Chapter 1018: At the Pinnacle of the Mortal Realm
Chapter 1018: At the Pinnacle of the Mortal Realm
Li Fan had experienced the fusion of completely identical objects before.
The Transformation Dao Stone and the Stop Tablet Fragment were prime examples.
But it was obvious that their effects after fusion were far inferior to that of the Dissociation Disk.
"Perhaps it's because the Dissociation Disk already stands at the pinnacle of mortal formation arts," he mused. "Although it didn't ascend in grade after devouring its other self, it did achieve a kind of qualitative transformation."
"There are many other things in the world like the Dissociation Disk, just a step away from ascension. But because the path to immortality is severed, they are almost destined to stagnate forever. After all, not everyone can pull off a grand move like the Heavenly Profound Mirror in the 115th simulation, mobilizing all the cultivators of the Immortal Alliance to explore thousands of small worlds just to upgrade its main body."
"But with the help of [Truth], the 'Unity of Two' I achieved allows them to easily cross this insurmountable chasm."
"This might just be the simplest method in the world right now to mass-produce power close to that of an immortal."
Numerous items instantly appeared in Li Fan's mind, along with their potential states after fusing with their other selves.
As for whether an item that had fused once could be further strengthened by fusing with itself again...
That required further verification.
However, Li Fan suspected it was likely impossible.
"The key lies in the severed path to immortality and the lack of immortal spiritual energy."
"Without the fundamental essence, sheer quantity is meaningless."
His thoughts slowly converged. After emerging from his secluded chamber, Li Fan first set about overhauling the protective grand formation of the Spirit Wood Realm.
This upgrade took even longer than the time Li Fan had spent originally building the formation; it was almost equivalent to a complete reconstruction.
But the entire process was carried out in absolute silence, without alerting a single living being in the Spirit Wood Realm.
Only after the formation was complete did the subtle change in the aura enveloping the Spirit Wood Realm make Bai Hua and a few other cultivators at the Dao Integration stage and above vaguely aware that something had happened.
Li Fan stood high in the sky, his eyes tightly closed.
Even without relying on his spiritual sense or physical sight, simply by connecting with the realm-protecting grand formation, a miniature and meticulously detailed image of the entire Spirit Wood Realm appeared in his mind.
Not a single living creature in the Spirit Wood Realm could escape his perception.
With the power of this new realm-protecting formation, Li Fan could instantly annihilate any creature within it without having to lift a finger himself.
"The chasm between immortal and mortal is truly as deep as an abyss."
"I see the creatures of the Spirit Wood Realm as mere ants; an immortal must see me in the same way."
"If I didn't have [Truth], that is."
Li Fan sighed softly.
Theoretically, the newly established Spirit Wood Realm's protective formation was far from its limit. However, due to the lack of special materials found only in the Immortal Realm and the absence of immortal spiritual energy, the formation in its current state had little room for further improvement.
Having preliminarily completed his test of the Dissociation Disk's power, Li Fan returned to his chamber to summarize and collate the Final Dissociation Disk's analysis of the Myriad Spirits Return to Number Array. At the same time, he supervised the progress of deciphering the Dharma Spreading Heavenly Venerate's restrictions.
Although the Final Dissociation Disk's computational power was immense, faintly reaching the top tier in the mortal realm, it was ultimately an inanimate object and couldn't function without Li Fan's guidance.
Left to its own devices, it might just start deducing its way down some bizarre, unintended path.
The Way of Formations was boundless, and Li Fan became lost in it, completely unaware of the passage of time.
One day, a sudden feeling jolted Li Fan from his research.
"Anchor point, year fifteen. The Medicine King Cauldron is returning."
He calculated the time; it was about right.
Li Fan's eyes flickered. He stopped his work and his figure instantly vanished from the Spirit Wood Realm.
He arrived at the Cangwu Abyss, at the predetermined landing spot of the Medicine King Cauldron, and waited patiently.
Li Fan gazed toward the bottom of the abyss, his expression growing grave.
With his current strength, he naturally had the power to venture deeper.
But whenever the thought arose, a sense of unease would surface in his heart, which he would then have to suppress.
Sensing the distracting thoughts being neutralized by the Xuanhuang Heart Cleansing Mantra, Li Fan's eyes grew deep. "That strange attraction... it really isn't an illusion."
"If I'm not mistaken, the Cangwu Abyss, much like the Cong Yun Sea, is a rather large remnant of another cultivation world. Hmm, perhaps it's even more than that. The bottom of the abyss might also be connected to the depths of the white mist."
Li Fan looked around at the floating architectural ruins and slowly pondered.
In ancient times, the Cangwu Abyss did not exist. The Cong Yun Sea was formed by the slap of a palm, and the Cangwu Abyss by the stomp of a foot.
It was clear that this was the Dharma Spreader assisting the Xuanhuang Realm as it fused with and devoured other cultivation worlds.
"The Xuanhuang Realm couldn't even digest it on its own and needed the Dharma Spreader's help. That in itself speaks volumes."
Although the Cangwu Abyss undoubtedly held many secrets, just like the Cong Yun Sea, Li Fan had no intention of getting to the bottom of them right now.
He simply waited patiently for the Medicine King Cauldron to return.
Just as he remembered, a fiery meteor lit up the sky in the dead of night.
It then vanished into the darkness, heading straight for the Cangwu Abyss.
Upon reaching Li Fan's position, the Medicine King Cauldron halted in mid-air and concealed its presence.
"Hm?"
However, as Li Fan looked at the cauldron's landing spot, his expression turned a bit strange.
After repeatedly comparing it with the scene in his memory, Li Fan was certain that the final landing position of the Medicine King Cauldron in this life had shifted ever so slightly.
The deviation was only about three inches. If not for Li Fan's exceptionally keen spiritual sense and the Transformation Dao Stone meticulously recording everything, he would have almost overlooked it.
"Was it affected by some unknown external force during its return? Or..."
"...has the very [position] and [size] of the Xuanhuang Realm itself changed?"
A strange sense of unease welled up in Li Fan's heart.
He instantly reviewed all the events of this life in his mind, filtering through potential causes for this deviation.
After locking onto a few targets, he still couldn't be certain.
He simply committed the detail to memory, then controlled a Small Medicine King Cauldron to enter the Medicine King True Cauldron.
To gain control of the Medicine King Cauldron, one had to enter its control chamber.
Li Fan was already prepared for this.
With a slight stir of his thoughts, he drew out a stream of evergreen life force from within his body and infused it into the [Life and Death Gate] outside the control chamber.
Before the Medicine King Cauldron had even returned, Li Fan had already cultivated the World-Saving Longevity Scripture. Although he had since dispelled the technique, he had stored some evergreen life force in his grotto-heaven for this very purpose.
Only true disciples of the Medicine King Sect could cultivate the World-Saving Longevity Scripture. Having passed the verification, Li Fan successfully entered the control chamber.
It was like an empty void.
Apart from a faint silhouette, there was nothing else.
That ethereal figure was likely the deceased sect master of the Medicine King Sect, Liu Ruchen.
His features were now indistinct, but his gaze fell upon Li Fan, confirming his identity as a true disciple of the Medicine King Sect.
Scene after scene began to float in the void.
It was the story of the Medicine King Sect: how after flying out of the Xuanhuang Realm, they were nearly captured by the Immortal Ruins.
And how Liu Ruchen and several elders had sacrificed their lives to barely save the Medicine King Cauldron and bring it back.
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