This unexpected complication arose at the critical moment when the treasure was just within reach, filling Baili Chen with both shock and fury.
He glared at Li Fan and couldn't help but roar angrily, "Where did this fraud come from! The disciples of Cloudwater Palace have long since perished..."
Halfway through his words, Baili Chen realized the impropriety of his statement and abruptly cut himself off.
"Patriarch Taiyi, please discern the truth. This person absolutely cannot be a true disciple!" he said through gritted teeth.
The turtle-snake monster, however, paid no attention to his words, instead carefully examining the aura of the technique Li Fan operated.
"Hmm... The Cloudwater Dream Illusion Art. I never thought that Little Qin would also have a successor."
"Good, very good." As if deeply moved, the turtle-snake monster's massive body trembled slightly, and its ferocious expression relaxed a bit.
"Indeed, this technique was personally passed down by Senior Brother Qin Tang. Naturally, I can be considered a disciple of Cloudwater Palace," Li Fan nodded, his expression unchanging.
Never expecting Li Fan's words to actually be true, Baili Chen's face instantly darkened.
Both he and Sikong Yi fixed Li Fan with deadly stares, killing intent surging in their eyes.
Sensing their rapidly swelling murderous aura, Li Fan merely responded with a faint smile.
"Hmm, you are a true disciple, and this young one is also a true disciple. Both of you desire the Cloudwater Model...
"This is truly a headache..."
The turtle-snake monster’s brain seemed to be working overtime, its gaze shifting back and forth between Li Fan and Baili Chen.
After a while, it finally devised a solution.
"In that case, according to the sect's rules, the two of you shall spar with each other.
"I will give the Cloudwater Model to the winner."
The turtle-snake monster appeared quite pleased with its own idea.
It shook its body, moving its stiff limbs.
One broken sword after another fell from its body, drifting down in an eerily unnatural trajectory. They landed at the edge of the sword forest below, expanding the forest's boundaries.
"Disciples of Cloudwater Palace respect and care for one another. As you spar, remember to exercise restraint and know when to stop," the turtle-snake monster instructed in its ancient, raspy voice.
Then, countless broken swords flew from its body.
They embedded themselves into the ground around Li Fan and Sikong Yi, leaving only a blank space in the center, forming a natural arena.
"Well. You may begin!" the turtle-snake monster grunted.
Li Fan chuckled softly. "Rest assured, Patriarch. I will certainly spare Junior Brother Baili's life."
Baili Chen did not reply, but the killing intent in his eyes had already reached its peak.
Above his head, twenty-one spinning blue water swords suddenly materialized. Forming a sword array, they whistled through the air as they shot toward Li Fan.
Li Fan simply extended his right hand and made a gentle grasping motion toward Baili Chen.
The outcome was decided in an instant.
Even if he had a thousand techniques left, Baili Chen could no longer use any of them now. He was instantly bound mid-air as if trapped in an invisible giant net, completely immobilized. The twenty-four water swords also dissipated mid-flight.
Taiyi, who had been slumbering for thousands of years, began commenting on the fight with great interest.
However, his rusted mind caused his commentary to lag a beat behind.
By the time his voice caught up, Baili Chen had already been subdued by Li Fan.
"Hmm, not bad. The Sea-Calming Sword Art! He's already manifested twenty-one swords, not far from a large degree of mastery...
"Eh? Is that Little Chong's binding art? Never thought he'd pass it on to an outsider..."
As the turtle-snake monster provided commentary, both Baili Chen and Sikong Yi's faces simultaneously revealed expressions of utter horror.
They knew exactly what this method that had so effortlessly restrained Baili Chen was.
It was unmistakably identical to the technique used by that Daoist Oddity inside the Demon-Refining Pagoda!
Escaping from that Daoist Oddity was one thing, but learning his divine ability too? How was that possible?
Could this person truly be a disciple of Cloudwater Palace? Otherwise, none of this made any sense!
But all Cloudwater Palace disciples had clearly perished in the calamity millennia ago!
Just who was he?
Endless doubt and fear surged within Baili Chen and Sikong Yi.
Not good, this person was far too mysterious. If they fell into his hands...
As they looked at Li Fan's "kind" face, they couldn't help but shudder. They had to escape!
And so, under the gazes of both the turtle-snake monster and Li Fan, something bizarre occurred.
Baili Chen, who had been immobilized by Insect Binding, underwent a sudden transformation. In the blink of an eye, he became Sikong Yi.
Meanwhile, Sikong Yi, who had been observing from the sidelines, now took on Baili Chen's appearance!
It wasn't just their appearances that had swapped.
Their auras, cultivation levels, and even Li Fan's lock on them via Formless Killing Mechanism had been exchanged instantaneously.
Li Fan's expression darkened, but then he heard the one who now appeared as Baili Chen shout, "My skills are inferior! I concede defeat! The Cloudwater Model is yours, Senior Brother! I beg Patriarch Taiyi to send me out of Cloudwater Palace!"
"Eh... This is..." The turtle-snake monster also seemed curious about what had just transpired, but just as it began to ponder, it was interrupted by Baili Chen's plea.
"You wish to leave this place?
"Mm, that’s good. It’s good to leave..."
Amid the turtle-snake monster's murmurs, blue light enveloped Baili Chen, causing his form to twist and distort.
With one last hateful glance toward Li Fan, he vanished without a trace.
As for Sikong Yi, whom Li Fan had bound, he lost all signs of life in that same instant.
Under Li Fan's watchful gaze, he slowly crumbled into ashes.
Then, in Li Fan's perception, Sikong Yi reappeared beside Baili Chen outside Cloudwater Palace, just like what had happened not long ago at the Demon-Refining Pagoda.
The two fled with all their might, putting as much distance between themselves and this place as possible.
Hmph, thinking of running? It won't be that easy!
Having been locked onto by Formless Killing Mechanism, there was no way they could escape Li Fan's grasp unless they put a truly immense distance between them.
In no hurry to pursue them, Li Fan instead turned to inquire with the turtle-snake monster before him.
"Patriarch Taiyi, might I ask what technique Baili Chen was practicing? Switching living people? It seems rather miraculous."
"Mmm... It looks familiar. I feel like I've heard of it somewhere." After a moment, he said regretfully, "I'm old. My memory isn't what it used to be. I can't recall.
"Well, while I still remember, I'll give you the Cloudwater Model."
The black snake coiled around Taiyi's head opened its mouth.
A miniature Cloudwater Palace, shimmering with multicolored light, slowly flew toward Li Fan and landed in his hand.
Sensing the information that surfaced in his mind, Li Fan couldn’t help but feel a flicker of disbelief.
This was it?
This was worth a hundred thousand contribution points?
It turned out that the Cloudwater Model was exactly what it appeared to be, nothing more than a tiny, exquisitely detailed model of Cloudwater Palace.
Every last detail was there. Every structure, every courtyard, every scene within the palace had been meticulously recreated.
And more than that, traces of thoughts left behind by the disciples of Cloudwater Palace in ages past were preserved within.
Sustained through some unique method, they had become minuscule figures, moving and living within this miniature world.