Chapter 1518: All Life Returns Its Dao
Images of countless divine abilities and techniques were slowly seeping out from the point of light.
Though Ziyi had suppressed the Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl in an instant, now faced with the slightest sign of the supreme treasure losing control, both Li Fan and Cheng Dao had no choice but to treat it as a grave threat.
After all, it contained the sum of every divine ability that had ever appeared in an entire possibility, from its birth to its quietus. The power it could unleash was simply unimaginable. Even if that possibility lacked a powerhouse like Shou Qiu, and transcendent beings like the Three Saints of the Immortal Realm weren't recorded within...
Even so, the Dao Chronicle Projection was still far beyond what Li Fan and Cheng Dao could currently handle. Before it, even the entire High Wall-Shuo Xinghai civilization would be utterly defenseless.
Their only option was to do everything in their power to suppress it before it erupted.
Cheng Dao was the quickest to act, manifesting his Mountain and Sea phenomenon. Gusts of wind howled, forcing the light and shadows inward.
He added with a wry smile, "Senior Ziyi is truly decisive, coming and going like a storm. But it seems he forgot about this projection pearl."
"Perhaps it's a test from him," Li Fan suggested, cautiously retreating to a safe distance and using his Myriad Forms Dao Net to assist with the suppression from afar.
Working together, the two martial brothers spent over half a year before they finally managed to temporarily subdue the Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl.
"I fear the two of us won't be able to handle it."
Li Fan nodded in agreement. "It's a fine treasure, but it's also a hot potato."
During the half-year spent sealing the Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl, Li Fan had benefited immensely. It was as if he were constantly, personally experiencing an infinite number of Daoist arts. Though the vast majority were dross to him, and he only gained enlightenment from one in ten thousand, the sheer volume of the base made the final number astronomical.
Li Fan even felt that deducing such a vast number of different divine abilities, even with his enhanced Dao Derivation Art, would likely take tens of thousands of years.
Li Fan accepted it all without reservation, absorbing everything to serve as nourishment for his own cultivation.
With a processing power comparable to the Transformation Dao Stone Mother, he was able to handle it all in an orderly fashion.
Faced with such a gluttonous feast of Daoist arts and divine abilities, however, Li Fan felt little excitement.
After being enlightened by Ziyi, his perspective had already leaped beyond the mortal world, gazing out toward the Mountain and Sea.
For Li Fan, with the help of [Truth], reaching the level of strength and realm required for the crossing was practically a foregone conclusion.
Even if he were to turtle up within the High Wall forever, with the slow accumulation of time, he would eventually reach the state of transcendence, one step at a time.
The problem lay in the method of crafting the vessel.
The requirements of the heart and mind were profound and mysterious. It was not something that could be achieved through mere quantitative accumulation. If the conditions weren't right, the result would remain unchanged even after cultivating for hundreds of millions of years.
Impossible was simply impossible.
Li Fan had once tried to use Dao Xuanzi and Kou Hong as raw materials, creating and altering their life experiences in an attempt to cultivate an eternal remnant will.
Naturally, it had ended in utter failure.
Now, as Li Fan reflected on that past attempt, what had seemed like a narrow gap was, in reality, likely an insurmountable chasm.
Thinking of this, Li Fan couldn't help but feel a touch of envy for those who could already condense an eternal remnant will.
"The seeds of a transcendent powerhouse..."
"Unfortunately, cultivators with such a gift are exceedingly rare. Throughout the entire history of the Xuanhuang Realm, there have only been a handful. I wish to learn from their example, but there is little to draw upon."
"It seems, just as Ziyi said, that I must walk a path that is uniquely my own."
Li Fan fell into contemplation, a rare flicker of indecision appearing in his heart.
An important question now lay before Li Fan.
[Truth], the transformation between illusion and reality.
Could this be considered his own path?
With the protection of [Fantasy Becomes Truth], as soon as his realm was high enough, he could likely ignore all the risks of the Mountain and Sea and cross it freely.
It would be a thousand times more effortless and pleasant than the crossing methods of those so-called transcendent powerhouses.
Did this mean he no longer needed to worry about his own Dao path? That he no longer needed to forge a "vessel of self"?
Judging by the power [Truth] had displayed so far, it certainly seemed to be the case.
But for some reason, Li Fan couldn't shake a feeling of unease in his heart.
It was as if, once the matters involved the Mountain and Sea beyond the mortal world, his past unconditional, blind faith in [Truth] had naturally vanished.
This matter was of utmost importance, for it concerned the very path Li Fan would walk from now on. Thus, for a rare moment, he felt lost.
More critically, it seemed that no one but [Truth] could give him an answer.
Yet, [Truth] remained silent, as if it hadn't sensed Li Fan's thoughts at all.
Though he continued to stay by Cheng Dao's side, exchanging insights on enlightenment, Li Fan's thoughts were, in truth, completely submerged in the relationship between [Truth] and his own Dao path.
"Junior Brother, you seem to have something on your mind." Even though Li Fan's disguise was impeccable, he couldn't hide it from Cheng Dao. Ever since witnessing the true face of the Mountain and Sea and seeing the will to cross it, Cheng Dao's cultivation seemed to have advanced even further.
Seeing that he had been found out, Li Fan no longer concealed it. He asked, "Senior Brother, have you found a direction for your own path of crossing?"
He had expected Cheng Dao to be as lost as he was, but instead, Cheng Dao answered with great resolve, "This isn't a realization I've only just had today. Ever since Master enlightened me, I have had my answer. The Mountain and Sea may be difficult to cross, but I need only follow Master's path."
"Since Master was able to cross the Mountain and Sea at his leisure, then I most certainly can as well."
"How can it be that simple..." Li Fan opened his mouth, wanting to object.
But upon reflection, it seemed that was indeed the logic of it. Moreover, this thought perfectly aligned with the meaning of his name, Cheng Dao—to inherit the path.
A thoughtful expression appeared on Li Fan's face.
"Perhaps I've been thinking about this the wrong way."
"There's no need to be so conflicted."
"If I can't be certain whether [Truth] is my path for crossing, then I'll set it aside for now. Perhaps I have indeed grown too reliant on it."
"From this day forward, I will act as if I do not possess this wondrous treasure and search for my own path of crossing, until the day I reach the realm of transcendence."
"If I succeed, then all is well. If I fail..."
"[Truth] can be my safety net." The moment this thought arose, Li Fan ruthlessly crushed it.
"If I harbor such thoughts, it will be impossible to forge my own path of crossing. Since I have decided, I must burn my bridges." Li Fan thought of his [Unending Samsara] function, and a preliminary idea began to form in his mind.
However, it was not yet time to experiment in this lifetime.
He would wait until the next life, after creating a possibility with an environment most suitable for enlightenment, and then he would try.
The faint confusion in his heart gradually subsided.
Li Fan bowed to Cheng Dao. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother."
Cheng Dao waved his hand. "You realized it yourself. It has nothing to do with me."
After this small interlude, their attention returned to the Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl.
"Senior Brother, I have a plan that may resolve this hidden danger," Li Fan announced.
"Oh?" Cheng Dao was overjoyed.
"The reason this projection pearl is losing control is that when the man from Guangwu Xinghai released it, he was already prepared for mutual destruction. The divine abilities recorded within the pearl were, in fact, all detonated. What he didn't expect was that there existed a powerhouse in this world who could effortlessly suppress all those detonated abilities single-handedly."
"Senior Ziyi acted and contained all the erupting abilities within the pearl. But now that he has left, the suppressive force he left behind cannot last forever," Li Fan explained eloquently.
"I understand this principle, of course," Cheng Dao said with a slow nod.
"So the crucial point lies with the divine abilities recorded within the pearl. Senior Brother, are you reluctant to part with this treasure?" Li Fan asked suddenly.
Cheng Dao scoffed, "Junior Brother, what are you saying? While this item is indeed extraordinary..."
"How could it possibly compare to the Dao of crossing the Mountain and Sea? Even with a thousand techniques and infinite Great Daos... can they cross the Mountain and Sea?"
"Did they not all perish in the Dao Annihilation?" It was clear Cheng Dao had a firm grasp of his own priorities.
Li Fan smiled. "Then this will be simple. It is better to guide than to block. If we continue to suppress it by force, it will only backfire, and any future eruption will be even more violent. We should release the divine abilities recorded within the pearl instead. Slowly, of course."
Cheng Dao stroked his beard, pondering for a moment before frowning. "However, the number of divine abilities and techniques recorded in this Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl is simply too vast. Even if we release them to the greatest extent possible without affecting the surrounding star sea, I'm afraid we won't be able to vent all the pressure before the pearl finally erupts."
Li Fan didn't answer directly. Instead, he pointed toward the High Wall-Shuo Xinghai, which was shrouded in endless darkness, its life force withered.
"Senior Brother, don't you think this star sea is a bit... desolate? How does it compare to the Immortal Realm in its prime?"
"It is far, far inferior, of course." Cheng Dao was also a quick thinker and understood immediately.
He asked, somewhat surprised, "Junior Brother, are you thinking of distributing the divine abilities and techniques from this Dao Chronicle Pearl to the living beings of the star sea?"
"Precisely!" Li Fan clapped his hands and laughed.
"Don't be fooled by the star sea's current desolation. Give the masses some time and a suitable environment, and their numbers will climb endlessly. Digesting this Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl will be an effortless task."
"Moreover, the divine abilities recorded in the pearl can serve as the key to unlocking their cultivation. With a large enough base, perhaps we can even create a few Nameless True Immortals."
Cheng Dao stared at the Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl, clearly tempted. "This supreme treasure also contains the many Great Daos of another possibility. If this star sea beneath our feet were to absorb them, it might just make up for what it lacks."
"And we, my brother, can borrow the eyes of the star sea's countless beings to survey every divine ability within the pearl. It would be killing several birds with one stone," Li Fan added with a smile.
...
The two of them carefully discussed the matter, and before long, they had finalized their decision on this "Returning the Dao" plan, which would benefit all the beings of the star sea.
The key to the plan's success was a sufficient number of living beings.
For Li Fan and Cheng Dao, this was no difficult task.
Under the cover of the Dao Net, the desire for procreation, the probability of conception, the chances of survival, and the speed of growth for all living beings increased severalfold.
Within the High Wall, matters in the Xuanhuang Realm and the Primordial Desolation Immortal Realm were also decided by a single word from Li Fan.
And with an infinite supply of energy from the Infinite Sea, there were no worries about resource scarcity, no matter how large the population grew.
As a result, the total population of the High Wall-Shuo Xinghai civilization skyrocketed.
Sixty years passed, and the total number of living beings in the entire Darkest Star Sea had multiplied by nearly a hundred thousand times.
Only then did Li Fan and Cheng Dao slightly slow their efforts.
The [Returning the Dao] plan had not just started then; it had been gradually unfolding over the course of those sixty years.
With the birth of every new being, Li Fan and Cheng Dao would preside over the process, randomly separating a wisp of fluctuation from a Great Dao divine ability within the Dao Chronicle Projection Pearl and merging it with the new life.
Under the protection of the two powerhouses, these fluctuations would not harm the fragile newborns. Instead, they became akin to their innate divine abilities.
Firmly imprinted in the depths of their souls, it would also serve as a guiding beacon as they grew.
Of course, the divine abilities and techniques recorded in the Dao Chronicle Projection were of mixed quality. The power of the innate abilities each being received also varied. This was unavoidable.
For Li Fan and Cheng Dao, however, it made little difference into whose hands the abilities from the pearl fell.
Every single action of all the beings participating in the Returning the Dao plan was under their control.
Cheng Dao was not particularly familiar with this sort of undertaking.
Fortunately, Li Fan had abundant experience from the Xuanhuang Realm, and he handled the matter with masterful ease.
Bolstered by immortal arrays, there was not the slightest sign of losing control, no matter how numerous the participants became.
"I never expected you to have such profound attainments in the Dao of arrays, Junior Brother," Cheng Dao praised, stroking his beard.
"It is but a minor art. Just a side path I once took on my cultivation journey," Li Fan replied with a slight shake of his head.
"You need not be so modest, Junior Brother. Who is to say that the Dao of arrays cannot be a means to cross the Mountain and Sea?" Cheng Dao said with great seriousness.
"I recall that in the Immortal Realm of old, there was an array named the [Mysterious Origin Primal Spirit Grand Array]. It was a wondrous formation that even Master repeatedly praised. It is said that the Immortal Realm's constant expansion into the Upper Mountain owed a great deal to this array's contributions."
Cheng Dao's words immediately captured Li Fan's attention.
"Mysterious Origin Primal Spirit..."
"I happen to know a part of that array. But it doesn't seem to possess such power, does it?" Li Fan asked tentatively, a hint of doubt in his voice.
As he spoke, Li Fan displayed the five grand array diagrams he knew, including the [Desolate Fall, Void Room Generates Flowers Array], for Cheng Dao to see.
Although Cheng Dao was no expert in arrays, the affairs of the mortal world were ultimately inseparable from the Mountain and Sea. After some careful study, he managed to discern some of its mysteries.
"Each array, viewed individually, has limited power. But when they are fused and superimposed, the force they can unleash increases a thousandfold."
"Just like the wildly increasing number of living beings in the star sea during this time."
"Furthermore, from what I recall of the [Mysterious Origin Primal Spirit Grand Array], the parts you are missing seem to be the most crucial ones."
Cheng Dao narrowed his eyes and manifested an image of the Mysterious Origin Primal Spirit Grand Array in action, just as he had once seen it.
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