lǐ fán shuāng mù shǎn guò yī sī jīng guāng ， zài dù jiā dà le tūn shì de lì dù 。
李凡双目闪过一丝精光，再度加大了吞噬的力度。
Li Fan's eyes flashed with a sharp glint as he intensified his absorption.
zhè gǔ bēn xí wàn wàn lǐ ér zhì de dì mài zhī lì ， jìn shù liú rù lǐ fán tǐ nèi 。
这股奔袭万万里而至的地脉之力，尽数流入李凡体内。
This pulse of energy, traversing countless miles, flowed entirely into Li Fan’s body.
lǐ fán sì hū dōu yǐn yǐn tīng dào ， zì jǐ shēn tǐ nèi bù ， chuán lái de pèng zhuàng hōng míng zhī shēng 。
李凡似乎都隐隐听到，自己身体内部，传来的碰撞轰鸣之声。
It seemed that Li Fan could even faintly hear the collision and rumbling sounds within his body.
jiù zài zhè zhǒng xiāng hù jué lì zhī zhōng ， fǎng fú yǒu shén me dōng xī zài màn màn pò suì 。
就在这种相互角力之中，仿佛有什么东西在慢慢破碎。
Amidst this mutual struggle, something appeared to be slowly breaking apart.
ěr biān hǎo xiàng chuán lái le qīng cuì de suì liè zhī shēng 。
耳边好像传来了清脆的碎裂之声。
A clear sound of shattering echoed in his ears.
piàn kè zhī hòu 。
片刻之后。
After a moment,
lǐ fán de xiū wèi yī lù gāo gē měng jìn ， qì shì bù duàn pān shēng 。 zhǎ yǎn de gōng fu ， jiù cóng gāng gāng tū pò jīn dān zhōng qī bù jiǔ ， cháo zhe jīn dān hòu qī yī lù jìn fā 。
李凡的修为一路高歌勐进，气势不断攀升。眨眼的功夫，就从刚刚突破金丹中期不久，朝着金丹后期一路进发。
Li Fan's cultivation soared rapidly. His aura continued to rise. In an instant, he advanced from just having broken through Golden Core中期不久 to the late stage.
jiù zài zhè shí ……
就在这时……
At that moment...
lǐ fán hū de gǎn jué yuán běn hái yǒu diǎn guāng liàng de hǎi dǐ chè dǐ hēi àn xià lái 。
李凡忽的感觉原本还有点光亮的海底彻底黑暗下来。
Suddenly, Li Fan felt the once somewhat bright underwater world turn completely dark.
bù jǐn jǐn shì shì yě shàng de hēi àn 。
不仅仅是视野上的黑暗。
Not only was there darkness in his vision, but a sense of space being sealed off.
ér qiě shì kōng jiān bèi fēng suǒ de yōu bì gǎn 。
而且是空间被封锁的幽闭感。
Without pausing his absorption, Li Fan looked up.
méi yǒu zàn tíng tūn shì de dòng zuò ， lǐ fán tóng shí tái tóu wàng qù 。
没有暂停吞噬的动作，李凡同时抬头望去。
He saw a massive palm suddenly appear above him, overshadowing everything and pressing down.
zhǐ jiàn yī zhī jù zhǎng bù zhī hé shí chū xiàn zài zì jǐ de tóu dǐng 。
只见一只巨掌不知何时出现在自己的头顶。
Li Fan appeared insignificant before this palm, like an ant.
zhē bì yī qiè 、 dāng tóu yā xià 。
遮蔽一切、当头压下。
"F*ck!"
lǐ fán zài qí miàn qián ， miǎo xiǎo wǎn ruò lóu yǐ 。
李凡在其面前，渺小宛若蝼蚁。
Seeing this powerful entity that had come from nowhere, Li Fan cursed in his heart.
“ cǎo ！”
“艹！”
However, his clone was currently operating the "吞天食地大法" (Devour Heaven and Earth Technique), as if it had eaten a bear's or leopard’s胆. Facing such a terrifying palm, he showed no fear at all.
kàn zhe zhè bù zhī cóng hé ér lái de dà néng ， lǐ fán xīn zhōng àn mà 。
看着这不知从何而来的大能，李凡心中暗骂。
Instead, he opened his mouth, trying to swallow this giant palm!
bù guò fēn shēn cǐ kè yùn zhuàn zhèng zài “ tūn tiān shí dì dà fǎ ”， hǎo bǐ chī le xióng xīn bào zi dǎn ， miàn duì zhè kān chēng kǒng bù de jù zhǎng ， jū rán háo bù wèi jù 。
不过分身此刻运转正在“吞天食地大法”，好比吃了熊心豹子胆，面对这堪称恐怖的巨掌，居然毫不畏惧。
The result?
fǎn dào shì zhāng zuǐ ， xiǎng yào yě bǎ zhè jù zhǎng gěi tūn diào ！
反倒是张嘴，想要也把这巨掌给吞掉！
Of course, there was none other than the next moment, Li Fan lost contact with his clone.
jié guǒ me ……
结果么……
Fortunately, this mysterious entity did not seem to delve deeper.
zì rán háo wú yí wèn de 。
自然毫无疑问的。
It did not follow up and find Li Fan's true self here.
xià yī kè ， lǐ fán shī qù le hé fēn shēn de lián xì 。
下一刻，李凡失去了和分身的联系。
Otherwise, it would have forced him into a true test of strength again.
bù xìng zhōng de wàn xìng shì ， zhè wèi mò míng chū shǒu de cún zài ， sì hū bìng méi yǒu shēn jiū de yì si 。
不幸中的万幸是，这位莫名出手的存在，似乎并没有深究的意思。
Li Fan carefully recalled when that giant hand appeared.
méi yǒu shùn téng mō guā ， zhǎo dào lǐ fán běn zūn zhè lǐ 。
没有顺藤摸瓜，找到李凡本尊这里。
"Seems like because I forcibly broke through the Heavenly Constraint, it triggered some kind of countermeasure?"
fǒu zé ， pà bú shì yòu yào bèi pò hái zhēn le 。
否则，怕不是又要被迫还真了。
"Is it a response from heaven and earth, or..."
lǐ fán zǐ xì huí xiǎng zhe gāng gāng nà zhǐ jù shǒu chū xiàn de shí jī 。
李凡仔细回想着刚刚那只巨手出现的时机。
With a slight frown, Li Fan’s mind crystal emitted blue light.
“ sì hū shì yīn wèi ， wǒ qiáng xíng tū pò le tiān zhī è cái yǐn lái de ？”
“似乎是因为，我强行突破了天之厄才引来的？”
Just before his clone was crushed, he had actually absorbed a bit of energy using the Devour Heaven and Earth Technique.
“ shì tiān dì de fǎn zhì shǒu duàn ， hái shì ……”
“是天地的反制手段，还是……”
If the opponent were a cultivator, there would be no way for Li Fan to do this.
wēi wēi zhòu méi ， lǐ fán nǎo hǎi zhōng huà dào shí jīng tǐ zhàn fàng chū lán sè guāng máng 。
微微皱眉，李凡脑海中化道石晶体绽放出蓝色光芒。
Revisiting that thread of energy, Li Fan pondered deeply.
zài fēn shēn bèi niǎn suì de qián yī chà nà ， shǐ yòng tūn tiān shí dì dà fǎ de tā ， hái zhēn de cóng nà zhǐ jù shǒu shàng ， xī qǔ dào le yī sī néng liàng 。
在分身被碾碎的前一刹那，使用吞天食地大法的他，还真的从那只巨手上，吸取到了一丝能量。
"It feels more like pure rule power."
rú guǒ duì fāng shì wèi xiū shì ， háo wú yí wèn lǐ fán shì gēn běn wú fǎ zuò dào zhè diǎn de 。
如果对方是位修士，毫无疑问李凡是根本无法做到这点的。
"From this perspective, it seems similar to Chapter Senior Brother's宏愿法身 (Great Will Power Body)."
bù duàn huí wèi zhe nà lǚ néng liàng de wèi dào ， lǐ fán ruò yǒu suǒ sī 。
不断回味着那缕能量的味道，李凡若有所思。
"Usually not visible in the world, only appearing under specific circumstances..."
“ gèng xiàng shì chún cuì de guī zé zhī lì 。”
“更像是纯粹的规则之力。”
"I originally thought I could use the Devour Heaven and Earth Technique to raise my clone’s Golden Core圆满 first, accumulating experience for breakthroughs into Foundation Establishment. Who would have thought that this would bring such a sudden misfortune."
“ zhè me kàn lái ， sì hū gēn zhāng shī xiōng de hóng yuàn fǎ shēn yǒu xiē lèi sì 。”
“这么看来，似乎跟章师兄的宏愿法身有些类似。”
"Fortunately, it was just my clone."
“ píng shí bù xiǎn yú shì ， dōu shì huì zài tè dìng qíng kuàng xià chū shǒu ……”
“平时不显于世，都是会在特定情况下出手……”
Li Fan sighed inwardly, having long adapted to the dangers of the Xuanhuang Realm.
“ yuán běn hái xiǎng zhe yòng 【 tūn tiān shí dì dà fǎ 】 bǎ fēn shēn xiū wèi xiān yī bù tí gāo de jīn dān yuán mǎn ， jī lěi tū pò yuán yīng de jīng yàn 。 shuí céng xiǎng zhè dōu néng zāo yù fēi lái hèng huò 。”
“原本还想着用【吞天食地大法】把分身修为先一步提高的金丹圆满，积累突破元婴的经验。谁曾想这都能遭遇飞来横祸。”
He quietly left Ten Thousand Immortals Island and found an uninhabited place, expending effort to recreate "Zhou Qingang".
“ hái hǎo zhǐ shì fēn shēn 。”
“还好只是分身。”
His clone nodded slightly before bidding farewell to his true self, heading towards the scene.
lǐ fán àn tàn yī shēng ， yǐ rán xí guàn le xuán huáng jiè wēi jī sì fú 。
李凡暗叹一声，已然习惯了玄黄界危机四伏。
It wanted to see what that palm from above had done to the sea after it struck.
qiǎo rán chū le wàn xiān dǎo ， xún le yī wú rén zhī chù ， fèi le fān gōng fu ， yòu chóng xīn jiāng “ zhōu qīng áng ” niē le chū lái 。
悄然出了万仙岛，寻了一无人之处，废了番功夫，又重新将“周青昂”捏了出来。
Not long after, Li Fan returned to the site.
fēn shēn wēi wēi diǎn tóu ， gào bié běn zūn ， cháo zhe shì fā dì gǎn qù 。
分身微微点头，告别本尊，朝着事发地赶去。
To his surprise, the surface was calm with light winds and clear skies. There were no signs of any disaster.
xiǎng yào kàn kàn zāo shòu nà cóng tiān ér jiàng de yī zhǎng hòu ， gāng gāng nà chù hǎi yù huì biàn chéng shén me yàng zi 。
想要看看遭受那从天而降的一掌后，刚刚那处海域会变成什么样子。
It seemed as if everything that happened just now was merely an illusion.
bù duō shí ， lǐ fán chóng fǎn xiàn chǎng 。
不多时，李凡重返现场。
Li Fan pondered for a moment before diving into the water.
ràng tā dà gǎn yì wài de shì ， hǎi miàn fēng píng làng jìng ， tiān kōng yún dàn fēng qīng 。
让他大感意外的是，海面风平浪静，天空云澹风轻。
When he saw the underwater scenery clearly, his pupils constricted sharply.
méi yǒu sī háo zāi huò jiàng lín de yàng zi 。
没有丝毫灾祸降临的样子。
The sunken island ruins had vanished.
sì hū gāng gāng fā shēng de yī qiè ， zhǐ shì tā de cuò jué yì bān 。
似乎刚刚发生的一切，只是他的错觉一般。
In their place was ordinary sea bed mud and sand.
lǐ fán chén yín piàn kè ， qián rù hǎi zhōng 。
李凡沉吟片刻，潜入海中。
Not pure destruction but a complete erasure of existence!
dāng kàn qīng le hǎi dǐ de jǐng sè shí ， tóng kǒng bù jīn zhòu rán shōu suō 。
当看清了海底的景色时，童孔不禁骤然收缩。
Deeply staring, Zhou Qingang returned to Tai’an Island silently, hiding himself again.
yuán běn de chén mò hǎi dǎo fèi xū yǐ jīng bù fù cún zài 。
原本的沉没海岛废墟已经不复存在。
In the Heavenly Mirror,
qǔ ér dài zhī de ， shì kàn shàng qù hé pǔ tōng hǎi chuáng yì bān wú èr de ní shā 。
取而代之的，是看上去和普通海床一般无二的泥沙。
Li Fan, using his clone’s eyes, observed the result after the palm struck. He pondered deeply.
bú shì chún cuì de pò huài ， gèng xiàng shì chè dǐ mǒ qù cún zài de hén jì ！
不是纯粹的破坏，更像是彻底抹去存在的痕迹！
"Because I forcibly broke through the Heavenly Constraint and violated some taboo, it's being erased."
shēn shēn dì níng shì le yǎn ， zhōu qīng áng bù dòng shēng sè de chóng xīn fǎn huí le tài ān dǎo ， lǎo shí zhé fú qǐ lái 。
深深地凝视了眼，周青昂不动声色的重新返回了泰安岛，老实蛰伏起来。
"And everything happened in complete silence."
tiān xuán jìng zhōng 。
天玄镜中。
"What if I could survive that strike?"
jiè zhù fēn shēn zhī yǎn ， kàn qīng le jù zhǎng pāi jī hòu de jié guǒ ， lǐ fán ruò yǒu suǒ sī 。
借助分身之眼，看清了巨掌拍击后的结果，李凡若有所思。
"Would there be no more bottlenecks? Of course, a more terrifying existence might appear as well."
“ yīn wèi qiáng xíng dǎ pò tiān zhī è ， chù fàn le mǒu zhǒng jìn jì ， suǒ yǐ yào qí mǒ xiāo me 。”
“因为强行打破天之厄，触犯了某种禁忌，所以要其抹消么。”
The thought of suicide only lasted for a moment before Li Fan dismissed it.
“ bìng qiě yī qiè dōu shì zài qiāo wú shēng xī jiān fā shēng 。”
“并且一切都是在悄无声息间发生。”
"But in the previous life, after some time, the Heavenly Constraint would mysteriously vanish. I wonder what caused this."
“ rú guǒ néng cóng nà yī zhǎng zhōng huó xià lái ， yòu huì rú hé ？”
“如果能从那一掌中活下来，又会如何？”
After being suppressed by that sudden appearance of the palm, Li Fan abandoned his plan to have his clone cultivate.
“ huì bú huì cóng cǐ méi yǒu píng jǐng de kùn rǎo le ？ dāng rán ， hái yǒu kě néng huì yǐn lái gèng jiā kě bù de cún zài 。”
“会不会从此没有瓶颈的困扰了？当然，还有可能会引来更加可怖的存在。”
He would still be a tool, sacrificing himself when needed.
zuò sǐ de niàn tou zhǐ chí xù le piàn kè ， jiù bèi lǐ fán dǎ xiāo le 。
作死的念头只持续了片刻，就被李凡打消了。
Since his attempt to gain early insights into Foundation Establishment through his clone failed, Li Fan could only settle for purchasing related experiences from the Heavenly Mirror.
“ bù guò ， shàng yī shì ， zài guò xiē rì zi ， tiān zhī è huì zì xíng mò míng xiāo shī 。 bù zhī dào yòu shì hé yuán yīn 。”
“不过，上一世，再过些日子，天之厄会自行莫名消失。不知道又是何原因。”
Everyone's insights were different but reasonable. There was no clear superiority or inferiority among them.
jīng guò zhè tū rán chū xiàn jù zhǎng de zhèn yā ， lǐ fán fàng qì le ràng fēn shēn yě xiū xíng de dǎ suàn 。
经过这突然出现巨掌的镇压，李凡放弃了让分身也修行的打算。
Li Fan had deep pockets and bought everything, carefully studying each one.
hái shì lǎo lǎo shí shí dāng gè gōng jù rén ， guān jiàn shí hòu sòng sǐ tuō shēn ba 。
还是老老实实当个工具人，关键时候送死脱身吧。
Time passed as Li Fan cultivated while pondering these insights.
jì rán tōng guò fēn shēn tí qián gǎn wù jié yīng de qǐ tú shī bài le ， lǐ fán zhǐ dé tuì ér qiú qí cì ， cóng tiān xuán jìng zhōng gòu mǎi xiāng guān jīng yàn zǒng jié le 。
既然通过分身提前感悟结婴的企图失败了，李凡只得退而求其次，从天玄镜中购买相关经验总结了。
Soon, it was time to fulfill his second investment agreement with He Zhenghao.
měi gè rén de gǎn wù dōu dà bù xiāng tóng ， què gè zì yán zhī yǒu lǐ ， bìng wú duō shǎo yōu liè zhī fēn 。
每个人的感悟都大不相同，却各自言之有理，并无多少优劣之分。
Due to the good start last time, He Zhenghao’s harvest this time wasn’t bad. He raised a total of 550,000 contribution points.
lǐ fán cái dà qì cū ， bǎi nà bǎi chuān ， tōng tōng mǎi huí lái zǐ xì yán dú 。
李凡财大气粗，百纳百川，通通买回来仔细研读。
After confirming with Li Fan, He Zhenghao immediately transferred the contribution points over and added his own 100,000 contribution points.
shí jiān jiù zài lǐ fán yī biān xiū xíng ， yī biān cān wù zhōng huǎn huǎn liú shì 。
时间就在李凡一边修行，一边参悟中缓缓流逝。
"One million in one year," Li Fan said succinctly.
hěn kuài ， jiù dào le gēn hé zhèng hào yuē dìng de dì èr cì tóu zī shí jiān 。
很快，就到了跟何正浩约定的第二次投资时间。
He Zhenghao was overjoyed, spouting a string of compliments.
yóu yú shàng cì kāi le gè bù cuò de tóu ， hé zhèng hào cǐ fān de shōu huò hái bú cuò ， zǒng gòng mù jí le wǔ shí wǔ wàn de gòng xiàn dù 。
由于上次开了个不错的头，何正浩此番的收获还不错，总共募集了五十五万的贡献度。
Li Fan didn’t bother listening; he simply ended the communication.
gēn lǐ fán què rèn zhī hòu ， hé zhèng hào dāng jí bǎ gòng xiàn dù zhuǎn le guò lái 。
跟李凡确认之后，何正浩当即把贡献度转了过来。
Meanwhile, he looked at the list of contributors.
tóng shí ， yě jiā shàng le tā běn rén de shí wàn gòng xiàn dù 。
同时，也加上了他本人的十万贡献度。
What caught his attention was that the cultivator named Zhou Peng still dominated.
“ yī nián zhī hòu ， yì bǎi wàn gòng xiàn dù 。” lǐ fán yán jiǎn yì gāi dào 。
“一年之后，一百万贡献度。”李凡言简意赅道。
"Interesting, so much confidence in me? Afraid I’ll run off with the money?"
hé zhèng hào xǐ bù zì shèng ， yī lián chuàn de gōng wéi zhī yán tuō kǒu ér chū 。
何正浩喜不自胜，一连串的恭维之言脱口而出。
"And why do so many Foundation Establishment cultivators contribute such a large amount? Where did they get it from?"
lǐ fán lǎn de qù tīng ， zhí jiē guà duàn tōng xùn 。
李凡懒得去听，直接挂断通讯。
This person had been mentioned by He Zhenghao occasionally in his previous lives.
tóng shí kàn qǐ le cǐ cì mù jí rén yuán de míng dān 。
同时看起了此次募集人员的名单。
He was often one of He Zhenghao’s close friends, discussing investment strategies.
ràng tā yǒu xiē zài yì de shì ， míng wèi zhōu péng de xiū shì ， yī rán zhàn jù dà tóu 。
让他有些在意的是，名为周鹏的修士，依然占据大头。
There seemed to be some connection with a certain cultivator at the Heavenly Mechanism Hall, making him well-informed and often leading people to make small profits.
“ yǒu yì si ， jiù duì wǒ zhè me yǒu xìn xīn ？ bù pà wǒ juǎn qián pǎo lù me ？”
“有意思，就对我这么有信心？不怕我卷钱跑路么？”
So he had considerable influence within their small group.
“ ér qiě gēn hé zhèng hào yī yàng de zhù jī xiū shì ， zhè me duō gòng xiàn dù ， yòu shì cóng hé ér lái ？”
“而且跟何正浩一样的筑基修士，这么多贡献度，又是从何而来？”
In his previous lives, He Zhenghao’s efforts to hype Spirit Fog Grass had been helped by this person.
cǐ rén ， qián shì lǐ fán yě céng tīng hé zhèng hào ǒu ěr tí qǐ guò 。
此人，前世李凡也曾听何正浩偶尔提起过。
"Hmph. Regardless of what's going on, I’m not afraid. Let’s just observe for now."
shì jīng cháng hé tā jù zài yì qǐ ， tǎo lùn tóu zī zhī dào de hǎo yǒu 。
是经常和他聚在一起，讨论投资之道的好友。
Li Fan looked at his balance of over six million contribution points and chuckled inwardly.
sì hū gēn tiān jī táng de mǒu wèi xiū shì guān xì fěi qiǎn ， gù xiāo xī líng tōng ， wǎng wǎng dōu néng dài lǐng dà jiā xiǎo zhuàn yī bǐ 。
似乎跟天机堂的某位修士关系匪浅，故消息灵通，往往都能带领大家小赚一笔。
So many contribution points were enough to continue his charade as a tiger.
suǒ yǐ zài tā men de nà ge xiǎo tuán tǐ zhōng ， pǒ yǒu wēi xìn 。
所以在他们的那个小团体中，颇有威信。
Moreover, the Spirit Fog Grass incident was about to occur.
qián jǐ shì ， hé zhèng hào dǎ suàn chǎo zuò líng wù cǎo ， jiù yǒu cǐ rén de jǐ fān gōng láo 。
前几世，何正浩打算炒作灵雾草，就有此人的几番功劳。
These contribution points would need to be multiplied several times.
“ hēng ， bù guǎn yǒu shén me míng táng ， wǒ què bù jù 。 gū qiě guān zhī jiù shì 。”
“哼，不管有什么名堂，我却不惧。姑且观之就是。”
"The only concern is that such a large transaction might attract some prying eyes."
lǐ fán kàn le kàn zì jǐ liù bǎi duō wàn gòng xiàn dù de yú é ， xīn zhōng lěng xiào 。
李凡看了看自己六百多万贡献度的余额，心中冷笑。
"It's time to check on Little Brother Tianyang’s recovery."
zhè me duō de gòng xiàn dù ， zú gòu zài jiāng hǔ pí chě yī zhèn le 。
这么多的贡献度，足够再将虎皮扯一阵了。
With this thought, Li Fan quietly entered the Dao Realm.
kuàng qiě ， líng wù cǎo shì jiàn jí jiāng lái lín 。
况且，灵雾草事件即将来临。
Tianyang was quietly absorbing energy in the array, replenishing himself.
zhè xiē gòng xiàn dù ， hái yào fān shàng shù bèi 。
这些贡献度，还要翻上数倍。
He showed no signs of expecting Li Fan’s arrival.
“ wéi yī dān xīn de ， jiù shì jiāo yì shù mù rú cǐ jù dà ， nán miǎn yǐn qǐ yǒu xīn rén de kuī tàn 。”
“唯一担心的，就是交易数目如此巨大，难免引起有心人的窥探。”
Li Fan checked the progress.
“ shì shí hòu qù kàn kàn tiān yáng xiǎo shī dì huī fù de zěn me yàng le 。”
“是时候去看看天阳小师弟恢复的怎么样了。”
"Almost there."
zhè me xiǎng zhe ， lǐ fán qiǎo rán lái dào le shēn huà dào zhōng 。
这么想着，李凡悄然来到了身化道中。
"Atmospheric Power in the Congyun Sea should be fine."
tiān yáng ān ān jìng jìng de dài zài zhèn fǎ zhōng ， jí qǔ néng liàng ， bǔ quán zì shēn 。
天阳安安静静的待在阵法中，汲取能量，补全自身。
"But outside the Congyun Sea..."
duì yú lǐ fán de dào lái ， sī háo méi yǒu zuò chū fáng bèi de yì si 。
对于李凡的到来，丝毫没有做出防备的意思。
Li Fan looked at Tianyang, his gaze showing a hint of hesitation.
Li Fan's eyes flashed with a sharp glint as he intensified his absorption.
This pulse of energy, traversing countless miles, flowed entirely into Li Fan’s body.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
It seemed that Li Fan could even faintly hear the collision and rumbling sounds within his body.
Amidst this mutual struggle, something appeared to be slowly breaking apart.
A clear sound of shattering echoed in his ears.
After a moment,
Li Fan's cultivation soared rapidly. His aura continued to rise. In an instant, he advanced from just having broken through Golden Core中期不久 to the late stage.
At that moment...
Suddenly, Li Fan felt the once somewhat bright underwater world turn completely dark.
Not only was there darkness in his vision, but a sense of space being sealed off.
Without pausing his absorption, Li Fan looked up.
He saw a massive palm suddenly appear above him, overshadowing everything and pressing down.
Li Fan appeared insignificant before this palm, like an ant.
"F*ck!"
Seeing this powerful entity that had come from nowhere, Li Fan cursed in his heart.
However, his clone was currently operating the "吞天食地大法" (Devour Heaven and Earth Technique), as if it had eaten a bear's or leopard’s胆. Facing such a terrifying palm, he showed no fear at all.
Instead, he opened his mouth, trying to swallow this giant palm!
The result?
Of course, there was none other than the next moment, Li Fan lost contact with his clone.
Fortunately, this mysterious entity did not seem to delve deeper.
It did not follow up and find Li Fan's true self here.
Otherwise, it would have forced him into a true test of strength again.
Li Fan carefully recalled when that giant hand appeared.
"Seems like because I forcibly broke through the Heavenly Constraint, it triggered some kind of countermeasure?"
"Is it a response from heaven and earth, or..."
With a slight frown, Li Fan’s mind crystal emitted blue light.
Just before his clone was crushed, he had actually absorbed a bit of energy using the Devour Heaven and Earth Technique.
If the opponent were a cultivator, there would be no way for Li Fan to do this.
Revisiting that thread of energy, Li Fan pondered deeply.
"It feels more like pure rule power."
"From this perspective, it seems similar to Chapter Senior Brother's宏愿法身 (Great Will Power Body)."
"Usually not visible in the world, only appearing under specific circumstances..."
"I originally thought I could use the Devour Heaven and Earth Technique to raise my clone’s Golden Core圆满 first, accumulating experience for breakthroughs into Foundation Establishment. Who would have thought that this would bring such a sudden misfortune."
"Fortunately, it was just my clone."
Li Fan sighed inwardly, having long adapted to the dangers of the Xuanhuang Realm.
He quietly left Ten Thousand Immortals Island and found an uninhabited place, expending effort to recreate "Zhou Qingang".
His clone nodded slightly before bidding farewell to his true self, heading towards the scene.
It wanted to see what that palm from above had done to the sea after it struck.
Not long after, Li Fan returned to the site.
To his surprise, the surface was calm with light winds and clear skies. There were no signs of any disaster.
It seemed as if everything that happened just now was merely an illusion.
Li Fan pondered for a moment before diving into the water.
When he saw the underwater scenery clearly, his pupils constricted sharply.
The sunken island ruins had vanished.
In their place was ordinary sea bed mud and sand.
Not pure destruction but a complete erasure of existence!
Deeply staring, Zhou Qingang returned to Tai’an Island silently, hiding himself again.
In the Heavenly Mirror,
Li Fan, using his clone’s eyes, observed the result after the palm struck. He pondered deeply.
"Because I forcibly broke through the Heavenly Constraint and violated some taboo, it's being erased."
"And everything happened in complete silence."
"What if I could survive that strike?"
"Would there be no more bottlenecks? Of course, a more terrifying existence might appear as well."
The thought of suicide only lasted for a moment before Li Fan dismissed it.
"But in the previous life, after some time, the Heavenly Constraint would mysteriously vanish. I wonder what caused this."
After being suppressed by that sudden appearance of the palm, Li Fan abandoned his plan to have his clone cultivate.
He would still be a tool, sacrificing himself when needed.
Since his attempt to gain early insights into Foundation Establishment through his clone failed, Li Fan could only settle for purchasing related experiences from the Heavenly Mirror.
Everyone's insights were different but reasonable. There was no clear superiority or inferiority among them.
Li Fan had deep pockets and bought everything, carefully studying each one.
Time passed as Li Fan cultivated while pondering these insights.
Soon, it was time to fulfill his second investment agreement with He Zhenghao.
Due to the good start last time, He Zhenghao’s harvest this time wasn’t bad. He raised a total of 550,000 contribution points.
After confirming with Li Fan, He Zhenghao immediately transferred the contribution points over and added his own 100,000 contribution points.
"One million in one year," Li Fan said succinctly.
He Zhenghao was overjoyed, spouting a string of compliments.
Li Fan didn’t bother listening; he simply ended the communication.
Meanwhile, he looked at the list of contributors.
What caught his attention was that the cultivator named Zhou Peng still dominated.
"Interesting, so much confidence in me? Afraid I’ll run off with the money?"
"And why do so many Foundation Establishment cultivators contribute such a large amount? Where did they get it from?"
This person had been mentioned by He Zhenghao occasionally in his previous lives.
He was often one of He Zhenghao’s close friends, discussing investment strategies.
There seemed to be some connection with a certain cultivator at the Heavenly Mechanism Hall, making him well-informed and often leading people to make small profits.
So he had considerable influence within their small group.
In his previous lives, He Zhenghao’s efforts to hype Spirit Fog Grass had been helped by this person.
"Hmph. Regardless of what's going on, I’m not afraid. Let’s just observe for now."
Li Fan looked at his balance of over six million contribution points and chuckled inwardly.
So many contribution points were enough to continue his charade as a tiger.
Moreover, the Spirit Fog Grass incident was about to occur.
These contribution points would need to be multiplied several times.
"The only concern is that such a large transaction might attract some prying eyes."
"It's time to check on Little Brother Tianyang’s recovery."
With this thought, Li Fan quietly entered the Dao Realm.
Tianyang was quietly absorbing energy in the array, replenishing himself.
He showed no signs of expecting Li Fan’s arrival.
Li Fan checked the progress.
"Almost there."
"Atmospheric Power in the Congyun Sea should be fine."
"But outside the Congyun Sea..."
Li Fan looked at Tianyang, his gaze showing a hint of hesitation.