Chapter 364: Pushing the Waves, Secretly Aiding the Tide

"What? You want to return to the outpost and continue the construction work of the Tianxuan Locking Spirit Array?"

"Are you crazy?"

When Hao Hui saw the decrepit Li Fan suddenly appear before him, he was startled.

And when he heard Li Fan's request, Hao Hui was initially filled with disbelief, thinking he had misheard.

After confirming it repeatedly, he was so angry he laughed, and flatly refused.

"Fellow Daoist Li, you have already done enough."

"Leave the rest to the other Formation Masters."

"Your current situation is truly not suitable for continuing the construction work of the Formation."

After hesitating for a moment, Hao Hui still advised: "Fellow Daoist, you have been trapped in the Devouring Yuan White Mist for too long, and your Lifespan is coming to an end."

"The best plan now is to seize every moment and strive to Cultivate."

"You should see if you can achieve a Breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Realm before your time runs out."

"With your talent, Fellow Daoist, I believe there may still be a chance for a Heaven-Defying change of fate."

Although Hao Hui's words were very much to Li Fan's liking, he still shook his head against his own heart and said: "I appreciate your kindness, Fellow Daoist. However, the most valuable virtue is self-knowledge. With my remaining Lifespan, it is absolutely impossible to Cultivate to the Nascent Soul Realm!"

"Instead of wasting time on such meaningless things, it is better to contribute my last ounce of strength to the construction of the Tianxuan Locking Spirit Array while I can still move."

"If I can witness the Tianxuan Locking Spirit Array covering the entire territory of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance within my lifetime…"

"I would have no regrets even if I were to die!"

Li Fan said with a solemn expression and righteous words.

"If I could only live out the rest of my life in mediocrity, waiting blankly for death, I would not be able to close my eyes even in death."

"I hope you will grant this, Fellow Daoist!"

Looking at the incredibly serious Li Fan, Hao Hui was speechless.

He instinctively wanted to refuse, but looking into the other party's incredibly sincere eyes, his heart was filled with an indescribable feeling.

"…Very well, Fellow Daoist, wait for me a moment. I will go and ask for instructions."

Hao Hui hurried away as if he were afraid to face Li Fan again.

Li Fan was unhurried and waited patiently.

Half a day later, Hao Hui returned with a complex expression.

"Fellow Daoist Li, the higher-ups have agreed to your request. After the current Demon Sound tide subsides, our Qingxuan Army will send people to escort you back to the front line."

"In that case, many thanks, Brother Hao." Li Fan seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and nodded in thanks.

"Fellow Daoist Li…" Seeing the white-haired Li Fan's relieved expression after obtaining the mission, Hao Hui couldn't help but ask.

"Why on earth?"

Li Fan's actions had already exceeded Hao Hui's understanding.

He asked, full of confusion.

Li Fan smiled without answering, cupped his hands, and walked away.

Leaving behind the bewildered and doubting Hao Hui standing in place, silent for a long time.

Unsurprisingly, the news that Li Fan, whose half-body was already in the grave, was about to return to the front line of Formation construction spread throughout the Severed Hand Immortal City in an instant.

While there was an uproar, voices of doubt inevitably emerged.

However, half a month later, when Li Fan, under the watchful eyes of the public and escorted by dozens of Qingxuan Army soldiers, left the Eternal Immortal Fortress again and sped towards the Jiaxu Outpost, all doubts were dispelled.

The Cultivators were shocked by Li Fan's choice, and at the same time felt ashamed of their own dirty little thoughts from before.

Compared to the sacrifice Li Fan was making, their own act of leaving their hometowns and guarding the Chizha Abyss for decades without leaving for a moment seemed to become insignificant.

Thus, a wave never seen before began to emerge within the Qingxuan Army.

They no longer talked about how hard things were, but instead began to compare the length of their service in the Chizha Abyss.

Li Fan, who had arrived at the Jiaxu Outpost, was naturally unaware of all this.

Due to Li Fan's timely call for help, the reinforcements from the Eternal Immortal Fortress arrived successfully before the outpost's supplies were exhausted, avoiding the birth of a tragedy.

Although the act of leaving Li Fan alone to go deep into the White Mist caused those surviving Cultivators to receive some punishment, compared to being able to save their lives, all of this was nothing.

Moreover, at Li Fan's intercession, Cultivators like He Chen and Kong Yu eventually returned to the Jiaxu Outpost to atone for their crimes through meritorious service and assist Li Fan in the Formation construction.

To ensure Li Fan's safety, the Eternal Immortal Fortress even tripled the number of escort troops.

The carried reserve supplies were even more than imagined, so they could spend them lavishly without worrying about supplies running out again.

And Li Fan did not rest for a moment.

When the Demon Sound tide that had raged for a long time finally subsided, he directly continued the construction of the Lock Spirit Array.

He Chen and others had all received his life-saving grace.

The members of the Qingxuan Army had received orders to obey Li Fan's words implicitly.

In this small Jiaxu Outpost, Li Fan had therefore obtained absolute authority.

With orders being carried out as if they were his own arms, all commands were completed to one hundred and twenty percent.

Coupled with Li Fan reversing his own will, turning from someone who would slack off whenever possible into a workaholic who forgot to rest, the speed of Formation construction was nearly twice as fast as before.

Due to the previous impact of the Demon Sound tide, the Formation construction was forced to stop.

Li Fan's ranking on the Great Competition Golden List had previously fallen to the very bottom, hovering around the six-hundredth place.

And when everyone began to rebuild, his ranking also rose steadily, catching up vigorously.

Li Fan's rapidly rising ranking did not attract much attention.

In the entire list, the most eye-catching one was still the zero-point Guo Yezhong.

This person seemed to completely disregard the so-called Great Competition.

The Cultivators discussed it endlessly, but the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance did not take any special measures regarding this.

There was only news circulating in secret, saying that Guo Yezhong was still within the territory of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance and had not defected.

And he had not given up on the competition; when others asked, he only replied, "Who wins and who loses is still unknown."

When Li Fan devoted himself entirely to the Formation construction, feeling the torment in his heart, the anecdotes happening to him, under the suggestion of interested parties, began to spread rapidly outside the Severed Hand Immortal City.

Especially the touching story of how he, after suffering a great change and with his Lifespan coming to an end, still used his last ounce of strength to build the Tianxuan Locking Spirit Array, was written about extensively.

Soon, as long as they were not in seclusion, basically all Cultivators of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance knew of Li Fan's actions.

Whether they believed it or not was another matter.

Li Fan's communication talisman, however, exploded first.

He Zhenghao, Divine Oracle, and old acquaintances met in the former Cosmos Abode all sent messages to ask.

There were too many, so Li Fan had to set up an automatic reply, briefly explaining what had happened.

His friends were naturally all sighing with regret, while at the same time feeling extremely respectful towards Li Fan.

There were also a few who promised to find life-extending treasures for Li Fan.

Li Fan naturally thanked them one by one.

Afterwards, he continued to throw himself into the Formation construction without stopping.

Thus, two years passed.

On this day, a seven-colored brilliance pierced through the White Mist and headed straight for the Severed Hand Immortal City.