Chapter 3 – A Mortal Seeks to Capture Immortals

Time seemed to hit fast-forward.

Li Fan carried out his plan methodically, step by step.

With two lifetimes of experience, everything fell into place with effortless ease.

He still participated in the imperial examinations.

But this time, with decades of experience wielding power, the essays he wrote naturally far surpassed those of his previous life. He placed first in the provincial examination, the metropolitan examination, and the palace examination alike—sweeping all three as the top candidate, his name resounding throughout the realm!

Afterward, citing the need to build experience while still young, he volunteered to serve as an official in a remote posting. His destination was, naturally, Wen County once again.

Though many in the court were puzzled and expressed regret, they still approved his request.

And so, In anchor year +3, he arrived once more in Wen County.

This time around, things were far better than his previous life. His fame was so great, and he understood the temperaments of every official in the county, large and small, with perfect clarity. With almost no effort at all, he brought the entirety of Wen County firmly under his control.

Then he began promoting and cultivating the confidants from his previous life, steadily expanding his power base.

At the same time, he drew up blueprints for flintlock muskets, ordered craftsmen to produce them according to the designs, and shared every manufacturing difficulty he knew of in advance. After that, he sent people to secretly recruit skilled artisans from across the land, striving to develop even more advanced firearms.

Mining operations in the mountains weren’t neglected either. Li Fan swept through all the bandits lurking in the mountain ranges near Wen County and put every last one of them to work in the mines. Using the mining district as a base, he built numerous workshops deep in the mountains, mass-producing handicrafts and ironware. Simultaneously, he secretly organized trade caravans to travel and sell goods across the land, accumulating funds.

In anchor year +4, Li Fan conducted a covert search and finally found Emperor Xuanjing’s body double. It was precisely this double’s existence that had nearly caused his assassination plan to fail in his previous life. Fortunately, he had always been a cautious man, and it was only through his many contingency plans that he had avoided total defeat. Li Fan personally trained the double, and after half a year, the impersonation was virtually flawless.

In anchor year +5, a great drought struck the Jiangnan region. Li Fan ordered his confidants to disguise themselves as refugees and storm the Langya Prince’s manor. Li Fan led his forces in a feigned rescue operation, but in reality, through coordinated action from both inside and outside, he directly killed the Langya Prince’s entire family. At the same time, he brought the body double onto the stage.

From this point on, Li Fan had stolen the nest like a cuckoo, secretly seizing control of the Langya Prince’s manor.

News that the Langya Prince’s family had been slaughtered—with only the prince himself surviving—shocked the entire court. The emperor was furious and dispatched troops to suppress the refugees. Meanwhile, Li Fan was credited for his meritorious service and promoted to Prefect of Jianghuai Prefecture.

Li Fan’s power expanded further. However, after this, he actually became more cautious. Rather than continuing to expand outward, he kept a low profile and focused on advancing technology and developing productive capacity.

In anchor year +7, the locust plague arrived right on schedule. Li Fan had prepared well in advance, so Jianghuai Prefecture was naturally unscathed. He even petitioned the court to open the granaries and distribute food to aid the disaster victims. The court approved.

Seizing this opportunity, Li Fan gained a massive influx of population. Afterward, these refugees settled down under Li Fan’s administration, and his strength grew explosively.

In anchor year +9, the wedding between the Langya Prince and the Chief Grand Academician’s granddaughter took place as scheduled. That night, Li Fan broke into the bridal chamber, frightening the Langya Prince’s consort nearly to death. Upon learning that Li Fan had killed the Langya Prince and used a body double to usurp his identity, she cursed him as a traitor. Li Fan was entirely unfazed—he threw his head back and laughed, then told her to write every shocking detail of the affair in a letter.

Carrying this letter, Li Fan disguised himself as the Langya Prince’s messenger and secretly entered the capital to meet with the Chief Grand Academician.

With a perfectly composed expression, Li Fan laid everything bare—how he now controlled the entire Langya Prince’s manor—and claimed that on the very night of the wedding banquet, he had already consummated the marriage with the academician’s granddaughter. The Grand Academician, though startled, remained composed, and asked Li Fan what he intended.

Li Fan spoke bluntly: the Grand Academician had been in power for many years and had made too many enemies. His sons were all worthless. After the academician’s death, the family would likely be unable to protect itself. As long as the Grand Academician lent Li Fan his support at the critical moment, Li Fan would guarantee the family a century of wealth and prosperity.

The Grand Academician pondered for a long while, then slowly asked what the matter was. Li Fan merely smiled and said that all would be revealed in due time, then departed as breezily as he had come.

In anchor year +10, the Langya Prince’s consort gave birth to a son. Obviously, this was Li Fan’s child. Li Fan sent a letter to the Grand Academician’s residence to deliver the happy news.

In anchor year +15, the emperor finally fell gravely ill. Upon receiving the edict of succession, Li Fan gathered his confidants and rode through the night at full speed to the capital.

After the Langya Prince’s double ascended the throne, Li Fan used the emperor’s edicts to install his confidants throughout the court on a massive scale. With the Grand Academician secretly cooperating, the entire operation proceeded without a ripple, and the situation was firmly under control.

In anchor year +16, rebellions erupted across the land. Li Fan seized the opportunity to embed his confidants within the military, then used the merits earned in quelling the rebellions to promote them aggressively. In a mere three or four years, the military too was firmly in Li Fan’s grasp.

In anchor year +20, the realm gradually recovered from the turmoil of the imperial succession. Li Fan then decisively poisoned the imposter Kangning Emperor, strangling the last possible threat in its cradle.

After installing his own son on the throne, Li Fan bestowed upon himself the title of Grand Preceptor, stepping from behind the curtain onto center stage, once again holding supreme power over the realm.

After this, the gears of the Great Xuan Kingdom’s development not only didn’t stall—they spun ever faster, driven by Li Fan’s iron will!

anchor year 35. The Grand Preceptor’s Manor.

Li Fan examined the secret letter his subordinate had delivered, reading it carefully for a moment before furrowing his brow.

“So you’re saying the mist over the Ruins Abyss disperses for half a day once every fifteen years?”

“That is correct, Grand Preceptor. Our Immortal Seekers Camp was stationed beside the Ruins Abyss under your orders, observing day and night. We finally had results the other day.” The Immortal Seeker Officer kneeling on the ground recalled the scene, traces of shock still lingering on his face. “After the great fog dispersed, faint light could be seen shining up from the bottom of the abyss. When we observed through telescopes, we discovered all manner of inverted landscapes.”

“Though each person saw something different, there were ranges of a hundred thousand mountains stretching endlessly, with magnificent structures hidden among them, faintly visible; there were majestic walled cities standing upon plains, bustling with life, home to no fewer than a million souls; and there were cities in the sky, wreathed in radiant clouds, with all manner of rare birds and exotic beasts soaring among them. It was truly…” The Immortal Seeker Officer paused for a moment before finally giving voice to the awe in his heart. “Truly inconceivable.”

“So it really does come from the Ruins Abyss.” Though he had long known this information, hearing it confirmed firsthand by his subordinate still stirred something in Li Fan’s chest. However, years of experience had long since taught him to keep his emotions hidden.

He asked calmly, “Have you found a way to descend to the bottom of the abyss?”

The Immortal Seeker Officer’s breath caught, and his face went slightly pale. He hurriedly kowtowed in apology. “This subordinate is incompetent. We tried every method available, but once we descend to a certain depth, we are torn to shreds by sudden fierce winds. The winds are so powerful that even our hardest armor cannot withstand them for a single moment.”

Hearing this, Li Fan showed no particular sign of disappointment.

He waved his hand, dismissing the Immortal Seeker Officer. Then Li Fan murmured to himself, “It seems I’ll have to wait for you after all.”

……

anchor year 50. The Great Xuan Kingdom. Xuanjing.

The once-bustling capital of Xuanjing was now eerily silent.

The vast majority of Xuanjing’s residents had been forcibly relocated to surrounding cities a month ago under the reigning Grand Preceptor’s orders, ostensibly to avoid an impending calamity. Some naturally didn’t believe such a ridiculous excuse. However, the Grand Preceptor hadn’t gone to extremes—those who truly refused to leave weren’t forced. He merely suggested they dig underground shelters to take cover. These people dismissed it as a joke.

When Li Fan received the report, he didn’t bother with them. He had done all he could in good conscience.

Now, hidden throughout the streets and alleys of Xuanjing, the special forces he had painstakingly prepared over all these years to deal with the two immortals lay in ambush.

Everything was in place. All that remained was the east wind!

That night, a bright moon hung high as the two cultivators arrived right on schedule!

“Daoxuanzi! Don’t push me too far!”

Kou Hong’s furious roar echoed across all of Xuanjing.

“Da-da-da-da…”

Countless tongues of fire blazed to life as tens of thousands of bullets poured down like a waterfall, hammering into the two immortals all at once!