Above the vast sky, a strange phenomenon formed.
A gigantic sword, forged through a thousand trials, had been abandoned in the shadows for millennia, forgotten by all.
As the years passed, its blade was no longer bright, its edge was no longer sharp, and it was covered in rust.
However, a wave of anger and unwillingness suddenly arose!
Even as the corrosion of rust became more and more severe, the divinity and majesty of that huge sword likewise increased with each passing day!
"Foundation Establishment cultivator Dao Xuanzi cultivated the Dao for two hundred and one years, achieving the Foundation Establishment through the extraordinary artifact [Rust Sword Dao Xuan]. In the Land of Immortal Extinction, he fought to the death with others and eventually fell at the hands of Foundation Establishment Cultivator Kou Hong."
"Now, in death, his Dao returns to the heavens!"
The brilliant scene illuminated the sky for thousands of miles like fireworks.
"Dao Xuanzi..." Kou Hong watched the magnificent scene and seemed completely stunned, unable to stop murmuring to himself.
All the soldiers present also looked up at the sky and froze."I am Li Fan, and I greet the Immortal Master."
Right at this moment, an old man with white hair and a walking stick walked tremblingly to Kou Hong's side.
Kou Hong paid him no mind, but Li Fan was not in a hurry, patiently waiting while signaling the soldiers to stand by.
Only after a long time, with the heavenly visage dispersing, did Kou Hong turn to look at Li Fan.
"Are you the leader of the mortals here?" Kou Hong's tone was harsh, and it was obvious that he did not have a good impression of Li Fan. "That voice that rang out everywhere before was you, right?"
"They were petty tricks, and are not worth the Immortal Master's attention." Li Fan cupped his hands and avoided discussing the matter directly. Instead, he bowed respectfully. "I beseech the Immortal Master to be merciful and save the lives of my clan's thousands of people."
"Mercy...," Kou Hong sneered at the request. "In my battle with Dao Xuanzi, we both relied on our own abilities, and our life and death were determined by fate. You, a mere mortal, actually interfered in the battle between us cultivators."
He looked at Li Fan, his words dripping with killing intent, "Although Dao Xuanzi and I fought to the death over the Golden Core technique, he was still my brother of more than a hundred years. Now that you have killed him, shouldn't I avenge him by killing you?"
Unaffected by Kou Hong's threat, Li Fan just laughed bitterly, "I'm just seeking a ray of hope! As I mentioned before, if Immortal Master loses, my clan will definitely be unable to escape death."
When Kou Hong heard this, his face loosened up. He sighed, "What a way to seek a chance of survival. You're right. In this harsh and cruel world, who isn't struggling for that glimmer of hope?"
Seeing that Kou Hong's tone had softened, Li Fan hurriedly jumped at the opportunity and said, "Previously, Dao Xuanzi... the Immortal Master had promised me that if..."
Before Li Fan could finish his words, Kou Hong frowned and interrupted, "If it's this matter, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you. Dao Xuanzi probably had no intention of honoring his promise to begin with."
Li Fan froze, "What does Immortal Master mean?"
Kou Hong laughed mockingly, "For a hundred years, Dao Xuanzi has presented himself as an upright and righteous figure. I can't believe he turned out to be unscrupulous with no bottom line, even deceiving mortals in his actions."
He paused, watched Li Fan's expression, and continued, "The Great Formation of Immortal Extinction is so dangerous that the two of us were only able to break in with a healthy amount of luck. It would take a lot of effort for us to leave on our own, so how could we possibly take a mortal away?"
"What? Even Immortal Master doesn't know how to leave this place?" Li Fan's heart and mind shook drastically, and his face became extremely ugly. With over a hundred years of anticipation and hopes being ruthlessly crushed by the immortal cultivator in front of him, Li Fan's mind almost collapsed.
However, Li Fan had gone through several lifetimes of trials and tribulations, and his mind had long been tempered. He quickly recovered and said to Kou Hong, "This is not the place to talk. Immortal Master, please follow me."
With that, he led Kou Hong through the ruins of Xuanjing City to an underground bunker.
Earlier, when Kou Hong and Dao Xuanzi were fighting, the soldiers in the city were hiding in these bunkers. In Xuanjing City, there were hundreds of similar bunkers, both large and small.
Although the bunkers were deep underground, they were illuminated with lights and were still as bright as the surface. There were even ventilation ducts connecting to the outside world so that the bunker was not suffocating.
Kou Hong surveyed the lights on the ceiling with interest and complimented, "No wonder Dao Xuanzi sought cooperation with you mortals. To be able to restrain and utilize the power of lightning, it seems that over the thousands of years, you mortals of the Immortal Extinction Land have developed greatly. There was also the projectile weapon from before which was quite powerful."
Immediately afterward, he shook his head again, "It's a pity, only in this land which lacks the Great Dao are these magic artifacts somewhat useful. Outside of here, under the oppression of the laws of the Great Dao, all of these things would be useless."
"Speaking of which, when did Dao Xuanzi find you and ask you to ambush me here? The timing doesn't match up. Could it be he mastered the art of existing in two places at the same time?" Kou Hong suddenly remembered and asked suddenly.
Li Fan remained composed and was about to answer before being cut off by Kou Hong, who had immediately lost interest and waved his hand, "Forget it, what's the point of dwelling on this matter? After death, all things are meaningless." Finishing his words, he collapsed onto a chair, his expression gloomy. He seemed to have been deeply affected by Dao Xuanzi's death.
"It is best not to continue this matter lest I reveal some inconsistencies," Li Fan thought to himself.
He then inquired with an anxious expression, "Before, Immortal Master said that he was unable to take mortals out of this Immortal Extinction Land. Is this matter really true?"
Kou Hong snorted, "You are just a mortal, so why would I lie to you? Perhaps a Golden Core stage cultivator could protect a mortal while breaking through the Immortal Extinction Formation, but if it's just my Foundation Establishment stage cultivation, it's absolutely impossible!"
"Of course, if you don't mind ending up as ashes, I am willing to give it a try."
Ignoring Kou Hong's less-than-amusing jest, Li Fan asked persistently, "Could it be that there is no hope for mortals like me to leave this world?"
Kou Hong pondered for a moment before shaking his head, "If you want to leave the Land of Immortal Extinction, you must break through the Immortal Extinction Formation. A mere mortal body has no chance of breaking through. Any attempts would be akin to seeking death. Moreover, at your age, you already have one foot in the grave. Why are you so obsessed with leaving this place? Wouldn't it be nice to be a local ruler?"
Kou Hong had a disdainful look on his face.
"Even though I wouldn't mind dying, I still wish to leave some hope for my descendants." Li Fan's persistence did not end, and he asked again, "If my descendants can cultivate to the Foundation Establishment realm like Immortal Master, would it be possible to leave this place?"
Kou Hong burst into laughter, "Even ignoring the complete lack of spiritual energy in this place, making cultivation impossible, how could a mortal here, completely tainted in miasma, cultivate the Immortal Way?"
Kou Hong sneered, "I advise you to give up on such hopes. Immortals and mortals have been eternally separated. Even if you mortals wanted to cultivate, you'd have to reform your bodies and cleanse yourselves of Immortal-Mortal Miasma in the outside world. Otherwise, even if the path of immortality was right in front of you, you wouldn't be able to even touch it."
With each question, Kou Hong's denials grew stronger, and Li Fan seemed to finally give up.
"Immortals and mortals are eternally separated... eternal separation..." Li Fan muttered in a daze, "So, there is really no way?"
"There really isn't." Watching Li Fan's mood sink so far seemed to amuse Kou Hong.
"There really isn't." Kou Hong repeated again.
"As the Immortal Master said, immortals and mortals have been eternally separated." Li Fan let out a long sigh.
"Indeed." Kou Hong nodded repeatedly.
As if he were defeated by this cruel fact, Li Fan excused himself and left, his expression dazed.
The moment he walked out of the bunker, the door slammed shut with a bang.
Kou Hong's face changed, an uneasy premonition welling up in his heart.
However, it was already too late.
Rolls of mist containing the Immortal-Mortal Miasma gushed out from every corner of the room.
"Ahhh!"
Kou Hong let out a miserable scream before he was drowned in the dense fog.
Outside the bunker, Li Fan's gaze turned deep as he slowly said, "Since immortals and mortals cannot coexist."
"Then how could I, a mere mortal, dare to fully believe what you say?"