Chapter 485: The First Law Bearer

The other person's initially friendly demeanor shifted slightly when Li Fan posed the question.

"Haha, fellow Daoist, you must have misheard," he quickly said, waving his hand as if to dismiss the notion. "I know nothing about any initial place of enlightenment!" He looked as if Li Fan had come to the wrong person.

Without waiting for Li Fan to respond, he immediately fled into the distance. His speed was surprisingly even greater than that of an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator.

Having finally encountered someone knowledgeable, Li Fan had no intention of letting the lead vanish. He quickly followed, not too closely, but keeping a discreet distance behind. He continuously sent a telepathic message: "Fellow Daoist, please don't misunderstand, I mean no harm. I'm simply very interested in what you mentioned earlier."

The person ahead offered no reply; instead, he accelerated even further, attempting to lose Li Fan. Li Fan, however, remained hot on his heels, persistently trying to persuade him.

It was only after more than half a day, when the other person realized he couldn't escape Li Fan, that he finally slowed to a stop. He glanced around, confirming they were alone, his expression fluctuating with indecision. After a moment's hesitation, he finally whispered, "This is not the place to talk. Follow me, fellow Daoist!"

Li Fan smiled faintly, cupped his hands, and replied, "In that case, I thank you in advance, fellow Daoist!"

He followed the person westward for hundreds of miles, eventually diving beneath the sea. They arrived at a structure resembling a crystal palace. Inviting Li Fan to sit in a room deep within his abode, the other man sighed softly. "It wasn't that I was unwilling to tell you earlier; I was truly afraid of bringing trouble upon myself by speaking."

"May I know your name, fellow Daoist?" Li Fan nodded, not pressing for details immediately, but first asking for his name.

"I am Sima Changkong!" As he spoke, with a wave of his hand, a servant with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a fish surprisingly appeared. After pouring two cups of tea for them, the servant bowed and withdrew.

Li Fan couldn't help but cast a glance at the servant.

"Merely a beast-kin, a personal preference; I apologize for amusing you, fellow Daoist," Sima Changkong said, taking a small sip of tea without changing his expression.

"Beast-kin..." Li Fan's eyes gleamed. The half-human, half-beast skeletons once discovered in Mr. Bai's basement in Ningyuan City had also been referred to as "beast-kin" by Senior Brother Zhang. He had thought them extinct, yet here they were.

However, Li Fan harbored no thoughts of injustice; he simply nodded slightly and steered the conversation back to its original purpose.

"You are Fellow Daoist Zhou, aren't you?" Sima Changkong instantly recognized the identity of Li Fan's displayed avatar. "Now that we're in my private residence, you can speak freely."

"Do you know why the Myriad Immortals Island is called the Myriad Immortals Island?" Sima Changkong asked.

Li Fan had long harbored a similar question. This was because all other Heavenly Cities in various prefectures were named after their respective prefectures. For instance, Daoyuan City, Shilin City, and Tianyun City. Yet, the stronghold of the Cloud Sea was not called Cloud City or Cloud Island, but rather Myriad Immortals Island. He had thoroughly searched historical records but found no unique information, so for a long time, he had simply assumed it was a conventional name. Now, it seemed there was a hidden secret behind it.

"I'm all ears," Li Fan said, his expression serious as he listened attentively.

"Long ago, when this area of the Cloud Sea was still a vast plain, there was a large lake. Within that lake lay an island. It was here, in ancient times, that the Heavenly Venerate of Dharma Transmission first preached to humanity. At that time, tens of thousands of cultivators and mortals gathered here, eagerly listening to the Immortal Venerate's teachings. Ultimately, they all comprehended the Heavenly Venerate's immortal methods, thus forming the initial bedrock of the Myriad Immortals Alliance," Sima Changkong narrated slowly.

"Perhaps due to the Heavenly Venerate's blessings, even as mountains shifted and seas turned into fields over millennia, this island never altered its form. Thousands of years later, when the current Myriad Immortals Alliance was established and selecting the location for their state capital, they chose this island out of reverence for the Heavenly Venerate of Dharma Transmission. To a certain extent, it's no exaggeration to call this island the very origin of the Myriad Immortals Alliance. Hence, everyone refers to it as the Myriad Immortals Island."

Sima Changkong succinctly explained the full story to Li Fan. He then took a deep drink of his tea, all the while subtly observing Li Fan.

Li Fan carefully considered the implications of Sima Changkong's words, a slight frown creasing his brow. "If this is truly the origin of the Myriad Immortals Alliance and where the Heavenly Venerate first imparted the Dharma, why is it so rarely known today? Relevant information is even difficult to find. And not only that, but it was left unguarded, allowing someone to simply abduct it?" Li Fan shook his head, appearing unconvinced by Sima Changkong's account.

Sima Changkong, however, let out a deep sigh. "This is precisely why I was hesitant to speak earlier." He paused, falling silent for a moment. Then he quietly confided, "Tens of thousands of our ancestors risked life and limb to spread the Heavenly Venerate's new Dharma. It is thanks to them that the Myriad Immortals Alliance exists today. This was originally a heroic endeavor, one that should be extensively documented and remembered by all cultivators today. Yet, it has been deliberately suppressed, even sealed away. The reason lies in the Heavenly Venerate's prolonged absence from the world. Furthermore, those who now wield power within the Myriad Immortals Alliance are no longer the tens of thousands of original Dharma disseminators."

Sima Changkong drained the rest of his tea. "The conflict between the old and new Dharmas was, in fact, far more brutal than we can imagine. The sects of old, facing something that threatened to undermine their rule, naturally wouldn't hesitate to wield their butcher's knives. The truly pure Dharma disseminators almost all sacrificed themselves in the struggle against those ancient sects. Those who cling to life today are merely scoundrels who usurped the Heavenly Venerate's authority." A hint of disdain laced Sima Changkong's voice.

Li Fan's eyes narrowed slightly. This explanation, while grim, was somewhat plausible. In mortal dynasties, it was not uncommon for changes in power to lead to the achievements of former heroes being forgotten, or even distorted. This principle held true even in the world of cultivation.

"To endure such profound changes over millennia without altering its form... the Myriad Immortals Island might indeed harbor some secret. The Myriad Immortals Alliance must have thoroughly investigated it in the past and found nothing, which is why they ultimately neglected it. However, the Council of Five Elders must have recently acquired some new intelligence. That's why they didn't hesitate to forcibly seize the Myriad Immortals Island, even at the risk of an all-out war." Thoughts raced through Li Fan's mind.

A moment later, he looked at Sima Changkong, who was still brooding, and spoke again. "Fellow Daoist Sima, you seem remarkably knowledgeable about the various secrets of the Myriad Immortals Alliance. However, according to your account, the Myriad Immortals Island's symbolic significance appears to outweigh its practical value. It doesn't seem worth such a massive risk for the Council of Five Elders to forcibly seize it, does it? What are your thoughts on this, fellow Daoist?"

Sima Changkong's expression grew solemn. After a moment of contemplation, he slowly said, "I do have a theory. The earliest Dharma disseminators cultivated at an incredibly rapid pace, and as a result, their beliefs and customs were quite similar to those of mortals. Mortals believe in 'fallen leaves returning to their roots' upon death. Therefore, back then, after the Dharma disseminators fell in battle against the immortal sects, their surviving comrades would often return their remains to Myriad Immortals Island for burial."