Ningyuan City housed nearly three hundred thousand mortals.
Above these three hundred thousand mortals hung an invisible barrier.
The Life Conversion Array... Li Fan narrowed his eyes, sensing the occasional strands of life force drifting through the air.
Such pure vital energy, no wonder it forms longevity fruits that can extend one's lifespan.
This pervasive life force naturally originated from the mortals living within Ningyuan City.
In the future, every branch of the Myriad Immortals Alliance will be fitted with protective arrays that drain the essential qi of mortals to increase the concentration of spiritual qi.
But compared to this Life Conversion Array, those arrays would be considered merciful.
Li Fan's divine sense swept over Ningyuan City's mortals, noticing the extremely small percentage of elderly people in the city.
The Life Conversion Array drains the vitality of mortals. Mortals born within this array would have drastically shortened lifespans.
Living to forty or fifty years would already be their maximum limit.
The Immortal-Mortal Miasma doesn't exist yet. In the eyes of cultivators, mortals are nothing more than livestock to be exploited at will.
Though thoughts raced through Li Fan's mind, he did not take any unusual actions, following Song Hesong to the city center.
Here, the concentration of life force grew to the point that it manifested as a faint green glow, forming drifting tendrils that were slowly absorbed by a massive tree growing at the center.
Three heavy fruits hung from its branches. Jade-green and crystalline, their fragrance permeated the air, making one's mouth water at the sight.
"Senior Brother, this is the Rebirth Longevity Tree." Song Hesong produced a large seal, pressing it against the empty space before the tree.
Simultaneously, he shouted, "Release!"
The seal collided violently with an invisible barrier surrounding the longevity tree. Dozens of silver streaks shot from the seal, slithering like serpents across the barrier.
"Senior Brother, your assistance please!" Song Hesong cried out. The veins on his forehead bulged as he strained to maintain the seal.
Seeing this, Li Fan didn't hesitate. He extended his hand, and a purple seal instantly materialized.
"Expedite!"
The purple seal struck the invisible barrier, and dozens of purple light-snakes surged out of the seal.
These purple serpents chased after the silver ones. Each found a target, devouring them one by one.
Moments later, when all silver light-snakes had been consumed, the dozens of purple serpents emitted a faint glow. Then they began circulating rapidly, forming a pattern of purple thunderclouds on the invisible barrier.
Following the guidance of his memories, Li Fan unleashed Purple Firmament Lightning, which was only possible through the cultivation of the Purple Firmament Thunder Invocation Art.
Purple lightning flashed, and the invisible barrier shattered open.
Li Fan activated the Thunder Invocation Art, protecting his entire body with Purple Firmament Spiritual Qi as he strode inside.
Coming to the base of the Rebirth Longevity Tree, he looked up to examine the alluringly fragrant longevity fruits.
The quality of this batch is excellent. It’s truly amazing that a small fruit like this can actually extend one’s lifespan by three hundred years.
While assessing the fruits, Li Fan couldn't help but feel deeply impressed.
They say the highest quality longevity fruits can extend one’s lifespan by over a thousand years.
Unfortunately, after the Immortal-Mortal Miasma's emergence, this method of condensing longevity fruits appears to have become ineffective.
These longevity fruits would undoubtedly be priceless treasures in future eras. I wonder if there might be a way to bring these fruits back to reality.
As he pondered, he carefully plucked the three longevity fruits from the tree and placed them inside a specially crafted jade box.
What should I do next? Should I deliver them to the sect, or should I taste one first to see if they work?
For a moment, Li Fan hesitated.
According to Chen Ying, all gains within the Fallen Immortal Realm existed only within its confines. To bring anything back to reality, one had to meet specific conditions. These conditions varied from object to object and required trial and error.
Even for identical items, the circumstances and timing of their acquisition could alter the conditions for retrieval. They seemed tied to the karmic threads and events associated with the objects.
Moreover, each visit to the Fallen Immortal Realm began at a different location. Missing an opportunity now might mean losing it forever.
This realization made Li Fan grow apprehensive about his gains and losses. Yet, he quickly regained his composure.
Surely, the greater an item’s value, the more stringent the conditions for taking it out. How could it be so easy to bring something like this back to reality?
Chuckling inwardly at his own folly, Li Fan made a decision.
Better to return to the Purple Firmament Sect first and see what opportunities arise, though I wonder if there’s still enough time.
With that, Li Fan stepped beyond the protective barrier of the Rebirth Longevity Tree, intending to contact Senior Brother Zhang and head back to the Purple Firmament Sect.
Boom!
Just then, a deafening roar erupted from Ningyuan City.
Li Fan’s heart leaped, and he spun toward the source of the sound.
"Chi Xia!" Zhang Qianmo’s anguished cry echoed from afar.
"You’re asking for death! Don’t even think of escaping!" His furious shout was followed by a streak of black light shooting into the sky.
In an instant, Zhang Qianmo transformed into a violet radiance, giving chase without hesitation.
A sense of foreboding washed over Li Fan, and he rushed after them without delay. Song Hesong followed close behind.