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Chapter 1492: Creating the Primordial Desolation Immortal Realm

Three simple words, nothing more. Yet they sent Li Fan’s mind racing with endless speculation.

Fantasy Becomes Truth. It clearly pointed to the Dao where truth, when taken for illusion, makes illusion become truth.

The key, however, lay in the two words that came before: "Divine Blessing."

"Divine... Blessing..." Li Fan murmured, savoring the term on the panel of `[Truth]`.

The core of it was the word "Divine."

Fantasy Becomes Truth was a divine ability granted by `[Truth]`, so it wasn't a stretch to call it a form of protection.

So, who did the "Divine" part refer to?

Was it `[Truth]` Itself?

Did this imply that in Its own self-perception, `[Truth]` considered Itself to be among the gods?

Inevitably, Li Fan’s thoughts drifted back to the fable left by Sun Piao Miao, and the legend of the creator god, the mountain, and the sea.

"Over the years, I've scoured almost the entire Xuanhuang Realm, yet I've never found that book Liu Ruchen spoke of. Not a single trace remains, as if it simply vanished into thin air."

"The chances of it simply being lost to the river of time are slim. Either someone took it, or it was swept away along with other treasures when the Ten Great Immortal Sects fled..."

"And the remnants of those ten sects are almost all in Shuo Xinghai."

Li Fan’s gaze shifted once more, looking toward his neighbors beyond the high wall.

The acquisition of the [Fantasy Becomes Truth] Divine Blessing was, for Li Fan, tantamount to gaining an ally with the power of a Nameless True Immortal, ready to assist him at a moment's notice.

And perhaps, it was far, far more.

Suppressing the storm of excitement within him, Li Fan waited for a full day to pass. When he felt that [Fantasy Becomes Truth] was ready to be used again.

He immediately calmed his mind, activated the ability, and returned to the Infinite Sea.

This time, he didn't waste a moment marveling at the incredible nature of `[Truth]`'s Divine Blessing. Instead, he immediately began to explore the true potential of Fantasy Becomes Truth.

"I may be but a mortal, as insignificant as an ant, yet this ability lets me pull off the impossible. During the Divine Blessing, my very being is on par with the Infinite Sea itself..."

Li Bu Ren's consciousness drifted through the vast, boundless ocean as he attempted to channel its infinite power into the real world.

Because they were on equal footing, this "channeling" subjected him to no pressure whatsoever. It was as if the ocean itself were acting of its own volition.

His true body, back in reality, acted as the conduit.

He took the remaining fragments of the Immortal Realm and scattered them around the Primal Heavenly Pillar.

As if heaven and earth were being sundered and reformed, giving rise once more to earth, fire, water, and wind. The fragments of the Immortal Realm reverted to the pure essence of the Great Dao, arraying themselves around the heavenly pillars.

Gazing upon this incomplete world, Li Fan connected his Ink Death Myriad Forms Dao Net to its very core.

That which was lacking, he would complete.

That which was redundant, he would attempt to subdue.

At the heart of the Myriad Forms Dao Net pulsed the power of the Infinite.

Any Dao that refused to submit to the Myriad Forms Dao Net was instantly shattered, then re-forged using the principles Li Fan himself had mastered.

Amidst a swirling, primordial haze, a new world took its first breath.

Within it, there were no living creatures, only the great pillars of Primal, the Hunger Immortal, and the Infinite standing tall.

Above them all, a vague silhouette of Li Fan hovered, presiding over his creation.

"The universe is set; let the myriad forms arise."

The Dao Net, concealed beyond the new world, began to glow with countless different hues. Within this nascent realm, the great Daos started to manifest.

This was no new creation from scratch; Li Fan was directly copying from the [Primal Possibility]. Thus, the evolution unfolded flawlessly, without a single deviation.

Amid flashes of light and shadow, it took but a moment for a vast, primordial world to take shape.

Five spectral shadows of Shou Qiu, alongside the towering pillars, held up the high heavens of this desolate land.

With the world established, the infinite immortal energy channeled by Li Bu Ren surged down through the conduits of the Dao Net.

RUMBLE!

A terrifying cataclysm, like the advent of the Dao Annihilation itself, erupted across the new world.

The nascent sky was instantly consumed by dark clouds. The immense pressure caused great fissures to tear across the firmament. The world itself trembled violently, shaking from its very foundations, as if on the verge of collapse.

Yet the benefits of this torrent of infinite immortal energy were equally apparent.

The newborn, desolate world, like a land long parched, drank greedily and endlessly of the power from the Infinite Sea.

With every passing instant, the distance between the heavens and the earth grew.

Upon the land, mountains buckled and rose. Rivers, seas, lakes, forests, and plains began to emerge, transforming the once barren, desolate continent.

In the sky above, the fissures born from the unbearable strain were being mended by the power flowing from the Infinite Sea.

Seized by a sudden inspiration, Li Fan decided not to completely erase these celestial scars. Instead, he preserved all thirteen of the tangible wounds and guided even more of the infinite power to pour into them.

Thanks to Li Fan’s special attention, as the heavens rose and the earth broadened, each of the thirteen celestial scars accumulated a vast reserve of energy nearly equal to that of the entire primordial world.

Li Fan perceived that, with such an immense accumulation of energy, a faint glimmer of sentience was beginning to stir within the celestial scars.

After a long moment of contemplation, Li Fan decided against infusing a sliver of his divine sense into them to seize control.

The infinite immortal energy stored within the scars had already surpassed what he could safely manage. A forceful attempt to dominate them would likely result in a backlash.

Instead, Li Fan simply refined and separated the conduits connecting each celestial scar to the Infinite Sea. By controlling these conduits, he had effectively placed reins on them. No matter what they evolved into in the future, with the reins in his grasp, he had no fear of them running wild.

Inspired by this, when Li Fan sensed that the primordial world itself was beginning to awaken a consciousness, he deliberately divided the land into five regions: East, West, South, North, and Center.

He connected each region to a separate conduit from the Infinite Sea.

Just as a great river is split into tributaries, the nascent consciousness of the primordial world was fractured into five parts.

With that, the faint sense of unease that had been growing in Li Fan’s heart finally vanished.

"It seems a unified primordial consciousness would have been too powerful," Li Fan thought. "There was a real risk of it getting out of control."

Poised beyond the heavens of his new creation, Li Fan silently watched as the primordial world continued its evolution.

A ceaseless torrent of immortal energy poured down from the Infinite Sea.

Under this ineffable, immense pressure, the primordial world grew and grew, even as it was compressed into an object of incredible density.

"Externally forged by the pressure of the Infinite Sea, and internally structured by the infinitely adaptable Ink Death Dao Net, capable of devouring all three thousand Great Daos..."

"I doubt even I could cause much damage to this continent, even if I were to strike with my full power."

"And it is still in a phase of visible growth, with no apparent limit. As long as the torrent from the Infinite Sea continues, it can grow for all eternity..."

Li Fan watched the transformation, inwardly astonished.

He also had a distinct feeling that the birth of this continent within the high walls was like adding a thick, solid stone pillar to the structure of this space.

Even the entire experimental site seemed to have become significantly more "stable."

...

In the Infinite Sea.

Li Bu Ren found himself at the heart of a furiously turbulent vortex, yet he remained utterly untouched by its power.

After trying to channel the power of the Infinite Sea into the real world, he discovered that no matter how much he increased the intensity of the channeling, the Infinite Sea could always produce a corresponding change.

All without drawing the attention of the Infinite Sea itself.

Li Bu Ren gradually let loose, upping the ante again and again. The vortex he now commanded spanned the entirety of the Infinite Sea that he could perceive!

Thanks to the power of [Fantasy Becomes Truth], he could command the very forces of the Infinite Sea.

But the primordial continent in the real world had its limits.

The output of the exit conduit was limited, causing the mobilized power to gather around him, forming a vortex that could only be described as a supreme miracle.

"The time has come."

Standing within the thunderous vortex, yet detached and unaffected, Li Bu Ren observed in silence. Suddenly, he felt a change.

"The duration is much shorter than last time."

"It seems `[Truth]` had to expend quite a bit of energy to conceal a commotion of this magnitude."

Lost in thought, Li Bu Ren skillfully navigated the vortex's channel and returned.

With the conduit gone, the flow of nourishment to the primordial continent was severed.

The vigorously growing world ground to an almost instantaneous halt.

Then, from the thirteen celestial scars and the five fractured world consciousnesses, came a unified roar of discontent.

Li Fan's indistinct figure stood amidst the world. With a cold snort, he silenced their clamor.

In the ensuing silence, these firstborn beings finally understood the source of their sustenance.

They began to plead with Li Fan, their roars turning into fawning entreaties.

Li Fan remained silent, ignoring them.

He simply waited for the next time he could use [Fantasy Becomes Truth].

In the silent interval as he waited, Li Fan used his hand as a blade, carving vast and magnificent edifices into the earth and sky. Their design was based on the Immortal Realm he had once glimpsed.

Thanks to his previous practice carving the wooden cat treasure, Li Fan was able to replicate these celestial structures with near-perfect accuracy.

Days passed. When the cooldown for Fantasy Becomes Truth was over, Li Fan did not activate it immediately.

Instead, he took the time to observe and analyze the attitudes displayed by the thirteen celestial scars and the five world consciousnesses.

The celestial scar and the world consciousness that had protested the loudest were the ones Li Fan chose to deny access to the infinite immortal energy.

When the vast torrent of infinite power descended once more.

The two entities could only watch as their brethren feasted, while they received nothing at all.

These nascent beings possessed little complex consciousness.

The simple fact that others had what they did not sent them into a primal rage.

Their roars thundered across the world, a sound even louder than the torrent of infinite energy itself.

Li Fan merely smiled coldly and severed all connections to the Infinite Sea once more.

The celestial scars and world consciousnesses, which had been greedily feasting, were stunned into silence.

After considerable effort, they finally understood why Li Fan had cut off the flow.

For the sake of their own sustenance, they united and swarmed upon the two troublemakers, giving them a harsh lesson.

It had to be said, the power of these beings born from the natural evolution of the world was truly immense.

The primordial continent itself became scarred and battered from their battle.

Fortunately, the outcome was good.

The troublemakers, being outnumbered, no longer dared to make a sound. They could only watch with envious eyes as their brethren feasted with delight.

When the duration of [Fantasy Becomes Truth] ended once more and Li Fan cut off their supply, the primordial consciousnesses still grumbled, but their complaints were far more subdued than before.

This was especially true for the ones who had been denied their meal; they remained utterly silent.

The next time, Li Fan switched the target of his denial.

The two who had learned their lesson and behaved well were rewarded with a chance to reconnect to the Infinite Sea. But the celestial scar that was now cut off was both terrified and furious, having no idea what it had done to deserve this.

It didn't know that Li Fan had simply chosen it at random.

On another occasion, it was a joyous feast for all; every being received its share. The celestial scars and world consciousnesses celebrated with abandon.

Yet another time, they waited and waited, but the infinite immortal energy never came. The primordial consciousnesses gathered outside the celestial edifice where Li Fan's silhouette stood, but they dared not act rashly. They simply waited in silence.

And then, the flow of infinite energy resumed for all.

And so it went, day after day, year after year. Li Fan used this method of "training a dog" to condition the primordial consciousnesses.

In the blink of an eye, another fifteen years had passed.

Li Fan perceived that the primordial continent had finally reached the zenith of its growth.

Though it could still draw upon the infinite energy, it could not grow any stronger.

Li Fan sat enthroned upon the clouds, gazing down at the vast continent below.

As he slowly raised his hand, a pair of colossal palms descended, blanketing the primordial world.

With fluid strokes like dragons in flight and snakes in motion, he engraved the forms of living beings upon the face of the land.

With a burst of dazzling light, the impossibly complex sigils shattered into countless fragments.

And across the primordial continent, countless beings born of stone and grass, mountain and sea, sprang forth like mushrooms after a rain.

Though their minds were yet unformed, they knew the one who had granted them life.

They fell to their knees and cried out in unison, "We thank the Great Lord for the gift of life!"

With another wave of his hand, Li Fan granted every living being access to the Infinite Sea.

Of course, the amount of infinite energy these newly created beings could channel was a mere fraction of what the thirteen celestial scars and five world consciousnesses could command.

All of them combined could barely equal the power of a single one of their predecessors.

"This," he thought, "is true authority."

Li Fan could feel it: the access rights of every single thing in this primordial world were under his complete control.

With a thought, he could grant; with a thought, he could take away.

"Perhaps this is how the Immortal Emperors of old ruled, holding the power of life and death in their hands?" Li Fan realized with a dawning understanding.

As the primordial continent bustled with new life, Li Fan once again invoked Fantasy Becomes Truth in his mind.

But this time, the target of the divine ability was not the Infinite Sea.

It was the primordial world before him.

Once the Divine Blessing took effect, Li Fan felt as if he had become a part of the primordial world itself.

He could not only perceive everything happening within the world with perfect clarity, but he could also distinctly sense the faint communications between the world consciousnesses.

It was as if he had become one of them, yet they were completely oblivious to this new "brother" who had mysteriously appeared in their midst.

After listening for a time and hearing no rebellious or treacherous thoughts among the world consciousnesses, Li Fan nodded in satisfaction.

"This Fantasy Becomes Truth ability," he mused, "is truly remarkable."

"And..."

Li Fan silently gauged the duration of the Divine Blessing.

"Just as I thought. The duration changes depending on the target."

"When used on this primordial continent, the effect is practically permanent. It would persist even if this world were to perish with the passage of time."

"This Primordial Desolation Immortal Realm is already a marvelous creation. Yet the gap between it and the Infinite Sea is still this vast..."

Any trace of arrogance Li Fan might have felt as a "creator" vanished in an instant.

The cold, hard reality brought him back to his senses.