"Indeed, I misjudged before."
"I originally thought that the things in this fishing pond had been placed inside a thousand years ago when it was first forged."
"But the item I fished out last ti was not from that era at all."
"It only appeared within the last five hundred years."
The Stone Tablet Fisherman opened his palm, revealing a curved black jade piece resembling a horn.
"This is..." Li Fan couldn't recognize it.
"The Conquering Heaven Horn—an invention of the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance. Blowing it briefly invokes the power of the Heavenly Dao within a Prefecture," the Stone Tablet Fisherman explained concisely.
"The Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance?" Li Fan was montarily stunned, then his expression shifted slightly.
Turning his gaze toward the fishing pond, countless thoughts surged through his mind.
"You understand now? The objects within this fishing pond are not unchanging. Instead, they are replenished with new items, not just from Xuanhuang but even from other cultivation worlds."
"As we fish in the starry skies, it is also fishing across the myriad realms..."
The Stone Tablet Fisherman’s words confird Li Fan’s suspicions.
A tidal wave of realization struck his mind, leaving him unable to calm down for a long ti.
Even though he had personally experienced the fishing pond’s mysteries, he never imagined he still didn’t fully grasp its nature.
"So this is the power of an Immortal Artifact."
"It not only contains countless treasures but also never runs out."
This was what Li Fan thought.
However, the Stone Tablet Fisherman was focused on sothing else.
His usually calm tone carried a rare hint of excitent. "This is the true Dao of Fishing."
"This Immortal Artifact is not simple."
"If I can master it, perhaps I won’t even need to rely on it anymore. I could fish across the myriad realms on my own and find whatever I seek." His voice carried a trace of eagerness.
Li Fan fell silent.
Only now did he fully realize—
For a mystical object like the Genesis Stone Tablet, how could it possibly attach itself to soone ordinary?
With this new discovery, the Stone Tablet Fisherman stopped fishing.
At the sa ti, he transford.
No longer appearing as an old fisherman, he now looked like a newborn baby.
He slept soundly by the pondside with his eyes closed.
Days passed, yet he showed no signs of waking.
Li Fan shook his head and withdrew.
"Even with the senior’s level of comprehension, understanding the Dao of Fishing won’t be a quick matter."
"And yet, he’s hogging the fishing pond, and no one dares to disturb him."
Li Fan felt helpless.
He had no choice but to instruct Lin Ling to stay and keep watch, informing him at the first sign of movent.
Li Fan then returned alone to the Spiritwood Realm.
At that mont, he received a ssage from the Five Elders Association.
"Even the Five Elders Association’s contact was a fake."
"That Stone Tablet Senior really gets into character," Li Fan mused, recalling the other party’s tone and expressions, shaking his head in amusent.
"This must be one of his little amusents. Fortunately, he has a good temperant—at least he didn’t kill outright over so minor disagreent."
During these past few days with the Stone Tablet Senior, aside from learning so ancient secrets—
The most important thing was finally understanding the core conflict between the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance and the Five Elders Association in the Xuanhuang Realm.
Li Fan recalled the senior’s words:
"The Xuanhuang Realm is like a ship—one that is about to sink."
"The Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance and the Five Elders Association are fighting over who gets to take the helm."
"Both sides are absolutely convinced that they can prevent the Xuanhuang Realm from sinking, but only if one of them holds the final authority."
"Heh, just like the Ten Great Immortal Sects years ago."
"It’s not that they were blinded by power, but rather that escaping would require coordinating and concentrating the full strength of the entire realm. If there were internal betrayal..."
"So, fighting and killing don’t matter. Once the very existence of the Xuanhuang Realm is truly threatened, both sides will still join forces—just like five hundred years ago, when those traitors returned."
When ntioning those traitors, the tone of the old fisherman of the Stone Tablet beca uncharacteristically fierce.
"Five hundred years ago… That should refer to the counterattack from the small worlds. However, these small worlds seed to be re puppets. The true mastermind behind it was likely those cultivators who had once betrayed the Xuanhuang Realm."
Within the Spiritwood Realm, as he compared the old fisherman's words with the hidden secrets uncovered in prior investigations, Li Fan was deep in thought.
"As expected of the bearer of the Genesis Stone Tablet… He knows too many secrets. Too bad his strength isn’t enough."
"How much one can know entirely depends on how much the other party is willing to share."
"Otherwise, he would surely be subjected to relentless interrogation, day and night."
Li Fan's thoughts turned slowly.
Through the perspective of the elder of the Stone Tablet, many things that had seed obscured in a fog to Li Fan suddenly beca clear.
At that mont, after hearing the old fisherman’s discussion on the struggle between the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance and the Five Elders Association, Li Fan couldn't help but ask, "Then what about the Immortal Ancestor? What is his stance on all of this?"
The old fisherman of the Stone Tablet seed to have heard an incredibly amusing joke.
He first burst into laughter, as if no one else was present.
Only after laughing heartily did he finally respond, "Immortal Ancestor?"
"Even if the Xuanhuang Realm sinks..."
"The Dharma-Transmitting Immortal Ancestor can still fly, can’t he?"
"He simply doesn’t care."
"However..."
The old fisherman’s smile suddenly faded.
"This is just my speculation."
"In reality, for the Immortal Ancestor—who views the Xuanhuang Realm as his personal possession—his stance is sowhat unpredictable."
"Otherwise, after all these years, he could have left long ago."
His voice gradually weakened until it beca completely inaudible.
"The Dharma-Transmitting Immortal Ancestor can fly."
"So, he has already freed himself from the influence of the Immortal Ruins and can leave on his own."
Li Fan pondered silently.
"I wonder… exactly how powerful one must be to escape from Xuanhuang?"
"Perhaps..."
"I could give it a try."
A sudden thought erged in Li Fan’s mind.
Although, in the Xuanhuang Realm, aside from the Immortal Ancestor, there had never been a precedent of any Longevity Immortal successfully escaping…
But Xuanhuang’s longevity was bound to the realm itself.
It was possible that the lack of escape wasn’t due to insufficient strength, but rather the binding force acting as a counterbalance.
Just like the Senior Stone Tablet.
"Besides, I don’t necessarily have to rely solely on my own strength. External assistance could be an option as well."
Li Fan recalled the 114th era, when countless obelisks stood towering over the Xuanhuang lands.
"If I could use my Five Elents Cave-Heaven to achieve the Nascent Soul stage… and then rge the Five Elents into one, forging a new world…"
"And if I were to construct obelisks upon the land, harnessing their force for propulsion..."
"Perhaps escaping the Xuanhuang Realm wouldn’t be impossible."
In truth, as soone who possessed the [Truth] ability, Li Fan had never planned to be trapped in an endless struggle with the Xuanhuang Realm.
If an alternative cultivation world could be found, it would certainly be preferable to staying in this forsaken place.
After all, the Xuanhuang Realm—on the verge of collapse—was unpredictable, no matter what happened next.
Throughout his journey, Li Fan had encountered far too many demons, devils, and ghosts.
"A kind of attempt, using a dual approach."
Li Fan silently calculated his next move.
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