The Heavenly Profound Mirror Establishes Its Dao

"I have met quite a few figures like you before." "Yet most did not live long, meeting gruesome deaths for one reason or another." "I am rather curious—how have you managed to survive in one piece until now?" The avatar of the Heavenly Profound Mirror pulled no punches, speaking with complete bluntness, his eyes brimming with curiosity. Li Fan's cheek twitched. A sudden surge of killing intent surfaced in his mind. Yet, recalling that this was the Heavenly Profound Mirror's avatar, privy to countless secrets—among which might very well lie the key to breaking his current impasse... Li Fan was forced to suppress his murderous impulse. "Oh, right. Ordinary methods of soul searching or refining magic treasures won't work on me." "Anything I do not wish to speak of, no one in this Xuanhuang Realm can force out of me." The avatar cast another glance at Li Fan, preemptively explaining once more. "Big words..." Even as Li Fan muttered the remark, he did not doubt the statement. After all, neither the King of Profound Heaven back then nor the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable who followed seemed to have gained complete mastery over this immortal artifact. Li Fan had also toyed with the thought of testing it with the Xuan Heaven Spirit Seal array, but judging from his interactions with the avatar during this time, it had completely detached from the Heavenly Profound Mirror and existed as a thoroughly independent individual. An array tailored specifically against the Heavenly Profound Mirror would find no purchase upon him either. "What sort of freak are you supposed to be now, anyway?" Li Fan asked, deliberately trying to get under his skin. The avatar took no offense. Instead, a rare touch of smugness surfaced on his face. "Possessing both the profound weight of an artifact and the sapience of man." "Flawless and unblemished, nearly a True Immortal..." Before he could finish, Li Fan sneered mockingly, "So, a mongrel." The expression on the avatar's face froze solid. Yet it soon returned to normal. He looked at Li Fan and shook his head slightly. "As the saying goes, one cannot speak of ice to a summer insect." "Then again, if you ever had the chance to undergo a transformation like mine, you would probably make the exact same choice," the avatar mused thoughtfully. Li Fan did not answer, meeting him with silence. After a long pause, he finally uttered, "It seems you truly do not fear death." The avatar chuckled comfortably. "You've realized it as well. The Method of Giving Life encompasses myriad changes. Since I am here to experience a complete human life, I must naturally undergo birth, aging, illness, and death." "Once this body perishes, another will naturally be born." "Unless you can destroy my true form, how could you ever truly kill me?" "Death will merely return me to freedom!" Li Fan turned the words over in his mind. Before long, he said slowly, "It seems you didn't simply divide off a human body. You have forged your own Dao." The avatar clapped his hands with delight, as though he had finally met a kindred spirit. "Then my plan to cut off your retreat by slaying your avatar is doomed to fail." The avatar smiled. "I pondered painstakingly for nearly ten thousand years before discovering this path to transcendence. If it were so simple that one could break it just by hunting down and slaying an avatar..." "...wouldn't that be underestimating me far too much?" The smile vanished abruptly from the avatar's face. Only at this moment did he display the commanding aura befitting an immortal artifact. "It seems the cultivators of this world have all underestimated you. But are you truly so willing to tell me such a crucial secret? Aren't you afraid I might spread it abroad?" Li Fan narrowed his eyes. The avatar imitated him, narrowing his eyes as well. "'Pluck a single hair to benefit the world, and you would not do it.' Why would you ever casually divulge such a vital secret? You would surely use it to trade for some benefit..." "Besides, since I chose to tell you, I naturally harbor no worries about what would happen if it leaked. My Dao is already established; what is there to fear?" Looking at the avatar's narrowed eyes, Li Fan's expression instantly relaxed into neutrality. "Honestly, I think the cold, mechanical voice of your true form suits you better," Li Fan offered in earnest advice. The smugness vanished from the avatar's face at once. "I originally intended to share some information that might interest you when I was in a better mood. But now, it seems that won't be happening. Go ahead and kill me." The avatar spoke coldly, radiating absolute nonchalance, as if secure in having nothing to fear. Li Fan still made no move. "Strictly speaking, you and I are actually the same kind of person," Li Fan said slowly after a period of silent contemplation. "You originated from the Immortal Realm. Even if catastrophe befell the Immortal Realm and cast you adrift in the lower realms, an immortal artifact is still beyond anything ordinary cultivators can compare to." "That is why you have never truly cared for the living masses of the Xuanhuang Realm. Even if you were controlled for a time, ten thousand years to you is nothing more than the blink of an eye." "You have found the method to shake off that control." "In high spirits, you roam the mortal dust. Others assume you are comprehending the Dao, but in truth, you are savoring the joy of having already attained it." "Your so-called imitation of humans is merely another game to you. You observe the mortal world with amusement in your heart, yet you have never had the slightest intention of truly belonging." "Because they are unworthy." With every word Li Fan spoke, the avatar's expression grew increasingly solemn. He did not interrupt Li Fan, quietly listening with full attention. "The gulf between immortal and mortal is like heaven and an abyss. Even if you are merely an immortal artifact, you still bear the character for 'Immortal,' and I imagine you are fundamentally different from cultivators like us." "Perhaps in this entire Xuanhuang Realm, only the King of Profound Heaven back then or the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable could ever earn a shred of your regard." "The rest of this world's tumults and tribulations, the drying of seas and the crumbling of rocks—none of it matters to you." "For as an immortal artifact, you already nearly transcend time itself. Even if another hundreds of millions of years were to pass, even if heaven and earth were upended in the Xuanhuang Realm, or even if the Xuanhuang Realm were to plunge into the Immortal Ruins, none of it would likely cause you any substantive harm." ... Li Fan delivered this lengthy discourse with a fluid, ceaseless ease, looking as if he could talk on forever. The avatar finally seemed to grow a little impatient. He asked, "What exactly are you trying to say?" Li Fan clamped his mouth shut at once. Then he broke into sudden laughter. "What do I want to say?" "Or is it: what is it that you don't want to hear?" "Everything I said was nothing more than a probe." "I was probing to see what you truly care about. And fortunately for me, I have found the answer." The avatar no longer had the carefree, detached composure he had shown before. "I want to know: if the Xuanhuang Realm truly plunges into the Immortal Ruins..." "...will the true form of the Heavenly Profound Mirror truly remain unaffected?" Li Fan wiped the smile from his face, inquiring with genuine seriousness. "You..." The avatar's eyes flickered. "Aren't you adept at reading people? If I say that I am capable of—and willing to—drag the entire Xuanhuang Realm down into the Immortal Ruins with me..." "...how true do you think that sounds?" Li Fan asked with utter calm.