Chapter 1076: Tianshu Sect Secret Treasury

Given the greedy nature of cultivators in the Xuanhuang Realm, even if immortal artifacts couldn't be used, they would never hand them over. Instead, they would seal them deep within their sect's treasuries, guarding them strictly, hoping for a day when these artifacts' powers could be awakened.

"Let's see where the nearest immortal artifact is..."

"The Desolate God Seal, Tian Shu Sect."

The Desolate God Seal was the supreme treasure of the now-extinct Desolate God Sect. Its wielder could communicate with the immortal realm and summon ancient Desolate Gods. In the memories of the Heavenly Dao of the Xuanhuang Realm, which Mr. Bai inherited, Li Fan witnessed the terrifying scenes of Desolate Gods descending.

From a massive vortex in the sky, a golden eyeball suddenly emerged. Under the gaze of the Desolate God, the land of the Xuanhuang Realm cracked inch by inch, then turned to nothingness. It had a similar destructive power to an Immortal Ruins immortal wiping out the world with a single glance.

The Desolate God Sect once summoned twelve different Desolate Gods, destroying countless hostile sects and shaking the ancient Xuanhuang Realm. Unfortunately, fewer and fewer Desolate Gods responded later, until eventually, there was no response at all. Without the deterrent of descending Desolate Gods, the Desolate God Sect was soon besieged by its enemies and tragically wiped out.

As for Tian Shu Sect, it was one of the former Ten Immortal Sects. However, very little information about it remained for later generations. Li Fan only vaguely knew that this sect was the closest immortal sect to the Grand Master Tiandu. Most of its disciples considered themselves true inheritors of the immortal path and were exceedingly arrogant.

After roughly understanding the relevant information, Li Fan—now the Grand Heavenly Venerable of Xuanhuang—had a thought, and instantly arrived within Tian Shu Courtyard, a vital area of the Tian Shu Sect. In the blink of an eye, he had traversed hundreds of thousands of miles, bypassing all of Tian Shu Sect's formations and restrictions, arriving directly at its most core, secret area.

"Is this the power of the Grand Heavenly Venerable of Xuanhuang?"

Li Fan looked at his hands, feeling a surge of excitement. He felt that the spiritual energy within him was almost boundless; even if he used any divine ability, it wouldn't diminish in the slightest. Moreover, when a divine ability manifested specifically within the Xuanhuang Realm, it would naturally be amplified to the maximum extent the heavens and earth allowed.

All worldly spells, as long as they originated from the Xuanhuang Realm, could be instantly seen through and posed no threat to him.

"It's even stronger than my control over the Spiritwood Realm!"

"After all, one was active cooperation, and the other was forceful coercion."

Amidst a slight sigh, Li Fan slowly grew accustomed to the authority of the Grand Heavenly Venerable of Xuanhuang. He then strolled through Tian Shu Courtyard, heading towards a shrine-like building deep within its center. An unknown energy shrouded it, making it the only "blind spot" in the entire Tian Shu Sect for the Grand Heavenly Venerable of Xuanhuang. The Tian Shu Sect cultivators guarding the shrine couldn't perceive Li Fan's presence at all. This was true even when Li Fan walked right past them.

"This is..."

In front of the shrine, Li Fan's steps paused slightly. He detected a power signature that seemed somewhat familiar. It wasn't familiar to Mr. Bai's body, but rather to Li Fan's true self.

"Grand Master Tiandu."

A wave of instinctive revulsion suddenly surged within him. It was a disgusting feeling, like finding cockroaches in one's kitchen, causing Li Fan's brow to furrow immediately. However, he quickly composed himself.

His form like water, he passed through the invisible barrier and entered the shrine. Inside the shrine, two stone statues, one large and one small, were enshrined. The larger statue had its eyes closed, slightly lowered, with a solemn expression. The smaller statue was a boy, standing respectfully behind it.

"This large statue is the figure that preaches by itself in Tiandu. However, based on the information I collected earlier, it's very likely that the boy standing behind the figure is the true Grand Master Tiandu." Li Fan's gaze involuntarily fell upon the boy statue. In a trance, he seemed to traverse countless spaces, arriving in a magnificent metropolis suspended in the sky. His mind jolted, and the illusion vanished. Looking at the boy statue again, he felt a slight stinging sensation in his eyes.

"Hmph," Li Fan snorted, suppressing the urge to smash the statues to pieces. He then searched around for the hidden treasury. Without much effort, he discovered a hidden restriction behind the two statues. After breaking through the restriction, Li Fan was able to enter the Tian Shu Sect's treasury.

Unlike the imagined scene filled with dazzling treasures, the Tian Shu Sect's treasury was, surprisingly, somewhat simple, so much so that Li Fan almost wondered if he had come to the wrong place. On a long reddish-purple table, a stone seal, a wooden box, and a scroll were arranged in order. There was nothing else. The stone seal was, of course, Li Fan's goal: the immortal artifact, the Desolate God Seal. Even though it was still in a sealed state, Li Fan could faintly sense a thrilling, ancient primordial aura emanating from it.

As for the adjacent wooden box and scroll, their placement alongside the immortal artifact Desolate God Seal was enough to prove their extraordinary nature. If it were Mr. Bai, he would naturally just take the Desolate God Seal and leave quickly. But Li Fan was not one to return empty-handed from a treasure mountain. Even if this was an illusory realm of the Fallen Immortal Realm, and he couldn't bring the treasures back to reality, it was still good to broaden his horizons and feast his eyes.

Li Fan first carefully examined the wooden box. He sharply perceived that some living creature seemed to be imprisoned within it, subtly and continuously trembling at a very low frequency and amplitude. The aura inadvertently emitted outwards with each tremor made Li Fan, now the Grand Heavenly Venerable of Xuanhuang, faintly feel a sense of danger. What was even stranger was that the creature in the wooden box seemed to also sense Li Fan's presence outside. Its tremors became more urgent. It seemed to be tempting and urging Li Fan to open the wooden box.

Faint, inexplicable rustling sounds appeared in his ears, while various illusions simultaneously arose before his eyes. Li Fan pondered for a long time, and finally, with immense willpower, forcefully suppressed the impulse in his mind. It was at this moment that Li Fan was startled to realize that the Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Mantra, which used to activate automatically whenever he awakened his self-awareness, even in the Fallen Immortal Illusion Realm, had somehow become ineffective! Without the blessing of the Immortal Heart Mantra, resisting the temptation relied entirely on Li Fan's own willpower. It was fortunate that he had experienced many reincarnations, gaining vast knowledge and extraordinary resolve. Otherwise, he might have lost control on the spot and opened the wooden box.

Li Fan forcefully shifted his gaze to the scroll. The auditory and visual hallucinations caused by the wooden box immediately subsided. "This wooden box is quite sinister. I wonder if it still exists in the Xuanhuang Realm today." In stark contrast to the wooden box's strangeness, the scroll emitted an aura of absolute sanctity and orthodox immortal dao. Not only was there no warning, but it also spontaneously evoked a sense of closeness.

"Hmm? It seems I've seen this scroll somewhere before?" Li Fan searched through Mr. Bai's incomplete memories. Fortunately, a somewhat blurry image instantly flashed in his mind.