Chapter 1359: The Ailing Star Sea
Chapter 1359: The Ailing Star Sea
On the Lecture Stage in the small world of Great Xuan.
The Tianyang Immortal Puppet stood behind him, motionless with its eyes closed.
Li Fan sat, reviewing the insights on the high wall's weaknesses, a curated selection from the fabricated heaven personality, drawn from the minds of billions of beings across the small worlds.
"Is it before us? No, it is simply tall! Like a great river dam soaring across the heavens! It severs our lifeblood, it cuts off our path forward!"
"The might of the dark high wall is truly unfathomable; what power short of the divine or saintly could possibly destroy it? And yet, a dike a thousand miles long can be brought down by a single anthill!"
"The body of one, the soul of ten thousand, the will of a hundred million. A blazing fire to illuminate the encroaching dark."
...
He had to admit that in the face of annihilation, people could truly unleash unimaginable potential.
But their level was, after all, too far removed from the high wall.
Even with billions of minds speculating, achieving the kind of qualitative leap needed to uncover the wall's secrets was no simple task.
At the very least, Li Fan saw no sign of their imminent success.
But he was in no hurry.
He paused his review, and with a flick of his finger, a sword-like shadow shot out, bundling all the useful thoughts and sending them to Mo Rubin.
"Let's hope that prodigy of the ancient cultivation world can make something of this," Li Fan murmured, his expression unreadable as he gazed into the starry sky.
Although he had already forged the Tianyang Immortal Puppet in this life, Li Fan's deductions showed that Tianyang alone was not enough to protect him when he attempted to achieve Dao Integration with the celestial soul of the Super Xuanhuang Realm.
"Beyond the threats I've encountered in past cycles, I must also consider what lies beyond the high wall..."
The scene from the end of his last life replayed in his mind: the Cat Treasure's arrival, the collapse of the high wall, and the flickering, unstable image of [Truth].
"When the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm is born, will the high wall still be able to seal and isolate the inside from the out? If the unknown powers beyond the wall are drawn here, then my time is truly limited."
Based on his last experience, Li Fan tried to calculate the buffer period he might have.
"Plan for defeat before seeking victory. It may not happen, but I must be prepared."
"Of all my strengths, [Truth] is the most fundamental. Second is my mastery of arrays, which stands peerless in this star sea. Third is my Nine Heavens Descending Dust Finger. And last are the various True Immortal Seal Characters."
In Li Fan's sea of consciousness, the Final Dissociation Disc, having just completed the task of downgrading the immortal array, worked without rest.
It was now deducing a formation so astonishing it could shake the world. This array would be the grand synthesis of all his current knowledge of the Dao of formations.
To wield the Dao of a True Immortal with mortal power!
Li Fan took stock of the arrays he currently commanded.
From the Mysterious Origin Primal Spirit Grand Array came the "Mysterious Jade, Myriad Spirits Return to Number," the "Desolate Fall, Void Room Generates Flowers," and the "Boundless, Primordial Vision."
Inspired by the ancient Xuanhuang world-protecting array, Li Fan had deduced his own formations: "Fabrication, Hundred States of Sentient Beings" and "Immortal Descends, All Things Return to Void." One created, one destroyed, and their power was no less than that of orthodox immortal arrays.
And now, Li Fan intended to combine all these immortal arrays, using the concept of the "Infinite Method" as the core, to create the ultimate defensive immortal array!
Li Fan vividly remembered how, in his last life, the Saint Emperor had used the Moonlight Starlight Array to trap the four central provinces of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance. Regardless of their cultivation level, anyone who stepped inside was lost in an endless star sea, unable to escape.
In this life, he intended to do the same.
But Li Fan's target was the Xuanhuang Realm itself!
He would build another high wall of arrays outside the Xuanhuang Realm!
"If I can just delay all the unstable factors for a while longer... that will be victory!"
The Dissociation Disc flickered with light as countless formation fractals were generated, combined, and evolved within it.
With the foundation of the immortal array downgrade, the barrier between mortal and immortal had been broken.
The deduction of the immortal array proceeded just as Li Fan had envisioned.
"The Primordial Vision Array can analyze any intruder, adapting to the situation."
"With Void Room Generates Flowers and Hundred States of Sentient Beings, I can create an infinite number of hyper-realistic worlds, verging on true reality."
"Mysterious Jade, Myriad Spirits Return to Number can adjust these formation worlds at will in an instant..."
"Every form of energy, every type of life, has environments to which it is suited and unsuited. By combining the essences of these immortal arrays, I can create an infinite, ever-changing, custom-tailored 'anti-world' based on an enemy's weaknesses!"
"Trap them with a world, kill them with a world!"
It was just like Li Fan himself, who, despite possessing the heaven-defying treasure [Truth], was still trapped within the world of Xuanhuang and the Star Sea.
A hundred lifetimes had passed, and it was clear that many more would be needed before he could transcend.
The array being deduced by the Dissociation Disc would tailor a personal Xuanhuang Realm for every intruder who dared to enter!
Mechanically speaking, the fundamental principle of this array was similar to the endless illusions he experienced within the Immortal-Forbidden Array when he first left the Great Xuan Kingdom.
However, it was obvious that the reality and intricacy of the worlds constructed by this immortal array would be far beyond what any ordinary illusion could achieve.
"Using the nightmare-difficulty experience of the Xuanhuang Realm as a blueprint, I will create infinite variations..."
"This array... can be named the Myriad Lives Delirium Array!"
As its name was decided, its intent coalesced, and the array took form.
The ceaselessly flickering light within the Final Dissociation Disc froze for a moment.
Then it exploded outward.
It formed a perfect, spherical ball of light composed of what seemed to be billions of fragments. Within each fragment, a world similar yet distinct from the Xuanhuang Realm played out its own history.
At the center of these billions of fragmented worlds, encircled by the high wall, the Xuanhuang Realm lay quietly in the heart of the darkest star sea.
It emitted a soft glow, which cast its light upon all the surrounding world fragments.
Even Li Fan, the creator of this array, was momentarily stunned into a trance upon witnessing this spectacle.
In that fleeting glance, Li Fan caught a glimpse of the worlds constructed by the Dissociation Disc.
Despite his many years of struggle in the Xuanhuang Realm, a cold sweat beaded on his forehead. He was somewhat frightened by his own creation.
"If I were to carelessly lose myself in there, I'd probably be suppressed for several hundred lifetimes."
"Anyone below the level of a True Immortal, even if they recognized the true nature of the world they were in, would lack the power to break free..."
"In a sense, this Myriad Lives Delirium Array is, without a doubt, a high wall forged from the Dao of formations!"
As Li Fan sank into thought, the sphere of fragmented light surrounding the Dissociation Disc slowly began to collapse inward.
Eventually, it all returned to the core of the Final Dissociation Disc.
For now, the Dissociation Disc had only deduced the core of the Myriad Lives Delirium Array. There was still a long way to go before all the details were perfected.
But even with just the core, it was enough for Li Fan to begin his preparations.
"The amount of Source Power Essence required to complete this Myriad Lives Delirium Array, which will envelop the entire Xuanhuang Realm, is simply terrifying."
After a quick estimate, Li Fan's brow furrowed.
With the current population of the You Clan, no matter how hard they worked, they could never meet his needs.
"It seems I'll have to think of another way."
"Either I resort to the flesh-and-blood factory breeding methods of the strange beasts, or I find an equivalent energy source to replace the Source Power Essence."
With this in mind, Li Fan sent a sliver of his divine sense deep beneath the Great Xuan Kingdom.
Since being captured and raised here by Li Fan, the population of the You Clan had tripled.
Every day, apart from eating, drinking, and sleeping, their only activity was praying to the great Saint Teacher.
Strangely, not only had they not grown weak from the lack of activity, but they were, as a whole, far healthier than when they were hiding from the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance's pursuit.
This phenomenon was different from what Li Fan had experienced before.
In the past, after being exploited, the You Clan had always become extremely frail. Their lifespans shortened, and their reproductive abilities plummeted. If not cared for properly, they were always at risk of extinction.
But from the current situation, it seemed as if the You Clan had broken the curse of their fate.
Li Fan thought back, comparing this life with the past.
"Their method of reproduction hasn't really changed much. Although I haven't oppressed them excessively and have given them enough time to rest, the Saint Emperor in my last life did the same."
"The You Clan within the Great Qi were also just as short-lived..."
"Could it be?"
Li Fan recalled how, in this life, he had once used the Dao Pill method to possess a member of the You Clan, attempting to peer at the hidden True Immortal Seal Character within their bloodline, which descended from the first Great Heavenly Venerate.
"Is it related to that character, the one that involves the transformation between immortal and mortal?" Li Fan couldn't help but speculate.
"The You Clan are the creation of the former Xuantian King. Their bloodline is the source of the Source Power Essence, and also the source of their original sin."
"And now, the curse upon them has lessened..."
Li Fan faintly understood.
"Given the Xuantian King's nature, he might not have done things so absolutely. While punishing the You Clan, he perhaps left them a sliver of hope. If a member of the You Clan could awaken and discover the secret within their own bloodline, the shackles upon them would be weakened."
To verify his theory, Li Fan immediately took action.
The phantasmal image of the Saint Teacher, which the You Clan devoutly worshiped, silently emitted several rays of dark light.
They randomly shone into the bodies of several You Clan members below.
As if struck by a divine revelation, the bodies of these few You Clan members suddenly stiffened.
Countless images flooded their minds without warning.
Overjoyed, they first kowtowed in gratitude toward the Saint Teacher's phantom, then immersed themselves in the Saint Teacher's enlightenment.
The prayers and murmurs from their mouths grew louder and faster.
Just like the You Clan member Li Fan had once possessed, their bodies began to age rapidly.
Some of their hair turned white in an instant, and in a flash, they were reduced to withered bones.
This horrifying scene did not frighten the other praying You Clan members. Instead, they were filled with immense envy, and their devout faith grew even more fervent.
Finally, amid waves of chanting, all the You Clan members to whom Li Fan had granted a revelation burned away their lives in their moment of understanding, turning to ash.
At this cost, Li Fan keenly sensed that, perhaps because the cursed shackles upon them had been further lightened, the remaining You Clan members had indeed grown a little stronger.
Not just their bodies, but their souls and comprehension had been enhanced across the board.
It was as if...
They were slowly returning to what the bloodline of the first Xuanhuang Great Heavenly Venerate should have been.
"To be chosen by a True Immortal from the upper realm to serve as the first Xuanhuang Great Heavenly Venerate, how could such an existence be weak?"
"How could his bloodline be so pathetic?"
Li Fan's eyes narrowed, and he continued to use the Saint Teacher's phantom to spread several more revelations.
Given the current population of the You Clan, they could still afford this method of sacrificing lives for advancement.
"However, I must be careful to control the degree to which I unlock their shackles."
"The last thing I want is to face a suddenly resurgent Great Heavenly Venerate at a critical moment in this life..."
Having been burned once before, Li Fan was naturally extra cautious in this regard.
Next, the You Clan, slowly reverting to their ancestral state, demonstrated to Li Fan their incredible vitality and reproductive capabilities.
Their rate of generation was not much slower than the previous flesh-and-blood factories.
And there were no defective products.
All the offspring born were inhumanly strong.
It would be more accurate to say they belonged to the demon beast race than the human race!
As the seal on the You Clan was gradually lifted, the amount of Source Power Essence generated by each individual's prayers also increased exponentially.
To a certain extent, this solved Li Fan's urgent problem.
However, looking at the You Clan, whose numbers had doubled again in a short time, a rare and inexplicable chill ran down Li Fan's spine.
"Even under heavy shackles, they are this potent. In their prime..."
"Their reproductive ability is probably no weaker than the rumored insectoid races, and what's more, every one of these You Clan members is so physically powerful. It completely defies common sense."
As he thought this, Li Fan silently and appropriately pruned and controlled the slightly swelling numbers of the You Clan.
He only stopped when the population looked right to him.
"It seems I'll have to keep a constant eye on them to be at ease."
Li Fan split off a fabricated personality and secretly implanted it into the Saint Teacher phantom that the You Clan worshiped.
He then laid down a layer of the newly deduced Myriad Lives Delirium Array in the area where the You Clan lived. Only after ensuring they were completely sealed off did he stop.
"One can never be too careful."
By methodically controlling the You Clan's population for linear growth, he used the Source Power Essence they produced to construct the Myriad Lives Delirium Array.
Time flew by in this manner.
Until one day...
Li Fan suddenly looked up, his gaze piercing the heavens.
The Medicine King Cauldron had finally broken free from the Immortal Ruins and was falling from its edge toward the Xuanhuang Realm.
The six-in-one immortal realm fragment within his body produced an increasingly strong resonance, as if urging him to go and receive it.
With a flash of sword light, Li Fan was already outside the Xuanhuang Realm.
He stood beyond the world, watching the Medicine King True Cauldron grow larger and larger in his vision as it tumbled through space.
With a wave of his hand, he simply collected it.
His return was just as graceful, a single fluid motion.
From start to finish, he did not disturb anyone within the Xuanhuang Realm.
As if sensing Li Fan's suppression from the outside, the Medicine King True Cauldron continuously emitted faint waves of energy, trying to escape his grasp.
But it was nothing more than a futile struggle.
An outer layer of the Myriad Lives Delirium Array, an inner layer of the All Things Return to Void Array.
Under the intimidating power emanating from the immortal arrays, the Medicine King True Cauldron instantly behaved.
It stood quietly, not moving a muscle.
Li Fan sent a sliver of his divine sense into the cauldron.
With practiced ease, he traveled all the way to the core control hub of the Medicine King True Cauldron.
Seeing the emptiness within the hub, Li Fan gave a cold smile.
He made a grasping motion with his right hand, then clenched his fist.
The entire space seemed to twist under his grip.
A blurry figure was dragged out of thin air by Li Fan!
"Senior, spare me!"
This figure was, of course, the hidden sect master of the Medicine King Sect, Liu Ruchen.
Upon being exposed by Li Fan, he showed none of the dignity of a sect master and immediately cried out in panic!
It wasn't that Liu Ruchen was a coward; it was that the methods Li Fan displayed were simply demonic and unfathomable.
He had somehow traveled all this way without triggering any of the prohibitions within the Medicine King Cauldron, heading straight for the core hub.
And he had seen through his hiding technique with a single glance...
Liu Ruchen's mind raced, trying to figure out which expert from the Ten Great Immortal Sects this could be.
But Li Fan appeared like a common mortal, with no aura leaking out at all.
He was impossible to read.
Only that calm expression, that casual glance, made Liu Ruchen's spiritual sense scream with warning, his hands and feet turning to ice.
He was about to speak again but was silenced by Li Fan's finger touching his forehead.
An incomparably powerful force, like a tidal wave, rushed into his soul.
Already just barely surviving in a severely injured state, Liu Ruchen was hit by this heavy blow and was instantly on the verge of death, with only a sliver of his soul remaining.
Under normal circumstances, Li Fan would not resort to soul-searching.
But with the clues about the immortal realm fragments left behind by the Medicine King Sect's ancestor, Sun Piao Miao, Li Fan could not afford to be anything but thorough.
Countless images, the memories of Liu Ruchen's life, flooded in.
Li Fan examined them all, down to the smallest detail.
He paid special attention to any information regarding Sun Piao Miao.
In Liu Ruchen's era, the name Sun Piao Miao existed only in distant legends.
Even after succeeding as the head of the Medicine King Sect, most of what Liu Ruchen knew about Sun Piao Miao came from a travelogue left by the ancestor.
Previously, Li Fan had only heard about this travelogue from members of the Medicine King Sect.
Now, within Liu Ruchen's memories, he read it word for word.
Knowing the answer in advance and looking back at the details in the travelogue, Li Fan indeed noticed some peculiarities.
The travelogue began after Sun Piao Miao established the Medicine King Sect.
Without any warning, as the master of the sect, Sun Piao Miao decided to leave the Xuanhuang Realm and travel the myriad worlds.
One must remember that at that time, the Medicine King Sect was newly established, its foundation unstable, with countless tedious matters awaiting the attention of the sect master.
Yet Sun Piao Miao simply packed up and left, leaving a mess behind.
If not for the reliability of his few personal disciples, and the fact that the Medicine King Sect's main purpose was to save lives and help people—generally avoiding conflict with other sects—the sect might not have survived until Sun Piao Miao's return.
Sun Piao Miao's sudden departure could be explained by his free-spirited and unconventional nature.
But to Li Fan, it seemed more like he had suddenly received some kind of mission and had no choice but to act.
One had to remember that with Sun Piao Miao's strength at the time, the starry sky was not a smooth path for him.
This was evident from his encounter with a strange celestial phenomenon in the star sea, where he was nearly killed and fell, gravely injured, into the Xiaoyao Realm.
With this foresight, Li Fan carefully read Sun Piao Miao's travelogue again.
Logically, since it was a travelogue, it should have recorded the memorable parts of the journey. But Sun Piao Miao made no mention of his own experiences, not even his severe injuries. All his writing was dedicated to describing the characteristics of the cultivation worlds he passed through.
It was as if he were merely an emotionless recording camera.
As if he were afraid that later generations, should they wish to retrace his steps, would not be able to find these cultivation worlds.
"Most importantly, what was the purpose of the chess pieces he left behind?"
"Since he left such obvious clues for his descendants, it's strange that he wouldn't mention them at all."
Li Fan carefully reviewed the travelogue but couldn't find what he was looking for, causing him to frown slightly.
To ensure he hadn't missed anything, he went through it one more time.
Still finding nothing, Li Fan began searching through Liu Ruchen's other memories.
Persistence paid off. Finally, in an anecdote Liu Ruchen had heard as a child, Li Fan found a possible clue.
This anecdote was something Liu Ruchen's master had mentioned in passing.
Even Liu Ruchen himself had forgotten it.
"Back then, a gravely injured guest came to the Medicine King Sect seeking help."
"His injuries were too severe; everyone in the sect was powerless to save him. Even the ancestor himself examined him and came to the same conclusion."
"Normally, there is no cure for everything in this world. Our Medicine King Sect had truly done its best to save him. But who would have thought that this guest, in his despair, would start cursing our sect? He even used his remaining strength to frantically attack the disciples. Our sect saves lives and helps people, but we are not naive fools. We naturally have our own temper."
"The disciples immediately moved to strike him down. But the ancestor stopped them, walked to the dying guest's side, pointed a hand to the sky, and said something."
"The guest's body trembled slightly, and all his hostility vanished. He stopped fighting, looked up at the sky, and the ferocity on his face transformed into two streams of clear tears. Then, as if in release, he passed away."
"The ancestor sighed softly and ordered us to give the man a proper burial."
The young Liu Ruchen at the time, like everyone else who heard this story, was naturally curious and asked, "What did the ancestor say to him to so easily quell such frenzied killing intent?"
Liu Ruchen's master's voice was melancholic as he said, "Birth, age, sickness, and death are the eternal truths of the Great Dao. Even this starry sea cannot escape them. What hope, then, is there for you?"
"That's what the ancestor said back then."
The young Liu Ruchen could not yet understand the weight of these words and simply nodded in naive agreement, "That's right! If you're going to die, you're going to die. Throwing a tantrum is just childish. Serves him right!"
But now, Li Fan could taste a different flavor in Sun Piao Miao's words from back then.
"At that time, the path to immortality was not yet severed. Everyone aimed for ascension to become an immortal. Sun Piao Miao's words were not something a member of the Medicine King Sect, dedicated to healing and saving lives, would say."
"It aligns perfectly with my previous theory of the Immortal Realm pessimists."
Li Fan mused silently, trying to find more clues in Liu Ruchen's memories.
And indeed, things often come in pairs.
Li Fan found another suspicious detail from the past.
Normally, a cultivation sect would erect statues of its founding ancestor for later generations to worship.
But throughout the Medicine King Sect, there was not a single statue of Sun Piao Miao.
"Master, master, what did the ancestor look like? Why isn't there even a single portrait of him?"
"Hehe, the ancestor said back then that rather than worshiping him, it would be better to worship our sect's Medicine King True Cauldron. Our alchemy, our life-saving, our charity—it all depends on this cauldron! Without the cauldron, there is no Medicine King, and thus, no future."
...
"Medicine King True Cauldron, future."
Li Fan let out a long breath, slowly withdrawing from Liu Ruchen's memories, and stood in quiet contemplation.
Liu Ruchen's remnant soul shivered nearby, not daring to disturb him.
"Perhaps it's just my speculation, but to me, the hints Sun Piao Miao left are already quite obvious."
"However, this is on the premise that I already know the Medicine King Cauldron is likely an immortal realm fragment."
"If I'm not mistaken, Sun Piao Miao must have hinted at the cauldron's special nature somewhere else as well. It's just that it wasn't noticed by his disciples, and the information was lost to the river of history."
"If not for my fortuitous discovery of the anomaly in Sun Piao Miao's belongings on the immortal boat, this secret might have been buried forever."
Li Fan looked at the Medicine King Cauldron.
The power of "Fantasy Becomes Truth" surged, and he channeled his spiritual energy, splitting off a trace of power belonging to the Life-Saving Longevity Scripture.
Li Fan had once cultivated this technique, and with his current strength far exceeding that of a normal Dao Integration cultivator, imitating it was almost effortless and virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.
Before Liu Ruchen's utterly shocked eyes, Li Fan easily broke through the prohibitions of the Medicine King True Cauldron and simultaneously seized control of it.
"The disciples of the Medicine King Sect have fallen so far!"
"Instead of saving the world in its time of crisis, you flee from disaster..."
"Scoundrels!"
Li Fan snorted and cursed angrily.
To Liu Ruchen's ears, it was like a clap of thunder.
Such intimate knowledge of the Medicine King Sect's affairs, and that tone, like an elder scolding his juniors...
In an instant, a bold guess surfaced in Liu Ruchen's mind.
"Senior, are you..."
Li Fan ignored him, simply grabbing Liu Ruchen and flashing outside the Medicine King Cauldron.
At the same time, with a single thought, he shut down the Great Dream Spring and Autumn Array within the cauldron.
Then, as if shaking a sieve, he violently shook out all the sleeping Medicine King Sect disciples inside.
In an instant, the cultivators of the Medicine King Sect rained down from the sky.
Fortunately, they had already been startled awake and, sensing that something was wrong, hurriedly stabilized themselves.
The members of the Medicine King Sect, just roused from their long dream, were utterly bewildered.
As they exchanged words, their gazes gradually focused on Li Fan, the only stranger present.
Especially on the fading, blurry figure of Liu Ruchen clutched in Li Fan's hand.
"Sect Master?!"
"Master?!"
The disciples, elders, and Liu San all cried out in alarm, glaring at Li Fan with fury.
Li Fan, however, ignored the auras locking onto him and continued to shake the Medicine King True Cauldron.
Only when all the sect's hidden treasures, materials, and various precious spiritual plants and herbs had flown out as clusters of light did Li Fan stop.
He stretched out his hand, and the All Things Return to Void Array formed in his palm.
He pressed it against the Medicine King True Cauldron.
Silently, the cauldron, which had managed to withstand the Immortal Ruins for a time, crumbled inch by inch into fine dust!
"The Medicine King Cauldron!"
Witnessing their sect's ultimate treasure being destroyed by Li Fan, the members of the Medicine King Sect were all on the verge of madness.
They were about to seek revenge on Li Fan.
But a careless wisp of the world-destroying immortal array's aura that leaked from Li Fan's fingertips plunged them all into an icy abyss, freezing them on the spot.
(Chapter End)
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