Chapter 246: Spirit Transformation vs. Union Dao

Having received the answer he sought, Li Fan did not depart right away. Instead, he waited for the tuna's transformation to be completed.

A long while later, the tuna, now several times stronger in build, finally finished absorbing the vital essence from its kin. Content and satisfied, it shook its body and swam back into the depths of the ocean. It failed to notice, however, five dark figures silently approaching from the deep seabed.

Caught unawares, the tuna found itself encircled by the former fish kings. Five hideous and exceptionally ferocious fish launched successive attacks. Each of these fish kings possessed strength equal to or greater than the tuna's. Under their well-coordinated assault, the tuna quickly found itself in a desperate plight. Blood and flesh flew, and it lay on the verge of death.

Just then, Li Fan, hovering above the sea, projected a mass of vital energy downwards. This was the purest essence of flesh and blood, the result of his clone's continuous study of the human body's hidden potential over time. This mass of vital essence, derived from a cultivator at the peak of Foundation Establishment, was immensely powerful. For the tuna, it proved even more potent than the vital energy it had absorbed from its kin earlier.

Instantly, its injuries visibly healed. Furthermore, its physique became even more robust, surpassing its previous peak form. This unexpected turn of events stunned the encircling fish kings. Their assault involuntarily faltered.

Seizing this chance, the tuna, which had previously been in a desperate and passive defensive position, decisively launched a counterattack. Its ferocious body, imbued with overwhelming power, slammed violently into the fish king that had led the most aggressive attack. It moved with the speed of lightning, unstoppable. Its pointed snout pierced the fish king's abdomen, thrashing wildly. Dark crimson blood slowly rose to the surface. In that instant, the fish king perished.

The tuna, now with a bloodthirsty gaze, was about to turn its attention to the other fish kings. However, it discovered that the remaining four fish kings, sensing danger, had already made good their escape, each fleeing for its life.

The tuna, having narrowly escaped death, felt a sense of bewilderment. It drifted in the sea for a long time, unable to locate the source of the vital energy that had saved its life. Finally, it could only sway its body and swim deeper into the ocean.

Watching the tuna swim out of his sensory range, Li Fan offered a faint, enigmatic smile. He casually erased the traces left by the fish battle, then returned to Wanxian Island.

Within the Heavenly Profound Mirror, Li Fan focused his senses on his dantian. Within the true form, now resembling the Vast Sea Pearl, an ethereal miniature figure sat cross-legged. This miniature figure bore a strong resemblance to Li Fan.

"The Supreme Dao Sect's secret technique is truly profound. This Tribulation Body has already accumulated cultivation equivalent to five years of diligent practice," he mused. "It seems everyone has made significant progress during this period." Li Fan nodded to himself, satisfied.

The Tribulation Body was a method Li Fan discovered during his preparation phase, allowing him to store cultivation without breaking through his current realm. This secret technique, it is rumored, also originates from the *Primeval Grand Supremacy True Scripture*. In the ancient cultivation world, cultivators occasionally progressed too rapidly, leading to unstable foundations. In such cases, cultivators needed to actively suppress their realm and solidify their foundations. Different sects employed varying methods. The Supreme Dao Sect's approach was to create an illusory figure within the dantian to accommodate excess cultivation. As the Supreme Dao Sect considered an unstable foundation one of the tribulations of cultivation, this illusory figure, used to overcome such challenges, was thus named the Tribulation Body.

With the Tribulation Body, Li Fan no longer needed to worry about the cultivation feedback from the Mountain-Sitting Art overflowing. However, the secret technique did not specify if there was an upper limit to the cultivation the Tribulation Body could store. Therefore, Li Fan would need to personally test it to determine its full capabilities.

"This method of storing cultivation using the Tribulation Body seems remarkably similar to the purple pill within Zhang Qianmo of the Purple Firmament Sect," Li Fan thought. "Perhaps Zhang Qianmo previously relied on this to continually suppress his cultivation."

With these thoughts, Li Fan opened the "Sitting in Discussion" forum. Zhang Qianmo's combat record had already soared to 186 wins and 78 draws. Yet, no decisive winner had emerged. This left Li Fan feeling somewhat helpless. Meanwhile, "I Am Invincible," who had previously boasted about finding a method to defeat Zhang Qianmo, seemed to have vanished, never appearing again.

"Perhaps his method isn't fully prepared yet," Li Fan could only assume the best.

After a casual glance, Li Fan was about to log out when a particular headline caught his eye: "Dao Integration vs. Dao Integration: A Re-evaluation of the Tianling Continent War!"

His curiosity piqued, Li Fan instinctively clicked on it.

"Neither side has officially released the specific casualty figures for this battle. However, by simulating the conflict thousands of times, based on the identities of the sixteen Dao Integration experts involved, it's not difficult to draw a conclusion. There is an over 85% probability that the Myriad Immortals Alliance suffered defeat in this battle... Unless there's a hidden unparalleled expert among the accompanying Spirit Transformation cultivators, one comparable to a Dao Integration cultivator, otherwise..."

Li Fan was engrossed in reading when he suddenly noticed that the information had vanished.

"How quickly it was censored," Li Fan mused inwardly. "So, the Myriad Immortals Alliance's pursuit team truly possesses combat power comparable to the Dao Integration realm. Interesting."

In immortal cultivation, the higher one progresses, the greater the disparity between each realm. Qi Refining cultivators can kill Foundation Establishment; Foundation Establishment can slaughter Golden Core; Golden Core can slay Nascent Soul. Peerless geniuses, relying on their innate talent and divine abilities, might achieve this. However, for a Nascent Soul cultivator to kill a Spirit Transformation, or a Spirit Transformation to slay a Dao Integration cultivator... it's almost an impossible feat. Of course, the specific case of a "tool" like Zhang Haobo is an exception. As for a Dao Integration cultivator eradicating a Longevity Immortal... then the word "almost" must be removed.

"A Spirit Transformation cultivator comparable to Dao Integration... the Myriad Immortals Alliance truly has profound resources," Li Fan thought. "I wonder if I'll be able to contend with a Dao Integration Immortal Venerable when I reach the Spirit Transformation realm. Even if I can't defeat them, I imagine preserving my life shouldn't be an issue."

Li Fan mused idly for a moment. Seeing no further information of interest in the "Sitting in Discussion" forum, he logged out.

After a major conflict, a period of recuperation is necessary. For three years, spanning years 17, 18, and 19, the Cloud Sea remained peaceful and uneventful. Li Fan, too, had the rare opportunity to enjoy an extended period of secluded cultivation. Over these three years, the Tribulation Body's ethereal form became increasingly vivid and lifelike. He had completely studied and mastered all the clone jade slips provided by Zhang Zhiliang. The second Dao Transformation Stone had also been fully absorbed. The performance of the blue crystal in his mind had nearly doubled, making Li Fan's ability to multitask even more effortless.

As for the *Heavenly Medical Immortal Scripture*, it proved to be truly vast and profound. Even after several years, Li Fan had only managed to grasp a negligible portion of it. However, Li Fan was not concerned; he had ample time.

After visiting Zhang Zhiliang and passing the Spirit-Sensing Orb's test, Li Fan received the second clone jade slip from him. As he was about to leave, Li Fan vaguely sensed that Zhang Zhiliang's demeanor seemed subtly different from before. It seemed some inexplicable change had occurred within him.