Chapter 953: The Bygone Affairs of Cloud Water
The sense of contradiction made Li Fan’s brow furrow.
“Do they only go into a collective frenzy when they appear in the Xuanhuang Realm?”
Pondering this, Li Fan moved past the stone statue of Qin Tang and headed deeper into the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace.
His destination was a place he had never set foot in before: the residence of the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace’s sect master.
The very place where Han Hai resided.
From his current vantage point, Li Fan recalled the conflicts he had witnessed in the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace years ago. Han Hai, at his strongest, had only reached the peak of the Dao Integration realm and had never achieved Longevity.
Moreover, he had fallen long ago, now existing only as an aberrant entity.
Therefore, Li Fan wasn't worried about any potential dangers on this trip.
What concerned him more was the possibility that the Heavenly Doctor was watching his every move from some hidden corner.
The restrictive seal that enveloped the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace originated from this very spot, spreading out to cover the entire region.
Li Fan observed for a moment and noticed invisible shockwaves emanating periodically from the blue sphere.
It was precisely these shockwaves that were causing the restrictive seal to gradually lose its effectiveness.
"This is..."
A look of surprise crossed Li Fan's face.
Having thoroughly studied the [Heaven Mending Record], Li Fan quickly deduced that even in slumber, Han Hai's emotions were in immense turmoil.
This turmoil caused an uncontrollable overflow of energy, releasing the outward shockwaves.
It was much like a mortal sleepwalking—strictly speaking, a type of cultivator ailment.
"Could it be," he mused, "that the Heavenly Doctor guided me here simply to alleviate Han Hai's suffering?"
"No, that's unlikely. It's probably just a simple errand to reinforce the seal..."
"There must be a deeper meaning to this."
After another moment of contemplation, Li Fan came to a decision.
He sent a minuscule, almost entirely blank strand of his divine sense through the blue protective membrane and into the sphere.
A blue-and-white pearl hovered in mid-air.
It bore a strong resemblance to the Canghai Pearl, yet there were distinct differences.
The orb spun rapidly, and upon its blue-and-white surface, a jarring streak of black was visible.
Like a persistent nightmare, it clung to the pearl, impossible to dispel.
"Has Han Hai's physical body vanished, leaving only this pearl behind?"
Li Fan searched the space, and finding no other presence, he sighed softly.
"It seems that streak of black is the source of Han Hai's torment..."
After a moment's hesitation, Li Fan sent the strand of divine sense into the pearl.
The world spun around him.
It felt like entering the Fallen Immortal Realm, his consciousness attaching itself to a new body.
He had no control, however; he could only passively observe and experience everything that happened to this new vessel.
"The Heavenly Doctor has been gone for a long time. I wonder if this will even work."
Han Hai sat upright in the sect's main hall. At his feet, the turtle-snake beast, Taiyi, currently no larger than an ordinary tortoise, grumbled.
"Before he left, the Heavenly Doctor said there was at least a ninety percent chance of success. We should have more faith in him." Unlike Taiyi's morose expression, Han Hai seemed perfectly at ease, offering a reassuring smile.
Taiyi shook his head slightly, retracting his head and limbs into his shell.
"I've still got a hundred thousand years left in me, what's there to fear? If worse comes to worst, I'll just find a pond and take a long nap. By the time I wake up, any calamity will have long passed. What could possibly harm me then?"
"It's just... I heard from that young fellow Qin Tang that some of the other sects are getting restless."
"They've started to quietly spread talk of surrender..."
Han Hai snorted. "Speaking of defeat before the battle is lost. Scum like that... Tian Jue will deal with them!"
Taiyi gave a bitter smile. "It's not about admitting defeat prematurely. We've been fighting for so long that everyone is at their breaking point. They're only saying this out of desperation..."
"If you ask me, you can't entirely blame them. If this war drags on any longer, there's not a shred of hope in sight..."
"Enough!" Han Hai roared, cutting Taiyi off.
"How can you think that way?"
"We may be in a dire situation, but do you think our enemies are faring any better?"
"At this stage, it all comes down to who can endure to the very end. If we surrender now, what would that make of all the sacrifices our comrades have made?"
Taiyi sighed softly and fell silent.
A deathly silence descended upon the great hall.
After a long while, as if to break the awkward tension...
...Taiyi spoke again. "Speaking of Tian Jue, I don't believe I've seen him for quite some time..."
Just then, the terrified screams of disciples echoed from outside.
"Venerable One..."
"No!"
"Run! The Venerable One has gone mad!"
...
The screams were so sudden that the expressions of both Han Hai and Taiyi changed in an instant.
Without a word, they transformed into streaks of blue and black light, shooting toward the source of the screams.
In the sky, they witnessed a sight that would be seared into their memories forever.
Tian Jue, the venerable they revered above all, stood with his eyes closed.
Wielding the Heavenly Calamity Sword, he was indiscriminately slaughtering the disciples of the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace.
Given Tian Jue's immense power, the disciples stood no chance of resisting his assault.
With each flash of black sword light, he ruthlessly reaped the lives of their disciples.
Han Hai's eyes blazed with fury. "Stop!" he roared.
A colossal blue palm materialized in the sky and slammed down toward Tian Jue.
Without a single glance at Han Hai, Tian Jue's sword released a single beam of light that tore the blue palm asunder.
Its power undiminished, the beam of light then shot toward Han Hai.
"Careful!"
Taiyi instantly expanded to his full size, using his incredibly hard shell to block the black sword light.
Boom!
The impact sent a massive tremor through the air, and Taiyi coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The shock of the blow brought Han Hai back to his senses.
"You hold him off! I'll cover the disciples' retreat!"
He sent out countless strands of blue light, shooting toward every corner of the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace.
He intended to pull the fleeing disciples to safety.
But...
At that very moment, the Heavenly Calamity Sword erupted with thousands of black rays of light.
Though launched second, they moved faster, intercepting every one of Han Hai's threads!
The black rays pierced through each strand of blue light, instantly redirecting them back toward Han Hai.
Before Han Hai could react, the threads, now tainted black, shot toward him like needles, pinning him in mid-air!
"You're not Tian Jue?!"
Han Hai's limbs were immobilized, but he could still speak.
A look of absolute horror was etched on his face.
"Who are you?!" Han Hai roared, his voice filled with rage and despair.
But the figure of Tian Jue completely ignored him.
Eyes still closed, it commanded the Heavenly Calamity Sword to continue its merciless slaughter of the remaining disciples.
And Han Hai, the sect master, could only watch helplessly as his disciples were cut down one by one before his very eyes.
"No... No..."
When at last, no breath of life remained in the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace aside from their own...
...Han Hai could no longer even form the words to curse.
His body trembled, and tears of blood streamed from his eyes.
"Who... are... you...?"
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