Chapter 906: Destiny is Not Determined by Immortals
Hearing Ji Yuzhen's words, Xuanyuan Hong's expression darkened. "Nonsense!"
"Do you think I'm not familiar with the technique you practice? You can divide your soul into thousands of fragments, but the part that can heal my injuries must be the most refined, primordial soul. If you lose it, your cultivation will be severely damaged!"
"How could I ever do such a thing!"
But seeing the faint smile still on Ji Yuzhen's face, Xuanyuan Hong couldn't bring himself to scold her further.
Instead, he comforted her, "Don't worry, Zhen'er. It's just a minor injury. I'll make a full recovery after some time in seclusion."
Ji Yuzhen nodded silently, her gaze fixed on Xuanyuan Hong, lingering for a long time.
...
Inside a great hall.
Xuantian King Xuanyuan Hong sat on the main seat above, with the twelve Law Kings standing in the hall below.
"I will be entering a period of seclusion. During this time, I must trouble all of you with the sect's affairs," Xuanyuan Hong announced solemnly.
"Rest assured, Xuantian King. Nothing will go amiss," replied the Law King known as Elder Cui, stroking his beard.
Xuanyuan Hong nodded. "If I succeed this time, I may be able to reforge a True Immortal's body in the lower realm. When that happens, our plan to escape the Dark Star Sea will be greatly accelerated!"
At these words, the other Law Kings showed varied expressions.
Some were joyful and congratulatory, while others remained calm and indifferent.
Still others wore stern expressions, their inner thoughts unreadable.
...
In a dim, secret chamber.
"Zhen'er, I've sensed some people growing restless lately. That person who contacted you in secret..."
"Go find him." Xuanyuan Hong's placid tone concealed a hint of killing intent.
Ji Yuzhen paused, then realized. "Brother Xuanyuan, you mean... to lure the snake out of its hole?"
Xuanyuan Hong's expression turned grim. "Exactly! This time, we'll deal with the Tiandu Grandmaster as well!"
Ji Yuzhen's eyes lit up with pleasant surprise. "Brother Xuanyuan, have you already made a breakthrough?"
Xuanyuan Hong smiled and nodded.
Ji Yuzhen took a deep breath, suppressing her excitement.
"Good. I've been feigning cooperation with him all this time. I'll contact him as soon as I return."
"Alright. Be careful."
...
A bloody light shot into the sky.
The dying screams of countless cultivators echoed through the air.
"Zhen'er, run..."
After that single message, Xuanyuan Hong's presence vanished completely.
Ji Yuzhen raced toward the location where she had last sensed Xuanyuan Hong's aura.
But something unusual there seemed to have attracted the attention of many other cultivators.
It wasn't just her; the other Law Kings and the numerous cultivators who had been swayed by the Tiandu Grandmaster were all converging on that same spot.
They fought as they flew.
"Little Sister, there are too many enemies! Find Brother Xuanyuan first, then we can make a new plan!" Zhou Yangli, one of the twelve Law Kings, transmitted the message, his expression grave.
The unease in Ji Yuzhen's heart grew stronger.
Indeed, the number of rebellious cultivators was far beyond her expectations. But if Xuanyuan Hong was there, none of it would be a problem. And yet...
Her divine soul transformed into a green light, sweeping away the dense crowd of enemies before her as Ji Yuzhen accelerated once more.
...
The scene ended there abruptly.
Li Fan carefully reviewed the information again, ensuring he hadn't missed anything.
"I never would have thought that the sudden attack by the Ten Great Immortal Sects was something the Xuantian King orchestrated. He wanted to lure out all the unstable elements within the Xuanhuang Realm and eliminate them in one fell swoop."
"But for some reason, at the most critical moment, something happened to the Xuantian King himself."
"Interesting..."
Li Fan's eyes narrowed. "If the information from Ji Yuzhen's memory is true, then the Xuantian King had already advanced beyond his half-immortal body. He was already unrivaled in the Xuanhuang Realm, and with another breakthrough, who could possibly have been his opponent?"
"The Ten Great Immortal Sects? The Tiandu Grandmaster? Or perhaps..."
The image of the faceless stone statue suddenly flashed through Li Fan's mind.
For some reason, a faint sense of horror crept into his heart.
"This Faceless Immortal Statue was built by Xuanyuan Hong to show his gratitude to the Faceless True Immortal for saving his life in the ascension passage."
"From what I've seen, Xuantian King Xuanyuan Hong was indeed a person of noble character."
"But this Faceless True Immortal..."
"That's another story."
Li Fan analyzed inwardly, "Saving Xuanyuan Hong's life back then doesn't necessarily mean anything."
"Perhaps in the eyes of a True Immortal, a half-immortal like Xuanyuan Hong was no different from an ordinary mortal. He had no value to be exploited."
"But once Xuanyuan Hong was on the verge of forging a True Immortal's body, everything changed."
Li Fan darkly speculated about what might have happened back then.
The more he thought about it, the more sense it made.
It was just like when he was in the Great Xuan Kingdom, amiable and approachable with the common people, yet watchful and completely different when dealing with the court officials.
Judging the immortal by his own standards, Li Fan figured that the Faceless True Immortal probably showed different faces to different people.
This theory also perfectly explained why the power behind the faceless statue seemed indifferent to the prayers from the Xuanhuang Realm, merely redirecting them to him.
"It seems that for now, it's safe to use the statue's functions. As long as I don't display the power of an 'Immortal'..."
Although he had reasoned his way to this conclusion, Li Fan didn't lower his guard against the faceless statue.
After all, even the great Xuantian King might have fallen because of this statue.
How could Li Fan not be wary?
"Ji Yuzhen's memories are incomplete. The most critical moments, including those of her practicing her cultivation technique, are all missing."
"Or rather, they've been hidden."
Li Fan looked around at the flowers drifting through the air.
"The Xuantian King mentioned that after cultivating the *Boundless Heavenly Pivot Separating Spirit Art*, one's soul is divided into thousands of fragments and a primordial soul."
"It seems the wandering souls in this Annular Mountain are Ji Yuzhen's soul fragments. The memories I've obtained are the scattered recollections from these fragments."
"As for the primordial soul, the one hiding the truly important information..."
Li Fan searched the Annular Mountain once more, then frowned slightly. "It's not here?"
"Either that, or it's hidden so well that I can't find it at my current level."
After a long while, a reluctant Li Fan finally gave up.
However, this gave him an idea.
"With the information I've gained here, combined with what I saw in Mo Rubin's mind, I have enough to convincingly impersonate a member of the ancient Xuantian Sect."
"If I'm ever confronted, I can blame any gaps in my knowledge on a damaged soul and memory loss."
"The only flaw in the plan is my inability to replicate the Xuantian Sect's techniques."
Then, Li Fan recalled the Xuantian Sect techniques Senior Sister Zhao had obtained in her illusion.
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