"Fellow Daoist Xiao! Fellow Daoist Xiao!"
He heard a voice call out to him. Li Fan was confused for a moment before he realized it was his name.
That was partly because he hadn't yet grown accustomed to his avatar's name. But mostly, he had been contemplating Immortal Venerable Jicheng’s advice.
There was no doubt that the perspective of a Dao Unity Immortal Venerable far surpassed Li Fan's at present. His guidance was indeed worth careful consideration.
Originally, Li Fan had planned to use the Derivation Jade to extrapolate the Mountain-Sitting Art to the Nascent Soul realm. The original version of the Mountain-Sitting Art was only a Golden Core technique. Now that Li Fan had cultivated to the Golden Core realm, he would soon have no path forward. Yet the characteristics of the Mountain-Sitting Art suited him too perfectly to simply abandon.
However, Immortal Venerable Jicheng's words had awakened Li Fan to a realization. For his current self, a Nascent Soul technique was truly like tasteless food—hard to swallow, yet a pity to discard.
In any case, the Mountain-Sitting Art would remain his primary cultivation technique for the foreseeable future.
Moreover, with Return to Truth, he possessed the ability to start over. In this life, he could inquire about the origins of the Heavenly Capital Feather Transformation Pill from Han Yi. In the next life, he could obtain that opportunity first and take his place. Then, in one step, he could extrapolate a Dao Unity version of the Mountain-Sitting Art.
I should try to have the Derivation Jade extrapolate techniques with specialized abilities? Li Fan's thoughts churned. Instantly, several plans flashed through his mind. The specifics can be decided after I see the Derivation Jade.
The only thing I don’t understand is why did Immortal Venerable Jicheng offer me guidance? Was it because a man's words are kind as he approaches death, or simply because I recognized that Greencloud Willow?
The Heavenly Physician’s Immortal Scripture clearly states that such willow trees are very common, distributed across almost every province. Recognizing it shouldn't be anything particularly special.
Li Fan had never shied away from attributing the worst possible motives to these powerhouses standing at the apex of the Xuanhuang World's food chain.
It’s highly unlikely to be an act of kindness without cause. Perhaps I’ve made an oversight somewhere...
Within the Tianxuan Mirror’s space, Li Fan's true self abruptly opened his eyes and began searching for information on the Greencloud Willow.
A moment later, his expression turned somewhat strange.
He then proceeded to search for the hundreds of plants, animals, and spiritual beings recorded in the Heavenly Physician’s Immortal Scripture : Ancient Ink Bamboo, Greenfield Wood, Delusionless Flower, Hundred-Spirit Eagle, Nine-Refinement Deer...
The results left Li Fan caught between laughter and tears.
It turned out that, whether due to the natural evolution of species over the passage of time and changing eras, or for some other reason, many of the very common plants and animals recorded in the Heavenly Physician’s Immortal Scripture had become quite rare in this current age.
Take, for example, the Greencloud Willow planted by Immortal Venerable Jicheng. Nowadays, it was only sparsely distributed in parts of Luoyan Province. And as far as Li Fan knew, Immortal Venerable Jicheng himself hailed from the wild, rustic lands of Luoyan Province.
Perhaps that's the reason Immortal Venerable Jicheng showed my avatar some slight consideration? After all, it's human nature to grow more nostalgic with age.
These myriad thoughts, though seemingly complex, actually flashed through his mind in an instant.
Yet Ximen Yue seemed to notice and looked at Li Fan with interest. "Fellow Daoist Xiao, you seemed distracted just now? What were you thinking about?"
Not long ago, after they had left the small courtyard of Immortal Venerable Jicheng's residence, the blue-robed cultivator had led them to this garden and told them to wait here. Soon, someone would come to escort them to the headquarters of the Myriad Immortals Alliance.
The garden was not large, but it held small bridges over flowing water and was surrounded by rockeries. Looking around, the scenery within the garden gradually shifted through the four seasons. Growth, lushness, decay, and withering—four distinct scenes appeared on a single canvas. It was quite marvelous.
Li Fan stood by the stream, hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the fantastical interwoven scene of four seasons before him. He spoke slowly, "I was just pondering a question earlier, though you two might find it laughable."
"What is it?" Ximen Yue asked.
"Where exactly is the headquarters of the Myriad Immortals Alliance?" Li Fan turned his head, his gaze sharp and intense as he stared at Ximen Yue.
"The Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters? Of course it's in..." Ximen Yue gave a dismissive laugh and was about to say something when his expression suddenly froze, his words halting.
"It's in..." He frowned, thinking for a long time, but couldn't come up with an answer.
At that moment, Han Yi interjected, "Tianyu, Tianchen, Tianshu, Tianquan—these four provinces are the core heartland of the Myriad Immortals Alliance. Presumably, the headquarters is located at the central junction where these four provinces meet."
"Brother Han's guess is very reasonable, but unfortunately..." Li Fan shook his head, smiling. "I once traveled extensively throughout Tianyu Province. I also tried to cross the Lifespan-Devouring White Mist Barrier at the provincial border.
"These four provinces seem to be pressed tightly together; there shouldn't be any other place in the middle.
"Of course, perhaps my cultivation is too low, and I saw it but failed to recognize it." Li Fan didn't state it as an absolute fact.
Hearing this, Han Yi's eyes gleamed with a strange light. "Oh? Is that so?"
Ximen Yue spoke up then, "Within the territory of our Myriad Immortals Alliance, there are countless grotto-heavens. It's very possible the headquarters is established within a minor world located in one of the four provinces."
Li Fan listened and gave a slight smile, offering neither agreement nor disagreement.
In his heart, however, he thought: Everyone knows the Myriad Immortals Alliance has its headquarters. Yet, where this headquarters actually is, few seem to know.
Truly mysterious. I’m glad I have the chance to investigate it this time.
Han Yi snapped his fan open with a crisp sound, somewhat dismissive of Li Fan's fixation on this problem. "Why trouble yourself? Once we go there ourselves in a little while, we'll naturally find out."
That's not necessarily true. Li Fan thought to himself, but he smiled and nodded, not refuting the point.
Instead, he struck up a conversation with Han Yi. "Speaking of which, when I found this Rebirth Longevity Fruit in the Fallen Immortal Realm, I thought I'd at least secure second place in the Immortal Venerable's bounty. I never imagined there were always greater masters beyond the masters, and heavens beyond the heavens."
Li Fan shook his head, looking at Han Yi with genuine admiration. "Fellow Daoist Ximen Yue's Five-Hundred-Year Ambrosial Fruit is already unimaginably precious.
"To think Fellow Daoist Han actually managed to find a treasure that can extend lifespan by eight hundred years, it's really..."
Ximen Yue, now full of curiosity, asked the question for Li Fan. "Where exactly did you find that Heavenly Capital Feather Transformation Pill, Fellow Daoist?
"Could it be related to Immortal Venerable Lan Yu from Yuandao Province?"
Li Fan also stared intently at Han Yi, eagerly awaiting his answer.
Under the admiring looks of the two beside him, Han Yi couldn't help but feel a bit smug.
He chuckled softly and gave his fan a casual, elegant wave. "It's nothing so grand. The treasure pill has already been handed over, so there's no harm in telling you now.
"Have either of you ever heard of the Lan Yu Treasure Boxes?" Han Yi's voice held a note of smug satisfaction as he posed the question slowly.
"The Lan Yu Treasure Boxes?" Ximen Yue repeated, a look of confusion in his eyes.
Li Fan appeared thoughtful. Yet he didn't speak up either, instead shaking his head along with Ximen Yue, content to watch Han Yi perform.