As the crowd listened to Ye Feipeng finish speaking, they all clicked their tongues in marvel.
From time to time, they glanced at the pair of dark brown wings on his back, eyes flashing with hints of envy.
And Li Fan, observing all of this from thousands of li away, showed an inscrutable expression on his face.
"Kunpeng essence blood?"
"Just a single drop of essence blood, passed down through bloodline inheritance over thousands of years, can still bring about such an earth-shaking transformation in a human body."
Having already reached minor accomplishment in the Creation Furnace Technique, Li Fan understood very clearly what kind of mighty power this was.
"Just how powerful was a Kunpeng in its prime?"
"Not to mention the many demon beasts equal in fame to the Kunpeng—or even fiercer."
"Yet now, not a single one can be seen."
"Just what happened back then..."
Li Fan could not help but sigh with emotion.
"I wonder how demon beast essence blood strengthens the physical body. How does it differ from my Creation Furnace Technique mobilizing the power of the human body's secret treasures?"
"The stones of other hills can polish jade; perhaps there will be an opportunity to draw inspiration from it."
Recalling the astonishing speed and power Ye Feipeng had just displayed, Li Fan could not help contemplating.
"Judging by how things look now, the little fatty doesn't seem to have given up on contending for the anima of Heaven and Earth. I just don't know which of them, he or Zhang Zhiliang, will succeed. Although Zhang Zhiliang's current cultivation far exceeds Ye Feipeng's, I faintly feel that the little fatty has a better chance, though I don't know why..."
"We shall see what fortune he encounters when he reaches Core Formation."
With eyes flickering, Li Fan's thoughts gradually settled.
He returned to toying with the glowing white cube in his hands.
This object was none other than the array coronet Zhang Zhiliang had gifted him earlier.
Over the past half year of continuous exploration, Li Fan had completely mastered the initial twenty arrays.
Furthermore, after dozens of failures, he had successfully used these twenty arrays as a foundation to construct a "miniature array coronet" of his own.
Though he had wasted many precious materials, and its might could not compare to Zhang Zhiliang's array coronet of a hundred stacked arrays, it was a fine start nonetheless.
It meant Li Fan's mastery of the Dao of arrays had officially stepped through the threshold into proficiency.
The result had not come easily, so Li Fan naturally felt invigorated.
Consequently, he dedicated even more energy to researching array methods during this period.
...
The ocean of knowledge was boundless.
When one's mind was immersed in painstaking research, time always slipped by especially fast.
Before he knew it, Year 25 of Anchoring had arrived.
On this day, Li Fan suddenly felt a tremor in his heart.
Sensing it briefly, he knew the restriction on entering the Fallen Immortal Realm had lifted; he could enter once more to explore.
"I wonder where I will appear upon entering this time?"
Feeling a stir of excitement and anticipation, Li Fan paused all his ongoing work.
Holding his breath and focusing his mind, he set up the ritual.
"Fusheng Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerable!"
With the ritual complete, his consciousness blurred, and Li Fan entered the Fallen Immortal Realm once more.
...
"Junior Brother? Junior Brother?"
The familiar voice rang out again.
Li Fan gave a start, staring dumbfoundedly at Zhang Qianmo, who had appeared before him again, waving a hand.
What was going on?
Why was he still here?
He had clearly defeated him, resolved his obsession, and even obtained the secret technique.
Where had things gone wrong?
Countless doubts instantly surged in Li Fan's mind.
This region of space-time around Ningyuan City should be an existence similar to Tianyang's Eternal Lingering Thought.
Being trapped here, Li Fan would not be able to leave without dispelling the obsession that maintained this space-time.
Yet now...
Forcibly suppressing the disappointment in his heart, Li Fan's thoughts whirled as he analyzed the situation calmly.
For things to turn out like this, there were only a few possibilities.
First, Li Fan's understanding of this space-time region was completely wrong.
For some unknown reason, he was permanently trapped here.
No matter what method he tried, he would never be able to leave.
Second, his understanding was not wrong, but he had not truly resolved Zhang Qianmo's obsession.
Whether it was flying off together with Chi Xia or seeking a single defeat, neither was what he truly desired.
And there was a third possibility...
At this thought, Li Fan narrowed his eyes slightly and looked in every direction.
The one sustaining this space-time was not Senior Brother Zhang's obsession at all.
Zhang Qianmo was merely a brilliant supporting character.
The true protagonist...
was someone else!
Which guess was correct?
Li Fan did not know yet.
Fortunately, he had ample time to eliminate the incorrect options one by one.
When the time came, he would know the right answer.
Crushing the anxious urge for quick success, Li Fan slowly regained his composure.
At this point, Zhang Qianmo, having watched Li Fan's expression shift repeatedly, finally spoke up. "Junior Brother, what has come over you?"
"Could it be you're having a nightmare in broad daylight?"
Li Fan smiled slightly. "Senior Brother has divine foresight. In a daze, I indeed had a nightmare, which is why I was a bit unsettled."
Zhang Qianmo could not help feeling curious. "Oh? What did you dream of?"
"I dreamed that Senior Brother was besieged by a tidal wave of demons and strange beasts. Outnumbered, you exhausted your strength and died in battle." Li Fan shook his head and sighed. "How unlucky. I have no idea why I would dream of such a thing out of nowhere."
Zhang Qianmo's expression shifted, his brows furrowing slightly.
"We cultivators possess clear, unified minds. Unlike mortals, we do not fall into nightmares from stray thoughts."
"For a nightmare to arise so abruptly, could it be that you sensed something in the dark, and your spirit was warning you?"
Zhang Qianmo stroked his chin thoughtfully.
Li Fan was somewhat speechless inwardly.
He had not expected Zhang Qianmo to make such a leap from a casual remark.
Still, he had hit the mark by accident—Ningyuan City ahead indeed held a little "danger."
Taking his cue, Li Fan went along with it and said, "Could it be that our journey to collect the Longevity Fruit will face complications and won't go smoothly?"
Zhang Qianmo paused, but did not immediately refute the idea.
After considering it, he said, "Your concern isn't unwarranted, Junior Brother."
"When Master and Martial Uncle were chatting, they mentioned that the cultivation world hasn't been very peaceful lately."
"To be safe, why don't we sneak into Ningyuan City in secret first to investigate?"
"Let's see if there's anything strange in the city."
Li Fan had no objection and nodded in agreement.
Right then, the two put away their Purple Cloud Flying Cloud, reined in their auras, concealed their figures, and flew stealthily toward Ningyuan City.
"Senior Brother, I wonder what your greatest wish in life is?"
Mid-flight, Li Fan suddenly asked.
"Hmm? Why do you ask such a thing, Junior Brother?" Zhang Qianmo was surprised.
"Haha, please don't take offense, Senior Brother. In that dream just now, I saw you meet a tragic end, your eyes staring fixedly at me as though you harbored an unresolved regret."
"That look in your eyes felt so real that even after waking, I cannot put it out of my mind for long. My mind was unsettled, so I couldn't help asking."
Li Fan spoke slowly.
Chapter 272