"They've sealed off the ruins, expelled all the cultivators inside, and are even inspecting storage rings," Jiao Xiuyuan said, his voice dropping as his eyes gleamed. "It's as if there's some incredible treasure hidden within.
"While I'm not afraid of them, harmony breeds wealth, so I didn't cause any trouble. I just left quietly."
Li Fan stroked his chin.
The Garrison Command...
It was truly strange. The Garrison Command was an elite armed force that existed only in a handful of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's core provinces. For them to seal off and excavate the Medicine King Sect ruins was highly unusual.
Could his earlier words, "Tianxuan Soul-Locking, Xuanhuang unified,” have sent the Myriad Immortals Alliance's cultivators scrambling to divine the future? Had they foreseen the imminent return of the true Medicine King Cauldron to the Xuanhuang World?
"What do you make of this, Fellow Daoist Jiao?" Li Fan asked after a moment, looking at him. "Could it be connected to the opportunity involving the Mini Medicine King Cauldrons that I foresaw?"
Jiao Xiuyuan shook his head.
"After I returned, I made some inquiries. It's not only the Medicine King Sect ruins. Every site belonging to an ancient sect—the Heavenly Sword Sect, the Taishang Sect, any former territory that falls within the Myriad Immortals Alliance's borders has been sealed off by Garrison Command cultivators.
"No one is allowed near, while they themselves are rummaging through the insides, working hard at something." A note of discontent crept into Jiao Xiuyuan's tone. "I sent a few puppets in to take a look. What I discovered is that they aren't searching for an object. They're searching for a person."
"Searching for a person?" Li Fan couldn't help but be taken aback. "What makes you say that?"
"Every cultivator inside the ruins is carrying a Spirit-Sensing Pearl. The artifact is extremely sensitive to the aura of life. It can even detect a cultivator who is in a deep coma with only a sliver of vitality remaining." As he said this, Jiao Xiuyuan glanced at Li Fan.
Li Fan considered this. "You mean they might be looking for an ancient cultivator who survived from thousands of years ago, someone who fell into deep slumber, as I did?"
"Ninety percent likely," Jiao Xiuyuan said.
That is strange. Li Fan narrowed his eyes slightly.
The Myriad Immortals Alliance does not act without purpose. They must have a specific target in mind to launch an operation at this scale.
They are certain such a slumbering ancient cultivator exists, but cannot pinpoint his exact location. They've determined only that he lies within one of the ancient sect ruins, hence this needle-in-a-haystack search. This person must be extremely important to them. And the reason they are searching for them must connect to my words about "Tianxuan Soul-Locking."
Li Fan considered it for a while but arrived at nothing conclusive.
"Fellow Daoist Jiao," he said suddenly, fixing Jiao Xiuyuan with a look, "did you truly not manage to dig up a single Mini Medicine King Cauldron?"
Jiao Xiuyuan hesitated, then let out an awkward laugh. "I can't hide anything from those sharp eyes of yours, Fellow Daoist.
"It's not that I came away empty-handed. My luck was simply poor. I had just unearthed one when the Garrison Command cultivators showed up. And thanks to all this, the prices of everything recently unearthed from sect ruins have skyrocketed. Quite a few cultivators have already come inquiring about that Mini Medicine King Cauldron, so..."
Jiao Xiuyuan looked at Li Fan, his eyes plainly spelling out: the price just went up.
Li Fan waved a hand. "Never mind, then. If the item is in such demand, sell it as you see fit, Fellow Daoist Jiao."
He didn’t haggle or make a counteroffer, just dismissing it cleanly.
Jiao Xiuyuan was left utterly dumbfounded.
"Uh, Fellow Daoist Li Fan, won't you reconsider..."
"A gentleman helps others fulfill their wishes; he does not seize what others cherish. It's a minor opportunity. Do you think I lack for such things?" Li Fan refused him with an air of complete indifference.
Watching Jiao Xiuyuan's stunned expression, he continued, "What truly interests me is this matter of the Myriad Immortals Alliance searching for an ancient cultivator. This person might even be an old acquaintance of mine. I know your information network is extensive, so I hope you can make some inquiries on my behalf, Fellow Daoist." His gaze was sharp and direct. "We can forget the Mini Medicine King Cauldrons. But on this matter, you won't try to pull the wool over my eyes again, will you?"
His gaze drifted to the plaque of the Thousand Li Hall hanging outside, his tone carrying a faint but unmistakable weight.
"Rest assured, rest assured! I, Jiao Xiuyuan, would never tarnish my own reputation!" Knowing he was in the wrong, Jiao Xiuyuan spoke rapidly.
"In that case—"
Just as Li Fan nodded and opened his mouth to continue, a sudden clamor erupted outside.
Sensing the shift in the air, the two men exchanged a glance. Without a word, they ended their conversation and stepped out.
On Myriad Immortals Island, the towering statue of the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher was shooting beams of light straight into the sky. The island's protection array had been activated. Beyond the shimmering barrier, a massive purple gate stood erect, and a dense swarm of cultivators was pouring out from it.
"The Five Elders Council?"
Li Fan and Jiao Xiuyuan exclaimed at once.
"Have they gone mad? Do they intend to wage all-out war against the Myriad Immortals Alliance?" Jiao Xiuyuan's voice was thick with astonishment.
The attack had clearly been launched in absolute secrecy. Even Jiao Xiuyuan, whose eyes and ears stretched across the entire cultivation world, had been caught completely off guard.
Li Fan's thoughts raced.
In this lifetime, the Five Elders Council is actually the one to strike first? And their target isn't the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens, but Myriad Immortals Island itself?
After a moment, he asked in a grave tone, "Fellow Daoist Jiao, have other provincial cities come under attack as well?"
Jiao Xiuyuan paused before replying, bewilderment still heavy in his voice. "No. Myriad Immortals Island in the Congyun Sea is the only target."
Li Fan's brow furrowed. He had no answer for that either.
The two fell silent and looked up at the battle unfolding in the sky.
The two Spirit Transformation Immortal Eminences who had been stationed on the island had long since been reassigned to the Myriad Immortals Alliance's headquarters, leaving the island's defenses clearly insufficient.
Unable to meet the enemy head-on, the defenders fell back on the array, holding on desperately while hoping reinforcements would arrive in time from elsewhere.
But the Five Elders Council had come prepared. The teleportation arrays were useless, communications appeared to be blocked, and no messages could get through.
Myriad Immortals Island fell steadily into a losing position. Among the many cultivators watching on the island, faces had gone pale. They had lived in peace for so long—when had any of them witnessed anything like this?
Then, as time wore on, something unexpected happened.
When the Five Elders Council finally achieved overwhelming superiority and shattered the protective array, they did not storm the island. Instead, high above Myriad Immortals Island, they immediately began setting up another array. Threads of light descended from the central array above and shot outward toward points along the island's perimeter.
"The Heaven-Shifting, Earth-Swapping Array?"
Li Fan and Jiao Xiuyuan cried out together once more.
"The Five Elders Council intends to move the entire Myriad Immortals Island?"
The astonishment in their eyes deepened.
The array was completed in an instant. As the threads began to emit a pale white light, the ground of Myriad Immortals Island shook violently beneath their feet.