Chapter 1436: Covert Infiltration of Shuo Xinghai
It was a fine idea in theory.
But after days of observation, Li Fan still hadn't found the slightest trace of the so-called Dao Net. It seemed even more elusive than the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth itself.
Still, Li Fan wasn't discouraged. From what he could gather, the Dao Net was likely Shuo Xinghai's trump card against the forces of the True Immortals. Something that could contend with a Nameless True Immortal would hardly yield its secrets so easily to a newcomer.
"Even the strongest fortress can be breached from within."
"Since I can't force my way into the Dao Net for now, I'll just have to lie low and infiltrate Shuo Xinghai. I can't rely entirely on Di Sanmo..."
Li Fan shook his head slightly. First, he carefully used his dream power to create an "imprint" of the residual fluctuations left in this area. Only then did he resume his cautious approach toward Shuo Xinghai.
On the surface, all traces of the great battle had been erased by the white-robed cultivator's "heaven-mending" technique. But Li Fan knew better than to believe in absolutes. If something happened, it left a mark. His inability to perceive it now was merely a matter of insufficient power. That didn't stop him from recording it for later, more detailed study.
In the distance, the Shuo Xinghai was not a uniform sea of life. Instead, it was composed of numerous clusters, like islands in an archipelago. The auras emanating from these hubs of life varied in strength, independent of their size, each with its own distinct characteristics.
Li Fan observed from afar, discerning certain familiar auras within the mix.
He located the Sword Domain, which he suspected was the gathering place of the former Ten Great Immortal Sects of the Xuanhuang Realm. However, he couldn't find any trace of the Holy Merchants from Qin Zhuang's memories.
"The Mysterious Immortal Boat can still sense the Merchant Immortal Boat's presence beyond the Great Wall. The Holy Merchants couldn't have been wiped out."
He recalled the strange behavior of the Holy Merchants described in Qin Zhuang's memory: they had ceased all communication with the outside world and had even begun to recall treasures they had previously sold. The Dao Transformation Stone in his mind sea pulsed, and after a moment of deduction, the most plausible theory surfaced in his thoughts.
"There's a strong possibility that the Holy Merchants discovered something. They've either gone into seclusion or simply fled altogether."
The Holy Merchants were just one possible entry point; Li Fan was not fixated on finding the old Merchant Immortal Boat.
He began to probe the defenses of the weaker-looking factions within Shuo Xinghai, one by one.
As he suspected, the strength of these powers had little to do with the amount of life force they contained.
One cluster held only two auras, one large and one small, seemingly ostracized and living on the fringes of Shuo Xinghai. Yet, before Li Fan could even get close, merely glancing at it from a great distance, a sharp sense of crisis gripped him. Even his dream-power tendrils were affected, becoming twisted and warped. He had no choice but to give it a wide berth.
Another was a massive hub, teeming with the auras of tens of millions of souls. Yet, hanging over it was a colossal cloud woven from negative emotions—slaughter, hatred, greed, and countless other foul sentiments. Despite the numerous defensive measures that still shielded this place from the direct intrusion of his dream power...
Gazing upon that cloud of emotion, Li Fan had already found a potential breach for his dream infiltration.
He didn't act immediately, however.
This apparent weakness could very well be a trap, deliberately fabricated by the powers of Shuo Xinghai to lure in True Immortals.
After scouting all the other hubs, he confirmed that this was the only place with a potential opening into his dream paradise. Acting with extreme caution, Li Fan first amassed a large amount of dream power to create a separate instance of the dream paradise. He then injected a sliver of his divine sense into this copy and severed its connection to the main dream world.
With every precaution taken, Li Fan's divine sense finally initiated the infiltration of the settlement.
This instance of the dream paradise was completely empty. As a severed copy, its dream power was finite; every bit used was a bit lost. If its energy was not replenished before being completely depleted, this pocket world would simply cease to exist.
Though it was only a sliver of his divine sense, Li Fan had armed it with nine projections of the Xuanhuang Realm and the computational power equivalent to a supreme-grade Dao Transformation Stone.
"If all these preparations can't even open a crack, then I'll have to find another way."
Progress was not smooth.
An invisible barrier completely cut off his dream power from the consciousness of the living beings within. Even though their repressed negative emotions had become a palpable miasma hanging in the sky, he was separated by a membrane, unable to touch them.
"If I disregard the consequences and expend all of this instance's power at once, I might be able to force an opening. But that would undoubtedly alert every power in Shuo Xinghai."
"The gain wouldn't be worth the loss."
After some consideration, Li Fan decided against tipping his hand. Instead, he chose to wait patiently for an opportunity.
The cultivators of Shuo Xinghai did occasionally leave their settlements to travel through the star sea. Li Fan refused to believe that every single one of these "travelers" would be too powerful for him to approach.
His judgment proved correct.
Although the target he had selected did not see as much traffic as other factions, it was not entirely isolated.
After half a year of surveillance, a streak of light finally shot out from within.
Its destination appeared to be in the direction of the Sword Domain.
As the light streaked out, it dragged a large swath of the emotional cloud with it. The cultivator's emotional fluctuations were so pronounced that Li Fan didn't even have to actively eavesdrop to perceive his thoughts with perfect clarity.
"Making me run errands again!"
"I, Ma Tiande, passed the council exams and am a certified Dao Operator of Shuo Xinghai! I may have only just scratched the surface, but I can still coordinate and manipulate the Dao Net patterns within a unit of space!"
"Making me do these trivial little tasks every day is an absolute waste of my life..."
This cultivator, Ma Tiande, sped through the star sea, seething with resentment.
Li Fan never made a move, simply watching as the man entered a hub adjacent to the Sword Domain. He remained inside for three days before slowly making his way back.
Having apparently vented his frustrations, Ma Tiande's resentment was gone. He hummed a little tune, leisurely retracing his path.
Just as Ma Tiande was about to enter the protective barrier, Li Fan struck.
Ordinary methods of possession or infiltration would likely be detected by the settlement's defenses. In fact, any power related to immortals could potentially trigger an alarm.
Therefore, Li Fan employed the "Dao Pill" technique from the Mysterious Immortal Boat. As Ma Tiande flew through the void, he paused for just a fraction of a second.
In that instant, Li Fan had refined him into a "human pill" that could be swallowed at any moment. Li Fan's divine sense silently consumed the pill, and in a flash, he became Ma Tiande.
Temporarily severing the connection with the dream paradise instance, Li Fan sorted through Ma Tiande's memories as he flew straight toward the settlement.
"The City of Extreme Bliss?"
"Interesting."
Theoretically, this body was still Ma Tiande. The only difference was that his mind now contained an additional thread of thought.
Any living being was subject to such fluctuations of thought.
Furthermore, the Dao Pill technique was unique to the Mysterious Immortal Boat and had never appeared in this star sea before.
Though the defenses around the City of Extreme Bliss were formidable, they were not prepared for such an inscrutable method.
Without a hitch, "Ma Tiande" flew smoothly into the City of Extreme Bliss.
Contrary to the foul, sky-choking emotional cloud visible from the outside, what greeted Li Fan's eyes was a scene of peace and revelry.
Rainbow-colored lights stretched to the horizon. Unrestrained laughter, lewd moans, and unabashed curses...
They filled every corner of the city.
"The City of Extreme Bliss. Three years of day, three years of night, a six-year cycle."
"During the night, one indulges in pleasure, without a care in the world."
"During the day... slaughter goes unpunished?"
Li Fan sorted through Ma Tiande's memories as he went to report on his task.
Ma Tiande's trip to Knife Island had been to deliver an invitation on behalf of the Lord of the City of Extreme Bliss.
Thirty days from now, the city would undergo its transition from night to day.
The people of Knife Island were invited to witness the grand spectacle.
...
As the information flashed through his mind, Li Fan proceeded calmly to the center of the City of Extreme Bliss.
Compared to the bustling and lively surroundings, the central manor was cold and eerie. The stark contrast was so powerful that anyone who set foot here couldn't help but feel a chill crawl up their spine.
Even though Ma Tiande had been here before, a primal fear still arose within him.
Li Fan did not suppress the feeling, allowing his expression to change accordingly.
He cautiously approached the Lord of the City of Extreme Bliss and reported on the situation.
"Scholar Zhu, I've delivered the invitation. But as for how many people from Knife Island will come, it's hard to say."
Li Fan put on a troubled expression and recounted everything. "The moment I arrived, the islanders challenged me to a sparring match. They threatened to tear up the invitation if I refused. I had no choice but to agree."
"They called it a sparring match, but it was just me getting beaten up..."
Li Fan, perfectly mimicking Ma Tiande's typical behavior, complained to the city's lord.
The Lord of the City of Extreme Bliss, whom Ma Tiande called Scholar Zhu, appeared ancient beyond measure.
His body was hunched and curled within a large robe, creating a rather comical silhouette. But the overwhelming, sinister energy emanating from Scholar Zhu was something Li Fan dared not underestimate.
In fact, Li Fan faintly sensed that nine-tenths of the massive emotional cloud hanging over the City of Extreme Bliss was anchored to this very person.
Scholar Zhu didn't interrupt Ma Tiande's incessant complaints. He just listened quietly, his withered, skeletal fingers tapping lightly on the tabletop. Every so often, he would drag a fingernail across the long table, producing a terribly grating sound.
Li Fan could see clearly that the long table before Scholar Zhu was horrifically constructed from a mosaic of polished human skulls.
The lingering resentment within the skulls had not yet faded. As Scholar Zhu's fingers traced across them, faint, pained wails could be heard.
Cold sweat dripped from "Ma Tiande's" brow. Yet he didn't stop talking, dutifully completing his report from beginning to end.
When he finished, he stood respectfully at the foot of the table, awaiting the lord's instructions.
The manor fell silent for a long moment.
Occasionally, the clamor and noise from outside would drift in.
Huddled in his robe, Scholar Zhu pressed his fingers onto the table. With each press, a source of noise from outside would abruptly cease.
Only when the surroundings were utterly quiet, with not a single sound from the city to be heard, did Scholar Zhu finally speak.
It was not the sound of an old man. It was the innocent, cheerful voice of a child.
"You've worked hard on your trip."
"Have dinner before you go."
As he spoke, a ghostly figure materialized from the shadows and drifted before Li Fan.
With a rustling sound, a bowl of steaming red broth appeared before him.
Ma Tiande's body trembled slightly.
It was both the body's instinctual reaction and, to some extent, a reflection of Li Fan's own emotional turmoil.
The red broth in the bowl was a grotesque mixture of minced meat and blood.
And floating within it were eyeballs, one after another.
They seemed to possess a will of their own, all staring in unison at Li Fan.
Although Li Fan had annihilated worlds and viewed mortal lives with detachment, he had never done anything so utterly revolting.
"Please, Master Ma, drink up. Why the hesitation?"
Seeing Li Fan's reluctance, Scholar Zhu's voice became agitated, like a petulant child who had suddenly lost his favorite toy. A strange aura began to spread from him.
"Are you not hungry? Or is the soup not to your liking?"
"No matter, I'll have the servants prepare something better."
Li Fan's mind flashed with Ma Tiande's knowledge of this city lord.
"He manifests multiple personalities."
"An old man, a child, a seductive woman, a brutal butcher..."
"The child is the most emotionally unstable."
His mind made up, he replied, "There's no need to trouble Scholar Zhu. This soup... is exquisite."
With those words, Li Fan took the bowl of red broth and drained it in one go.
To his surprise, it was nothing like its gruesome appearance. There wasn't even the slightest hint of blood or gore.
Instead, it was indescribably delicious. Even with Li Fan's experience across a hundred lifetimes in the Xuanhuang Realm, a man who had nearly exhausted all its secrets, he couldn't recall anything that could compare to its flavor.
As the last drop of red broth went down, Li Fan stared at the empty bowl, an unexpected sense of longing welling up inside him.
"What's this? Would you like another bowl?"
Scholar Zhu noticed the change in Li Fan's demeanor and grew excited, as if he had found a kindred spirit.
With tremendous willpower, Li Fan shook his head and refused.
"Such a rare delicacy must be savored."
"To eat more would be worse than to eat less," he stated earnestly.
Upon hearing this, Scholar Zhu let out a deep, muffled laugh.
His voice had subtly shifted from that of a child back to that of an old man.
"There is some truth in what you say."
"In that case, you may leave."
Li Fan bowed and took his leave.
Just as he was about to step out of the manor, Scholar Zhu's voice drifted softly to his ears.
"For this day-and-night grand ceremony, I have prepared a seat for you as well."
A look of delight crossed Li Fan's face, and he quickly bowed again. "Many thanks, Lord Zhu!"
The world before him shimmered and changed. The city lord's manor vanished.
In its place stood a red pavilion, echoing with the sounds of debauchery.
Li Fan licked his lips.
Ma Tiande's memories surfaced once more: "Scholar Zhu, a member of the Shuo Xinghai Administrative Council."
"He was once a True Immortal, who has since become mortal!"
(End of Chapter)
Comments