The sign of the outside world

“Li Chen?!”

In an instant, the face of a frail young man flashed through Li Fan’s mind.

“He’s actually the Xuantian Sect Dharma King hidden in the shadows? How is that possible?”

Li Fan was deeply shaken.

This Li Chen was none other than the person Li Fan had possessed during the ‘Ninyuan Fruit of Longevity’ incident in the Fallen Immortal Realm.

He was an Inner Sect Disciple of the Zixiao Sect, and Junior Brother to Zhang Qianmo!

But…

Li Fan had descended into the Fallen Immortal Realm and taken over bodies many times already.

He knew the memories in the other party’s mind clearly.

Li Chen was just a child from an ordinary mountain village, who was accepted into the Zixiao Sect because of his good cultivation talent.

He had no memories belonging to an ancient Xuantian Sect Dharma King whatsoever.

“There are three possibilities. One is that this Dharma King is merely a Divine Soul, parasitic within Li Chen’s body. The Fallen Immortal’s dying gaze reflected all beings in the world. What was replicated in the Fallen Immortal Realm was only the being’s true self. Other foreign existences within the body would not be restored.”

“The second possibility is that during the time of the Ninyuan Fruit of Longevity incident, the Dharma King had not yet occupied Li Chen’s body. It was only after Li Chen was severely injured in this incident and brought back to the Sect by Zhang Qianmo that the Xuantian Sect Dharma King, who had been lurking within the Zixiao Sect, took advantage of the situation and performed Possession.”

“The last possibility is…”

“The Xuantian Sect Dharma King’s Cultivation Base reaches the heavens and penetrates the earth, and he is extremely well-hidden. Even that Fallen Immortal, who could perceive everything in the world, couldn’t see through the secrets on him.”

“Therefore, what was created in the Fallen Immortal Realm was only superficial.”

“…”

After a detailed analysis, Li Fan believed the third possibility was unlikely.

If even a Dharma King at the end of his rope had a Cultivation Base comparable to a Fallen Immortal, then how powerful would the overall strength of the Xuantian Sect have been back then?

It wouldn’t have been overthrown by an Alliance formed by the Immortal Dao Ten Sects.

“Within the Fallen Immortal Realm, it’s almost identical to the real world. Even Spiritual Qi trajectories and Cultivation Technique operations can be restored. Residual Divine Souls within the body should also not escape the Immortal’s Dharma Eye.”

“So, it should be that after Li Chen fell unconscious, he was possessed by the Xuantian Sect Dharma King?”

“The actual state of this Xuantian Sect Dharma King might not be very good either; he could only be barely clinging to life. After luckily escaping the pursuit of the Immortal Dao Ten Sects’ special envoys back then, he still remained hidden within the Zixiao Sect. During this period, he might have changed multiple bodies until he finally became Li Chen.”

Based on the various pieces of information he had gathered from different channels, Li Fan performed Silk Extraction to reconstruct a possible truth.

Immediately after, his heart stirred.

The Xuantian Sect Dharma King had existed since the ancient Cultivation Era.

The secrets he knew must be countless.

If he could search his Divine Soul and seize his spirit…

“It’s definitely worth a try.”

“When the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance of this Era discovered him, this Dharma King was still in slumber, so his defensive capabilities certainly wouldn’t be strong.”

“If I can control him, not only can I learn many secrets and Cultivation Techniques, but I’ll even have a proper identity when I appear in the Xuanhuang World in the future, without having to pretend to be a Tianji Sect Cultivator every time, which has too many flaws.”

Li Fan’s heart stirred slightly.

“However, one must not be careless,” he then thought.

“In the past, the Xuantian Sect held the power of the heavens, and all the Dharma Kings within the Sect must have been in the Eternal Dao Realm. Although he should have been severely injured during the demise of the Xuantian Sect, and has been in slumber for so many years, his strength must also be far from what it once was.”

“But ancient powerhouses, especially those who have lived for an unknown amount of time, who knows what trump cards they still hide. It’s still necessary to send a Clone to probe the situation first.”

“It’s worth the gamble. No matter what, it won’t be more dangerous than scheming against the Heavenly Doctor.”

All these thoughts occurred in an instant.

Even though the expression on his face barely changed, the instantaneous shift in his emotions was still caught by Jiao Xiuyuan’s eyes.

A strange look appeared in his gaze, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Could it be that Fellow Daoist is truly an old acquaintance of this Li Chen?”

Li Fan slightly shook his head and quickly replied, “Old acquaintance is too strong a word. I’ve only met him a few times.”

“But at the time, I thought he was just an ordinary Disciple of the Zixiao Sect, I never expected…”

“It’s truly a case of knowing a person’s face but not their heart!”

Li Fan sighed.

Jiao Xiuyuan also knew that Li Fan’s words were definitely not true. However, everyone has secrets, and he had no intention of digging deeper.

“Heh heh.”

“Then why is Fellow Daoist inquiring about the identity of this ancient Cultivator in slumber?” Jiao Xiuyuan asked tentatively.

Li Fan cupped his hands: “I was simply entrusted by someone.”

Jiao Xiuyuan pondered, nodded, and said nothing more.

The two exchanged pleasantries again.

Just as they were about to part, Li Fan casually asked, “Oh right, those little medicine king cauldrons you helped me excavate before, are they still with you?”

“They were sold long ago,” Jiao Xiuyuan replied.

“You didn’t seem to care about them back then, why are you bringing it up again now?” He was a little curious.

“It was a sudden whim, I just asked when I thought of it. Fellow Daoist doesn’t need to overthink it.” Li Fan smiled mysteriously, evaded the question, then turned and left the Thousand Mile Hall.

Leaving behind Jiao Xiuyuan, whose face was filled with uncertainty, frowning and standing rooted to the spot.

But he did not stop him.

—

After leaving, Li Fan first returned to the tianxuan mirror to search for the little medicine king cauldron.

According to Jiao Xiuyuan, at that time, the Medicine King Sect ruins were sealed by the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, and everything valuable within the ruins was dug up and taken away.

He only managed to dig out two of them.

But now, Li Fan saw that there were seventeen little medicine king cauldrons listed for sale in the market.

These were clearly all leaked from within the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.

Li Fan had long been accustomed to this.

At present, the true purpose of the little medicine king cauldron was still unknown to the world.

Li Fan, being wealthy, immediately bought all these scattered little medicine king cauldrons.

This change instantly attracted the attention of certain people.

“Fellow Daoist Li Fan, was that you who made the move?”

“What secret does this little medicine king cauldron hold?”

“Did you, perhaps, deduce something again?”

Jiao Xiuyuan, who had just disconnected, hurriedly sent an inquiry message.

“Guess.”

Li Fan replied with a smile, then ignored the other party’s reaction.

The Only Hand Covers the Sky secret art shrouded his body, and he headed straight for Cangwu Province.

He teleported continuously, almost without stopping.

After half a day, he had already arrived at the Cangwu Abyss.

After purchasing a travel guide for the Cangwu Abyss, Li Fan followed the route Xiao Fan and his group took in his previous life’s memory, heading downwards.

He passed through the Spirit Whisper Forest and the Puppet Gorge, reaching the Lost Maze City, one hundred thousand feet underground.

After some effort, he finally found the location where the Medicine King True Cauldron would eventually fall in the future.

That’s right, Li Fan planned to wait here for the arrival of the falling star.

Inside the Medicine King True Cauldron were all the Cultivators of the Medicine King Sect who had been forced into dormancy.

They were all like lambs awaiting slaughter.