Chapter 597: External Guideposts

“Li Chen?!”

In that instant, the face of a frail young man flashed through Li Fan’s mind.

“He’s actually the Heavenly Mystic Cult’s secretly hidden Law King? How is that possible?”

Li Fan was deeply shaken.

This Li Chen was none other than the person Li Fan had possessed during the incident in Ningyuan of the Immortal Extinction Realm, when he retrieved the Longevity Fruit.

An inner disciple of the Purple Cloud Sect, Zhang Qianmo’s junior brother!

But…

Li Fan had descended into the Immortal Extinction Realm and taken over bodies many times before.

He knew the memories in the other party’s mind perfectly well.

Li Chen was just a child from an ordinary mountain village; he was accepted into the Purple Cloud Sect solely because of his good cultivation talent.

There were absolutely no memories belonging to an ancient Heavenly Mystic Cult Law King.

“There are three possibilities. One is that this Law King is merely a soul fragment, parasitic within Li Chen’s body. The Extinct Immortal’s dying glance reflects all beings and things in the world. What is replicated in the Immortal Extinction Realm is only the creature’s true self; other foreign entities within the body would not be restored.”

“The second possibility is that the Law King had not yet occupied Li Chen’s body at the time of the Longevity Fruit incident in Ningyuan. It was only after Li Chen was gravely injured in that incident and brought back to the sect by Zhang Qianmo that the Heavenly Mystic Cult Law King, who had been lurking within the Purple Cloud Sect, took advantage of his weakness to take over his body.”

“The last possibility is…”

“The Heavenly Mystic Cult Law King’s cultivation is incredibly profound, and he hides himself extremely well. Even the Extinct Immortal, who could perceive everything in the world, might not have been able to see through his secrets.”

“Therefore, what was created in the Immortal Extinction Realm was merely superficial.”

After a thorough analysis, Li Fan concluded that the third possibility was unlikely.

If even a Law King at the end of his rope had cultivation comparable to an Extinct Immortal, how incredibly powerful would the Heavenly Mystic Cult’s overall strength have been back then?

It certainly wouldn’t have been overthrown by an alliance of the Ten Immortal Sects.

“The Immortal Extinction Realm is almost identical to the real world. Even spiritual energy trajectories and cultivation techniques can be restored. Residual souls within a body should also not be able to escape an Immortal’s discerning eye.”

“So, it’s likely that Li Chen was taken over by the Heavenly Mystic Cult Law King after he fell into a coma?”

“This Heavenly Mystic Cult Law King’s actual state might not be very good; he might just be barely clinging to life. After miraculously escaping the pursuit of the Ten Immortal Sects’ special envoys back then, he remained hidden within the Purple Cloud Sect. During this period, he might have changed bodies multiple times until he finally became Li Chen.”

Based on all the information he had gathered from various sources, Li Fan carefully pieced together a possible truth.

Immediately, his heart stirred.

The Heavenly Mystic Cult Law King had existed since the ancient cultivation era.

The secrets he knew were certainly countless.

If he could perform a soul search on him…

“It’s definitely worth a try.”

“When the Myriad Immortals Alliance discovered him in this era, the Law King was still in a deep slumber, so his defenses couldn’t have been very strong.”

“If I can control him, I won’t just learn many secrets and cultivation techniques; I’ll even have a future identity in the Xuanhuang Realm, eliminating the need to constantly disguise myself as a Heavenly Secret Sect cultivator, which has too many flaws.”

Li Fan’s heart moved slightly.

“However, I can’t be careless,” he thought again.

“In the past, the Heavenly Mystic Cult wielded immense power, and its Law Kings must have all been in the realm of Old Law Longevity. Although he must have been severely injured during the cult’s destruction and has been dormant for so many years, his strength must certainly be far from what it once was.”

“But ancient powerhouses, especially those who have lived for an unknown duration—who knows what trump cards they might still hide? I’ll still need to send a clone to scout out the situation first.”

“It’s worth a gamble. In any case, it won’t be more dangerous than scheming against the Heavenly Doctor.”

All these thoughts occurred in an instant.

Even though his facial expression barely changed, the sudden shift in his emotions was still noticed by Jiao Xiuyuan.

With a curious look in his eyes, he couldn’t help but ask, “Could it be that you, fellow Daoist, are indeed an old acquaintance of this Li Chen?”

Li Fan shook his head slightly and quickly replied, “I wouldn’t call him an old acquaintance. We’ve only met a few times.”

“But at the time, I thought he was just an ordinary disciple of the Purple Cloud Sect. I never imagined…”

“It truly is a case of knowing a person’s face but not their heart!”

Li Fan sighed.

Jiao Xiuyuan also knew that Li Fan’s words were surely not entirely truthful. However, everyone had secrets, and he had no intention of probing further.

“Heh.”

“Then why are you inquiring about the identity of this sleeping ancient cultivator, fellow Daoist?” Jiao Xiuyuan asked tentatively.

Li Fan cupped his hands and said, “I was simply entrusted by someone.”

Jiao Xiuyuan nodded thoughtfully, saying nothing more.

The two exchanged pleasantries for a bit longer.

Just as they were about to part ways, Li Fan casually asked, “Oh, by the way, are those small Medicine King Cauldrons I previously asked you to excavate still in your possession?”

“They were sold a long time ago,” Jiao Xiuyuan replied.

“You didn’t seem to care about them back then, so why bring it up again now?” he asked, somewhat curious.

“Just a whim; I asked when it crossed my mind. No need to think too much about it, fellow Daoist.” Li Fan smiled mysteriously, evaded the question, and then turned and left Qianli Hall.

He left behind Jiao Xiuyuan, whose face was filled with uncertainty, his brows furrowed as he stood rooted to the spot.

But he did not stop him.

After leaving, Li Fan first returned to the Heavenly Xuan Mirror to search for the small Medicine King Cauldrons.

According to Jiao Xiuyuan, at that time, the Medicine King Sect ruins were sealed by the Myriad Immortals Alliance, thoroughly dug up, and anything of value within the ruins was taken.

He had only managed to excavate two of them.

But when Li Fan looked now, there were no less than seventeen small Medicine King Cauldrons simply listed for sale on the market.

These had clearly flowed out from within the Myriad Immortals Alliance.

Li Fan was already used to this.

The true purpose of the small Medicine King Cauldrons was still unknown to the world.

The wealthy Li Fan instantly bought all these small Medicine King Cauldrons that were circulating outside.

This change immediately caught the attention of some people.

“Fellow Daoist Li Fan, was that your doing?”

“What secret does this small Medicine King Cauldron hold?”

“Have you perhaps deduced something again?”

Jiao Xiuyuan, who had just ended their contact, hastily sent inquiries.

“Guess.”

Li Fan replied with a smile, then paid no attention to the other party’s reaction.

He enveloped himself in the ‘One Hand Covering the Sky’ secret art and headed straight for Cangwu Prefecture.

He teleported continuously, almost without pause.

After less than half a day, he had already reached the Abyss of Cangwu.

After purchasing a travel guide for the Abyss of Cangwu, Li Fan followed the path Xiao Fan and his companions took in his previous life, descending all the way down.

He passed through the Spirit Whisper Forest and the Puppet Ravine, reaching the Lost Maze City, located a hundred thousand *zhang* underground.

After much effort, he finally found the exact location where the True Medicine King Cauldron would eventually fall in the future.

That’s right, Li Fan planned to wait here for the arrival of the meteor-like descent.

Inside the True Medicine King Cauldron were all the cultivators from the Medicine King Sect who had been forced into dormancy.

All of them were like lambs awaiting slaughter.