Calling the Sun for a Thousand Years

Before Qing could speak, Shen Yuzi flicked his horsetail whisk.

The sky darkened, and a talisman covered in golden characters instantly appeared above the island.

It blotted out the sky and the sun, as if it would suppress everyone from the Empire in the next second.

Qing’s expression changed drastically, and two rays of green light, like sharp blades, flew into the sky.

They collided with the giant talisman.

The golden talisman was torn apart from the middle, revealing the sky once more.

However, the golden characters on the talisman did not disappear.

Instead, they fluttered down, falling towards the ground.

From Qing’s body, streaks of light blades continuously emerged.

They dissolved the characters one by one.

It was clear that both of their exchanges were extremely restrained.

The natural phenomena they caused were limited to the area around the island, and even spectators like Li Fan and Li Chenfeng were not affected at all.

After a moment, once Qing had completely suppressed Shen Yuzi’s golden talisman,

she suppressed her anger and was about to question what the other party intended.

However, she found that the mysterious person who had cast the golden talisman had left on his own after saying something to Li Fan.

Qing narrowed her eyes slightly, not stopping him.

She watched Li Fan fly closer openly.

“What do you, Ten Thousand Realms Union, mean by this?”

At this moment, Qing asked with a frosty expression.

Li Fan shrugged: “We have no ill intentions. However, since we are to cooperate, we naturally need to see your strength and if you are worthy.”

“Fortunately, you have barely gained the approval of the higher-ups.”

Qing snorted coldly, staring at Li Fan.

Li Fan, however, was unconcerned, smiling as he said: “The United Association has agreed to the cooperation plan you previously proposed.”

“We will help the Empire accelerate the completion of its plan to separate from the Xuanhuang World, and in return, you will need to integrate a portion of your forces into the United Association.”

“But…”

Li Fan paused slightly: “Considering the current situation of both sides, the organization believes that the cooperation plan can be implemented gradually.”

“How gradually?” Qing’s tone softened.

Li Fan tossed over a storage ring, and Qing took the ring. After checking it, she was surprised.

Inside were all sorts of materials the Empire needed.

Qingling Crystal, Wanhuabigu Silk, Tongbi Xuanshen…

Although the quantity was a bit small, it was rare that every type was complete.

Having been away from the Xuanhuang World for thousands of years, she didn't know what the current prices were.

However, Qing also knew that the value of the materials in this storage ring was absolutely considerable.

Thus, Qing’s expression gradually softened.

“This is the first batch of materials.”

“The quantity you need is simply too much. To avoid alerting the forces of the Xuanhuang World, we are also slowly purchasing them in batches.”

Li Fan explained.

Qing heard this, found it reasonable, and nodded slowly.

“At the same time, we are also looking for a future foothold for the Empire’s branch.”

“Both safety and secrecy must be absolutely guaranteed. In the current Xuanhuang World, it’s not easy to find. So, you still need to wait for some time.”

Li Fan continued.

“To dispel your doubts and also to show the organization’s sincerity, these materials are provided to the Empire for free.”

“About a year later, when the next batch of materials is purchased, I will come again.”

“However, at that time, our Ten Thousand Realms Union hopes to see the Empire’s attitude.”

“Then we can discuss the subsequent cooperation matters.”

Li Fan cupped his hands and left directly without waiting for Qing’s reply.

“Saint Master…”

Li Chenfeng looked at Qing, wanting to speak but hesitating.

Qing frowned, carefully examined the storage ring, and after finding no tricks, she carefully put it away.

“Currently, it seems that the other party’s intention to cooperate is quite sincere.”

“He’s right, we can gradually expand the cooperation. Let’s first exchange some less critical technologies with them.”

“If anything changes, we can also cut our losses in time.”

Qing said to Li Chenfeng and the others.

“I need to go back and discuss it with the Empress and Hong.”

One thing Qing didn’t say was that for some reason, she always felt that there was an unexplainable strangeness about this United Association envoy.

He seemed far from as simple as he appeared on the surface.

Wanxian Island.

After thanking Shen Yuzi again, Li Fan, as usual, searched and checked messages in the tianxuan mirror.

The results of the entrance examination had been announced one after another, naturally bringing joy to some and sorrow to others.

There were still considerable controversies regarding the admission status for some positions.

However, they quickly disappeared.

In the southwestern sea area of Congyun Sea, wind disasters raged, and more than ten Mortal islands perished.

The price of the special product, Bixuan Dew, experienced a slight fluctuation, and Li Fan made a small profit by buying low and selling high.

One of the ten mountain ranges of Taihua Mountain in Taihua State, Taixu Mountain, suddenly collapsed for unknown reasons.

As he scanned this piece of information, Li Fan’s gaze slightly narrowed.

“Hmm? Ten mountain ranges of Taihua Mountain? I remember seeing only nine mountain ranges of Taihua in previous lives.”

“It seems that the casualties this time are quite severe.”

Li Fan pondered, but did not delve deeper.

He merely marked it as important and continued to browse other news.

Afterward, Li Fan also searched for the recent situations of “Old Fisherman,” “Wu Chi’er,” “Zhong Shentong,” “Shuo Feng,” and others.

Old Fisherman was still wandering in a daze near the Central Four States of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.

Wu Chi’er and Zhong Shentong’s reputations were not yet prominent.

Shuo Feng, on the other hand, had not yet re-Cultivated and was still a renowned Soul Transformation Immortal Lord.

Li Fan then deduced the possible time of their Opportunities based on his experiences in the previous life.

…

A month later, Li Fan awoke from his seclusion.

Feeling that the time was about right, he directly transferred 500,000 contribution points to He Zhenghao.

“My luck was good this time; I quickly sensed the Opportunity and completed the goal early.”

Li Fan said in a lazy tone.

A moment later, He Zhenghao’s ecstatic voice came through.

“Senior’s Divine Ability is truly incredible!”

“Heh heh. The Sect’s secret technique, the backlash is still unavoidable. The next solicitation will still be at the time we previously agreed upon. Go and make it clear to them.”

After giving some instructions, Li Fan ignored He Zhenghao, swallowed another enlightenment pill, and went back into seclusion.

Time flew by, and in a blink of an eye, it was Anchor Year 9.

During this period, Li Fan’s layout began to show results.

More than twenty streams, more or less of cultivation feedback, successively appeared in Li Fan’s Dantian.

Coupled with nearly a year of diligent Cultivation under the dual blessings of Spirit Enlightenment and enlightenment pills,

Li Fan, after reaching the Golden Core Middle Stage limit, was fortunately only troubled by the Heaven's Calamity Bottleneck for little more than ten days.

He then naturally advanced to the Golden Core Late Stage.

Li Fan slowly exhaled, pausing his Cultivation.

“Next, whether it’s to intimidate the Empire’s people or to explore the Void Realm of Tianling State, acting alone will inevitably be a bit insufficient.”

“Perhaps, I can find some help.”

Li Fan pondered for a moment, then quietly left Wanxian Island.

He headed straight for Tianyang Grotto-heaven.

He tried dozens of times along the way, finally managing to barely transform into a face quite similar to Tian Yang’s Senior Brother, Ling Xiao.