The true temptation turned into strands of silvery-white light and poured into the bodies of the two Dao Integration cultivators.
Originally, Li Fan thought the process would be as smooth as when using the real lure before, but to his surprise, when Yinbai was about to invade their two seas of consciousness, it suddenly stopped.
As if encountering some obstacle, all the power of the real lure was blocked from entering their souls.
The real lure disappeared in the air, but it did not alter the perceptions of Xuan Sushang and Lu Xichan.
Still, the silver light tightly wrapped their souls.
"This is…"
Li Fan's expression changed. After careful observation, he realized it was not the real Tianzun's power that had failed.
Rather, their souls possessed a special layer of protection that resisted external manipulation and distorted cognition.
"Sure enough, the high-level souls of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance have a unique defense mechanism."
"It makes sense. Otherwise, the Five Elders Association could conquer the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance simply by producing massive amounts of real lures."
The first attempt at induction had failed, but Li Fan did not give up.
At the same time, he had no intention of asking Mo Rubin about the soul's defense mechanism.
"Xuan Sushang is involved in the secret of the Tianxuan Mirror's clone. Seems I'll have to use you as the experiment," Li Fan thought, glancing at the sleeping Lu Xichan.
To be cautious, in addition to Mo Rubin's shadow seal, Li Fan set up multiple formations around them, ensuring that even if something went wrong, they would wake up in confusion, unable to contact the outside world or escape for a short period.
Then, a ray of consciousness separated from Li Fan, slowly penetrating Lu Xichan's soul.
It had to be said that the strength of Lu Xichan's soul was somewhat unworthy of her title as chief of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance's Formation Hall.
Back in Yunshui Heavenly Palace, Li Fan had once healed Han Hai and interacted closely with the opponent's soul.
Compared to that Dao Integration cultivator, Lu Xichan was much weaker. Li Fan felt no threat and observed carefully.
Outside her soul, a pattern of dark golden lines appeared and vanished intermittently, like chains—binding the soul while forming a protective armor.
However, Li Fan discovered that, besides protection, the dark gold pattern also had a self-destructive function.
"If this protection is forcibly broken, the chains—almost fused with the soul—would shatter instantly… leaving only one outcome: the soul scattered!"
Li Fan frowned, troubled.
Fortunately, he recalled a case from the Tianbu Lu.
It involved two cultivators who brought their son to the Heavenly Doctor. The couple had cultivated together since the Qi refining stage, progressing and eventually achieving Soul Transformation together.
Having a child seemed a double blessing.
But their son remained mute until over ten years old, appearing confused and weakly responsive.
Examination revealed the child's soul was not damaged or incomplete—in fact, it was stronger than that of ordinary cultivators.
However, the oversized soul did not match his weak body, causing it to overflow and form a twisted cocoon, almost like a cage.
After prolonged mutation, his original soul was tightly bound, preventing communication with the outside world.
The solution was simple in principle: trim the "many branches" of the late-born soul.
But in practice, it was extremely difficult. The branches were part of the original soul, so careless action could damage it and provoke violent resistance.
The Heavenly Doctor's solution was precise: use the soul of a loved one to carefully prune the branches.
During the process, the souls of caster and subject would intertwine, but because of familial closeness, there was no resistance.
It was akin to living together for a long time.
The price, however, was steep: the caster's soul would suffer severe damage, inevitably falling several realms.
The Heavenly Doctor explained this, and the couple reacted differently. Ultimately, after a fierce quarrel, they chose not to treat the child, killing him to spare further suffering.
Later, the couple became estranged, pursued by enemies, and died violently.
…
"This restriction of spiritual consciousness is very similar to the divine soul in this case," Li Fan thought. "It is symbiotic with the soul and almost becomes one with it. It is extremely sensitive to external interference. Destroying the body drags the original soul with it."
"But because it is intertwined with the soul, it has no defense against the power of the soul itself. So the method to remove this restriction is the same."
Li Fan had already formulated a plan.
A continuous stream of Soul Transformation power quietly poured into Lu Xichan's soul.
Facing the dark gold pattern like a mighty dam, it crashed head-on like a raging tide.
Since the restriction itself had to contend with fluctuations of the soul's power, such attacks were common and did not trigger countermeasures.
During the continuous cleansing, Li Fan's soul power was quickly consumed.
But running the [Wuji Yingxu Method], he replenished it repeatedly.
Just as rocks are slowly eroded by years of sea waves, the dark gold pattern began to fade under the unrelenting pressure.
Finally, a gap opened.
The real power of temptation lingering outside Lu Xichan's soul, mingled with Li Fan's carefully crafted lies, poured in.
Colliding with Lu Xichan's soul!
If it had been Li Fan's soul alone, the intrusion would have aroused her vigilance and provoked a counterattack, even in a coma.
But the real lure now contained Li Fan's deceptive narrative:
Her Immortal Ancestor had not died that year but faked his death, escaped, and transformed into Li Fan!