Upon hearing this, the two women immediately looked at Li Fan in unison, their eyes filled with surprise as well as joy.
After all, having been remodeled, Li Fan now held tremendous weight in their consciousness.
After pondering slightly, Xuan Sushang readily agreed on the spot. Right before Li Fan's eyes, she began contacting her father, Mirror Keeper Cang.
Rather than using a communication talisman, she took out a Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror that she carried with her and murmured an incantation.
A moment later, a dark figure with an indistinct face was projected from the small mirror into midair.
"Nian'er, why do you seek me?"
Cang's voice sounded like that of an amiable middle-aged man, his tone exceptionally gentle. As for "Niannian," it was Xuan Sushang's childhood pet name.
That Cang always addressed Xuan Sushang this way was ample proof of how deeply he doted on his daughter.
Somewhat nervously, Xuan Sushang recounted the whole sequence of events along with Li Fan's request.
Only then did Cang notice Li Fan, who had been standing silently beside his daughter all along.
Their gazes collided and intertwined across space.
Li Fan, who harbored the Mirror Origin of the Heavenly Profound Mirror, finally understood at this moment what the Heavenly Profound Mirror meant by "mirror slave."
To verify his suspicion, Li Fan visualized in his mind an image of his hand gripping Mirror Keeper Cang.
At the same time, Cang's blurred silhouette began to shudder violently.
Yet under Li Fan's deliberate control, Cang was utterly incapable of uttering even the slightest sound of anguish.
"Father, what's wrong?" Xuan Sushang quickly noticed Cang's abnormality, feeling bewildered.
Sensing the desperate pleas transmitted from Cang, Li Fan then released the invisible hand he had visualized.
Only then was Cang liberated from the boundless agony.
His acting skills proved quite impeccable, his tone devoid of the slightest tremor: "It is nothing. I was merely putting up some protective measures to shut out the prying eyes of petty scoundrels. You and Lu Xichan step back for now. Father has an important matter to discuss with..."
"...this lord." Cang paused before speaking with utter solemnity.
Xuan Sushang and Lu Xichan subconsciously glanced at Li Fan, and only after receiving his nod of approval did Xuan Sushang support Lu Xichan and slowly leave the bamboo lodge.
With a casual wave, Li Fan set up a formation to isolate inside from out.
"This old servant pays respects to Master." Only then did Cang reveal his true appearance and slowly prostrate himself.
His face was fraught with terror, bearing not the slightest resemblance to a Mirror Keeper standing at the pinnacle of power in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals.
Cang and Xuan Sushang shared a certain resemblance.
Both had a youthful quality that contradicted their voices.
Though Cang sounded middle-aged, he actually looked like a handsome youth in his twenties.
Li Fan remained silent, observing Cang.
Cang dared not raise his head, maintaining his prostrate posture throughout.
"Mirror slave..." Sensing the myriad emotions constantly emanating from Cang, Li Fan gained a deeper understanding of those two words.
Aided by the Heavenly Profound Mirror's origin, Li Fan perceived that Cang was entirely a dependent thrall attached to the mirror.
His divine soul, physical body, thoughts, everything he possessed—their very foundational cornerstone was the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
Even though Li Fan was not the true Heavenly Profound Mirror and merely harbored a wisp of the Mirror Origin,
he could still knead and mold Cang at will, leaving the man without the slightest room to resist.
In fact, with a single thought, Li Fan could erase Cang from this world completely.
...
"What a vicious and despair-inducing method. In comparison, the subjugation techniques passed down in the Xuanhuang Realm are downright laughable."
"Truly worthy of a genuine immortal artifact."
Watching this once-aloof Mirror Keeper trembling in fear as he prostrated before him, Li Fan felt quite shaken.
At the same time, a sense of yearning arose within him.
"Rise."
After a brief lapse of composure, Li Fan swiftly regained his aloof calm.
He laid out the general plan for the Heavenly Profound Mirror's true body to break free.
"Rest assured, Master. I will certainly do everything in my power to advance the formation," Cang hurriedly professed his loyalty.
"Dharma Transmitter Feng is now also my ally. You may find an opportunity to contact him on your own. I trust that if the two of you join forces, many difficult problems will be easily resolved," Li Fan said indifferently.
Cang repeatedly nodded in agreement.
Afterward, there was no excessive exchange between Li Fan and Cang, and Li Fan called the two women, Xuan Sushang and Lu Xichan, back inside.
Only after repeatedly instructing Xuan Sushang to obey Li Fan's orders without question did Cang's figure finally vanish from the mirror's surface.
Having already feared Li Fan, and now armed with her father's explicit instructions,
Xuan Sushang dared not even breathe loudly before Li Fan.
'Though becoming a mirror slave means being controlled by the Heavenly Profound Mirror for life, it comes with considerable benefits as well,' Li Fan thought, staring at the mirror where Cang had vanished.
Having practically become an appendage of the Heavenly Profound Mirror, Cang could now travel freely by utilizing various Heavenly Profound sub-mirrors, and he could wield certain abilities bestowed by the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
Such as deduction, observation, vast knowledge, and so on.
Of course, all under the premise of the Heavenly Profound Mirror's permission.
And so long as the Heavenly Profound Mirror's true body existed, Cang himself remained an immortal, indestructible entity. Outsiders could not destroy him.
Even methods like sealing and suppression had little effect,
because the Heavenly Profound Mirror could erase a suppressed mirror slave at any time and then recreate them anew.
'Likely only an immortal artifact could possess such methods.'
'It isn't particularly humiliating either. To be the slave of an immortal artifact...'
'If word got out, those in the Xuanhuang Realm willing to volunteer would probably form a line stretching all the way from Tianquan Province to the Congyun Sea.'
Li Fan shook his head slightly, reached out with an attracting gesture, and took the Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror on the floor into his hand.
Since even a mirror slave possessed such incredible abilities, Li Fan, who harbored the Mirror Origin, naturally enjoyed privileges unimaginable before.
For instance, right now...
When his divine sense entered the Heavenly Profound Mirror, it did not connect with the identity of an ordinary cultivator.
Instead, he obtained the identity of a "Heavenly Profound sub-mirror" with nearly all permissions unlocked.
Although he could not freely trade or post missions like ordinary cultivators,
standard browsing and observation were completely unimpeded.
Information on the vast majority of cultivators recorded in the Heavenly Profound Mirror—including the cultivation methods they practiced, their items, and their contribution points—
their message records across the mirror's various forums...
and so on, were all laid bare before him.
Before the current Li Fan, there were virtually no secrets.
Except for certain individuals of extremely special status whose information was withheld, everything else was laid bare.
The only pity was that Li Fan could only view the information without being able to modify it.
He could not even mobilize the computing power of the Heavenly Profound Mirror's true body.
Yet that was understandable; after all, Li Fan was not the true Heavenly Profound Mirror,
merely the recipient of a bestowed wisp of its origin.
"Even so, this is already extraordinarily formidable."
Even with Li Fan's shrewd composure, his heart could not entirely suppress a surge of excitement at this moment.
Chapter 1006