Master of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals

Four years ago, back in Anchored Year 24. When Zhang Zhiliang gave instructions regarding the formation training in Tianyu Province, he had mentioned that the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals planned to bring every inch of its territory under the coverage of the Heavenly Profound Spirit-Locking Formation within thirty years. In other words, as early as then, the upper echelons of the Alliance had already faintly sensed the impending upheaval between heaven and earth? Judging from his few encounters with the supreme powerhouses of this world, Li Fan did not find this far-fetched. "The duck knows first when spring waters warm. Supreme figures at Dao Integration and even the Longevity realm already possess the strength to contend with heaven and earth. It is only natural they would sense changes in the world early on. "The policy has been laid down, but not everyone grasps the deep meaning behind it. "They still think this is just a routine infrastructure assignment. That is why Guan Xingxiu and the others could treat Tantai Tao and his people as disposable pawns in their scheming for the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Garrison Court. "However, they clearly underestimated the importance of deploying the Heavenly Profound Spirit-Locking Formation. "And so disaster struck them. Commanders of the Garrison Court across the four heartland provinces—Tianyu, Tianchen, Tianshu, and Tianquan—can hardly be considered low-ranking. Yet even they were ignorant of the true meaning behind the policy. "Then who, exactly, makes policy in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals?" Of the Alliance departments Li Fan currently knew—the Administration Hall, Martial Practice Hall, Formation Planning Hall, Heavenly Secret Hall, Garrison Court, and so forth—each performed its respective duties. All of them were merely the concrete executors of policy. As for the mysterious, aloof Protector Hall, its sole responsibility was preserving the integrity of cultivation methods. Who represented the true will of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals? Who decided the fates of countless cultivators in a single thought? The Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable? Li Fan had combed through countless confidential records and knew that, in both the Alliance and the Five Elders Association, it was an accepted fact that the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable's whereabouts were elusive, having long ceased involving himself in mundane affairs. This was not a taboo subject; anyone could discover it with a quick inquiry. Did the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals possess another Longevity Heavenly Venerable besides the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable, then? If it were someone merely at the Dao Integration realm, how could they command universal submission? Li Fan then thought of the enigmatic Heavenly Physician. His strength was above Dao Integration. Yet he seemed to wander outside the Alliance's hierarchy. Otherwise, why would he issue a mission bounty for the Cloud Water Chart and Talismans? Wouldn't issuing a direct decree have been far simpler? "Beyond the public eye, an unseen group exists. They are the true masters of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals. "Or perhaps..." Li Fan frowned slightly, an absurd thought suddenly surfacing in his mind. He had always subconsciously viewed the Heavenly Profound Mirror as merely an exceptionally powerful spirit treasure. Even though it possessed its own sentience, it was still just an object. An object made to serve the cultivators of the Alliance. This was the consensus of almost every cultivator in the Alliance. But... What if the true leader of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals was none other than the Heavenly Profound Mirror itself? The moment the thought appeared, even Li Fan startled himself. Yet thinking carefully, it was not outside the realm of possibility. At the Heavenly Profound Mirror's level, the boundary between object and person was already blurred. Li Fan was certain that creating a physical body to move about would be no trouble at all for the Heavenly Profound Mirror. And back during the Spirit Mist Grass turmoil, just as the situation was about to spiral out of control... The Heavenly Profound Mirror had sounded an announcement right on time, quelling the storm with a single command. Perhaps that had not been an order from some other cultivator, but a decision it made on its own. "The Heavenly Profound Mirror..." Thinking of this, Li Fan, currently cultivating within the Heavenly Profound Mirror's space, felt an unsettling chill. Even this spacious private chamber suddenly seemed dimly lit and suffocatingly cramped. Shaking his head, he suppressed the idea. Glancing around the Heavenly Profound Mirror's space, Li Fan's eyes flickered. "Even if my suspicion is true, as long as I show no obvious abnormalities, the Heavenly Profound Mirror might not pay me any attention. "After all, there are far too many cultivators in the Alliance, and I am merely an insignificant Golden Core cultivator. "Then again, I might just be scaring myself." Taking a deep breath, he forcefully quelled the conjecture. "Whatever the truth, now that anomalies have returned between heaven and earth and cultivating has grown much easier, it benefits me in the short term. "I should seize this opportunity to push straight into the mid Golden Core stage in one go." The Xuanhuang Heart-Refining Incantation turned slowly, grinding away all stray thoughts. Li Fan regained his calm and immersed himself in cultivation. Over the remaining months of Anchored Year 28, not only did Li Fan's personal cultivation advance at breakneck speed, but the influx of feedback cultivation never ceased, indicating that the others were advancing rapidly as well. Even the boy in the Li Realm, Han Wuyou, had stepped into the Qi Condensation stage, sending over assistance like a trickling brook. With so many factors working in his favor, Li Fan successfully reached the peak of early Golden Core by the end of Year 28. And just as other cultivators had said, the bottlenecks that once stood between every cultivation stage, bedeviling their progress, had become as flimsy as paper, shattering at the gentlest poke. Spiritual momentum surged through him. Li Fan successfully broke through into mid Golden Core. "Now that the breakthrough is done, I can proceed with creating an avatar." This avatar would still serve as a decoy. Li Fan even planned to send the avatar into Yuandao Province in Anchored Year 29 to investigate, seeing what had truly happened during those missing ten years, and discovering what it felt like to be inside and outside Yuandao Province simultaneously. Since it was destined to be cannon fodder, there was naturally no need to expend too much effort. Li Fan left Tianyu City once more, picked a random direction, and flew for a dozen days until he found a secluded, remote spot. Just like before, he excavated a secret chamber and sealed the passage behind him. "There won't be such a huge commotion this time. Surely I won't be unlucky enough to get discovered again," Li Fan mumbled under his breath, then began refining the avatar. Supreme Bone, Celestial Spirit Milk, Bone-Shattering Treasure Sinew, Heavenly Crystal Spirit Sand... Practiced, he added the materials one by one into the simulated flesh. He then added a medium-grade wonder of Man, the Raging Flutterfly, as the required item for Foundation Establishment. After that, he tossed in a Golden Core Fragment inscribed with insights on forming a core through water methods. The Raging Flutterfly had been purchased earlier at Wanfa Pavilion in Jiushan Province, originally meant for the Immortal Restoration members. The buyer, Lin Fan, had already vanished from the world along with the Congyun Sea. There was no fear of anyone tracing it. As for that Golden Core Fragment... Cultivators who formed cores via water methods were innumerable; tracing it was completely out of the question. With all preparations complete, Li Fan focused his mind and began condensing the avatar. Seven days later. "Sever!" Using his finger as a sword, Li Fan severed the avatar's fate from the surrounding environment. Faint wisps of vitality emerged from the avatar. A brand-new avatar, possessing the strength of early Golden Core, was thus born. "Your name will be Xiao Fan!" Dressing it in clothes, Li Fan looked over the avatar several times, nodding in satisfaction.