Chapter 857: Broken Xuanhuang Realm

Li Fan’s heart was filled with extreme tension as the Scholar with the Stone Slab uttered those words.

However, the current Grand Master Li already possessed the combat power of a Hedao cultivator, bolstered by numerous powerful divine abilities like the Seven-Colored Jade Void Luminous Light. He was no longer easily intimidated by a few words, genuinely scared into submission. Even if his opponent was the Heavenly Venerate of Longevity!

Li Fan decided to probe the other party's true background once more!

So, Li Fan feigned a mix of confusion and surprise: "Beyond the Xuanhuang Realm? What does that have to do with me?"

The Scholar with the Stone Slab smiled, "Since you refuse to admit it, let's see what the stone slab records about you."

From the stone slab behind him, a burst of green light emerged. An aura of ancient times emanated from the scholar. Around them, various images began to swirl and manifest. It was as if they had fallen into the long river of history, with scenes from the past Xuanhuang Realm unfolding like a scroll.

The scholar grunted, and his body began to swell. For some unknown reason, his face and clothes rapidly shifted and transformed. One moment he was a handsome scholar, the next a sturdy woodcutter. Then, a charming, beautiful maiden. Sometimes he wasn't even human, but a tree, a flower. Flying birds in the sky, walking beasts on the ground. Only the stone slab behind him remained unchanged, its green light eternal.

Finally, the images on the surrounding light screen gradually stabilized. A brilliant glow illuminated Li Fan's figure on the screen!

However, the scene of him flying out from Da Xuan was absent. Even the initial scene of him arriving in the Xuanhuang Realm via a spatial passage and heading straight to Tianyang's Immortal's Cave to subdue Tianyang was missing. Instead, it showed him entering Shilin Prefecture with Tianyang, then finding the entrance to the Spirit Wood Realm, entering and re-emerging, then capturing Shang Tianci in Jiushan Prefecture, locating Mr. Bai's secret chamber beneath Taihua Prefecture. After returning to the Spirit Wood Realm, he emerged with Lin Ling, who now possessed Hedao-level power. First, completing a transaction with the Council of Five Elders, then heading directly to the Five Elements Grand Grotto-Heaven in Tianling Prefecture.

The images continued to change. However, Li Fan's vigilance immediately eased considerably.

"It's just as I expected."

"The Creation Stone Slab automatically records everything that happens in the Xuanhuang Realm, down to the smallest detail. But this only applies to the *original* Xuanhuang Realm!"

"One must understand that the current Xuanhuang Realm is a fusion of the original Xuanhuang Realm, countless Grotto-Heavens, minor worlds, and even fragments from many other cultivation realms!"

"Therefore, for these external elements, the Creation Stone Slab might not have records!"

To use a house as an analogy: the initial Xuanhuang Realm was merely a single small room. But over the years, countless cultivators expanded upon it, making the Xuanhuang Realm far larger than before. Within that original small room, the Creation Stone Slab, born alongside heaven and earth, had full recording authority. However, for these external areas, the Creation Stone Slab lost its ability to record!

The images continued to shift. Just as Li Fan had predicted, the recording was intermittent. Most crucially, places he frequented, like the Cloud Sea, the Spirit Wood Realm, and the Five Elements Grand Grotto-Heaven, were not within the scope of the records. So, it was basically just him traveling, constantly traveling.

"So, what this scholar said about coming for me... where was the flaw?"

Li Fan's mind raced. The scenes displayed by the stone slab were approaching the current timeline. Suddenly, his clone, Ji Shaoli, appeared in the image. The moment he entered Yongyun Prefecture, the image abruptly cut off. Then, after Ji Shaoli left Yongyun Prefecture, he headed straight for the Spirit Wood Realm. The image suddenly dimmed, then showed Li Fan, after advancing to Nascent Soul, emerging from the Spirit Wood Realm and swiftly traveling between prefectures, enveloped in the seven-colored divine light.

"Did the seven-colored divine light attract his attention?" Li Fan couldn't help but wonder.

What the Scholar with the Stone Slab said next confirmed his suspicion. "I don't actually care about the veracity of this so-called Myriad Realms Alliance."

"What truly interests me is where you acquired this seven-colored divine light in Yongyun Prefecture." The scholar's gaze fixed on Li Fan, burning with intensity. "The energy level of this artifact is not something that a mere remnant prefecture could possibly nurture."

"Can't it be a divine ability I comprehended myself?" Li Fan retorted.

The scholar let out a silent laugh. "Bearing the Creation Stone Slab, I am naturally very familiar with the aura emanating from your seven-colored radiance. It's a power that almost constitutes the Heavenly Dao of an entire world. If you possessed such an ability, then I wouldn't be the one asking questions here today."

"No, it would be you," the scholar stated calmly. Although there was no explicit sarcasm, his expression and tone still made Li Fan snort coldly.

Seeing Li Fan's silence, the Scholar with the Stone Slab continued, "Don't worry, I won't steal your possession. While this seven-colored divine light is indeed powerful, to me, it's merely a burden."

"What I truly want to know is the place that birthed the seven-colored divine light," the Scholar with the Stone Slab frankly stated.

Li Fan narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean, Senior? How do you know the seven-colored divine light was *produced* by something? Couldn't it simply be a single treasure hidden in Yongyun Prefecture?"

The Scholar with the Stone Slab sighed. The light screen around them suddenly turned pitch black. Then, a single point of seven-colored light abruptly emerged. In the darkness, it was incredibly dazzling and conspicuous.

The scholar looked at Li Fan. "Do you understand?"

"Such a treasure, as long as it exists in the world, will always manifest this way, regardless of whether it has been refined or not."

"Previously, some individuals thoroughly searched the Xuanhuang Realm. Besides the Heavenly Profound Mirror, there are currently no treasures in existence that surpass realm artifacts."

"Therefore, your seven-colored divine light must have appeared only recently..."

Upon hearing this, Li Fan's expression darkened. He hadn't expected that while the seven-colored divine light was indeed powerful, it would be so conspicuous to true powerhouses.

Facing the Scholar with the Stone Slab's inquiry, Li Fan's thoughts raced, devising a response. A moment later, he had a plan. He put on a troubled expression, and after feigning a struggle, finally let out a long sigh. "Very well, I knew this matter couldn't be kept secret forever."

"Senior, follow me. You'll understand once you see it."

With that, he roused Lin Ling, who had been standing by in a daze, observing without daring to interrupt. Then, he drilled underground, heading straight for Yongyun Prefecture. Within the earth veins, the Scholar with the Stone Slab followed leisurely, unhurriedly.

Witnessing this, Li Fan secretly clicked his tongue. Yet he thought to himself, "No wonder in the previous life, despite possessing a treasure like the Fishing Pond, Zhong Shentong didn't guard it constantly afterward. Instead, he roamed about."

"It must be that after he left Yongyun Prefecture and revealed the seven-colored divine light, this Scholar with the Stone Slab noticed a clue, prompting him to seek out Zhong Shentong."

"He was forced to relinquish ownership of the supreme treasure."

"How careless."