Chapter 541: 513

After a weary journey, Li Fan returned to the sect with Sister Zhao, only to be greatly shocked by the scene within.

The disciples of the sect, cloaked in white mourners’ clothes, wore sadness on their faces.

Hurried inquiries revealed the cause of their distress.

Fang Dinge, the leader of the Great Taoist Sect, an Immortal Expert, had fallen.

A deep sense of shock and bewilderment filled the hearts of Li Fan and Sister Zhao.

The Immortal Sovereign was the strongest entity in this realm, and as the leader of one of the Immortal Dao Ten Clans, Fang Dinge, was so accomplished that his depth of cultivation was unfathomable.

Even among the Immortal Sovereigns, he was renowned as one of the best.

How could such a person just…disappear?

As their understanding deepened, the absurdity and mystery of the situation intensified.

Not just the cause of Fang Dinge’s death, but even his body was nowhere to be found.

It was less a fall, and more like…

A disappearance.

However, the shattering of his life lamp within the sect was undeniable proof of his passing.

No amount of questioning or resentment could alter this reality.

In fact, this news was only revealed after intense discussions among the elders within the sect.

This incident was too massive to be kept hidden.

Because it was not only Fang Dinge of the Great Taoist Sect who had disappeared.

Supreme, Heavenly Sword, Salvation, Beast Tamer…

It was said that Immortal Experts from these sects had also fallen.

This shocking news spread swiftly despite the stringent lockdown by the Ten Great Immortal Sects.

So many Immortal Experts meticulously concealed, all fallen.

Who could have done such a thing?

Li Fan and Sister Zhao immediately thought of the [Transmit Technique].

Because those who disappeared were the very Immortal Sovereigns who had agreed to assassinate the [Transmit Technique] together over twenty years ago.

Now that they were all dead, the most likely suspect was Dharma Transmission Immortal Elders from the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals.

But this reasoning didn’t make any sense.

If the [Transmit Technique] has not yet ascended to the Immortal Realm and he really had sufficient strength to slay the Immortal with the Unity-Path,

then he should have proposed the overthrow of the Immortal Dao Ten Clans to the cultivators from all over the world after his glorious victory.

However, the Dharma Transmission Immortal Elders had only shown up at the beginning of the Transmission as well as rare moments. For the rest, they vanished, whereabouts unknown, supremely mysterious.

Or could it have been that, after slaying the Immortal Sovereigns of the Immortal Dao Ten Clans, the Dharma Transmission himself had suffered severe injuries and had to go into hibernation?

Even so, he could have announced his heroic act to the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals, boosting their morale.

To Li Fan’s knowledge, though, the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals seemed quite shocked by the mass disappearance of the Immortal Sovereigns. They appeared to know nothing about it.

This incident, from beginning to end, was shrouded in mystery and absurdity.

Li Fan and Sister Zhao were stunned upon hearing the news and took quite a while to recover.

The Immortal Realm that they’d been striving for, so easily shattered and fallen?

How was it any different from an ordinary cultivator?

Did their cultivation still hold any meaning?

In their endless confusion, they spent several days immersed in dual cultivation before they finally regained their composure.

“This may not be as simple as it looks. I believe they have broken their shackles and transcended this realm instead of just ‘falling’,” Sister Zhao, wearing a solemn expression, said slowly.”Shackles?” This was the first time Li Fan had heard of this concept, and he asked in curiosity.

“Many years ago, my master casually mentioned this to me.” Sister Zhao furrowed her eyebrows, struggling to recall.

“I asked my master what true freedom was and if attaining immortality would mean we’re free. After a long pause, he sighed and said, ‘Heaven binds all living beings. No one can escape it. Even Immortal Experts are trapped. When the Immortal Dao Ten Sects overthrew the Mystic Sky Sect, they didn’t completely overthrow it.’ I wanted to ask more, but he didn’t want to discuss it further.”

Li Fan was stunned: “Even Immortal Experts aren’t really free?”

Seeing how lost Li Fan was, Sister Zhao comforted him, “Perhaps their collective disappearance is a blessing in disguise. At least it shows that an Immortal Expert may really break free from his shackles and truly transcend.”

After considering it for a long time, Li Fan finally nodded: “Sister, when the time comes, let’s gain enlightenment together, transcend this realm, and forever live a wanderer’s free life. It will be a legendary love story in the Xuanhuang World.”

Sister Zhao’s face flushed a little.

As love blossomed, the two again immersed themselves in dual cultivation.

—————–

The disappearance of the Immortal Sovereigns was an event that greatly changed the dynamics within the Xuanhuang World.

Once the funeral arrangements were completed, the sect fell into a struggle for succession.

This incident was too sudden, so sudden that even Fang Dinge himself probably hadn’t anticipated his own disappearance. As a result, the next sect leader’s seat remained unoccupied.

As for Fang Dinge’s official disciple, his cultivation was only at the God-Transforming level. How could he undertake the heavy responsibility of leading the sect?

After the two surviving Immortal realm elders in the sect announced their unwillingness to take on the position, it naturally led to infighting among the cultivators below.

This fighting was inevitable.

Zhang Wangshuang, Sister Zhao’s master, had already broken through to the Unity Realm in recent years. Naturally, he harbored ambitions to succeed as the sect leader.

But the struggle for power was often brutal.

A year later, the dust finally settled.

Zhang Wangshuang was regretfully defeated due to his inadequate standing within the sect.

Ji Changxi, from the Tianchen division, succeeded as the leader of the Great Taoist Sect.

Though the internal strife didn’t lead to outright death matches, it inevitably drained a great deal of their vitality.

Upon assuming leadership, Ji Changxi didn’t instigate any radical reforms. Instead, he focused on resting and recuperating their strength.

In order to address the steadily declining numbers of disciples within the sect, he issued a special order, easing the requirements for the promotion of external disciples, organizing a large competition among the disciples every three years and making a disciple’s training result a significant assessment criterion.

In these circumstances, Sister Zhao, who was consistently victorious in the grand competition, gradually became the brightest gem among the disciples of the Great Taoist Sect.

In contrast, Li Fan, who often faced defeat, seemed to blend into the crowd.

The most beautiful gem can only belong to the most heroic of men.

A mediocre performer like Li Fan always trailing behind Sister Zhao naturally drew an immense amount of discontent among the sect’s disciples.

Many folks ignored Li Fan’s existence and relentlessly pursued Sister Zhao.

Even Zhang Wangshuang, who had been initially friendly to Li Fan, gradually changed his attitude.

Noticing this crisis, Li Fan made a decisive move.

On a sunny afternoon, he proposed to Sister Zhao.

Without any earthly treasures or magical tools.

He simply gazes deeply into her eyes and said: “Sister, become my Dao companion. From now on, we will hold hands and seek immortality together.”

Without any hesitation, Sister Zhao agreed.