[End of Simulation]
Li Fan, regaining consciousness, was still immersed in the power of Dao Xuanzi's sword.
"So this is the might of a cultivator at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage..." Li Fan was filled with awe.
Earlier, Kou Hong's ability to destroy Xuanjing with a mere gesture had already left Li Fan astonished, but Dao Xuanzi's final sword strike made Li Fan deeply aware of his own insignificance.
Like an ant facing a tidal wave, from Li Fan's perspective, he couldn't comprehend that sword, nor could he see its entirety.
Even a fleeting glimpse was enough for Li Fan to understand the vast gap between a mortal and a cultivator at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage.
"If it weren't for the immortal miasma, even if I reincarnated a hundred times and devised countless schemes, I wouldn't be able to pose a threat to them." Li Fan felt a sense of relief, yet was also filled with confusion and alarm.
"What exactly is this immortal miasma? Aren't immortal cultivators supposed to grow step by step from mortals? How can mortal blood have such a terrifying restraining effect on immortal cultivators?" The hidden implications behind this made Li Fan's thoughts wander.
However, Li Fan quickly suppressed these thoughts.
"First, I need to summarize the gains and losses of this life."
Watching the scenes flash across the light screen, Li Fan pondered silently.
"The ambush on Dao Xuanzi and Kou Hong went mostly as I expected. First, I used bullets soaked in the blood of death row prisoners to deplete their strength, then distracted them with the matter of the Core Formation technique, and finally sealed the deal with a blood rain, capturing them alive after they were weakened to the extreme..."
"What I didn't expect was the immense restraining power of the immortal miasma on immortal cultivators, directly leading to Kou Hong's death and Dao Xuanzi's demise."
"Unexpectedly, I thought their talk of being brothers for a hundred years was just casual, but it turned out their relationship was indeed extraordinary. When attacked, Dao Xuanzi warned Kou Hong, and Kou Hong, knowing he couldn't escape death, willingly gave the Core Formation technique to Dao Xuanzi."
"Dao Xuanzi, seeing Kou Hong die from a sneak attack, gave up his chance to live and used a self-destructive sword strike to avenge Kou Hong... All of this shows that their friendship was indeed beyond ordinary..."
"If that's the case, why would they fight each other over a Core Formation technique?" Li Fan was increasingly puzzled.
Suddenly, he recalled the scenes when he first met the two.
"The Great Dao of Core Formation, either me or him..." Li Fan mused, "Is it impossible to cultivate the same immortal technique together?"
"If even brothers are like this, what kind of scene is the cultivation world outside?"
Li Fan had a premonition that the cultivation world of this world might be completely different from what he imagined.
"No matter how dangerous the path ahead, I will not waver. Moreover, with the help of [Return to Origin], as long as I am careful enough, no predicament should be able to hinder me."
After a moment of hesitation, Li Fan's determination was once again firm.
"In this so-called Immortal-Forsaken Land, if I want to seek the immortal path, I still need to find a way through Kou Hong and Dao Xuanzi. Last time, I chose to attack them both simultaneously; perhaps this time, I can choose to ally with one of them." With his mind racing, Li Fan quickly thought of several ways to deal with them.
Although the other party was a high and mighty Foundation Establishment cultivator, Li Fan was not particularly afraid. In fact, Li Fan didn't even seriously regard them as formal "opponents."
It wasn't that Li Fan was arrogant, but the ability of [Return to Origin] to constantly restart was simply too heaven-defying!
How could mere Foundation Establishment cultivation compare to fifty years of foresight and countless trial-and-error opportunities?
After the simulation ended, Li Fan chose to accelerate the Void Energy Charge progress option.
Name: Li Fan
Realm: Mortal
Biological Age: 20/86
Mental Age: 216/1080↑
Void Energy Charge Progress: 30%
"This time, the Mental Age limit only increased by a few decades; it seems I'm nearing the limit." Li Fan was mentally prepared for this, so he wasn't particularly concerned.
"If I count the life before I transmigrated, this is already my fifth life. The path to immortality is truly difficult." Li Fan sighed. "I hope these fifty years won't be wasted."
Li Fan once again embarked on a fifty-year wait.
Like a pre-set program, everything proceeded methodically.
Imperial examinations, passing, becoming the top scholar.
Becoming a county magistrate, mining, making guns.
After killing the Prince of Langya and taking his place, Li Fan eventually grew impatient.
Ten years was too long; as long as he couldn't control the entire realm, he had to remain confined to Jiangnan. If he could have ten more years to mobilize the entire realm's power, the plan to capture the two immortal cultivators alive would have a greater chance of success.
Thus, Li Fan decided to send a trusted aide to infiltrate the palace and secretly administer a slow-acting poison to the emperor.
Who would have thought that this decision would instead cause a stir?
It turned out that although Li Fan's aide's poisoning actions went unnoticed, the young and vigorous emperor suddenly found his health deteriorating, becoming somewhat paranoid.
He suspected someone was secretly harming him. And the prime suspect was his once closest brother, the Prince of Langya.
This led to, in the seventh year of the anchor point, when the emperor was on his deathbed, he didn't pass the throne to the Prince of Langya but instead to the carefree Prince of Runan.
Fortunately, Li Fan's informant in the palace sent out the news in time, and upon hearing it, Li Fan acted immediately.
On one hand, he sent his men to assassinate the Prince of Runan on his way to the capital; on the other hand, he declared in the name of the Prince of Langya that the emperor was harmed by traitors around him, and under the banner of "saving the nation," he led the army he had built over the years to march swiftly, capturing the capital with force before anyone could react.
Such drastic measures naturally had many repercussions.
Firstly, the court officials were dissatisfied. The emperor's edict passed the throne to the Prince of Runan. Wasn't the Prince of Langya's action a rebellion? Although the officials outwardly submitted to Li Fan's military pressure and couldn't openly resist, they engaged in passive resistance and even secretly contacted local feudal lords, attempting to have them march to the capital to "restore order." Li Fan was ruthless, executing a batch of them to barely suppress the dissent. With the secret help of his opportunistic father-in-law, the chief academician, it took several months to stabilize the situation.
During these months, the Great Xuan Kingdom was already in turmoil. Local feudal lords declared independence, ignoring court orders.
Thus, Li Fan had to send troops to suppress them one by one.
Although firearms were powerful, their numbers were limited. Coupled with the vast territory of the Great Xuan Kingdom, it took considerable effort.
The wars and political affairs left Li Fan exhausted.
After much effort, it wasn't until the twenty-second year of the anchor point that internal and external troubles were completely resolved.
In hindsight, if he had patiently followed the plan, it would have taken a few more years to fully control the realm.
"I still need to be more cautious and patient." After everything settled, Li Fan could only learn from the experience. "A small mistake can lead to a huge discrepancy. If there are too many variables, my foresight advantage will be greatly diminished."
Fortunately, it was just a minor ripple and didn't affect the overall situation.
Once things returned to the right track, time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the thirty-fifth year of the anchor point.
This year, Li Fan left Xuanjing, traveling thousands of miles to personally visit the eastern Void Abyss.
(End of Chapter)