Chapter 319: Breaking the Formation and Dispersing the Disc

“Xu Ke!”

Song Yang’s exasperated and somewhat desperate voice faintly drifted up from below. Xu Ke, having narrowly escaped death, looked back to ensure Song Yang wouldn't pursue him. After a long while, seeing no sign of the other party, he couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"Xiao Qing, thank you!" Xu Ke said to the Azure Luan, familiarly stroking its neck. The Azure Luan, still flying, let out a soft cry in response.

Meanwhile, Li Fan, having used two innate divine abilities consecutively, was severely drained. He had also been relentlessly pursued, keeping his mind highly strung. Now, suddenly relaxed, he immediately fell into a deep sleep. With that sleep, his time limit in the Immortal Vanishing Realm expired. When he regained consciousness, he had already returned to the Cultivation World.

Reflecting on his somewhat anticlimactic journey to the Beast Taming Sect in the Immortal Vanishing Realm, Li Fan couldn't help but exclaim, "That's it?" Unlike his previous possession of Li Chen from the Purple Cloud Sect, where he had independent self-awareness and could act freely, this time his starting point was extremely low—just a hatchling emerging from an egg. He could barely accomplish anything, spending his days mostly eating and drinking. Even with rapid growth over two months, his strength increase was limited. The Foundation Establishment stage was already his limit. In the ancient Cultivation World, this level of cultivation was practically at the bottom. Even if he wanted to do something, he was powerless.

"Could it be that I need to manifest my true form to act freely?""Or perhaps..."Unlike the hazy thoughts he experienced while possessing the Mysterious Bird, Li Fan quickly recalled how Ye Feipeng, who possessed Kunpeng vital blood, had cultivated the Creation Furnace Art to refine and activate his Kunpeng bloodline."Perhaps this Creation Furnace Art's method of accessing internal hidden treasures has a miraculous effect on exotic beasts," he mused. "It's worth trying.""Hmm... there's no rush. I'll see what changes occur when I enter again next time."

Since traces of the mysterious Mr. Bai had appeared in both Ningyuan City and the Beast Taming Sect, Li Fan deduced that the scenario within the Beast Taming Sect was undoubtedly similar to Ningyuan City: one could not escape without fulfilling certain conditions. It seemed to be a perpetual cycle. There was no need to dwell on whether this was true or not; he would know upon his next entry. He sensed the time limit: the restrictions would disappear in about half a year. By then, he should have finished his affairs in Tianyu Prefecture and would be heading to Tianyun Prefecture.

"However, Ji Hongdao might not let me leave so easily.""According to the original plan, students from each prefecture would return to their hometowns after completing their training to oversee the construction of the Heaven-Mystic Spirit Locking Array.""But now that the Congyun Sea has disappeared, I wonder what arrangements will be made for me.""Furthermore, I have one more matter to attend to before leaving Tianyu Prefecture."

Li Fan left his secluded cultivation chamber and went to the room containing the Heaven-Mystic Mirror, where he began searching for information regarding the reward offered by Exalted Master Jicheng. The opportunity to use the Derivation Jade was incredibly precious, and no one wanted to miss it. During this period, the prices of longevity-extending spiritual treasures, already exceedingly rare, soared even higher. They were virtually priceless, often requiring high-level cultivation techniques or unique treasures to acquire. There were rumors that a cultivator had discovered an Immortality Fruit in a certain ruin. It was said that this fruit was refined by ancient cultivators using immortal seeds and could extend one's lifespan by five hundred years. Previously, it had only been mentioned in scattered references in ancient texts, but now an actual one had appeared. To avoid any complications, this fortunate cultivator had already presented the Immortality Fruit to Exalted Master Jicheng. He now remained hidden within the Heaven-Mystic Mirror space, unwilling to venture out, simply waiting for the appointed time to claim his opportunity to use the Derivation Jade.

"My Incarnation Longevity Fruit also extends life by three hundred years.""I wonder if it can rank among the top three.""Initially, I was quite confident, but the Profound Yellow Realm has a long history, and there are too many hidden treasures. It's normal for something even more valuable than the Longevity Fruit to appear with such a high reward.""Once the results are announced, if it doesn't work out this life, I can investigate the origins of the top three to plan ahead for the next life.""However, preparations need to be made in advance."

His previous clone had been destroyed by Mo Sha along with the Congyun Sea. The reward offered by Exalted Master Jicheng was a matter of immense public attention. Stepping forward voluntarily into the spotlight was not Li Fan's way of doing things. To be safe, Li Fan decided to create a clone to claim the reward. After all, if the clone learned the cultivation technique, it meant his true self would also master it.

"A clone created by the Heaven-Stealing and Sun-Shifting Art will be one minor realm lower than the main body.""To explain the origin of the Longevity Fruit, the clone must at least be able to enter the Golden Core realm in the Immortal Vanishing Realm. This means I need to cultivate to the mid-Golden Core realm as soon as possible.""Relying solely on my own cultivation might be a bit difficult. The new crops haven't been planted yet, so I can only hope Xiao Heng provides more cultivation feedback.""It's been a while since Su Xiaomei and the others disappeared into the Chaoyuan Sect ruins. Although she seemed to vanish from the world during this time, giving me no cultivation feedback, I can sense through the faint connection of the Mountain-Sitting Art that Su Xiaomei and Zhang Haobo are still alive. They should bring me some surprises when they emerge."

Not placing all his hopes on others, Li Fan resumed his cultivation after a short rest. Time flew by. Soon, all final assessments for the Heaven-Mystic Spirit Locking Array were concluded. Once the results were out, Ji Hongdao sent word for all students who had been out to return to the Universal Villa. Gathered together once more, everyone felt a touch of nervousness.

Ji Hongdao smiled slightly, not rushing to announce the results. Instead, he first introduced the previously mentioned reward for top performers in the assessment. Taking out a jade disc, he said, "This is the little item that has made me envious.""Or rather, every formation master, once they know its function, will be unable to put it down.""Why don't you all guess what it's for?"

Li Fan carefully scrutinized the jade disc in Ji Hongdao's hand, finding it somewhat familiar. After a moment's thought, he quickly realized what it was. This object bore a seven-tenths resemblance to the "Formation-Breaking Disc" he had seen before. A Formation-Breaking Disc was a magical artifact that could analyze the structure of a formation without destroying it, thereby providing formation masters with reference solutions for breaking formations."Could it be that this item is an advanced version of the Formation-Breaking Disc?" Li Fan couldn't help but wonder.

Clearly, Li Fan was not the only one who thought so. Many students stared intently at the jade disc, their expressions excited."It seems you've already guessed, so I won't keep you in suspense," Ji Hongdao said, stroking the jade disc with a touch of emotion. "The function of this item is indeed somewhat similar to a Formation-Breaking Disc.""However, it is far more powerful than a Formation-Breaking Disc.""The original Formation-Breaking Discs comprised a set of one thousand and eighty.""But this small jade disc, by itself, can break formations several times faster than an entire set of Formation-Breaking Discs.""That's because it is one of the Heaven-Mystic Mirror's newly born secondary bodies.""There are nine of them in total.""We have named them the Disintegration Discs."