"Don't worry…"
As he said this, as if recalling the great calamity that befell the immortal worlds many years ago, Layman Qiaogong suddenly fell silent.
"It's hard to say. After all, the path of pursuing the root of the Dao is extremely dangerous. Even ordinary immortals—those who have not become Nameless Immortals united with the Dao—inevitably face the risk of falling." Layman Qiaogong sighed.
After this, the two once again fell into a long silence.
Li Fan seemed to be digesting these words. His brows furrowed slightly, his thoughts unclear.
After a while, he came back to his senses and asked, "What fellow Daoist said earlier—that those who do not believe will suffer backlash—does that refer to the consequences of seeking the root of another Dao?"
"That's right." Layman Qiaogong nodded. "Not only will it arouse the vigilance of the source immortal, it may even cause a resonance in the Dao root itself."
"Based on currently known information, each Dao root is extremely pure—independent and exclusive. Of course, perhaps beyond the realm of the Nameless True Immortal, there exists an even more inconceivable level where all Daos converge. But that is mere speculation, with not a shred of evidence."
"The Dao-root consequentialism I mentioned earlier was a conclusion reached by our Heaven's Secret Realm through long-term research and analysis of the Ancestor's body. It had already become a consensus back then and should not be mistaken." A trace of sadness passed through Layman Qiaogong's eyes.
"I also see that the Common People's Lingyuan Art created by fellow Daoists carries the shadow of this Dao-Root Theory," Li Fan added at the right moment.
"Haha, fellow Daoist noticed as well. Not only the Common People's Spiritual Energy Art, but even the cultivation method of this Xuanhuang Realm—defying heaven and earth to prove immortality—aligns with the true meaning of Dao roots." Layman Qiaogong lowered his voice, his tone grave.
"That Heavenly Lord of Dharma Transmission… although he has yet to reach the immortal realm, he has already used this method to establish upstream control over downstream cultivators. It is truly terrifying."
"Though he is not an immortal, he has already grasped a portion of immortal power. As I said before, one can only either become his believer and cultivate his Dharma—or kill him outright." Layman Qiaogong spoke softly, clearly filled with awe toward the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Lord.
Li Fan frowned deeply. "Then according to your reasoning, if the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Lord were to suddenly perish, wouldn't it affect all cultivators of the Xuanhuang Realm?"
Layman Qiaogong shrugged. "That possibility is essentially ruled out. That's why I say he is extremely frightening. I even suspect that he may be the reincarnation of an immortal. Otherwise, it would be impossible to apply Dao-root theory with such mastery."
Li Fan's frown deepened further.
This was something he had never considered before.
It seemed the difficulty of dealing with the Heavenly Lord far exceeded his previous expectations.
"By the way," Li Fan suddenly asked after a pause, "the two golden creation figures you guard are identical in appearance to the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Lord. Is there some deeper meaning to this? Could it be that the puppet ancestors of your Heaven's Secret Realm also looked like this?"
Layman Qiaogong quickly shook his head. "Fellow Daoist, you misunderstand. The Ancestor's appearance is incomplete and cannot be recognized. The reason I designed the Golden Creation Figures to resemble the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Lord is simply because it better aligns with the Heavenly Dao of Xuanhuang."
Fearing Li Fan might not understand, Layman Qiaogong elaborated, "My Heaven's Secret Puppets are forged not only from source power but also from various materials. However, the Golden Creation Figures are composed purely of source power."
"They are formed entirely from the source power gathered through cultivation of the Common People's Spiritual Energy Art. But within the Xuanhuang Realm, they are influenced by the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Lord. Thus, in order to maintain structural stability, they must be constructed in accordance with his appearance."
These words dispelled Li Fan's doubts.
If the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Lord truly were the reincarnation of an immortal, then Li Fan would need to act with far greater caution in the Xuanhuang Realm.
But judging from the current situation—even if he was not a true immortal, he was not far removed from that level.
"So," Li Fan asked after another long silence, "what is fellow Daoist's stance on joining our Federation of All Realms?"
Layman Qiaogong answered without hesitation. "Of course I agree. Now that the path to immortality has been severed, ascension and pursuit of Dao roots have long become illusory. And to be able to follow this—"
"The True Immortal of Compassion in the World…"
Layman Qiaogong recited the title with deep reverence.
"To serve under such a being is a supreme honor. You must understand—disasters now ravage the star field, and a living true immortal is the ultimate support countless cultivators dream of."
His eyes brimmed with longing.
"If we can borrow the power of a true immortal, many plans previously stalled by insufficient conditions could finally be realized." The final words revealed the true reason for his willingness to join the Federation of All Realms.
Sensing Li Fan's scrutiny, Layman Qiaogong hastily clarified, "Our research into the Ancestor's puppet yielded tremendous results. The Heaven's Secret Puppet is merely the most basic of our designs."
"Fellow Daoist can see as well—the force that drives it is source power, the fruit of the Dao. And if one could use the power of the Dao Flower to forge a puppet…"
Layman Qiaogong's eyes shone with fervor. "I would certainly be able to create a true immortal puppet capable of crushing ordinary cultivators."
"Though it may not rival a real immortal, it would be more than sufficient to contend with immortal cultivators."
Layman Qiaogong spoke with absolute confidence.
As he spoke, his gaze once again drifted toward the golden wish power lingering at Li Fan's fingertips.
This was the power of the Dao Flower.
Li Fan listened quietly and nodded.
He withdrew the golden wish power back into his calamity body for storage.
"In that case," Li Fan said calmly, "follow me and pay homage to the Immortal Statue of Compassion in the World."
Layman Qiaogong's vision blurred, and in the next instant, he found himself within a circular grand hall.
Before him stood a stone statue with indistinct features.
Yet the aura emanating from it was strikingly similar to the lingering aura he had sensed from the Ancestor's remains all those years ago.
That was unmistakably immortal power.
All doubts in Layman Qiaogong's heart vanished.
He willingly followed Li Fan and solemnly recited the oath of membership.
Almost the instant the oath was completed, Li Fan sensed a surge of fervent power linking to him from among all members.
It was even stronger than Dao Xuanzi—the previously acknowledged "most sincere seeker."
"Perhaps because he has truly witnessed immortal power, his faith is deeper and beyond resistance," Li Fan thought silently.
But walking the path laid down by a true immortal already present in the world—becoming a mere lackey—
That was obviously not something Li Fan intended to do.
Still…
Borrowing a bit of strength once or twice was perfectly acceptable.
After worshiping the faceless immortal stone statue, the relationship between the two parties seemed to grow much closer.
"Fellow Daoist Qiaogong, what is the purpose of your painstaking efforts to establish the Lingyuan Sect and collect source power? To be honest, I only took over the Lingyuan Sect because I saw the convenience of having many people cultivate the same method for a greater cause. As for how to extract and utilize source power, I currently know nothing about it!"
Li Fan brought Layman Qiaogong to tour the flesh-and-blood puppets in the Spirit Wood World that were used to automatically cultivate the Common People's Spiritual Energy Art, and asked cheerfully.
"It truly is far more convenient to have an independent small world as a base," Layman Qiaogong said enviously during the visit. "When I was in the Lingyuan Sect, I wouldn't have dared to place these flesh-and-blood cultivator puppets so openly in the public square. I had to cover things up—otherwise the people below would grow uneasy and endless trouble would arise."
He then answered Li Fan's question:
"Aside from being used to construct Heaven's Secret Puppets, most of the source power should be stored for emergencies."
"In theory, every cultivator can use refined wish power to rapidly raise their cultivation realm. Have you ever heard the legends where an Immortal Sect bestows rewards and its disciples achieve enlightenment, breaking through multiple major realms in succession? That is precisely the function of source power."
"But in this Xuanhuang Realm…" Layman Qiaogong smacked his lips and shook his head.
"This ghostly place truly isn't suitable for cultivators to live in. Leaving aside the resources needed to break through each major realm, the disaster bottlenecks alone are far more severe than in other cultivation worlds," Li Fan agreed.
"It's a pity that we no longer have any choice," Layman Qiaogong sighed.
"However, these restrictions only apply to cultivators. Simple creations such as Heaven's Secret Puppets are exempt. From this, it's clear there are no restrictions on the use of magic treasures and similar items. Perhaps this is why the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance demands such enormous tributes every time," Layman Qiaogong added insightfully.
"You mean… the Tianxuan Mirror?" Li Fan reacted instantly.
"Not only that. Without question, the Tianxuan Mirror is an existence at the level of an immortal artifact. For it, source power is essentially useless. However, within the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, any magic treasure that has not yet been promoted to an immortal artifact can absorb source power to strengthen itself," Layman Qiaogong said with a smile.
"So that's how it works." Li Fan looked thoughtfully at the Terminal Dissociation Disk within his consciousness.
Next, with Layman Qiaogong's enthusiastic and skilled assistance, a Heaven's Secret Fortress was constructed beside the Flesh Puppet Plaza in the Spirit Wood World.
It was spherical in shape, with two constantly rotating metal rings encircling it.
Once Layman Qiaogong finished engraving the inscriptions on the metal rings, Li Fan faintly sensed the overflowing source power that had originally flowed into his clone Li Qing's body.
At this moment, it diverted toward the Heaven's Secret Fortress and converged.
Like streams merging into a roaring river, it condensed drop by drop into golden entities stored within the sphere.
Upon careful observation, Li Fan discovered that this golden source power was clearly of a lower grade than the source power essence formed through the faceless immortal stone statue—the Dao Flower.
Yet for cultivators, it still possessed a fatal allure.
Though not as overwhelming as witnessing the soul of heaven and earth itself, it was enough to stir deep-seated greed.
"Finally finished. It seems that because the heavenly and earthly restrictions in this small world are relatively weak, guiding source power is much easier than in the Xuanhuang Realm," Layman Qiaogong said with satisfaction, wiping his forehead.
"This Heaven's Secret Fortress—besides attracting source power, it should also have defensive functions, right?" Li Fan asked pointedly.
Layman Qiaogong did not conceal anything. "Yes. Because resources in our Heaven's Secret Realm were limited, we always pursued ultimate functional integration when developing creations."
He lightly tapped the sphere, and a flash of light passed.
The structure, built only moments ago, suddenly vanished from Li Fan's sight.
"Hm? Interesting…" Not only was it invisible to the naked eye—it couldn't even be detected by spiritual sense.
Only by physically approaching and touching it could one confirm its existence.
"This is its concealed form. Activating it consumes a certain amount of source power. It can achieve nearly the same level of concealment as the Ancestor. Even a powerful cultivator at the Immortal Realm might not detect it," Layman Qiaogong said proudly.
Next, he demonstrated the offensive and teleportation forms of the Heaven's Secret Fortress.
It truly lived up to its name.
Li Fan was very satisfied.
"The only pity is that source power is difficult to obtain. It must be extracted from every cultivator practicing the Lingyuan Art."
"It's impossible to achieve the Ancestor's self-sustaining, eternally circulating system."
"When I fled for my life, I failed to bring out the Ancestor's core energy components. I fear this mystery may never be solved again," Layman Qiaogong said as he gazed at the fortress, his thoughts drifting back to his homeland.
His eyes were filled with regret.
"Haha, there will be a chance," Li Fan said with a smile.
Layman Qiaogong did not take these words too seriously.
Once the explanation was complete, Layman Qiaogong consciously transferred the highest authority of the Heaven's Secret Fortress to Li Fan.
With a single thought, information regarding the amount of stored source power, projected operational durations of various functions, and surrounding environmental projections instantly appeared in Li Fan's mind.
It gave him an entirely different sensation.
After increasing the fortress's source power output and extending its coverage to the entire Spirit Wood World, Li Fan activated its permanent concealment state.
As a result, very little source power could be stored—almost living beyond its means.
However, Li Fan was unconcerned. Instead, he instructed his clone Li Qing to intensify the cultivation of the Common People's Spiritual Energy Art across all small worlds.
It was foreseeable that as the Lingyuan Art spread further, not only would source power increase—
Even the quantity of source power essence produced through gratitude toward the Compassionate Immortal in the Mortal World would undergo a qualitative leap.
With matters gradually on track, Li Fan made full use of every capable hand and did not allow skilled individuals to remain idle.
He summoned Tianyang and asked Layman Qiaogong to examine him carefully.
"My junior brother was unable to break through to a higher realm due to the limitations of his physical body. Thus, he pursued another path—transforming himself into an object-bound, soul-inhabiting puppet. After absorbing the power of tens of thousands of years of earth fire, he ultimately achieved souls transformation."
"Although I later helped him devour the soul of heaven and earth and cross the threshold of Dao Integration, this may still be his limit."
"Junior Brother Tianyang has accompanied me for many years and is absolutely loyal. I cannot bear for him to stop here…"
"Daoist Qiaogong, please help me see if there is any way to allow Tianyang to advance further," Li Fan asked solemnly.