Chapter 1584: The Time-Annihilating Forge
Chapter 1584: The Time-Annihilating Forge
Evil Su Bai's eyes narrowed slightly as he examined the object in his hand.
The light twisted and shifted, and the image of the towering pillar gradually dissipated, revealing the quietly slumbering Hunger Immortal within.
Evil Su Bai gazed at the figure, his expression rather complex.
"You're a sensible one." Without refusing Li Fan's proposal, Evil Su Bai simply fell silent for a moment before speaking flatly.
His figure faded, gradually vanishing. In the blink of an eye, he had already departed the Primal Possibility.
Just as he had arrived, he left without a sound, without a trace.
Li Fan stared at the celestial curtain for a long time before he could confirm that the other had truly gone. He couldn't help but let out a soft sigh of relief.
Even with the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm at his back, confronting a transcendent expert like Evil Su Bai head-on still placed him under considerable pressure, given his current strength.
"Fortunately, the outcome was favorable."
As his mind relaxed slightly, the countless Dao One Worms hidden throughout the Xuanhuang world, which had been poised to strike at a moment's notice, returned to their normal state. They began to regroup around the four celestial platforms, continuing to increase their adaptability to the Mountain and Sea.
Thanks to the prior contact through Su Bai's eternal relic, Evil Su Bai was arguably the most suitable transcendent expert in the Mountain and Sea to be the first one he truly engaged with.
Though the man radiated a formidable, malevolent aura, he was not mindlessly insane. Thus, Li Fan could use manifested powers like the Dao of Longevity and the Great Luck Saint Medicine to deter and counterbalance him.
And even if his plans had failed and a direct confrontation with Evil Su Bai became unavoidable, Li Fan was confident he could fight him. On his home turf of the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm, with the reborn Ink Death, the Dao One Worms, and the True False Transformation as his trump cards, he stood a fighting chance.
The final outcome might have been brutal, but he was certain he could have preserved his own life.
This was why Li Fan had seemingly made such a risky move.
The risks were immense, but the rewards were naturally substantial.
Most importantly, Li Fan now had a clear understanding of his own current strength.
As the saying goes, one cannot know the height of the heavens without climbing a high mountain, nor the depth of the earth without visiting a deep stream. Li Fan had personally visited the Mountain and Sea several times in the past, but those were mere infiltrations, fleeting glimpses, not a formal crossing.
He had no specific, quantifiable understanding of the immense pressure one faced when traversing the Mountain and Sea. Without [Truth]'s ability to restart at will, the act of having the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm collide with the Mountain and Sea offered no room for trial and error. The slightest misstep would see the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm pulverized, and even if Li Fan survived, he would be gravely injured.
"Using Evil Su Bai as an anchor point, I have both seen the Mountain and Sea and measured myself."
"Even with its accumulated foundations, the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm is still not quite qualified to safely traverse the Mountain and Sea as an immortal ark."
As if sensing Li Fan's thoughts, the Dao One Worms' process of erosion and learning grew even more fervent.
"Relying solely on the evolution brought by the Dao One Worms is too slow."
"The main problem with the Xuanhuang Immortal Ark right now is that its hull isn't sturdy enough. Even though I've used rare and durable materials to build it, they haven't fully fused together. It's as if they've been roughly piled up, with many gaps remaining between them."
"Under normal circumstances, it's perfectly fine. Even I can't observe these voids. But once it faces the pressure of colliding with the Mountain and Sea, these gaps will be the very reason the immortal ark disintegrates in an instant."
"There are two ways to solve this problem. First, find more materials to fill every last gap. Second..."
"...is to reforge the Xuanhuang world itself. Every samsaric world-ending calamity is an opportunity to return it to the crucible."
With Li Fan's current insight, as long as he identified the root of the problem, he could quickly devise a solution. Although his cultivation realm was still shackled below transcendence, his understanding had far surpassed his own strength. In a sense, Li Fan was like one of those legendary mighty figures who reincarnated with their memories to cultivate anew.
In truth, however, his advanced knowledge came from the accumulation of countless simulations.
"I'll tackle this from both sides."
"There are still True Immortals within the Supreme Dao Scripture. I must capture them all and turn them into material to fill the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm."
"I myself must also further comprehend the principles of medicinal pills and refine the Xuanhuang world to the next level."
The sleeping orange cat on Li Fan's shoulder shattered into motes of light, reforming into a dose of Loquat mixed with Cynanchum.
"Transforming the Dao into medicine, using medicine to represent the Dao... it completely bypasses the refining process. Truly marvelous."
"How exactly did that Saint Emperor achieve this?"
Although Li Fan had absorbed the Loquat saint medicine, he only had a partial understanding of the principles behind its formation. He now began to study it intently.
"If I could emulate the Saint Emperor..."
"The Xuanhuang Immortal Realm would probably undergo another qualitative transformation." Li Fan's eyes gleamed.
Theoretically, the path of transcendence in the Mountain and Sea required one to walk their own unique Dao.
Li Fan's method of using the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm as a world-crossing immortal ark could also be seen as his own unique method of transcendence. Moreover, it could incorporate the strengths of countless others.
"However, it seems that few, if any, transcendent beings in the Mountain and Sea are like me."
"I wonder if there are any drawbacks to this approach."
The thought flashed through Li Fan's mind.
Although he had a faint premonition, he wasn't particularly concerned.
After all, [Truth] was only dormant, not gone forever.
"First, I'll leave the Mountain and Sea and observe the wonders beyond. If the drawbacks are truly too great, then I'll just lie low until [Truth] awakens and start all over..." Li Fan gazed at the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm before him, his thoughts surging like a tide.
After a long while, he suppressed his stray thoughts and turned his gaze beyond the high wall. "The house is barely clean enough. I suppose I can invite the guests inside now."
The recent events within Shuo Xinghai near the high wall instantly entered his sight.
The lord of the Holy Merchants, driven mad by the destruction of the Merchant Immortal Boat, was now exuding an extremely faint aura under the combined assault of the Shuo Xinghai immortals.
But he possessed some unknown treasure that was somehow keeping him alive, clinging to his last breath.
Not only was the Holy Merchant lord's soul kept from dissipating, but he would also periodically turn and viciously lash out at the Shuo Xinghai immortals.
His irrational, frenzied attacks made it difficult to kill a True Immortal, but they were more than enough to inflict heavy injuries.
"An unkillable Nameless True Immortal is certainly a thorny problem."
"If he can't be suppressed and sealed, the only option is to avoid him. But unfortunately, the foundation of Shuo Xinghai is right there, surrounded by Annihilation Zones. Heh..." Li Fan felt a certain appreciation for the Holy Merchant lord. But what interested him more was the man's method of self-preservation.
Li Fan had seen the Holy Merchant lord endure a full-powered strike from [Chaos] and survive more than once.
Li Fan was well aware of Chaos's strength. At the Nameless realm, his immortal power could reduce almost any Great Dao in the world to a state of primordial chaos. Its destructive force was close to that of the Dao Annihilation.
Yet, when the Holy Merchant lord was eroded by Chaos's immortal power, several lights flashed on his body, and in a moment, the chaotic energy was expelled.
It wasn't just the immortal power of Chaos.
The attacks of the other Nameless True Immortals of Shuo Xinghai were also effortlessly neutralized by the constantly flashing light on the Holy Merchant lord's body.
Besides the True Immortals he was familiar with from his previous life, like Chaos and Shanhua, there was another who particularly caught Li Fan's attention.
Although his name was still within the Supreme Dao Scripture, it was so blurry it was almost invisible, as if it could vanish at any moment.
His corresponding Dao was the character for [Awl].
His method of combat was not to injure enemies with a manifested awl-like object, but rather to invoke the meaning of "no room to even stand an awl"—having no place to stand.
The reason the crazed Holy Merchant lord remained stuck near Shuo Xinghai was precisely because of this Awl Immortal's restrictions. His range of movement seemed to be confined to a tiny area, which he could not escape no matter what. Even with his mysterious life-preserving methods, he would eventually be worn down and killed by the combined assault of the Shuo Xinghai immortals.
After all, the Holy Merchant lord was not a True Immortal and lacked the support of the Infinite Sea's boundless power. Furthermore, the flashing light on his body used to neutralize the immortal power of other True Immortals seemed to be growing weaker.
"The Holy Merchant lord's survival technique is likely related to the Holy Merchant pioneers who explored other possibilities."
"This Holy Merchant lord, who holds information about other possibilities of the Mountain and Sea, cannot be allowed to fall into anyone else's hands."
With a thought, the dormant wisp of consciousness Li Fan had left in Shuo Xinghai began to rapidly approach the Holy Merchant lord.
The other True Immortals were of little concern. As long as Li Fan manifested his full power and leveraged the might of the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm, he could suppress them all in an instant.
But the newly encountered Awl Immortal, whose name was on the verge of disappearing from the Supreme Dao Scripture, put Li Fan on high alert.
"This Awl Immortal should not be weak. At the ten-thousand-year mark in my previous life, I never saw this person in Shuo Xinghai. I never even heard of him. It's unlikely that he fell, but..."
Li Fan carefully sensed the aura of the [Awl] Dao that sealed the Holy Merchant lord, his brows furrowing slightly. "His strength hasn't reached the transcendent realm yet. He must have used a method like the Transcendent World Coffin to escape to another possibility."
"As for why no one remembers him..."
"The reason is the same as why his name is about to vanish from the Supreme Dao Scripture."
"The state of 'no place to stand an awl' doesn't just apply to others; it applies to himself as well. This is a rather extreme Dao. It is not tolerated by heaven and earth, and for that reason, it is transcendently invincible."
Although this Dao was bizarre, it could not escape Li Fan's discerning eye. In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Li Fan had already seen through its mysteries.
"Even without reaching the transcendent realm, the Awl Immortal's strength is truly formidable. And this Dao is peculiar, utterly incompatible with other Daos. If I were to integrate it into the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm, it would actually be detrimental to its stability."
Li Fan had no intention of confronting him directly; he only wanted to snatch away the Holy Merchant lord.
But things did not go as he wished.
Even with the aid of the Myriad Dao Net, Li Fan's consciousness found itself unable to get any closer after reaching a certain distance from the Holy Merchant lord.
It was as if the Awl Dao had truly isolated the Holy Merchant lord from the Primal Possibility itself.
"Then you can't blame me for what comes next."
"While this Dao cannot be integrated into the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm, perhaps it can be forged into a sharp weapon."
High above the Xuanhuang Heaven, a sharp glint flashed in the eyes of Li Fan's true self.
His figure flickered, and in the next instant, he was already outside the high wall, within Shuo Xinghai.
He did not arrive alone.
As the parent of the Xuanhuang world, wherever Li Fan went, the might of the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm followed.
Thus, a dark cloud seemed to press down from above. The sky over Shuo Xinghai was like a gathering of a million immortal soldiers.
The immortals locked in a fierce battle with the Holy Merchant lord couldn't help but pause their actions.
Filled with shock and uncertainty, they all looked up at the sky.
"Everyone, do you... feel that inexplicable pressure?"
"This feeling of imminent catastrophe... could it be that the Dao Annihilation is coming?!"
"Fellow Daoists, be careful!" The faces of all the immortals changed drastically.
Just as they were stunned into inaction, a colossal palm suddenly materialized in the void and pressed down upon them.
Wherever the giant palm passed, fine cracks appeared in space. Countless streams of black qi surged out madly, as if they had found a breach. The might accompanying this single palm strike had directly shattered the tolerance limit of the mortal star sea, luring the Dao Annihilation calamity to follow in its wake!
After the black qi descended, for some unknown reason, it did not attack the giant palm. Instead, it immediately swept towards the immortals of Shuo Xinghai.
As a result, it looked as if the giant palm was shrouded in the endless black qi of Dao Annihilation, crushing down upon the immortals!
If it were just the giant palm alone, the True Immortals might have joined forces to resist.
But with the harbinger of Dao Annihilation, that roiling black qi representing a world-ending calamity...
The True Immortals and even the Nameless True Immortals below scattered in panic like ants, without the slightest intention of resisting!
And so, with a single palm strike from Li Fan, the gathered immortals were utterly dispersed!
Only the Awl Dao that had trapped the Holy Merchant lord seemed to hold its ground, not dissipating.
But before the magnificent palm, this foothold lasted for a mere three breaths before being shattered.
But to Li Fan's surprise, although the blockade was broken, the Awl Dao itself did not dissipate.
Instead, like a sharp awl, it pierced deep into Li Fan's giant palm. R/ANOB+Es
Or rather, into the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm itself!
Detecting the foreign invasion, Ink Death arrived in an instant, seeking to erode and convert it.
The Awl Dao was still within the Mountain and Sea. Naturally, it could not escape Ink Death's erosion.
But Ink Death's rate of absorption was unprecedentedly slow.
It was like a tough, stubborn rock; although it could be chewed, it would cost a few broken teeth!
"This Dao is truly interesting." Instead of anger, Li Fan felt a surge of delight.
He had thought he knew all the True Immortals in the Primal world. He hadn't expected to encounter such a surprise today.
Driven by his will, Ink Death further intensified its erosion.
The Dao One Worms also took the opportunity to divide; one part began to learn and evolve from Ink Death again, while the other joined in eroding the Awl Dao that had pierced into the world.
Through this process, Li Fan gained a deeper understanding of this Awl Dao.
This immortal had pushed the concept of "no place to stand an awl" to its absolute limit, completely isolating himself from the outside world. There should be an intimate connection between an individual and the Primal Possibility they inhabit.
But with this Awl Immortal, it was as if they were separated by different possibilities, with a bottomless chasm between them.
"No wonder it's so tough to chew."
"To even touch him is almost equivalent to making a full crossing."
Through the absorption and conversion by the Dao One Worms and Ink Death, the gap created by the Awl Dao was rapidly closing.
Li Fan could also faintly make out the figure of the Awl Immortal.
A small, lonely figure stood there, appearing to be no more than a five or six-year-old child.
He watched Li Fan silently from a distance.
The closer he got, the more intensely Li Fan felt the other's repulsion.
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