After checking, Li Ping confirmed that the light spheres were not of much use to him.
He then solemnly returned the spheres to those anglers who had been thoroughly selected.
The first attempt yielded no significant catch.
Li Ping was not concerned.
The fishing contest had been arranged in haste, and the citizens of Da Qi had little time to prepare. These victors were all seasoned fishing enthusiasts; their success owed more to experience than to comprehension or talent.
"Having them as role models greatly inspires the people. I expect the second and third fishing contests will bring me some surprises."
Li Ping watched the winners carefully examining the light spheres, nodding slightly before his form shattered and he vanished from sight.
After all, in the Xuanhuang World, not fighting on his home turf and without the constant support of the Holy Dynastyâs Luck, Li Ping would likely not even match a typical Unity-Path.
It was better to return earlier.
If not for the fact that the Supreme Treasure Fishing Pond was immovable, he wouldnât have personally risked coming here.
"We are still short of hands."
"Itâs really rare to find subordinates who are both trustworthy and sufficiently powerful."
Li Ping sighed softly and then began to think of a solution.
...
Tianquan Province.
Sun Family Secret Chamber.
It had been over a month since Sun Luyuan had left.
According to previous habits, Sun Luyuan should have already returned to nourish the Immeasurable Mirror with fresh blood.
But due to some unknown changes, Sun Luyuan had yet to return.
One day, while immersed in the study of the remaining Array Techniques of the Immeasurable Mirror, Li Fanâs Split suddenly sensed someone had tampered with the secret roomâs protection.
Upon discovering the cause, he couldnât help but laugh in astonishment.
Wu Ninglu had somehow found the entrance to the underground secret chamber and was trying to intrude.
Although she used a Secret Technique to change and hide her aura, she couldnât escape Li Fanâs legal perception.
His split quietly flew out from the Immeasurable Mirror and gently pointed.
The protective array of the secret room suddenly changed.
Struck mercilessly by the strengthened array, Wu Ningluâs expression changed, realizing she had been exposed.
Not daring to stay a moment longer, she transformed into a streak of dark light and fled.
Li Fan watched carefully as Wu Ninglu, after circling around, removed her disguise in an unoccupied place.
She then boldly returned to her own room.
Still holding onto a sliver of hope, she did not immediately flee from the Sun Family.
"Ha, is this truly stupidity, or is it reckless because she carries the blood of the Sun Family?
"Either way, it doesnât concern me. When Sun Luyuan returns, I should be able to control the Immeasurable Mirror and meet that Mirror Handler, [Fu]."
Li Fanâs prediction was accurate.
Seven days later, Sun Luyuan, looking solemn, entered the underground secret chamber.
He too noticed that someone had tampered with the protective arrays and his expression darkened.
With a fluctuating expression, Sun Luyuan eventually chose not to make any noise about it.
Instead, he placed a globule of Blood Essence in front of the Black Mirror.
From the heart of Mirror Spirit Sun Luyao, Li Fan felt a trace of uncontrollable desire.
He snorted coldly, and completely extinguished his instinct.
The Immeasurable Mirror had already been refined by him, and the ritual sacrifice of the Sun Familyâs bloodline, would only shake his control over the Immeasurable Mirror.
How could he possibly let them have their way?
However, to avoid exposing any flaws, he still let Sun Luyao perform a play.
After "swallowing" the blood essence, Sun Luyao gradually appeared.
"Brother, I feel much better," he said reluctantly.
Deceiving his own older brother filled Sun Luyao with guilt, but as an Artifact Spirit, he had no control over his actions. He couldnât even signal a warning to Sun Luyuan.
He could only watch helplessly as his big brother fell deeper into this terrifying trap.
"That old foolâs demands are getting more and more excessive. We just provided him with important information, yet he is not satisfied," Sun Luyuan said as he looked at the faint silhouette of Sun Luyao, a hint of softness flashing in his eyes before speaking with hatred again.
"His requests this time are even more outrageous, asking us to probe news about the TianXuan Mirrorâs human split. Just based on an unrealistic guess, he wants us to keep trying at the cost of our blood..."
"The old thief!"
Sun Luyuan slammed his fist hard against the ground.
To outsiders, he was the glorious Head of the Sun Family, holding a significant position in the Law Enforcement Hall with high authority.
In front of the real masters of the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals, he was no better than a dog!
For the survival of the entire Sun Family, he groveled and had no dignity.
"Why are the Dharma Transmitters and Mirror Handlers always high above? No matter how hard we try, we can only serve as their dogs!"
"Will there never be a chance to turn around?!"
Feeling suffocated, anger surged in Sun Luyuan, and a thought that he had never dared to contemplate naturally arose in his heart.
But he quickly came to his senses.
He was frightened by his own thought and hurriedly suppressed it deep within his spirit consciousness, fearing even to show the slightest hint of it in front of his closest brother, who had also become an Artifact Spirit.
Because he profoundly understood that if the masters of the Immortal Alliance knew of his thoughts, the entire Immortal Alliance would be unable to find any evidence of the Sun Familyâs existence by the next day. Completely eradicated from the world!
However, he seemed to underestimate the effect of brotherly connection.
"Brother, when I was probing the TianXuan Mirror last time, I actually discovered something interesting," Sun Luyao suddenly mentioned.
"Hmm?" Sun Luyuan paused slightly, looking at his brother with a very serious expression.
"Through various clues, the TianXuan Mirror has uncovered a trace of a force in the Xuanhuang World that is still hidden and might rebel in the future," Sun Luyao whispered.
"A rebellion?" Sun Luyuan shook his head; he did not think that anything in the vast Xuanhuang World could shake the rule of the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals.
But what his brother Sun Luyao said next made his heart skip a beat: "According to the predictions of the TianXuan Mirror, this force could potentially cause great damage to the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals."
"Is this true?"
Sun Luyuan was invigorated, and the first thought that popped into his mind was to immediately report this crucial information to the Mirror Handler Fu to earn merits.
However, as he was carefully reviewing the myriad pieces of information sent by his brother, he was secretly shocked.
Sun Luyaoâs faint voice then rang in his ears.
"Brother, Iâm really in great pain."
"If this continues, it wonât be long before I canât hold on anymore and will completely perish."
"Being a dog for others all oneâs life is still being a dog in the end."
"Even mortals dare to chant âThe emperor takes turns to reign, this year itâs my familyâs turnâ..."
His brotherâs murmurs, like a soul-capturing demonâs sound, circled around Sun Luyuanâs ears.
The thought he had suppressed earlier, influenced by this, could no longer be restrained and bounced back into his mind.
"Sacred Dynasty Daqi..."
Sun Luyuan narrowed his eyes, reassessing the information in his hands.