Chapter 1173: Hidden Mysteries of the Lost Sea

Although he had decided to seek information about the Grand Power of the Star Sea from this other surviving civilization, the Holy Embryo Li Fan did not rashly approach them directly.

After all, he had traversed more than half of the Darkest Star Sea. To resist the erosion of the strange void black spot disease, he had continuously cut away at his spirit, severely weakening his strength. If he failed to gather information and was inadvertently captured by them, wouldn't that be a huge joke?

"Since a civilization can survive here, there must also be methods to avoid the various strange erosions in the void. I will first lie low, slowly recover my strength, and then make my plans." In an instant, the Holy Embryo Li Fan had formulated his strategy.

First, he pointed to the center of his brows, setting up a restriction within his already frail spirit. If anything went wrong, he could self-destruct, his spirit dissipating in an instant. Only then did Li Fan conceal his form and begin exploring this ocean of relics.

He did not follow the shadowy figure from earlier, fearing it might be a trap to lure him in. Instead, the Holy Embryo Li Fan chose a different direction and proceeded to explore deeper.

"The void is full of dangers. If cultivators are hidden, they must be protected by formations and restrictions. I just need to find these auras, and I can follow the clues. My formation skills are generations ahead of those in the Xuanhuang Realm, so I should be unrivalled here." This was Li Fan's initial thought.

However, after searching the ocean of relics for over ten days, he found no traces of any civilization, such as formations. He couldn't even detect a hint of life. This made the Holy Embryo Li Fan wonder if the shadowy figure he had encountered earlier was just his imagination.

But he did not give up easily. Like a patient hunter, he remained hidden in the shadows, waiting for his prey to appear. Another seventeen days passed, and finally, he had a breakthrough.

A team of three cultivators appeared, clad in strange armor, moving back-to-back with extreme caution. The way they appeared was quite unexpected for Li Fan.

The positions of the silent relics, floating motionlessly in the void, shifted, and then a passage appeared out of nowhere. After the three exited, the silent relics returned to their original positions, and the passage entrance closed.

Li Fan narrowed his eyes, surveying his surroundings and taking in all the cultivator relics nearby. A moment later, he had an epiphany.

"Brilliant! It's not an isolated formation, but one built upon and transformed from these naturally floating relics, almost completely integrated with the surrounding environment."

"More importantly..."

The Holy Embryo Li Fan slowly approached these floating relics.

"These objects, from a shattered cultivation world, are more or less imbued with the power of True Immortal Seal Characters. This creates a natural defense that largely shields them from cultivators' spiritual senses. That's why I searched so diligently yet still couldn't find their hidden location..." Li Fan instantly understood.

In fact, the formation's sophistication was ordinary. However, after incorporating the power of the True Immortal Seal Characters that caused the destruction of various realms, its complexity suddenly elevated by more than one level. Even with Li Fan's current formation skills, there was no easy way to break it.

Of course, if he ignored the potential side effects of the relics and wanted to forcefully break the formation, he could still do it. However, that would go against his plan of lying low and gathering information.

Li Fan looked at the entrance to the hidden passage and ultimately abandoned the idea of forcing his way in. Instead, he followed behind the three, observing carefully all the way.

Apart from their strange armor, the three cultivators looked no different from people of the Xuanhuang Realm. Their current expedition seemed to be for gathering supplies in this ocean of relics.

However, the items they sought seemed odd to Li Fan. They appeared to have no commonalities; from fragments of magical treasures to pieces of architectural ruins, and even some dried cultivator bones, all were targets for their collection.

Instead of placing them directly into storage rings, they used a black rope to tie them together and drag them behind them.

"This scene..." Li Fan was slightly startled. It reminded him of Transmission using golden chains to transport world fragments in the void.

"Could there be a connection between these?"

After half a day, when the relics tied behind them numbered over twenty, the three cultivators seemed to have a disagreement. However, under the leadership of the one in charge, they ultimately abandoned the search for the day.

Taking their collected materials, they turned and flew towards the passage entrance. Seeing this, Li Fan quietly followed them.

The range of these three cultivators' excursions seemed limited; they did not venture far from their hiding place. Soon, they arrived back at the hidden passage.

One of the cultivators' armor suddenly began to flash with rhythmic bursts of light. Li Fan sensed a wonderful rhythmic fluctuation emanating from the armor.

As if triggering a mechanism, the surrounding silent relics rapidly shifted positions, and a circular entrance quietly appeared.

The three cultivators collectively pulled the more than twenty items and flew inside. Li Fan, concealed, also intended to follow them in.

He did not expect that just as he reached the passage entrance, a piercing alarm suddenly blared. Li Fan's heart skipped a beat. He attached a piece of his pre-prepared spiritual projection to one of the items. His main body, however, rapidly retreated into the distance.

Because of the spiritual projection, the alarm did not cease with the Holy Embryo Li Fan's departure. The three cultivators nervously scanned their surroundings. Finding no signs of external intrusion, they turned their attention to the items they had collected.

After a brief discussion, they separated the items and tried to pass them through one by one. Eventually, they found the item to which Li Fan's spiritual projection was attached.

Instead of destroying it, they forcefully hurled it into the depths of the ocean of relics. The source of the threat vanished, and the warning sound ceased. Only then did the three turn and go back inside.

Not far away, watching the passage entrance slowly close, Li Fan ultimately decided against forcing his way in.

"Interesting, their warning system actually detected me." His eyes gleamed as he approached the discarded relic.

"Indeed, something is unusual. On the surface, the influence of the True Immortal Seal Characters remains. But in reality, the attached power is minimal."

"All this time, my frail spiritual projection hasn't suffered any harm..." Retrieving his spiritual projection back into his body, Li Fan casually picked up the relic and examined it closely once more.

It appeared to be a command flag magical treasure, but the flag itself had decayed, leaving only a bare flagpole. Its spiritual essence was completely lost; it could no longer perform its original abilities.

"Why are they collecting these things?"