“The Purple Firmament cleanses, piercing through the soul...”
In an instant, a Soul Observation Art comprising just tens of thousands of words appeared in Li Fan's mind.
"Junior Brother, wait here for me, I'll be right back!" Zhang Qianmo said, then drifted away without waiting for Li Fan's response.
Purple Firmament Soul Observation... Li Fan was able to grasp most of the technique’s essence after reading through it.
This unique soul-searching technique of the Purple Firmament Sect stated that major sects, orthodox and heretical cultivators, and various demons, devils, and exotic beasts were locked in endless conflict in the current cultivation world. Soul-searching, soul refinement, and fights to the death over treasure were all commonplace.
Soul-searching was the act of reading memories from another's soul through specific methods. These methods varied greatly depending on the practitioner's habits and style.
Some were cruel and brutal, causing permanent damage to the spirit. Even if the victim survived, they would be left like mindless infants, unable to care for themselves.
Others were ingeniously unique, not only allowing one to search through soul memories but also twist and reshape them by branding mental imprints, turning former enemies into the most loyal servants.
The Purple Firmament Sect's soul-searching technique was the most balanced and gentle among them, as it didn’t cause significant harm to the soul.
Of course, the subject would still experience pain during the process, feeling as if their soul were struck directly by Purple Firmament Divine Lightning.
Yet, with careful recuperation afterward, they could fully recover.
Yet from that day on, an indescribable dread would remain lodged in their hearts. Thereafter, whenever they sensed the presence of disciples from the Purple Firmament Sect, it would feel as though they were confronting their natural predator, unable to summon even a trace of courage to fight back.
Just as Zhang Qianmo had done earlier, Li Fan bent his fingers into a claw and reached toward one of the prisoners.
Once he activated the Purple Firmament Soul Observation Art, an endless torrent of images came rushing in like a surging tide.
It reminded him of when he had reconstructed the Mountain-Sitting Art by refining an avatar, except the memories extracted through the Soul Observation Art were far sharper and more lifelike.
Scene after scene played out. Li Fan ignored the mundane details of everyday life and focused only on the portions that mattered.
This Foundation Establishment cultivator was called Liu Tu.
More than forty years ago, he had been nothing more than an ordinary villager in the mountains.
One day, while hunting, he lost his bearings and accidentally wandered into a concealed valley.
To his astonishment, this remote valley deep in the mountains, usually empty of people, was packed on this day. Some were cultivators with powerful auras, but most were ordinary mortals like himself.
Regardless of status, everyone sat together, listening closely as a young cultivator at the front delivered an impassioned address.
“Decades ago, I was like most of you—an ordinary mortal with no power over my own fate. I longed for the immortal path, and grieved that my lack of spiritual roots barred me from cultivation.
“By luck, I personally witnessed the Immortal Venerable’s teachings and obtained a supreme methodology.
“From this day forward, spiritual roots are no longer necessary to cultivate!
“In only ten years, I have already reached the Golden Core realm!
“The Immortal Venerable said: The immortal path is...”
Under the young man’s live guidance, dozens of mortals condensed Heaven-Earth Roots right then and there, stepping directly into the Qi Refinement realm.
Liu Tu listened, spellbound. His talent was a relatively worse, and he failed to break into Qi Refinement immediately. Still, he memorized the Five Spirits Qi Sensing Method.
After he returned home, he managed to draw qi into his body in under half a month, officially becoming a cultivator.
After that, Liu Tu sought out and joined a spontaneously formed organization of rogue cultivators practicing this new methodology: the Myriad Immortals Alliance.
Choosing the widely favored Heavenly Net Divine Technique as his main cultivation method, he cultivated for another five or six years. Then, with the Curio of heaven and earth, Mountain Spirit Ginseng, he succeeded in establishing his Dao Foundation.
Later, Chu Liang approached him and enlisted his help to ambush his two senior brothers, Zhang Qianmo and Li Chen, while they were retrieving Longevity Fruits in Ningyuan City.
The status of “inner disciples of the Purple Firmament Sect” still frightened Liu Tu somewhat. But with the Golden Core cultivator Song Hesong leading them, and the lure of the Purple Firmament Thunder Invocation Art, a supreme technique, Liu Tu ultimately agreed.
After all, the intelligence said the two Purple Firmament disciples were only at the late-stage Foundation Establishment realm.
Who could have expected they would run into a monster like Zhang Qianmo—someone who could kill Golden Core cultivators while still at Foundation Establishment?
Thud!
After finishing the soul search, Li Fan flung the slack-bodied Liu Tu to the ground. Then, he pressed a hand to his throbbing temples, trying to steady his violently roiling soul.
Soul searching was marvelous, capable of stripping bare every memory and secret hidden in an enemy’s mind.
But it was not without risks.
The drain on one’s divine sense was equally shocking; Li Fan’s current condition was proof of severe overexertion.
Worse still, the target might pretend to be completely broken and submissive, only to seize the opportunity mid-search to launch a lethal counterattack.
If the caster was unprepared and couldn’t defend themselves, their soul could be heavily damaged, and they might even have their own memories searched in turn.
I only have a divine sense incarnation in the Fallen Immortal Realm, and it isn’t as strong as my true self. Even so, the cost of this soul search is still too great.
Thinking of how easily and casually Zhang Qianmo had done the same thing, Li Fan briefly wondered whether he had used the art incorrectly.
But after reviewing Li Chen’s memories and reflecting on it, he realized this was normal.
In that era, the major sects cultivated their elite disciples in an all-encompassing way, sparing no expense. Those disciples never lacked rare treasures, and profound secret arts were essentially open for them to choose from.
Practical combat training, divine-sense tempering, direct guidance and personal instruction from senior powerhouses of the sect... As long as one displayed enough talent, all these resources were poured into them to accelerate their growth.
By contrast, in the present cultivation world, a perfectly good technique would be deliberately chopped into multiple segments, plainly meant to cap a cultivator’s combat power.
Want rare treasures to strengthen yourself? Want secret techniques to protect yourself?
Sure. First do tasks and earn contribution points.
Saved enough points but still can’t find what you want?
Then your permission level isn’t high enough. Go grind merit tasks for a few more years and rack up more points.
Even though he didn’t know the exact situation in the Five Elders Council, he suspected it worked much the same way.
Most cultivators in the present day likely didn’t even reach the level of the rogue cultivators in Zhang Qianmo’s eyes.
Because in Liu Tu’s memories, the early Myriad Immortals Alliance offered techniques that included all manner of wondrous arts and secret methods.
Take the commonly practiced Heavenly Net Divine Technique: its scope was as vast as heaven and earth, covering everything.
Concealment, escape arts, divine sense tempering, physical strengthening, Qi Refinement, alchemy, talisman crafting, array construction... every detail was accounted for, lacking nothing. It truly deserved to be called the finest introductory cultivation technique available.
While it might not excel in any single aspect, its comprehensiveness was its greatest strength. Li Fan couldn't even estimate how exorbitantly expensive this technique would be if sold by the current Myriad Immortals Alliance.
And that was only one of dozens of techniques the Alliance was handing out freely at that time.
The contrast made Li Fan curse inwardly: Damn, how did the Myriad Immortals Alliance end up like this?
The gap was this vast even when compared to rogue cultivators of this era, let alone elite disciples from major sects like Zhang Qianmo.
Even though Li Fan possessed the mysterious Return to Truth and had lived through countless simulation cycles, giving him divine sense far beyond ordinary cultivators, he had never strengthened himself systematically, nor had he consumed heavenly treasures to bolster his cultivation. Thus, the disparity between him and this Senior Brother Zhang was still significant.
After checking his own condition, Li Fan’s brow tightened.
Because my divine sense is overly depleted, the time I can stay in the Fallen Immortal Realm has been sharply reduced.
Originally I could remain for about half a month; now I can only last seven or eight days.
Still, I’ve gained something. According to Chen Ying, this is enough to leave early—I only need to mentally run the ritual in reverse.
I just don’t know whether that satisfies the requirements to bring anything back into reality.
To carry objects or information from the Fallen Immortal Realm into the real world, certain conditions had to be fulfilled.
When Chen Ying explained it before, he had intentionally been vague about what those conditions were.
Since the Tianxuan Mirror currently provided no information about the Fallen Immortal Realm, Li Fan had no choice but to deduce the answer himself.
The more valuable the item, the harder it is to retrieve.
For now, the Heavenly Net Divine Technique is out of the question. If I can bring back the Purple Firmament Soul Observation Art, my goal will be achieved.
So what are the conditions? Killing Zhang Qianmo?
At present, Li Fan had no clue.
Either way, I should return to reality first. Maybe once I’m back, I’ll be able to recall the Soul Observation Art’s contents?
After a brief moment of thought, Li Fan made up his mind and immediately began performing the reverse ritual in his mind.
A dizzy spell washed over him. In the next instant, the scenery around him shattered into starlike fragments.
Li Fan’s consciousness returned to the Tianxuan Mirror.
He carefully retraced every detail of his trip into the Fallen Immortal Realm. Every event and every conversation with Senior Brother Zhang remained clear and vivid.
But when he tried to recall the Purple Firmament Soul Observation Art or the Heavenly Net Divine Technique, there was nothing, no matter how he tried.
It was like trying to carry water in a bamboo basket: all his efforts came to nothing.
As expected, it isn’t that simple. To grasp treasure in your hand, yet find it as unreachable as flowers in a mirror or the moon on water... it’s a hard feeling to endure.
Then I’ll have to enter again and figure out the exact conditions.
Fortunately, because I left voluntarily last time, the cooldown period before I can reenter is much shorter.
While waiting, Li Fan bought an Aura Exaltation Talisman to disguise himself as a Golden Core cultivator.
He then purchased a Face-Changing Pill, altered his appearance, and headed for the island where the fish-betting game was held.
After the Spirit Mist Grass incident, far fewer cultivators were gathered there than usual.
Li Fan casually picked a fish to wager on, then began discreetly questioning the Golden Core cultivators in the crowd about the Fallen Immortal Realm.
From their discussions, he learned that each entry dropped them into different locations.
Sometimes they arrived in the middle of a orthodox-versus-heretical battle and were casually killed by top powerhouses on the field.
Other times, if they were luckier, they would inhabit the body of a disciple from some sect.
But even then, figuring out the conditions to bring techniques out within a mere ten-plus days was extraordinarily difficult.
All they could do was watch helplessly as the techniques slipped from memory, leaving only bitterness behind.