This world... has some serious problems.
After Ji Hongdao piloted the massive Dust-Crossing Boat away, Formless Killing Mechanism lost connection to its target.
That didn't matter much; Li Fan’s initial goal of learning what was transpiring within Tianling Province had been achieved.
Now, as Li Fan replayed the scenes he had just witnessed in his mind, numerous questions arose.
If the disappearance of the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher and the probing attack by Heavenly Venerable One Mind were still within the bounds of logic, then what happened next was utterly baffling.
Ji Hongdao activated the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array and eradicated every cultivator in the province in an instant.
That was a statement. A demonstration that the Myriad Immortals Alliance, under the coverage of the Soul-Locking Array, possesses the power to exterminate the vast majority of the world's cultivators in a single moment.
He used that as a threat, demanding Senior Sister Zhao withdraw.
And as an Eternal Heavenly Venerable... she actually left.
Would an existence at the Eternal Life realm truly care so much about the lives of ants? After transcending, shouldn't the attitude be “whether you live or die is none of my concern?”
Suddenly, Li Fan recalled something he learned from years past.
“The number of cultivators cannot be too few...”
It seems that ensuring a certain number of cultivators exists is far more important to the Eternal Heavenly Venerables than I imagined.
But why?
What bothered him even more was the strange phenomenon that occurred in the Xuanhuang World immediately after the cultivators of Tianling Province were wiped out.
It was like an omen of the apocalypse. The entire world trembled.
Every living being in the world felt an inexplicable dread in their hearts.
Even Li Fan, who possessed the power of Return to Truth and could restart his life at any moment, felt it too.
The conflict between the Xuanhuang World and its cultivators had reached a point where reconciliation seemed almost out of the question. Logically speaking, the more cultivators died, the better it should be for the world.
But now, it was clear that this was absolutely not the case. What was the reason for this?
He pondered repeatedly, but due to a lack of clues, Li Fan couldn't arrive at a reasonable answer.
He thought again of Heavenly Venerable One Mind.
This was his first time laying eyes on an existence at the Eternal Life realm.
She had effortlessly blocked the attack of the Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array.
Ji Hongdao, a Dao Unity powerhouse, hadn't even dared to look directly at her.
Her strength was indeed unfathomable.
One Mind... must be similar to “Dao Teacher,” representing the principle of heaven and earth that Senior Sister Zhao has defied.
What is “One Mind?”
Li Fan's brow furrowed tightly.
“One Mind” carries the meaning of single-minded focus, or being of one mind.
Single-minded focus is clearly not it. Being of one mind...
Li Fan's gaze sharpened.
He recalled Senior Sister Zhao's somewhat peculiar words.
“Staying in the Myriad Immortals Alliance is a waste of your talent. Why not join me instead!”
Join...
Me?!
Li Fan seemed to understand something.
He thought of the thousands of Five Elders Council cultivators who had launched the surprise attack.
From beginning to end, they had all worn the same expression. There was no commander, yet their words and actions were unnaturally synchronized. They showed no trace of fear even in the face of death.
And after their collective demise, no corresponding phenomena had appeared in the sky.
The multitude... as one mind?
A realization dawned on Li Fan.
All living things are born distinct. In this world, each is an independent individual.
This is a principle of heaven and earth.
If this principle were reversed... There is you within me, and me within you. We are one entity.
Li Fan suddenly remembered concepts he had heard of before his transmigration, such as "consciousness aggregates" or "unified collectives." A vast species might appear to have numerous individual lifeforms, but in essence, they were a single community sharing all perceptions.
Is this, perhaps, the path Senior Sister Zhao cultivates? He wondered. Assimilating all living beings in the world?
But then Li Fan immediately felt something was off. Senior Sister Zhao had already achieved the status of an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, which meant she had successfully defied the natural order of heaven and earth.
Yet clearly, the vast majority of cultivators in the Xuanhuang World had not been assimilated by her.
Does this mean the principle defied by Heavenly Venerable One Mind only applies within a specific domain? Li Fan speculated silently. And when Ji Hongdao spoke of establishing their Axiom, is that a necessary step to becoming an Eternal Heavenly Venerable?
The events in Tianling Province had once again allowed Li Fan to glimpse one of this world's greatest secrets.
But to truly and fully understand its underlying meaning, he needed more information.
Setting the matter aside for now, Li Fan returned to the immortal city of Tianpan Province and entered the Tianxuan Mirror.
There, he submitted an application to visit the Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters for a free tour of the Museum of Divine Treasures. This was one of the benefits of his current Yan 30 permission level.
Before long, his application was approved. He could visit it any time within the year.
Li Fan chose to go immediately.
Not long after, he received a message stating that a guide would come to fetch him soon, instructing him to wait patiently within Tianpan City.
Li Fan let out a slight sigh of relief.
He wasn't doing this because he had the spare time to go browse the treasures preserved in the museum in what were potentially his final moments. He simply wanted to take refuge in a safe place.
Ji Hongdao hadn't killed the donkeys after they’d ground the grain yet, sparing the lives of those young array masters in Tianling Province for now. But after witnessing the massacre of an entire province's cultivators and learning the structural secrets of the Spirit-Locking Array, their fates were far from optimistic. Those array masters who hadn't attended for various reasons would likely be cleaned up one by one as well.
Li Fan could, of course, simply activate Return to Truth. But he still needed a little more time in this lifetime to tie up loose ends. At the very least, he had to wait until Xiao Heng and the other two emerged from the true Medicine King Cauldron.
For Li Fan, at this moment, there was no safer place in the world than the headquarters of the Myriad Immortals Alliance.
First, the headquarters had its own defense mechanisms; it was highly unlikely Ji Hongdao and his people would make a direct move on him inside.
Second, it created an illusion: "I'm already at the Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters, trapped like a turtle in a jar. Are you still afraid I'll run away?" This would undoubtedly make Ji Hongdao and the others lower their guard, dealing with the remaining targets first and leaving Li Fan for last.
***
While Li Fan waited for the guide, deep within the Cangwu Abyss, inside the true Medicine King Cauldron, Xiao Heng and the others were helping Linghu Chang open one sealed door after another, retrieving the corpses within for burial.
Back then, to prevent the Medicine King Cauldron from falling into the Immortal Ruins, Liu Ruchen had not only sacrificed himself and Elder Huang; he had also used the lives of hundreds of slumbering disciples as fuel to drag the cauldron back from the abyss.
Looking at the desiccated corpses of his former fellow disciples, Linghu Chang’s face was etched with a sorrow he could not contain.
He collected every item of value from their remains. After consigning the bodies to the flames, his voice dropped, heavy and resolute. “I will rebuild the Medicine King Sect.”
Xiao Heng and the others exchanged glances. “Fellow Daoist Linghu,” Xiao Heng ventured, unable to hold back, “these times are not what they once were...”
Linghu Chang raised a hand, cutting him off. “I know. Techniques can no longer be shared now.
“That is why I will not awaken any of my fellow disciples or the elders of our sect who cultivate the same technique as I do.”