"I have urgent matters to discuss!"
Zhang Haobo's voice echoed between heaven and earth.
Upon hearing this, the cultivators of Wanxian Island wore various expressions, reacting in different ways.
"What bold words! He is merely a Golden Core cultivator. What pressing business could he possibly have?"
"Indeed. He actually commandeered the might of a celestial wind calamity to coerce Wanxian Island. This is utter contempt for us!"
"Why hasn't the Soul Formation Immortal Lord swatted this brat dead with a single slap? It's driving me crazy!"
"Watching him show off like this feels worse than losing one of my own cultivation methods!"
"To possess such poise with only a Golden Core cultivation... this young man is bound to achieve great things in the future."
"He has cultivated for less than a decade, yet with merely a Golden Core realm, he commands the winds and looks down upon the Ten Thousand Immortals. Such a magnificent feat truly reminds me of the legendary Young Master Jinglun."
...
Ignoring the clamor rising from Wanxian Island in the distance, Zhang Haobo kept an open, calm countenance and waited patiently.
A moment later, a figure suddenly appeared before him.
Clad in white robes and holding a feather fan, he possessed an elegant, graceful demeanor.
Squinting, he looked Zhang Haobo up and down. "Golden Core? Urgent matters?"
"It has been a long time since I met such an interesting youngster!"
Zhang Haobo looked directly at him, his expression unchanged as he said placidly, "Golden Core, Soul Formation—all are mere ants."
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator's hand stroking the fan paused, and he scrutinized Zhang Haobo once again.
Only this time, there was a touch of gravity in his gaze.
Before long, he pointed into the distance with his feather fan. "In that case, follow me!"
Immediately after, both the white-robed Soul Formation cultivator and Zhang Haobo vanished from the sight of the onlookers on Wanxian Island.
All that remained was the colossal azure tornado, still endlessly whirling.
In the sky, a hole abruptly appeared in the cloud layer.
Brilliant starlight shone down, and the spiraling azure wind gradually dissolved into nothingness.
Only the bustling discussions of the Wanxian Island cultivators lingered for a long time.
Zhang Haobo's vision blurred, and he found himself suddenly standing upon a mountain peak.
Clouds and mist swirled around, leaving only the sharp crags of distant mountains visible.
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator stood at the precipice of the summit, his back turned to him.
"This place is a domain unto itself, capable of shielding against the perception of the Heavenly Dao. Whatever you wish to say, speak freely."
Zhang Haobo first took another look around and observed for a moment.
With his current cultivation, he could discern nothing special about this place.
Only then did he speak: "Senior, did you know that an anima of Heaven and Earth lies hidden within this Congyun Sea?"
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator turned around and looked at Zhang Haobo with interest, saying, "Are you referring to that azure wind locked in a stalemate with the sword hilt?
"Although I do not know where you learned of this, you are sorely mistaken if you think it represents some great opportunity.
"The Soul Formation cultivators across the Congyun Sea and even the surrounding provinces all know of that azure wind's existence.
"Yet not a single soul dares to refine it. Do you know why?"
Zhang Haobo's expression did not change as he replied, "Is it because of that sword hilt?"
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator nodded. "Whenever an anima of Heaven and Earth appears, it inevitably carries a heavenly duty. According to our observations, the azure wind's duty is to destroy that sword hilt.
"A century ago, an outside Soul Formation cultivator passed through, sensed the existence of the azure wind, and wished to refine it.
"As a result, the azure wind used a cage to trap him together with the sword hilt.
"The baleful aura of that sword hilt erupted instantly—not targeted at the azure wind's cage, but directly at that Soul Formation cultivator.
"The azure wind launched an attack at the same moment.
"It was equivalent to two Dao Integration Immortal Venerables striking simultaneously. That Soul Formation cultivator perished on the spot."
Hearing this, Zhang Haobo fell into thought.
"Two Dao Integration entities locked in conflict and deadlocked. But if anyone else intervenes—especially a weaker being—they will view it as a provocation.
"And they will join forces to destroy the intruder, is that it?"
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator gently waved his feather fan. "A promising student indeed."
However, Zhang Haobo changed the subject, suddenly stating, "Yet the anima of Heaven and Earth I speak of is not that azure wind.
"The sword hilt broke free from its confinement and flew who knows where, and the azure wind gave chase after it."
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator's movements froze abruptly.
"What I speak of is an anima of Heaven and Earth that has not yet emerged, but will soon appear in the Congyun Sea."
Zhang Haobo's gaze grew somewhat distant, as if he were reminiscing about something.
The white-robed Soul Formation cultivator lowered his feather fan and stared intently at Zhang Haobo.
His expression was solemn.
Above the mountain ranges, vast swaths of dark clouds gathered, blotting out the sky.
...
Li Fan remained entirely oblivious to the events unfolding in the outside world.
He had been completely immersed in the study of array methods.
Three months in, the person learning alongside him could finally no longer endure such monstrously grueling cultivation and took the initiative to give up.
He chose to leave.
Zhang Zhiliang said nothing, but before long, he brought back another person to teach.
Li Fan did not pay the slightest attention to what was happening around him.
With utter concentration, he studied the arrays.
Whenever he felt weary, silver incense was lit for him.
He never paused, not even for an instant.
The look in Zhang Zhiliang's eyes whenever he watched Li Fan grew increasingly pleased.
Such days continued until two years later.
The reminder time he had previously set arrived, and only then did Li Fan awaken from his studies.
Looking with slight reluctance at the detailed array diagram broken down into countless minute projections before him, Li Fan shifted his gaze toward Zhang Zhiliang.
"Master Zhang, I have a matter to attend to and need to make a trip outside," Li Fan explained.
Zhang Zhiliang nodded. "You have also studied continuously for so long; it is indeed time to go out and unwind a bit."
After a moment of contemplation, he handed Li Fan a glowing white cube.
"Take this for self-defense for now, to guard against unforeseen circumstances."
Li Fan examined the cube in his hand, discerning traces of dozens of arrays superimposed within it.
Zhang Zhiliang added, "This is an array coronet, formed by superimposing over a hundred different arrays upon one another.
"The most precious array among them is a displacement array.
"Should you encounter an adversary you cannot defeat, you may use this displacement array to teleport to a random location a hundred thousand li away.
"You have studied under me for so long that you ought to know how to use such an item, so I won't waste words explaining it."
Li Fan understood how precious this object was, for none of the arrays within this array coronet were single-use.
After each activation, it could passively absorb surrounding spiritual energy to recharge itself.
Once recharged, it could be used again.
Compared to those array diagrams that broke down after just a few uses, this was far superior.
Zhang Zhiliang's willingness to bestow such an item upon him also demonstrated his attitude toward Li Fan to a certain extent.
Li Fan immediately thanked Zhang Zhiliang and departed from the Formation Planning Hall.
This excursion was naturally because the emergence of the Vast Sea Pearl was drawing near.
The Vast Sea Pearl was the Foundation Establishment wonder he had chosen for this lifetime; nothing could be allowed to go wrong.
Therefore, he ended his seclusion early to lie in wait at Liuyun Island.
Rather than rushing off immediately, Li Fan inquired as usual about the major occurrences that had taken place over the past two years.
Only then did he learn of the stir Zhang Haobo had caused.
"Quite the grand move indeed. Extraordinary poise, truly extraordinary!" Li Fan praised.
"So to speak, the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals should already know that the Crimson Flames Burning the Sea will follow next.
"I wonder how they will respond."
Chapter 138