"Unlike ordinary mortals like us, his Excellency surely harbors far greater ambitions."
"These Alliance official posts we covet so greedily might not even be worth a glance in his eyes."
"Though he conceals it exceedingly well, anyone truly obsessed with power can spot the difference at once."
Gao Yuan spoke slowly in a somber, lingering tone.
Hearing this, He Zhenghao's expression turned solemn, and he nodded in agreement.
"As far as I know, the Secret Emissary was actually forced into accepting the position of Acting Island Master of Wanxian Island. Being ordered to rebuild the immortal city was really a matter of driving a duck onto a perch—something he had no choice in," Gao Yuan suddenly revealed.
He Zhenghao was thoroughly astonished, his eyes gleaming with intrigue. "Such a thing happened?"
Gao Yuan nodded. "Though I don't know what kind of scheme lay behind it, the fortunate thing is that the Secret Emissary ultimately completed the mission."
"In doing so, he also changed the destinies of many among us."
"Now, although he serves as Secret Script Emissary, overseeing the governmental affairs of an entire province in the Congyun Sea, I suspect he has no interest whatsoever in personally managing matters one by one."
"And in my view, given his Excellency's heaven-sent genius, squandering time on these mundane trifles would truly be a waste."
"His Excellency belongs on a grander stage. As for these petty matters, it's only natural for subordinates to handle them."
"What his Excellency needs are people who can keep everything in immaculate order while he is away, without requiring him to worry over it."
Gao Yuan laid out his analysis bit by bit.
"The two tasks he assigned to us this time are precisely such a test."
"And that Divided Spirit Jade Slip is a trap."
"The moment we fail to keep the situation under control, to the point where we need to ask the Secret Emissary for instructions..."
"Our posts might not change, but in his mind, we will be forever branded as incompetent."
Gao Yuan's voice was grave.
He Zhenghao shivered in fright. "Surely it won't go that far?"
Gao Yuan gave a cold snort. "Fellow Daoist, have you ever noticed the look in his eyes when he watches us?"
"The look in his eyes? What of it?" He Zhenghao asked in confusion, hurriedly seeking clarification.
"On the surface, his Excellency appears gentle and approachable, at times even courteous to the worthy and humble to his subordinates. But in truth..."
A flicker of dread passed through Gao Yuan's eyes.
"Deep within his gaze, whenever he looks at any of us, it is always the same."
"It is just like how we cultivators look at mortal ants..."
"No, that's not quite it..." Gao Yuan shook his head, brow furrowed as if searching for the right words.
After a moment, he suddenly pointed at the tables and chairs in the Deliberation Hall and said in a heavy voice, "That's it. In his eyes, every one of us is just like these things—mere tools, nothing more."
"It feels as though we don't even belong to the same level of existence. To him, all of us are probably just simple instruments..."
"Back when I was still standing guard at the gates of the Administration Hall, I had the honor of catching a glimpse of a Dao Integration cultivator. Yet even that Dao Integration Immortal Venerable did not look upon me with a gaze as utterly detached as his Excellency's..."
"Rumor has it that his Excellency is an ancient cultivator from the Heavenly Mechanism Sect who remained in slumber until the present age for reasons unknown, which caused his cultivation to plummet to the Golden Core realm."
"Earlier, there were also rumors that while at the Golden Core realm, he slew several Nascent Soul cultivators who had joined forces."
"Then, during his ancient prime, what cultivation realm did his Excellency truly hold?"
Gao Yuan's voice grew fainter and fainter, a thread of terror flashing in his eyes.
He Zhenghao could not help shivering as well.
The implication in Gao Yuan's words was already glaringly obvious.
He suspected that back in ancient times, Li Fan had actually been a cultivator of the Longevity realm.
For it was common knowledge that once one stepped into the Longevity realm, one attained true transcendence.
The very essence of life underwent a metamorphosis. Compared to cultivators of the Dao Integration, Soul Formation, and Nascent Soul realms, they were simply not beings on the same plane of existence.
To view all living beings under heaven with such total detachment and absolute impartiality was something perhaps only an expert of the Longevity realm could achieve.
Once they accepted this premise and combined it with Li Fan's past astonishing, earth-shaking deeds...
Everything suddenly made complete sense.
There were countless cultivators in the world skilled in the art of deduction, yet never had anyone heard of someone like Li Fan, who could wield it with such effortless ease to amass wealth and double his fortunes at will.
If the art of deduction were truly that miraculous, wouldn't all the cultivators under heaven scramble and fight to learn it?
That the art of deduction had remained lukewarm for thousands of years naturally had its reasons.
With cultivators' greedy nature of plundering heaven and seizing earth, how could they possibly pass up an advantage if there was one to take?
Only a Longevity Heavenly Venerable—one who had cultivated the art of deduction to the absolute pinnacle—could peer through the future so effortlessly.
According to whispers circulating in the shadows of the Congyun Sea, the sudden lockdown of Wanxian Island back then, followed by the Five Elders Association's surprise assault to seize the entire island, had all been due to a certain prophecy.
And while everyone claimed that this prophecy had been deduced by the illustrious Gongsun Qixuan, there were also private rumors that Gongsun Qixuan had actually been influenced by Li Fan's art of deduction.
Furthermore, if Li Fan had once been a Longevity Heavenly Venerable, then slaying Nascent Souls with a Golden Core cultivation and using a Soul Formation puppet as a mount...
None of that was anything surprising.
If he couldn't even manage that much, how could he be called a Longevity Heavenly Venerable?
...
Inside the Deliberation Hall of the Administration Hall, absolute silence descended for a time.
A peculiar atmosphere brewed between He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan.
The more they thought about it, the more reasonable and well-founded the conjecture felt.
Consequently, their bodies began to tremble uncontrollably.
First was the instinctual fear one held toward an expert of the Longevity realm.
Second was because...
To be regarded as a trusted confidant by a Longevity Heavenly Venerable...
Even if only temporarily, even if only on the surface...
It was still a matter of supreme honor.
Emotions surging within them, their thoughts drifted far and wide, unable to settle for a long time.
In the end, it was He Zhenghao who broke the silence.
Clearing his throat, he whispered, "Brother Gao, this matter is entirely your speculation."
"It would be best not to speak of it lightly to outsiders."
"It is enough that only you and I know."
Gao Yuan looked at He Zhenghao and nodded slightly. "Naturally, I know what to do."
The two exchanged a smile, everything understood without words.
There was an unspoken subtext neither of them voiced.
If Li Fan truly was a Longevity Heavenly Venerable, then serving him now meant that once his injuries fully healed and his cultivation was restored...
When that time came, their stage would no longer be limited to this tiny, remote corner that was the Congyun Sea.
He Zhenghao even recalled his former wife, and the flames of ambition that had long been extinguished in his eyes faintly flared to life once more.
-----
Deep within the Administration Hall.
Li Fan withdrew his attention and conjured a water mirror.
Stroking his chin, he studied his reflection in the mirror.
"A gaze that looks upon all things with detachment, is it..."
He stared blankly into his own eyes.
Chapter 544