Chapter 604: Plans To Make Before The Sea Burns

Back when Li Fan was exploring the Five Elders Council, the moment the illusion shattered and he found himself face to face with Senior Sister Zhao, a chill had run through him, as though he stood exposed before the vastness of heaven and earth.

The Heavenly Physician was undoubtedly powerful, yet he had never induced that particular feeling in Li Fan.

Even the sight of those gigantic hands crushing Old Man Fisher and Fuzi had registered in Li Fan's mind as extraordinary power, not as something qualitatively different at a fundamental level.

This was the instinctive perception of a cultivator, mysterious and ineffable.

Yet Li Fan had a faint conviction that his instinct was right.

Whether or not the Heavenly Physician has truly reached the Eternal Life realm, he has demonstrated actual combat power that made even Eternal Life cultivators wary.

Against someone like that, cannon fodder in any number means nothing. The five Heavenly Venerables certainly will not act personally either, which is why the war was called off.

Li Fan pondered this thoughtfully. He considered the Heavenly Physician's appearance and what it might mean for the future of the Xuanhuang World.

Then, without warning, a target of Formless Killing Mechanism he had been monitoring for a long time, one that had gone silent for ages, sent back a response.

Hmm?

His attention shifted instantly, crossing tens of thousands of li to land on Yin Shangren, on Yinyin Island in the Congyun Sea.

After all his study of the Immortal-Mortal Miasma, it seemed he had finally discovered something.

At this moment, Yin Shangren had collapsed to the ground, utterly bewildered.

"No, no, no. I must have made a mistake.

"This is simply impossible!"

Raw terror was written across his face. He had clearly uncovered a truth he could not accept. He tore at his own hair, desperately trying to calm himself.

"No, no, no!"

But he had lost all control.

Whatever he had discovered appeared to have shattered his worldview entirely, pushing him toward madness. He began slamming his head against the ground, paying no mind even as blood streamed down.

After some time, his face was a bloody, mangled ruin, his expression unreadable beneath the gore.

"I must have gotten it wrong. How could such a person exist in this world?

"How could he possibly be such a person!

"Start over!"

As though grasping at any chance to prove himself wrong, Yin Shangren scrambled to his feet without bothering to wipe the blood from his face. He released several mortal test subjects, extracted the Immortal-Mortal Miasma from their bodies, and began his research anew.

***

This Yin Shangren is completely unhinged. Who knows what he's actually discovered.

Li Fan's brow furrowed slightly.

Another cryptic speaker. Better to just search his soul directly and get to the bottom of it.

A flash of ferocity crossed his eyes.

He suppressed the impulse quickly, however. Though Yin Shangren appeared to be only at the Foundation Establishment realm on the surface, a profoundly strange aura clung to him. The possibility that he was concealing his true power could not be ruled out. Forcing a soul search might hand him an opening to counterattack.

Patience.

The Xuanhuang World was rife with hidden dangers, with far too many concealed masters lurking beneath the surface.

After suffering successive blows from both the Ruomu Tree and the Heavenly Physician, Li Fan's cheek twitched. He drew a slow breath, pressing down the restless agitation in his chest.

Continue monitoring. Hopefully I can glimpse the truth before he burns himself out.

In the period that followed, Li Fan turned his focus to crafting a new avatar. He made a trip back to the depths of the Congyun Sea and dug up the stone coffin where Zhou Qing'ang lay buried. He looked at the man still immersed in some pleasant dream, sleeping soundly with a faint smile on his face, and snorted.

Perhaps ignorance is a kind of bliss.

He extracted several more portions of essence blood, replenished the spirit stones in the coffin to sustain the man's vitality, and buried him again.

With practiced ease, he refined a new avatar.

Everything the previous avatar had carried had turned to dust, so returning to Congyun City would involve some trouble. But these were minor matters, nothing that touched the overall situation.

While the avatar made its way back toward Congyun City, Li Fan's true self stood on the open sea, gazing up at the sky. The Qiankun Heavenly Mechanisms Die appeared in his hand, its surface rippling with shifting light.

Understanding settled in him before long.

Just as I predicted. The date of the Crimson Flame Sea Scorching event will be moved significantly forward.

The "Heavenly" generation...

He considered it for a long while, then shook his head inwardly.

Perhaps sooner is better. Let it burn away all traces.

As for whether to release Ink Death again...

His thoughts returned to his earlier plans for Reverend Tian Yang.

I'll ask him when the time comes. Whether to remain a Spirit Transformation cultivator for a lifetime, or to gamble on a chance at Dao Unity, I'll let him choose. Though, given his nature of "Tian Yang is not weaker than others," he'll almost certainly choose the latter.

A moment later, his thoughts stilled.

I always assumed that facing Ink Death was essentially a death sentence, no matter who achieved Dao Unity by refining Crimson Flame.

But Tian Yang is a special case. He has already died once. His current self is less a living being than a puppet sustained by a remnant thread of obsession.

Perhaps it’s possible for him to escape with his life.

Ink Death's world-ending events have all been confined to the Congyun Sea. If one were to flee far beyond it...

The prospect of a Dao Unity-level subordinate was genuinely tempting.

In Li Fan's original estimation, Ink Death had been nearly synonymous with invincibility. But after witnessing the true power of the Heavenly Physician, that view had quietly shifted.

The Heaven-Scorning Sword fragment had managed to battle Ink Death for a considerable stretch during its world-ending rampage, proof that Ink Death was not undefeatable.

It's worth a try. And failure wouldn't cost me anything.

Thus, Li Fan made his decision.

After a brief calculation, he realized it was already Anchor Year 15.

Crimson Flame would descend soon. He needed to begin preparations.

Anchor Year 15...

His heart stirred. After a moment's thought, he retrieved a communication spirit talisman from his storage ring and attempted to contact Jiao Xiuyuan.

Jiao Xiuyuan declined.

Li Fan tried again.

Jiao Xiuyuan declined a second time.

He was not angered. He persisted.

After six attempts, Jiao Xiuyuan finally accepted the call.

"Hmph. Have you struck it rich recently, Fellow Daoist Jiao? You’re turning your back on old acquaintances now?" Li Fan said coldly.

"Not at all, not at all! I was truly occupied with something important just now and couldn't get away!" Jiao Xiuyuan replied, his tone aggrieved.

"That excuse is rather clumsy, Fellow Daoist Jiao. Who doesn't know you have thousands of avatars? One avatar might be busy, but could all thousands be busy at once?" Li Fan replied, unconvinced.

"Heh, you truly do have unfathomable insight, Fellow Daoist. You actually know I'm about to break through soon?" Jiao Xiuyuan asked, clearly surprised.

Li Fan said nothing for a moment.

"Heh. This particular advancement is proving more difficult than anticipated. Without some other stroke of fortune, I fear it will be delayed for quite some time," Jiao Xiuyuan continued, a note of regret in his voice.

"Oh? How so?" Li Fan asked.

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