Chapter 949: The Universe in a Sleeve
Chapter 949: The Universe in a Sleeve
A series of policies demonstrated that the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance placed great importance on Nine Mountains Prefecture.
At the very least, the language of the articles conveyed a sense of unwavering resolve to all the cultivators of the Alliance.
More importantly, the one issuing the decrees and overseeing the construction of Nine Mountains Prefecture was none other than Dharma Transmitter Jiang, the very same figure who had recently led the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance to a resounding victory over the Five Elders Council!
As the only Dharma Transmitter widely known to the public, and with such a major victory under his belt, his reputation was already soaring.
Among the Alliance's cultivators, Dharma Transmitter Jiang’s prestige was exceptionally high, second only to the Dharma Spreading Heavenly Venerate himself.
"If the Nine Mountains Free Trade Prefecture is successfully established and proves effective, I imagine Dharma Transmitter Jiang's reputation will climb even higher," Li Fan mused.
"How interesting. Is he a representative put forward by all the Dharma Transmitters, or is this something else...?"
"The true leadership of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance is split between two powers: the Dharma Transmitters and the Heavenly Profound Mirror. Now, the Dharma Transmitters are making bold moves, even attempting to create the Xuantian Spirit-Sealing Formation to gain complete control over the Heavenly Profound Mirror."
But like a great storm that begins with a gentle breeze, very few within the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance could perceive the undercurrents of conflict among the top echelons beneath the bustling surface of the Nine Mountains Prefecture project.
Li Fan was one of the few who could.
Regardless of the outcome, however, he didn't particularly care.
He was far more interested in how the fervor around Nine Mountains Prefecture provided cover for the rapid expansion of his Divine Advent Organization.
However, the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance had always maintained a firm grip on its territory.
As more and more cultivators began to master the projections of gods and demons, achieving power equivalent to the Nascent Soul and even Soul Transformation realms, this unusual phenomenon finally caught the attention of the Alliance's leadership.
Since no one had actually violated any of the Alliance's laws, they refrained from taking immediate action against these cultivators.
Instead, they dispatched a few cultivators from the Law Enforcement Hall to also begin practicing the [Divine Advent], hoping to uncover the secrets behind it.
When one of these investigators summoned a god-demon, and Li Fan’s consciousness clone attempted to slip into the man's sea of consciousness, he made an interesting discovery.
Li Fan found that this cultivator was actually trying to trace the source of the consciousness clone, attempting to spy on Li Fan himself.
"Truly courting death..."
Li Fan sneered but did nothing to stop the attempt.
Instead, he carefully set a trap and guided the investigator’s consciousness over.
And so, after his initial excitement faded, the Law Enforcement Hall cultivator named Wei Ziguan was greeted by a series of horrifyingly realistic scenes.
A black sun materialized in the sky of the Xuanhuang Realm, devouring everything.
Countless beings cried out in terror, but they had no time to react.
One by one, they vanished into the endless blackness.
The Xuanhuang Realm shattered, and its people were plunged into utter devastation.
This terrifying apocalyptic vision flooded Wei Ziguan's mind before he could even brace himself.
It was no illusion.
The expression on the face of every cultivator facing doom was rendered with excruciating realism.
It was as if the end of the world was truly happening right before his eyes.
"Ahhhhh!"
Wei Ziguan lost his mind.
He was merely a Golden Core cultivator, having practiced for less than a century. His path had been smooth and untroubled; when had he ever witnessed such a hellish spectacle?
Snapping the connection and returning to reality, Wei Ziguan screamed uncontrollably.
He was driven to madness, babbling incessantly about the end of the world being imminent.
His colleagues quickly restrained him.
After the incident was reported, the investigator who arrived to assess the situation wore a grim expression, his brow deeply furrowed as he learned what had befallen Wei Ziguan.
Realizing the gravity of the matter, the senior cultivator ordered Wei Ziguan to be placed under watch before hurrying back to report.
...
This was not an isolated incident across the Alliance's territories.
As reports from various regions were compiled and sent up the chain of command, they finally caused a stir among the Alliance's upper echelons.
But the matter was deeply suspicious, and it was difficult to rule out the possibility of a clandestine plot by the Five Elders Council.
Thus, before a final decision was made, the Alliance suspended its investigation into the [Divine Advent].
They merely ordered that all cultivators practicing the technique be secretly brought under surveillance.
But with Li Fan, the instigator, continuously spreading the seeds of his new method, the Alliance's efforts were but a drop in the ocean.
The Divine Advent Organization continued to grow, just as it had before.
"Hmm?"
Just after successfully converting another cultivator, Li Fan suddenly felt a sense of being watched.
It was as if something was using the very fabric of heaven and earth to pinpoint his location.
Fortunately, Li Fan always altered his appearance when he went out, so his true identity remained hidden.
With a cold snort, Li Fan pointed a finger toward the sky.
A sharp surge of sword intent severed the source of the unseen surveillance.
But in that brief moment, it seemed his position had already been locked.
A thin line descended from the heavens, and only then did a thunderous roar follow from a great distance!
"Sky Patrolling Arrow!"
The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance clearly took this mysterious figure spreading heresy very seriously.
It wasn't just one; three Sky Patrolling Arrows locked onto Li Fan in succession!
Even a Dao Integration cultivator would pay a heavy price in such a situation!
But Li Fan remained completely unfazed.
His eyes glinted as he faced the approaching arrows and swept his great sleeve wide!
In an instant, the three arrows that had torn through the sky, seemingly on the verge of ripping everything apart, simply vanished without a trace!
A dismissive smile touched Li Fan's lips before his figure flickered and disappeared from the spot.
By the time a fully armed squad of Alliance cultivators arrived, the looks of undisguised terror on their faces made it clear they understood what had just transpired.
...
Inside the spatial passage leading to the Empire Small World.
Li Fan frowned slightly as he watched the Sky Patrolling Arrows wreak havoc within his Five Elements Great Cave-Heaven.
That earlier move—a simplified 'Universe in a Sleeve'—had certainly been stylish.
But these were weapons capable of severely injuring a Dao Integration expert.
Forcibly drawing them into his personal grotto-heaven naturally came at a cost.
The grotto-heaven rumbled and trembled slightly.
In the water, fire, and earth sub-worlds, faint cracks even appeared in the sky from the arrows' assault.
Fortunately, the metal and wood grotto-heavens provided support, and with Li Fan personally intervening to suppress them with his seven-colored divine light, the three arrows were finally subdued.
With the five elements circulating, the damage from the arrows was repaired in a mere instant.
Li Fan then held one of the arrows in his hand and began to study it quietly.
It was forged from some unknown material, incredibly hard.
Even when he struck it with his Extinction Sword, the arrow's shaft remained undamaged.
Intricate, complex patterns were engraved upon its surface. After analyzing them with his Final Dissociation Disc, he discovered a hundred thousand overlapping, composite arrays.
A great many of them were arrays he had never studied, some of which were not even in the Dissociation Disc's own deductive database.
Their style was completely different from the array systems of the Xuanhuang Realm, suggesting they originated from another world of cultivation.
"This is a great boon for the Dissociation Disc!"
Li Fan was overcome with delight.
"It seems the fastest way to progress is indeed by deconstructing existing, unknown creations!"
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