My Simulated Road to Immortality

"Hehehe, fellow Daoist, don't joke around! Outside the High Wall..." Zhong Daogong's gaze flickered. Faced with Li Fan's aggressive questioning, he decisively denied.

"Do I look like I'm joking to you?" Li Fan, on the other hand, rudely interrupted him. His eyes were fierce and his aura churned as if he was about to erupt at any dissenting word.

The fluctuations emanating from Li Fan were all too familiar to the Elders of the Immortal Ark. They were indeed the vibrations of True Immortal Seal Characters!

Seeing that Li Fan seemed serious, the colors drained from the faces of the Elders of the Immortal Ark.

"Fellow Daoist, please don't be impulsive, let's talk this over!" While they tried to calm him down, they also distanced themselves from Li Fan and activated the multiple layers of protection on the Immortal Ark.

Li Fan's expression was grim: "I am very calm now! I'm just looking for an explanation!"

"It was precisely when attempting to derive the root cause that had shaken the High Wall that I suffered its backlash. Now my life is not much longer... Within the Abyss Star Ocean, there absolutely isn't such a horrifying existence."

"It was clearly the doing of an unknown civilization beyond the High Wall, yet your Immortal Ark pretended it was your own achievement. Claiming the credit of the heavens, it's utterly shameless! You can pursue fame at all costs, but it has harmed me..."

Li Fan grew more agitated as he spoke, and the vibrations of the True Immortal Seal Characters on his body became increasingly intense. Looking at the members of the Immortal Ark, he regarded them like mortal enemies who had slain his father, ready to perish together with them at any moment.

His accusations were almost nonsensical, utterly lacking in reason.

But let's not forget, as of now, Li Fan only had twenty years of life remaining. To a cultivator, twenty years was but the blink of an eye.

The members of the Immortal Ark naturally would not argue with a man overcome by emotion and facing imminent death.

They could only helplessly appease him: "Fellow Daoist, you have misunderstood us!"

"We truly haven't lied. The source that caused the High Wall to tremble originated from beyond the High Wall and is deeply connected to our Immortal Ark, sharing the same origin..."

"You? From beyond the High Wall?" On hearing this, Li Fan calmed down slightly. But skepticism still heavily tinted his eyes.

The members of the Immortal Ark discussed privately for a moment. While the venture of the Merchant Immortal Boat beyond the High Wall was absolutely secret, the man before them was also near death.

They were too close to the Mystic Immortal Boat. Should he go mad and recklessly spread True Immortal Seal Characters, it might cause irreparable damage to the Immortal Ark.

Using a secret to temporarily stabilize him seemed acceptable.

"Ah, this matter is complicated to explain. Fellow Daoist, please listen to me as I recount it slowly..."

Zhong Daogong began to tell Li Fan about the schism of the Mystic Commerce Immortal Vessel and the tale of how the Merchant Immortal Boat ultimately crashed through the High Wall, from then on roaming freely.

Meanwhile, the other Elders united to cast spells, quietly isolating space. On one hand, to prevent the absolute secrets of the Immortal Ark from leaking, and on the other hand, to imprison Li Fan within.

Li Fan seemed oblivious to the subtle tactics of the members of the Immortal Ark, his malevolent energy slowly dissipating, with traces of confusion and a touch of regret: "So you say I was too brash? I had no idea that the old Mystic Commerce Immortal Vessel had such a bizarre story."

Seeing Li Fan gradually calming down, Zhong Daogong sighed with relief. He then asked: "As for Da Qi's stance on cooperation between both parties, what is it exactly? Even if they are reluctant, surely they shouldn't withhold a response indefinitely?"

"In truth, we at Da Qi are also quite conflicted about this matter. After my reckless actions backfired, my Master had no choice but to tell me that Da Qi is naturally interested in the ability to traverse the High Wall. But most crucially, dealing with affairs beyond the High Wall may involve tremendous dangers..."

Li Fan spoke very seriously, then glanced around, as if he had finally noticed the imprisoning tactics laid out by the Elders of the Immortal Ark.

A flash of displeasure crossed his eyes. But he only snorted coldly, refraining from lashing out.

His black and white hair, as if alive without wind, fluttered erratically.

Threads of silver-white, emanating from thousands of strands of hair, flew out.

Before the Elders could comprehend what was happening, these silver threads had already woven an Array Technique in the Void, equally imprisoning and sealing the members of the Immortal Ark.

Using their own methods against them, this act had not yet raised the alarm among the members of the Immortal Ark.

The Elders of the Immortal Ark were captivated by Li Fan's voice.

"Everyone, look! This is what I saw with the World-guardian Immortal Artifact when deriving connections to what's beyond the High Wall!"

The keywords 'World-guardian Immortal Artifact' and 'beyond the High Wall', together, shook the members of the Immortal Ark, their attention fixated.

The perspective soared infinitely high, bringing the entirety of the Abyss Star Ocean into proximity.

The cold, Death Silence Star Ocean, for some reason, seemed as if boiling over. A foreboding, spine-chilling aura echoed ceaselessly.

Soon after, there came a massive rumbling noise from the horizon.

And then the Abyss Star Ocean rippled like a stone had been cast into it, raising tumultuous waves!

...

The imagery abruptly ended.

Though it was just a brief segment, the members of the Immortal Ark could already discern the scene depicted.

The collapse of the High Wall, the emergence of a nameless entity within the Star Sea!

This imagery was incredibly fantastical yet lifelike.

It was as if these were true recordings of actual events!

The Elders of the Immortal Ark were dazzled, taking a long time to recover from the turmoil the Star Sea upheaval had caused.

"This..."

Zhong Daogong was also momentarily lost, turning to look at Li Fan.

"Now you know why I was struck by such backlash, don't you?" Li Fan said with unparalleled calmness.

"If the High Wall collapses and the Star Sea is in turmoil, were it to truly come to that, Da Qi with its current strength might not be able to ensure its own safety. This is also why we've not made a decision yet."

"Freedom is desirable, but it must be predicated on safety..." Li Fan let out a long sigh.

The room fell silent for a time.