Chapter 1006: Sealing Fate and Drawing the Dao Foundation

Pretending nothing had happened, he put away the nine disassociation discs.

Li Fan then inquired about Mo Rubing's cooperation with Cang, the Mirror Keeper.

“That fellow Cang is quite interesting. If you hadn’t told me beforehand, I really wouldn't have noticed that he had already become a slave to the Profound Sky Treasure Mirror,” Mo Rubing said, shaking his head slightly.

“However, with his covert cooperation, the plan to persuade the Myriad Immortals Alliance to construct the grand formation and completely control the Profound Sky Treasure Mirror has proceeded much more smoothly.”

“But the most crucial part still depends on you, Brother Xingwang. The formation that can help the Profound Sky Mirror break free from the Transmitting Dharma Heavenly Venerate's confinement…”

“Are you truly confident?” Mo Rubing asked, a hint of doubt in his voice.

Li Fan did not immediately give his assurance.

Instead, after a moment of thoughtful silence, he slowly replied, “It shouldn't be a major issue. This little item you just gave me does seem much more powerful than the previous Lifeless Formation Crown.”

“However, to be safe, if possible, you should try to gather more information about the restrictions left behind by the Transmitting Dharma Heavenly Venerate.”

Considering this reasonable, Mo Rubing immediately agreed.

“Oh, by the way, I recently encountered something that might interest you.” The two exchanged a few more details to be mindful of during their future plans. Just before they parted ways, Mo Rubing suddenly added.

“Oh?” Li Fan paused.

“Didn’t you previously dispatch a million thought-demons to possess the bodies of many cultivators and cause a great commotion?” Mo Rubing asked eagerly.

“Huh?” Li Fan, however, feigned a look of confusion, as if he had completely forgotten about it.

It was only after Mo Rubing’s explanation that he pretended to nod, looking as though he was slowly recalling it.

“The consciousnesses of these cultivators were all destroyed, leaving only their bodies. However, since their existence was tied to the operation of the Grand Floating Starry Sky Formation, they couldn’t be directly executed. So, at that time, all of them were imprisoned.”

“The original plan was to keep this group of cultivators alive in body but without consciousness indefinitely. But after our discussions, we concluded that a million was still too large a number. After all, many of them were cultivators above the Nascent Soul realm, and as long as they lived, they occupied grotto-heavens and resources like the 'Transformation of Life.' This meant that the normal number of cultivators in the Xuanhuang Realm would forever be reduced in the future.”

“Therefore, after much deliberation, we decided to only keep fifty thousand, to be sealed forever.”

“As for the remaining five hundred thousand…” Mo Rubing paused slightly at the crucial point.

“All killed? No, I didn’t detect any tremor in the Xuanhuang Realm,” Li Fan responded cooperatively.

A look of interest appeared in Mo Rubing’s eyes: “The Myriad Immortals Alliance has actually mastered a technique that can re-extract the grotto-heavens, the ‘Transformation of Life,’ and even the 'Souls of Heaven and Earth' from a cultivator’s body, returning them to the heavens and earth!”

“Hmm?” Li Fan’s eyes gleamed upon hearing this. “How is that different from a cultivator’s resources naturally returning to the heavens after their demise?”

Mo Rubing explained, “When a cultivator dies and their resources return to the heavens, it takes many years for them to be re-conceived within the world. Furthermore, those grotto-heavens and 'Souls of Heaven and Earth' also undergo corresponding changes during the world’s operation.”

“However, the Myriad Immortals Alliance’s technique, named ‘Seal of Mandate,’ is different. Within half a day at most, the heaven and earth resources absorbed by a cultivator are extracted intact and returned to the Xuanhuang world.”

“Although it’s referred to as returning to the heavens, it’s actually different from natural evolution. The most crucial aspect is that the Myriad Immortals Alliance has prepared a new placement location for these extracted heaven and earth resources.”

Mo Rubing’s tone held a hint of admiration, clearly impressed by this ingenious idea: “This location is within the 'Essence-Devouring White Mist' at the intersection of the Immortal Alliance’s four central states. It’s intimately connected yet somewhat detached from the Xuanhuang Realm. It still falls under the Xuanhuang Realm’s Heavenly Dao’s control, but after modifications, the Myriad Immortals Alliance can gain greater control authority.”

“You mean these extracted and stored heaven and earth resources can be reactivated at any time?” Li Fan pondered, then showed a slight startle.

Because the implications behind this were truly terrifying.

“Precisely. This means that as long as the Myriad Immortals Alliance wishes, they can quickly use these resources to re-create a team of cultivators. However, that’s not the main point; the Myriad Immortals Alliance has many other ways to achieve the same result.”

“More importantly, the Myriad Immortals Alliance can continuously expand this domain. Then, they can gradually collect all the parts absorbed by cultivators across the world into it.” The scenario Mo Rubing described was chilling.

“Consider the consequences if this plan were successfully executed. By then, even cultivating immortality might require the Myriad Immortals Alliance’s permission. The Alliance wouldn’t even need ordinary cultivators to sustain the Xuanhuang Realm’s existence. Most likely, they would convert large numbers of cultivators into mortals…”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…”

“The Myriad Immortals Alliance actually possesses such a method,” Li Fan’s expression also darkened.

“Haha, Brother, you don’t need to worry too much. Under the advisement of Transmitting Dharma Master Jiang and more than half of the other Transmitting Dharma Masters, the use of this ‘Seal of Mandate’ technique has been strictly restricted. After all, it's too dangerous; if not properly controlled, it could lead to a future of cultivation monopoly,” Mo Rubing quickly reassured him.

“In my opinion, Transmitting Dharma Master Jiang is quite good. He truly considers the well-being of all cultivators. As for the other Transmitting Dharma Masters who hold opposing views, I believe it's mostly due to concerns about the Five Elders’ Council. After all, if the number of cultivators truly becomes too small, in an all-out war with the Five Elders’ Council, the combat power provided by only Venerable Phantasm would likely not be enough to contend with them,” Mo Rubing analyzed.

“As for the one who developed the ‘Seal of Mandate’ technique… Transmitting Dharma Master Zheng, he is quite dissatisfied with the resolutions of the Transmitting Dharma Masters’ Council. This fellow, having held power for too long, already believes that there’s no need for cultivators in the world at all; it would be better if everyone turned into ordinary mortals, like swine. Hehehe…”

“But he’s merely relying on the might of the Transmitted Dharma. If I ever encounter Transmitting Dharma Master Zheng…” A strange glint flashed in Li Fan’s eyes.

“Brother Xingwang, you must not be careless. This Transmitting Dharma Master Zheng does possess some genuine talent and knowledge. After all, he was able to research such an evil art as the ‘Seal of Mandate’…” Mo Rubing warned him with a somewhat serious tone. “You haven’t seen the tragic state of those cultivators when they were subjected to the Seal of Mandate.”

Mo Rubing sighed, “Even with my experience, it was difficult to witness. And this was when they were already in a state of unconsciousness. If a cultivator’s divine consciousness were still present, and the Seal of Mandate were still performed…”

“It would probably surpass all tortures throughout history!”

Mo Rubing concluded with a sigh.