Since its inception, the fish betting game had become the most popular activity among the cultivators of the Congyun Sea.
The final round at the end of each year drew such massive participation that the isolated island would nearly overflow with cultivators. Everyone dreamed of striking it rich overnight.
During the fish betting event at the end of Anchor Year 16, Li Fan also joined in the fun. He discovered that this game wasn’t just about luck; there was real skill involved.
The fish in the isolated island’s lake came from all corners of the Congyun Sea. Each one had traveled thousands of li to reach this place and was exceptionally strong.
During the twenty-seven-day observation period, these fish had to secure their survival within the lake while also gathering strength for the final leap into the sky.
On the day the lake erupted, the position of each fish within the currents greatly influenced the height of their final jump.
Millions of fish struggled fiercely against one another, their fates intertwined in this lake.
The single lucky victor not only had to overcome its competitors but also relied on the whims of the lake’s currents to emerge as the ultimate winner. What a monumental challenge!
Li Fan’s mind drifted among the countless fish, wandering for a long time without finding any particularly suitable candidate. In the end, just before time ran out, he randomly chose one that appeared reasonably strong.
As it turned out, this fish didn’t survive the remaining three days. It was devoured by two other fish working together before the lake even erupted.
Li Fan shook his head, resigned to his bad luck.
When the final result was announced, the fish that leaped highest above all others was a sickly, unremarkable white pomfret.
This fish had barely managed to survive in the lake up to that point, yet unexpectedly, it had the last laugh.
After reviewing recordings from memory stones, the cultivators discovered that this white pomfret had unbelievably good fortune: when the lake erupted, it happened to be positioned exactly at the point where the current was most intense.
Combined with the strength it had been conserving all along, these factors allowed it to soar into the sky and claim victory.
No one could have predicted it, and they could only watch this white pomfret with a mix of awe and regret.
Li Fan, however, locked onto it with Formless Killing Mechanism, committing its appearance firmly to memory.
I wonder if this same fish will win again in the next life. Li Fan mused to himself.
As the fish betting game concluded, some were overjoyed while others despaired.
But there was still work to be done.
The cultivators joined forces, and in an instant, every fish in the lake except the white pomfret was refined into essential qi.
The white pomfret devoured this mass of essential qi, and its body instantly swelled to several times its original size.
Its teeth grew as sharp as blades, crimson streaks appeared between its scales, and a ferocious, murderous aura radiated from within.
In moments, the white pomfret had undergone a transformation that other fish might never achieve even after a lifetime of struggle.
After releasing the white pomfret back into the sea, the cultivators departed together.
Li Fan followed along. But halfway through their flight, he suddenly froze.
Through Formless Killing Mechanism, he sensed that the white pomfret, fresh from its metamorphosis, was rapidly weakening.
Hm? What’s going on? Curiosity piqued, Li Fan immediately activated Heaven Watches and Earth Listens.
Within his vision, five vicious-looking, exceptionally ferocious fish were encircling and attacking the white pomfret. Each of these fish possessed strength no less than the newly transformed white pomfret.
Facing their collective assault, how could it possibly withstand them? It was soon gravely injured, hovering on the brink of death.
Li Fan could clearly see that the essence blood within these five fishes was muddled and mixed, clearly not the result of natural evolution to their current state. There were obvious signs of artificial cultivation.
Interesting. Are these the champion fish from previous years? Li Fan instantly pieced together the story.
These fish, having undergone transformations, were blocked by the array surrounding the isolated island and could no longer re-enter the lake to participate in the competition.
But they had developed some intelligence, and knew that a new champion fish would emerge here every month. So, they lay in wait here, joining forces to ambush and slaughter the newly crowned champions, devouring their flesh and blood.
Even if they couldn't obtain heaven's favor directly, consuming a fish that had received it would still achieve the same effect.
Under Li Fan's gaze, the white pomfret that the cultivators had declared was "blessed by heaven" and possessed "astoundingly good fortune" moments ago was utterly annihilated in an instant, its bones now sitting within the bellies of the five fishes. Only a slowly rising stain of crimson in the depths of the sea proved it had ever existed.
After sating themselves, the five aberrant fishes saw their essential qi swell slightly. Shaking their heads and swaying their tails contentedly, they departed.
Li Fan watched this scene from afar, falling deep into thought.
Upon returning to Myriad Immortals Island, he did not choose to seclude himself within the Tianxuan Mirror. Instead, he narrowed his eyes, looking up at the sky, then at the statue of the tall elder wearing a headpiece, gazing down upon all living things on the island.
The feeling within his heart grew stronger.
Perhaps... there truly are no new things under the sun. Li Fan contemplated.
Time continued its ceaseless march.
In Anchor Year 17, Zhang Haobo broke through to the mid-stage Foundation Establishment realm.
Li Fan observed him for a time and noticed he was no longer repetitively practicing the Sea-Calming Sword Art. Instead, he had resumed his journey chasing the wind.
But unlike before, at each stormflood site, Zhang Haobo would dance with his sword within the wind.
The 108 Sea-Calming Swords combined into a single massive blue greatsword. In Zhang Haobo's hands, it cleaved against the roaring gales, striking against the tempest's momentum.
The raging stormflood seemed to show signs of weakening under his relentless swings, though the effect was faint.
Without Heaven Watches and Earth Listens, which allowed Li Fan to see the flow and transformation of spiritual qi in the world with perfect clarity, it would be nearly impossible to detect.
Yet Zhang Haobo remained unperturbed by success or failure, neither abandoning nor relinquishing his pursuit. He chased one stormflood after another, tempering his sword intent within the wind.
It seems his next breakthrough is not far off. Li Fan thought, feeling not a shred of envy regarding the other's rapid progress.
From the moment he had first received Return to Truth and entered the cultivation world, Li Fan had understood that cultivation speed was ultimately unimportant to him.
Accumulating experience life after life and forging an incomparably solid foundation—that was what he needed to do.
And now, having witnessed the white pomfret being torn apart and devoured, his conviction only grew stronger. Only by cultivating for a hundred lifetimes might there be a sliver of a chance to escape this dead end.
***
Li Fan's days on Myriad Immortals Island remained as tranquil as ever. By the middle of Anchor Year 17, Li Fan had saved up over eight thousand contribution points, enough to purchase two low-grade Curios of Man.
He made a brief journey outside to unlock the second anchor point of Return to Truth. For the time being, he chose not to set the anchor, deciding instead to wait and see what unlocking the third anchor point might require before making his decision.
Yet not long after this, the tranquility of Li Fan’s life was shattered.
He received a message from the Myriad Immortals Alliance’s Heavenly Mechanism Hall, summoning him to assist in the investigation of a series of mysterious deaths involving two Nascent Soul cultivators, six Golden Core cultivators, nineteen Foundation Establishment cultivators, and a number of Qi Refinement cultivators.