Chapter 880: Heart Intent Concentrates Sword Meaning

So-called prodigies are merely powerful individuals who have yet to fully mature. The current Li Fan could easily handle them.

“This black flame, however, is quite interesting,” Li Fan thought. “Although it's a manifestation of the coming birth of Xuanhuang, its essence seems subtly more potent than even the Crimson Flame.” With his hand enveloped in a layer of colorful Jade Void Lustrous Light, invisible to outsiders, Li Fan easily suppressed the black flame emitted by Yan Fangzhou and observed it carefully.

“This aura seems remarkably similar to the one after the Cloud Sea was scorched dry by the Crimson Flame. Both belong to a type of great destruction…” Li Fan pondered it carefully. Such a world-altering phenomenon, associated with the birth of a new world, had never been seen in the grotto-heaven created by Mr. Bai in his previous life, making it quite rare.

Soon after, Li Fan gradually gained some insight. “It shouldn't belong to the original Xuanhuang Realm. Instead, it seems to originate from other worlds, parts of which were later integrated. Many worlds, merged into one. Although the Xuanhuang Realm remains the primary one, having absorbed so much foreign matter, the Heavenly Dao of Xuanhuang has inevitably changed as well.”

Li Fan slowly tightened his grip, and his palm, imbued with powerful colorful divine light, became somewhat indistinct. Even with endless reluctance, the black flame was crushed inch by inch by Li Fan.

“If it were a World Soul, I might genuinely be tempted,” Li Fan mused. “Unfortunately, it’s merely a phenomenon of a world in transformation.” Li Fan shook his head slightly, temporarily dismissing Yan Fangzhou from his thoughts. His thoughts drifted to the upcoming Crimson Flame Burning Sea.

“Now that I know the locations of too many World Souls, there’s no need to cling to the Crimson Flame,” Li Fan thought. “On one hand, the Crimson Flame is too weak; on the other hand… after the Crimson Flame dies, the Ink Kill will descend. Even if I could escape the Ink Kill, it would likely attract the attention of the hidden great powers of the Xuanhuang Realm. It would be too conspicuous. For now, lying low is paramount.”

After a moment of contemplation, Li Fan made up his mind. “When the time is right, I can arrange for the members of the Cloud Mutual Aid Society to evacuate. After all, they are carefully cultivated talents, the future backbone of the Myriad Worlds Alliance; I can’t let them die in vain.”

Currently, the most powerful member of the Cloud Mutual Aid Society is Pei Tuo, who is in the early Nascent Soul stage. Although he didn’t re-participate in the Immortal Alliance Grand Examination, his significant breakthrough in strength earned him heavy reliance from his superiors. He has now been promoted to the position of Martial Guard in the Cloud Sea Martial Arts Hall, managing three training formations, effectively holding real power.

“Hmm, I need to find a way to transfer him inland,” Li Fan mused. “However, at his level, a lateral transfer would be quite difficult. Perhaps I could help him earn a merit…” Instantly, the faces of numerous Elders’ Council spies appeared in Li Fan’s mind.

Once the decision was made, his clone, Ji Shaoli, immediately began making arrangements. Li Fan then recalled Yan Fangzhou’s earlier words: “This small world has nice scenery. But to insist on calling it the Myriad Worlds Alliance, isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration? Even a young upstart couldn’t be bluffed. It seems it really needs to be revamped.” While pondering, his divine sense swept through. Looking at the Spirit Wood Realm, which, despite having Xuanhuang marvels, still felt somewhat empty, an idea suddenly formed in his mind.

His figure flickered, appearing on a mountaintop. Referencing the image in his memory, his thoughts stirred. Before long, an ancient-looking stone pagoda emerged from the ground. Li Fan then took a pagoda spire from his storage ring, replacing the original and setting it in place. After the spire was placed on the stone pagoda, the newly unearthed pagoda instantly became imbued with a profound and mysterious aura.

Li Fan nodded in satisfaction. He looked around the stone pagoda, and soon after, to the sound of rumbling, buildings appeared one after another. “Once the treants decorate them, it should be about right,” he murmured.

Arriving outside this complex of buildings, Li Fan wielded his brush on a large blank stone and inscribed the three characters: “Heavenly Secrets Sect.” “A one-to-one replica, plus the Heavenly Secrets Sect’s supreme treasure, the Heaven-Earth Qiankun Dice, is here. Who would dare say my Heavenly Secrets Sect is fake?” Li Fan smiled faintly.

Next, Li Fan replicated the process. He fashioned a replica of the Heavenly Sword Sect’s scenery as it existed in his memory. Looking at the newly constructed, empty sect gate, Li Fan couldn’t help but think of the Heavenly Wonder Sword, which had yet to emerge and was still buried in the Heavenly Sword Sect’s Sword Mound.

“The item is good,” Li Fan thought. “However, it was left by Mr. Bai, and it might also be a contingency plan of his. I must be wary. Moreover, all Heavenly Wonders possess sentience. Even if I were to retrieve it, I might not be able to claim it for myself. I could do someone a favor.”

As Li Fan thought this, he casually broke off a wooden branch. In his mind, he recalled his insights into the Dao of Swords. He also referenced Mr. Bai’s red string, which he had comprehended in his previous life, and his understanding of swords from the Heavenly Sword Sect. Gradually, the wooden branch in Li Fan’s hand underwent a mysterious transformation. Illusions of countless swords emerged on it, then swiftly vanished into it. The branch’s color deepened, and its texture hardened. Slowly, the properties of wood gradually disappeared, and it truly began to resemble a sword more and more.

However, after rapidly absorbing countless sword phantoms initially, the amount of true sword intent flowing into it drastically decreased. This was because Li Fan’s insights had been exhausted; he couldn’t sustain the complete transformation of this mundane object into a Heavenly Wonder. A moment later, Li Fan had exhausted his abilities. He looked at the odd-looking sword-branch in his hand and shook his head slightly. “At best, it can barely be considered a Human Wonder,” he muttered. With a gentle squeeze, the sword-branch turned into dust.

However, he wasn’t annoyed. After all, unlike formations, he hadn’t dedicated a long period solely to cultivating the Way of the Sword; he had merely picked up sword arts as a sideline. To be able to forge a Human Wonder out of thin air was certainly remarkable.

“Even if I don’t take it, perhaps I can still visit the Heavenly Sword Sect ruins,” Li Fan thought. “While I’m at it, I can also visit the former sites of other sects, such as the Medicine King Sect and the Purple Firmament Sect.” Li Fan planned to recreate these cultivation sects, which had vanished into the river of history, within the Spirit Wood Realm. Of course, they didn’t need to be perfect, just convincing enough to fool people.

“I have the Heavenly Secrets Sect’s ancient treasure,” Li Fan mused. “When the True Medicine King Cauldron returns in the future, I’ll even have the original members of the Medicine King Sect. Truth mixed with falsehood, falsehood mixed with truth. Who will be able to distinguish them then?” Feeling a little self-satisfied, Li Fan exited the Spirit Wood Realm and headed straight for the Heavenly Sword Sect ruins.

Currently, the known ruins of the Heavenly Sword Sect are in Tianguang Province. However, in his previous life, he learned from Shuo Feng that the Heavenly Sword Sect’s Sword Mound and the sword itself were not in Tianguang Province, but rather in Tianyou Province, separated by one province. It just so happened that the white mist barrier had divided it in two, cutting right through it, which is why the Sword Mound had remained undiscovered.

He traveled quietly and discreetly. Without alarming any Immortal Alliance cultivators along the way, Li Fan soon arrived at the Tianyou Province Sword Mound ruins. Looking at the unremarkable sight before him, resembling a common burial ground for mortals, Li Fan couldn’t help but lament, “Who could have imagined that the once glorious Heavenly Sword Sect would turn into this!”