The immortal is beside me

Chapter 5 Immortal Cultivator

He replied and said yes.

Qin Jiajia raised her eyes from the phone screen and spoke softly.

Across from her sat four or five middle-aged men, all elite specialists who had appeared at the department meeting before. Each had a different expression on their face, but their eyes were all fixed on the phone in her hand.

The last time she faced this group of people, she could only sit in the corner, not even qualified to participate in the conversation. But now she was in the main seat of the room, and her every move was the focus of everyone's attention.

She knew who was responsible for all these changes.

After she submitted her application to negotiate with Zhou Qing, the department held several emergency meetings overnight. After several rounds of debating, her application was miraculously approved, and she was allowed to negotiate with Zhou Qing as a "special person."

Even she herself found this result absurd, and she was not the only one who thought so.

".I still think this proposal is too risky."

A square-faced specialist sitting on the left frowned, "Asking a newcomer who has just begun to deal with supernatural events to negotiate with a cultivator alone, and with a person who has almost no information about him, if something goes wrong, the consequences will be unimaginable."

"But our previous attempts at negotiation have failed, and we have no idea of ​​No. 25892's attitude towards the government. Leaving him alone under these circumstances will become a social ticking time bomb."

The thick-browed specialist sitting nearby shook his head. "Most immortal cultivators don't have any relatives or other social connections in mortal society, which is a common difficulty we encountered in our previous negotiations. By comparison, 'classmate' does offer a potential entry into their private lives."

"Indeed." Another specialist stroked his goatee, looking thoughtful. "Although it sounds a bit outrageous, it's a bold attempt. Whether it succeeds or not, it will provide a reference for our future actions."

These words had been repeated countless times in previous discussion meetings. The square-faced man didn't want to argue any more. He just sighed and turned to look at Qin Jiajia on the other side of the table.

"So what should we do specifically? Let Xiao Qin use the honey trap? If you want to get close to an immortal cultivator, being pretty isn't enough."

"There's still more than a week before I meet No. 25892. I'll use this time to help her master most of the extraordinary knowledge she'll need for negotiations."

Li Yulan, who was sitting at the end of the table, said calmly, "That person's situation is different from all the immortal cultivators we've seen so far. The old ways of thinking won't work on him. He's pretending to be an ordinary person, so if we want to break through him, we must also negotiate with him from the perspective of an 'ordinary person.'"

"This is one of your men, so I leave it to you." The square-faced man remained noncommittal. "I hope your judgment this time will be as sharp as before."

The conversation ended there, and the people waiting at the table stood up, chatting and leaving in groups of two or three. As the conference room door gently closed, Qin Jiajia and Li Yulan were once again alone in the room.

The clock on the wall ticked slowly, and the ticking of the hour hand was clearly audible.

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity, Director." After looking at each other, Qin Jiajia finally spoke, "Next time I will definitely..."

"No need for extra politeness. Since you've chosen to join, dealing with immortal cultivators is something you'll have to experience sooner or later. Don't think you can become complacent just because I've made an exception for you."

Li Yulan waved her hand. "Although No. 25892 has attracted the attention of the department due to his uniqueness, his influence is limited to Liangzhou City. Above him, there are high-level cultivators who are powerful enough to shake the resources of an entire province, or even a country. You still have a long way to go and much to learn. This is just the beginning."

"As I just said, right now, you need to quickly master the knowledge necessary to negotiate with No. 25892. The next week will be very difficult for you."

"I'm mentally prepared."

"Okay. Before we officially begin, I have a question for you." Li Yulan's voice deepened. "Since you've already had close contact with No. 25892, what do you think of immortal cultivators now?"

How do you view immortal cultivators? Qin Jiajia was stunned by the question she had never thought of before. Before she could think about it, Zhou Qing's sloppy clothes and lazy expression naturally appeared in her mind.

"Immortal cultivators possess power that ordinary people cannot even imagine, and they are a major destabilizing factor in society."

Qin Jiajia tentatively asked, "But apart from a few evil ones, if we don't take the initiative to provoke them, their attitude towards mortals is relatively normal, and seems to be no different from that of ordinary people."

The last two words were hesitant, and she sensed a strange change in her leader's expression.

".Do you think so?"

Li Yulan sighed, "That's true. Having just entered this field, and your first encounter with a cultivator as unique as No. 25892, will certainly lead you to some misconceptions."

"Please advise."

"Seeing is believing." Li Yulan did not answer her directly, but stood up.

"Come with me."

Fifteen minutes later, a black car drove out of the underground garage of the Environmental Sanitation Bureau, climbed onto the intercity highway, and roared forward.

Qin Jiajia sat in the back seat of the car, holding onto her seat belt nervously.

Li Yulan did not tell her the destination of this trip, but from the road signs that occasionally passed by the window, it seemed that they were heading towards the suburbs.

Liangzhou City is a newly established city. It has only just started to focus on infrastructure construction in recent years. Most of its suburbs are still waiting to be developed. Not to mention office areas, there are not even a few factories built.

This trip is to...
"Look at this." While her thoughts were wandering, Li Yulan handed her a thick book from the front seat, and she hurriedly reached out to take it.

She originally thought it was another confidential document with a red label, but when she turned the book to the front, a name she had not expected appeared on the cover.

General History of China

"You've heard it at the meeting before. In recent times, supernatural events have begun to occur frequently around the world, and their impact is growing day by day. Our job is to keep all these abnormal events out of the public's view and avoid causing social unrest." "This is not just because we are afraid of their power. If we only talk about the military power on paper, with the current level of weapons of the Chinese government, it is not impossible to fight against them - but this does not reduce their terror, because..."

Li Yulan leaned in the front seat, looking at the scenery passing by outside the car window, her tone seemed a little vague.

"It's true that supernatural cases have only started to occur more frequently in recent times, but this doesn't mean that the group of supernatural people has only recently appeared."

"On the contrary, they have existed for thousands of years, unnoticed by mortals, and have influenced our history in ways beyond imagination. Every line of history contains traces of their presence, while we can only glimpse the tip of the iceberg of that history through various legends."

Qin Jiajia stared at her blankly, and seeing that she had no intention of continuing, she lowered her head and slowly opened the general history in her hand. The seemingly ordinary book was filled with handwritten notes and scraps.

"In 215 BC, a soul cultivator visited the human world, using the pseudonym 'Huang Shi Gong'. He traveled extensively, leaving behind several methods for communicating with the heavens and humans. A young man named Zhang Liang stumbled upon these methods and achieved minor success, becoming able to observe the destiny of the heavens and humans. He was later employed by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, and his meticulous planning helped him secure his territory in Guanzhong. Later generations called him the Sage of Strategy."

In the seventh year of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty (184 AD), the leader of the Cangtian Sect, the largest sect in the world of immortal cultivation, failed to survive the tribulation and died. Opponents of the sect formed an alliance, named the Huangtian Sect, and appointed Zhang Jiao, a native of Julu, as their mortal agent. They launched an unsuccessful campaign against the Cangtian Sect and the Han Dynasty under their rule. The Huangtian Sect leader fell, and Zhang Jiao died. In 219 AD, the Cangtian Sect disintegrated due to internal strife in the Elders' Council, and the following year, the Eastern Han Dynasty collapsed.

In the 1388th year of the Hongwu reign (), Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang, wrote a biography of a mysterious figure called 'Zhou Dian'. He claimed that this figure could come and go without a trace, could predict the future, and could control water and fire. He also claimed that his magical powers helped Emperor Taizu defeat Chen Youliang and ascend the throne. Emperor Taizu therefore dubbed him 'Zhou Dianxian'.

"."

A book was filled with highlighted marks and notes, which seemed to be written by different people at different times. The messy notes were like pictures of ghosts and gods, and they were all reflected in Qin Jiajia's eyes.

"Are those legends about ancient immortals and gods true?" The hand that touched the page trembled slightly. "They're not immortals, but immortal cultivators. Have they always existed from ancient times to the present?"

"This is the real reason why we are currently hiding the incident involving the Immortal Cultivator."

Li Yulan said in a deep voice, "Once this secret is revealed, people will discover that history's glorious heroes were merely gifts from passing monks, that the rise and fall of dynasties stemmed from disputes within a few sects, and that even natural disasters may be the lingering effects of monks' battles. This kind of shock is difficult for ordinary people to accept, and society needs time to digest this truth."

There was silence.

"What are we in the eyes of immortal cultivators?" Qin Jiajia murmured.

"I don't want to discourage you too much, but I think you can imagine what I'm saying."

Li Yulan shook her head. "Even if we ignore the power they possess, records show that even the lowest-level Qi Refining cultivators have an average lifespan of a hundred years, and those with advanced cultivation can even live for thousands of years. This alone is enough to widen the gap in our understanding of them."

"When you come face to face with an immortal cultivator, you might think they look pretty much like modern people, but in reality, they could be ancient people from the Yuan, Ming, Tang, Song, or even earlier periods. Considering this, do you still think you can communicate with them normally?"

Qin Jiajia bit her lip, and the man's figure flashed through her mind again.

"Is he like that too?"

Li Yulan paused, and rarely turned back to glance at the expressions of her subordinates, her eyes behind the lenses full of depth.

"We still know too little about No. 25892 to determine his level of cultivation, and therefore, his origins. However, given his similar behavior to modern humans, we can't rule out the possibility that he may be a new cultivator who gained power through chance after entering the modern era."

"But no matter which one it is, you must always remember that cultivators are not on the same level as us, whether it's him or them getting off the bus."

The car suddenly braked, and the inertia caused Qin Jiajia to lean forward suddenly. She covered her forehead and turned to look. Outside the car window, there were several low buildings of two or three stories high. The walls were painted grayish white, and there were vans with white license plates parked around. At first glance, it looked like a hospital.

But which hospital would have a high-voltage electric fence outside and special police guarding the door?

Clang clang, someone was knocking gently outside the car. Li Yulan pressed a button in the front seat, and the windows on all sides rolled down. Four or five special police officers in black uniforms surrounded the car. All of them were burly with flesh on their faces. The sense of oppression seemed to penetrate the car.

"Please show your identification and accept inspection." The leading special police officer spoke in a voice as deep as a bell.

"Li Yulan, Class A Chief Commissioner of the Liangzhou Environmental Investigation and Defense Bureau's Intelligence Coordination Department. The person in the back seat is my colleague, Qin Jiajia, Class D Commissioner. I've already submitted an access request in the system."

Li Yulan naturally took out her ID from the car seat and handed it over. She then took two long yellow papers from the other person and handed one to Qin Jiajia: "Here, stick it on your forehead."

Qin Jiajia took the paper, her heart slightly moved. The paper felt surprisingly soft, more like cloth than paper. Several strange, cryptic symbols were scrawled on it in black ink, their meaning unclear.

She followed Li Yulan's instructions and stuck it on her forehead. The moment it touched her skin, strange fluctuations seemed to emanate from the paper. The black symbols seemed to come alive in an instant, and blue flames ignited out of thin air. Before she could scream, the paper had burned up in front of her eyes, leaving no trace of ash.

"The identity has been verified. The soul has also passed the spell test and there is no problem."

During this time, the special police outside had swiped their ID cards on the instrument and returned them to Li Yulan in the front seat. Qin Jiajia noticed that the muzzles of the guns in the hands of the special police around her were lowered, as if they had lifted the alert.

Does this mean that if I had shown any abnormality just now, they would have drawn their guns and shot me immediately?
Qin Jiajia was shocked by this discovery and broke into a cold sweat. She hadn't expected such stringent inspections to exist in China today. What kind of thing must be in that house behind to warrant such a high level of security?

"Could you please tell me why Director Li is here this time?" The leading special police officer asked Li Yulan, his tone seemed a little more relaxed than before.

"Of course, I bring the new employee here to learn." Li Yulan seemed to be joking, but her tone was far from relaxed. "If you want the new employee to truly understand the job, you have to bring her here to see it for herself."

"I see."

The SWAT nodded and glanced at Qin Jiajia in the back seat. For some reason, Qin Jiajia felt a hint of pity flash across his eyes.

She suddenly shuddered.

(End of this chapter)