"I merely took advantage of the situation. Brother Shuo, your Foundation Establishment wonder, [Sword], is not built for proactive strikes, but its defensive counterattacks are second to none. However, this Silk Pulling technique mimics birth, old age, sickness, and death—the natural transformations of living beings. Rather than an attack, it is more like imposing an altered state. That is why it did not trigger [Sword]'s retaliation." Having won the spar, Li Fan displayed no arrogance, actively offering an explanation to Shuo Feng instead.
Back when he was inside the Root of Heaven and Earth that nurtured the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens, Li Fan had undergone an experience where his body, woven like fine threads, was continuously drawn out and unraveled.
He had gleaned a faint enlightenment back then.
Yet he had still been quite far from wielding it as a divine ability in the material world. It was not until now—after taking command of the Beast Seed Realm's heavenly fortune and during his breakthrough to the mid-Nascent Soul stage—that Li Fan had become an existence akin to a pocket world's Heavenly Dao.
The life and death of all things in the world lay within a single thought.
Li Fan had attained a brand-new, singular comprehension of how things were constituted and dismantled.
Thus, this divine ability of Silk Pulling had been born.
Just as he had told Shuo Feng, strictly speaking, Silk Pulling was not an offensive divine ability. Rather, it applied a tendency toward accelerated decay to the target. This was an internal transformation of the target itself.
Just as mortals experienced birth, aging, sickness, and death, everything in the world would ultimately reach an end and dissipate into heaven and earth. Silk Pulling simply sped up this process.
During his duel with Shuo Feng, what Silk Pulling displayed had been the result of Li Fan's full exertion. Its might was undeniably terrifying, but in truth, it harbored a fatal weakness: casting Silk Pulling required continuous channeling. The moment it was disturbed or interrupted by outside forces, its efficacy would diminish drastically.
It was only remarkably effective against an eccentric like Shuo Feng, whose art was anchored entirely in defensive counterattacks.
Therefore, the optimal use of Silk Pulling was not the swift, explosive display seen in his match against Shuo Feng. Instead, it was meant to be used from the shadows, like a gentle rain moistening the world in silence—slowly and steadily drawing out the target's "threads" without them ever realizing it.
Over an extended timeframe, the victim would not bear obvious physical wounds like Shuo Feng had.
Instead, they would feel an inexplicable weakness and malaise overtake their entire body. Yet they would never uncover the cause, left only to watch helplessly as their vitality, spirit, and mind withered away until they met a painful demise.
The saying "life ebbs like silk drawn from a cocoon" described precisely this.
It was truly an unparalleled method for striking from the shadows, superior even to Formless Killing Intent by several degrees. Li Fan had always made a habit of holding back a trump card, so during his clash with Shuo Feng, he had naturally concealed the true lethal nature of Silk Pulling.
"Brother Li, you praised me earlier as a heaven-sent genius, but in my eyes, your comprehension surpasses mine by quite a margin. This move, Silk Pulling, is simply marvelous!" After being defeated by Li Fan, Shuo Feng showed no anger; if anything, his demeanor grew noticeably warmer.
The cold killing intent that had flared for an instant earlier seemed as though it had never existed.
"Brother Shuo flatters me. I merely chanced upon it during my travels across the realm," Li Fan said with a faint smile.
"Brother Li, there is no need for modesty! Countless people in the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals claim to be chosen prodigies, but those who can independently comprehend such a divine ability like you are few and far between!" Shuo Feng patted his clothes. In an instant, a flash of white light flared, and his attire was replaced with a fresh set.
Leading the way, Shuo Feng guided Li Fan to a small pavilion atop the peak and gestured for him to take a seat.
The woman in the yellow dress stepped away for a moment before returning with a bowl of spiritual tea for each of them.
The fragrance of the tea wafted through the air, instantly invigorating the spirit.
Shuo Feng said, "For the time being, I have yet to think of a way to counter Brother Li's divine ability. Once inspiration strikes me in the future, I will certainly seek your guidance once more!"
Li Fan nodded slightly. "Then I shall look forward to it."
Shuo Feng burst into hearty laughter. "Splendid! Brother Li's temperament truly suits my taste! Far better than those spineless, obsequious sycophants who possess no real skill!"
Li Fan did not directly follow up on the praise, shifting the topic instead. "Speaking of currying favor, I actually have another matter I would like to trouble Brother Shuo with."
"Oh? What is it? Speak freely."
Li Fan then conveyed his desire to raise his merit rank.
"My authorization rank is insufficient, which is truly vexing. Facing restrictions at every turn is terribly uncomfortable!" Li Fan sighed.
Upon hearing this, Shuo Feng replied dismissively, "Hmph, it is nothing more than a threshold the Alliance deliberately established to consolidate its rule. For those who truly hold power, who among them needs to climb step by step to raise their authorization rank?"
"Still, since Brother Li has this need, it is easily handled. Zhijin..."
The woman in the yellow dress immediately answered.
"Are there any vacant guest elder positions available recently?" Shuo Feng asked.
"There are still three vacancies this year. However..." Zhijin glanced at Li Fan, hesitating.
"His cultivation does not meet the requirements, right?" Shuo Feng chuckled dryly. "No matter. Special cases call for special measures. Just say he was designated by me. Go and inform them."
Zhijin nodded faintly. Her figure blurred, and she vanished from the spot in an instant.
Only then did Shuo Feng explain, "Serving as a guest elder of my household grants a base authorization of Yan Thirty. There is also a fixed distribution of merits each year."
Upon hearing this, Li Fan did not show any delight. Instead, he frowned slightly. "Thank you, Brother Shuo. However, I have grown accustomed to an idle and unrestrained life. If..."
Shuo Feng waved his hand. "Do not worry. You will not be required to do anything; it is merely an honorary title. You and I share a kindred spirit—are we the sort of men who would willingly accept constraints?"
"That being said..."
Shuo Feng looked at Li Fan, a spark of battle intent flashing in his eyes. "If my hands itch for a spar someday and I seek you out, you cannot deliberately decline!"
Li Fan breathed a sigh of relief and cupped his hands at once. "Then I shall offer my thanks to Brother Shuo in advance!"
Shuo Feng truly lived up to his status as a top-tier second-generation immortal within the Alliance; his efficiency was extraordinary.
Before the spiritual tea on the table was even finished, Zhijin had already returned.
She handed Li Fan a snowflake-like jade talisman made of ice crystal, signifying that his appointment as guest elder had been officially registered.
"Brother Li, you can check the results." Shuo Feng tapped the tabletop with his index finger, and a Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror appeared before Li Fan.
When Li Fan checked his information in the Heavenly Profound Mirror, he indeed found that he had acquired the title of "Guest Elder of the Xuan Clan."
His authorization rank had directly increased to Yan Thirty, just as Shuo Feng had said.
However, there was an accompanying note stating that this authorization rank was tied to the position of guest elder. Should he lose the title, the authorization rank would vanish along with it.
Meanwhile, the merits he personally earned would accumulate from Yan One onward.
The two did not interfere with each other.
This was within Li Fan's expectations, but what caught his attention even more were the words "Xuan Clan."
"The Xuan Clan?" Li Fan glanced at Shuo Feng with a hint of perplexity.
Shuo Feng did not avoid the subject, speaking openly, "My mother's surname is Xuan. As for my name..."
He shrugged, wearing an expression that said, "I'm not quite sure myself either."
Li Fan nodded, pressing no further.
Chapter 677