Chapter 1318: Trading Beneath the High Wall
"Exchange insights..." Li Fan mused, remaining silent for a long moment.
Seeing this, Zhong Daogong took a deep breath. Black and white light swirled and condensed, forming a brush that painted a character in the void.
"Daoist friend, please take a look." Zhong Daogong was exceptionally solemn. Even in the desolate star sea, he conjured a barrier around them to prevent the character from being revealed.
The character flickered between light and dark, pulsing as if it were a living, breathing entity.
Li Fan glanced at it and commented casually, "So, it's [Hatred]..."
"But your rendition of [Hatred] seems to have some flaws."
Zhong Daogong's expression shifted slightly. He was about to speak when Li Fan declared with an air of superiority, "Now, observe my version of [Hatred]."
His fingers moved with the fluid grace of a master calligrapher, and in an instant, another character—seemingly identical—materialized beside the first.
Zhong Daogong stared at the True Immortal Script Li Fan had written, his initial surprise giving way to an uncontrollable tremor that ran through his entire body.
As the First Elder of the Broken Immortal Tower and the foremost researcher of the True Immortal Scripts on the Mysterious Immortal Boat, Zhong Daogong could clearly discern the subtle distinctions between the two characters before him.
Judging by the faint ripples of power emanating from them, the one Li Fan had written was significantly more complete than his own!
The gap in their understanding was even wider than it had been with the character for [Separation]!
"This... this..." Struck by this revelation, Zhong Daogong found it difficult to accept. However, his years of scholarly instinct took over, compelling him to momentarily cast aside all other thoughts and immerse himself in studying Li Fan's script.
Every minute alteration brought the character a step closer to its primordial meaning. Had he been left to explore this on his own, it might have taken him one or two decades to reach this level of insight.
But now, a single glance had surpassed countless days and nights of arduous research.
Zhong Daogong was, of course, unaware that this version of [Hatred] originated from his own self, decades in the future. At this moment, only one thought consumed him.
He had to "invite" this cultivator back to the Mysterious Immortal Boat. Even if it meant resorting to certain measures!
The True Immortal Scripts were far too important to the Mysterious Immortal Boat. Understanding even one more would undoubtedly elevate the boat's combat strength significantly.
Moreover, the success of their crucial, long-term plan depended on collecting as many different types of True Immortal Scripts as possible.
With this in mind, after searing the new version of [Hatred] into his memory, Zhong Daogong turned to Li Fan and conceded with a sigh of admiration, "Your skill is profound, Daoist friend. I am far from your equal!"
"However... in my homeland, there are more than a dozen other scholars like myself who study the True Immortal Scripts. They have dedicated many years to this pursuit, and their understanding is no less than mine..."
Li Fan shook his head, a flicker of disdain in his eyes as he cut Zhong Daogong off. "Let me be frank, Daoist friend. In our Great Qi..."
Li Fan paused. "Everyone works together with one heart and one mind for the goal of survival in this ruined star sea. All research on the True Immortal Scripts is shared among us. In contrast, your side..."
Zhong Daogong's heart leaped with joy at his words. He explained earnestly, "We actually have a similar system for sharing. But since it is the fruit of others' labor, it would be improper for me to display it without their approval. However, if you are willing to share and exchange ideas, I can guarantee you will gain new insights."
"You must know how difficult it is to study the True Immortal Scripts. If we could complement each other's knowledge..."
Zhong Daogong's persuasion continued, and Li Fan slowly seemed to warm to the idea.
Finally, Zhong Daogong delivered a powerful incentive. "My homeland possesses an authentic True Immortal Script artifact. If our exchange proves fruitful, it might not be impossible for you to see it with your own eyes."
Zhong Daogong knew full well how irresistible the allure of an authentic True Immortal Script was to people like them. After saying his piece, he stared intently at Li Fan.
As expected, Li Fan's eyes lit up, all his previous hesitation vanishing. "Are you serious?"
After receiving Zhong Daogong's firm confirmation, Li Fan finally nodded in agreement.
"However, for our first exchange, let's conduct it here in the void," Li Fan suddenly added.
He pointed casually toward the nearby empty space. Silvery-white lines interlinked and appeared, and a grand array slowly unfolded.
Within the array, pavilions and towers rose from nothing, nestled among winding streams and delicate bridges. Clear water flowed beneath the bridges, its surface shimmering, and one could even see fish swimming playfully within.
Light and shadow danced, creating a scene that was both illusion and reality.
As Zhong Daogong witnessed this, his pupils contracted sharply.
Li Fan flew into the array first, took a seat in a waterside pavilion, and looked back. "This will do."
"A little caution is never misplaced, as they say. I came to the edge of the star sea alone, so naturally, I must be careful," Li Fan stated, his tone matter-of-fact.
Zhong Daogong considered this for a moment before flying into the grand array himself.
The chirping of birds filled his ears. As he walked across a bridge, the stream flowed beneath him. Zhong Daogong could even feel the moist, cool air on his skin.
It was difficult to imagine that the pavilions and flowing water before him had been generated instantaneously by an array!
"I didn't realize that besides the True Immortal Scripts, you were also a master of arrays, Daoist friend," Zhong Daogong remarked, looking around. He could vaguely tell that this was merely an array designed to construct a pavilion in the star sea, but its ability to create a scene so hyper-realistic that even he could hardly distinguish it from reality was a testament to its extraordinariness.
"It's a mere trifle," Li Fan said dismissively. "Studying the True Immortal Scripts already consumes all my energy. Where would I find the time to delve into arrays...?"
Zhong Daogong found this quite plausible and nodded in agreement.
After inspecting the array and finding nothing suspicious, Zhong Daogong clasped his hands together. "Then it's settled. Please wait here, Daoist friend. I will return with my colleagues before this incense stick burns out."
As he spoke, Zhong Daogong waved his sleeve, and a stick of earth-yellow incense flew out, standing upright in the air.
The tip was already lit, its fragrant smoke curling into the void. Zhong Daogong bid farewell, his form vanishing into the dark star sea.
Li Fan's gaze lingered for a long time before he returned to Yin Shangren and the others.
"Saint Teacher..."
Li Fan's sudden departure and long absence had told Yin Shangren and the others that he had run into trouble. The moment he reappeared, they anxiously voiced their concerns.
"I never expected a civilization to have survived at the edge of the star sea. They were likely disturbed when I set up the array to connect to the Xuanhuang Realm," Li Fan said with a grave expression.
His words struck like lightning, leaving everyone stunned. "Here? In this dead void? Where could they possibly live?"
"I'm not sure yet; we've only had a brief encounter. But to have survived in the ruined star sea until now, these people are certainly not to be trifled with. For now, stay hidden. We'll decide on a course of action after I've investigated further," Li Fan instructed.
They all nodded in agreement.
In the star sea, a stranger was more likely foe than friend. It was impossible to be too cautious.
Taking advantage of the time before the group from the Immortal Boat arrived, Li Fan continued his lesson for Yin Shangren and the others.
"Relics contain the remnant power of True Immortals, and world fragments even more so. If we were to let the Xuanhuang Realm absorb world fragments saturated with such power..."
"I fear it would trigger immense turmoil and bring devastation to all living things."
"However, so many years have passed since the great calamity of the star sea. There must be some remnant worlds where the True Immortal's power has mostly dissipated. Only those can serve as medicinal catalysts," Li Fan explained calmly.
"There are so many of us. If we split up, finding suitable catalysts shouldn't be too difficult, right?" Qiaogong said, looking at the continuous Realm Fragment Great Wall in the distance.
Li Fan shook his head slightly.
He pointed a finger forward, and the shadow of the wooden sword instantly flashed to the edge of the Realm Fragment Great Wall.
"Why don't you go out and try for yourselves," Li Fan suggested.
Qiaogong was the first to step outside the area covered by the wooden sword's shadow.
The moment he entered the outer void, Qiaogong's face changed dramatically. He felt an immense suction force and was pulled uncontrollably toward the Realm Fragment Great Wall!
"Halt!"
A layer of golden armor materialized over his body. Qiaogong flailed frantically and, with considerable effort, managed to stabilize himself in the void.
However, he still couldn't stop his slow drift toward the Great Wall. The light from his armor flickered erratically, as if it was about to reach its limit.
Li Fan directed the wooden sword's shadow to envelop Qiaogong once more.
Freed from the terrifying pull, Qiaogong stared in horror at the Realm Fragment Great Wall ahead.
"Is there an Immortal Ruin here too?!" the others exclaimed in astonishment.
"Not an Immortal Ruin. It is a high wall," Li Fan stated slowly, his voice ethereal and indistinct.
"The suction from the Immortal Ruins is blocked by the high wall at the edge of the star sea. Then, through means we cannot yet comprehend, the force gathers at the base of the wall. Over eons, this has formed a different kind of Immortal Ruin."
"The reason the world fragments are clustered together is also to resist this 'Echoing Star Power'..."
The scene Li Fan described left everyone deeply shaken.
Even though they couldn't see this invisible high wall, the fact that it could contain the very force that had annihilated the entire star sea was proof of its immense and mysterious power.
"Navigating the Realm Fragment Great Wall is no less dangerous than being at the edge of the Xuanhuang Realm's gravitational pull. The slightest mistake will cause you to lose control and collide with one of those fragments. And if it still contains remnant True Immortal power..."
"Moreover, due to the influence of the Echoing Star Power, the range of our spiritual sense is greatly reduced. This is what makes finding a medicinal catalyst and suitable filler fragments so difficult," Li Fan said in a somber tone.
Li Fan extended his hand, and a seven-colored, silk-like crystal materialized in his palm.
"This is a Clear Void Flowing Crystal. When used with the Rainbow Light Splitting technique, it can, to some extent, counteract this omnipresent suction."
"Remember, do not push your limits. Once the rainbow light's power has dwindled to one-third, you must begin your return."
Li Fan passed the Clear Void Flowing Crystal to the group and taught them the Rainbow Light Splitting technique he had learned from the Dharma Spreader.
"Of course, if you could achieve a state like my 'No Sword, No Self,' you might be able to ignore this Echoing Star Power to a degree." The wooden sword's shadow flickered, returning them to a safe area.
"The Realm Fragment Great Wall contains innumerable world shards. To find a suitable medicinal catalyst by myself would be an almost impossible task. That is why I need your help," Li Fan said earnestly.
At this, Bai Hua couldn't help but ask, "Saint Teacher, what is it you truly seek through all this effort? Is it merely for the benefits you'll gain when the Xuanhuang Realm ascends?"
Li Fan let out a wry laugh. "The Xuanhuang Realm ascends, escaping a world-ending crisis. We, in turn, receive the world's feedback, perhaps even an opportunity to break the limits of mortals. So many benefits in one stroke. Is that not enough?"
They wanted to ask more, but Li Fan's eyes flashed. "They're back. I will return shortly."
"For now, stay here and familiarize yourselves with the Rainbow Light Splitting technique."
Before his words had even faded, his figure vanished.
Aboard the shadow of the wooden sword, the group remained silent for a long time.
Finally, Xu Ke broke the quiet. "Truthfully, the Saint Teacher could probably facilitate the Xuanhuang Realm's ascension all by himself. It would just take a bit more time."
"And yet, he still brought us burdens along... It reminds me of Mr. Bai, all those years ago."
Xu Ke sighed, his eyes filled with a boundless sense of remembrance.
The others, upon hearing this, fell silent.
It was true. From their perspective, they possessed nothing that the Saint Teacher could possibly desire.
...
Outside the grand array of pavilions and towers.
The elders of the Mysterious Immortal Boat gathered, observing from a distance without entering.
Their spiritual senses conversed rapidly. "What do you think? Is it a trap?"
"It seems we were overly cautious. There are no offensive mechanisms; it appears to be just an illusion array."
"It's only an array. How powerful can it be? With so many of us here, should we fear a single person?"
"Indeed. In the face of the True Immortal Scripts' might, any array would be reduced to dust."
"Don't forget, he also understands the True Immortal Scripts. And his understanding is even deeper than ours..."
The elders' exchange came to an abrupt halt.
At that very moment, Li Fan, for whom they had been waiting, slowly emerged from the grand array.
He held the incense stick Zhong Daogong had left, seemingly weightless in his hand.
A third of the incense still remained. Li Fan surveyed the group and nodded. "You are indeed true to your word."
Zhong Daogong introduced the others to Li Fan. "This is Gan Jingda. This is Nangong Lie..."
After a round of pleasantries, Li Fan invited the group into the array to talk in detail.
The members of the Mysterious Immortal Boat exchanged glances, reached a consensus, and entered the array together.
Once they settled into one of the pavilions, they got straight to the point.
"May I ask, how many True Immortal Scripts has your homeland completely deciphered so far?" Zhong Daogong asked directly.
This was a critical question. The members of the Immortal Boat all fixed their gazes on Li Fan, awaiting his response.
"Thirteen," Li Fan stated calmly.
The elders of the Immortal Boat exchanged glances, most of them wearing expressions of doubt.
"Of course, the number is a bit low. But we only count those with a completion rate of over ninety percent," Li Fan added.
This time, the elders could no longer contain themselves. "Are you speaking the truth, Daoist friend?" one of them blurted out.
Li Fan let out a soft, proud laugh.
Zhong Daogong waved his hand, and the elders gradually calmed down.
"It is not that we doubt you. It is simply that thirteen True Immortal Scripts, all with over ninety percent completion..."
"It is truly... somewhat difficult to believe," Zhong Daogong said, his eyes on Li Fan.
Li Fan smiled and said bluntly, "We can trade one character for one."
The elders from the Immortal Boat again conversed among themselves, reaching a unified decision.
"I have already shown you [Separation] and [Hatred]. This time, it is your turn," Li Fan announced, looking at the group from the Immortal Boat.
Though he was surrounded, his face showed not a single trace of fear.
(End of Chapter)
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