Chapter 115: Mortal Law Thief

The perspective shifted.

Fierce winds roared, churning up enormous waves.

A faint glowing shield protected the island, trembling before the continuously crashing giant waves.

The spiritual energy between heaven and earth was also running wild, crashing around like frenzied beasts.

Wind. Endless wind, its origin unknown, raged between the sky and the sea.

This was a typical wind disaster scene in the Stratus Cloud Sea.

Amidst the howling hurricane, Zhang Haobo drifted up and down like duckweed on the wind.

Zhang Haobo had no aura about him. However, from the cosmic perspective, Li Fan faintly observed a unique spiritual energy rhythm gradually emerging from his body.

It seemed to imitate the ubiquitous "wind" between heaven and earth.

Zhang Haobo calmed his mind, closing his eyes in contemplation.

He did not open his eyes until the wind disaster gradually dissipated.

He sensed for a moment, then drifted off in a certain direction.

There were still no spiritual energy fluctuations, but his speed was extremely fast.

He truly seemed like a gentle breeze, softly sweeping across the world.

“This movement technique is impressive,” Li Fan nodded slightly.

“But what is he comprehending now? Wasn’t he looking for rare natural treasures to establish his foundation?”

Li Fan vaguely perceived that another wind disaster was brewing in the direction Zhang Haobo was heading.

Zhang Haobo was chasing the wind.

“Interesting…”

It seemed he had no immediate plans to establish his foundation.

Therefore, Li Fan’s attention largely returned to the Foundation Establishment Master.

More than ten days had passed since the last group of Qi Condensation cultivators successfully established their foundations and departed.

Based on past experience, at least one or two cultivators would arrive, drawn by reputation, every seven or eight days.

Now, over ten days had passed, and no one else had arrived.

This was somewhat abnormal.

Consequently, the three individuals on the island grew restless.

They gathered daily, discussing something unknown.

Li Fan, observing in secret, activated his Formless Killing Intent, locking onto the young man named Li Chenfeng, intending to discover their scheme.

On this day, the three once again conspired indoors.

Li Fan, with his Heaven's Sight and Earth's Hearing, had a complete view of the room's situation.

The Foundation Establishment Master looked somewhat anxious and uneasy. He glanced up again, growing somewhat panicked: “It’s back, that feeling is back!”

“Is it that serious, old man? Are you really that scared?” Li Chenfeng was somewhat puzzled, but his expression was grave.

The Foundation Establishment Master shook his head: “You don’t understand. Although my cultivation is capped at the late Foundation Establishment stage, I’ve observed hundreds of cultivators successfully establish their foundations, making me incredibly sensitive to the fluctuations of natural laws.”

“I can’t be wrong. This feeling of being spied upon…”

“It must be some powerful being watching this place…” The Foundation Establishment Master’s wrinkled face subtly paled.

“Once or twice might have been an accidental glance, but this has happened many times now. Is this a warning? Or…” The more the Foundation Establishment Master thought about it, the more frightened he became.

“Enough, stop scaring yourself! If the truth had truly been exposed, someone would have already come to eliminate us all!” Li Chenfeng impatiently slapped the table, calming their nerves.

“Besides, this secret room has a Life-Death Formation that isolates divine sense. How could it be so easily discovered?”

“However, old man, your concerns are not unfounded,” Li Chenfeng said, changing his tone.

“Our principle has always been to not stay in one place for too long; make a quick profit and then leave. It’s just that the Stratus Cloud Sea region is vast, and the number of cultivators establishing their foundations each year is quite substantial, which is why we’ve stayed here for so long.”

“Our original plan was to stay for another seven or eight years before leaving. But now, it seems our substantial profits have certainly attracted unwanted attention.”

Li Chenfeng calmly analyzed: “Since that’s the case, we might as well withdraw sooner. Pack our things, and we’ll depart tomorrow morning. Next, we’ll head north to Yongliang Province. That’s the territory of the Five Elders’ Association; once we’re there, even if the Myriad Immortal Alliance wants to cause us trouble, it won’t be so easy for them.”

The man named Xiao echoed: “Indeed. Once there, we’ll change our appearances and repeat our old tricks.”

Li Chenfeng suddenly lowered his voice, asking softly: “Old man, how much more do we need before we can exchange for the ‘Sea-Swallowing Longevity Art’?”

The Foundation Establishment Master’s eyes narrowed: “Soon. If we’re careful and continue for another fifty-something years, we should be able to exchange for it.”

The man named Xiao sighed with emotion: “It’s truly not easy. Elder Zhu, you’ve been away from home for nearly a hundred years, haven’t you?”

Elder Zhu also sighed deeply: “Indeed. Back then, I went through immense hardships to break through the Immortal Severance Grand Array and arrive in the cultivation world. It has been over ninety-eight years since then.”

Li Chenfeng said gravely: “A True Dao Merging Art is, of course, no small matter. To be able to exchange for it in just over a hundred years is already a great fortune.”

Elder Zhu looked somewhat ashamed: “It’s thanks to your ingenuity, Master Li, that you came up with such a good method. One year of this surpasses what I earned in ten years previously.”

The man named Xiao also praised him repeatedly.

Li Chenfeng showed no trace of complacency on his face, instead stating solemnly: “The closer we get to success, the more cautious we must be. A century-long plan, countless sacrifices—it must not be ruined by us.”

Elder Zhu’s expression also grew serious: “Master Li is right.”

The man named Xiao whispered: “As long as we can bring this ‘Sea-Swallowing Longevity Art’ back, all the sacrifices will have been worth it.”

Li Chenfeng, however, sighed: “I wonder how many Rift Whales have been cultivated over the years. At that time, the Empress predicted that a pod of one hundred thousand Rift Whales, acting in concert, would be needed to counteract the cultivation world’s suction on our homeland. Thirty years ago, when I left home, the pod only numbered a little over seventy thousand.”

“Thirty years, thirty thousand…”

“It’s difficult!” Li Chenfeng shook his head.

Elder Zhu comforted him: “If the number of Rift Whales isn’t enough, we can cultivate more gradually later. As long as we bring the True Dao Merging Art back, we can help the Empress subdue those other wavering factions.”

“At that time, with the full might of the empire, we will surely be able to push for the empire’s complete secession from this cultivation world within ten years.”

“And with the Dao lineage established by the ‘Sea-Swallowing Longevity Art,’ the restriction against cultivating different immortal arts simultaneously will be gone.”

“More and more cultivators will emerge within the empire.”

“The future of the empire is bright!”

Elder Zhu’s words caused both Li Chenfeng and the man named Xiao to fall into a beautiful vision of the future.

After a long pause, the three clasped their hands tightly together.

“For the Empire, for the Empress!”

Boundless fervor appeared on their faces as they spoke in unison.

“Empire, law-stealers, secession from the cultivation world…” Li Fan watched this scene from afar in the secret room, an unreadable expression in his eyes.

“It seems that not all the small worlds and grotto-heavens to which mortals migrated back then were entirely devoid of spiritual energy, like Da Xuan.”

“Or perhaps they were indeed like that initially. However, several millennia are enough time for changes to occur.”

“To be able to cultivate and command one hundred thousand Rift Whales…”

“This so-called Empire is not weak. I just wonder what methods they employ.”