Chapter 642: Calmly Planning for the Future

"A single glance reflects ten thousand years, forming a realm after falling?!"

"How is this possible?"

Liu San was stunned by the incredible facts Li Fan described.

"How can there be true immortals in the Xuanhuang World? Why have we never heard of them?"

Even as a Hegemon, Liu San's reaction upon hearing about the Immortal Remains Realm was no less surprised than Li Fan's.

Li Fan smiled and said, "Elder Liu, there's no need to doubt. This is absolutely true; I've experienced it myself."

"What my eyes beheld was exactly as it was back then. Truly the work of a true immortal," he said, shaking his head, full of emotion.

Li Fan's words completely convinced Liu San, deepening the shock in his heart. Suddenly, a flash of excitement appeared in his eyes as if he had thought of something. "Young Master, you just mentioned that the Immortal Remains Realm is a true projection of the ancient Xuanhuang World. Does that mean that the Medicine King Sect of the past still exists within the Immortal Remains Realm?"

His voice trembling slightly, Liu San slowly asked, "The old sect master, even you and I, and all the other cultivators of the Medicine King Sect... could we possibly encounter them when we explore it?"

Li Fan pondered for a moment, then nodded, giving a definite affirmative answer.

In the history of the Xuanhuang World, there had indeed been instances where ancient slumbering cultivators, upon entering the Immortal Remains Realm, encountered another version of themselves. However, no strange phenomena like "the two cannot meet" or "they sense each other" occurred. Ultimately, when ancient cultivators arrived in the present, everything from their past was already gone. What existed in the Immortal Remains Realm were merely projections of their past selves at a specific moment. Aside from feelings of melancholy and reflection, seeing another version of oneself was no different from encountering any other being.

Similarly, the "natives" within the Immortal Remains Realm would not mistake cultivators entering from the outside for past projections, even if their appearance and aura were identical to their past selves. They would simply assume it was a disguise created by some divine ability. However, Li Fan had once seen a discussion in the "Seek Immortals" section of the Heavenly Arcane Mirror about this very topic. It suggested that if a cultivator had survived from ancient times until now and cultivated to an unimaginably profound realm, they might be able to "reflect through all ages, existing in eternal freedom."

"Eternal freedom" meant that once a cultivator transcended the river of time, they could exist in the past, present, and future simultaneously. At every point in time, they would be their transcendent self. In such a case, their projection within the Immortal Remains Realm might indeed be considered the same as their true self.

While merely a fantasy, this concept represented the ultimate pursuit of cultivators on their path to the Dao, making it a popular topic of discussion. Yet, other cultivators argued that if such a being truly existed, they would have long since reversed cause and effect, forming a temporal loop. How could they then be drawn into the Immortal Remains Realm by a mere glance from a true immortal? Therefore, the conjecture that a projection in the Immortal Remains Realm could be the true self from the real world was ultimately a paradox.

Li Fan gave Liu San a general explanation. Though Liu San nodded in understanding, he was still impatient to enter the Immortal Remains Realm and try it for himself. Seeing this, Li Fan didn't mind; he simply shook his head and chuckled softly, then meticulously explained the ritual steps to him.

"Fortune begets, Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerate!" Without any hesitation, Liu San performed the ritual in front of Li Fan and entered the Immortal Remains Realm. Li Fan, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes slightly and gazed up at the sky.

Perhaps due to his advancement to the Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Incantation, Li Fan's perception had become sharper than ever before. The instant a wisp of Liu San's spiritual consciousness vanished, Li Fan clearly noticed a faint shadow flitting across the sky in the real world.

"It's not a hallucination. The Immortal Remains Realm..."

The shadow appeared only for a moment before vanishing from his perception, yet Li Fan's gaze remained fixed on the spot for a long time. Having spent considerable time browsing the "Seek Immortals" section, Li Fan knew that many cultivators had tried to find traces of the Immortal Remains Realm in the real world. However, it was said that all of them had failed without exception. They only knew of its existence and how to enter it, but they simply could not observe it.

Yet, Li Fan, with only a Nascent Soul cultivation, had now broken this rule. "My previous experiences in the Immortal Remains Realm were unusual, constantly looping and repeating a certain scene. I just never understood why. Now, it seems it might be inextricably linked to the Xuanhuang Incantation." He mused, "A true immortal's legacy, a true immortal's lingering thoughts. Perhaps there's truly some connection between these two."

"It's been a long time since I entered the Immortal Remains Realm. I hope the blessing of the Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Incantation brings me some surprises this time," Li Fan thought to himself.

He did not rush into action immediately. While waiting for Liu San to awaken, he took a stroll around Longevity Valley.

The valley was divided by formations into numerous separate areas, used for cultivating various spiritual plants and herbs. As expected of a secret realm sealed for a thousand years, even with the formations, Li Fan could still feel the vibrant life emanating from the crops in the spiritual fields. From time to time, Medicine King Sect cultivators moved through the areas, using secret methods to select and harvest suitable materials for refining pills. In a distant open space, the nascent forms of several nearly complete buildings could vaguely be seen. These were the new Medicine King Sect premises being constructed by the disciples under Fang Zaiji's direction.

"Quite impressive," Li Fan nodded in admiration.

With the Congyun Sea incident concluded, it was time to consider future plans. He had two primary objectives.

First, he needed to find a way to obtain the parts of the "Sit Mountain Art" beyond the Nascent Soul stage. In this timeline, the Myriad Immortals Alliance had not yet initiated the "Illusory True Heavenly Venerate Plot" to expose hidden spies. Consequently, the Council of Five Elders had not risked sending Hegemons to probe, avoiding the massive battle that ultimately led to Extreme Accomplishment Immortal Venerate being ambushed and nearing the end of his lifespan. Therefore, to obtain the Ritual Jade Tablet that granted an audience with Yan Fajue, he would need to find an alternative method. However, Li Fan had already prepared for this, so it was not a major issue.

Second, he needed to accumulate experience and insights for advancing to the Soul Transformation realm. The entire Nascent Soul stage was a process of cultivating and perfecting one's own Grotto-heaven Dharma Domain. And the transition from Nascent Soul to Soul Transformation marked a crucial watershed that significantly differentiated a cultivator's actual combat prowess.

Take, for example, Immortal Lord Hongxi, who had just perished in the Congyun Catastrophe. He established his Dao foundation with the Five Elements Mountains and formed his Golden Core with the five laws of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. His talent was undeniably strong, and his early cultivation was remarkably smooth.

However, during the two stages of "seizing the essence of heaven and earth to form a Nascent Soul; extracting the marrow of heaven and earth to attain its spirit," his excellent situation took a sharp turn for the worse. Domains like the Hundred Ridges Grotto-heaven or Mount Taihua giving birth to a thousand mountains sounded noticeably weaker. This resulted in Immortal Lord Hongxi's actual combat prowess being unremarkably poor. For his entire life, he was confined to the remote region of the Congyun Sea, finding it incredibly difficult to advance any further.

Conversely, if Immortal Lord Hongxi had been able to form his Nascent Soul with a Grand Five Elements Grotto-heaven, like Li Fan, what would his future have held?