Li Fan Takes His Place

True Reversion possessed myriad merits, but its sole flaw was that with each simulation, one could only preserve a single item. Cultivation and treasures could not both be retained, which at times put Li Fan in quite a dilemma. The advent of this bound item replacement function, however, resolved a major headache for him. Still, anchors were hard to come by. To this day, he had yet to find a method to replenish their recharge progress. Therefore, whether or not to replace an item required meticulous deliberation. "However, as for how to establish new anchors, I already have a few ideas." "I only need an opportunity to verify them in person." With Shang Tianci working diligently, the Spirit Wood Realm, whose scenery had been somewhat monotonous, gradually began to display a multitude of wondrous vistas. And with many Xuanhuang wonders that never should have existed here, coupled with the majestic spirit tree presiding over the realm, the entire world seemed to be undergoing a curious transformation. Having refined the Heart of the Spirit Wood, Li Fan was exceptionally sensitive to this. "This is essentially plundering resources from outside the realm to nourish the world itself." "Originally, the ceiling of the Spirit Wood Realm was set in stone. But with an endless supply of external replenishment, perhaps it can undergo what is known as an [Ascension]." Li Fan focused intently, sensing within himself whether any feedback cultivation corresponding to the Spirit Wood Realm was being produced. Regrettably, after discerning for a long time, he still found nothing. It was possible that this realm had yet to complete a true metamorphosis, or perhaps the concept of a "world" lay outside the operative scope of the Immortal-Sitting Art. Cultivation feedback from another source, however, was incomparably distinct. Upon closer inspection, Li Fan could faintly discern the figures of Su Yuqing and the others from the Li Realm. "In the spiritless environment of the Li Realm, within an artificially created cultivation zone, they can still successfully step into the Qi Condensation stage this quickly..." "Not bad." Li Fan nodded to himself. "It seems I need to pick up my pace as well." After leaving behind a few instructions, Li Fan did not bring Tianyang along, returning alone to the Congyun Sea. Compared to the tense, sword-drawn atmosphere in the mainland provinces, the Congyun Sea had changed very little. The dark clouds of war had not yet spread here, and from time to time, cultivators could still be seen hurrying back and forth between the various islands. Concealing his presence, Li Fan quietly flew toward the west-central waters of the Congyun Sea, nearing an island named Haixuan. Gazing from afar, he saw a magnificent grand formation shrouding the island. It faintly emanated a lethal aura that warned strangers to stay away. "The Primordial Eight Extremes Dragon Slaying Formation. Supposedly, it was crafted by two Soul Formation formation masters hired at great expense. Any cultivator below Dao Integration who strays into it will end up dead or crippled." Li Fan's eyes flickered. Within his sea of consciousness, the End Dissociation Disc emitted a shimmering white light, and in an instant, it completely unraveled the seemingly impregnable formation before him. Transforming into a barely perceptible black line, Li Fan flew into the formation without triggering the slightest trace of a retaliatory response. "Senior Ji, come on..." From Haixuan Island faintly came the coquettish moans and teasing laughter of several women. "Such fragrant wine! And such fragrant beauties!" Along with the wanton, self-indulgent laughter of a middle-aged man. Li Fan quietly hovered in the air above the island's cave dwelling and looked down. The master of Haixuan Island, a Golden Core cultivator named Ji Shaoli, sat with his arms wrapped around identical twin female cultivators. He was watching seven charming, exquisitely proportioned women below swaying their lithe, voluptuous figures. Even by Grand Preceptor Li's standards, the looks of the nine female cultivators in the cave dwelling were well above average. "Ji Shaoli, the biggest winner in the history of fish picking in the Congyun Sea, a lucky man envied by countless cultivators." "Back when he was only at Foundation Establishment, he was already worth five million." "A pity that he indulged in pleasure ever since, stalling at the Golden Core realm." ... Information regarding the man flashed through Li Fan's mind in an instant. "To indulge himself, he even constructed a massive harem on this island. Whenever he had leisure, he would select fine-looking women from among mortals, train them in cultivation, and then savor them to his heart's content." "To prevent outsiders from prying and to preserve his own life, he even hired Soul Formation formation masters to arrange this Primordial Eight Extremes Dragon Slaying Formation on the island." "He certainly knows how to enjoy life." "A pity that once Crimson Flame descends upon the world, he will ultimately be unable to escape death." Li Fan shook his head slightly. Hidden above, he watched and waited until the passionate revelry concluded and Ji Shaoli, clutching the delicate bodies of the female cultivators, fell into a deep slumber. Only then did Li Fan descend beside him like a ghost. Activating the Insect Binding divine ability, he brought Ji Shaoli under control while simultaneously enveloping the gathered female cultivators with the Cloud Water Illusory Dream Technique. When they awoke, they would merely believe they had fallen out of Ji Shaoli's favor and been banished from the island. As for Ji Shaoli... Li Fan decided to replace him with an avatar! In this life, since he intended to sit atop the mountain and watch the tigers fight, joining the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals was not strictly necessary. However, without the Heavenly Profound Mirror, searching for information or trading goods would be extremely inconvenient. Thus, after pondering the matter, Li Fan arrived at this solution. There were many reasons for choosing Ji Shaoli. The man was already exceptionally wealthy, certainly qualifying as a local tycoon in the Congyun Sea. This spared Li Fan the trouble of initial capital accumulation. Furthermore, Haixuan Island had originally been one of the Congyun Sea's many garrison islands. Later, however, the surrounding native specialties went extinct, leaving it without garrison value, so it fell into disuse. After buying the island, Ji Shaoli renovated it completely. Now, the island was equipped with every essential facility: a teleportation formation leading to Wanxian Island, a Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror, and more were all ready. Taking over this island would save a great deal of effort. "Previously, I was concerned that the Heavenly Profound Mirror would monitor my surroundings and expose my secrets, so I was always very cautious and rarely carried one with me." "Now, however, with the End Dissociation Disc protecting me, there is no need to worry about such things." ... After using the Purple Empyrean Soul Observation Technique to fully master every secret in Ji Shaoli's mind, Li Fan extracted some of the man's essence blood and, using the Wondrous Profound True Spirit Transformation, refined an avatar completely identical to him. Then he fashioned a stone coffin. Just as he had done with Zhou Qing'ang in his 115th life, he sealed Ji Shaoli inside. Li Fan even charitably cast the Cloud Water Illusory Dream Technique on him, leaving him perpetually immersed in a blissful dream of wanton pleasure. Three days later, the female cultivators took a few spirit stones and departed dejectedly. Meanwhile, Ji Shaoli had already been suppressed by Li Fan in the depths of the Congyun Sea. Haixuan Island quietly changed masters without a sound. "Without the Dissociation Disc to breach the formation and blind the Heavenly Profound Mirror, and without the Wondrous Profound True Spirit Transformation to pull off such a substitution..." "Even if someone managed to take the island by force, they could never claim his original wealth for themselves as effortlessly as this." The avatar Ji Shaoli checked his current balance of contribution points. 6,780,000. Remarkably, it was substantially higher than the fortune he had struck when winning the grand prize back then. "Mm, looking at the transaction records, this Ji Shaoli could be considered somewhat capable." "He knew how to use wealth to generate more wealth, rather than merely sitting by and eating through his fortune until it ran dry." "Compared to Daoist He, he is far superior."