Chaotic Times

Li Fan used his Gonggong Dao Body to dive deep into the sea, hiding and escaping along the rock bed. Throughout the escape, he used his blind observation to check the surrounding situation. Only when he was sure that the cultivators of the Nangong Family at the Nascent Divine Transformation stage had not caught up did he find a Spiritual Spring at the bottom of the sea to rest and recuperate his almost exhausted Dao Body.

Let's check the harvest first.

Current mood is 0.6k/7.9k, charging is 6.6k/7.9k.

Huh... wait, the upper limit has increased by so much!? What's going on??

He remembered that when he used to hunt lambs and lambs, it only slightly boosted his mood. How could there be an increase in the upper limit? Besides, didn't Yang Sheng remove the calamity set up by the Immortal Palace?

'The system has determined that the host, in the killing spree orchestrated by the Nangong Family, has killed and seized the remaining lifespan of at least three opponents, thus completing the killing spree. This is reasonable, compliant, and without any impropriety.'

Oh, so that's how it is... Wait a minute! The Nangong Family actually plotted a massacre!?

Li Fan hurriedly scrolled up the system message and took a closer look. Sure enough, the Beast's Child had gained 1200 points! The two Nascent Soul General of the Nangong Family who were killed instantly provided 100 points, and the one who broke through one of his clones gained 500 points!

Also, when I was looking for the Heavenly Book in the Xingye City Palace, I casually killed a Super Greater Chi, which also gave me 100 points. All things considered, this part of the Ruler of Xun Country's storyline has raised the cap by another 2k!

"Wow~~ This works? Hahaha! The Nangong Family is truly my lucky star, ha--hahaha!"

Li Fan almost laughed himself silly. To be honest, he really owed a lot to the Nangong Family this time. They were practically afraid he wouldn't get enough, so they rushed over and gave him a huge windfall! If it weren't for their ambush and killing of the Immortal Palace's spirit officials, Li Fan might have gotten nothing but a 'four-point increase in mood'!

Oh dear... Damn, the Gong family has been showering him with money, treasures, and even their lives. He's almost embarrassed to have wiped them all out. It's such a shame that such a considerate score-farming monster is extinct... cough cough...

But my mood has reached its limit again. I need to go back and cultivate a few more bodies to get stronger, otherwise I won't be able to keep up with all the lottery draws...

However, judging from this, those four spirit officials are probably dead. Even if the Six Divine Lords of Luofeng intervene, they probably cannot save them.

Moreover, who knows if Luo Feng Immortal Palace is colluding with Nangong or the Divine Cult? The current situation among the Three Great Sects is far too treacherous. Who could have imagined that it wasn't actually the rebels, but rather the leaders of the four great clans, including the General of Pacifying the East, personally appointed by the Three Enclosures, who were working together with Nangong to plot against the Four Spirit Officials of the Immortal Palace?

It's too complicated to tell who's the enemy and who's the ally...

In short, the Ruler of Xun Country has now been confirmed dead, both openly and covertly. A large group of Divine Transformation cultivators representing various forces are bound to fight each other for control of the world. In addition, the system has clearly discovered traces of the actions of the apostles from the neighboring system family. The chaos in Xun Kingdom has probably only just begun.

Now that he had obtained the Heavenly Book and eliminated the Beast's Child, Li Fan had accomplished his main objectives. He had no intention of risking returning to Xun Kingdom and getting involved in this mess anytime soon.

Moreover, Li Fan was indeed exhausted this time, having completely depleted his Inner Landscape Qi, leaving him with not a single drop more.

His injuries to his Dao body were relatively minor. Although he had been knocked out of the second stage, he hadn't lost any limbs or suffered internal organ damage; at most, he had some muscle strain. Of course, his Gui Xu Dao Yi was a bit torn, but that didn't matter. He could repair it with his true essence, which could absorb and replenish the evil energy. The flesh and blood of the Beast's Child were filled with the essence of evil energy, so he could simply tear that big head in half and have Qiongqi swallow it. Li Fan's injuries could heal slowly over time, and he wouldn't be in any serious danger.

The main problem was overuse of his eyes, because the previous battles had all involved his primordial spirit leaving his body, and the burden from the Moon Soul was also considerable. Now, Li Fan clearly felt dizzy, his vision blurred, and his head throbbing with drowsiness. This wasn't the first time Li Fan had experienced such mental exhaustion and persistent fatigue. He understood that this was because his spiritual energy was severely depleted. Fortunately, Qiongqi had only eaten half a head before focusing on digestion, otherwise, there was even a risk of his Dao Heart losing control.

So, Li Fan and Yue Po discussed it and decided to temporarily store the sword pellet in the black jade sword box to give Li Fan some time to rest and recuperate. Incidentally, the rabbit didn't want to share a sword box with the other swords, and even complained that the Divine Cult's sword pellet, Flying Rainbow, wanted to break it. Helpless, Li Fan had to stuff the Golden Dragon White Star Rainbow, and Vermilion Zhu Hong into the Yellow Jade Sword Case box, and only after giving Yue Po a villa in the black jade sword box was it barely satisfied...

Actually, the best way to solve the problem is to get some sleep; a good night's sleep will restore him to full health. But Li Fan is worried that if he sleeps to rest, another three or four years will pass in the blink of an eye. Moreover, at this point, he doesn't dare to retreat into seclusion in the wild to recuperate; he can only force himself to continue healing.

In this way, Li Fan would cultivate underwater while also swimming around, changing his spiritual acupoint every few days.

After hiding underwater for a week, figuring out that he was far enough away from the powder keg of Xun Kingdom that his enemies would have little chance of finding him, he surfaced, found a deserted island, and set up the Revered Heavenly Demon Array to Moon Worship.

With a blink of an eye, Li Fan found himself back in the tea room.

The Pisces Child was not present; only prepared paper and pen were on the table.

Li Fan didn't waste any time; hiding underwater for a week was enough for him to memorize all twelve stone tablets of the Beast's Child's Heavenly Book.

The characters rubbings on these stone slabs, similar to the Luo Sect's Heavenly Book, were arranged in a coded manner with their order scrambled. Moreover, they also contained some ancient pictographs, resembling dog paw prints. Without a correct reading order and method, Li Fan couldn't decipher them at all.

However, with such an advanced system and such powerful computing capabilities, let them worry about the decryption process.

So Li Fan used both hands to copy the twelve chapters of the Heavenly Book and uploaded them.

He quickly finished his business and planned to sit down in the tea room to meditate, absorb the evil energy of the Void Abyss, repair his Gui Xu Nascent Soul, and cultivate the Blind Observation Divine Spirit method.

He hadn't been practicing for long when he heard two soft taps; someone was knocking on the door.

Li Fan turned his head and looked at the tea room door.

Shouldn't it be Void Abyss outside the door? Or is he just hallucinating because his primordial spirit is too badly injured?

But someone did knock on the door twice.

Li Fan transformed into the eight arms and six heads of the Gui Xu Nascent Soul, ready to slay the demon, and reached out his hand towards the tea room door.

Then two hands, one black and one white, grabbed his outstretched wrist.

Yin Fish Tongzi stared intently at the doorway, while Yang Fish Tongzi shook his head at Li Fan.

The person outside tried again, knocking twice.

Is he an apostle from the cult? Is he also in the South China Sea?

Yin Fish Boy shrugged, Yang Fish Boy waved at him.

The meaning is clear: it's none of your business, so hurry up and leave. Alright then...

Then Li Fan opened his eyes.

I saw a Qingyue and a False Moon in the sky, shining brightly together.

Alas, it seems that not only the Central Plains, but even the system itself is embroiled in fierce fighting... Where in the world is there any peaceful place left...?

Li Fan shook his head. For safety's sake, he figured it was best to avoid practicing False Moon Cultivation for the next few nights. But his current mood was 1.6k/7.9k, and his energy recharge was 7.6k/7.9k—this was really frustrating...

Li Fan thought for a moment, then put away his Celestial Devil Statue and exchanged it for the Thousand-Faced Immortal Statue. He'd charge it up first, then try his luck with the lottery. Maybe he'd get some 'civilian equipment'—that would be a sure thing!

So Li Fan went to the residence of the Moon Mountain Lord, and found that there were many other people there as well...

Yes, there are many people, including the Mountain Lord, two masked people I've never seen before, the Five-Colored Squad, and Fairy Wangshu. Although she's also wearing a mask, who else could it be but those long, white legs! In short, they're all spirits who have left their bodies, making a total of ten people including him.

What's wrong with me these past two days??

Before Li Fan could even speak, the mountain lord flicked his sleeve and moved Li Fan onto the centipede's back, not letting him stay in his residence to listen to their discussion!

Li Fan's mood dropped a little.

Seriously? He should be a disciple of Mo Shan! Why didn't you bring him to your sect's grand assembly?

Or perhaps... because his search for the Heavenly Book and the Mo Shan quest dragged on for too long, causing him to miss the introductory quest and disqualify him from attending this meeting?

Li Fan was in a state of turmoil, but thankfully he didn't dwell on it for long. In a flash, he was summoned back to the mountain lord's residence.

But at this moment, only the mountain lord remained; the other senior brothers and the big white-legged girl had vanished without a trace.

"... Greetings, Master."

"Qingyue, don't go back to Ink Bamboo Mountain..."

Holy crap! He wasn't expelled from the sect, was he?!

"... I sense that some enemies will be coming to steal things soon. You should hide out there for a few years and come back when things have calmed down."

The mountain lord seemed about to dismiss him again, Li Fan quickly cried out, "Master! Although my cultivation is low, I, Qingyue, am not one to fear death! How can I watch you and my fellow disciples fight against a powerful enemy while I hide outside! I swear to live and die with our sect!"

The mountain lord paused for a moment, then laughed, "But I'm afraid they might kidnap you and interrogate me about the secrets of Mo Mountain."

Li Fan patted his chest and said, "Master, don't worry. Although I've only just reached the Nascent Soul Stage, I've killed countless Nascent Divine Transformation before!"

The mountain lord glanced at him and said, "He's not just a mere Nascent Divine Transformation."

Li Fan then understood, "Oh, uh... okay, Master, I understand. I will go into seclusion to cultivate and not cause trouble for Mo Shan."

The mountain lord chuckled, "There's no need to worry so much. You can still come here. Remember that blood pool? No one Transformation Stage is allowed to enter. There are no other restrictions."

"By the way, if I am indeed no match for that enemy, you will be the ninth generation leader of my Moshan Sect. Unless you also have a successor disciple who can learn the Blind Observation Technique, you must not risk returning to Moshan, and even less should you seek revenge for your sect. Do you understand?"

Li Fan opened his mouth, but finally bowed solemnly and said, "This disciple will remember it."

The mountain lord nodded, and with a flick of his sleeve, sent Li Fan back to the mortal world.

In such a short time, there was obviously no time to complete the charging process, and Li Fan had no time to think about charging or the lottery anymore.

Not only the Xun and Zhen Country, but even Ink Bamboo Mountain has gotten itself into trouble. And it's not just a mere Nascent Divine Transformation; it means at least the Enlightenment Stage! If the Mozhu lineage doesn't survive this calamity, they'll face annihilation. Those senior brothers will likely all perish, and Qingyue, who just entered the lineage, will become its last descendant? This plot development is just too ominous...

And why would a mere Enlightenment Stage enemy suddenly come to Ink Bamboo Mountain to wipe out the entire sect? There shouldn't be many Enlightenment Realm cultivators in this world, right? Shouldn't those who reach the Enlightenment Realm be serving as sect Sect Leader, heads, or high-ranking officials in the Three Great Sects? Besides, aren't the Three Great Sects locked in a fierce battle? Why would an Enlightenment Realm cultivator have time to run around aimlessly...? Hiss!

Li Fan suddenly remembered something, and then frantically rummaged through his Blue Fatty had sent him. It wasn't about Zhen, because Hou Gu's rebellion was too unexpected; no one in the world really thought that the mighty Lanling Xiao Clan would be overthrown by a traitor. Therefore, even Yuntai Peak was still gathering intelligence on the specific situation in Zhen Country, but the preliminary results from Kun Country in the past few days had already been obtained. Blue Fatty had simply copied it down for him.

Well, just as everyone guessed.

The cult won.

Moreover, it was a resounding and exhilarating victory.

In short, the entire battle was a rout of the Western Imperial Guards, with the Thunder Department surrounded by a large force. The Zhen and Xun armies rushed to their rescue, only to be besieged and defeated by the Divine Sect army.

To be more specific, the Thunder Department had built fortifications and set up arrays to resist the siege, prepared to fight to the death. However, the Divine Cult Army did not fight them to the death, but decisively withdrew from the siege, leaving only a feint to confuse them, while using its main force to defeat the Zhen army that came to their aid.

Caught off guard, the Zhen army suffered a crushing defeat. Seeing the dire situation, its commander Xiao Xuanda, fled the battlefield. Fortunately, generals like Wang Juncai rallied the remaining troops to cover the retreat and put up a desperate resistance for a while. However, news of Hou Gu's rebellion, the fall of Lanling, and the death of the Zhen Country quickly spread throughout the army. It seems that many in the army did indeed possess instant communication methods like Tie Fo's, leading to a complete collapse of morale within the Zhen army, with generals leading their troops away from the battlefield.

Meanwhile, the Divine Sect army, which had swiftly defeated Zhenjun, turned south and moved with incredible speed, seemingly with inside support, heading straight for Xunjun's garrison as if it had a complete map. Ruler of Xun Country, Lu Jie, fought desperately, but was suddenly attacked from behind by Nangong's defectors, resulting in a crushing defeat. Only Commander Lu Jie and his troops managed to fight their way out and escape the battlefield by sheer luck.

Thunder Department Wen Tianjun was also stunned by the Divine Cult's bizarre actions. Seeing the situation, he knew that he could not fight any longer. So he led his army to abandon the battle and retreat. He endured the pursuit of the Divine Cult army and the Nangong rebel army, paying a heavy price to cover the rear of the main army. He retreated for hundreds of miles, almost by blood, before gathering the remnants of the Xun Kingdom, Zhen Country, and Western Imperial Guards. He set up camp at the Jue Long Pass of the Kun Country, reorganized his troops, and held firm.

The exact number of troops lost by the Immortal Palace in this battle has not yet been tallied, but the decree from the Three Palaces has already arrived, angrily rebuking Wen Tianjun for underestimating the enemy and advancing recklessly, resulting in defeat and loss of territory. Wen Tianjun has been transferred from Conquering East General Who Conquers the East to Conquering West General, and is not allowed to return to the court until the Demonic Sect is defeated. Furthermore, 100,000 reinforcements have been immediately dispatched, and Sima Wen, the second son of the Grand Tutor Yangxiang Marquis, has been promoted to General of Anxi Pacifies the West and given the imperial insignia, stationed in Guanzhong, and commanding all the armies.

Well, although the world is in chaos, the Three Kings still refuse to admit defeat...

Honestly, Li Fan was numb today. He didn't even react to the news. His emotions were completely unmoved, literally...

The current situation is quite clear. After so much peace among the Three Great Sects, the faction of the Divine Cult was the first to make a move because they were indeed well-prepared.

Considering that the Divine Cult not only possesses the strength of Three Great Sects, but is also internally united, and has the assistance of the system's apostles, Li Fan was not at all surprised that it could achieve the current situation of completely dominating the Immortal Palace.

Ink Bamboo Mountain's overall strength might be slightly greater than that of Xun Kingdom and Zhen Country, enough to withstand the first wave of the Divine Sect's schemes. But once the Divine Sect defeats the Immortal Palace and launches a second and third wave of attacks, how can they possibly hold them off? Look at them now—they've even mobilized experts at the Enlightenment level, and that dog-killer Mountain Lord is already making arrangements for his own demise. Can they really possibly stop them?

Let's not even mention the Divine Sect anymore. Even the weakest Immortal Palace suffered such a crushing defeat in the Kun Country, yet in the blink of an eye, another 100,000 troops were brought out, showing no sign of stopping. After losing once in the Li Country, will the Divine Sect really give up...?

The Three Great Sects are still just the Three Great Sects...

This battle is bound to escalate, and everyone will be drawn in; no one can truly remain uninvolved.

This is what a chaotic world is like.

As expected, his strength is still insufficient. Although Li Fan estimates that he can refine the Limitless Nascent Soul Stage within four or five years and break through to the Divine Transformation within forty or fifty years, given the bloodshed of the internal strife among the Three Great Sects, he fears that Ink Bamboo Mountain might not last until then...

Sigh, let's not overthink it. Let's find a place to heal and level up first...