Chapter 465: Heaven's Fate Conceals Human Destiny

Guo Yezhong was a man deeply devoted to the art of formations.

His mind was unconventional, often producing peculiar and imaginative ideas. He also loved to drink, and after a night of heavy drinking, he would often share seemingly unrealistic fantasies from his mind with his friends.

His friends mostly dismissed these as drunken ramblings, often just laughing them off.

Not long ago, Guo Yezhong once again got utterly drunk.

He recounted to his friends a vision he had once seen in a dream: the Sky Profound appeared in the heavens, like a vast spiderweb, enveloping the land and locking all living beings within its grasp.

Because the vision was too bizarre, none of his friends took him seriously this time either; they all just treated it as a joke.

In fact, after Guo Yezhong sobered up, they even mocked him about it.

To everyone's surprise, Guo Yezhong's expression immediately changed upon hearing this. After warning his friends not to speak carelessly, he turned and left abruptly.

For several days after that, he stayed indoors, refusing all visitors.

Then, suddenly, they heard him declare that he had a vague realization and needed to go out to seek an opportunity to break through to the Golden Core realm.

He never returned.

A few days later, a strange celestial phenomenon occurred, guiding others to discover his body.

"Bad alcohol truly is dangerous!" Li Fan murmured with a sigh, then fell into deep thought.

Did the Myriad Immortals Alliance kill him to prevent a leak?

For the Myriad Immortals Alliance, which urgently needed talent in formation arts, this was entirely unnecessary.

A single conscription order could have easily made him dedicate himself to the construction of the Sky Profound Spirit-Locking Formation. There was no need for such extreme measures.

"Then the remaining possibility is that the Five Elders Council took action."

"After I revealed the news about the Sky Profound Spirit-Locking Formation and the unification of the Xuanhuang Realm to the Five Elders Council, they would undoubtedly try every possible means to investigate related information."

"However, due to the Myriad Immortals Alliance's extremely strict secrecy, they gained little."

"That is, until they discovered that a seemingly insignificant Foundation Establishment cultivator had, while drunk, openly spoken about a vision related to the Sky Profound Spirit-Locking Formation."

"And so, misfortune befell Guo Yezhong..."

Li Fan stroked his chin, deducing the possible course of events.

"Although Guo Yezhong possessed extraordinary talent in formation arts, he likely didn't know much about the Sky Profound Spirit-Locking Formation itself. At best, he only had a vague concept of it."

"The Five Elders Council's research into formations is no less profound than that of the Myriad Immortals Alliance. With Guo Yezhong as a catalyst, it's hard to say what the ultimate outcome will be."

"In this life, the Myriad Immortals Alliance's efforts concerning the Sky Profound Spirit-Locking Formation are on an even larger scale than in the previous life."

"It's almost certain that, under the struggle between both sides, the Sky Profound Spirit-Locking Formation will either not come into existence."

"Or it will evolve into something even more terrifying than it was in the previous life."

"I can only hope the Five Elders Council puts up a good fight. If it comes down to it, I can also lend them a hand when necessary."

Li Fan pondered for a while longer, recalling the structural diagram of the Spirit-Locking Formation.

Only after a long time did he manage to suppress the distracting thoughts in his mind.

Most cultivators in the Myriad Immortals Alliance, however, remained completely unaware of this major event that could influence the future historical trajectory of the Xuanhuang Realm.

For them, life remained as peaceful as ever, no different from usual.

Their daily routine involved completing missions, accumulating contribution points, exchanging them for cultivation techniques and necessary resources, and cultivating in seclusion.

Occasionally, they would take a moment to relax and enjoy themselves.

This was their everyday life.

The usual topics of idle chatter among cultivators were nothing more than which young genius had achieved a breakthrough, or who had stumbled upon a stroke of luck and found a cultivation technique in a sect ruin.

This year, however, one name became a constant topic of conversation.

Li Fan, the cultivator from the Heavenly Mechanism Sect.

He had accurately predicted the surge in price of the Puxian True Leaf.

Although most participants in that event ultimately suffered heavy losses, making them intensely resentful of Li Fan.

They had no doubts, however, about Li Fan's deductive abilities.

Moreover, it was unclear when a group of cultivators began to fanatically praise Li Fan's art of deduction.

They solemnly swore that Li Fan's deductive art was miraculously divine, no less skillful than that of the long-established masters within the Myriad Immortals Alliance.

It was as if, besides the Puxian True Leaf incident, Li Fan had other significant achievements.

But when pressed for details, this group would all fall silent.

They would display an expression that dared others to believe or not.

If it were merely about being good at deduction, Li Fan, the cultivator from the ancient Heavenly Mechanism Sect, would not have incited such enthusiastic discussion.

The fundamental reason for this, however, was that Li Fan could lead people to wealth.

Everyone knew clearly that He Zhenghao from Congyun Sea had collected contribution points, entrusted them to Li Fan for management, and they were returned with principal and interest a year later.

Although it superficially resembled a confidence trick, with his "exceptionally skilled deduction" ability as an endorsement, it all seemed real again.

How difficult it was to accumulate contribution points! And how tempting was a fifty percent profit in a single year!

Unable to resist the temptation, cultivators continuously sought out He Zhenghao, wanting to join the next investment plan.

The sheer number of cultivators coming to inquire even startled He Zhenghao, who prided himself on having seen much of the world.

He spent his days hiding within Glass Island's protective formation, afraid to go out.

Only after he contacted Li Fan and received his approval did he finally feel relieved.

At Li Fan's suggestion, he issued a statement.

Because too many cultivators were seeking to invest, exceeding Li Fan's capacity to manage, he was forced to make a reluctant decision.

For this investment, he would accept contribution points from a maximum of five hundred cultivators.

They would be accepted in descending order based on the amount of contribution points they were willing to contribute.

As soon as the news was released, cultivators cursed inwardly.

Most of them hesitated for a moment before ultimately choosing to give up.

However, a small group still chose to cast a vote of confidence in Li Fan with their contribution points.

After the competitive mechanism was introduced, the contribution points collected for the third round surprisingly swelled to over fifteen million.

This amounted to an average of over thirty thousand per person.

And this was despite everyone holding back somewhat, adopting a "wait and see" attitude.

He Zhenghao's hands went numb from collecting so many points, and his face was beaming with smiles.

This was because Li Fan, seeing his hard work, had promised him one percent of the profits as a reward.

As a result, he worked even harder.

He even continuously urged the investing cultivators to put in even more of their personal wealth.

While Li Fan, this "great swindler," was frantically accumulating wealth, the Empire's "Foundation Establishment Master" was not idle either.

Although the ten million contribution points Li Fan gifted them allowed these "Law-Stealers" to complete their tasks ahead of schedule.

However, to prepare fully for a complete decoupling from the Xuanhuang Realm in the future, the Law-Stealers still continued their efforts, earning contribution points through various means, exchanging them for a wide array of resources, and quietly transporting them back to the Empire.

One day, a special guest arrived on the island.

"After saving for so long, it should be enough."

"With this renowned Foundation Establishment Master's help, I'm certain I can successfully break through to the Foundation Establishment realm this time."

"By then, my fate will be in my own hands, not dictated by heaven! Though the cultivation world is vast, I, Han Yi, will be free to go anywhere!"

A somewhat fanatical and dishevelled young man stood in front of the Foundation Establishment Master's small courtyard, murmuring softly to himself.