Whatever he had discovered prompted Ji Changxi to take the liberty of removing that drop of Senior Sister Zhao's blood from its isolated space, drawing it close for a detailed inspection.
"Sect Leader, you—!" Senior Sister Zhao couldn't help but cry out.
"Fear not!" A layer of black light manifested around Ji Changxi, enveloping him completely.
In that instant, Senior Sister Zhao recognized it: the divine radiance unique to The Great Dao Is Mine Alone, a divine ability drawn from the Heaven-Slaying Great Dao Scripture. All foreign energies, in the presence of this technique, would be transformed into something the user could control.
She herself had briefly cultivated this profound art. But now...
Lowering her head, Senior Sister Zhao carefully concealed the ambition and dissatisfaction in her eyes.
Fortunately, the attention of every Great Dao Sect elder present was fixed entirely on that churning drop of blood in Ji Changxi's hand. No one appeared to have noticed her momentary lapse.
Black light surged around Sect Leader Ji, encircling the blood droplet. As the dark radiance roiled and pressed inward, the droplet was steadily consumed.
Before Ji Changxi could analyze anything conclusive, however, a crisp cough sounded right beside him. A flicker of astonishment crossed his face.
That was only the beginning.
As though triggering a chain reaction, a chorus of uncontrollable coughs rose and fell throughout the grand hall, spreading from one figure to the next among the sect's assembled elite.
"How is this possible?!" Having experienced the ailment's potency firsthand, the elders' expressions shifted dramatically.
"Fascinating, truly fascinating..."
"Wait, this seems to be..."
These were, after all, the foremost figures of the Xuanhuang cultivation world, each having lived for thousands of years. They swiftly employed their own methods to suppress the abnormality in their bodies. Some even took a keen interest, studying it on the spot.
Seeing the elders respond this way, Li Fan and Senior Sister Zhao exchanged a glance, their hearts settling slightly.
"Its transmissibility and pathogenicity are both utterly terrifying, truly unprecedented in my experience," said an elder with hair as white as snow, his voice slow and measured. "I fear even the Immortal Severance Decree released by the Xuantian Sect in their final death throes cannot compare."
Li Fan knew this man only as Mo Zhiran, one of the Great Dao Sect's elders and a master of medicinal principles. He lived in seclusion, uninvolved in sect affairs, yet the pills he refined were said to be of exceptional quality. Even the Creation Violet-Gold Pill that Li Fan had once taken, Mo Zhiran could produce flawed versions at seventy to eighty percent efficacy, and he had only Dao Unity cultivation.
With Mo Zhiran breaking the ice, the other elders began speaking freely, sharing their own observations.
"This disease... one contact is all it takes. It takes root in a cultivator's body and grows on its own. The mild form is manageable, but if not suppressed in time and allowed to reach the severe stage..."
"In minor cases, cultivation regresses. In severe cases, the body perishes and the Dao dissipates!"
The expressions of everyone present grew grave.
"I attempted over a dozen methods just now. Each could quickly eliminate the symptoms, yet the underlying force that gives rise to this disease never truly disperses. It remains hidden deep within the body. What is its vector of residence? How strange and baffling..."
"Our cultivation levels are passable enough that we can suppress the symptoms with ease. But what of the disciples within the sect? Without medicinal aid, I fear..."
"First the Exclusivity of Techniques, and now this bizarre disease..."
"The path to immortality is severed, the future is bleak! Better to return, better to simply return!"
"Lei Fanzi, there are juniors present. What nonsense are you spouting?"
The grand sect hall, ordinarily the most solemn of places, had become as noisy as a marketplace.
Li Fan and Senior Sister Zhao kept their heads down, careful not to show the slightest hint of abnormality.
"Everyone!"
A single voice cut through the noise, drawing every eye in the hall. Silence fell at once.
"I have a thought," said Ji Changxi, sect leader of the Great Dao Sect, his expression grave. "Some of you may have already realized that this so-called strange disease is so impossible to guard against for a very specific reason: it, too, is one of the newly born rules of heaven and earth.
"A principle of the world, in other words. And unlike the Exclusivity of Techniques, this one is the work of a cultivator."
The words struck like thunder. Li Fan and Senior Sister Zhao jerked their heads up, staring at Ji Changxi, their minds instantly in turmoil.
The work of a cultivator?
Defying the principles of heaven and earth?
Ever since the Dao Teacher attained the Dao and ensured that only the new methodology could be cultivated in the world, a great number of Dao Unity cultivators had emerged, yet not a single one had managed to defy the principles of heaven and earth and break through to the Eternal Life realm. The Ten Immortal Dao Sects boasted countless heroes and prodigies, yet decades of attempts had yielded nothing. Not one so-called prodigy had succeeded.
That alone demonstrated how difficult it was to defy the principles of heaven and earth.
And yet, according to Sect Leader Ji, a cultivator had quietly done exactly that—attaining the Dao and achieving eternal life. Who could it possibly be?
Although the Ten Immortal Dao Sects each harbored their own schemes, they still maintained communication with one another. A breakthrough to the Eternal Life realm was far too significant an event to go unannounced. Even without prior notice, a message would certainly be sent to inform the other sects once an ascension succeeded.
And this newly ascended Eternal Heavenly Venerable had, it seemed, defied the principle that disease cannot harm cultivators. Such an act—one that made an enemy of every cultivator in the world—was absolutely not the work of anyone from the Ten Immortal Dao Sects.
Who would dig their own grave?
What sort of person, having reached the Eternal Life realm, would then seek to exterminate all cultivators in the world? This was naked provocation, a declaration of war.
It wasn't only Li Fan and Senior Sister Zhao. Throughout the hall, the elders and Ji Changxi himself struggled to keep the killing intent from rising in their eyes.
"Investigate. We must get to the bottom of this. Even if this person is an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, such actions cannot be forgiven. I will immediately convene with the leaders of the other immortal sects to relay this news. As for the Myriad Immortals Alliance..." Ji Changxi paused. "Send someone to inform them as well. Gauge their reaction.
"If the highest powers of the entire Xuanhuang World unite, I refuse to believe this scoundrel can remain at large.
"While pursuing the culprit, we must also focus on protecting against this disease. From today, the Medicine Hall will operate at full capacity to ensure our Great Dao Sect has an ample supply of elixirs.
"As for those outside the Great Dao Sect..." Ji Changxi hesitated for a brief moment. "Having suffered through multiple calamities, our Great Dao Sect has also sustained heavy losses. We may lack the strength to protect ourselves. Let them fend for themselves."
The elders gave slight nods of approval. No one voiced any objection.
"I will attempt to find a method to alleviate the symptoms of this strange affliction," Mo Zhiran said, a flicker of longing kindling in his eyes. "If we could dismantle its harm to cultivators entirely, it would be akin to defying the principles of heaven and earth once more."
"Perhaps then," he murmured, almost to himself, "my path to eternal life might yet hold hope."