Ascending from the mortal realm to become an immortal begins with taking charge of a grotto-heaven.

"I hope everything goes well."

After silently muttering a sentence to himself, Zhang Li controlled the Black Shadow Boat and headed towards Yunyang County.

Qingzhou has six prefectures. Yunyang and Bailu prefectures are places of low spiritual energy and are the main gathering places for ordinary people.

The sects are high above and naturally unwilling to deal with mundane matters, but they must maintain order in the two prefectures.

To facilitate the governance of the two prefectures, Emperor Qingxuan established a small court within the two prefectures, following the regulations of secular dynasties, and set up various levels of government offices to govern the two prefectures.

The Qingxuan Sect only sends its disciples to handle matters that the imperial court cannot resolve, such as monsters causing chaos or evil cultivators committing indiscriminate killings.

However, in order to facilitate the supervision of secular affairs, the sect set up a separate courtyard in the royal city, called Qingxuan Courtyard, with dedicated cultivators stationed there, firstly to protect the royal family, and secondly to patrol and supervise.

In his second task, he needed to transport supplies to the royal city to be delivered to the cultivators stationed in the detached courtyard.

……

On this day, the thick blue brick city wall of Tianshui County finally appeared on the distant horizon.

The high walls stretched for miles, and the official road below was bustling with carriages and horses. Merchants carrying loads and pedestrians were crowded together, and the noise could be clearly heard from miles away.

The murky, earthy atmosphere of human life rushed towards him, and the spiritual energy, so thin it was almost depleted, made Zhang Li, who was used to the spiritual energy environment of the sect, feel slightly uncomfortable.

"This is it."

Zhang Li controlled the shadowy figure to lower its altitude.

"A...a Celestial Master?"

The two constables outside the government office were stunned as they watched the small boat descend from the sky.

Only when the small boat slowly landed in front of the government office did one of the slightly bolder constables shakily run over. Upon reaching him, he knelt down with a "plop": "This humble servant greets the Immortal Master! I was unaware of your arrival and have failed to greet you properly. Please forgive me!"

Another constable quickly realized what was happening and hurriedly knelt down as well.

"Get up. I am Zhang Li, a disciple of the Qingxuan Sect, here to deal with the monster disturbance. Where is your magistrate?"

Zhang Li had no intention of making things difficult for the two men; he simply asked them to bring out the county magistrate.

The head constable hurriedly replied, "Reporting to the Immortal Master, the magistrate has been so worried about the demonic beasts wreaking havoc on the people that he has been unable to eat or sleep for days. He waits in the yamen every day for the sect's immortal master. I will go in and report immediately!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and stumbled into the government office.

The remaining constable stood to the side with his hands hanging down, his head bowed low, not even daring to steal a glance at Zhang Li.

A brief moment later, a flurry of footsteps echoed from inside the yamen. The magistrate, dressed in a blue official robe, rushed out. Upon seeing Zhang Li, he immediately straightened his clothes, clasped his hands, and bowed deeply, displaying utmost respect: "This humble official, Wang Huai'an, the magistrate of Tianshui County, greets the Immortal Master of Qingxuan Sect! Immortal Master has come from afar; why not come into the yamen and rest for a while?"

"No need. This matter is urgent, and Zhang has other things to attend to."

Zhang Li waved his hand and said.

He just wanted to complete the two tasks as soon as possible so he could return to the sect and continue deciphering the silver pages.

Seeing Zhang Li's calm demeanor and focus on his work, Wang Huai'an dared not be overly polite and quickly abandoned his desire to entertain a guest: "Immortal Master, you are truly virtuous! Recently, demonic beasts have been frequently descending from the western mountains outside the city, causing numerous casualties among the people. On behalf of all the people of the county, I thank you, Immortal Master."

Zhang Li nodded slightly: "Tell me in detail when the monsters appear, their activity range, and the locations of the villages where the casualties occurred."

Wang Huai'an quickly stepped aside and led Zhang Li to the stone table under the corridor. He turned and instructed the registrar beside him to bring out a map of the county town and spread it out. His fingertips landed on the continuous western mountain range to the west, and his brows furrowed.

"Reporting to the Immortal Master, the demonic beast began to appear frequently about a month ago. It usually comes down the mountain after nightfall and rarely shows itself during the day. Its activity range covers three villages at the foot of the western mountain: Lijia'ao, Shiqiao Village, and Linhe Village. Lijia'ao is closest to the foot of the mountain and is the first to suffer."

He lightly marked a few places on the drawing and continued, "Seventeen villagers have been killed and dozens more seriously injured. The monster has thick skin and moves swiftly. According to the villagers, the monster is ten feet tall and is a tiger demon with a body of black gold."

Zhang Li sat quietly by the stone table, listening to Magistrate Wang's story.

What the other party said was no different from the mission details he had obtained from the sect.

"Have all the villagers from the three villages been evacuated?" Zhang Li asked.

"They have all been evacuated. To prevent the demon tiger from moving, every day after dawn, people send livestock to several villages to prevent it from attacking other villages," Magistrate Wang replied truthfully.

"Well done," Zhang Li nodded.

Magistrate Wang said with a wry smile, "According to the county annals, mountain spirits and monsters have always been a common sight. We mortals can only do what we can. Our weapons cannot harm the monsters in the slightest. No matter how many arrangements we make, they are only temporary measures and will not solve the root problem. We can only rely on the immortal master to take action and eliminate this scourge."

Magistrate Wang's words are true; when faced with demonic beasts, mortals can only do their best and leave the rest to fate.

Living in a world where great power resides within oneself, the greatest misfortune is to become a mortal incapable of spiritual cultivation.

Zhang Li glanced at the sky and said calmly, "There are still several hours before nightfall. We can take advantage of the bright daylight to search for the demon tiger's lair in the mountains. Find two hunters familiar with the terrain of the Western Mountains to accompany me immediately."

It was still early, and he wanted to take the initiative and deal with the tiger demon as soon as possible.

Wang Huai'an quickly responded and turned to instruct the clerk beside him to immediately find the two most experienced old hunters in the mountains.

Before long, two hunters with dark skin and weathered faces hurried over. Upon seeing Zhang Li sitting by the rock, they immediately bowed and stammered, not daring to say a word.

"Master, these two are hunters from Lijia'ao, and they are very familiar with Xishan." Magistrate Wang quickly stepped forward to introduce them. "They have lived at the foot of the mountain for generations, and they know every ravine, treacherous place, and hidden cave in Xishan. They are perfect for leading the way into the mountain this time."

Upon hearing this, the two hunters immediately lowered their heads, their posture becoming even more respectful.

Having endured the ravages of demonic beasts, the destruction of their homes, and the suffering of their fellow villagers, their hearts were already filled with resentment. However, as mortals, they were powerless to resist. Now, seeing the arrival of the sect's immortal master, a glimmer of hope quietly ignited in their eyes.

Zhang Li stood up and put away the map on the table, his gaze sweeping over the two of them: "After we enter the mountains, you just need to lead the way, and I'll handle the rest. Don't worry, with me here, you won't have any problems."

The two hunters nodded repeatedly, their expressions a mixture of respect and fear.

Having found a hunter to guide them, Zhang Li wasted no more time. The three of them left Tianshui County and headed straight for the Western Hills.

Half an hour later, the three arrived at a village at the foot of West Mountain.

"Immortal Master, this is Lijia'ao."

One of the hunters pointed to the village ahead.

The air was thick with a faint stench of blood and the distinctive, malevolent aura of demonic beasts, proving that the black tiger demon had wreaked havoc here more than once.

Judging from the lingering aura in the village, this demonic tiger is probably not far from reaching the sixth level of Qi Refining in the Nine Miles Realm.

"What a vile beast!"

Zhang Li snorted coldly, turned around and asked, "Do you know the approximate location of the mountains and forests where it most often inhabits?"