Celestial Taoist

Chapter 44 Training Mission

In the new recruit camp of the Heavenly Punishment World, Li Mofan returned to his room. After completing the replacement of the core of the magic array, he did not dare to linger for a moment on the way and went straight back to the Heavenly Punishment World.

Since Han Li went to great lengths to save him, she certainly wouldn't lie about these things. However, if he couldn't leave the Taoist area, the quality and quantity of the tasks he could receive would inevitably be greatly reduced compared to before.

After a short rest, Li Mofan opened the Heavenly Punishment System's task interface and specifically selected the "Taoist Area Restricted" tasks. All the originally dazzling array of high-level cross-realm tasks and secret realm tasks disappeared.

His mind stirred slightly as he browsed through the tasks one by one, feeling somewhat helpless. Most of these tasks were tedious chores with meager rewards. Each task only yielded a few dozen or a hundred Heavenly Coins, at most a little over two hundred, which was less than a fraction of what he had earned from the tasks he had previously accepted.

Li Mofan frowned, but he had no other choice. He dared not leave the Taoist area rashly, so he could only choose the more efficient errand tasks from among these. In the end, he selected two tasks: one was a long-term waiter task at a large hotel, which only accepted waiters at the Foundation Establishment stage or above. Li Mofan guessed that this was probably a high-end hotel, and the reward for this waiter task was quite generous, a full two hundred Tianfa coins per day. The second was to be someone's sparring partner for five hours, but the task description stated that the person being sparred with was no more than level 20. He was confident that he could handle it, and this task also had the highest reward in the Taoist area, two hundred and fifty Tianfa coins.

After accepting the mission, Li Mofan got up and headed to the teleportation area of ​​the recruit camp. Neither of these missions were within the scope of the Heavenly Dao Legion. When he found that there were almost no missions within the Heavenly Dao Legion, he couldn't help but click his tongue. Were all the Heavenly Dao Legion members poor? They couldn't even accept a mission that was closer to home.

The teleportation array glowed beneath his feet, and pale blue spiritual energy, carried by a gentle breeze, instantly engulfed Li Mofan's figure. In just a few breaths, the feeling of weightlessness subsided, and he found himself standing at the eastern teleportation point of the Daoist region, Dutian Territory. Dutian Territory was the domain of the legendary Daoist Dutian Venerable. Compared to the desolation of the recruit camp, it had a more lively atmosphere. Low-lying houses lined both sides of the jade-paved streets, clearly indicating a market-like place, with most of the passersby being low-ranking Daoists.

Following the coordinates provided by the system, Li Mofan quickly traversed the streets and alleys, soon arriving at a courtyard built of jade. The words "Eastern Training Ground" were projected onto the gate, and the sounds of clashing weapons and shouts from young people could be faintly heard from within. He stepped forward, and the sounds instantly ceased, replaced by a clear, youthful voice: "Are you the sparring partner? Come in!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the metal gate swung open automatically, revealing a courtyard. The courtyard was paved with smooth bluestone slabs, and on either side were basic training tools such as wooden swords and qi-training stances. Seven young men and women dressed in light blue training clothes stood together, their gazes all fixed on Li Mofan. The boy in the lead was about fifteen or sixteen years old, with a hint of arrogance in his eyes. He had a short sword at his waist, and his aura wasn't particularly strong. Li Mofan's gaze swept over him, and he recognized him as Lin Xiaoyan, the person in charge of the mission.

"You're the sparring partner the system matched you with? You don't look like much. Can you really withstand our attacks?" Lin Xiaoyan stepped forward, looking Li Mofan up and down, her tone tinged with doubt. The boys behind him nodded in agreement, their eyes full of probing, clearly not taking this seemingly ordinary sparring partner seriously.

Li Mofan smiled faintly, offering no explanation. He simply raised his hand, circulating the spiritual power of his Dao Foundation Realm, and revealed his golden Dao Foundation: "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I'll just parry and defend, and incidentally teach you a few techniques for generating power. I guarantee you'll gain something from it."

Seeing that he was actually a Dao Foundation Realm Daoist, Lin Xiaoyan's suspicion lessened somewhat. She waved to her companions behind her and said, "Then we won't hold back! Let's take turns attacking, don't hold back, and see just how skilled this senior really is!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the girl on the far right rushed forward, wielding a black wooden sword. Her steps were slightly hurried, and the wooden sword whistled as it aimed straight for Li Mofan's heart, her move carrying a hint of ruthlessness. Li Mofan did not move, but merely turned slightly to the side, lightly touching the spine of the wooden sword with his finger. The girl instantly dropped the wooden sword, staggered back two steps before regaining her balance, her face flushed with astonishment.

"You exerted too much force, your wrist was unsteady, and your power dissipated." Li Mofan picked up the wooden sword and handed it to her, his tone calm. "When you draw your sword, you should lower your shoulders and elbows, and let your spiritual power flow from your arm to the tip of the sword. Don't rush things." The girl quickly took the wooden sword and tried it according to his method. Sure enough, she felt much smoother, and her eyes showed more respect for Li Mofan.

Next, several teenagers took turns attacking, but Li Mofan easily neutralized their attacks. While parrying, he patiently offered guidance. Although Li Mofan hadn't been cultivating for very long, his Dao Foundation Realm cultivation made guiding these young people, who were only around level ten, a piece of cake. He could easily point out the flaws in their moves, explain the key to exerting force, and occasionally demonstrate a modified basic move or two, which enlightened the teenagers.

Being the sparring partners for these teenagers was relatively easy. There were four boys and three girls in total. Unlike Li Mofan's hometown, where early dating was forbidden, he quickly discovered that these people had already paired up as a boy and a girl. Their eyes and subtle interactions revealed the unique awkwardness of young boys and girls. Only Lin Xiaoyan, the boy who first met him, did not have a girl with him. He was also the one among the seven who asked Li Mofan for advice on moves the most frequently and in the most detail.

Lin Xiaoyan repeatedly stepped forward to ask for advice, his arrogant demeanor concealing a hint of melancholy. Occasionally, he would steal glances at his companions, who were chatting and laughing in pairs. Li Mofan's heart stirred, and he inexplicably thought of himself in high school.

Back then, he was just like Lin Xiaoyan—not exactly introverted, just a bit reserved, and mostly kept to himself. During breaks, while others gathered to chat and share anecdotes, he would either be hunched over his desk doing practice problems or staring out the window in a daze. On the way home from school, his classmates would walk side by side, whispering their secrets, while he walked silently behind, keeping all his thoughts to himself. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but pay even more attention to Lin Xiaoyan's request for help.

The five-hour sparring session ended quickly. Li Mofan received 250 Tianfa coins from the system and prepared to leave.

"Senior, wait a moment!" A clear voice suddenly rang out. Lin Xiaoyan quickly stepped forward and blocked Li Mofan's path. There was a hint of unease in her eyes. "Senior, you are the best sparring partner I have ever hired. You are much more attentive than the other sparring partners matched by the system, and the moves you teach are also very easy to understand."

As he spoke, he raised his hand to bring up the interface of the Heavenly Punishment System and handed it to Li Mofan. His tone was filled with anticipation, yet also concealed a hint of barely perceptible nervousness: "Could you add me as a system friend? In the future, if I want to find a sparring partner, I won't go through the system anymore; I'll contact you directly privately. I can add a little more to the system price for the fee. Is that alright?"

Li Mofan looked at the young man before him without hesitation, brought up his system interface, and added him with a thought. "Okay, just contact me if you need anything in the future."

Seeing that he agreed, Lin Xiaoyan smiled instantly and nodded quickly: "Thank you, senior! Then I won't take up any more of your time. I'll let you know in advance next time I'll spar with you!" Li Mofan nodded slightly, turned around and flew out of the courtyard gate.