However, these recruitment notices only mentioned traveling together to Jiushan Province. Their specific objectives were left deliberately vague, clearly adopting an attitude of “those who understand will understand.”
It’s only Anchor Year 10. There’s no need to rush yet. Li Fan thought.
I’ll wait until Anchor Year 11, when Cloudwater Palace opens. If my avatar can squeeze another technique out of Qin Tang by then, I’ll send it along afterward.
Having made his decision, Li Fan temporarily set the matter aside.
He then sought out Jiang Zhengji of the Martial Hall to inquire about methods for improving practical combat ability.
His motivation was not purely to strengthen his real-world combat power. More importantly, Li Fan wanted to defeat Zhang Qianmo of the Purple Firmament Sect in the Fallen Immortal Realm as soon as possible, to see whether doing so would allow him to access other locations afterward.
Yes—Li Fan had discovered that he was trapped within Ningyuan City in the Fallen Immortal Realm.
In this lifetime, he had already entered the Fallen Immortal Realm three times. Each time, the entry point was exactly the same: just before following Zhang Qianmo to Ningyuan City to collect the Longevity Fruits.
To break free from this predicament, Li Fan had attempted three different approaches.
The first time, he followed the “plot” and faked his own death. Then, while Zhang Qianmo was locked in battle with Song Hesong and the others, with no one paying attention to him, Li Fan attempted to slip out of Ningyuan City.
Unfortunately, he had not flown far before Zhang Qianmo caught up. Shouting “demons and heretics,” Zhang Qianmo struck him down with a bolt of Purple Firmament Divine Lightning.
The second time, Li Fan openly betrayed Zhang Qianmo. He secretly transmitted messages to Song Hesong, coordinating an internal and external pincer attack.
Zhang Qianmo was grievously wounded, but Li Fan and the others found themselves utterly helpless against the Purple Core within his body.
After reviving, Zhang Qianmo’s strength surged dramatically, and he easily slaughtered Li Fan and the others one by one.
The third time, Li Fan simply claimed that he did not wish to go to Ningyuan City and wanted to return to his sect instead.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Qianmo’s expression darkened immediately. Without a word, he attacked.
Li Fan fought him for a long time, but in the end, he was still defeated.
Every attempt ended the same way, leaving Li Fan deeply frustrated. Yet the reality was unavoidable; he was truly no match for Zhang Qianmo.
Moreover, within the Myriad Immortals Alliance, methods for improving practical combat ability were strictly classified.
Even with Li Fan’s current Yan 10 permission level, his searches yielded nothing of value. Left with no alternatives, he approached Jiang Zhengji of the Martial Hall, more out of hope than expectation.
Jiang Zhengji’s reply was exactly as Li Fan had anticipated:
“All secret methods of the Martial Hall are confidential and cannot be transmitted externally. I’m afraid I cannot help you in this matter, Fellow Daoist.”
Since he had not harbored much hope to begin with, Li Fan still responded politely and expressed his thanks.
After a moment, whether out of caution or curiosity, Jiang Zhengji sent another message:
“May I ask why you wish to improve your combat skills, Fellow Daoist? If I recall correctly, you are an array master. Do you have some powerful enemies?”
Li Fan’s heart tightened, but his reply remained calm.
“Not at all. I simply spar frequently with a friend but have never been able to defeat him. I’m unwilling to accept that. To be honest, improving my combat ability isn’t especially important; I mainly just want to beat him once.”
After a brief pause, Jiang Zhengji replied:
“Ah, I understand. The desire to compete and prove oneself is perfectly normal.
“While I cannot help you improve your actual combat power, Fellow Daoist, I do have an idea if your goal is merely to defeat a specific opponent.”
Li Fan’s spirits immediately lifted.
“Please enlighten me, Fellow Daoist!”
“Our Martial Hall has secured a private sector within the Tianxuan Mirror known as Seated Dao Discourse.
“By leveraging the Tianxuan Mirror’s powerful computational capabilities, one can input the cultivation realms, techniques, divine abilities, and secret arts of both combatants to simulate the course of a battle.
“You do not need to know the specific contents of their techniques; you just need to describe how they perform in actual combat.
“Based on the accuracy and detail of your descriptions, the Tianxuan Mirror will generate Virtual Discourse Practitioners of corresponding strength.
“After creating your own Discourse Practitioner, you may not only spar against it by generating a virtual version of yourself, but also battle the Discourse Practitioners of other cultivators. This is why we call it Seated Dao Discourse.
“Of course, the Tianxuan Mirror adjusts all generated Discourse Practitioners according to reality. Exaggerations such as a Golden Core cultivator casually splitting space are, naturally, impossible.”
Li Fan’s interest was immediately piqued.
Unable to resist, he asked, “Is this function exclusive to the Martial Hall? How can I gain access to it?”
Jiang Zhengji replied at once, “It isn’t normally open to outsiders, but an invitation from an internal member will grant access.”
As he spoke, he sent over a black-and-white icon. Two figures sat facing one another, with an ancient Dao character suspended between them.
Li Fan touched the icon with his divine sense.
A notification from the Tianxuan Mirror followed shortly afterward.
“Seated Dao Discourse has been loaded. Inviter: Myriad Immortals Island, Jiang Zhengji.”
“Cultivator Li Fan, you have activated the Seated Dao Discourse function.”
“You are granted one free opportunity to create a Discourse Practitioner and three mutual battle opportunities.”
“You may view and use the Seated Dao Discourse function at any time.”
Li Fan immediately caught the significance of words like “granted” and “free,” and understood the underlying scheme at once. However, given his current wealth, he had no interest in quibbling over such minor contribution-point expenses.
He quietly opened Seated Dao Discourse to examine it. The moment he did, countless messages flooded his vision.
(Dao Unity Realm) Senior Sister Zhao, peerless beneath the heavens! With a single sword, she suppresses the Great Dao Sect, unmatched since time immemorial! Step forward if you dare!
(Nascent Soul Realm) Middle-aged Emperor Tianhuang, decisive across the ages, invincible in this era. Thirty-three consecutive victories! All challengers welcome!
(Nascent Soul Realm) Middle-aged Emperor Tianye, peerless in schemes, born with a sacred physique, no less formidable than Emperor Tianhuang!
(Spirit Transformation Realm) At the very pinnacle of immortality, proud and unrestrained. Where Lan’an stands, there heaven is! Newly created Discourse Practitioner. In a word, invincible!
(Dao Unity Realm) Immortal Venerable Yu Lan welcomes challenges from real Discourse Practitioners. Those based on fictional novels, please stop requesting battles, alright? What’s the point of this wishful thinking? Requests will not be accepted.
As Li Fan read through these messages, a strange expression crossed his face.
So it turned out that the overwhelming majority of Discourse Practitioners created within Seated Dao Discourse were, in fact, fictional characters drawn from novels.
Senior Sister Zhao of the Great Dao Sect was one such example, someone Li Fan was already familiar with.
She was the protagonist of The Secret History of Ancient Cultivation , a book Li Fan had once read.
Written in the first person, it chronicled how Senior Sister Zhao endured countless hardships, rising from an outer disciple to an inner disciple, then to a hereditary disciple, then Dao Heir, and finally ascending to become the leader of the Great Dao Sect.
Unexpectedly, this Senior Sister Zhao was extraordinarily popular.
With just a brief glance around the Seated Dao Discourse sector, Li Fan could already see dozens of cultivators who had chosen to model their Discourse Practitioners after her.