Chief of the Protector Hall

The Dao Transformation Mother Stone was, after all, an entity that had managed to escape intact from a catastrophe like the extinction of the Xuanhuang Realm; Li Fan would not underestimate his opponent. "There is no need to rush for immediate results. In this lifetime, I will simply act as an utterly dependable partner to earn the Taiyan Sect's trust, thereby gaining access to more of their hidden secrets. "As for myself, I will first perfect this data-corruption formation. If an opportunity presents itself, I can test it on a small scale to see its effects." The space within Yanfa Jue provided Li Fan with a secure environment free from outside disturbances. Apart from occasionally dealing with the little girl's strikes, his time could be said to be quite leisurely. The three garrison elders communicated with each other less and less, each absorbed in their own world. Yet on this day, a peculiar group of people arrived in Yanfa Jue's space. Possessing no Law-Audience Jade Plaques, they had nevertheless received special authorization from the Alliance and were brought here under the personal guidance of the Chief Elder of the Protector Hall. The usually indolent Hua Yueye appeared rather nervous, greeting him repeatedly, "Greetings, Elder Xu." Li Fan noticed that not only the other two garrisons, but even the little girl of Yanfa Jue—normally carefree and fearless of heaven and earth—had reined in her attitude considerably. As he bowed in greeting along with them, Li Fan looked at the white-haired elder who appeared blind, and the dossier on this Chief of the Protector Hall flashed through his mind. "Xu Yuanxian has served as the Chief of the Protector Hall for over three thousand years. While seemingly approachable on the surface, he is eccentric and rigid in temperament. He adheres dogmatically to the Alliance's regulations without personal sentiment. Even when Dharma Transmitters occasionally come and wish to bend the rules, he does not allow it. Highly regarded by Dharma Transmitter Jiang, other Dharma Transmitters may dislike him, but they can do nothing against him. "Being capable of serving as the Chief of the Protector Hall, Xu Yuanxian's own strength is unfathomable, far beyond ordinary Dao Integration cultivators. The only recorded instance in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals where a Dao Integration cultivator was executed to retrieve leaked cultivation methods was carried out by his hand. It was done swiftly and cleanly, without even giving onlookers time to react." Xu Yuanxian explained the purpose of his visit: "The Alliance Grand Examination concluded not long ago, and these youngsters are the standout achievers. The Council of Dharma Transmitters has granted special approval, allowing them the opportunity to use Yanfa Jue to deduce a Dao Integration-level cultivation method once." "Hm?" "How could this be?!" The three garrisons and the little girl of Yanfa Jue were all somewhat astonished. Pouting her lips, the little girl wanted to complain. Yet upon catching sight of Xu Yuanxian's expression, she cautiously swallowed her words back down. Li Fan reacted the fastest, nodding and saying, "May the Chief please display the Council's seal." With a solemn look, he showed no signs of slacking simply because the other party was his direct superior. Xu Yuanxian was quite cooperative, projecting a seal. Sensing the aura of the Dharma Transmitters swirling upon it, Li Fan carefully verified the explanatory details before finally nodding to indicate that the inspection had passed. Postponing the cultivators who were originally waiting for deduction, Li Fan arranged for Yanfa Jue to handle the tasks of these newly inducted Alliance cultivators first. There were sixteen of them in total, varying in both age and cultivation realm. The enormous glowing sphere of Yanfa Jue spun continuously as the little girl begrudgingly carried out the deduction work. While the group lined up waiting for their cultivation methods to be deduced, Li Fan asked Xu Yuanxian with curious voice transmission, "Lord Chief, forgive my poor eyesight, but these cultivators... do not seem particularly gifted in aptitude. Why is the Alliance treating them with such favor?" His voice transmission was not concealed from the other two garrisons, who also wore curious expressions. However, what followed was only silence. Xu Yuanxian said nothing, as if he hadn't heard Li Fan's transmission at all. The two garrisons tactfully withdrew their gazes. Li Fan did not press the matter further, and an eerie silence settled over the chamber. Only when all sixteen had finished deducing their cultivation methods and were about to depart did Xu Yuanxian suddenly respond: "This question is one I, too, would like to know the answer to. "However, there are far too many unknowns in the world; there is no need to understand everything. It is enough to simply perform one's duty. "Since the Council of Dharma Transmitters has made this decision, they must have their reasons. As subordinates, we merely need to obey orders." The three garrisons bowed low, expressing that they had taken the instruction to heart. Only after Xu Yuanxian had completely departed from the space of Yanfa Jue did they dare to speak. "The Lord Chief truly lives up to his reputation for rigidity." "Fellow Daoist Sun reacted so quickly this time. The Chief loves people who do things by the book like you did. Perhaps you've caught the Chief's eye, and when you leave after five hundred years, he'll choose you as the next Chief," Hua Yueye teased. Li Fan paid no mind to their teasing, first following protocol to document and report this special deployment of Yanfa Jue. Then he remarked nonchalantly, "Being the Chief of the Protector Hall is even more like being in prison than our current job. I have no interest in it. "I still have a lovely wife at home waiting for my return." Half in jest and half in earnest, his words drew laughter from the two garrisons. This matter was merely a minor episode during their time garrisoning Yanfa Jue. Before long, the others cast it to the back of their minds. Except, of course, for Li Fan. Because... Among those sixteen individuals earlier, there was unexpectedly a spy planted into the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals by the Great Qi Sacred Dynasty. Named Yang Fei. Li Fan knew him, though he did not know Li Fan. Yet that did not diminish the wariness in Li Fan's heart. The Alliance never did anything without reason. For these sixteen people to receive such extraordinary treatment immediately upon joining the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, it was hard not to suspect some underlying plot. "Could they be like the previous Immortal Chosen, serving as sacrifices to awaken the power within the stone statues left behind by the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable? No, if they were sacrifices destined to die, there would be no reason to waste Yanfa Jue's computational power on them..." Li Fan keenly sensed the anomaly behind this. Meanwhile, in the underground secret chamber of the Sun family, his divided soul had finally waited for the right opportunity. Sun Luyuan came to the secret chamber once more, his eyes bloodshot. With a conflicted look on his face, he ultimately took out a small Heavenly Profound mirror. Then, using his own essence blood to nourish Sun Luyao within the Boundless Mirror, he explained, "The pressure from above is simply too immense. Forgive your elder brother. "I originally thought I could resist unto death. But looking at the faces of our Sun family..." Sun Luyao condensed into a dark shadow and manifested his form. Following the instructions of Li Fan's divided soul, he comforted, "Brother, I understand. It's fine; leave it to me." Sun Luyuan trembled slightly at those words, his fists clenching so tightly that his fingernails dug deep into his palms. At this moment, the information he had previously searched regarding the 'Great Qi Sacred Dynasty' could not help but surface in his mind again. "Perhaps I can try reaching out to them. "Being a dog for a lifetime still carries the risk of being beheaded at any moment. Perhaps this Great Qi might truly offer me a pleasant surprise?" The Boundless Mirror feigned searching within the Heavenly Mystery Realm for information related to the Heavenly Profound Mirror's avatar. In truth, it was investigating why those sixteen cultivators were being treated with such extraordinary favor.