Chapter 1080: Thousand Years Later Xu Ke

To Li Fan's surprise, those who had successfully passed the Oath of the Dharma Transmitters, though no longer holding primary administrative power, did not depart from the core of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's leadership. Instead, they were granted supervisory authority, serving as an additional arm of the Council of Dharma Transmitters. It appeared that after this incident, Jiang had recognized the internal issues within the Dharma Transmitters. Without proper checks and balances, further problems were bound to occur in the future.

"I wonder if Mo Rubing will ultimately pass the Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerate's trial."

"There's no harm in revealing some details of this trial illusion to the Myriad Immortals Alliance. After all, they now possess the means to enter it, and with their vast resources, they will eventually find suitable candidates for the illusion."

With this thought, Li Fan messaged Dharma Transmitter Zhou, relaying a general account of the illusion's first scene, where Ning Yuan acquired the Longevity Fruit. He did not, however, disclose that he had successfully completed the trial. Instead, he fabricated an account consistent with what would most likely happen during a first entry into the scenario. He claimed that while retrieving the Longevity Fruit, he was gravely wounded by Steward Song. Though he narrowly escaped death under the protection of Senior Brother Zhang, he fell into a coma, remaining disoriented day after day. Then, one night, he was inexplicably possessed and lost consciousness.

Shortly after, Dharma Transmitter Zhou replied earnestly, "The information you've provided, fellow daoist, is crucial. It will significantly aid our upcoming exploration of the illusion." As a token of gratitude, Dharma Transmitter Zhou, representing the Council of Dharma Transmitters, bestowed upon Li Fan an honorary position as a Senior Elder of the Myriad Immortals Alliance. The position carried no real power but granted unrestricted access to the Alliance headquarters and an authorization level only slightly below that of a Dharma Transmitter.

"However, fellow daoist, you cannot actually assume this Senior Elder role," Dharma Transmitter Zhou reminded him. "After all, to the other uninformed Dharma Transmitters, you were executed by Jiang for false accusation."

This nominal Senior Elder position was clearly an attempt to curry favor with the Myriad Realms Alliance, which they believed Li Fan represented. During the recent incident involving the Profound Heaven Sect's body-snatching, the Myriad Realms Alliance had demonstrated considerable power. They even seemed to hold many secrets unknown to the Myriad Immortals Alliance. Offering an honorary position to deepen their cooperative relationship was undoubtedly a worthwhile endeavor. What the Myriad Immortals Alliance likely never suspected, however, was that the supposed Myriad Realms Alliance was, in fact, merely Li Fan's personal creation.

During the year and more that Li Fan had been in secluded cultivation, everything within the Alliance had proceeded in an orderly fashion, steadily developing according to the established framework, with regular summaries and reports sent to Li Fan. He reviewed these messages one by one. What particularly caught Li Fan's eye was a report from the Empire. The location of Xu Ke's small world had finally been pinpointed! The description matched: a weathered old man, carrying a coffin on his back. He was exactly as Li Fan remembered.

Although the Imperial Daughter was immensely excited about locating her ancestor, she did not allow her emotions to override Li Fan's direct order not to meet Xu Ke without his explicit permission.

"Then I shall go meet him myself."

"I'm quite curious about Mr. Bai's contingency plan."

"Qinghui Prefecture."

Li Fan immediately set off for the destination.

"While transforming into a seven-colored divine light is incredibly swift, it pales in comparison to the Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerate's ability to arrive instantaneously with but a thought." In the trial illusion, he had only temporarily inhabited Mr. Bai's body. Yet, upon returning to reality, the stark contrast still left him with a subtle sense of disappointment. A faint feeling of regret even began to stir within him.

The instant this emotion emerged, Li Fan's mind grew sharp. He promptly activated the Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Chant, intending to dispel it. But the method, which had always been unfailingly effective, surprisingly failed him now.

"Hmph."

"In this Xuanhuang Realm, there is nothing worthy of my regret. Even immortal artifacts that transcend the mundane, I can cast aside like worn-out sandals!"

"Does a mere Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerate presume to unsettle my resolve?" The realization that after achieving his ultimate goal, everything he had ever lost could be regained, immediately steadied him. In an instant, those slightly discordant emotions within Li Fan's heart vanished.

"The Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Chant is why I stood apart from other cultivators from the moment I first entered the Fallen Immortals Realm."

"Even when it was still the Xuanhuang Heart Refining Chant, it likely became the unique identifier by which the Fallen Immortals Realm recognized me."

"Yet, when it concerned the Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerate, it inexplicably ceased to function. It seems that one can never fully trust things of unknown origin."

"Ultimately, everything still depends on oneself." A flicker of gloom passed through Li Fan's eyes.

"The Xuanhuang Heart Refining Chant..." Prior to this, Li Fan had never considered sharing this cultivation method with anyone else. Yet, this minor incident now served as a stark reminder.

"Passing it on to a suitable individual—whether to facilitate their inheritance of the Xuanhuang Great Heavenly Venerate's mantle, or to enable them to absorb immortal spiritual energy and bravely venture beyond the high wall—these are all promising ideas." Faces quickly flashed before Li Fan's eyes.

As he pondered suitable candidates, Li Fan arrived at Xu Ke's hidden location. "This place..."

"It appears to be formed from the remains of a demonic beast, much like Jiushan Prefecture."

At the entrance to the small world, Li Fan keenly detected a familiar aura. During the trial illusion, he had coexisted with numerous demonic beasts for over a decade, developing an instinctive understanding. Even back in reality, he could still identify the lingering traces of demonic beast aura in this place.

"This marks a true increase in my perception."

In mere moments, he deciphered and bypassed the array restrictions at the small world's entrance. Li Fan quietly stepped inside.

The Empire's intelligence proved accurate; this small world was indeed a desolate Gobi landscape. A hazy grayness stretched as far as the eye could see. Not far off, a towering stone mountain, seemingly connecting heaven and earth, was likely the sole significant landmark in this small world. Li Fan's gaze was immediately drawn to it. Xu Ke was located at the very peak of this stone mountain.

Li Fan attempted to fly toward it, but was surprised to discover he couldn't take flight. This wasn't a limitation of Li Fan's power, but rather a unique rule restriction imposed by this small world. While it wasn't impossible to forcibly ascend, it would mean being prepared to face the backlash of the small world's Heavenly Dao. Li Fan didn't wish to create such a tense atmosphere right from the outset.

Instead, he looked up, his gaze piercing through thousands of miles of distance, landing directly on Xu Ke at the mountain's summit. The white-haired elder, sensing his presence, also directed his gaze downwards. Their eyes met.

The next instant, Li Fan took a step. He didn't fly; instead, he tore through space, appearing directly beside Xu Ke. His expression remained calm, leaving only two slowly dissipating spatial rifts at his departure and arrival points.

"Fellow Daoist Xu Ke?" Li Fan spoke directly, identifying the white-haired elder by name.

Xu Ke, surprisingly, showed no surprise at Li Fan's sudden appearance. Instead, he asked directly, "Did you come to know me from the Fallen Immortals Realm?"

Li Fan's gaze sharpened at the question. His usual tactic of taking the initiative, which had never failed him, had surprisingly fallen flat this time.

(End of chapter)