Li Fan was not the only one to notice the change.
After the battle, as the Sinkwood was reduced to ash beneath the raging flames, Yan Hang and the others showed no hint of triumph.
“Damn it. These things have gotten stronger again,” Yan Hang cursed, his expression dark as he examined the withered, yellowed wound on his arm.
The other four cultivators had also sustained injuries of varying severity.
“We should report this immediately,” sighed one of them, a cultivator named Li Shifeng. “Hopefully, the higher-ups can come up with a solution soon. Otherwise, I doubt we can hold out much longer.”
Yan Hang let out a cold snort but offered no rebuttal.
He opened the Celestial Oversight Ledger, closed his eyes, and began compiling the report.
Li Fan was checking the Ledger as well.
Compared to when he had first entered the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens, the information recorded within was now far more detailed.
Overall array completion progress: 78%.
We’re proceeding according to plan—slightly ahead of schedule, even.
But the situation here is clearly starting to slip out of control.
What countermeasures will the Myriad Immortals Alliance take next?
A faint glint flashed through Li Fan’s eyes, yet his hands never paused in their work.
Could the Myriad Immortals Alliance complete the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array on time?
Li Fan was almost certain they could.
At present, most of the cultivators operating within the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens were at the Nascent Soul realm.
But the Myriad Immortals Alliance was by no means lacking in Spirit Transformation cultivators.
They simply had not yet committed their full strength.
If the Alliance determined that the current forces were insufficient to meet the objective, they would naturally increase their investment.
As for whether the cultivators already stationed within the grotto-heavens could survive long enough for reinforcements to arrive... that was another matter entirely.
Just as Li Fan anticipated, the monsters’ steady rise in strength soon spread panic throughout the workforce.
Qi Buyi quickly stepped forward to stabilize morale.
First, she explained that due to the principle of mutual conquest among the five elements, a monster fused from all five attributes could not exist.
At worst, only a four-attribute monster could appear.
And even then, such a threat would emerge only during the final stages of the five elements convergence.
The main enemies they needed to contend with were monsters fused from two or three attributes.
Second, the Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters was already fully aware of the situation within the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens, and reinforcements would arrive very soon.
Moreover, the scale of those reinforcements would be immense—their numbers would exceed the total count of all cultivators currently working within the five grotto-heavens combined.
There was no cause for concern.
Although everyone regarded Qi Buyi's claims with a degree of skepticism, having received this explicit assurance finally allowed the cultivators to breathe a sigh of relief.
The tension eased somewhat, and they continued their work—apprehensive, yet hopeful—as they awaited the arrival of reinforcements.
This undercurrent of unease persisted as time went on.
In the blink of an eye, two years had passed since Li Fan entered the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens.
During this period, cultivators did indeed arrive to provide support in batches.
But their numbers fell far short of the massive reinforcements Qi Buyi had promised.
When questioned, Qi Buyi repeatedly offered various excuses.
However, the arrival of two new Dao Unity cultivators to bolster their ranks did put many minds at ease somewhat.
As these newcomers settled in, the reason for their long delay soon began to spread through word of mouth.
The world outside had truly been beset by great turbulence, with many significant events occurring in these past two years.
First came the external threats.
The Five Elders Council had once again massed their forces along the border, repeatedly probing and provoking the Alliance.
Unlike previous times, however, the other side didn't seem intent on sparking a large-scale conflict. They had concentrated their entire strength on Fenglei Province, which lay opposite Tianling Province.
According to unofficial rumors, it seemed the Five Elders Council was interested in the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array’s abilities and wanted to seize an entire province from the Myriad Immortals Alliance to conduct a comprehensive analysis of it.
Li Fan, however, knew this was just a superficial excuse. The true target of the Five Elders Council should still be the void within Tianling Province that nurtured the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens.
The cat is finally out of the bag. He thought to himself. Indeed, the Myriad Immortals Alliance's unusual movements in Tianling Province over the last two years are more than enough to arouse their vigilance.
Beyond the pressure from the Five Elders Council, the interior of the Myriad Immortals Alliance was far from peaceful.
During this period, many voices opposing the widespread implementation of the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array had suddenly emerged from various regions. And those speaking out were no minor figures. Most were cultivators of the Spirit Transformation realm or higher, occupying important positions across different provinces.
For reasons unknown, these same individuals who had not long ago unanimously declared their absolute support for the Soul-Locking Array construction project had suddenly changed their tune, now voicing clear and distinct opposition.
And they weren't opposing for opposition's sake; they had ample arguments and reasons.
This was their viewpoint:
It was common knowledge that any array, no matter how ingenious, would eventually be deciphered and dismantled. History was littered with instances where protective arrays had been compromised, yet the Myriad Immortals Alliance remained oblivious, only to be caught off guard by their enemies.
This was precisely why, later on, protective arrays had to be completely replaced at regular intervals.
The Myriad Immortals Alliance was going to such great lengths and sparing no expense to construct the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array to cover all its territory, but could they guarantee the array's effectiveness forever?
If it were to be analyzed and deciphered by the Five Elders Council shortly after completion, wouldn't that be the greatest joke of all time?
Furthermore, these individuals were also deeply skeptical about whether the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array could achieve the effects touted in its promotion.
The reason? The actions of the Thousand-Faced Demon Lord, that lingering ghost within the Myriad Immortals Alliance's territory, had grown increasingly rampant of late.
Many high-ranking cultivators across various provinces had fallen victim to his schemes.
Even in some provinces where the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array had already been completed, it had only slightly slowed his killing spree. In the end, he still managed to slip away.
And even if he were truly captured, what then? If the Five Elders Council could cultivate one Thousand-Faced Demon Lord, they could certainly cultivate two, or three.
When first unveiled, the primary significance of the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array's existence was to render all Five Elders Council cultivators within the territory unable to hide.
But now? The enemy is open running rampant in your lands, and you are powerless to stop them. What use is such a Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array then?
It had to be said, these arguments were quite persuasive. So much so that when they raised their doubts to the Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters, they resonated with a significant number of people.
The tide of opposition grew stronger, yet the Alliance headquarters, breaking from its usual pattern, did not punish these dissenters.
Instead, it sank into an eerie silence.
It was against this backdrop that the Thousand-Faced Demon Lord’s movements grew even more elusive, his slaughter ever more ruthless.
Amidst these internal troubles and external threats, Li Fan heard of an interesting development.
As tensions mounted, an organization called the Spiritual Origin Sect, located in Jiushan Province along the border between the Myriad Immortals Alliance and the Five Elders Council, was thriving as of late. It had drawn the attention of quite a few cultivators.
The reason was a peculiar technique practiced within the Spiritual Origin Sect—a technique which increased one’s cultivation speed the more people practiced it simultaneously.