Chapter 548: Mistaken For A Heavenly Venerable
"Unlike us ordinary mortals, the Secretary-Envoy surely harbors far greater ambitions," Gao Yuan said, his tone distant and measured. "The official positions within the Immortal Alliance that we covet? He likely doesn't spare them a second glance.
"Though he conceals it well, a man who is genuinely infatuated with power can be spotted at a glance."
He Zhenghao's expression turned solemn, and he nodded in agreement.
"From what I know, the Secretary-Envoy was actually forced to accept the position of Acting Island Master of Myriad Immortals Island," Gao Yuan said abruptly. "The order to rebuild the immortal city was like forcing a duck onto a perch, a matter of sheer necessity."
He Zhenghao's eyes lit up with surprise. "Is that so?"
Gao Yuan nodded. "Though I don't know what intricacies were involved, fortunately the Secretary-Envoy completed the task in the end.
"And in doing so, he changed the fates of many of us.
"Now, although he holds the office of Secretary-Envoy and presides over the affairs of the entire Congyun Sea Province, I suspect he has no interest in personally managing each and every matter.
"For a man of his heaven-bestowed talent, spending time on such mundane affairs would be a genuine waste.
"The Secretary-Envoy has a grander stage. These trivial matters naturally fall to those beneath him.
"What he needs are people who can keep everything in perfect order in his absence, requiring nothing further from him."
Gao Yuan laid out his reasoning point by point.
"The two tasks he assigned us this time are precisely such a test.
"And that Consciousness Jade Slip is a trap.
"Once we lose control of the situation to the point where we must seek the Secretary-Envoy's instructions, our positions might not change, but in his mind, we would be branded as incompetent from that moment on."
He Zhenghao shuddered. "It can’t be that serious, right?"
Gao Yuan gave a cold snort. "Fellow Daoist, have you ever paid attention to the way the Secretary-Envoy looks at us?"
"His gaze? What about it?" He Zhenghao frowned, puzzled, and quickly asked him to elaborate.
"Though the Secretary-Envoy appears amiable on the surface, sometimes even humbling himself to seek out worthy men, in reality..."
A flicker of fear passed through Gao Yuan's eyes.
"In the depths of his gaze, when he looks at any of us, it is always the same.
"It is how we cultivators look upon mortal ants.
"No, that's not right..." Gao Yuan shook his head, frowning as though searching for the right words.
After a moment, he pointed suddenly at the tables and chairs in the Council Hall. "Yes. That is closer to it. In his eyes, all of us are like these, mere tools.
"It is as though we are a different order of existence entirely. To him, I'm afraid, we are simply tools.
"When I was still standing guard at the entrance of the Administration Hall, I was fortunate enough to lay eyes on a Dao Unity cultivator. But even that Dao Unity Immortal Venerable did not look upon me with the same indifference as the Secretary-Envoy does.
"I've heard the Secretary-Envoy is a cultivator from the ancient Heavenly Mechanisms Sect. He slumbered for some reason until now, and his cultivation consequently fell to the Golden Core realm.
"There were also earlier rumors of him slaying several Nascent Soul cultivators who joined forces against him, and this while at the Golden Core realm.
"So, during the peak of his power in ancient times, what level of cultivation did the Secretary-Envoy truly possess?"
Gao Yuan's voice grew quieter with each word, a trace of terror moving behind his eyes.
He Zhenghao couldn't help but shiver.
The implication in Gao Yuan's words was already plain.
He suspected that in ancient times, Li Fan had been a cultivator of the Eternal Life realm.
It was common knowledge that once one stepped into the Eternal Life realm, true transcendence was achieved. The very essence of their being changed, becoming an existence wholly incomparable to cultivators of realms like Dao Unity, Spirit Transformation, or Nascent Soul.
To regard all living beings with such perfect indifference and equality—only a powerhouse of the Eternal Life realm could do such a thing.
Once they accepted this and weighed it against Li Fan's various shocking, world-defying deeds, everything suddenly seemed perfectly reasonable.
There were countless cultivators in the world proficient in divination arts, but no one had ever heard of anyone wielding them with effortless ease as Li Fan did, using them to amass wealth and double his assets at will.
If divination arts were truly that miraculous, wouldn't every cultivator under heaven be scrambling to learn them?
For thousands of years, divination arts had remained lukewarm in practice, and for good reason. Given the greedy nature of cultivators, they would never have overlooked such an advantage if it were so readily available.
Only an Eternal Heavenly Venerable who had cultivated divination arts to their limits could perhaps pierce the veil of the future so effortlessly.
The rumors circulating in secret throughout the Congyun Sea held that the sudden lockdown of Myriad Immortals Island, followed by the Five Elders Council's surprise raid to seize the entire island, had all stemmed from a certain prophecy. Everyone said that prophecy had been divined by the illustrious Gongsun Qixuan, yet there were also whispers that Gongsun Qixuan himself had been influenced by Li Fan's divination arts.
Furthermore, if Li Fan had once been an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, then slaying Nascent Soul cultivators while at the Golden Core realm, or keeping a Spirit Transformation puppet as his mount... things like these were child’s play. If he could not accomplish such feats, what right would he have to be called an Eternal Heavenly Venerable?
For a moment, absolute silence fell over the Council Hall. A peculiar tension brewed between He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan. The longer they considered it, the more reasonable and well-founded the speculation seemed. And so their bodies began to tremble, ever so slightly, beyond their control.
First, because of the innate fear any being felt in the presence of an Eternal Life realm powerhouse.
And second, because to be treated as a trusted aide by an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, even if only temporarily and on the surface, was an extraordinary honor.
Their minds churned with restless thoughts, and both men gave themselves over to wild imaginings, unable to settle for a long while.
Finally, He Zhenghao broke the silence. He cleared his throat and said softly, "Brother Gao, this matter is all your speculation. It would be best not to speak of it lightly to outsiders. Let’s keep it between you and me."
Gao Yuan glanced at him and gave a slight nod. "I am naturally aware of that."
The two men exchanged a smile, everything understood without words.
There was one more implication left unspoken between them. If Li Fan truly was an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, then by serving him now, once he had fully recovered and restored his cultivation, their influence would no longer be confined to this tiny, remote corner of the Congyun Sea.
He Zhenghao thought of the wife he had lost long ago, and the flame of ambition that had been dead in his eyes for so many years began to smolder once more.
***
Deep within the Administration Hall.
Li Fan withdrew his attention and summoned a water mirror. He stroked his chin, studying his own reflection.
A gaze that looks upon everything with indifference...
He stared blankly at his own eyes.