Chapter 1262: The Primordial Will of the Star Sea
Chapter 1262: The Primordial Will of the Star Sea
Matters concerning the Gloomy Realm were top secret within the Immortal Alliance, and this envoy knew little more than the basics.
To avoid arousing suspicion, Li Ping refrained from tampering with him any further.
When the envoy, whose name was Jia Su, gradually regained consciousness, he had no idea that the secrets in his mind had been thoroughly read by the man before him.
He was still lavishing praise, "Sect Master, this divine technique of yours is truly extraordinary. Even I, just by reading it, found myself lost in a state of complete immersion."
Li Ping chuckled. "It would be for the best if it proves useful to the Immortal Alliance. However, about the annual percentage of Source Power we are required to submit... is that still open for discussion?"
Before he could finish, the envoy's expression shifted slightly. He spoke in a solemn, earnest tone, "Sect Master, most things can be negotiated. But when it comes to the Alliance's assignments, there is no room for carelessness."
The envoy hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice. "To be honest with you, the higher-ups were originally planning to levy even more this time..."
Seeing the ugly, almost explosive look on Li Ping's face, the envoy quickly tried to placate him. "But Sect Master, you have rendered a great service, haven't you? I'll go and try to speak with them. I should be able to get a reduction..."
The anger on the Saint Emperor's face slowly faded, replaced by an expression of utter calm.
Leaving a puppet behind to continue watching over the disciples of the Spirit Element Sect, Li Ping returned to the Sacred Dynasty.
The profound technique he had left for the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance was, in fact, a superior method for developing the Source Power within a cultivator's body, and it contained no hidden traps.
After all, with the Gloomy Sea of Darkness involved, the Alliance was bound to be cautious and would repeatedly verify it.
The reason Li Ping had passed this method to the Immortal Alliance was simply because, as its creator, he could roughly sense the location of any cultivator practicing it. He could even perceive the Source Power they cultivated under its influence.
The Gloomy Sea of Darkness was an endless, all-consuming blackness. Even the You Clan only operated within their familiar territories.
To locate the "Piercing Spear" that the Immortal Alliance had driven into the Gloomy Sea of Darkness, he would naturally need a few tricks up his sleeve.
However, it would take some time for this technique to be widely adopted.
For now, Li Ping decided to resume his previously unfinished plan: to have a puppet body achieve enlightenment outside the Xuanhuang Realm.
After these past few days of final refinement, the puppet's body had reached a state that perfectly met the Saint Emperor's requirements.
In fact, every time his consciousness descended upon it, an increasingly strong, instinctual urge to permanently switch bodies would surge within him.
Consequently, Li Ping had reduced the frequency with which he experimented with this puppet body.
The large quantity of Clear Void Flowing Crystal collected from the Hongze Realm was more than enough for him to overcome the pull of the Immortal Ruins and successfully fly out of the Xuanhuang Realm.
Without informing anyone, concealed by formations and the aura of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, a rainbow-hued streak of light silently soared toward the heavens.
In a mere instant, it reached the world's edge.
Once deprived of the Xuanhuang Realm's protection, the immense gravitational force from the Immortal Ruins made Li Ping's expression flicker.
Knowing about the power of a True Immortal and experiencing it firsthand were two entirely different things.
Only by truly facing this divine might, as vast as mountains and seas, could one understand one's own insignificance.
This held true even for him, the Saint Emperor, who was currently one of the most powerful beings in the Xuanhuang Realm.
"The path is long and arduous."
The Saint Emperor sighed inwardly, releasing streams of rainbow light one after another to counteract the pull of the Immortal Ruins.
The puppet body, however, shot away in the opposite direction at incredible speed.
The light of the Xuanhuang Realm gradually dimmed, until only darkness remained.
Unlike the blackness of the Gloomy Sea of Darkness, the Star Sea was utterly, deathly silent.
And yet...
Even though there seemed to be nothing ahead, the Saint Emperor's instincts told him that danger awaited him there.
He decisively changed course, bypassing that region.
On the journey that followed, whenever some rampaging, residual immortal power in the Darkest Sea threatened him, he would, as if by precognition, steer clear of it in advance.
It was as if this was not his first time treading through this Star Sea.
The Saint Emperor's puppet body narrowed its eyes, following a faint, mysterious sense as it ventured deeper into the Darkest Sea.
He could already feel it—the fact that the upper limit of the laws in the Star Sea was higher than that of the Xuanhuang Realm.
But his destination was not the foot of the high wall mentioned in the sword-light message.
It was a place within this Darkest Star Sea where new, higher-level laws were in the process of being born.
There, the efficiency of enlightenment would be at its peak.
The rainbow light streaked through the void, and the concept of time's passage seemed to vanish.
The Saint Emperor gradually let go of the guidance of his premonitions, instead following a strange, wondrous rhythm that stirred within the silent Star Sea, altering his course.
As if truly at sea, he had found a fierce undercurrent flowing beneath the calm surface.
His speed suddenly skyrocketed, covering millions of miles in an instant.
Tremendous forces tore at him from all sides. Even the protective rainbow light was shredded to pieces by this unknown, immense power.
Li Ping's mind was clear and focused, treating the crisis of his impending demise as nothing. He calmly comprehended the wondrous transformations around him, phenomena he had never witnessed in the Xuanhuang Realm.
"Destruction and rebirth."
"The people of the Xuanhuang Realm see this silent starry sky as the Darkest Star Sea. But unbeknownst to all, life is slowly reawakening within it."
"It is just that it's currently in its most primordial stage. Moreover, the entire process is far too slow. To observe it from a human perspective makes it almost impossible to detect."
"This has nothing to do with one's aptitude for enlightenment. It's purely a difference that is bound to arise between life forms of different scales..."
"But..."
A peculiar rhythm slowly awakened within the Saint Emperor's puppet body.
It was the unique aura of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao!
That's right. This time, when the Saint Emperor secretly sent a puppet body out of the Xuanhuang Realm for enlightenment, he had not let a single soul in the Sacred Dynasty know.
But how could he possibly have concealed it from the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao?
At Its insistent request, and with the grim determination that this might be a one-way trip, It had split off a sliver of Its consciousness and attached it to the puppet body.
It had left the Xuanhuang Realm with him, journeying into the depths of the Star Sea.
Unlike its purpose many years ago...
This time, the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao had come to "learn the Dao"!
Before the Darkest Star Sea was destroyed, its upper limit of laws already exceeded that of the Xuanhuang Realm.
Although the Xuanhuang Realm had managed to survive until now, its own power had not evolved over the long eons.
Considering it had absorbed the fragments of many cultivation worlds, even though cultivators had plundered much of it, it was still slightly stronger overall than before.
And yet, the nascent Dao principles gestating in the Darkest Star Sea were naturally a grade higher than those of the Xuanhuang Realm.
Undoubtedly...
For the Xuanhuang Realm, observing these nascent forms in the Darkest Star Sea was also a great opportunity.
Previously, it lacked a trustworthy cultivator to possess, and there was no method to escape the pull of the Immortal Ruins.
So, even if the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao had such intentions, it could not act on them.
But this time, with the existence of the Heavenly Mandate Sage Emperor, everything had changed.
Li Ping completely relinquished control of the puppet body to the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao.
He himself became a mere observer, feeling and comprehending.
This simple act alone was something that almost no other cultivator in the Xuanhuang Realm could have accomplished.
Like a child who hadn't been outside in a long time finally seeing a breathtaking view...
Li Ping sensed jubilation, excitement, and a throbbing fervor from the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao...
And the Darkest Star Sea grew ever brighter.
To say it was bright might be an overstatement.
It was merely the occasional appearance of tiny, scattered points of light.
But in this originally pitch-black and deathly silent Star Sea, they were remarkably conspicuous.
The puppet body seemed to vanish as the perspective suddenly zoomed out countless times.
The center of the entire Darkest Star Sea—not a center in the spatial sense, but in the sense of life—appeared before Li Ping.
Like a gently beating heart. Though faint, it unquestionably represented life, hope, and the future.
The Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao and Li Ping had arrived at the foot of this heart.
They greedily seized and absorbed the power of the Star Sea's revival, which emanated outward with each beat.
In an instant, countless images flooded their minds.
Worlds were destroyed, and star seas rose and fell.
Living beings grew mighty, receiving the response of the heavens.
There was also a shadow like a terrifying beast, a black mist lurking in the dark, ready to pounce at any moment.
... Amidst these countless, complex changes and constants, the Darkest Star Sea, even after its destruction, steadily and persistently attempted to spark life anew.
While this was the primordial Dao of this Star Sea, it was also a display of persistence that could move one to tears.
Unable to withstand such an immense and pure primordial Dao will, the puppet body began to disintegrate inch by inch.
But at this moment, neither the consciousness of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao nor the Saint Emperor Li Ping felt any worry or fear.
"Compared to the entirety of the Darkest Star Sea, what do the calamities suffered by the Xuanhuang Realm even count for?"
"If the Star Sea can revive from destruction, the Xuanhuang Realm can surely do the same."
Seizing this final opportunity, the two of them committed as many insights as they could to memory.
Li Ping also knew that the primordial Dao will of the Darkest Star Sea was not something he could currently fathom.
His so-called enlightenment at this moment was more akin to a blind man touching an elephant.
Everything he saw and comprehended was merely the sliver that he himself wanted to see and was capable of perceiving.
But even so, this part, which was insignificant to the entire Star Sea, was of monumental importance to them.
Just as the puppet body was about to completely disintegrate and vanish...
The primordial, reviving consciousness of the Star Sea seemed to notice the presence of Li Ping and the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao.
It cast a sliver of its attention upon them.
But it was clear that the fragile puppet body could no longer bear this immense, incomparable power.
It was annihilated in the boundless force.
However, before his consciousness faded...
With the help of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, Li Ping saw a fleeting, blurry image.
It appeared and vanished so quickly that Li Ping couldn't be sure if it was just his imagination.
The Immortal Dao collapsed, the Star Sea was shattered, and calamity spread.
There was a figure, its face and details indistinct, growing fainter and fainter.
Then it vanished completely.
Only its soft laughter lingered, echoing for a long time in this Star Sea where disaster was about to unfold.
"What does it matter to me..."
"What does it matter to me..."
"Hahahaha..."
Boom!
The Saint Emperor was abruptly thrown back to reality.
He let out a muffled grunt and spat out a mouthful of golden blood.
The slumbering Cat Treasure's head shot up. It flew at lightning speed to the still-floating droplets of blood.
It swallowed the blood in one gulp.
"Meow! Meow, meow!"
Then, as if afraid of being reprimanded by Li Ping, the Cat Treasure let out a few ingratiating cries.
Circulating his golden Source Power to slowly heal his internal injuries, Li Ping paid the Cat Treasure no mind.
His thoughts were entirely focused on the scene he had just witnessed.
"That figure..."
The Saint Emperor's heart was heavy with solemnity.
For this Star Sea, in its nascent revival from destruction, to still hold a memory of this being, he could not be some simple character.
The mere existence of the thought in his mind for a short while caused a sense of crisis to well up in the Saint Emperor's heart.
He was instantly alarmed and slowly forced himself to stop thinking about it.
But he soon discovered that his worries were unnecessary.
Because even if he didn't consciously try to forget, the memory of that figure was fading uncontrollably.
"This situation..."
"He hasn't reached the legendary state of a 'Nameless True Immortal,' yet it seems he is only a step away."
The Saint Emperor carefully savored the meaning that the nascent Star Sea had tried to convey in that instant.
"If I'm not mistaken, the culprit behind the many calamities that plague the Star Sea is very likely this individual..."
The Saint Emperor frowned slightly, trying his best to capture the memory that was about to disappear from his mind.
In the end, most of the details slowly faded away.
All that remained were the four words: "What does it matter to me."
"The 'What Matter' Immortal." The Saint Emperor's expression was unreadable.
On the Saint Emperor's throne, Li Ping sat for a long time in silence.
The Cat Treasure also seemed to sense something. It crouched low, its head scanning the surroundings, assuming a predatory stance.
It seemed to be searching for the existence that had made Li Ping so wary.
But ultimately, it found nothing.
The Cat Treasure became lazy again, falling asleep on Li Ping's shoulder.
The Saint Emperor, on the other hand, began to digest the gains from his journey into the depths of the Star Sea.
And he was not the only one.
Even the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, because of this long journey, began to undergo a change that had not occurred in a very long time.
Like the nascent Darkest Star Sea, it was as subtle as a gentle rain nourishing the earth, still unknown to most.
But it was, indeed, happening.
In the entire world, only a handful of beings could perceive it.
In the Great Qi.
In a teahouse in the Sacred Capital, the stone slab, who was chatting with some people, had a slight change in expression as it looked into the distance.
In the space of the Life-Frying Cauldron, Ruomu, who was trimming its own withered branches, stared in astonishment at the new shoots sprouting from the yellowed tips.
Thousands of miles underground, the ancient earth vein tree felt the torrent of power from the Xuanhuang Realm inexplicably surging with greater force, as if something was brewing. It filled him with both anticipation and dread.
... "A thousand sails pass by the sunken ship's side; ten thousand saplings thrive before the withered tree."
Within the space of the Deduction Jade, these two lines of poetry suddenly surfaced in Li Fan's mind.
"So, by borrowing the perspective of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao to gain enlightenment in the Star Sea, one can achieve the greatest harvest."
"This is because the perspective of a person and the perspective of heaven and earth are fundamentally different."
"It's just like back then, when I used the Canghai Pearl to comprehend the 'Formless Killing Intent'."
"Creating the Saint Emperor clone in this life to help the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao was truly a happy accident."
Li Fan was overjoyed.
Although the connection between him and the Saint Emperor had become very faint...
The impact from the primordial Dao will of the Star Sea had been so immense that he had still managed to grasp some of the insights gained by the Saint Emperor and the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao.
Most importantly, he now understood the method.
As long as he had the method, he could replicate it in the next life.
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