A beautiful dream will eventually wake up

“Before I told you, Junior Brother, no third person knew about this besides Sect Leader and me.”

“So, Junior Brother, you must keep this secret well for me.”

Zhao Shijie said in a soft, lingering tone.

A fatal sense of crisis suddenly surged into Li Fan’s heart.

In an instant, many thoughts flashed through his mind. His body stiffened abruptly for a moment, but quickly returned to normal.

He caressed Senior Sister's smooth, pale back, and said as if it were natural: “That goes without saying. When I first heard this news, I was shocked and found it somewhat unbelievable.”

“Not to mention those Elders; if they knew about this, they would certainly come forward collectively to stop it.”

“Even with Sect Leader’s help, compared to that group of old fellows, our strength, Senior Sister, is too weak. We still need to accumulate strength, bide our time, and strive for a decisive strike.” Li Fan put himself in Zhao Shijie’s shoes, offering her advice.

Zhao Shijie, however, just lay quietly in Li Fan’s arms, not responding, not moving.

As if she had fallen asleep.

“By the way, Senior Sister. Why would Sect Leader Ji suddenly have the idea of passing the Sect Leader position to you?” After a long silence, Li Fan finally couldn't help but ask.

“Who knows? The thoughts of these old fogeys are always so inscrutable. Perhaps he hopes to achieve Chang Sheng Realm and no longer wants to manage the mess of the Great Dao Sect?” Zhao Shijie changed her lying posture, her tone languid.

“After all, the world is getting more and more chaotic. These so-called Ten Great Immortal Sects, in the eyes of Chang Sheng Realm powerhouses, can be said to be more of a hindrance than practical value…”

Zhao Shijie’s voice grew softer and softer, eventually becoming inaudible.

Seeing that the other party had no intention of saying more, Li Fan did not dare to press further.

He merely resumed their dual Cultivation.

A night of indulgence.

—

Li Fan knew that ever since that day, when Zhao Shijie walked out of the Sect’s main hall, she had changed somewhat.

However, his vague intuition had no concrete evidence.

In the ensuing daily life together, he didn't find anything unusual about his Senior Sister, who had been by his side for a hundred years.

But…

Li Fan was still very sure that something was changing in her, little by little.

However, where did this persistent sense of crisis in his heart truly come from?

Even if Zhao Shijie was hiding something from him, for now, her feelings for him didn't seem fake.

If she became the Sect Leader of the Great Dao Sect, he would be the Sect Leader’s Dao Companion.

One must know, this was not some ordinary small Sect, but the Great Dao Sect, renowned and shaking the entire Cultivation World.

By then, he would truly be second only to one person, above tens of thousands.

Even in the ambitions he had previously envisioned, he had never dared to covet this position.

Now, with the help of Zhao Shijie, wealth and glory were within reach!

Where exactly did things go wrong?

Li Fan subconsciously felt that he seemed to have forgotten something important.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall it.

He could only live his life as usual while secretly investigating.

Time flew by.

Another three years passed.

In these three years, through the combined efforts of many astonishingly talented Cultivators from the Immortal Dao Ten Sects, a method to eliminate the pervasive Immortal Plague in the world was finally found.

Thus, large-scale “disinfection” operations began.

For the sake of future living environments, every surviving Sect had to send Cultivators to various parts of the Xuanhuang World to carry out the Immortal Plague elimination mission.

The duo of Li Fan and Zhao Shijie, who had always been the ones doing the hard labor, were no longer sent down the mountain by Ji Changxi, as Zhao Shijie had already been confirmed as the next Sect Leader candidate.

Instead, another group of five true Disciples was dispatched.

Li Fan also benefited, staying within the Sect to enjoy a peaceful life.

As time passed day by day, even though he was within the Sect, Li Fan could sense that the environment of the Xuanhuang World seemed to be slowly improving.

“After a great calamity, there will be great governance. I hope the worldly tribulation passes soon, and we can usher in a prosperous era of Cultivation again!”

Within the Sect, Li Fan would occasionally hear Disciples making such wishes.

As the Immortal Plague gradually dissipated, Zhao Shijie also became increasingly busy.

It seemed that to formally take over the position of Sect Leader of the Great Dao Sect, she had been continuously participating in various meetings recently.

Those attending were all highly respected Elders within the Great Dao Sect.

Presumably, convincing them was not an easy task.

Li Fan often saw some Elders leaving the meeting venue with angry faces,拂袖而去 (fúxiù ér qù) flicking their sleeves and departing.

However, Zhao Shijie told Li Fan that he didn't need to worry.

More and more Elders had been persuaded and agreed to her taking over the Sect Leader position.

“Soon, I will become the true Sect Leader of the Great Dao Sect.”

Zhao Shijie said with a smile.

Regarding this matter, Li Fan not only had no worries at all.

On the contrary, the fear that had always lingered in his heart grew even stronger.

Not just on Zhao Shijie.

The entire Great Dao Sect seemed to be undergoing a chilling, yet indescribable, change.

Although he could sense the potential anomalies, Li Fan was always unable to uncover the truth.

Thus, the powerless Li Fan grew increasingly anxious and furious.

Zhao Shijie, his Dao Companion, naturally noticed this emotion in him.

Fortunately, Li Fan merely attributed it to the increasingly frequent falling anomalies appearing in the sky.

He had originally thought that after the Immortal Plague was cleared, Cultivators could enjoy a moment of peace.

Who would have thought that not long after, another anomaly occurred in the world.

Previously, the “death declarations” that Li Fan and Zhao Shijie had seen would only randomly appear in the sky when a Cultivator perished.

But now, this “randomness” was turning into a kind of “inevitability.”

Moreover, the scope and impact of the anomaly were slowly growing stronger.

When a Dao Integration cultivator perished, the resulting phenomenon could almost cover the sky for tens of thousands of miles around.

Even more terrifying was that the trepidation and unease in the hearts of all Cultivators who witnessed the “death declaration” were constantly being stimulated.

Those Cultivators who had long given up on the idea of Cultivation and only wanted to drift through life and live out their remaining Lifespan.

After seeing the phenomena caused by the death of Cultivators above their heads day after day.

Different emotions began to breed in their hearts.

The sorrow of losing companions, unwillingness, confusion, anger…

When a Cultivator within the Great Dao Sect also perished due to their Lifespan nearing its end.

A strange atmosphere began to slowly spread within the Sect.

It was under these circumstances that Zhao Shijie officially succeeded and became the Sect Leader of the Great Dao Sect.

All seventeen Elders unanimously agreed to the decision of the former Sect Leader Ji Changxi.

This made many Disciples within the Sect, who were preparing to watch a good show, drop their jaws in astonishment.

At the same time, Li Fan’s unease reached its peak.