The order had come directly from the Administration Hall of Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters. It bore the Acting Island Master's token and contained detailed handover procedures. Its authenticity was beyond question.
The official reasoning was straightforward: in the wake of the Myriad Immortals Island abduction incident, Li Fan held the highest official rank among the surviving system-affiliated cultivators in the Congyun Sea.
The two Spirit Transformation Immortal Eminences, Zi Yun and Hong Xi, were unable to return for undisclosed reasons. By order of succession, the position of Acting Island Master fell to Li Fan.
He felt not a shred of joy at the promotion.
He read through the handover instructions carefully, and his brow furrowed.
The Martial Hall Special Commissioner post was largely ceremonial, yes, but in terms of official rank it was a position reserved for Nascent Soul cultivators and above.
His standing was far from negligible, so that much presented no obstacle.
What troubled him was this: across the vast Congyun Sea, there were certainly other system-affiliated cultivators of equivalent rank who had been away from Myriad Immortals Island when the abductions occurred and so had never been captured by the Five Elders Council. Why had this particular burden been placed on him?
In this life, he had no hidden backers.
Was this a test? A warning? A placation?
He had no way of knowing. But the order had already been issued, and dwelling on unanswerable questions served no purpose. When soldiers come, send generals to meet them; when the waters rise, build dikes to hold them back.[1]
A cold glint passed through Li Fan's eyes as he turned and flew toward the Congyun Sea.
He reached the edge of Shilin Province and, at the boundary of the Congyun Sea, encountered the invisible barrier again.
He produced the spirit talisman, channeled spiritual qi into it, and activated it. A beam of light forming the character "Myriad" shot from the talisman and struck the barrier ahead. Ripples spread across its surface.
Li Fan extended his right hand and pressed forward. He felt an unseen resistance cling to his arm, yielding and shifting as he pushed. Then it burst, like a thick bubble of viscous liquid.
He threw his full body weight against the barrier. An instant later, he was through, his true self standing once more within the Congyun Sea.
Following the handover instructions, he flew at full speed toward the recorded coordinates.
Four days later, he arrived.
A massive Dust-Crossing Boat hung motionless in the air, its silhouette strikingly familiar. On its deck, the dark outlines of many black-robed cultivators were faintly visible.
Li Fan studied it for a moment, then flew toward the ship.
The black-robed cultivators moving across the deck did not move to stop him, as though his arrival had long been anticipated.
"Fellow Daoist Li Fan, over here!" The moment his feet touched the deck, a voice called out from somewhere within the vessel.
He moved toward it, taking discreet stock of the cultivators around him as he walked.
The cold aura of solemn lethality they emanated was all too familiar. These were almost certainly souls originating from The Eras, specialists who handled particular affairs. The precursors to the Celestial Artificers who had appeared in his past life after the Xuan Net was established.
He had no interest in provoking them. He let his gaze sweep past them with apparent idleness, then looked away and continued deeper into the ship.
At the end of a corridor, he reached a room and pushed the door open.
A white-haired youth sat before a long table, his expression grave. Characters and images flickered rapidly across the table's surface, though everything Li Fan could make out was warped and blurred. Some mechanism was likely in place to prevent unauthorized observation.
"Island Master Li." The youth did not look up. His eyes remained fixed on the table. "You've received the appointment letter, so I won't go over its contents again. I'll emphasize three points.
"First, reconstruction must be completed within six months.
"Second, the budget is fixed. You will control all material expenditures strictly. If actual costs exceed the approved ceiling, or if progress falls behind schedule, you bear the consequences. That said, complete the work on time, and the achievement will be significant. The rewards will be substantial.
"The third point is the most important."
Here, the white-haired youth finally looked up.
Li Fan's composure held, but inwardly he was startled: the youth's eye sockets were empty, filled only with a deep and featureless darkness.
"This point does not appear in the formal appointment letter. Once you leave this room, I will deny ever having spoken these words. Even so, it is something you must do. Should you fail..."
The youth let out a cold snort and tapped the table lightly with one finger.
A stream of light shot from the table directly at Li Fan. He raised a hand and blocked it. The moment it touched him, it vanished without a trace, and new information surfaced in his mind.
This is...
Li Fan's brow drew together slightly.
"The array diagram for the Xuantian Abyss-Sealing Array," the white-haired youth explained, apparently sensing Li Fan's confusion.
"With the removal of Myriad Immortals Island, the Abyssal Passage beneath it has been exposed. While constructing the new Congyun Immortal City, you must also inscribe the Xuantian Abyss-Sealing Array into the city's foundation.
"The array diagram will guide you. You need not be an array master, a basic understanding will suffice. As an ancient cultivator, that should not be a problem for you." The youth spoke first, leaving Li Fan no opening to refuse.
"How should I address you, Fellow Daoist?" Li Fan asked, his brow faintly furrowed. He did not agree immediately, but posed the question instead.
The white-haired youth fixed Li Fan with those dark, hollow eyes for a moment before speaking. "Diyi Jinglun."
Li Fan's gaze sharpened almost imperceptibly.
He knew that name.
Three years of cultivation as a mortal, and he had formed his core. With a Golden Core, he had slain a Nascent Soul cultivator and defeated a Spirit Transformation cultivator. Decades later, he stood at the peak of Spirit Transformation. When an opportunity for Dao Unity lay practically within reach, he had refused it outright, solely because he found the Soul Arbiter of heaven and earth too weak to meet his standards.
Lord Jinglun. The man whose legends circulated throughout the cultivator community.
Li Fan had long known the name. He had never expected to meet the man himself.
Even so, Li Fan was no stranger to grand scenes. His expression remained unchanged, neither subservient nor arrogant. He cupped his hands in salute. "So it is Lord Jinglun himself.
"Although this is an order from the Administration Hall of the Myriad Immortals Alliance headquarters, to have me serve as some Acting Island Master under unclear circumstances, and to construct some Xuantian Abyss-Sealing Array... I must respectfully decline!" Li Fan stated firmly.
Diyi Jinglun frowned.
The space around Li Fan began to grow heavier, pressing in from all sides. His face showed not the slightest change.
He continued, "This matter is far too suspicious. It reeks of conspiracy at every turn. Who can guarantee that the Myriad Immortals Alliance won't discard me once I've served my purpose?"
Diyi Jinglun paused.
A faint smile crossed his face, and he withdrew his oppressive aura.
"So that is your concern. Then there is no need for worry."
Lord Jinglun rose and walked to the edge of the room.
As he moved, the entire wall of the ship turned transparent.
It was as though they were standing among the clouds. The vast Congyun Sea unfolded before them.
"Island Master Li, coming from ancient times, you may not know that since the Great Reformation descended, entities known as Oddities have emerged all across the world," Lord Jinglun said slowly. "And in certain locations, they have begun appearing in dense clusters, with great frequency."
1. 兵来将挡，水来土掩, an idiom that means that no matter what comes, we’ll find a way to deal with it. ☜