Chapter 60: Review and Planning

The simulation has concluded.

You may choose one of the following options to keep:

1. An item you possessed during this simulation.2. Your cultivation realm from this simulation.3. The simulated memories of someone close to you from this simulation. These memories can be inherited by that person.4. Forgo the above choices to accelerate the charging progress.

Slowly regaining consciousness, Li Fan felt his twenty-year-old body and observed the familiar yet strange surroundings. It took him a long time to fully come to his senses.

His previous life had lasted only 48 years, yet to Li Fan, it felt longer than all his nine preceding lives combined. This was not only because his experiences in the cultivation world were far more exciting and complex than his mortal life in Da Xuan, but also crucially because of his assimilation at the end, as he perceived the celestial energy through the will of the Azure Sea Pearl.

Of course, his first venture into the cultivation world yielded extraordinary gains.

Li Fan looked at the first option: the items he could choose. The storage ring and various ancient texts purchased from the Heavenly Profound Mirror were self-explanatory, but the rare natural treasures—the Tablet of Ceased Steps and the Azure Sea Pearl—were also prominently listed.

Li Fan's thoughts focused on the Azure Sea Pearl, and he realized that if he chose it, he would receive the version of the Azure Sea Pearl that was mostly formed at the end of his previous life, just before his lifespan concluded. Having been mentally connected with the Azure Sea Pearl for over a decade, Li Fan was intimately aware of its power.

Though tempted, Li Fan resolutely chose the second option: to retain his cultivation realm. After all, cultivation was fundamental. For a mere mortal, holding treasures only invited disaster. Furthermore, Li Fan knew the Azure Sea Pearl was currently on Flowing Cloud Island; he could retrieve it later.

As Li Fan made his decision, two familiar streams of spiritual energy appeared out of thin air in his dantian. Simultaneously, Li Fan's expression changed. He suddenly remembered that he was still just a mortal at this moment. His body was still filled with Immortal-Mortal Miasma, and if the suddenly appearing spiritual energy conflicted with it, he feared his situation would be dire.

Fortunately, Li Fan's worries did not materialize. An inexplicable fluctuation descended upon Li Fan. Moments later, the spiritual energy in his dantian surged forth like a river, sweeping through his entire body, transforming him and elevating his realm.

Early Qi Condensation, Mid Qi Condensation, Late Qi Condensation! In mere breaths, he reached the realm he had painstakingly strived for and only achieved at the cost of his life in his previous incarnation.

Li Fan's aura gradually stabilized. Yet, an inexplicable shock was etched on his face. It wasn't because he had instantly reached Late Qi Condensation, but because of that inexplicably descending fluctuation!

Li Fan clearly felt that ever since that fluctuation arrived, the Immortal-Mortal Miasma in his body had instantly vanished, disappearing completely without a trace! Its effect far surpassed the forced expulsion he achieved in his previous life using the Body Purification Spiritual Pool formation.

"This fluctuation..." Li Fan meticulously recalled the fleeting wave, vaguely sensing a familiarity.

"It's the will of heaven and earth, the power of laws!" Li Fan suddenly realized. In his previous life, by observing the celestial energy through the Azure Sea Pearl for over a decade, Li Fan, though far from refining and controlling it, could still recognize it when he saw it.

"If the Immortal-Mortal Miasma is the will of heaven and earth that forever separates immortals and mortals, then the fluctuation just now was its complete opposite."

"The Immortal-Mortal Miasma, which had plagued the cultivation world for over a thousand years, simply disappeared so easily."

"Indeed, it's truly unbelievable."

"If only I could master this method of purifying Immortal-Mortal Miasma..." Li Fan's thoughts surged. It took a long time for him to slowly calm down. A nine-story pagoda begins with a pile of earth; with his Qi Condensation realm cultivation, trying to reproduce that power of laws was akin to a fool's dream. He still had to proceed step by step.

Li Fan opened his Huazhen Panel, reviewing his previous life.

Name: Li FanRealm: Late Qi CondensationPhysical Age: 20/199Mental Age: 531/2300↑Virtualization Charging Progress: 0%Anchoring Charging Progress: 51%Current Anchor Points: 1Bound Items: "Thousand Machine Jade Orb Golden Scroll," Taiyan Boat, Tablet of Ceased Steps (Damaged)Cultivation Techniques: Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Incantation, Minor Derivation Water Art, Thousand Machine Jade Orb Golden Scroll

"The path of cultivation is exceedingly difficult. Especially in this world, cultivators seize heavens and lands, and murderous intent pervades the very fabric of existence."

"In my previous life, when I first entered the cultivation world, I met Su Changyu. I thought he had an extraordinary will and was wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao, surely destined for great achievements. Who would have thought he'd inexplicably die within days?"

"Conversely, the inconspicuous Xiao Heng by his side possessed extraordinary talent. Within a few years, he was on the verge of reaching Foundation Establishment."

"Both He Zhenghao and I believed he would surely achieve the Golden Core Dao in his lifetime, but who would have thought..."

"Heaven and earth had long set a killing intent. All living beings in the Congyun Sea, regardless of their momentary triumphs or failures, whether cultivators or mortals, were already destined to die."

"Only the ordinary fisherman Zhang Haobo, after escaping disaster, had a miraculous encounter and became a Foundation Establishment cultivator."

"The unpredictability of life is truly beyond measure."

Li Fan recalled his previous life, feeling an endless surge of emotion. Subsequently, a hint of doubt arose in his mind.

"As I told Xiao Heng before, if the authorities want to encircle and eliminate bandits, they won't let the bandits know in advance. The heaven and earth here, and the cultivators, are just like the authorities and bandits."

"Therefore, when Heaven unleashes its killing intent to eliminate cultivators, cultivators naturally cannot perceive it. This is why when I asked the Heavenly Profound Mirror if there were any disasters, it answered no. It was merely obscured by heavenly secrets."

"Then why did the Myriad Splendor Merchant Association seem to have sensed it early and ordered all its subordinates to withdraw from the Congyun Sea?"

"And why didn't they warn the Myriad Immortal Alliance, choosing instead to watch countless lives perish?"

"There must be something fishy going on; if I get the chance in this life, I must get to the bottom of it."

After much careful deliberation, Li Fan planned his current life.

"The cultivation world is extremely perilous. It's best not to venture into it rashly before the Virtualization charging is complete."

"Now that I cultivate the Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Incantation, the charging speed has significantly increased. I won't need twenty years to complete the charging like before. Within ten years, it should reach 100%."

"This way, the time I arrive in the cultivation world should be about a decade earlier than in my previous life."

"I recall that a major event seemed to have occurred in the Congyun Sea during those ten-plus years. I can plan for it in advance."

"Also, after the Congyun Sea dried up in my last life, I saw hidden treasures on various islands. Currently, no one knows about them, so I should retrieve them one by one if the opportunity arises."

"The Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Incantation repeatedly helped me overcome difficulties in my previous life. This cultivation technique is truly extraordinary, and there seems to be a hidden secret behind it. I must cultivate it diligently and not slack off."

"As for the Crimson Flame Burning Sea, should I choose to escape alone, or reveal it to the public..."

"I can only adapt to the situation when the time comes..."

In his previous life, Li Fan plunged into the unfamiliar cultivation world, only cultivating to the Late Qi Condensation stage and living for forty-eight years before dying and disappearing from the Dao. In this life, with his foreknowledge, Li Fan believed he could go much further.