Chapter 519: 天地不同寿

"But Senior Sister's path to immortality requires my sacrifice..."

"I refuse!"

"I won't let Senior Sister be so lonely from now on!"

Li Fan's loud laughter echoed through the heavens and earth.

"Over the years, Senior Sister has comprehended the concept of unity of purpose. Though I, your junior brother, may be dull-witted, I haven't been idle either."

"I have a move; please enlighten me, Senior Sister!"

Amidst the blinding, immeasurable brilliance, Li Fan's resolute cry, like breaking through rock and metal, rang out.

"Heaven!"

"Earth!"

"United!"

"Longevity!"

Li Fan's body was completely annihilated in the surging light.

At this moment, Senior Sister Zhao's expression finally changed slightly for the first time. Her usual nonchalant, in-control demeanor was gone, replaced by a look that was both annoyed and amused: "No wonder, Junior Brother, your progress has been slow all these years. So your efforts have been focused on finding ways to restrain me?"

"You and I cultivate the 'Tribute to the Intertwined Heavens and Earth' together; in reality, we've long been inseparable. This 'United Longevity of Heaven and Earth' move certainly poses a threat to me..."

"If only your cultivation, Junior Brother, were a bit higher."

Tens of thousands of Senior Sisters Zhao watched the myriad rays of light surging from Li Fan, simultaneously opening their arms and drawing the white light into their embrace.

"Junior Brother, stop resisting; merge with me!"

Cracks began to appear on the faces of her countless bodies. But the cracks quickly healed on their own. Meanwhile, the white light grew dimmer and dimmer, slowly disappearing between heaven and earth.

When Li Fan's aura completely vanished from the Great Dao Sect, everything seemed to come to a standstill.

"Heh heh, Junior Brother Li Fan."

"I truly must thank you for playing such a wonderful game with me."

"It's been many years since I've had such an interesting experience."

Senior Sister Zhao, with a dazed expression, gazed at the sky and murmured to herself.

"Guiding Immortal Light! That's Guiding Immortal Light!"

"Who is it? Has another cultivator from our Broken Rainbow State caught the attention of Lord Heavenly Venerate so soon?"

"Hahaha, in just one month, three Immortal Sect disciples have emerged! Our Broken Rainbow State is truly about to gain immense prestige!"

Noisy voices seemed to drift from afar, and Li Fan suddenly awoke. He looked around in a daze, finding his surroundings both familiar and strange. After a moment, long-sealed memories, as if from another lifetime, surged into his mind like a tide.

The Council of Five Elders, the One Heart Immortal Sect, Broken Rainbow State.

Guiding Immortal Light.

It turned out he was still at the moment of being guided by the immortal light. But what was that experience he just had, which lasted for several centuries and felt incredibly real?

An illusion?

Li Fan couldn't help but look up. Through a rift in the sky, he could vaguely see a sect nestled among a continuous range of mountains. It was the Great Dao Sect, one of the ten ancient immortal sects.

At this moment, as if to welcome Li Fan as a new member, countless disciples within the Great Dao Sect also looked up in unison, gazing in his direction. Unlike in the illusion, the Great Dao Sect here possessed a vitality it had previously lacked. Not only were the expressions on each disciple's face no longer stiff and rigid, but they varied, just like real people. Furthermore, they conversed with each other and engaged in lively discussions. It was nothing like the deathly silence and stillness Li Fan had witnessed in the illusion.

He continued to ascend within the guiding immortal light. Yet, Li Fan's body gradually became stiff and numb. Li Fan also felt his consciousness slowly dissipating.

"So this was a wooden puppet..." Li Fan pondered.

Afterward, it dissipated with the wind. Only a withered wooden body remained, drifting towards the Great Dao Sect. The disciples within the Great Dao Sect reacted to this sight in various ways. Some were furious. Some were thoughtful. Some clapped in delight. Others simply smiled. There was no sign whatsoever of the "unity" in their so-called unity of purpose.

It was unclear who ultimately made the decision. A white light, emanating from the rift, completely annihilated the puppet body. The guiding immortal light then retracted, the rift slowly closed, and the scene of the One Heart Immortal Sect vanished from the world. Only the Council of Five Elders' cultivators below, unaware of the truth, sighed in secret.

Meanwhile, in the Sea of Clouds.

Li Fan's true body, who had been overseeing the reconstruction progress of Congyun Immortal City where Myriad Immortals Island once stood, froze on the spot.

"What is it, Lord Island Master? Is something wrong?"

"I'll have them correct it immediately!" Gao Yuan said repeatedly.

A moment later, Li Fan waved his hand. "It's fine, you've done very well! Keep up the good work!"

He resumed his inspection with a normal expression, and only after half a day did he return to his temporary construction residence. After sealing off his surroundings, Li Fan's expression became solemn.

"Heh heh, Junior Brother. I'm truly looking forward to our official meeting."

Senior Sister Zhao's soft laughter seemed to still echo in his ears. Was it the last message transmitted by that wisp of divine consciousness, or did Li Fan's true self hear it with his own ears? He couldn't distinguish between the two for a moment.

"Senior Sister Zhao... what an illusion."

Li Fan mused over the various events of more than a hundred years within the Great Dao Sect. Although some details were unclear, most of the events felt as if he had experienced them himself, indistinguishable from reality. It even gave Li Fan the illusion that he had indeed once been Senior Sister Zhao's junior brother and a member of the ancient Great Dao Sect. As if he had merely reincarnated and cultivated anew, only now, after decades, had he finally recovered his memories from that time. He even entertained the idea of seeking out Senior Sister Zhao for an "acknowledgment" sooner rather than later. If he only possessed memories from a single life, without the ability to restore his true state, he might well have done it.

Li Fan felt an inward chill. Even a mere wisp of divine consciousness, immersed in the illusion woven by Senior Sister Zhao, could have such a profound impact on his true body... No wonder the Council of Five Elders' cultivators within the One Heart Immortal Sect were so devoted to Senior Sister Zhao. He activated the Profound Yellow Heart Forging Incantation, transforming the recurring impulse to "join Senior Sister Zhao" into nourishment for his inverse dao heart cultivation.

It took three days and three nights for Li Fan to finally eliminate the lingering effects of his journey to the One Heart Immortal Sect. At least, that's how it appeared on the surface.

Having completely detached himself, Li Fan then analyzed and organized his gains from the experience. Without a doubt, his experiences in the Great Dao Sect were fabricated by Senior Sister Zhao. In fact, from beginning to end, Li Fan didn't even know Senior Sister Zhao's true name. Yet, while within the illusion, he felt no sense of incongruity whatsoever. However, reality was embedded within the illusion, and falsehood was woven into the truth.

At the very least, the Great Dao Sect cultivators in the illusion, such as Ji Changxi and Mo Zhiran, had once genuinely existed. Furthermore, martial arts techniques like the 'Tribute to the Intertwined Heavens and Earth' and the 'Soul-Severing Spirit Reflection Art' might not be false either. Unfortunately, just as with his return from the Self-Sacrificing Immortal Realm, the specific details were impossible to recall clearly. And there were all the cosmic changes he had experienced as "Junior Brother."

"So the Immortal-Mortal Miasma was truly the work of a certain Heavenly Venerate, and not a natural evolution of heaven and earth." Li Fan then thought of Reverend Yin from Yinyin Island. "Could it be that he discovered the hidden Heavenly Venerate's whereabouts and was then silenced?" Recalling Reverend Yin's inexplicable suicides in previous lives, Li Fan couldn't help but ponder this.