The known territories of the Five Elders Association include the four major regions: “Carefree Paradise”, “Realm of Reality”, “One Heart Immortal Sect”, and “Humane Heavenly Domain”.
As for the last location, it remains unknown for now.
The scholar who teaches classes has never mentioned it, adding to its mystery.
Currently, it seems that exploring the “Realm of Reality” and “One Heart Immortal Sect” carries the greatest risk. Meanwhile, “Humane Heavenly Domain” and “Carefree Paradise” pose no significant threats.
Li Fan, knowing the danger ahead, deliberately chose to venture into the perilous terrain. Naturally, his actions were influenced by his longstanding admiration for Senior Sister Zhao…
Well, the truth is that the real reason was Li Fan wanted to take advantage of this rare opportunity to control a puppet with a strand of his consciousness and explore the territory of One Heart Heavenly Sovereign.
From his experiences in his previous life, Li Fan learned that under Senior Sister Zhao’s control, individual entities were connected into a unified whole.
This is known as “One Mind, Many as One”.
Undoubtedly, when an individual is absorbed or consumed and joins Senior Sister Zhao, their past experiences and memories are shared with the entire collective.
Thus, from the perspective of his true self, the ‘One Heart Immortal Sect’ was even more dangerous than the ‘Realm of Reality’.
However, if he used this puppet body of Jiao Xiuyuan to explore, the risks would be greatly reduced.
This decision was based on several considerations: according to the scholar’s teachings, not all cultivators within the One Heart Immortal Sect had become part of Senior Sister Zhao. As one of the most formidable hunters in the world, Senior Sister Zhao was quite “picky.” Only the most elite cultivators, selected through rigorous processes, were eligible to enter the so-called ‘Immortal Sect’. Even ordinary cultivators were not easily accepted, let alone a puppet body made of wood. Thus, the likelihood of Li Fan being targeted was very low.
Secondly, this puppet was one of Jiao Xiuyuan’s avatars and had a self-destruct mechanism. Even if Senior Sister Zhao, bored with her usual luxurious prey, decided to consume the puppet, what she would ultimately get would only be a piece of dead wood. The consciousness attached to it would have long since dissipated.
However, one should never underestimate the terrifying power of the ‘Longevity Immortal Heavenly Sovereign’.
Li Fan rushed northward, reducing the memories in his consciousness along the way. He removed all previous memories, leaving only the thought of “going to the ‘One Heart Immortal Sect’.”
Naturally, this had a side effect. The consciousness that was already barely controlling the body became even weaker, and the movements became less coordinated. As a result, the puppet of Jiao Xiuyuan appeared extremely wooden and somewhat dull-witted.
However, as long as he could relay his observations to his true self, that would be enough.
Li Fan controlled the puppet body and continued hurrying towards the One Heart Immortal Sect.
“Daoist Jiao, wait for me!” Before long, Lu Fan finally caught up, panting heavily. “After some thought, I’ve decided to go with you.”
“Although there are many rare treasures in Carefree Paradise, seeing the unparalleled Senior Sister Zhao with my own eyes would be quite the experience,” Lu Fan’s eyes flickered with longing.
Li Fan glanced at him indifferently and asked flatly, “Who are you?”
Lu Fan was taken aback.
However, after closely observing Li Fan, who seemed not to be joking, Lu Fan assumed there was something wrong with Jiao Xiuyuan’s puppet. So, he reintroduced himself.
Li Fan only nodded slightly without reducing his speed.
Lu Fan, feeling slightly annoyed, thought it would be rude to go back on his word now that he had already spoken.
The two proceeded silently toward the territory of the One Heart Immortal Sect.
Within the Five Elders Association’s territory, there were naturally teleportation formation, but they were located only in towns within the region. As cultivators of the ‘Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance’ who hadn’t yet submitted to the Five Elders Association, they had no access to these teleportation formation.
Unlike the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, the Five Elders Association did not have a centralized immortal city in each state. Instead, they had scattered large towns where both mortals and cultivators coexisted.
These towns were divided into two zones: inner and outer. A circular wall separated the inner city, where cultivators resided, from the outer city, where mortals lived, ensuring that they wouldn’t disturb one another.
Apart from the towns, various mountain caves and sects built by cultivators could be found scattered in the wilderness.
The overall structure was quite similar to the ancient cultivation world.
Though customs differed greatly, the one constant was the ‘White Mist Barrier’ that separated the states.
Li Fan’s current position was in Humane Heavenly Domain, in the state of Wuding.
Beyond the White Mist Barrier ahead lay the adjacent state of Xuanyin.
To Li Fan’s surprise, there were many people gathered near the White Mist Barrier, shouting as if they were street vendors selling goods.
“Samantabhadra True Boat, 30,000 soul points per boat, buy two, get one free—no worries for large purchases!”
“If you want to cross the White Mist Barrier, come take a look! Only 100 soul points to ride the Samantabhadra True Boat, saving 15 years of lifespan! Just 100 soul points—no scams, no losses!”
“Offering plenty of True Boats for rent, contact us now!”
…
The shouts rose and fell, creating a lively scene much like a mortal market.
Their words caught Lü Fan’s attention.
“Daoist Jiao, come and see! It’s a flying boat entirely made from Samantabhadra True leaves!” Lu Fan exclaimed after inspecting it. Seeing the confused look on Li Fan’s face, he patiently explained, “After the recent craze over the Samantabhadra True Leaf, rumors spread that magic tools made from this material could prevent lifespan loss from the White Mist Barrier. This is why its price didn’t collapse completely.”
“But I’ve never seen such a functional tool before. I didn’t expect the Five Elders Association to have them in abundance…”
Lu Fan hoped for a response from Li Fan, but was met with a blank stare.
Sighing, Lu Fan stopped talking and turned to inquire more from the merchant.
The “soul points” they mentioned were the common currency of the Five Elders Association, similar to the ‘contribution points’ of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.
By joining the Five Elders Association, one could receive free cultivation methods, but in exchange, they had to sign a soul contract.
It’s said that after accumulating enough soul points, one could dissolve the contract and regain their freedom.
However, few cultivators ever achieved this.
Most cultivators opted to exchange their soul points for higher-level cultivation methods to strengthen themselves and earn even more soul points.
In the Five Elders Association, contracts governed not just trade but every aspect of life.
