuan did not leave, but instead looked at Li Hongyi and continued to ask questions.
Li Hongyi frowned slightly, but did not send him away again. Instead, she gestured for Lin Xuan to continue.
Lin Xuan seized the opportunity: "Hall Master, I would like to inquire about a place called Nine Cauldrons Immortal Realm. The overall strength of this Immortal Realm should not be strong. The strongest is probably at the Heavenly Immortal Realm, and at most, they are at the low-level Golden Immortal Realm."
Li Hongyi shook her head slightly upon hearing the unfamiliar name.
"I've never heard of this place before."
Lin Xuan was somewhat disappointed. There were so many universes in the Immortal Realm; it would take him forever to find them.
“However,” Li Hongyi added, “you can ask some of the elders in our Holy Flame Hall. They’ve been in the Eight Immortal Palaces for tens or even hundreds of thousands of years, so they might know.”
Lin Xuan thought so too. After all, Li Hongyi had only been in the Eight Immortal Palaces for eighteen years, so she was probably quite unfamiliar with the Eight Universes and even with a small immortal realm like the Nine Cauldrons Immortal Domain.
"Alright, take this token. I've heard you possess the Golden Thunder, so you'll serve in the Enforcement Hall."
Li Hongyi tossed out a token and vanished from the spot.
Lin Xuan left the Holy Flame Main Hall, still pondering how to help Li Hongyi regain her memories and how to find the Nine Cauldrons Immortal Realm. He needed to know the answers to these questions.
Also, Lin Xuan should inquire about the immortal, Lu Xian Dao Ren, because it was this person who took away his daughter, Lin Moyou, as well as Wu Yilan and Fan Lishi.
If you want to find them, then finding the Deer Immortal Taoist is the best way.
"Deacon Lin, how is it? Has the Hall Master assigned you any tasks or positions?"
Zheng Qing was still waiting for Lin Xuan outside. As soon as Lin Xuan came out, he immediately followed and asked him.
Lin Xuan took out the token of the Enforcement Hall.
Zheng Qing was slightly taken aback when he saw the token.
"Law Enforcement Hall?"
"Yes, the Enforcement Hall, is there a problem?"
Lin Xuan's observation skills were very keen; Zheng Qing's change in expression the instant he saw Lin Xuan's token did not escape Lin Xuan's notice.
"Well, I'm not happy with Deacon Lin, this Enforcement Hall isn't exactly a good job."
Zheng Qing looked at Lin Xuan with some helplessness and said.
Lin Xuan toyed with the Enforcement Hall token in his hand, looking at Zheng Qing with amusement.
"I was feeling a bit bored at first, but after hearing what you said, Lao Zheng, I'm starting to find it interesting."
Looking at the uninhibited Lin Xuan, Zheng Qing suddenly remembered that Lin Xuan was a super genius who had been personally snatched away by several department heads and the Lord of the Divine Dragon Palace. Perhaps with Lin Xuan around, the Enforcement Hall might really be a bit more peaceful.
"This Enforcement Hall is a major stubborn force in our Holy Flame Hall. The current position of Hall Master is vacant because no one is willing to take on this role."
"Hehe, are you afraid of offending someone?"
Lin Xuan succinctly explained the intricacies of the matter.
Zheng Qing smiled helplessly once again.
"Deacon Lin, you don't know this, but before the Hall Master came to our Holy Flame Hall, the position of Hall Master had been vacant for a hundred years. In addition, the Department Head is also a person who is unwilling to get involved. As a result, the cohesion within our Li Department is much weaker than that of the other seven departments. Basically, we fight our own battles."
"Among them, our Holy Flame Hall is the leader. It is a mixed bag, with each member acting independently. It cannot be described as just a mess."
Old Zheng's words made no sound to Lin Xuan.
Lin Xuan turned his head to look at Old Zheng.
"If that's the case, then why is the Holy Flame Hall still ranked among the top few in terms of overall strength among the seventy-two halls?"
"Naturally, it's because of Master Li." When Old Zheng mentioned Li Hongyi, his eyes couldn't help but show a hint of respect and admiration.
Lin Xuan had also heard Li Qingyue say that Li Hongyi had defeated several hall masters in succession when she first arrived at the Eight Immortal Palace, and those hall masters were all veteran powerhouses, not some nobody from a small force.
This alone is enough to demonstrate Li Hongyi's remarkable abilities.
"The Holy Flame Hall has been without a Head of the Enforcement Hall for almost eighty years. At this time, the Enforcement Hall only has a dozen or so ordinary disciples who dare not interfere. Although they have the power to enforce the law, how could they have the guts to interfere with the affairs of those deacons or core disciples?"
Lin Xuan nodded slightly; this was a question.
"Li Hongyi...the sect leader isn't involved in this matter?"
At this point, Old Zheng gave a helpless, bitter smile and shrugged.
"After the Hall Master came to the Holy Flame Hall, she actually left the internal affairs of the Holy Flame Hall to her own devices. Most of the time she was in seclusion cultivating and didn't care about the internal affairs of the Holy Flame Hall at all. At most, she would come out to support the Holy Flame Hall when it fought with other halls, and sometimes she was too lazy to even stand up for them."
Lin Xuan chuckled upon hearing this. Li Hongyi had cultivated the Supreme Forgetfulness Technique and held a detached attitude towards most things in this world; how could she possibly manage the affairs of the Holy Flame Hall?
Now that Li Hongyi has put herself in this position, she probably hopes that Lin Xuan will clean up this mess for her.
Li Hongyi's personality becomes cold and indifferent, and her emotions and desires become weak, but her wisdom remains extremely high.
Li Hongyi was well aware that some of the deacons in the Holy Flame Hall did not have backgrounds as simple as they seemed. Perhaps one of the deacons could have some connection with the higher-ups or the Divine Dragon Hall.
"Okay, I understand the general idea. Now, let me take over."
Lin Xuan put away the Enforcement Hall token and pinched the bridge of his nose.
Now that you've taken on the role of head of the Enforcement Hall, you should at least produce some results.
“Alright, since you’re so confident, Deacon Lin, then this old man won’t say anything more. I’ll take you to the Enforcement Hall’s headquarters.”
Old Zheng acted as a guide, leading Lin Xuan in another direction.
The Hall of Enforcement is located in the eastern part of the Holy Flame Hall, and has a main hall dedicated to the Hall of Enforcement.
The main hall appears magnificent and imposing, with three large, gilded characters engraved on its ceiling: "Hall of Law Enforcement"!
"Old Zheng, I have some questions for you."
Lin Xuan and Lao Zheng entered the Enforcement Hall, where Lin Xuan was preparing to inquire about the matter.
"Deacon Lin, please ask me anything. I will answer to the best of my knowledge."
Old Zheng's smile was somewhat humble, his face full of wrinkles, which made Lin Xuan a little puzzled.
How could someone at the Golden Immortal Realm look so old? Although some powerful individuals can maintain their appearance as if they were old, their vitality and spirit cannot be faked. Old Zheng's appearance is really not much different from that of a seventy or eighty-year-old man in the mortal world.
"Here's the thing, I'd like to ask you about two things: one is a place called Nine Cauldrons Immortal Realm, and the other is a cultivator known as the Deer Immortal Daoist."
Lin Xuan looked at Old Zheng with hope.
To everyone's surprise, Old Zheng just shook his head.
“Deacon Lin, I, Zheng Qing, have lived for a million years and have heard of many places and the titles of many great people, but I have never heard of the Nine Cauldrons Immortal Realm or the Deer Immortal.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Xuan couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Finding a small immortal realm and a person in the vast immortal realm is simply too difficult, like finding a needle in a haystack. Lin Xuan even felt that finding a needle in a haystack was more realistic.
“Deacon Lin, perhaps you could check the records room and find some clues. However, the records room is very large, and it will be very difficult to find this one place and this one cultivator.”
Old Zheng kindly reminded Lin Xuan.
Lin Xuan sighed again and nodded slightly.
"Alright, since that's how it is, then let's just forget about it. But thank you anyway, Lao Zheng."
Lin Xuan offered up a sum of resources.
Old Zheng quickly waved his hand to decline.
"Deacon Lin, what do you mean by that? That's not what I, Zheng Qing, meant."
"Hey, Lao Zheng, whether that's what you mean or not doesn't matter. What matters is that this is my way of thanking you. Take it."
Lin Xuan did not allow Zheng Qing to refuse and forcibly stuffed it into Old Zheng's hand.
Old Zheng was somewhat moved. He had wasted hundreds of thousands of years in the Holy Flame Hall, and even many inner disciples and core disciples didn't think much of this old codger.
However, Lin Xuan truly treated him as an equal, which made Old Zheng feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude.
"Damn it, what kind of mess is this? Wu Zong was just robbing us by force and twisting the truth, he deserves to die!"
"Chen Er, you'd better say less. Our Enforcement Hall is practically defunct. Wu Zong is not only a core disciple, but his father is also Deacon Wu. How can we afford to offend him?"
"Yes, yes, Chen Er, we'd better turn a blind eye to these things. It's better for everyone."
"But he bullies his disciples, it's really... sigh!"
The disciple named Chen Er was furious, but his words also carried a sense of helplessness.
Several disciples entered the hall and found two people standing there. Lin Xuan and the others did not know who they were, but they recognized Zheng Qing.
Zheng Qing is an elder of the Holy Flame Hall. Although he is still a second-stage Golden Immortal after hundreds of thousands of years, he is a genuine Golden Immortal and a steward, so naturally one should still pay respects to him.
"Greetings, Steward Zheng."
There were four people in the group, three men and one woman.
Lin Xuan looked at the four people: one was a Celestial Immortal and the other three were Earth Immortals.
"Come, come, let me introduce you. This is your newly appointed head of the Enforcement Hall, Steward Lin Xuan."
Zheng Qing immediately introduced Lin Xuan to Chen Er and the other three.
All four of them were stunned for a moment, then looked at Lin Xuan in disbelief.
Their Enforcement Hall has been without a hall master for decades, and today a hall master has actually arrived?!
"Why aren't you paying your respects to Hall Master Lin yet?!"
Seeing that the four people did not move, Zheng Qing immediately gave a soft shout.
The four of them seemed to wake from a dream, and immediately bowed respectfully to Lin Xuan and his party.
"We have met with the Hall Master."
"No need for formalities, everyone please be seated."
Lin Xuan smiled gently and raised his hand slightly.
The four looked at each other, then sat down in order.
"Come on, tell me, what were you talking about just now?"
Chen Er and the other three were taken aback again, all feeling conflicted.
