Li Fan, seeing the situation, just smiled and didn’t explain further.

Huangfu Song, however, didn’t intend to let him off so easily, even though the two hadn’t had much interaction.

But that didn’t stop him from acting as if he were very familiar with Li Fan, enthusiastically engaging him.

“Senior Huangfu, how often do you usually see Chief Lu?”

Li Fan responded casually, and seeing Huangfu Song’s incessant chatter, he couldn’t help but interrupt and ask.

Huangfu Song couldn’t help but be stunned.

With some embarrassment, he replied, “Chief Lu’s status…”

Before he could finish speaking, Li Fan meaningfully interjected, “In that case, the opportunity is right in front of you. Senior Huangfu, why not take the opportunity to make a good impression?”

Huangfu Song was momentarily taken aback, then as if awakened from a dream.

He exclaimed, “You’re right. If I have the chance to enter Chief Lu’s eyes, the road to success is right in front of me!”

“Hehe, you can tell me these words. But in front of others, it’s better to be cautious,” Li Fan reminded again.

“Understood, understood,” Huangfu Song nodded quickly.

He then hurriedly left the place to find an “opportunity to perform.”

Only then did Li Fan find peace.

Being able to know Chief Lu’s whereabouts in advance was naturally through Lu Xuejing’s secret communication.

However, it stopped there.

He didn’t ask her to do more.

It’s not that Li Fan suddenly became kind-hearted, but he deeply understood that in front of Chief Lu, such a top-notch expert in the world,

Any slight abnormality in behavior might be noticed.

The fisherman’s methods were indeed mysterious, but whether they could withstand the scrutiny of the top powers of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance was still unknown.

When it came to his own safety, Li Fan naturally had to be extremely cautious.

The so-called layout was not even worth mentioning.

With Golden Core cultivation, attempting to scheme against Dao Integration Immortals was simply seeking death. Li Fan wouldn’t be foolish to that extent.

What he did was merely creating an “encounter” opportunity with Chief Lu.

As for what would happen after the meeting, as Li Fan had said before,

Whether it succeeds or not, it all depends on fate.

Since Dongfang learned of Chief Lu’s impending inspection, the atmosphere at the entire Hualing Gorge suddenly changed.

There wasn’t a single idle person around, everyone was in a hurry, with solemn expressions.

Every cultivator was hurriedly moving about, their faces grave.

Huangfu Song himself repeatedly checked the parts where the formation was already completed, fearing any oversights.

The heavy atmosphere of preparation made the various cultivators who followed Huangfu Song here unable to sit still.

Moreover, seeing Huangfu Song, who had always been somewhat lazy, unexpectedly busy, they were not dull-witted people and immediately guessed that some big shot might be coming to inspect.

So they volunteered one after another to help out.

Having obtained a batch of elite assistance for no reason, the lean man named Dongfang naturally wouldn’t refuse.

Inside the Hualing Gorge, without a special response method, even cultivators found it difficult to move a step.

For this reason, Dongfang urgently requested a batch of “Spirit Pearls” so that Li Fan and the others could move freely.

“These were brought by Senior Dongfang Yao and are allocated to you all,” said a seven or eight-year-old child in black and white Daoist robes, with a clear and bright appearance.

He took out a white jade bottle from his bosom and extracted colorful, chaotic round beads from it, distributing them to everyone.

“Swallow them orally and place them in your dantian. You’ll be able to sense the flow of spiritual energy again,” although the child looked extremely young, he was quite experienced in explaining the usage and precautions of the Spirit Pearls.

Li Fan held the colorful Spirit Pearls in his hand, observed them for a moment, and didn’t see anything unusual for the time being.

He swallowed one.

As the Spirit Pearl entered his abdomen, various colored lights surged from it, spreading throughout his body.

As if it were a medicinal catalyst, it stirred up the dormant spiritual energy within his body.

The spiritual energy suppressed by the Hualing Gorge also recovered its vitality in an instant.

Although there was still a gap compared to fully unleashing it outside, it was barely enough to sustain the daily work needed.

“Rather than saying it’s lifting the suppression, it’s more like a catalyst, enhancing the efficiency of spiritual energy reactions,”

“Thus partially offsetting the deadening effect of the Hualing Gorge.”

“In that case, if these Spirit Pearls are taken in the ordinary areas outside, wouldn’t…”

Li Fan felt the peculiar spiritual energy mixed within him, pondering.

Just as he was contemplating, the child in front of him said, “The effect of the Spirit Pearls lasts for thirty days. You must pay attention to its expiration date. “

“There have been cases where cultivators were too engrossed in their work, forgot about the duration. After the effect expired, their spiritual power was completely depleted, and they fell from the sky, directly killed by the fall.”

“If you no longer want to use it midway, you can circulate your spiritual power and expel the remaining Spirit Pearls from your body,”

Hearing this, the cultivators nodded one after another.

“Oh, one more thing. Before leaving this Hualing Gorge, either wait for the Spirit Pearl’s effect to completely disappear, or directly expel the Spirit Pearl.”

“Don’t forget. Otherwise, there’s a risk of spiritual energy explosion. Of course, if you have a physique as strong as Senior Dongfang Yao’s and aren’t afraid of spiritual energy turmoil, then just ignore what I said.”

The child left no detail unaddressed, having said what needed to be said.

He bowed to everyone and then, in full view of everyone, transformed into a single-footed white bird and flew away.

With the assistance of the Spirit Pearls, everyone regained their vitality and immediately threw themselves into the construction support of the formation.

With a practiced hand, they quickly blended into the atmosphere of the Hualing Gorge.

And so, a day passed.

Li Fan, who was conducting a check on the formation units, suddenly felt something and stopped his work, looking up.

He saw a rainbow crossing the sky, tearing through the dark red of the Burning Ember Wasteland for thousands of miles, heading straight for the Hualing Gorge below.

The calm green river seemed to sense something, waves rippling without wind.

The suppression suddenly rose by a level, catching the cultivators who could only move freely with the help of the Spirit Pearls off guard.

The imbalance of spiritual power nearly caused them to fall from the sky.

At this moment, Li Fan saw countless transparent patterns emanating from the rainbow.

Expanding outward continuously, like a sky-covering curtain, it instantly enveloped the entire Hualing Gorge.

“Formation?”

Li Fan looked up, his eyes flashing with brilliance.

The patterns flickered, and in an instant, a large formation took shape.

The calm green river seemed to be heavily pressed down, instantly becoming tranquil, with the surface of the river even slightly lowering as a whole.

The cultivators within the formation all felt a sense of relief.

The suppression effect of the Hualing Gorge seemed to disappear in an instant.

Under the escort of more than ten black-clad cultivators, Lu Xichan, dressed in white, stepped on the rainbow light.

She descended in front of everyone.

“Greetings, Chief!”

Dongfang Yao and Huangfu Song hurriedly flew forward, bowing respectfully.

Lu Xichan swept her gaze over the two, her expression cold.

“Let’s go, take me to see the progress of the formation construction.”