“Li Chen?!”
In an instant, the image of a frail, scholarly young man flashed through Li Fan’s mind.
“He’s actually the secretly hidden Dharma King of the Xuantian Sect? How is this even possible?”
Li Fan was utterly shaken.
This Li Chen was none other than the person whose body Li Fan had possessed during the Fallen Immortal Realm’s Ningyuan Longevity Fruit incident.
An inner disciple of the Purple Heaven Sect and junior brother to Zhang Qianmo!
But…
Li Fan had entered the Fallen Immortal Realm and replaced him many times.
Li Fan knew every single detail of Li Chen’s memories as if they were his own.
There was absolutely no trace of any memory connected to the Dharma King of the ancient Xuantian Sect.
“There are three possible explanations. One, the Dharma King is merely a remnant spirit residing within Li Chen’s body. When the Fallen Immortal cast its final glance, reflecting all beings and objects in the world, only the original self of creatures was replicated in the Fallen Immortal Realm. Any other foreign existence in the body would not have been restored.”
“Two, during the Ningyuan Longevity Fruit event, the Dharma King had not yet occupied Li Chen’s body. It wasn’t until Li Chen was gravely injured and brought back to the sect by Zhang Qianmo that the Xuantian Sect’s Dharma King, hidden in the Purple Heaven Sect, took the opportunity to possess him.”
“Three, the Dharma King of the Xuantian Sect possesses unparalleled cultivation and hides his true nature deeply. Even the omniscient Fallen Immortal failed to uncover his secret.”
“Thus, what was recreated in the Fallen Immortal Realm was only a superficial form.”
…
After a thorough analysis, Li Fan deemed the third possibility to be unlikely.
If even a Dharma King on the verge of death could rival the Fallen Immortal in power, then the overall strength of the Xuantian Sect back in its prime would have been unimaginably terrifying.
The sect would not have been overthrown by the alliance of the Ten Great Immortal Sects.
“The Fallen Immortal Realm replicates the real world almost perfectly. Even the trajectory of spiritual energy and the operation of techniques can be mirrored. Residual spirits within the body would surely be detected by an immortal’s gaze.”
“So, the most plausible explanation is that after Li Chen fell unconscious, the Xuantian Sect’s Dharma King seized his body.”
“The Dharma King’s actual condition might also be quite poor—barely clinging to life. Having narrowly escaped the pursuit of the Ten Great Immortal Sects’ envoys, he continued to hide within the Purple Heaven Sect. Over the years, he likely switched hosts multiple times until finally becoming Li Chen.”
Piecing together various pieces of information from different sources, Li Fan reconstructed a plausible truth.
Immediately, he felt a surge of excitement.
The Dharma King of the Xuantian Sect had existed since the ancient era of immortal cultivation.
The secrets he must know would be beyond measure.
If Li Fan could perform a soul-searching technique on him…
“This is absolutely worth trying.”
“When the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance discovered him, he was still in slumber, meaning his defenses are likely weak.”
“If I can control him, I could gain not only countless secrets and techniques but also a new identity in the Xuanhuang World. No more frequent disguises as a cultivator of the Heavenly Mechanism Sect, which always leave flaws.”
Li Fan’s heart wavered slightly.
“However, I must not act carelessly,” he thought to himself.
“The Xuantian Sect once ruled the heavens, and its Dharma Kings were surely at the Longevity Immortal stage under the old system. Though this Dharma King must have been gravely injured during the Xuantian Sect’s downfall and has been dormant for so many years, his strength must have diminished considerably.”
“Still, ancient titans like him—who knows what hidden trump cards they might have? I should send an clone to probe first.”
“It’s a gamble worth taking. No matter what, it won’t be more dangerous than scheming against the Heavenly Doctor.”
Countless thoughts raced through Li Fan’s mind in an instant.
Though his expression barely changed, the subtle shifts in his emotions were noticed by Jiao Xiuyuan.
With a peculiar look in his eyes, Jiao Xiuyuan couldn’t help but ask, “Could it be that you truly know this Li Chen?”
Li Fan shook his head slightly and quickly replied, “Acquaintance would be too strong a word. We’ve merely crossed paths a few times.”
“At the time, I thought he was just an ordinary disciple of the Purple Heaven Sect. Who would’ve thought…”
“You truly can’t judge a book by its cover!”
Li Fan sighed.
Jiao Xiuyuan could tell that Li Fan wasn’t being entirely truthful. But everyone has their secrets, and he had no intention of probing further.
“Ha.”
“Then, why is Fellow Daoist investigating the identity of this ancient cultivator in slumber?” Jiao Xiuyuan asked tentatively.
Li Fan cupped his hands and said, “I’m simply fulfilling someone else’s request.”
Jiao Xiuyuan nodded thoughtfully and said no more.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, just before parting, Li Fan casually asked, “By the way, the small Medicine King Cauldrons I asked you to excavate earlier—are they still with you?”
“They’ve long been sold,” Jiao Xiuyuan replied.
“Back then, you didn’t seem to care about them at all. Why bring it up now?” he asked curiously.
“A sudden whim. Just thought I’d ask. Don’t overthink it,” Li Fan said with a mysterious smile, evading the question before turning to leave the Qianli Hall.
He left behind a puzzled Jiao Xiuyuan, standing in place with furrowed brows.
—
After leaving, Li Fan first returned to the Tianxuan Mirror to search for the small Medicine King Cauldrons.
According to Jiao Xiuyuan, when the Medicine King Sect’s ruins were sealed by the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance, everything valuable had been taken away.
Jiao Xiuyuan had only managed to excavate two of them.
But now, upon checking the marketplace, Li Fan found no fewer than seventeen small Medicine King Cauldrons for sale.
These clearly came from internal leaks within the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance.
Li Fan was already accustomed to such situations.
Without hesitation, he used his vast wealth to purchase every single small Medicine King Cauldron available.
This sudden action instantly attracted the attention of certain individuals.
“Fellow Daoist Li Fan, was it you who made the move?”
“What secret lies within these small Medicine King Cauldrons?”
“Have you deduced something again?”
Jiao Xiuyuan, who had just ended their conversation, hurriedly sent inquiries.
“Guess,” Li Fan replied with a smile and ignored the other man’s response.
Using the Sky-Shrouding Hand technique to conceal himself, Li Fan headed straight for Cangwu Prefecture.
He teleported relentlessly without pause.
Half a day later, he arrived at the Abyss of Cangwu.
After purchasing a guidebook for traversing the Abyss, he followed the paths remembered from his past life as Xiao Fan, moving downward step by step.
He passed through the Forest of Spirit Whispers and the Puppet Canyon to reach the Lost Mysterious City buried 100,000 feet underground.
After some effort, he finally located the future landing site of the true Medicine King Cauldron.
Yes, Li Fan planned to lie in wait here for the falling star to descend.
The true Medicine King Cauldron contained numerous cultivators of the Medicine King Sect who had been forcibly placed in suspended animation.
They were like lambs awaiting slaughter.
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