Chapter 216: Patiently Revisiting the Past (Combined Chapter)(3.5k+ words)

Leaving the mountain peak.

The spontaneous protection from **Still Real** allowed Li Fan to escape from the gaze of the Heavenly Doctor and successfully return to the anchor point.

The illusory scene turned real again, and Li Fan quickly scanned his surroundings, confirming that he had returned to the third anchor point.

Only then did he let out a sigh of relief.

After the moment of peril brought by the old man with white hair, the fear finally arrived.

This sudden realization caused his heart to beat violently, as if he had just surfaced after being submerged for a long time, and Li Fan uncontrollably took deep breaths.

After a while, he slowly emerged from the fear of escaping disaster.

"Heavenly Doctor, above the Dao of Harmony..."

Replaying the scene in his mind, Li Fan's face darkened.

He never expected that the strength of this **Heavenly Doctor** would be so terrifying.

Far surpassing the black-clothed Dao of Harmony practitioner in the Source Dao Province.

The Heavenly Doctor seemed to be able to see through people's thoughts.

At that moment, the thought that flashed naturally in the clone's mind was actually sensed by him.

What's even more frightening is that, by some unknown method, he made the clone confess everything in his heart without any resistance or concealment.

The resurrection afterward, tearing through space in an instant, finding the location of Li Fan's main body—all these methods far exceeded Li Fan's current understanding.

"The *Stealing Heaven and Changing Sun Decision*, the main body and the clone can be regarded as two unrelated individuals."

"How did he determine my identity?"

"When I joined the Myriad Immortals Alliance, the Heavenly Mirror also mentioned that practicing in the mirror space would be completely safe and free from attacks."

"But this Heavenly Doctor was able to forcibly intrude into my cultivation space, and the Heavenly Mirror showed no reaction to it."

"When the Heavenly Mirror introduced him, it didn't even mention his name."

"What is the identity of this old man?"

The more Li Fan thought about it, the more unbelievable it seemed.

At the same time, waves of fear welled up in his heart.

If he hadn't been cautious, knowing the terrifying strength of this old man and always interacting with him through the clone.

If he hadn't noticed something was wrong and immediately activated **Still Real** without hesitation.

If **Still Real** hadn't accumulated a bit of progress and automatically protected him.

He might have met his end this time.

In the hands of this mysterious and unpredictable old man, all secrets would be difficult to keep, and ultimately, there would be no escape.

"This cultivation world is truly too dangerous. Even with the protection of **Still Real**, such a rare treasure, the journey is still fraught with difficulties. A slight mistake, and I could be shattered into pieces," Li Fan couldn't help but shudder.

Amidst his astonishment, Li Fan engaged in self-reflection.

Since entering the cultivation world, with the assistance of **Still Real**, his path of cultivation had been relatively smooth. Even the last escape from the Dao of Harmony practitioner's clutches had given Li Fan a faint sense of underestimating the heroes of the world.

Carefully pondering, those powerful beings who survived from the *Great Calamity Era*, the *Great Plague Era*, and the *Dark Era* until now were certainly not simple characters.

"With the secret of **Still Real** in my possession, I'm safe from the scrutiny of the powerful. If my cultivation were humble, I would be flaunting my ignorance before them. That would truly be a path to death."

"In the future, I need to be even more cautious," Li Fan sighed inwardly.

"As for the 100,000 Contribution Points for the *Cloud and Water Diagram*, I can do without it."

After deep reflection and analysis, as his thoughts settled, Li Fan suddenly remembered the *Heavenly Doctor's Scriptures* he had read before.

As a medical book, its scope of study extended beyond humans to include various animals and plants in the world. The book claimed that the essence of medical practice lay in the four words, "Observe, Listen, Inquire, and Touch."

"Observe, seeing the peculiarity in the clone's heart."

"Inquire, getting the honest confession from the clone."

"Touch, pointing in the air, bringing back from the brink of death."

"Listen, discovering the relationship between the main body and the clone in an instant."

"What an exquisite observation, inquiry, touching, and listening."

"What an extraordinary Heavenly Doctor."

...

The Heavenly Doctor allowed Li Fan to deeply understand the terror of those high-level cultivators in the mysterious yellow realm. However, having recognized the gap, he did not lose confidence.

"With **Still Real** in hand, as long as I don't die, each reincarnation accumulates strength. One day, I will catch up and surpass them."

Li Fan silently affirmed in his heart, burying all thoughts about the Heavenly Doctor deep within.

As he contemplated the options regarding **Still Real**, he dismissed the third anchor point, which had a cultivation level of late Foundation Building from the previous life. Since he didn't break through the small realm, Li Fan naturally wouldn't choose this option.

He decisively chose the first option, retaining an item in his possession: the *Transformation Stone*.

After making the choice, Li Fan first checked the long-neglected status panel of **Still Real**.

Name: Li Fan

Cultivation Level: Foundation Building Late Stage

Physiological Age: 20/399

Mental Age: 1212/3700

**Transformation Stone** Charging Progress: 0%

**Still Real** Charging Progress: 1%

Current Anchor Points: 3

Available Anchor Points: 0

Bound Items: *Thousand Mechanisms Jade Ring Golden Chapter*, *Tai Yan Boat*, *Stop Step Stele (Damaged)*, *Blood of Ten Thousand People*, *Transformation Stone*

Cultivation Techniques: *Mystic Yellow Refining Heart Mantra*, *Cloud and Water Illusionary Dream Technique*, *Stealing Heaven and Changing Sun Technique*, *Thousand Mechanisms Jade Ring Golden Chapter*, *Spiritual Essence Illusionary Technique*

Mystical Powers: *Cycle of Life and Death*, *Formless Killing Intent*, *Insect Binding*

The upper limits of physiological and mental age had stagnated in their growth.

It should wait until breaking through to the Golden Core realm to see significant changes.

Anyway, with over two thousand years of reincarnation time, it was more than enough for the current Li Fan.

In addition to the few techniques listed in the cultivation techniques, Li Fan also mastered two exclusive techniques: *Divine Sword of the Anchored Sea* and *Waves Treading on the Azure Sea*.

There was also the predetermined cultivation method of *Sitting on the Mountain*, and two secret arts: *Godly Transformation* and *Violet Sky Soul Search*.

He had also inherited Zhang Zhiliang's boundless law.

The abnormality of **Still Real** became evident at this moment.

Ignoring the nine cycles used by **Still Real** in the last foundation building, Li Fan's actual effective reincarnation count in the cultivation world, until now, was only four.

Four cycles of reincarnation had enriched Li Fan's accumulation to a level far beyond any other foundation building cultivator.

...

"During the time waiting for **Still Real** to recharge, it's just right to practice the art of the Divine Dao One."

Thinking this, Li Fan's mind stirred, and a deep blue transformation stone appeared in his hand.

After arranging some precautions near the Disintegration Peak to prevent ordinary people from accidentally entering, Li Fan placed the transformation stone on his brow. His divine sense slowly merged with the transformation stone, entering a state of cultivation.

Time flowed differently within the mountain, and in the blink of an eye, five years had passed since the last anchoring.

On this day, as Li Fan's divine sense and the transformation stone fused completely, a dazzling blue crystal appeared at his brow's dantian.

As his thoughts circulated, he carefully sensed.

After a while, Li Fan quickly noticed something different from before.

He couldn't help but show a pleased expression, "Ancient secret techniques are truly extraordinary!"

After cultivating **Divine Dao One**, not only did his contemplation and deduction speed increase by more than a hundredfold, but all scenes he had experienced could also be easily summoned with a single thought.

As if reliving those experiences, vividly in front of his eyes.

Li Fan squinted, remembering the first time he encountered the Heavenly Doctor. With a point between the eyebrows, he imparted the *Heavenly Doctor's Scriptures* to the clone. At this moment, under the powerful computational ability of the transformation stone, it slowly reappeared.

Taking nearly a year, Li Fan thoroughly memorized the *Heavenly Doctor's Scriptures*.

However, memory did not equate to proficient application.

Similar to Li Fan's disparity in the theoretical and practical levels of array formation.

"It's just a pure medical scripture, not much help for cultivation," Li Fan regretfully shook his head.

"The technique of observing, listening, inquiring, and touching in the book is far from the methods of the Heavenly Doctor."

"However..."

"The Heavenly Doctor seems to have entered the Dao through medicine. This *Heavenly Doctor's Scriptures* must be the foundation of his lifelong learning."

"If one day, I find an exceptional genius, and impart this medical scripture to them."

"It might not be impossible to emulate the story of the Heavenly Doctor."

"Of course, it definitely can't be done like this in the Mystic Yellow Realm. Perhaps in a remote small world far from the cultivation world, it's worth a try."

Temporarily putting it aside, Li Fan suddenly thought of the deduction technique of the Tai Yan Sect.

The *Thousand Mechanisms Jade Ring Golden Chapter* of the Heaven's Secret Sect, when cultivated deeply, could also predict the future.

However, it used aura induction for deduction.

On the other hand, the deduction technique of the Tai Yan Sect pushed the ability of deduction to the extreme, exhausting all possibilities to find the one most in line with the future.

"In fact, these two deduction techniques may not necessarily contradict each other."

"Instead, they can complement each other. Aura deduction determines a vague general direction, while Tai Yan's divine calculation precisely predicts the future."

"Hehe, but neither compares to my **Still Real**."

"No deduction technique can be more accurate than one coming from the future, personally experienced!"

Li Fan was suddenly inspired and floated down the mountain.

Daxuan, Jiangnan, Hangguang City.

Recently, this wealthiest city in the world experienced something extraordinary.

A man named Divine Calculator traveled through the city, setting up a stall to tell fortunes.

He only performed three readings each day.

And he didn't charge any fees; he simply selected individuals for his readings.

Initially, the residents thought this Divine Calculator was just a charlatan with a lot of flair because the accuracy of his divinations was inconsistent.

However, as time passed, the success rate of his readings increased.

Whether it was finding lost items, locating missing children, asking about marriage prospects, or predicting the gender of unborn children, he was unfailingly accurate.

Gradually, the reputation of this Divine Calculator started to resonate throughout Hangguang City.

Everyone, young and old, revered him.

One day, a nobleman came to Hangguang City for leisure and, upon hearing about this, became interested.

He dressed in disguise, brought along a trusted aide, and arrived at the stall of the Divine Calculator.

The Divine Calculator lay on a long bench, eyes closed, in a lazy rest.

"Noble Daoist, have you completed your divinations for today?" The nobleman had already inquired about the rules beforehand and asked.

Without opening his eyes, the Divine Calculator replied lazily, "You clearly know the answer. If the divinations are done, I'd have naturally closed my stall and gone home. Why would I still be here?"

The nobleman felt a bit embarrassed at the response.

However, the aide, seeing his master insulted, became furious.

Without caring about the reputation of the "Divine Calculator," he was ready to overturn the stall.

The nobleman intervened and stopped the aide, saying, "Since that's the case, please, Daoist, divine for me."

The Divine Calculator, still with closed eyes, said indifferently, "This poor Daoist predicted that you two would come. I've already prepared a note for you in the small wooden box in the upper left corner of the stall. You'll find everything there."

Hearing this, the aide was even more disdainful, snorting, "Playing tricks!"

The nobleman, however, expressed his gratitude to the Divine Calculator.

After opening the wooden box and retrieving the note, he slowly unfolded it.

Upon reading the content, his face instantly turned pale.

A mix of surprise, fear, and joy overwhelmed him, causing his hands to tremble, and the note fell to the ground.

Seeing this, the aide, still puzzled by his master's reaction, wondered if this "Divine Calculator" truly had some ability.

The nobleman, ignoring the thoughts of his subordinate, deeply inhaled, calming his excitement. He was about to express his gratitude to the Divine Calculator, only to find that the person who was there just moments ago had inexplicably disappeared before his eyes!

Both the nobleman and the aide were astonished.

Could it be that there are truly gods and ghosts in this world?

The two, full of concerns and bewildered, returned to their residence and went to their respective rooms to rest.

However, the aide unexpectedly found a note in his pocket at some point, curious, he opened it.

Upon seeing the handwriting on the note, his expression became blank.

On it were written two lines of poetry:

"Peacefulness is the general's decree, forbidding the general from witnessing tranquility."

Repeating the verses to himself, the aide instinctively tore the paper into pieces and swallowed it.

...

In the sky above Hangguang City, seeing the aide's reaction, a mysterious smile appeared on Li Fan's face.

"Before, I heard your last words before dying and had an epiphany, successfully building the foundation with Still True."

"Now, by telling fortunes for you, I've repaid the favor of that day."

"I hope you'll have a different destiny in this life."

The two people who had their fortunes told today were naturally King Langya and the future commanding general, who would quell rebellions.

Li Fan, transformed into a divine calculator, traveled far and wide, pondering the way of divination.

After settling in Hangguang City, his divination skills became increasingly proficient.

By chance, he encountered familiar faces like King Langya and his aide, and that's how today's events unfolded.

Casually rising, resolving a cause and effect, Li Fan's thoughts were clear, and his mood was pleasant.

No longer lingering here, he returned to the Dissociation Mountain.

In an instant, scenes from this period flashed through his mind, and Li Fan gained his own understanding of the so-called art of divination.

"In that city of Hangguang, my divine sense enveloped everything within the city."

"With the terrifying divination ability of the Still True Stone, every detail was seen by me."

"Just talking about the affairs within the city, with all the causes and conditions in place, I can predict almost everything with high accuracy."

"But the world is not limited to just this city. Hangguang City is located at the intersection of canals, and shipping is well developed."

"Countless merchants come and go, with tens of thousands entering and leaving the city every day."

"This is what we call variables."

"The more variables, the lower the accuracy of my predictions."

"In addition to external influences, the human heart is hard to fathom, also a kind of variable."

"As the number of people and the scope of the city continue to expand, the variables to be dealt with also increase."

"At this point, relying solely on the pure divination ability is almost negligible."

"It still requires the support of a divination technique."

Having realized this truth, Li Fan did not actively seek a divination technique.

In essence, the art of divination was just a casual attempt by Li Fan during the period of waiting for Still True to complete its charging, a momentary experiment borne out of boredom.

Let it be as fate decides, there's no need to force it.

The most important thing is still the improvement of cultivation realm.

Li Fan set a goal in his heart, he must break through to the Golden Core stage in this life!

...

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, it was almost the end of the anchored nine years.

With Still True about to complete its charging, Li Fan visited Yixing's grave again and put away the Heaven Locking Treasure Box.

He didn't forget to take the bound Stop Stepping Stone and the fused piece from Qian Hong's grave.

Afterward, he swept through the area as usual and filled the Taiyan Boat.

Once everything was ready, Li Fan broke through the Immortal Array and returned to the cultivation world.

The arrangements and plans from the previous life, before encountering the Heavenly Doctor, Li Fan felt were mostly unproblematic.

And the starting point of cultivation in this life was the same as the previous one, without a better entry point event.

Considering that changing actions might lead to unexpected variables, Li Fan decided to follow the old events of the previous life.

He slaughtered the giant Luli fish, obtained the Linglong Luli Pearl, ensuring the event of the Misty Dew Herb would happen.

Then, through He Zhenghao, he joined the Wanxian Alliance.

Completing the Blue Blood Coral mission, using the Blue Flame Illusion Spirit as bait, and befriending Chen Ying of the Medicine Hall.

Assassinating Sikong Yi to obtain the "Steal the Day, Change the Night" decree.

Intimidating He Zhenghao to temporarily halt his smuggling operations.

Borrowing Lingwu Grass from the Qingfeng Hall.

Joining the Wanxian Alliance, successfully passing the Heart-Questioning Platform test with the assistance of the Seven Wonders Linglong Heart.

Completing meritorious missions to increase authority levels.

During the Lingwu Grass incident, profiting from the situation.

Using the spy incident involving Zhou Qing'ang to coerce He Zhenghao into signing a work contract.

Relearning the "Sitting Mountain Secret," purchasing the Preliminary Realm.

Sneaking out of the realm alone, causing people like Ye Feipeng and Xiaoheng to be stranded on a deserted island again.

Enlisting Jiao Xiuyuan's help to excavate the Small Medicine King Cauldron.

...

Simply going through the previous life's process, but in just one or two years.

Li Fan was very patient.

However, with the experience of the previous life, Li Fan made some adjustments to the handling of a few things.

Firstly, during the Lingwu Grass incident, he made it clear that he knew the time when Tianxuan Mirror would release an announcement.

To avoid suspicion, Li Fan cautiously waited until the price of Lingwu Grass had risen by three hundred and twenty points, reaching three hundred and fifty points before gradually selling all two thousand nine hundred plants he had on hand.

Secondly, in this life, when refining the clone, Li Fan used a rare item he had purchased in the Preliminary Realm to instantly elevate the clone's cultivation to the mid Foundation Building stage.

Afterward, he bought the Preliminary Realm again and had the clone play the role of a talking skull to deceive people like Xiaoheng.

He also clearly explained the strength of the Wanxian Alliance, advising Xiaoheng to prioritize improving his cultivation.

As long as he played the role of an ordinary cultivator who encountered fortuitous events, it would be enough.

Moreover, to prevent unforeseen circumstances, this time Li Fan chose not to purchase techniques from the Tianxuan Mirror during the clone's promotion.

The techniques he passed to Xiaoheng were the "Ocean-Calming Divine Sword" and the "Wave-Treading Technique."

It would take some time for Su Xiaomei and Su Changyu to be able to cultivate, so there was still time to find ownerless techniques.

Li Fan and the clone went to Qin Tang's place to brush up on some points, solving the problem.

However, considering that he might need a large number of techniques in the future, Li Fan felt that he still needed to find a stable channel outside the Wanxian Alliance to purchase techniques.

After thinking about it, Li Fan had the clone contact Jiao Xiuyuan.

Soon, there was a response.

"Oh, fellow Daoist wants to buy Golden Core techniques? Why not buy them from Tianxuan Mirror? Could it be that you haven't found something suitable?" Jiao Xiuyuan asked.

"Hehe, I don't have any techniques for sale on my end, and I can't handle such a big deal. However, if fellow Daoist really has a need, I do know a place that can satisfy your requirements."

"Have you ever heard of the Wanfa Commerce Guild?"

Li Fan was slightly stunned; a name extremely similar to another, differing only by one character, suddenly appeared in his mind.

"Is this Wanfa Commerce Guild related to the Wanhua Commerce Guild?" Li Fan asked.

"That's right. In fact, the Wanhua Commerce Guild is the same as the Wanfa Commerce Guild. It's just that it is specifically responsible for mortal business, so it has another name," Jiao Xiuyuan replied.

"The Wanfa Commerce Guild..." Li Fan couldn't help but think of the notice received by the entire Cangyan Fenhai before the arrival of the Red Flame Incinerating Sea.

"This Wanfa Commerce Guild seems to have something good."

(End of this chapter)