These past few years, his avatar hadn't been idle either. It had been voraciously consuming all manner of secret knowledge about the cultivation world.
He spent contribution points at an alarming rate, leaving him with just over 73,000 remaining. The knowledge he had gained through this process of cramming was sufficient to handle most situations he currently faced, so Li Fan decided to pause for now.
For the foreseeable future, Li Fan intended to focus on studying cultivation techniques. As he approached his breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment realm, it was time to upgrade the techniques he currently practiced.
The Thousand Mechanisms Jade Cosmos Scripture could be cultivated all the way to the Nascent Soul realm, so it didn’t require immediate attention. The same was true for the Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art.
According to its records, the Heaven-Swapping Art could, in ancient times, be cultivated up to the Dao Unity realm. However, over its long history within the Heaven-Swapping Sect, the inheritance had inexplicably declined with each generation.
Only a single Spirit Transformation cultivator had emerged from its lineage, and that was over two thousand years ago; others struggled to progress beyond the Nascent Soul realm.
Remembering the Heaven-Swapping Token still resting in his storage ring, a premonition Li Fan had for some time grew stronger. After establishing his foundation, he would find an opportunity to test it.
The Shadow Stalk Art was a relatively ordinary movement technique, something he could abandon at any time to replace it with a Foundation Establishment-level escape technique.
However, after observing Zhang Haobo's movement technique, which allowed him to move like a gentle breeze, Li Fan had gained some insight. Perhaps he could merge the essence of that movement technique with the Shadow Stalk Art to create an entirely new technique.
The Nether Spirit Illusion Art was exceedingly important to Li Fan. The Blue Flame phantom spirit had various mystical effects and, crucially, enabled him to resist the cravings induced by Soul Arbiters of heaven and earth.
Within the Tianxuan Mirror, Li Fan searched for techniques related to nurturing phantom spirits at the Foundation Establishment level. He found quite a few, including an advanced version of the Nether Spirit Illusion Art called the Netherworld Illusion Art.
However, Li Fan didn't rush to redeem it. Inspired once more by observing the sword intent Zhang Haobo had coalesced, Li Fan felt he could attempt to fuse these insights with the Nether Spirit Illusion Art to derive a new technique.
That's right. Li Fan was going to try his hand at being a technique weaver master.
Li Fan knew that deriving new techniques was profoundly difficult, but he lacked a concrete, quantifiable understanding of just how
With the dual enhancements of the epiphanic state boost and the Exquisite Liuli Pearl, his avatar Lin Fan's comprehension efficiency was twenty-seven times its normal rate. His remaining contribution points could support a continuous, decade-long secluded cultivation session.
That was equivalent to two hundred and seventy years of dedicated time spent deriving two Foundation Establishment techniques. Li Fan calculated that, even with his average aptitude, his chances of success were high. After all, an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator's lifespan was roughly that long.
If he succeeded, he could break free from the limitations of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's techniques, allowing him to cultivate them directly in his next life.
More importantly, it would open up a completely new possibility for acquiring techniques: he would use original techniques obtained from the Alliance as a foundation, fusing them with insights gleaned from prodigies through Formless Killing Mechanism's Heaven Watches and Earth Listens.
Then employing his exceptionally talented avatar, created with the essence blood of those same prodigies, he would conduct lengthy derivations within the Tianxuan Mirror, creating new techniques for his true self to cultivate.
If this entire production chain proved viable, then he, Li Fan, could be just about considered a technique weaver master.
Having made his decision, Li Fan hesitated no longer.
His avatar’s mind sank into deep contemplation, entering secluded meditation.
As for Zhang Haobo, he continued his diligent daily cultivation without respite. His cultivation speed had not slowed after entering the Foundation Establishment realm; instead, it grew ever faster.
Meanwhile, Li Fan’s true self, having decided to wait for the Deepsea Pearl’s emergence before establishing his foundation, had temporarily halted his own cultivation.
With little else to occupy him, he found himself enjoying a rare period of leisure on Myriad Immortals Island.
He spent his days wandering the island, making acquaintances with many Qi Refinement and Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Though these cultivators were not particularly powerful, they served as the grassroots personnel of the Myriad Immortals Alliance controlling the Congyun Sea. Most were well-traveled, knowledgeable, and far from ordinary. Through these interactions, Li Fan's horizons were greatly broadened.
After some time had passed in this manner, Li Fan suddenly received a video message.
Chen An?
Li Fan frowned slightly at the name, but quickly recalled who Chen An was. He was that Qi Refinement cultivator who had sought Li Fan’s advice regarding Qin Tang’s trial within the Cloudwater Palace.
Having narrowly survived the ordeal with Qin Tang’s statue, Chen An had wisely withdrawn and left the Cloudwater Palace directly. He was certainly a cautious man.
He had not contacted Li Fan all these years. What could he want now?
Li Fan opened the message.
Chen An’s smiling image appeared immediately.
“Fellow Daoist Li Fan, I hope you have been well.
“It has been over five years since we parted ways at the Cloudwater Palace. To this day, I vividly remember your composed demeanor as you unraveled the mysteries behind the Oddity that was Qin Tang’s statue—a memory I cannot forget.
“Recently, something has occurred in the Congyun Sea that might pique your interest...
After listening to Chen An’s message, Li Fan understood the reason he had suddenly reached out.
It turned out a peculiar event had recently taken place in the Congyun Sea: a massive, ever-shifting white mist had abruptly appeared over the waters.
A curious cultivator flew into the mist and discovered within it a gigantic azure ox, as large as a mountain, pulling a two-wheeled cart across the sea.
On the cart stood a dilapidated thatched hut. Outside the hut stood two monstrous guardians. One had no mouth and a terrifying visage. The other was burly and powerfully built, holding a wooden club. Within the hut, the clear voice of someone reading aloud could be faintly heard.
This bizarre scene naturally captured the cultivator’s attention. Boldly convinced that this concealed some opportunity, he flew to the front of the thatched hut, hoping to investigate. But the two guardians barred his way.
The cultivator politely greeted them, seeking entry into the hut. Not only did he receive no response, but he was instead driven out with wild swings of the club, expelled beyond the range of the ox-drawn cart.
When he tried to approach again, he found himself unable to reach the thatched hut no matter how much he flew. Left with no choice, he reluctantly gave up.
After sharing the story with a friend, the friend also grew interested. So the two returned together the next day to the vicinity of the ox cart. To his surprise, the cultivator found he could approach the thatched hut once more.
So the two cautiously drew near, only to be driven away again by a flurry of strikes from the wooden club.
Undeterred, they returned to try again on the third day. The outcome remained unchanged. Yet far from discouraged, they actually grew somewhat excited.
Since there was no immediate threat to their lives, they realized they could simply gather more people.
Surely, with enough attempts, they would eventually find a way into that thatched hut.