“It’s just a clever trick, nothing more. Brother Shuo, your Foundation Establishment artifact, the [Sword], is not adept at initiating attacks, but its defensive counterattacks are unparalleled. However, this [Thread Extraction] technique mimics the natural cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death—the changes of human existence. Rather than an attack, it is more of a state-inflicting ability. That is why it did not trigger the [Sword]’s counterattack.”
Having won the duel, Li Fan did not show any arrogance. Instead, he took the initiative to explain the reasoning to Shuo Feng.
Back when he was cultivating within the Root of Heaven and Earth, nurturing the Five Elements Cave-Heaven, Li Fan had experienced his own body being woven like delicate silk threads, continuously being drawn out.
At that time, he had gained an initial insight.
However, he was still far from being able to directly manifest it as a divine ability in the real world. It wasn’t until now—after gaining control over the Beast Realm’s fate and breaking through to the Mid Nascent Soul stage—that he had almost become akin to the Dao of a small world itself.
In his mind, all life and death were but a single thought away.
Through this, Li Fan developed an entirely new and profound understanding of the composition and disintegration of all things.
Thus, the divine ability [Thread Extraction] was born.
As he explained to Shuo Feng, strictly speaking, [Thread Extraction] is not a direct offensive technique. Instead, it attaches an accelerating decay effect to the target—it is a transformation of the target itself.
During his battle with Shuo Feng, Li Fan had demonstrated [Thread Extraction] at full power, making it appear overwhelmingly destructive. However, it had one critical weakness—its execution required continuous casting. If interrupted or disrupted, its effectiveness would be significantly diminished.
It was only because Shuo Feng’s cultivation emphasized defensive counterattacks that [Thread Extraction] was particularly effective against him.
In reality, the optimal usage of Thread Extraction was not in the explosive, rapid application used in the duel. Instead, it should be employed covertly, working silently over time—gradually unraveling a target’s “threads” without them noticing.
By extending the timespan, the target would not develop visible wounds as Shuo Feng had during the battle.
Instead, they would simply feel increasingly weak, their body inexplicably deteriorating, their spirit and vitality steadily fading—yet they would never be able to pinpoint the cause.
In the end, they would watch helplessly as their life force withered away, perishing in agony.
The phrase “life fades like drawn silk” perfectly encapsulates the technique’s essence.
It was, without a doubt, an exceptional assassination technique—even surpassing many formless killing arts in effectiveness.
As someone who always kept a trump card hidden, Li Fan had deliberately concealed the true lethality of [Thread Extraction] during his match with Shuo Feng.
“Brother Li, you once praised me as a natural talent, but I believe your comprehension surpasses mine by far. This [Thread Extraction] technique is truly remarkable!”
Despite being defeated, Shuo Feng showed no anger. Instead, his attitude had grown noticeably more friendly.
The fleeting cold killing intent he had exhibited earlier had now vanished as if it had never existed.
“Brother Shuo, you flatter me. It was merely an insight I gained while traveling.” Li Fan replied with a faint smile.
“Brother Li, there’s no need for false modesty! In the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance, there are countless who claim to be geniuses, but few can comprehend divine abilities on their own as you have!”
As he spoke, Shuo Feng patted his body. In an instant, a flash of white light enveloped him, and his attire changed.
Leading Li Fan up the mountain, he guided him to a small pavilion at the peak, inviting him inside.
A female cultivator in a yellow dress briefly left the room before returning, bringing two bowls of spiritual tea.
The fragrance of the tea filled the air, invigorating the spirit.
Shuo Feng took a sip and said, “Brother Li, I have yet to think of a way to counter your divine ability. But once inspiration strikes, I will certainly seek you out for another match!”
Li Fan nodded slightly. “I’ll be waiting.”
Shuo Feng laughed heartily. “Refreshing! Brother Li, your temperament suits me well! You’re far better than those spineless flatterers, who lack ability yet seek favor through sycophancy!”
Li Fan did not continue the topic but instead changed the subject.
“Speaking of sycophants, I actually have a matter where I’ll need your help, Brother Shuo.”
“Oh? What is it? Speak freely.”
Li Fan then expressed his desire to improve his merit ranking.
“Having insufficient authority is truly frustrating. Being restricted everywhere is so uncomfortable!” Li Fan sighed.
Hearing this, Shuo Feng dismissed it indifferently, “Hmph, it’s just a threshold deliberately set by the Immortal Alliance to consolidate its rule. For those true powerholders, there’s no need to climb step by step to raise their authority level…”
“But since Brother Li has such a need, it’s easy to handle. Zhi Jin…”
The female cultivator in the yellow dress immediately responded.
“Are there any vacant guest elder positions available recently?” Shuo Feng asked.
“There are still three vacancies this year. However…” Zhi Jin glanced at Li Fan, hesitating to continue.
“His cultivation level doesn’t meet the requirement, right?” Shuo Feng chuckled. “No problem. Special cases require special handling. Just say I appointed him. You just need to give them a heads-up.”
Zhi Jin nodded slightly. Her figure blurred and disappeared from the scene in an instant.
Only then did Shuo Feng explain, “Serving as a guest elder under my family grants an initial authority level of thirty. Additionally, you will receive a fixed amount of merit points annually.”
Upon hearing this, Li Fan did not show joy but instead frowned. “Thank you, Brother Shuo. However, I am used to my freedom. If—”
Shuo Feng waved his hand. “No worries. You won’t need to do anything—just hold the honorary position. You and I are like-minded individuals; are we the type to be willingly bound by restrictions?”
“However…”
Shuo Feng looked at Li Fan, a glint of battle intent flashing in his eyes. “If one day your hands itch for a sparring match, you must not refuse me!”
Li Fan, feeling relieved, immediately cupped his hands in gratitude. “Then, I must thank Brother Shuo in advance!”
Shuo Feng truly lived up to his status as a top-tier second-generation immortal of the Immortal Alliance—his efficiency was remarkably high.
Before they even finished drinking the spiritual tea on the table, Zhi Jin had already returned.
A snowflake-shaped ice crystal talisman was handed to Li Fan, signifying that his guest elder appointment had been officially registered.
“Brother Li, you can check the effect,” Shuo Feng tapped his index finger on the table, and a small Tianxuan Mirror appeared before Li Fan.
When Li Fan checked his information in the mirror, he indeed found a new title: “Guest Elder of the Xuan Family.”
His authority level, as Shuo Feng had mentioned, had directly risen to level thirty.
However, there was also a note stating that this authority level was tied to the “Guest Elder” position. If he lost this title, his authority level would disappear accordingly.
Meanwhile, any merit points he earned personally would accumulate from level one.
The two were independent of each other.
This was within Li Fan’s expectations, but what caught his attention more were the four words: “Xuan Family Guest Elder.”
“Xuan Family?” Li Fan looked at Shuo Feng with some confusion.
Shuo Feng did not shy away from the question and openly explained, “My mother’s surname is Xuan. As for my name…”
He shrugged, looking as if he wasn’t entirely sure himself.
Li Fan nodded without probing further.