Chapter 1206: The Immeasurable, Shrouded in Dust
"How peculiar. They've even shelved an emergency as critical as the Tianxuan Mirror possibly escaping as a human avatar..."
"If I couldn't still make one-way contact with the outside, I would almost believe the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance had already fallen," Sun Luyuan remarked, his brow furrowed.
Sun Luyao feigned surprise. "Is that so? And I didn't glimpse anything about it within the Tianxuan Mirror?"
The two brothers exchanged a look.
Sun Luyao mused uncertainly, "I don't know if my probing failed, or if the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance is hiding this even from the Tianxuan Mirror itself."
"The Alliance headquarters is an independent space within the Tianxuan Mirror. To block its perception, it would likely require the joint efforts of the Dharma Transmitter Council and the Mirror Holders..." Sun Luyuan's expression turned grave as if he had recalled something deeply unsettling.
"The Alliance headquarters is *inside* the Tianxuan Mirror?" Sun Luyao, unaware of this, looked startled.
Sun Luyuan, snapping out of his thoughts, nodded but didn't elaborate further.
"That old fellow Fu being tied up is good for us. We should take this opportunity to find that fragment of the Immeasurable Mirror you sensed."
"I was originally planning to take you to the Essence Blood Pool to recuperate during this rare lull. We'll have to wait until we get back," Sun Luyuan said, shaking his head slightly.
The Essence Blood Pool was a secret location of the Sun family, containing the vital blood essence donated by the direct descendants of the clan.
Refined with a secret technique, its effects were even more potent than the blood essence from a close relative like Sun Luyuan himself.
However, collecting blood essence from the clan's disciples couldn't be done too frequently, or it would surely arouse suspicion. Thus, it took a considerable amount of time to accumulate enough for a single restorative session.
Sun Luyao had experienced its effects a few times before; it was indeed somewhat effective.
But...
*Compared to the ancestor's methods, it's far inferior.*
The clan's blood essence replenishment, in the end, only served to strengthen Sun Luyao's remnant soul.
The stronger his own power, the easier it was to overcome the Immeasurable Mirror.
Li Fan, on the other hand, had directly shown him the very method to master the Immeasurable Mirror.
Not only did he no longer need to use brute force to overcome it, but even the damaged and chaotic Immeasurable Mirror was showing signs of slow recovery, alleviating the torment he once felt when facing it.
Although he thought this inwardly, he still had to keep up appearances.
So he put on a look of slight regret.
Sun Luyuan noticed and comforted him, "Let's see how this trip goes. If we return quickly, there will still be plenty of time."
After saying this, Sun Luyuan went back to make some preparations.
When he returned to the secret chamber, he had already taken on the appearance of a junior from the Sun family.
It was Sun Luyuan's usual disguise.
"Let's go."
Tucking the Immeasurable Mirror into his robes, Sun Luyuan quietly left the Sun family estate and headed for Shilin Province.
Perhaps because it was damaged and unstable, the Immeasurable Mirror could not be taken through teleportation arrays; they had to travel by flight.
Fortunately, for a Dao Integration cultivator, the journey wasn't particularly long, and they soon arrived at the entrance to the Hundred Stones Grotto-Heaven.
Following Sun Luyao's senses, they ventured deeper and deeper into the underground caverns.
When they reached a dead end, he would simply force a path through, drawing ever closer to their destination.
"What a wretched place." But the deeper they went, the harder the cavern walls became, and even Sun Luyuan began to find it strenuous.
"Brother, we're close," Sun Luyao said, a thrill of excitement rising within him as he sensed the familiar aura ahead.
Perhaps being so deep underground had previously interfered with his perception. Now that they were actually here, he realized the fragment might be even larger than he had imagined.
"Hm?! Someone's behind us?"
Just as they were separated from the Immeasurable Mirror fragment by a single wall, Sun Luyuan's expression suddenly changed, and he came to a halt.
"We're being followed."
Sun Luyuan reacted instantly, changing his direction and continuing deeper into the caverns.
With a sudden burst of speed, his figure vanished into the maze-like passages in an instant.
Two cultivators in long blue robes materialized, their expressions grim.
"Damn it, he spotted us."
"It seems Sun Luyuan's cultivation has improved again."
"No matter. We've sealed the entrance. He won't escape."
...
However, what the two didn't know was that deeper in the caverns, Sun Luyuan was already using the Immeasurable Mirror to watch their every move.
"Tianquan... the Chen family."
Sun Luyuan snorted coldly.
He had long been aware of the various schemes of the Chen family from the Medicine Hall, who had always coveted the Immeasurable Mirror.
But the family had a solid foundation, and without a concrete move on their part, he had no reason to act against them.
"But now they've delivered themselves to my doorstep, giving me an opportunity."
A plan instantly formed in Sun Luyuan's mind.
He revealed his aura, luring the two Chen family members deeper into the earth.
Then, he concealed himself once more and swiftly returned to the location of the Immeasurable Mirror fragment.
Boom!
Blasting open a sealed cave, Sun Luyuan quickly located the fragment.
This place appeared to be the ruins of an ancient sect. The fragment of the Immeasurable Mirror had somehow been fused into another mirror-shaped artifact.
Unfortunately, the sect had long since perished, and this mirror artifact, a treasure lost to dust, had been buried underground for thousands of years.
Knowing he couldn't linger, Sun Luyuan didn't have time for a closer look and quickly stored it away.
Then, casting aside all pretense of stealth, he even burned some of his blood essence, unleashing his full power in a single moment.
In the blink of an eye, he had already charged toward the exit of the Hundred Stones Grotto-Heaven.
The two cultivators guarding the entrance were caught off guard and couldn't stop him. In that brief moment of shock, Sun Luyuan burst past them.
"Chen family! I swear I will have revenge for this!"
Though he wasn't actually injured, Sun Luyuan suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, and his aura weakened rapidly.
His voice, like thunder, echoed for a long time over Shilin Province.
Then, Sun Luyuan transformed into a streak of light and continued flying toward the center of the Alliance.
He left behind two baffled Chen family cultivators.
It was only when the two Dao Integration cultivators who had been led on a wild goose chase finally arrived that they understood what had happened.
"This is bad." The four of them exchanged grim glances.
Now that the matter was exposed, they couldn't possibly give chase in broad daylight.
"This operation has failed. The Sun family will probably drop all pretenses now. We should return at once and discuss how to respond."
"Hmph, worst-case scenario, we give up on the immortal artifact and just make this public. I refuse to believe that the insignificant Sun family can hold onto an immortal artifact with everyone watching."
The four members of the Chen family vanished one after another.
Within Shilin Province, Sun Luyuan's furious roar gradually became a topic of discussion among the people.
A storm was slowly beginning to brew.
Meanwhile, Sun Luyuan had already returned home.
He went straight to the secret underground chamber and took out the Immeasurable Mirror.
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