My Longevity Simulation

The ideal was a good one.

But after observing it for several days, Li Fan still could not find the slightest trace of the so called Dao Net. It seemed even more elusive and unfathomable than the Heavenly and Earthly Great Dao itself.

However, Li Fan was not discouraged. From what he could see, the Dao Net was very likely the trump card of this Shuo Star Sea in its struggle against the True Immortal forces. It could even contend with the Nameless True Immortal. How could it possibly be so easily deciphered by Li Fan, a newcomer who had only just arrived?

"Even the most impregnable fortress can be breached from within."

"Since I cannot forcibly infiltrate the Dao Net for the time being, I might as well lie low first and infiltrate the Shuo Star Sea. I cannot place all my hopes on Di Sanmo's side..."

Li Fan shook his head slightly. First, he carefully used the power of dreams to make a "rubbing" of the residual traces of fluctuations in this place. Only then did he continue cautiously probing toward the Shuo Star Sea.

Although on the surface, all traces of the great battle had already been completely erased by the white robed cultivator's method of Heaven Mending, Li Fan knew very well that nothing in this world was absolute. As long as something had happened, it would inevitably leave traces behind. The reason they could not be detected now was simply that his abilities were insufficient. This did not prevent Li Fan from recording them first and studying them repeatedly in the future.

The distant Shuo Star Sea was not filled with life everywhere. Instead, life had gathered in numerous places like islands. The strength of the aura emanating from these gatherings was not determined by their size. Each had its own distinct characteristics.

"Those who have managed to survive in this starry sky until now are probably no ordinary figures."

Li Fan observed from afar, identifying several familiar auras among them.

He soon discovered the Sword Domain, which was suspected to be the gathering place of the Immortal Dao's Ten Great Sects from the former Xuanhuang Realm. However, he still could not find the Sacred Shang from Qin Zhuang's memories.

"The Xuan Immortal Ark can still sense the existence of the Shang Immortal Ark beyond the High Wall. The Xuanshang should not have been completely destroyed."

Recalling the strange actions of the Sacred Shang in Qin Zhuang's memories, such as cutting off communication with the outside world and even beginning to withdraw treasures that had previously been put up for sale, the Dao Deviation Stone in his sea of consciousness flashed. After a round of deductions, the most likely possibility immediately surfaced in Li Fan's mind.

"There is a very high possibility that the Sacred Shang discovered something. Either it went into seclusion and refused to come out, or it simply fled."

The Sacred Shang was merely an entry point. Li Fan was not obsessed with finding the former Shang Immortal Ark.

He began probing the forces in the Shuo Star Sea one by one, looking for those with weaker defenses.

Just as he had sensed, the strength of these forces had little connection with the amount of life gathered within them.

There was one place where only two life auras existed, one large and one small. They seemed to have been ostracized and lived on the outskirts of the Shuo Star Sea. Yet Li Fan had not even approached them. Merely observing from afar caused an intense sense of danger to surge within his heart. Even his dream tentacles were affected, with part of them becoming distorted and mutated. Li Fan could only keep his distance.

There was also a huge gathering place containing the auras of tens of millions of living beings. Yet above it hung a massive dark cloud woven from countless negative emotions, such as slaughter, hatred, and greed, all emanating an appalling stench. Although numerous protective measures existed outside the gathering place, preventing Li Fan's dream power from directly eroding it, he could already see a breakthrough point for dream infiltration when he observed that cloud of emotions from afar.

However, Li Fan did not rush to act.

This weakness could also be a trap deliberately created by the forces of the Shuo Star Sea to lure in True Immortals.

After investigating all the other gathering places, Li Fan discovered that only this place offered an opportunity to connect to the Dreamland Paradise. He proceeded with extreme caution. First, he accumulated a massive amount of dream power and formed an additional instance of the Dreamland Paradise. He then sent one strand of his divine sense into this instance and severed its connection with the main world of the Dreamland Paradise.

Only after ensuring that nothing could go wrong did Li Fan personally control his divine sense and initiate the infiltration of this gathering place.

This instance of the Dreamland Paradise was completely empty. Since it had been separated into an independent instance, its dream power would only decrease with each use. If it could not receive effective replenishment before its energy was exhausted, this instance world would perish.

Although Li Fan had only divided off a single strand of divine sense, it carried nine projections of the Xuanhuang Realm, along with computational power equivalent to a supreme grade Dao Deviation Stone.

"If even these preparations cannot open a breach, then I can only find another way."

The progress was not smooth.

That invisible barrier seemed to completely sever contact between the dream power and the thoughts of living beings. Even though the suppressed negative emotions of those living beings had already become almost tangible, stretching across the sky, there was still a membrane separating them. They simply could not be touched.

"If I disregard the consequences and consume all the power of this instance in one go, I might be able to forcibly open a breach. But that would inevitably alert all the forces of the Shuo Star Sea."

"The gains would not be worth the losses."

After studying it for a while, Li Fan ultimately chose not to alert the enemy. Instead, he patiently waited for an opportunity.

Cultivators would occasionally leave their gathering places and travel through the starry sky in the Shuo Star Sea. Li Fan did not believe that every one of these "passersby" possessed strength so high that he could not approach them.

As it turned out, Li Fan's judgment was correct.

Although the target he had selected did not travel outside as frequently as those from other forces, it did happen from time to time.

Li Fan kept watch for half a year. Finally, a streak of light flew out from the gathering place.

Its destination seemed to be in the direction of the Sword Domain.

As the streak of light shot out, it carried a large mass of emotional dark clouds with it. His emotional fluctuations were so obvious that Li Fan did not even need to deliberately eavesdrop to clearly sense his thoughts.

"They're making this old man run errands again!"

"Even so, I, Ma Tiande, passed the entrance examination and received certification as a Master Dao Controller from the Shuo Star Sea. Although I have only just begun to understand it, I can at least coordinate and manipulate the Dao Net patterns within a designated area!"

"They make me deal with all these trivial matters every single day. They are simply wasting my life, Ma Tiande's life..."

This cultivator named Ma Tiande raced through the starry sky with overwhelming resentment.

Li Fan never made a move. He merely watched as Ma Tiande entered a gathering place adjacent to the Sword Domain. After staying there for three days, he finally returned at a leisurely pace.

Perhaps having vented his frustrations, all his resentment had disappeared. He happily hummed a tune as he slowly followed the same route back.

Seeing that Ma Tiande was about to enter the protective formation, Li Fan finally made his move.

Ordinary methods of possessing a body or infiltrating had a high chance of being discovered by the protective layer surrounding the gathering place. Even any power related to immortality could potentially trigger an alarm.

Therefore, Li Fan employed the Xuan Immortal Ark's [Dao Pill] technique. Ma Tiande, who was flying through the void, merely paused slightly.

Yet he had already been refined by Li Fan into a [Human Pill] that could be swallowed at any time. Li Fan's divine sense silently swallowed the pill, and in an instant, he transformed into Ma Tiande.

Temporarily severing his connection with the Dreamland Paradise instance, Li Fan organized the information in Ma Tiande's mind while flying straight toward the gathering place ahead.

"Blissful City?"

"Interesting."

In theory, this body was still Ma Tiande. It was merely that another strand of thought had been added to his mind.

Any living being would inevitably experience fluctuations of thought like this as long as they remained alive.

Moreover, the Dao Pill technique was unique to the Xuan Immortal Ark. It had never appeared in this starry sky before.

Although the protective layer outside Blissful City was powerful, it was still difficult for it to guard against such an unfathomable method.

Without encountering any complications, 'Ma Tiande' smoothly flew into Blissful City.

Unlike the foul-smelling emotional clouds that surged into the heavens from what could be seen from outside, what Li Fan saw upon entering was a scene of singing, dancing, and peace.

Colorful lights stretched all the way to the horizon. Wild and unrestrained laughter, lewd and obscene moans, unrestrained curses and furious shouts...

They filled every corner of the city.

"Blissful City. Three years of day, three years of night, one cycle every six years."

"During the night, indulge in pleasure, free from all worries."

"During the day... killing is unpunished?"

As Li Fan sorted through the information in Ma Tiande's mind, he first went to report back.

Ma Tiande had gone to the [Saber Island] this time precisely to deliver an invitation on behalf of the Lord of Blissful City.

Thirty days later, the transition between day and night in Blissful City would take place.

Everyone on Saber Island was invited to witness the grand occasion.

...

With the information flashing through his mind, Li Fan calmly made his way to the center of Blissful City.

Compared to the prosperous and bustling surroundings, the manor at the center was so cold and gloomy that it created an intense contrast. Anyone who set foot here could not help but feel a trace of horror rising from the depths of their heart.

Even though Ma Tiande had come here more than once, his body still instinctively felt fear.

Li Fan did not suppress this feeling. Instead, he appropriately allowed the corresponding changes to appear on his face.

Step by step, he arrived before the Lord of Blissful City and reported the situation.

"Scholar Zhu, I delivered the invitation. But as for how many people from Saber Island will actually come, that is difficult to say."

Li Fan put on a troubled expression and recounted everything honestly.

"As soon as I entered, the people on the island invited me to spar with them. They even threatened that if I refused, they would tear up the invitation. I really had no choice but to agree."

"They called it a spar, but in reality, I was the only one getting beaten..."

Following Ma Tiande's usual manner of conduct in secret, Li Fan complained bitterly to the Lord of Blissful City.

The Lord of Blissful City, whom Ma Tiande called Scholar Zhu, appeared extremely old.

His hunched and shriveled body was curled within a spacious robe, making him look rather comical. Yet the overwhelming sinister aura emanating from Scholar Zhu made Li Fan dare not underestimate him.

Li Fan even vaguely sensed that the enormous mass of hidden emotions accumulated above Blissful City was actually anchored to this Scholar Zhu, with nearly nine tenths of it being maintained by him.

Faced with Ma Tiande's incessant complaints, Scholar Zhu did not interrupt him.

He merely sat there quietly, his withered fingers tapping lightly against the tabletop from time to time. Occasionally, his fingernails scraped across the long table, producing an unbearably shrill sound.

Li Fan could see clearly that the long table before Scholar Zhu was actually made from human skulls that had been piled together and polished.

Even the lingering remnants of consciousness within those skulls had not completely dissipated. As Scholar Zhu's fingers gently passed over them, faint cries of pain and anguish could still be heard.

Cold sweat trickled down Ma Tiande's forehead, yet he did not stop speaking. He completed his report from beginning to end.

Afterward, he respectfully stood beneath the long table, waiting for the city lord's instructions.

The manor fell silent for quite some time.

Occasional noises and disturbances from outside drifted into the room.

Scholar Zhu, curled within his spacious robe, pressed his fingers against the long table.

Each time he pressed down, one of the sounds outside abruptly ceased.

Only after the surroundings had become completely silent, with not even the slightest trace of outside noise remaining, did Scholar Zhu finally speak.

His voice was not that of an elderly man.

Instead, it was the innocent and lively voice of a child.

"You have worked hard running around outside."

"Stay and have dinner before you go."

As his words fell, a ghostly figure floated out from the darkness and arrived before Li Fan.

After a rustling sound, a bowl of steaming red soup appeared before Li Fan.

Ma Tiande's body trembled slightly.

It was partly an instinctive reaction from this body, but to a certain extent, it also represented the fluctuation of Li Fan's emotions.

The red soup in the bowl was clearly made from countless pieces of minced flesh mixed with blood.

Floating in the soup were eyeballs, one after another.

They seemed to possess wills of their own, all staring at Li Fan from within the bowl.

Although Li Fan had destroyed worlds several times and regarded all living beings as insignificant, even he had never done anything quite so "disgusting."

"Mr. Ma, drink it quickly. Why have you not drunk it yet?"

Seeing Li Fan hesitate, Scholar Zhu's voice immediately became somewhat anxious.

It was like a mischievous child who had suddenly lost his beloved toy. A strange aura began spreading from Scholar Zhu.

"Are you not hungry? Or are you dissatisfied with this bowl of soup?"

"It does not matter. I will have my servants prepare something better right away."

Information regarding the Lord of Blissful City flashed through Li Fan's mind.

"He can manifest many different personalities."

"An old man, a child, an alluring woman, a brutal butcher..."

"Among them, the child is the most emotionally unstable."

Having made his decision, Li Fan said, "There is no need to trouble yourself, Scholar Zhu. This bowl of soup looks exceptionally delicious."

As he spoke, Li Fan picked up the bowl and drank the red soup in one gulp.

To his surprise, it was nothing like its appearance suggested.

There was not even the slightest trace of blood or flesh in it.

Instead, it was indescribably delicious.

With Li Fan's level of experience, after a hundred reincarnations in the Xuanhuang Realm and having nearly excavated all its secrets, even he could hardly find anything he had tasted that could compare with it.

After finishing the bowl of red soup, Li Fan looked at the empty bowl and unexpectedly felt a sense of reluctance.

"What? Would you like another bowl?"

Scholar Zhu had also noticed the change in Li Fan's emotions. As if he had finally found someone who understood him, he became somewhat excited.

With tremendous willpower, Li Fan shook his head and refused.

"Such a rare delicacy must be savored properly."

"More is not necessarily better. It is better to eat less."

He spoke with a solemn expression.

Upon hearing this, Scholar Zhu immediately let out a deep, muffled laugh.

His voice quietly changed from that of a child back into that of an old man.

"What you said does make some sense."

"In that case, you may leave for now."

Li Fan bowed and took his leave.

Just as he was about to walk out of the manor, Scholar Zhu's light and airy voice suddenly drifted into his ears.

"For this Day and Night Ceremony, I have also prepared a seat for you."

Li Fan's face lit up with joy, and he hurriedly bowed again.

"Thank you, Lord Zhu!"

The light and shadows before his eyes shifted for a moment, and the city lord's manor disappeared.

In its place was a red-light district where lewd sounds continuously rang out.

Li Fan licked his lips.

The information from Ma Tiande's memories surfaced once again.

"Scholar Zhu, one of the members of the Shuo Star Sea Administrative Council."

"He was once a True Immortal, but later descended into mortality!"