Chapter 1563: The Master of the Fallen Immortal Realm
The collective will of the Xuanhuang Realm’s living beings, while unable to completely destroy the core of the Fallen Immortal Realm, launched wave after wave of tide-like assaults under Li Fan's control, continuously weakening it.
The illusory worlds encircling the Fallen Immortal core rapidly faded, allowing Li Fan to gradually make out the scene within.
Vast swathes of star domains were being devoured by darkness—the very picture of the Dao Annihilation Calamity raging. But this was merely the backdrop for the core’s true contents.
What truly captured Li Fan’s attention were the countless characters that still floated against the celestial curtain, shining as brilliantly as the starry sky amidst this apocalyptic scene!
He had not truly entered the core of the Fallen Immortal Realm, but was merely observing from a distance in reality. The boundary between the real and the illusory caused the characters to appear distorted to varying degrees.
Yet, drawing on his past experiences, Li Fan easily recognized their origin.
True Immortal Script!
Each character represented a Great Dao of heaven and earth!
“This is...”
Li Fan froze for a moment before realization struck. “The Boundless Star Domain, the Supreme Dao Scripture?”
He had once witnessed this magnificent sight of the Supreme Dao Scripture stretching across the cosmos within Si Tu Xing's memories. Comparing it now, he found it was remarkably similar!
“Could it be? Is the master of the Fallen Immortal Realm truly the renowned Inscription Immortal?” Li Fan’s mind reeled with the sudden, earth-shattering thought.
Even with his current breadth of experience, Li Fan couldn't help but feel a profound shock at this possibility. It was simply because the Inscription Immortal's reputation was too immense. He had used the True Immortal Script to chronicle the three thousand Great Daos. It was said that half of the True Immortals in the primal possibility were born only after observing the Supreme Dao Scripture and receiving the Inscription Immortal's enlightenment.
It could be said that in the hearts of the original True Immortals, their reverence for the Inscription Immortal surpassed even that for Shou Qiu Gong and the Three Saints!
“In the past, countless True Immortals existed in the Immortal Realm.”
“But forget the Nameless True Immortals; even ordinary True Immortals were rarely known in the lower realms. Only the Inscription Immortal was different. Even those who couldn't recognize the True Immortal Script knew a thing or two of his legend. Where did such widespread fame come from...”
“To project a vision that mirrors the Xuanhuang Realm, creating a Fallen Immortal illusion nearly identical to the real world. An illusion that can not only evolve on its own but also manifest from the ethereal into the physical Xuanhuang Realm.”
“Such power is indeed beyond the capabilities of an ordinary Nameless True Immortal.”
The more Li Fan considered it, the more plausible it seemed.
“There were once rumors in the Immortal Realm that the Inscription Immortal had fallen, though most immortals refused to believe it. If this Fallen Immortal is indeed him...” A thousand thoughts flashed through Li Fan’s mind in an instant.
Instead of retreating, he continued to peer into the core of the Fallen Immortal Realm.
Amidst the calamitous scene of the Dao Annihilation swallowing the Boundless Star Domain, the countless characters depicted by the Supreme Dao Scripture acted like celestial pillars, providing shelter and propping up a safe zone.
The immortals, appearing as countless specks of light under the great calamity, also noticed the sole sanctuary in the cosmos and began to flee desperately towards the land protected by the Supreme Dao Scripture.
“It is said that this calamity was the first outbreak of the Dao Annihilation in the primal possibility. From then on, the Primal Immortal Realm began its decline from prosperity, eventually leading to its complete demise.”
While directing the collective will of the Xuanhuang Realm to continue its assault and weaken the Fallen Immortal Realm, Li Fan simultaneously observed the scene within its core.
As expected of the Supreme Dao Scripture, capable of representing the three thousand Great Daos, its power was on a completely different level from the counterfeit version Li Fan had created.
Under its unwavering support, like a colossal pillar, the Dao Annihilation Calamity actually showed signs of gradually subsiding!
“This is different from the records...” Doubt suddenly sprouted in Li Fan’s heart.
Just then, a black shadow abruptly appeared within the brilliantly glowing Supreme Dao Scripture.
It seemed to have a clear objective, heading straight for one of the characters in the scripture.
It moved too quickly, and hidden within the radiance of the True Immortal Script, its features were impossible to discern. One could only see that as the black shadow approached, the corresponding True Immortal Script began to tremble violently.
Before long, as if it had been carved out of existence by an invisible blade, that True Immortal Script vanished directly from the Supreme Dao Scripture!
The weight of this particular True Immortal Script seemed immense. Without its support, the already precarious situation in the Boundless Star Domain worsened. The speed at which the cosmos was devoured by the Dao Annihilation accelerated, and the sprawling Supreme Dao Scripture began to waver as the situation spiraled out of control.
Yet the black shadow paid it no heed. It shot directly toward the next True Immortal Script!
The shadow’s unusual actions caught the attention of the other surviving True Immortals in the Boundless Star Domain. They decisively launched attacks at the shadow, trying to halt its actions.
But whether it was divine abilities, magical arts, or direct physical assault, anything that came within a thousand feet of the black shadow was instantly teleported elsewhere moments later—either to a place millions of miles away or to the encroaching edge of the Dao Annihilation.
The thousand-foot domain around the shadow seemed to have become an absolute forbidden zone, untouchable by others!
The surviving True Immortals of the Boundless Star Domain tried various methods and techniques, but they could never get close, let alone stop it.
They could only watch helplessly as the black shadow stole the second True Immortal Script.
With another True Immortal Script lost, the collapse of the Boundless Star Domain accelerated even more. Seeing this, the surviving True Immortals could no longer be bothered with trying to stop the thief; they scattered, each fleeing for their own life.
And so, the black shadow's theft of the characters became even more brazen.
Soon, the Supreme Dao Scripture was riddled with holes.
“The Supreme Dao Scripture only contains True Immortal Script, not the true Dao paths themselves. Why go to such lengths to steal them amidst the ravages of the Dao Annihilation? What's the use...” Just as Li Fan was feeling perplexed, another ethereal figure appeared within the Boundless Star Domain!
On the Supreme Dao Scripture, the positions where the characters had been stolen and vanished suddenly burst forth with a faint light, repairing the script. However, compared to the deep, rich strokes of the past, they were now extremely transparent, as if they could disappear again at any moment.
Like a pillar holding up the heavens, with the appearance of this ethereal figure, the rampaging Dao Annihilation Calamity instantly subsided. The entire Supreme Dao Scripture erupted with an unprecedented radiance, as if welcoming the arrival of its master!
“The Inscription Immortal!” Li Fan knew the identity of this ethereal figure instinctively.
The Inscription Immortal pointed a finger at the thieving black shadow. Instantly, countless tiny, densely packed characters materialized around the shadow. Though they were still a thousand feet away, they were steadily advancing.
The characters wove together, as if creating a world and a path out of thin air within the void of the Dao Annihilation, allowing passage.
Nine hundred and ninety-nine feet, nine hundred and ninety-eight feet...
Inch by inch, they closed in on the black shadow!
However, the black shadow seemed oblivious to its predicament. It even cast a defiant, mocking glance at the Inscription Immortal.
Then it continued its act of theft!
The Inscription Immortal did not fly into a rage. He merely began writing the characters a little faster.
The black shadow was clearly not as calm as it appeared. The speed at which it roamed and stole True Immortal Script from the Supreme Dao Scripture was noticeably faster than before.
The price was that its surrounding territory was now being lost at an even faster rate.
“Strange, why doesn't the Inscription Immortal just retract the Supreme Dao Scripture? Why is he letting the black shadow continue to steal from it?” Watching the two powerhouses clash, a sliver of doubt flashed through Li Fan's mind.
“Could it be...”
Li Fan suddenly thought of something, and his heart tightened.
And what happened next seemed to confirm his suspicions.
After stealing nearly thirty characters, with the Inscription Immortal's woven True Immortal Script having invaded to within fifty feet of its body, the black shadow finally chose to stop.
“Many thanks for your gift, fellow Daoist!”
“Zhu Kong shall remember this well!”
“Hahahaha!”
The black shadow let out a wild laugh, then suddenly expanded. Like a drop of ink falling into clear water, it bloomed and spread rapidly outwards.
Not only did it reclaim all of its lost thousand-foot domain, but it even devoured the True Immortal Script written by the Inscription Immortal.
However, judging from the constant turmoil beneath the black shadow, Zhu Kong hadn't truly swallowed the Inscription Immortal's writing. It was merely suppressing it for the time being.
Like boiling water, the churning anomaly in the shadow's region grew more intense. In the process, the blackness in the central area gradually faded, revealing a clear, mirror-like surface.
This mirror seemed to reflect another world!
“Thief, don't you dare flee!” Seeing the black shadow about to escape, the Inscription Immortal finally broke through Zhu Kong's blockade, appearing directly outside the mirrored area.
Using his finger as a brush, he pressed it fiercely onto the transparent mirror!
In that instant, time seemed to stand still.
Li Fan faintly perceived an endless, continuous vision of the Immortal Realm being born from the Inscription Immortal's fingertip. It pressed down upon the transparent mirror like a mountain range.
Ripples erupted, and the mirror looked as though it could shatter at any moment.
But at that very moment, from the other side of the mirror, four more black shadows appeared.
The five of them formed a strange symbol, joining forces to block the suppressive force from the Inscription Immortal's fingertip!
The ripples slowly subsided. The mirror and the black shadows vanished completely from the Boundless Star Domain, as if they had never been there.
The Inscription Immortal stood frozen, as if he couldn't accept what had just happened.
With thirty True Immortal Scripts missing, the Supreme Dao Scripture was no longer complete.
Under the assault of the Dao Annihilation Calamity, it could no longer resist. The Boundless Star Domain began to collapse at an even faster rate than before.
Countless characters flew from the Inscription Immortal's body, doing their best to rescue any True Immortals within his sight.
But the Inscription Immortal himself remained rooted to the spot.
Only when the Boundless Star Domain was on the verge of total collapse did the Supreme Dao Scripture gradually retract from its unfurled state, transforming into a half-open scroll that landed in the Inscription Immortal's hand.
“The Life and Death Realm, the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables.”
The Inscription Immortal's gaze was fixed on the spot where the black shadows had disappeared as he slowly uttered these eight words.
He flung the scroll in his hand with great force, sending it to some unknown destination.
Then, the Inscription Immortal took a step forward, his form seeming to be swallowed by the Dao Annihilation as he, too, vanished from the Boundless Star Domain.
...
The scene recorded within the core of the Fallen Immortal Realm ended there, only to begin again from the start, repeating in a loop.
“The True Immortal Script in the Supreme Dao Scripture isn't merely a depiction of the Great Daos. It seems to be subtly connected to the true Great Daos of the primal possibility! It's like how every branch and leaf of a towering tree is connected to the billions of roots underground.”
“That black shadow named Zhu Kong wasn't just stealing True Immortal Script. It was directly stealing the Great Daos of the primal possibility, and it stole thirty of them in one go!”
“No wonder the Inscription Immortal was so furious. And no wonder that after this calamity, the primal possibility seemed to fall into a slump, unable to resist the Dao Annihilation Calamity, its future destruction sealed.”
“The absence of Daos that I sensed was not only due to Nameless True Immortals fleeing, but also because they were being stolen by others.” Li Fan was inwardly shaken.
The power displayed by the black shadow from start to finish had already surpassed the scope of a Nameless True Immortal. To be able to cross possibilities so easily, it had to be an existence at least on the same level as the Black Heaven Physician and Evil Su Bai.
“But even so, it was still driven into a corner by the Inscription Immortal, only managing to survive with the help of the other four black shadows. But their goal was achieved. They take from that which has a surplus to supplement that which has a deficit—stealing the Daos of others to mend their own. What kind of place is this Life and Death Realm?” Li Fan’s eyes narrowed.
Everything Li Fan had encountered so far indicated that the transcendent experts of the mortal world were all willing to gather together and devise a way to save reality. They even passed on the torch, traveling against the current of time to avert disaster. This seemed to be the common choice for all such experts.
But Li Fan had long held a doubt.
It was impossible for everyone to be so "noble."
A thousand people have a thousand faces. Especially when facing a crisis of life and death, an individual's choices would inevitably lean toward the extreme.
“As expected, besides the group that chose to save the world together, there are also extremely selfish individuals like that black shadow.”
“Their actions are essentially the same as the Black Heaven Physician and Evil Su Bai, acquiring resources from other possibilities to strengthen themselves. But they are more extreme, their actions bolder. They outright steal the foundational building blocks of other possibilities...”
“Tearing down the east wall to patch up the west wall. If they tear down enough, they might actually survive the great calamity of the Mountain and Sea's fusion.” A faint light gleamed in Li Fan’s eyes.
Instinctively, such a course of action was much more to Li Fan's taste.
However, from his first discovery of other possibilities to all the transcendent experts he had encountered so far, only these so-called Five Fellow Calamity Venerables had chosen this path.
Clearly, in the mortal world, they were in the minority.
“Furthermore, this act of digging up everyone else's foundation would absolutely not be tolerated. If discovered, it would likely mean a fight to the death.” After a rational analysis, Li Fan temporarily suppressed the impulse stirring within him.
“The Inscription Immortal went after the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables and never returned. It seems the situation is not optimistic.”
“But, in that case, the master of the Fallen Immortal Realm doesn't seem to be the Inscription Immortal?”
“Then who is it?”
Li Fan’s gaze burned as he looked into the core of the Fallen Immortal Realm.
While feeling doubtful, he also couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. After all, if he truly had to face the Inscription Immortal, even just a remnant after his fall, the pressure would be immense.
“To be able to preserve the final scene before the Inscription Immortal's departure, could it be...”
Li Fan thought of the half-open scroll the Inscription Immortal had casually tossed away at the end.
“The Supreme Dao Scripture?”
Li Fan’s eyes lit up.
“If the Supreme Dao Scripture truly has a spirit, it would definitely have the ability to project a vision that mirrors the Xuanhuang Realm.”
“And with the complete fall of the Immortal Realm and the disappearance of its foundational Daos, its own fall would be an inevitable consequence.”
(End of Chapter)
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