Chapter 1216: The Truth of the Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation
"Ahem." Sensing the Sacred Emperor Li Ping's gaze seemingly lock onto him, Yin Shangren cleared his throat.
"Alright, let's get back to the matter at hand. Creating that gloomy, repulsive force is an instinctual function of the formation. Even though the formation is damaged, it will continue to execute its original logic. This Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation is truly remarkable. It must have begun searching for an alternative power source after being cut off from the Xuanhuang Realm's energy supply."
"The You Clan was born for this very reason."
"I imagine you've figured it out by now. The power generated by the prayers of the You Clan can, to some extent, substitute for the energy supplied by the heaven and earth of the Xuanhuang Realm..."
"I'm not sure how familiar you are with the Dao of formations. Does this explanation make sense to you?"
As Yin Shangren was speaking, he noticed a strange look on Sacred Emperor Li Ping's face and thought perhaps his explanation had been too complex and unclear.
So he had to ask.
"I have some understanding. The Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation was built by the Xuantian King. If your theory is correct, then this Gloomy Sea of Darkness, much like the formation module that captures worlds in the Star Sea, is an equally vital component of the Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation," Li Ping mused, choosing his words carefully.
"Correct," Yin Shangren nodded.
"The principles of the Dao of formations involve a limitless, flowing cycle. The golden chains and the Gloomy Sea of Darkness cannot form a complete circuit on their own. There must be two other subordinate formation modules for this grand formation to operate at peak efficiency."
Before Yin Shangren could even begin to elaborate, he heard the Sacred Emperor Li Ping voice the very conclusion he had reached.
"It seems your attainments in the Dao of formations are far superior to mine," Yin Shangren remarked, his voice quiet.
Li Ping offered no reply, his mind already racing, contemplating the other missing parts of the Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation, even as he continued his exchange with Yin Shangren.
"If we consider the Xuanhuang Realm as a flying ark struggling near a cosmic vortex, then in a sense, this place is the ark's power source, is it not?"
After a moment of thought, Yin Shangren agreed.
"Then what if... and I'm speaking hypothetically, of course... what if we were to supply the Gloomy Sea of Darkness with sufficient energy? Would it be possible to gradually break free from the vortex?" Sacred Emperor Li Ping asked slowly, his tone inscrutable.
"...Theoretically, it's possible. But we don't know the energy conversion efficiency of the Gloomy Sea. It's more likely that even if we burned the entire current Xuanhuang Realm as fuel, it might not move the world a single inch. Moreover, I have a feeling that due to the recent decline in the You Clan's population, the Gloomy Sea's energy supply has once again become unstable. It may have already begun to evolve a new method of absorbing energy," Yin Shangren said, shaking his head.
"I keep feeling a faint, persistent sense of crisis. We cannot afford to be careless," Yin Shangren added, his tone growing solemn.
"However, didn't you just create a large number of You Clan members? If their presence can restore the Gloomy Sea's energy supply, it might just prevent this new evolution from occurring," Yin Shangren suddenly proposed.
The Great Qi's Sacred Emperor, Li Ping, remained silent.
...
At the Myriad Immortals Alliance Headquarters.
Having just failed in his attempt to crack the variegated rainbow light, Li Fan had no time to rest. He immediately plunged into deducing the secrets of the Xuanhuang Realm's Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation.
Li Fan recalled the scene from Mo Rubin's 119th life, where he had vanished strangely within the Gloomy Sea of Darkness, leaving only an empty shell behind.
"So the Gloomy Sea of Darkness was also a part of the Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation all along."
"Back then, Mo Rubin managed to learn about the Xuantian King through the Tianxuan Mirror and ultimately traveled to the Gloomy Sea. It's uncertain if he truly perished, but it's highly probable that his entire cultivation base was devoured by the Gloomy Sea and converted into motive energy for the Xuanhuang Realm."
"Whether he was driven by profound love for the world and willingly sacrificed himself, or if he used the opportunity to fake his death and escape his shell, one thing is almost certain: the Xuantian King, or at least matters closely related to him, must be hidden within the Gloomy Sea of Darkness."
"Previously, I thought this Gloomy Sea was a pure manifestation of some alien power, which was why I could do nothing about it. But now that I know it's a manifestation of a formation's power..."
"I might just be able to crack it!"
All the sensations Sacred Emperor Li Ping had experienced in the Gloomy Sea, along with the memories and scenes from the 119th life, flooded Li Fan's mind.
The Final Dissociation Disc, empowered by the Dao Transformation Stone, began to hum with a thunderous resonance.
For the first time ever, it was pushed to its absolute limit.
"No wonder the Tianxuan Mirror was so evasive when I asked for the schematics of the Floating Starry Sky Grand Formation, even offering an immortal-grade formation diagram to placate me. It's clear now that this grand formation is nothing less than the ultimate modification of the Xuanhuang Realm itself. It transformed the world from a pure cultivation realm into an eternal immortal ark, capable of navigating the Immortal Ruins."
"If the formation hadn't been damaged, and if it weren't for the High Wall that still exists beyond the Immortal Ruins..."
"The Xuanhuang Realm might have escaped its shackles and been roaming the star sea long ago."
"Perhaps my initial request for the formation diagrams was what gave me away. Given the formation's immense importance, there's no way the twelve Dharma Kings of the Xuantian Sect would have been unaware of it. Yet, my behavior at the time showed no corresponding sense of gravity. I treated it as just an ordinary formation..."
Numerous thoughts flashed through Li Fan's mind in an instant.
Time trickled by as the light from the Dissociation Disc and the Dao Transformation Stone flickered incessantly.
Feeling a long-absent, ever-intensifying, piercing pain in his brow, Li Fan frowned slightly. "It seems the complexity of this grand formation exceeds even my imagination. I have too little information. Even with three immortal-grade formations as a foundation, a forced deduction is too much of a stretch. It's proving difficult to even deduce a single flaw in the Gloomy Sea module."
"And... does this formation have some kind of anti-deduction capability?"
Li Fan was inwardly shaken.
Every time the Final Dissociation Disc reached a critical point in its deduction, the vast majority of the formation data would simply collapse and vanish into thin air.
It was as if some power was interfering, reaching across time and space itself.
Li Fan even suspected that if his true body weren't safely hidden within the space of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Deduction Jade, this power might have locked onto him directly instead of merely interfering with the process.
"Fortunately, some data remains after each attempt to reconstruct the formation. It's slow, but it's progress."
"Of course, it would be best if the current situation in the Gloomy Sea of Darkness remains unchanged."
...
As Li Fan's thoughts churned, Sacred Emperor Li Ping's decision took a sudden turn.
"Since I am vying with the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance for control of the Xuanhuang Realm, I will naturally not stand idly by."
(End of Chapter)
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