Chapter 1372: Hidden Secrets of the Ghost Prison

"The Myriad Immortals Alliance truly devours people without leaving a trace!" Kou Hong's eyes turned bloodshot, and he felt an unbearable, piercing pain as he thought of the more than seventy thousand contribution points he had painstakingly accumulated, now completely gone.

"How could we have been so foolish as to choose to join the Myriad Immortals Alliance?" Dao Xuanzi, who was usually the calmer of the two, also found his composure shattered.

"We'll join the Council of Five Elders! We will make the Myriad Immortals Alliance pay!"

Having reached a consensus, the two left the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Celestial City and quietly set off towards the territory of the Council of Five Elders.

However, they had forgotten one crucial fact.

Although the Myriad Immortals Alliance publicly stated that it did not restrict the personal freedom of its members and even allowed them to change their minds, withdraw, and join the Council of Five Elders, this was not entirely true.

Everything gained within the Alliance, however, had to be returned.

Thus, as soon as the two showed signs of defection, a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Protector Hall pursued them.

Sensing the powerful aura behind them, Kou Hong and Dao Xuanzi's expressions subtly changed.

Even though they accelerated, the vast difference in cultivation levels, like a chasm between heaven and earth, was impossible to bridge. Soon, their pursuer blocked their path.

"I don't care if you want to join the Council of Five Elders," the Protector said. "However, the two Core Formation cultivation techniques you exchanged for must be returned."

"Yes, one is the Thousand Dragon Transformation, and the other is the Thought Restoration Sword Art," the Nascent Soul Protector stated calmly.

Upon hearing this, Kou Hong nearly spat blood. His body trembling, he pointed and cursed furiously, "What kind of nonsense is this?! Our contribution points vanished without reason, and no one cared. And now, even the cultivation techniques we painstakingly earned with those points are to be taken back?"

The Nascent Soul Protector sneered, "All Alliance cultivation techniques belong to the Alliance. You merely exchanged for the right to use them. Now that you're clearly defecting to the Council of Five Elders, do you expect us to let you aid our enemies? Allowing you to live is already an act of mercy from the Alliance!"

Kou Hong cried out in indignation. The pent-up frustration in his chest exploded, and he violently spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Blazing Dragon's Fury!"

A crimson horned dragon instantly manifested in the sky. Flames blazed, intensely hot, coiling around the Nascent Soul Protector.

With a shared purpose, Kou Hong launched his attack decisively, and Dao Xuanzi did not hesitate either.

With a flicker of thought, over thirty transparent, decaying sword shadows, seemingly from different eras, suddenly appeared in the sky.

The sword shadows whistled, even causing the surrounding space to feel ancient and frozen.

The Nascent Soul Protector raised an eyebrow slightly, seemingly surprised that the two could display such formidable power.

"What a pity," he mused inwardly. "The rules of the Alliance cannot be broken."

Facing the combined assault of Kou Hong and Dao Xuanzi, the Nascent Soul Protector merely scoffed.

In the sky, a void-realm projection, resembling a colossal black sun, suddenly appeared.

The crimson flames of the blazing horned dragon instantly extinguished, and the thirty-plus sword shadows could no longer maintain their balance. All of them uncontrollably flew towards the black void-realm circle in the sky.

They vanished into the void-realm, leaving no ripple behind.

The gap between the Core Formation realm and the Nascent Soul realm was simply too immense. Although Kou Hong and Dao Xuanzi had some luck, they were ultimately just ordinary cultivators in the world, with no extraordinary encounters that could bridge such a disparity.

"Since you remain stubborn, don't blame me, Chu, for showing no quarter."

The black circular void-realm was about to descend, intending to completely suppress the two brothers.

Under the overwhelming might of the Nascent Soul realm, both of them were completely immobilized, unable to move. They could only watch helplessly as death approached.

At that moment, a look of grim determination flashed in Dao Xuanzi's eyes.

"Dao Xuan!"

A crisp, cold shout suddenly rang out. A rusted longsword appeared before Dao Xuanzi, its tip pointing directly at the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Nascent Soul Protector.

A hint of surprise flickered in the Nascent Soul Protector's eyes.

Countless points of light instantly surged from Dao Xuanzi's body. Like myriad stars scattered across the sky, they shimmered for a moment before collectively flying towards the Dao Xuan Sword.

The myriad light points repaired the decaying longsword.

At this moment, Dao Xuanzi and the Dao Xuan Sword became one!

The peerless divine weapon from ancient times finally revealed its true form.

"Run!" Dao Xuanzi's words echoed in Kou Hong's ears.

Then, Kou Hong saw a brilliant sword light, seemingly cleaving heaven and earth apart.

Amidst a tremendous roar, the black circular void-realm emitted a faint white glow and disintegrated inch by inch.

Yet, the Dao Xuan Sword's momentum remained undiminished.

In its final moments, it continued to fly towards the direction of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Celestial City.

"Dao Xuanzi!"

With the Nascent Soul void-realm broken, Kou Hong regained his ability to move. His eyes filled with tears, and his heart was consumed by grief. He knew Dao Xuanzi had sacrificed his life to save him.

After the Nascent Soul Protector's sudden death, the Myriad Immortals Alliance would undoubtedly dispatch even stronger pursuers.

Kou Hong knew it was unwise to linger there. He quickly wiped away his tears and sped towards the Council of Five Elders' territory.

"Myriad Immortals Alliance..." Kou Hong gnashed his teeth in silent fury.

"Just you wait!"

"I must become stronger! I must have my revenge!"

The flames of vengeance burned fiercely in Kou Hong's eyes. Just as he was about to reach the boundary line...

A streak of light suddenly appeared from the horizon, passing straight through Kou Hong's body.

Kou Hong opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately, no words escaped him. His head flew off, and blood gushed forth.

Only then did the light reveal its true form: a longsword like flowing water.

A single sword strike beheaded him!

A young cultivator, clad in the black attire of the Protector Hall, slowly materialized.

"Unable to deal with two mere Core Formation cultivators, truly useless. They deserved to die!" The young cultivator spat, then turned away from Kou Hong's corpse.

"Strange, where did that longsword go? And the inexplicable disappearance of the contribution points... Perhaps it truly was a conspiracy by the Council of Five Elders." Murmuring to himself, the young cultivator vanished.

Much later, Kou Hong's head, which had rolled onto the ground, its eyes wide open and staring blankly in death, met its fate.

Like grains of sand, it was scattered by the wind.

Only a dragon-shaped twig, nestled between his brows, remained.

Li Fan's figure quietly appeared.

He beckoned, and the dragon-shaped twig flew into his hand.

Faintly, an endless, unwilling roar could be heard emanating from the twig.

Li Fan frowned slightly, waiting and observing Huan Zhen's reaction.

After a moment, he sighed softly, "It doesn't have such a strong appetite for consumption."

"It seems I thought too simply."

"However, this wisp of remnant thought crystal is not useless."

Thinking this, Li Fan forcibly fed it to Huan Zhen.

The dragon-shaped twig in his hand slowly vanished.

Simultaneously, a series of blurry images rapidly flashed through Li Fan's mind.

"This is..."

Li Fan's brows furrowed.

Undoubtedly, these fleeting scenes were generated after Huan Zhen consumed Kou Hong's remnant thoughts.

Although Kou Hong's remnant thoughts hadn't met the criteria to form an eternal remnant thought, they were just barely qualified enough to serve as food for Huan Zhen.

In the past, whenever Huan Zhen consumed eternal remnant thoughts, new functions would emerge.

What was the meaning of these fleeting images that appeared during this consumption?

The flashback images were as fleeting as inspiration. Even for Li Fan, capturing them was not an easy task.

Standing rooted to the spot, savoring the moments for a long time, Li Fan finally began to understand.

His expression was inexplicable. "It seems these are things I experienced before this current life?"

"What does this mean?"

Li Fan was somewhat bewildered, but instinctively, a faint unease welled up in his heart.

Yet, no matter how much he pondered, he couldn't pinpoint the source of this unease.

He could only temporarily store it in his mind.

As if calming down, an incredibly bright longsword appeared in Li Fan's hand.

It was none other than the Dao Xuan Sword, formed from Dao Xuanzi's desperate, final strike.

Li Fan, naturally, wasn't overly concerned with its power, barely capable of slaying a Nascent Soul cultivator. What truly interested him was the origin of this Dao Xuan Sword.

He felt a familiar aura emanating from the sword.

Once, Li Fan had absorbed the rusted Dao Xuan Sword, which had transformed into a heavenly artifact. However, due to absorption and erosion by the world, the Dao Xuan Sword had become vastly different from its original state. Thus, even when Li Fan later encountered things related to it, he couldn't recall its origin.

However, in this life, perhaps due to prolonged nurturing, and Dao Xuanzi's innate, perfect compatibility with the Dao Xuan Sword, he was able to restore it to its original, perfect state despite only being at the Core Formation realm.

"So, it's a relic of the Heavenly Sword Sect."

Li Fan's tone was somewhat wistful. With a casual flick of his finger, the Laws of Profound Yellow Sword Dao transformed into glowing threads, pouring into the Dao Xuan Sword, which was in a highly unstable state, on the verge of shattering at any moment.

The sword body gradually stabilized, and Li Fan further reinforced it using array refining techniques.

Finally, this ancient Dao Xuan Sword was reborn. Its power undiminished, it was even greater than before.

The Heavenly Sword Sect, once one of the Ten Great Immortal Sects, had long since departed the realm.

Only a pile of broken sword fragments remained in the Sword Mound ruins.

"The Heavenly Sword Sect..."

Li Fan had once tried to use the 'Manifestation Sigil' to reveal connections through these fragmented swords, hoping to determine if the Heavenly Sword Sect had successfully escaped back then.

Unfortunately, under the cover of the Manifestation Sigil, all the broken swords did emit light, but every single one pointed towards the wooden sword, the Heavenly Oddity, in the center of the Sword Mound.

Now, this revived Heavenly Sword Sect's Dao Xuan Sword gave Li Fan a new idea.

Silently, the Manifestation Sigil was invoked.

It enveloped the newly reborn Dao Xuan Sword.

From the Dao Xuan Sword, three streaks of light instantly shot out.

The thickest one, like a dragon emerging from water, flew towards the sky, then scattered in all directions, vanishing into the world.

Another streak flew towards Li Fan.

The last one, also the most subtle, drifted towards a certain location within the Xuanhuang Realm.

"Hmm?"

This immediately caught Li Fan's attention.

"Could it be that descendants of the Heavenly Sword Sect still exist within the Xuanhuang Realm?"

Li Fan's interest was piqued. He floated up and swiftly pursued the Manifestation Sigil's light.

The Manifestation Sigil reveals the connections between all things, and only the caster, or someone deeply knowledgeable about the True Immortal's Sigil Manifestation, can perceive these connections.

Therefore, he wasn't worried that this anomaly would attract attention from others.

Following the wisp of light, Li Fan arrived at a place he had never before considered.

The Myriad Immortals Alliance's Gloom Prison!

Having once disguised himself and infiltrated it, the prison's restrictions were effectively nonexistent for Li Fan.

Seeing the light rapidly drifting downwards, Li Fan followed it into the Gloom Prison.

His expression became somewhat subtle.

This was because he saw that the connecting light landed precisely on the cultivator suppressed in the deepest part of the Gloom Prison!

"Strange..."

Li Fan had long known that such a figure was suppressed beneath the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Gloom Prison.

And when he had first seen him, he had faintly felt a sense of familiarity.

Now, connecting it with the Dao Xuan Sword's behavior under the Manifestation Sigil, Li Fan finally confirmed his previous suspicions.

"A descendant of the Heavenly Sword Sect?"

The suppressed cultivator's facial features bore a striking resemblance to Situ Yao, the former senior disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect.

However, the suppressed cultivator was now like a skeleton, making it difficult to discern much more than a vague outline.

Furthermore, with many similar-looking individuals in the world, Li Fan couldn't be entirely certain.

But now, his judgment could be confirmed.

"It seems I should still trust my intuition."

"A descendant of Situ Yao? Interesting. I recall that this senior disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect seemed to have no offspring before the sect departed?"

"Could it be..."

Li Fan's heart immediately trembled with shock.

He was about to rescue him and question him thoroughly.

However, upon closer observation, Li Fan discovered that the method used to suppress this descendant of the Heavenly Sword Sect appeared to be the work of Tian Yi himself.

Had he not secretly learned techniques from the illusion array in this life, Li Fan would not have recognized it!

"Without a specific unsealing method, forcibly breaking it would definitely attract Tian Yi's attention."

"This world's Xuanhuang Realm's ascension has reached its final critical moment..."

If this were earlier, Li Fan would surely have waited for the next life, returning only after his strength had surged.

But precisely because Li Fan had previously glimpsed Tian Yi's secrets within the illusion array, he did not give up immediately.

Instead, he attempted to decipher the seal.

It was even easier than he had anticipated.

It seemed Tian Yi hadn't attached too much importance to this person, as the seal applied wasn't overly complex.

It primarily involved draining and suppressing the spiritual power within his body.

After some effort, Li Fan finally undid the seal.

To avoid causing an uproar in the Myriad Immortals Alliance, he also set up an illusion, creating the false impression that the individual was still suppressed.

Li Fan quietly led the emaciated descendant of the Heavenly Sword Sect out of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Gloom Prison.

Arriving at a desolate, uninhabited place, Li Fan was about to ask questions.

However, a golden light flashed in his hand, and the person instantly broke free from Li Fan's restraint.

Transforming into a streak of golden light, he fled towards the horizon.

In the blink of an eye, he had vanished from sight.

This act greatly exceeded Li Fan's expectations, but instead of surprise, joy welled up in his heart.

Although the Heavenly Sword Sect descendant was fast, how could he possibly outpace Li Fan?

The wooden sword's phantom unsheathed, and in the next instant, Li Fan had already caught up.

With a swing of his palm, he trapped the person once again.

This time, no matter how the golden light twisted and turned, it could not escape.

For Li Fan had already set up an immortal array around them.

"Hmm?!"

The golden light ceased its futile attempts and revealed its form.

In a short time, he had recovered some vitality from his previous skeletal appearance.

He at least retained a human form, though he still appeared somewhat fragile.

"Thank you, Senior, for saving my life."

The person said cautiously, cupping his hands.

"Why did you try to escape?" Li Fan asked coldly.

"I was imprisoned for too long... the moment I had a chance, I couldn't help but flee," the other party explained with a wry smile.

Hearing this, Li Fan didn't bother to ask further questions.

Immediately, he pressed his left hand against the person, intending to use soul-searching techniques directly.

The person stiffened as if struck by lightning, his already emaciated body trembling like chaff.

Countless images flooded Li Fan's mind.

However, Li Fan's brows furrowed deeply.

The soul-searching proceeded smoothly, but...

He found no information about the Heavenly Sword Sect in his memories.