The candle-like skin slowly dissolved, absorbed gradually by the unfamiliar cultivator within the corpse. Faced with this bizarre scene, Zhang Qianmo did not immediately kill the newcomer but observed with interest.
After a moment, Li Chen's corpse was completely absorbed by the Xuanhuang Refining Heart Spell.
Li Fan revealed his original appearance, smiled slightly at Zhang Qianmo, and bowed, "Greetings, Senior Brother!"
Zhang Qianmo narrowed his eyes, the purple thunder mark on his forehead prominent. "What exactly are you? A demon? A demonic being from beyond the realms?"
Facing Zhang Qianmo's inquiry, Li Fan remained composed, "Senior Brother Zhang, is it that you cannot recognize me just because I changed my appearance?"
Before he could finish speaking, a blue light illuminated the sky.
The Cloud Sword and Overturning Palm arrived one after the other.
Zhang Qianmo showed surprise. The long halberd roared like a dragon, clashing with the Cloud Sword.
Blue and purple lights devoured each other, with the purple thunder ultimately prevailing.
"Good swordsmanship!" Zhang Qianmo praised.
Facing the invisible palm technique descending from above, Zhang Qianmo did not evade, throwing a punch into the air.
The fists collided, and a mighty force erupted, spreading out from the location where they stood. The shockwave swept through Ningyuan City below, turning the already dilapidated city, where few mortals survived, into complete ruins.
Only the Vitality Tree in the middle, protected by the barrier, remained vibrant.
Zhang Qianmo was indifferent to the life and death of mortals. He only looked at Li Fan with a serious expression.
"Who are you? Why did you secretly infiltrate my Purple Heaven Sect? Looking at your sword and palm techniques, so diverse and not like those of casual cultivators."
Li Fan avoided answering and countered, "Senior Brother, what kind of technique is this? Clearly, you're only at the Foundation Establishment level, yet you can condense a Nascent Soul internally? Even killing an enemy across a large realm seems effortless. What is the meaning behind this?"
Zhang Qianmo snorted. Seeing that Li Fan showed no intention of answering, his killing intent grew stronger.
So, he stopped holding back.
The long halberd moved like a dragon, accompanied by purple lightning, assisting in combat against the enemy.
Li Fan encountered an opponent with such strength between equals for the first time in his life.
His body technique reached its peak, and the Divine Sword Formation was formed, intercepting Zhang Qianmo's dragon-like halberd.
Amidst the attack and evasion, there were occasional Cloud Sword and Overturning Palm strikes.
However, Li Fan rarely engaged in direct combat, and these techniques were limited.
Zhang Qianmo, on the other hand, displayed an endless array of techniques.
The body born from the Nascent Soul was also invincible.
Li Fan's attacks occasionally landed on him, causing only minor wounds.
They quickly healed.
In contrast, with each wave of purple thunder, the damage to Li Fan's incarnated consciousness became more severe.
The low whispers echoed in his ears again, and his mind was inevitably affected.
With each passing moment, Li Fan's injuries worsened.
After more than twenty rounds, Li Fan's incarnated consciousness was finally split in half by Zhang Qianmo's halberd.
There was no scene of blood flowing, only the body turning into countless particles and dissipating in the wind.
"This person's techniques are profound, with incredible sword and palm methods. He must come from a major sect. However, his actual combat skills are strangely ordinary, even a bit weak."
"Truly strange."
Zhang Qianmo shook his head, filled with incomprehension.
...
In the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
Li Fan slowly regained consciousness.
Without the weakness mentioned by Chen Ying, he even felt a slight improvement in his spiritual sense.
Recalling the experiences in the Immortal Realm, Li Fan pondered.
"It should be because of the Xuanhuang Refining Heart Spell."
"I just don't know why this spell has such effects in the Immortal Realm."
"Usually, after taking over the original identity, one should return directly to the real world."
"But I ended up devouring and reorganizing, forming a new consciousness incarnation. It's like having two lives in the Immortal Realm."
"I wonder if there's anyone else who can do what I did."
"Although there were no gains in this first exploration, my spiritual sense has been somewhat strengthened."
...
Slightly pleased and without fatigue, Li Fan immediately prepared to perform the ritual again.
To see if he could re-enter the Immortal Realm.
Unfortunately, there was no response.
Li Fan could only regretfully give up.
"According to Chen Ying, it generally takes three months to half a year to enter again. It's a pity."
"If one could enter unlimitedly, without restrictions..."
Shaking his head, he dismissed these unrealistic thoughts.
Checking the time, it had been less than half a day since he entered the Immortal Realm.
"This time in the Immortal Realm, I saw the cultivation world before the Great Tribulation and the appearance of the Immortal-Forsaken Plague."
"It also exposed several problems I currently have. Although I have divine abilities, practical combat is a bit lacking."
"Without relying on array formations for ambush, facing ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators, I can still fight. But when encountering true geniuses, it becomes somewhat challenging."
"However, this is not so much my problem as it is the difference between two eras."
"In the era Zhang Qianmo is from, sect disciples could freely study various cultivation techniques and secrets without restrictions. They could easily find senior brothers and sisters for sparring."
"But now, exchanging cultivation techniques is extremely difficult. For a slightly more powerful technique, besides comprehending it on your own, you have to join the Immortal Alliance and exchange it with merits and contributions."
"And nowadays, finding someone for sparring is quite challenging."
"In the Heavenly Profound Mirror, various scenarios can be simulated, but there is no simulation for fighting with others. This should also be a method used by the Immortal Alliance to restrict the combat power of ordinary cultivators."
"However, with the existence of the Immortal Realm, I can improve my actual combat power within it."
"Of course, the most important thing is still the advancement of realms."
Li Fan checked his contribution points, over thirty-seven thousand. Enough for him to cultivate in the Enlightenment state for some time.
"Let's cultivate to the peak of the Foundation Establishment first."
So, Li Fan took out the Exquisite Glass Bead and began cultivating in seclusion.
As time passed, he was awakened by a message from a communication talisman.
Checking, it was the communication talisman from He Zhenghao.
Without immediately checking, Li Fan first examined the gains from this seclusion.
Having spent nearly two months in auxiliary cultivation, half of his contribution points were used.
The harvest...
Li Fan sighed.
Equivalent to three years of hard practice in his normal state.
However, reaching the perfection of Foundation Establishment was still a long way off.
But Li Fan also knew he couldn't be impatient.
For cultivators with average aptitude, advancing through each small realm beyond the Foundation Establishment stage would take decades.
"I still need the 'Sitting Mountain Secret Art'!"
Li Fan sighed in his heart and then checked He Zhenghao's message.
"Friend Li Fan! Good news, it's done!"
"After my strenuous efforts and persuasion, I've secured the position for the Formation Repair Specialist from Zhang Zhiliang!"
(End of this chapter)