Chapter 935: Strength Born of Desperation
"This is an absolutely brilliant move!"
The power of the five Heavenly Venerates would indeed recover soon enough. Once they did, any advantage the Alliance had built would crumble to dust before the might of Longevity cultivators.
But what if, before that happened, they could capture everyone under the Five Elders Council?
All that would be left for the five Heavenly Venerates is a vast, empty territory.
Though his knowledge of the Longevity realm was limited, Li Fan was certain that even the most ordinary cultivators were of use to these five Heavenly Venerates.
Perhaps losing a few wouldn't have much of an impact. But if their entire domain—cultivators and even mortals—was completely emptied...
It would undoubtedly be a devastating blow to them.
"Is it possible," Li Fan couldn't help but wonder, "that the Five Elders Council is truly going to fall this time?"
For the next few days, the war progressed smoothly. The scales of victory tipped steadily in favor of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.
The image in the Tianxuan Mirror suddenly switched to a scene in the sky. From a hazy, elliptical portal, a contingent of cultivators emerged in perfect formation.
They were clearly not from the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance. Yet their style of dress was also different from that of the current Five Elders Council. Their robes were all embroidered with the same arcane pattern.
These cultivators gazed at the neat, uniform ranks of black-robed figures in the distance, their faces lighting up with eager, battle-hungry smiles.
"Is this... the Tai Shang Sect?" Li Fan frowned slightly, recognizing the somewhat familiar insignia.
The scene in the Tianxuan Mirror changed again. One after another, portals appeared, and many ancient sects, long thought to have been destroyed, reappeared in the world and joined the battlefield.
But that was not all. The Tianxuan Mirror's view focused once more, capturing an incredible scene.
A female cultivator with a graceful figure, clad in form-fitting white robes, appeared in an unknown location. She bowed reverently towards a closed golden gate in the void before her, a gate that radiated an ancient and sacred aura.
With a deafening rumble, the gate swung open, casting down a blinding golden light.
When the light faded, more than ten figures, identical to the white-robed female cultivator, appeared in the mirror.
Their faces were completely identical, with only slight differences in their apparent age and strength. It was as if...
...they were the same woman, but from different points in her life.
Without a single wasted word, these white-robed women sped off into the distance.
"This is..." Li Fan’s eyes flashed with insight. "The Immortal Sect Armory?"
Information he had previously collected about the Immortal Sect Armory flooded his mind.
The Immortal Sect Armory was the Five Elders Council's equivalent of the Tianxuan Mirror. There, a vast, ocean-like collection of techniques, scriptures, and treasures from ancient immortal sects could be exchanged by cultivators at will.
The required resource was not contribution points, but Soul Points.
Li Fan already knew that the Immortal Sect Armory also contained hyper-realistic illusory realms modeled after many ancient sects. These realms were created by a power remarkably similar to that of the Fallen Immortal Realm. Inside, cultivators of the Five Elders Council could wander through many extinct ancient sects. These sects were populated by projections of ancient cultivators, most of whom lacked consciousness and were mere shells. In combat, however, their power and every move were almost indistinguishable from a real person's.
Cultivators of the Five Elders Council could spend Soul Points to spar repeatedly with these ancient cultivators, thereby improving their combat prowess. Furthermore, within the Immortal Sect Armory, any injuries sustained would not affect their physical bodies in reality, only causing slight damage to their souls. Even better, this soul damage could also be healed by spending Soul Points.
Theoretically, if one had enough Soul Points, even a mortal who had just begun cultivating could become exceptionally powerful through a series of such battles.
"So these summoned figures are projections of themselves, left behind in the Immortal Sect Armory by spending Soul Points?" Li Fan instantly understood the origin of these clone-like cultivators.
Clearly, his guess was correct.
Similar scenes were unfolding all across the territories of the Five Elders Council. As the ancient golden gates continuously projected forth streams of figures, the remaining resistance forces of the Five Elders Council swelled by more than tenfold in an instant.
Moreover, all the cultivators capable of leaving a projection in the Immortal Sect Armory were battle-hardened veterans. Their combat experience was exceedingly rich, and their appearance inflicted immense damage upon the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance.
Furthermore, it seemed that as long as the original cultivator remained alive, after a period of rest, they could spend more soul power to summon their projections from the Immortal Sect Armory once again.
It was practically equivalent to infinite resurrection.
Just like that, the numerical advantage of the black-robed cultivators of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance was neutralized.
The Alliance's offensive slowed to a crawl.
Not long after this stalemate emerged, another force joined the fray.
The scene in the Tianxuan Mirror changed once more.
The image became somewhat blurry, as if affected by some interference.
It looked like a sprawling city built upon the very canopy of the sky. Within it, cultivators were all deep in slumber.
Amidst a slight tremor, they all awoke.
There was no grogginess of those suddenly roused from a long sleep; instead, their faces were masks of pure anger at having their pleasant dreams disturbed.
Muttering curses under their breath, they made no visible movements, yet their clothes transformed into fully encapsulating, liquid-metal battle armor.
Then, they streaked towards the battlefield.
The image in the Tianxuan Mirror abruptly shifted, seemingly cut off by force.
"That place is..." Li Fan was slightly stunned. "The Land of Carefree Joy?"
The Land of Carefree Joy was the most mysterious location within the territory of the Five Elders Council. It was the dreamland of all cultivators, and only those who passed a difficult trial could enter. Once someone went to the Land of Carefree Joy, they rarely ever returned.
In that fleeting glimpse, Li Fan had seen many fascinating things in the illusory city in the sky.
Skyscrapers and neon lights, reminiscent of a modern city.
Rainbow-like sky-bridges connecting the various buildings.
Flying shuttles constantly weaving through the city's airspace.
...
"The power of Carefree Joy covers almost the entire Xuanhuang Realm. The Carefree Heavenly Venerate must be the strongest among the five," he mused.
"Interesting."
That place bore a striking resemblance to the future cultivation world Li Fan had seen in his simulations.
"If possible, I should send a clone to explore that place." Li Fan had a feeling he would be able to find something very interesting in the Land of Carefree Joy.
The entry of the cultivators from the Land of Carefree Joy completely turned the tide of the battle.
Although their cultivation levels weren't particularly high, the artifacts they carried were truly formidable.
Their metallic armor could absorb most attacks and then reflect them back at the sender.
Moreover, each cultivator carried a seemingly endless supply of energy beams, which would unfold behind them with a single thought.
They then unleashed a furious barrage upon the cultivators of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, a storm of devastating power.
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