When one's power reached the Longevity realm—even if it was merely a pseudo-Longevity trapped in a single corner of the Xuanhuang Realm—it was beyond anything ordinary cultivators could fathom.
Just like the realistic illusion, resembling a dating sim, that Senior Sister Zhao had crafted during the guiding process.
What actual purpose did it serve for her?
Li Fan believed that with her strength, she could easily devour and assimilate other cultivators even without relying on the bewitchment of illusions.
Yet she had chosen not to do that.
Instead, she had insisted on playing a game with Li Fan that spanned several centuries.
Could it be that she was truly bored out of her mind?
While he could not rule out that possibility, Li Fan preferred to believe that some secret was hidden beneath it all.
An "ant" spying upon a Longevity Heavenly Venerable might believe they had concealed themselves well enough to avoid detection.
In reality, perhaps nothing escaped their eyes. The moment a gaze fell upon them, they became aware.
Just like Senior Sister Zhao's final reminder—or rather, her warning.
Li Fan was no exception, and Master Yin, who sought to uncover the secrets of the immortal-mortal miasma, was likely in the same situation.
With a stir of his mind, Li Fan activated Formless Killing Intent, and his gaze instantly settled upon Yinyin Island.
After observing carefully for a while, he saw that Master Yin was still conducting experiments on mortals just as usual.
"All these years have passed, yet the lethality of the immortal-mortal miasma doesn't seem to have diminished in the slightest. Only its transmissibility has weakened considerably compared to the original version..." Looking at the mortal test subjects wailing in agony, Li Fan recalled what he had witnessed in Senior Sister Zhao's illusion, comparing the two and pondering privately.
Master Yin was utterly engrossed, his expression focused. The mortals' tragic wails failed to affect him in the slightest—as though what perished before him were not lives, but mere consumables.
Li Fan watched for a while and found it dull.
*It seems it will take some time before he actually figures anything out.* Thinking this, he withdrew his gaze.
His thoughts returned to the construction of Congyun Immortal City.
Most of the six-month deadline had already passed.
The overall foundation and structure of the immortal city were largely complete. Next came the construction of many crucial facilities, such as the Statue of the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable and the ultra-long-distance teleportation array.
With cultivators dispatched from the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals headquarters assisting with this, there was no need to worry excessively.
However, as the project dragged on, material shortages inevitably began to surface.
After all, the materials Li Fan had received back then were only enough to build a floating city on the condition that not a single mistake occurred.
It was thanks to the coordination of He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan that the deficit had not been exposed on the spot.
And Zhou Kebao, the one making trouble from the shadows, was surprisingly patient.
After all this time, he had never once reached out proactively to probe for information.
*It seems I can't pin my hopes entirely on him coming to my door; I need to find a way to solve this myself.*
*Ordinary materials can be acquired through Jiao Xiuyuan's channels using contribution points.*
*Those strategic materials, however, cannot be obtained through normal means. But then again...*
Li Fan smiled faintly and took control of Zhou Qing'ang, the current Chief Director of Congyun Immortal City Reconstruction.
In the reconstruction work, every cultivator fulfilled their own duties. Although Zhou Qing'ang was nominally the Chief Director, he was not actually that busy.
When no one was around, "Zhou Qing'ang" quietly slipped away from Congyun City.
To ensure no one was tailing him, he lurked in the deep sea for three days and three nights.
Only after confirming it was completely safe did he establish contact with the Five Elders Association.
The glowing severed stone flickered, and after a moment, a hazy figure appeared upon it.
"Hm? Why did you initiate contact all of a sudden? Has something happened?" Perhaps because Zhou Qing'ang had rendered outstanding service again and again, the face's attitude was far better than before.
Even though "Zhou Qing'ang" had broken protocol by initiating contact again, the face showed no anger.
Instead, he asked with genuine concern.
"Haha, rest assured, Boss! Not only is it not trouble, it's a massive opportunity!" Zhou Qing'ang said excitedly.
"Oh?" The face sounded much calmer.
"Boss, you probably know that by riding the coattails of Fellow Daoist He Zhenghao, I was made the Chief Director of Congyun City's reconstruction," Zhou Qing'ang lowered his voice.
"And recently, we ran into a bit of trouble..."
Zhou Qing'ang then gave a brief overview of how someone within the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals wanted to frame Li Fan, deliberately holding back materials to corner him.
The face on the severed stone frowned repeatedly as he listened.
"That was the absolute last straw. What kind of person is Master Li? How could he endure such indignation?
"In private, he told us that he would rather defect to the Five Elders Association than yield to those people."
Before Zhou Qing'ang could finish speaking, the face on the severed stone interjected with inexplicable delight: "Oh? Does that mean Li Fan intends to surrender to us?"
Soon, however, suspicion took hold again: "Could this be another trap he orchestrated with the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals to lure us in?"
Zhou Qing'ang immediately appeared somewhat awkward. "Ahem... Boss, that was obviously just him venting in anger..."
"Er..." The face immediately went silent.
Zhou Qing'ang hurriedly added an explanation. "While defection isn't very likely, our opportunity is as real as it gets.
"He signed a military pledge in front of Diyi Jinglun. If he can't finish construction on time, it'll cost him his head! Li Fan's been practically driven mad with worry over the missing materials lately."
"You mean..." The face understood at once.
"A trade?"
Zhou Qing'ang nodded repeatedly and pressed both palms against the severed stone, transmitting a list of materials across.
"Exactly! Boss, take a look at these. Can we get our hands on them?" he asked.
Silence fell for a moment.
Soon after, the face spoke slowly: "Shouldn't be a big problem."
"Then that makes things easy! Haven't higher-ups been pressing us to dig up confidential information about the immortal city's defensive array? If we use these materials as bargaining chips, let alone the defensive array, we could get our hands on the blueprints for the entire immortal city!" Zhou Qing'ang said with utter confidence.
The face on the severed stone remained silent, but was clearly tempted.
"The priority of array diagrams has been lowered by two grades now. Using this opportunity to trade for them wouldn't be very worthwhile..." After a moment, the face instructed. "If possible, it would be best to find out from Li Fan what happened on the day of the Wanxian Island Anomaly.
"And if you can get him to record the scene from back then with an image-recording stone, that would be even better."
"Zhou Qing'ang's" expression stirred slightly as he probed with curiosity: "Boss, uprooting the entire Wanxian Island and hauling it away—that was our doing, right?
"It was terrifying! My only regret is that I wasn't on the island back then, or I could've seized the chance to go straight home!
"By the way, going to such great lengths, what on earth were we looking for?"
The face gave a cold snort. "Don't pry into things you shouldn't.
"Just do your duty and keep your nose clean."
Chapter 527