Witnessing this bizarre scene before him, Li Fan felt his emotions stir.
These were Oddities—existing between life and death, clarity and confusion. They were bound by obsession, forever repeating the same cycle according to fixed rules, unable to break free.
Qin Tang was like this, and so was Daoist Chong.
Daoist Chong, seeing that Li Fan had no reaction, held up the two golden pills and waved them before his eyes. "Senior Brother, the pills."
He looked at Li Fan with hopeful anticipation.
Li Fan, however, shook his head regretfully. "My aptitude is too poor. I'm afraid even if I took these pills, my cultivation wouldn't improve much. So, I definitely cannot take them. They would be of greater use in the hands of future senior brothers with better aptitudes."
Daoist Chong looked somewhat disappointed and was about to try persuading him again.
Li Fan quickly continued, "However, I would like to ask you for a favor, Junior Brother. I wonder if you would be willing to agree."
Daoist Chong became happy again. "Of course! Senior Brother, whatever you need, just let me know."
"I want to learn that method of catching insects from you, Junior Brother," Li Fan said slowly.
Oddities had their own rules.
If one did not follow an Oddity's rules, one would surely die by it.
But if one figured out the rules, not only could one remain unharmed when facing the Oddity, one could even gain various benefits from it.
Take Qin Tang’s stone statue from before.
If one's performance in all three trials was fairly good, one could receive Qin Tang's guidance by asking for a pot of good wine just before leaving.
Qin Tang would then either help improve one's cultivation or impart a technique based on one’s specific performance in the earlier trials.
Here, with Daoist Chong, if one chose to swallow the golden pills, one could obtain Daoist Chong's pill refinement method.
However, this pill refinement method was not normal alchemy. It was the Path of Insect Pills.
Not only were the refining materials mostly parts from various strange flying insects, but the refined pills themselves also took the form of flying insects.
Even worse, the more insect pills one refined, the more the refiner would gradually become just like Daoist Chong.
Eventually, one would transform into an existence that was neither fully human nor fully ghost.
Therefore, Li Fan did not choose the golden pills as his reward. Instead, he chose something else, whose value was in no way inferior to the Path of Insect Pills.
Hearing Li Fan's words, Daoist Chong scratched the back of his head, looking somewhat embarrassed. "Senior Brother, that Insect Binding Net is just something I usually use for fun. Why would you want to learn that..."
Li Fan explained with complete seriousness, “It's inevitable that some pesky insects will try to harass our senior brothers fighting on the front lines. I am weak and cannot personally join the battle against the enemy. But if I learn your insect-binding technique, I can provide support from the sidelines, helping the senior brothers clear away these annoying pests."
Hearing this, Daoist Chong had a sudden realization. "I hadn't thought the Insect Binding Net could be used like that! Senior Brother, you are truly clever!"
Li Fan said sincerely, "Then I must trouble you to teach it to me, Junior Brother."
Daoist Chong's face flushed red with excitement. "Alright, Senior Brother! I will give you the method for weaving the net right now."
As he spoke, a buzzing sound came from behind Daoist Chong as four pairs of transparent wings manifested from his back.
He reached behind and tore one of them off.
The wing still carried traces of blood as Daoist Chong handed it to Li Fan.
Li Fan gently touched it, and the transparent wing transformed into streams of radiant light that were absorbed into his body.
Simultaneously, before his eyes, the world seemed to be crisscrossed by countless horizontal and vertical fine lines.
He felt as if he could manipulate these threads at will, weaving them into a vast net capable of capturing every living thing within his sight.
This is it. The divine ability, Insect Binding.
The illusion of the giant net gradually faded, but Li Fan knew he had already acquired this immensely powerful divine ability.
As long as the target's cultivation level was lower than his own, he could instantly restrain them by activating the Insect Binding divine ability.
Any cultivator bound by Insect Binding would find all the divine abilities or arcane arts they possessed utterly useless.
They could only await their inevitable fate, like insects trapped in a web.
At first glance, the Insect Binding divine ability seemed rather limited, as it could only be used on cultivators of a lower level.
But in reality, this wasn't the case.
One had to understand that cultivation level did not always equate to actual combat strength.
Which cultivator didn’t have one or two hidden trump cards?
Even someone with a higher cultivation level couldn't guarantee a safe escape if caught off guard.
But with this Insect Binding divine ability, such worries vanished.
As long as his cultivation was superior, he could deliver a crushing, overwhelming blow and capture his opponent alive.
It was perfectly suited for dealing with those whose cultivation might be lacking, yet seemed to harbor many secrets.
The figures of Sikong Yi and Baili Chen flashed through Li Fan's mind.
Having obtained this divine ability, Li Fan was unwilling to delay any longer.
"Junior Brother Chong, I have mastered the web-weaving technique. I will go to the front lines to join our senior brothers now. Take care of yourself!"
Daoist Chong was somewhat reluctant to see him go. "Then you must be careful, Senior Brother! You must return safely!"
As Li Fan departed, that look of concern slowly faded from the Daoist's face.
After an unknown length of time, in the silence of the Demon-Refining Pagoda, Daoist Chong's murmuring began again.
"...There are no more alchemical ingredients. What should I do?..."
***
Outside the Demon-Refining Pagoda, Li Fan sensed the locations of Sikong Yi and Baili Chen.
They were already very close to the core of Cloudwater Palace: Taiyi Hall.
Information about Taiyi Hall immediately surfaced in Li Fan's mind.
It was said that Taiyi Hall was where Cloudwater Palace received honored guests and held sect meetings.
It wasn't considered particularly dangerous, but the specific circumstances surrounding it were rather unique.
Sensing that Sikong Yi and Baili Chen seemed to have stopped for some reason, inching forward at a snail's pace toward the central area, Li Fan immediately understood what was going on.
He snorted coldly and hurried in their direction.
Before Taiyi Hall, countless broken swords were thrust into the ground.
Their blades interlocked, forming a veritable forest of swords that blocked the path to the hall.
Sikong Yi and Baili Chen were currently stepping on the sword hilts, making their way toward Taiyi Hall.
With each step forward, a phantom of the broken sword beneath their feet materialized above them.
Then it shot down, piercing through their hearts.
There was no spray of blood.
After piercing them, the phantom would vanish. It caused no physical harm, only excruciating pain.
The agony caused their bodies to tremble uncontrollably, and sweat poured from their foreheads like rain.
After a long period of recovery from the indescribable pain, they would take a deep breath and step forward onto the next sword hilt.
Another sword phantom would pierce them.
This was the reason for their painfully slow progress.
Though the suffering was extreme, their gazes were firm, showing no intention of retreat.
What they had toiled so desperately for lay just ahead, nearly within their grasp. How could they possibly give up now?
Steeling their resolve, they gritted their teeth and pressed onward.
Just then, they sensed someone approaching from behind.
Turning to look, they couldn’t suppress their overwhelming shock, and a cry escaped their lips.
“You?! How is this possible?”