Chapter 1435: Dao Origin Weaves the Dao Net
Chapter 1435: Dao Yuan Weaves the Dao Net
Replicating the Great Dao itself?
After all, even the legendary Inscription Immortal, who had already reached the Nameless True Immortal realm, was said to be capable of nothing more than describing the Great Daos using True Immortal Script. And this Chu Youhong claimed he could do such a thing?
Li Fan's first instinct was disbelief.
And Chu Youhong's own words seemed to confirm his skepticism.
Chu Youhong gave a wry smile. "It was a stroke of luck that I managed to preserve a mere trace of the Dao's imprint, and only during the celestial phenomenon when a Nameless True Immortal fell and their Dao returned to the world..."
“Besides, without the help of this Painting Sky Brush in my hand, it would have been utterly impossible. Brother Lu, you flatter me. There's no need to put me on such a pedestal."
"On the other hand, your divine art of mending a tear in the heavens with a single hand is truly legendary throughout all of Shuo Xinghai."
The white-robed cultivator, Lu, did not deny Chu Youhong's praise, merely offering a faint smile.
Chu Youhong's expression grew solemn. "There was nothing. Not a sound, not a whisper. It was completely unlike the intervention of a Nameless True Immortal. The traces left behind were even fainter than those of an ordinary True Immortal."
The cultivator named Lu nodded in agreement. "That's precisely why I sought you out to discuss this alone, Brother Chu. I believe one of two things is true: either the one who acted was not a Nameless True Immortal, or that Nameless True Immortal has found a way to mask their tracks within the Dao Net."
The two exchanged a look. "Either possibility does not bode well for us."
"If it wasn't a Nameless True Immortal, yet they could escape our encirclement with such ease, their actual combat strength must be no less than that of one. The power of a new system... that's what has always worried us the most. After all, every method we've developed over the years has been tailored to fight 'Immortals'. If they break free from their old constraints, it might mean they have to start over, but it also means we'd be facing an entirely new, unknown kind of enemy."
"As for masking their tracks in the Dao Net..." A shadow of worry crossed Chu Youhong's brow.
The white-robed cultivator glanced back at the vibrant, thriving Shuo Xinghai. "The last attempt to ambush a Nameless Immortal ended in a disastrous failure with heavy losses. Some people are already growing restless. It's hard to say if this wasn't an offering from some to prove their loyalty. If those True Immortals master how to hide and manipulate the Dao Net, we'll be in grave danger!"
"The patterns of the Dao Net must be modified immediately. In addition to that..."
Cultivator Lu turned back to Chu Youhong. "I'll have to trouble you, Brother Chu, to secretly inform Senior Wan Shiyong."
"After all, the senior has a peculiar temperament. Since you both hail from the same world, you might be able to get a word in with him."
Chu Youhong looked hesitant, but eventually nodded. "Shuo Xinghai is currently leaderless, and we're facing covetous eyes from other powers. We do indeed need a senior who can command respect to step up and take charge."
"Though I did get a sound thrashing the last time I disturbed Senior Wan, I suppose he wouldn't do anything truly terrible to me, seeing as we're both cultivators from the Xuanhuang Realm," Chu Youhong muttered to himself as he and the white-robed cultivator flew back toward Shuo Xinghai.
Within moments, their figures vanished from sight.
Li Fan mulled over their conversation as he guided his dream tendrils to the site of the earlier battle.
Typically, after a clash between masters, there would be residual traces, fluctuations, and auras. But as Li Fan carefully observed the aftermath of this hunt for a True Immortal, he found not a single remaining sign.
It was as if the great battle had never happened.
"Besides the white-robed cultivator's act of 'mending the heavens,' which consumed all the remnants to reinforce the Dao here, it feels as if something else, something unseen, simultaneously absorbed the residual power."
After probing for a long while, Li Fan slowly came to a conclusion.
He couldn't help but think of the "Dao Net" mentioned by Chu Youhong and the other cultivator.
"The Dao Net... Although that term never appeared in Qin Zhuang's mind—perhaps it's a new development in Shuo Xinghai since he left for the Xuanhuang Realm—the name itself implies it's inextricably linked to a web woven from the Great Daos of heaven and earth."
"A Nameless True Immortal embodies a single Great Dao. Their every move is bound to leave an imprint on the Dao Net. That's to be expected. However, Chu Youhong said they could *modify* the Dao Net?"
Li Fan's eyes narrowed in thought.
Though their exchange was brief, the conversation between Chu Youhong and the white-robed cultivator was packed with information.
First, the hunt for the True Immortal had resulted in heavy losses, indicating that the conflict between Shuo Xinghai and the True Immortals was not one-sided. Shuo Xinghai was leaderless, suggesting its entire upper echelon was preoccupied with some urgent matter.
Second, there were other powers besides Shuo Xinghai, perhaps other pockets of civilization within the Annihilation Zone. They were watching Shuo Xinghai with predatory intent. The situation in Shuo Xinghai did not seem optimistic.
Third, the white-robed cultivator was clearly aware that Chu Youhong was from the Xuanhuang Realm. And the Senior Wan Shiyong he mentioned, who also hailed from the Xuanhuang Realm...
Li Fan's brow furrowed.
"Wan Shiyong, the founding patriarch of the Beast Control Sect. An old acquaintance of Emperor Sanmo, a peerless figure who comprehended the True Beast-Taming Technique from the Ten Thousand Reincarnation Beast Wheel."
"Those whom Emperor Sanmo chose to follow were all geniuses of extraordinary talent. But this Wan Shiyong... wasn't he supposed to be dead?"
Puzzled, Li Fan immediately summoned Emperor Sanmo to inquire.
"Hmm?" Hearing Li Fan suddenly bring up that name, the wise beast felt a momentary daze. After all, that was tens of thousands of years ago.
"He... is indeed dead. I buried his body with my own hands. For all his boundless talent, he could not escape the limits of a mortal's lifespan," Emperor Sanmo replied with absolute certainty after a moment of recollection.
"Then why is there another Wan Shiyong in Shuo Xinghai, beyond the Great Wall?" Li Fan quickly relayed what he had witnessed through his dream tendrils.
Emperor Sanmo pondered for a moment, then seemed to recall something. "A peculiar temperament..."
"Could it be... Wan Shiyong's lifelong companion beast?" he said, a note of uncertainty in his voice.
Li Fan was surprised. "Wan Shiyong's tamed beast wasn't you?"
Emperor Sanmo looked a bit embarrassed, then stroked his beard and explained, "My relationship with Wan Shiyong was merely one of cooperation. As a mere mortal, he was not qualified to command me. Wan Shiyong's true beast was a Shadowblight Beast. Its form is like a shadow, its shape ever-changing."
"It usually hid within Wan Shiyong's shadow. At critical moments, it could leap into an enemy's shadow, transforming and replicating them."
"The shadow becomes the person, capable of achieving a perfect likeness. Even the one being copied would find it nearly impossible to tell the difference. After Wan Shiyong died, that child disappeared without a trace. If it has been living on as Wan Shiyong, given how familiar it was with him, others might never have noticed the difference," Emperor Sanmo analyzed slowly.
"Since it's a member of the demon beast race, would the old methods of control still be effective? Or, failing that, could you sense or contact it?" Li Fan asked.
Emperor Sanmo hesitated for a moment, and for once, he did not give a definite answer.
"Under normal circumstances, it should be possible. But based on what you just described, senior, if even Chu Youhong, who can replicate the imprints of the Great Dao, is no match for this Wan Shiyong..."
"I'm afraid it has already surpassed our control."
Fearing Li Fan might misunderstand his reluctance, Emperor Sanmo paused, then quickly added, "Senior, you already know that the current demon beast race all evolved from Emperor One."
"And Emperor One, in turn, was a fusion of countless members of our original clan. Crucially, the clan's true origin..."
Emperor Sanmo projected a ray of light, and the images of thirteen strange, ancient beasts appeared before Li Fan.
"These are the thirteen Primeval Dao Forms of our clan. Though they were the strongest among us, born as incarnations of the Great Dao, they were not the source of our race. In truth, there is no consensus on our origin. Even the memories of the Primeval Dao Forms hold no answer. But one thing was a shared belief among us back then."
A look of nostalgia filled Emperor Sanmo's eyes as he gazed at the Primeval Dao Forms before him.
Then he continued slowly, "In our timeline, our clan was truly favored by the Great Dao of heaven and earth. The thirteen Primeval Dao Forms were but a minuscule fraction of the world's myriad Daos. Every other member of the clan had the potential to achieve 'Dao Transformation' in their lifetime. To use an analogy for human cultivators, it's akin to cultivating to the realm of a Nameless True Immortal."
"To completely fuse and evolve all the Great Daos of heaven and earth into Primeval Dao Forms... that was the 'Golden Age' our clan dreamed of..."
"It's a pity that before any new Primeval Dao Forms could emerge, ferocious Nameless True Immortals crossed over from another possibility and slaughtered you all," Li Fan interjected unceremoniously, breaking Emperor Sanmo's reverie.
Emperor Sanmo showed no embarrassment, merely sighing softly. "Our clan was indeed favored by the Dao in our own possibility. But possibilities themselves vary in strength. The strong prey on the weak. There are no complaints in being defeated by another."
Emperor Sanmo returned to the topic of Wan Shiyong. "What I mean to say is, although we all originate from Emperor One, every member of our race has the potential to surpass Emperor One. Even if, theoretically, this possibility is so small as to be almost impossible, it is still not zero."
"Given a long enough history of propagation, it could become a certainty. This was something the Primeval Dao Forms considered when they stepped into the great furnace. The only thing we didn't foresee was that it wasn't just our possibility that fell into crisis. All possibilities faced a world-ending calamity. Fleeing time and again left our clan no time to recover, and the power of the Primeval Dao Forms was completely exhausted..." Emperor Sanmo let out a long, heavy sigh.
After a moment of silence, Emperor Sanmo suddenly volunteered, "I wish to go and speak with this Wan Shiyong."
"Even if his strength now far surpasses my own, I am confident he will not harm me."
Li Fan considered it for a moment before finally agreeing. "I will use the power of the dream to manifest a body for you."
"Once you've made contact, if there are no issues, I will send your actual body over."
"Remember, this dream body is essentially a manifestation of the collective will of the Land of Carefree Joy and the beings of the Xuanhuang Realm. Apart from a sliver of your own consciousness, it has little to do with your true self. Whether you can gain Wan Shiyong's trust will be up to you," Li Fan added as a reminder.
Emperor Sanmo nodded. "Rest assured, senior. Our clan has its own ways of communicating and verifying one another."
"The situation in Shuo Xinghai is unclear. Even if the first attempt fails, it's of no great consequence."
As Li Fan spoke, a dream tendril slowly manifested a body just outside Shuo Xinghai.
It glowed with a yellow light, its features identical to the real Emperor Sanmo. At first, it seemed to hover between reality and illusion.
But as specks of crimson light and a profoundly mystical power were infused into it, the ethereal form solidified, shifting from illusion to substance.
It burst forth from the void.
Emperor Sanmo inspected his new body, his eyes filled with awe. "Senior's methods are truly unimaginable. I can feel no difference between this and my body in the real world!"
Li Fan's voice echoed in Emperor Sanmo's ear. "Not all dream incarnations can achieve this level of hyper-realism."
"I have prepared some energy for you within this body. It should be enough for you to move about. Be careful. In a dream incarnation, consciousness and body are one. As long as the energy remains, you can regenerate continuously. But if the energy is depleted, the body will be utterly destroyed, and the consciousness within will cease to exist."
"If your consciousness doesn't return to the dreamscape of the Land of Carefree Joy before being destroyed, that segment of memory will be lost forever. Therefore, I suggest you return periodically to report your findings."
"Of course, only if you can guarantee you won't expose yourself. The power of dreams is strange and difficult to trace, but Shuo Xinghai's capabilities are not to be underestimated. Too much manifestation might reveal our hand..."
Li Fan instructed.
Emperor Sanmo narrowed his eyes and, following a faint, unseen connection, stealthily sped away toward his destination.
At first, Li Fan could still perceive the scene on Emperor Sanmo's end through the power of the dream.
But as he approached a place where light converged, even the dream connection was severed.
"The strongholds of the various powers in Shuo Xinghai, like the Sword Domain and the Holy Merchant faction, do indeed have some kind of protective power."
"The Dao Net, is it..."
Li Fan watched Emperor Sanmo's dream incarnation depart, sensing the power of the so-called Dao Net.
Based on the deductions of the Dao Transformation Stone in his sea of consciousness, Li Fan was already certain that this Dao Net was built upon the Dao Origin system.
He was reminded of how the Heavenly Profound Mirror had once sought to take from heaven and replace it, weaving a "Profound Net" across the sky of the Xuanhuang Realm.
"The ability to modify the Dao Net means it's not impenetrable or immune to infiltration."
"I just need to find the right method."
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