“While it is true that I have kept them confined in one place in this life, perhaps the real issue lies with the outer realm itself.”
“Otherwise, these so-called geniuses from the outer realm wouldn’t be losing to mere youths like Sun Erlang and Wang Xuanba from the Great Xuan.”
Back then, Li Fan had personally tested their cultivation potential.
At best, they only barely met the requirements to cultivate—not even close to matching the geniuses from the outer realm.
Yet now, without him realizing it, they had somehow surpassed them…
A vision of the great volcano at the center of the Great Outer Realm suddenly emerged in Li Fan’s mind.
From the moment he entered the outer realm, he had a nagging suspicion that something was amiss with that volcano.
However, perhaps due to his insufficient cultivation or lack of perception, he had explored it multiple times but still failed to uncover any secrets.
“Unfortunately, the entrance to the outer realm in this life has already been swallowed by spatial fissures, making it impossible to return.”
With that thought in mind, Li Fan waved his hand lightly, summoning Su Changyu, Su Xiaomei, and the others before him out of thin air.
Their vigilance was noticeably weaker than in his past lives.
Several moments passed before they snapped out of their confusion. Upon recognizing Li Fan, they hurriedly saluted.
“Greetings, Sect Master!”
Li Fan’s gaze swept over them, and then he spoke in a deep voice:
“I took you all from a small mortal world over ten years ago. First, I confined you on an island, and then I brought you here to the Longevity Valley, never allowing you to leave…”
“Do you hold any resentment?”
Ye Feipeng was the first to respond:
“How could we ever resent you, Sect Master? These years have been incredibly fulfilling for us. Especially this Longevity Valley and the Beast Realm—while they may seem insignificant in your eyes, to us, they are already far grander than our homeland.”
His tone carried a hint of flattery.
Xiao Heng quickly nodded in agreement, and the others followed suit.
Li Fan remained silent for a moment, waiting until they started to feel uneasy before finally speaking:
“The outside world—the Xuanhuang Realm—is undergoing an unprecedented transformation, one that occurs only once in a thousand years. Countless opportunities await. It is now your time to shine. Pack your things; tomorrow, you will leave the valley.”
The expressions on their faces immediately stiffened.
But before they could react, Li Fan waved his sleeve and departed, leaving behind a group of disciples staring at each other in bewilderment.
Li Fan’s orders were absolute—they dared not disobey. With no choice, they begrudgingly accepted their fate. Looking miserable, they hurried off to seek help from their acquaintances in the Medicine King Sect.
“I hope that once they return to the world, they will bring me some surprises. Otherwise, the true problem must indeed lie within the outer realm.”
With an formless killing intent lingering over the group, Li Fan quietly returned to his secluded cultivation chamber in the Longevity Valley.
“Blessings to the Celestial Venerable Of Xuanhuang!”
Setting up a ritual, in the next instant, Li Fan once again entered the Fallen Immortal Realm.
Without hesitation, he selected the [Heaven Sword Sect’s Divine Refinement] scenario.
As the scene around him twisted and blurred, a furious voice rang in his ears.
“Ji Zhaoxuan! Why have you failed to submit your [Sword Embryo] again this time?”
“Do you realize that you’re delaying Senior Brother’s grand plan? Can you take responsibility for this?”
A flood of memories rushed into Li Fan’s mind, instantly making him aware of his current situation.
Ever since Mr. Bai had left, the Heavenly Sword Sect had been preparing to forge a World-Rifting Divine Weapon.
To accomplish this, all disciples were required to extract insights from their wooden swords and infuse them into a specialized energy stone known as the [Sword Embryo]. These sword embryos were then thrown into the abyss at the back of the mountain, where they would be refined in molten fire to shape the prototype of the divine weapon.
Everyone in the Heavenly Sword Sect, from disciples to elders—and even the strongest figure in the sect, Senior Brother Situ Yao—followed this practice.
But the cultivator Li Fan had now possessed—Ji Zhaoxuan, a Golden Core cultivator—had repeatedly failed to turn in his [Sword Embryo] on time.
And now, he was being confronted about it.
Li Fan maintained a calm expression and cupped his hands.
“Senior Brother Chu, I humbly request a few more days of grace! My aptitude is mediocre, and the process of comprehension and refinement is slower for me than for others.”
Senior Brother Chu scrutinized Li Fan before letting out a cold snort.
“This is your last chance. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re scheming! Your technique of Condensing Qi into Sword is the complete opposite of the process of infusing sword intent into the [Sword Embryo]. The longer you keep the sword embryo within you, the more benefits you gain. Isn’t that right?”
Li Fan immediately put on a flustered expression, as if his secret had been exposed.
He hurriedly replied, “Senior Brother Chu—”
But the other party cut him off with a wave of his hand, his expression turning cold.
“I have no intention of showing favoritism. Individual cultivation is nothing compared to the future of the entire Heavenly Sword Sect. You need to understand where your priorities lie!”
“I will return in two days. You had better be ready!”
After saying that, Senior Brother Chu turned and left.
Countless fellow disciples around pointed and whispered, but the panic on Li Fan’s face instantly disappeared. He calmly returned to his own room.
After checking his own internal condition, he immediately understood.
“As expected, the one I possessed this time is no ordinary person.”
In the dantian of Ji Zhaoxuan, a misty gray “Golden Core,” resembling a gaseous planet, continuously emitted gray mist.
It corroded and devoured the Sword Embryo Essence Stone floating nearby.
At the same time, profound insights into the Dao of the Sword surfaced in Li Fan’s mind—more pure and powerful than any comprehension he had gained from directly touching a wooden sword.
This was precisely why Ji Zhaoxuan had repeatedly delayed submitting the sword embryos.
Every time he acquired a sword embryo, he would first absorb it himself, converting it into his own understanding before handing it over to the Heavenly Sword Sect.
In fact, this body’s talent in the Dao of the Sword was undeniably at the level of a true prodigy.
Even so, deciphering the true essence within the sword embryos was an extremely slow process.
It required a significant amount of time, making it seem to others that his speed in refining the sword embryos was much slower.
Even Senior Brother Chu had only figured out that Ji Zhaoxuan could benefit from the sword embryos to improve his cultivation.
But he would never have imagined that Ji Zhaoxuan could directly convert the true essence within the sword embryos into his own comprehension.
“What Heavenly Sword Sect’s World-Rift Plan? This body doesn’t care at all.”
“Because he was a double agent all along.”
As Li Fan absorbed the sword embryo, he recalled the sudden influx of memories in his mind.
One night, unnoticed by anyone, Ji Zhaoxuan had used a secret technique to transmit everything that had recently happened in the Heavenly Sword Sect to the outside world.
Who exactly received the information? That part remained unknown in his mind.
Even Ji Zhaoxuan himself didn’t know why he had done it.
One day, as if controlled by someone else, he instinctively carried out such an act.
And he hadn’t even found anything strange about it.
“To even deceive oneself… that truly is an advanced form of espionage.”
Li Fan thought to himself.
“The secret of the Heavenly Sword Sect’s sword-forging will soon be exposed to the world.”
“Things might not be peaceful for much longer.”
Scenes of the World-Rift eruption at the Nanming Sacred Beast Mountain and the shattering of the Xuanhuang Realm flashed through his mind.
With that thought, Li Fan braced himself for what was to come.