My Longevity Simulation Chapter 1165: The Madman Sharpens His Blade at Night

Upon close examination, Li Ping realized that these light orbs provided him with no significant benefit.

With a grave look on his face, he handed the light orbs back to the chosen fishermen. They had endured several layers of rigorous selection.

The initial effort brought no major rewards.

Li Ping remained completely unconcerned by this.

This angling event had been arranged in a rush, giving the folks of Great Qi barely any time to prepare. The victors were seasoned experts who had dedicated years to the craft of fishing. Their success stemmed mainly from accumulated knowledge rather than any special aptitude or genius.

"Having them serve as inspirations to spark widespread passion among the people, the upcoming second and third fishing contests ought to deliver some delightful outcomes for me."

Li Ping observed the champions in front of him as they flipped the light orbs in their palms over and over, scrutinizing them intently. He nodded faintly, and then his form fragmented and disappeared.

After all, he wasn't battling in his familiar territory within the Xuanhuang Realm. Lacking the ceaseless backing of the Holy Dynasty's fortune, Li Ping worried he might not even stand a chance against a typical Dao Integration expert.

It was wiser to head back soon.

"We still lack enough personnel."

"Reliable followers with adequate strength are genuinely in short supply."

Li Ping let out a quiet sigh, then contemplated a way to address this in silence.

...

Tianquan Prefecture.

Sun family secret chamber.

Over a month had elapsed since Sun Luyuan's previous exit.

Following his usual routine, Sun Luyuan ought to have come back by now to nourish the Boundless Mirror with his blood.

But for reasons unknown, he hadn't shown up this time around.

On this particular day, Li Fan's clone, deeply engrossed in analyzing the leftover arrays of the Boundless Mirror, abruptly detected signs that the chamber's defensive array was being tampered with.

Glancing over, he couldn't suppress a chuckle of delight.

It appeared that Wu Ninglu had actually managed to locate the hidden entrance to the subterranean chamber.

She was presently trying to break inside.

Even though she employed a covert method to mask and transform her presence, she couldn't fool Li Fan's sharp perception.

The clone slipped out silently from the Boundless Mirror and tapped lightly with a single finger.

In that moment, the protective array of the secret chamber transformed.

Hit by the abruptly intensified barrier, Wu Ninglu's face paled. She realized her intrusion had been uncovered.

Not daring to stay a second longer, she morphed into a beam of dark light and escaped.

Li Fan watched closely. After looping around once, Wu Ninglu shed her camouflage in a remote area.

Then she boldly walked back to her quarters without hiding.

She clung to a bit of optimism and didn't bolt from the Sun family right away.

"Heh, is she genuinely naive, or does she count on the Sun family's blood ties to behave so boldly?"

"In any case, this doesn't concern me. When Sun Luyuan gets back this round, I should gain command over the Boundless Mirror and encounter that Mirror Holder [Fu]."

Li Fan's foresight proved accurate.

Exactly seven days afterward, Sun Luyuan entered the underground chamber, his countenance heavy with worry.

He too spotted the signs of an intruder breaching the defensive array, and his features twisted.

His face flickered between darkness and doubt, yet ultimately Sun Luyuan stayed silent on the matter.

Rather, he first positioned a lump of vital blood in front of the dark mirror.

Through the mirror spirit Sun Luyao's thoughts, Li Fan detected an overwhelming urge that couldn't be contained.

He snorted coldly and harshly quelled that desire.

The Boundless Mirror was already under his refinement. Allowing the Sun family's blood tribute would merely undermine his grip on the Boundless Mirror.

How could he permit such a thing?

Nevertheless, to prevent any slip-ups, he directed Sun Luyao to perform the act.

Following the "absorption" of the vital blood, Sun Luyao gradually materialized.

"Brother, I feel much better." He uttered the words reluctantly.

Fooling his own sibling stirred deep remorse in Sun Luyao's core. Yet as an artifact spirit, he lacked autonomy over his actions. He couldn't even alert Sun Luyuan.

He was forced to witness powerlessly as his brother ventured further into the snare laid by this fearsome being.

"That ancient relic's requirements grow ever more outrageous. We just supplied him with crucial intelligence, and now he's unhappy once more." Sun Luyuan gazed at Sun Luyao's dim silhouette, a flicker of warmth in his eyes, before he vented with bitterness.

"This latest request is utterly ridiculous. He insists we gather intel on the human form of the Tianxuan Mirror? All from a baseless speculation, he expects us to persist using our blood as payment..."

"You old scoundrel!"

Sun Luyuan pounded his fist furiously into the floor.

To the world outside, he was the esteemed patriarch of the Sun clan, occupying a key role in the Guardian Hall with immense power.

But in the presence of the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance's actual overlords, he was treated worse than a mere hound!

For the sake of the whole Sun family's endurance, he was compelled to bow low and choke down his pride.

"Why do the Dharma-Transmitters and Mirror Holders forever loom so superior over us? No matter our efforts, we're destined to remain their lackeys!"

"Is there truly no chance for reversal?!"

A pent-up fury boiled in his chest without release. Anger swelled in Sun Luyuan, and an idea he had never before considered emerged unbidden in his thoughts.

But he soon snapped back to reality.

His own notion shocked even him. He swiftly shoved it into the depths of his mind and refrained from showing any sign of it to his brother, who was now an artifact spirit and had once been his nearest kin.

For he knew all too well that, given the Immortal Alliance's leaders' ways, should they uncover his musings, by the following day the entire league would bear no trace of the Sun family's existence. They would be erased utterly from existence!

However, he had apparently misjudged the strength of fraternal ties.

"Brother, during my last surveillance of the Tianxuan Mirror, I actually uncovered some intriguing details." Sun Luyao remarked abruptly.

"Hmm?" Sun Luyuan paused in surprise and turned to his brother, whose face bore a grave intensity.

"The Tianxuan Mirror, piecing together diverse hints, has uncovered signs of a faction in the Xuanhuang Realm that's presently concealed and might rise up later." Sun Luyao whispered.

"Rise up?" Sun Luyuan shook his head. He couldn't imagine any power in the immense Xuanhuang Realm challenging the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance's dominion.

But his brother Sun Luyao's following statement made his pulse quicken: "Based on the Tianxuan Mirror's forecast, this faction has a strong chance of inflicting massive harm on the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance."

"Is this accurate?"

Sun Luyuan's hopes lifted. His immediate impulse was to rush this vital information to Mirror Holder Fu for recognition and rewards.

Yet, right after he thoroughly reviewed every piece of data from his brother and felt a hidden jolt, Sun Luyao's subdued voice echoed in his ear.

"Brother, I'm enduring such torment."

"At this rate, it won't be long before I can't endure and face total annihilation of body and soul."

"Serving as a dog forever means remaining a dog."

"Even common folk have the audacity to proclaim, 'The throne of the Emperor turns in rotation—this year it’s my family’s turn!’…"

His brother's gentle whispers acted like enchanting devilish tunes, swirling around Sun Luyuan's ears.

The notion he had earlier buried, swayed by these utterances, could no longer be held down and rose again.

"The Holy Dynasty Great Qi..."

Sun Luyuan squinted and scrutinized the details in his grasp once more.