Chapter 1593: A Fair Wind for the Lone Sail
Before Li Fan lay a thing so intensely green it appeared black—the condensed essence of a Mountain Sea ancient object, sedimented across countless possibilities. It had long since transcended its original form as mere green algae.
"It possesses no realm, no cultivation base, no divine abilities or magical arts. Yet, relying solely on a powerful survival instinct honed over ages, it can invade the very transcendent Dao of a Transcendent expert..."
"Truly remarkable!" Li Fan couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
And yet, this very existence that he found so praiseworthy was now, under the unflinching assault of the Dao Yi worms, slowly being converted into nourishment for the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm's next evolution.
The entire process took three years. By the time the Black Box was completely consumed, sixty-seven phantoms of the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm had been fully charged and solidified.
"With these reserves, the structural integrity of the Xuanhuang Immortal Ark can be elevated to another level. My confidence in crossing the sea of transcendence has grown by a considerable margin."
The sixty-seven azure wooden carvings rested in Li Fan's palm. After a moment of contemplation, he crushed one of them.
He intended to try absorbing the azure energy that slowly seeped from the carving directly into his own body.
After being absorbed and transformed by the Dao Yi worms, the consciousness of the mountain sea ancient object had been completely erased, leaving behind only the purity of life force.
"Creation Forge, Great Dao Befalling Body."
As the azure energy was slowly drawn in, a crimson flush appeared on Li Fan's cheeks. Countless tiny, thunder-like crackles and collisions echoed from every part of his body.
With two great body refinement techniques working in tandem, Li Fan attempted to make the abilities of the Mountain Sea ancient object his own.
Although Li Fan's path to transcendence was now set upon the Xuanhuang Immortal Ark—and as the father of the Xuanhuang, he held absolute control over this vessel he had forged with his own hands, a control that grew stronger daily with the worship of countless beings within the realm, fated to merge completely with his Dao the moment he sailed it across the Mountain and Sea—there was still a risk.
Just like with Return to Truth.
Until something was truly and utterly his own power, the risk of "losing" it always remained.
Li Fan had to plan for every eventuality, to add another layer of insurance for himself.
"Even if the crossing fails in the future and the Immortal Ark is destroyed..."
"...when I leap from the wreckage, I can still survive with ease."
The smallest particle of his body seemed to transform into a colossal furnace that could hold up the heavens.
Etched upon these furnaces were the markings of the Myriad Forms Dao Net. They ceaselessly absorbed the azure energy of the Mountain Sea ancient object, tempering and remolding his very flesh and blood.
It felt as if he had swallowed numerous potent spiritual medicines at once. Li Fan felt his blood and qi churn, his heart pounding so fiercely it seemed ready to burst from his chest.
Only by "tasting" it himself could he gain a truly concrete understanding of the life force contained within this ancient object.
"This life force is different from the 'life' of Longevity."
"It feels more like... adaptation, evolution, survival."
This body of Li Fan's already held a faint remnant of the power of the Great Dao of Longevity.
Now, after absorbing this new power of life, Li Fan discovered that the two did not conflict with each other.
In fact...
The remnant power of the Longevity Dao, after blending with the survival power of the Mountain Sea ancient object...
...seemed to have been stained azure, exhibiting a peculiar transformation.
While still under the umbrella of the Longevity Dao, it appeared to have carved out a new branch, becoming something unique and different.
"This is..."
Li Fan had once nearly achieved complete "enlightenment in Longevity." In the whole of the Mountain and Sea, his understanding of "Longevity" was likely second only to Shou Qiu Gong.
After savoring the sensation for a moment, he understood the reason for the change happening within him.
"When Shou Qiu Gong shared his Longevity, he never minded if later generations innovated or blazed new trails."
"He even encouraged it. Under the banner of Longevity, a hundred flowers could bloom, each displaying their own divine abilities. When their paths matured, they could even detach from the main path of Longevity, establishing their own sects and achieving entirely new Great Daos..."
"Shou Qiu Gong truly lives up to his name, the 'Magnanimous Sage'," Li Fan sighed with emotion.
To have considered his disciples' futures so thoroughly, Shou Qiu Gong was probably the greatest master in all the Mountain and Sea.
Realizing that absorbing the azure energy from the ancient object would even help expel the residual Longevity Dao from his body, Li Fan cast aside all his reservations.
He pushed his body to its absolute limit, absorbing and refining the azure energy.
A single Xuanhuang wooden carving was sufficient for his body refinement needs, and it wouldn't interfere with the strengthening of the Xuanhuang Immortal Ark.
With an ample supply of raw material, the Creation Forge Art and the Great Dao Befalling Body Art could operate on instinct alone. After setting them in motion, Li Fan paid them no further mind.
Instead, he focused his attention on the remaining prize from this endeavor: the Transcendent's remains.
With the Mountain Sea ancient object removed from his head, the fallen Transcendent expert's true face was finally revealed.
His features were lifelike, as if he were merely in a deep slumber. He was remarkably handsome, with an ineffable air of carefree grace in his brow.
Only the small, bloody hole gnawed into the center of his forehead by the ancient object struck a discordant note.
With no Dao Annihilation to provoke it, the transcendent true intent within the remains stayed hidden.
Li Fan did not act rashly and immediately use Ink Death to force out the Mountain Sea Solitary Sail.
"The Dao Yi worms still need some time to adapt and evolve."
Li Fan was very patient.
He was speaking as much to himself as he was to soothe Return to Truth.
With the threat of the Mountain Sea ancient object eliminated, the Solitary Sail was completely exposed. Return to Truth's desire for it surged in relentless waves, far more intense than when it had glimpsed it from afar the last time.
"Most likely, because Ziyi was by my side in the last life, Return to Truth was wary. But now, this transcendent true intent belongs to me alone."
"Besides, Return to Truth is still in a state of severe injury and deep slumber. It desperately needs this transcendent true intent to mend its wounds."
Li Fan understood this perfectly, but he did not let it rush his judgment.
Unhurried, he waited for the Dao Yi worms to completely digest and adapt to the Mountain Sea ancient object.
During this waiting period, while cleaning up the battlefield in the Guangwu Xinghai, the Xuanhuang Immortals made an unexpected discovery.
In addition to finding the Dao Sword and Dao Saber he had seen in the previous life, they also uncovered three other powerful Dao treasures that had not been used in time.
They were a severed stone hand, a green shirt stained with blood and riddled with holes, and a withered yellow tree branch.
All of them were the last surviving remnants of other possibilities, from worlds beyond Xuanhuang that had been destroyed in the Dao Annihilation.
From these three items, Li Fan glimpsed the final moments of three different possibilities.
However, whereas he had felt a pang of emotion when he saw the Rat Emperor's memories in the previous life...
...now that he had seen such things more often, he was no longer surprised.
Although these items were powerful, they were of no use to the current Li Fan. He simply tossed them into the outer heavens of the Xuanhuang Realm to be stored for later.
Once all preparations were complete, Li Fan formally began the process of stealing the Mountain Sea Solitary Sail.
This transcendent true intent was something that even Ziyi had personally come to retrieve in the last life. This meant it held considerable value even for a Transcendent. Naturally, Li Fan treated the matter with the utmost caution.
He sent all the Xuanhuang Immortals back into the Xuanhuang Immortal Realm.
Li Fan stood alone, facing the Transcendent's remains.
"Ink Death!"
With a thought, a rolling cloud of Ink Death's gloom surged forward.
An aura like that of Dao Annihilation instantly forced the solitary sail out from within the remains.
The moment the lone sail appeared, the wind fell and the waves grew calm.
It was as if an invisible giant hand had pressed down heavily on the cloud of Ink Death. The once-churning, boundless gloom was utterly pacified.
Ink Death naturally wanted to resist, but no matter how it swirled and billowed, it could not harm the solitary sail in the slightest.
At most, it could only cause the sail to sway slightly.
Through the perspective of Ink Death, Li Fan slowly observed the power of this Mountain Sea Solitary Sail.
"The Mountain and Sea may be vast, but I will cross it with a single sail."
"To possess such ambition and perseverance, he must have been a world-shaking genius. A pity he died so quietly, lost between the mountains and the sea."
Unlike Ziyi's all-encompassing, domineering Dao, the Mountain Sea Solitary Sail before him was not nearly as exclusive or repellent.
The Dao Ziyi had displayed was a path no one could tread without her permission. But from this Solitary Sail, Li Fan sensed a flicker of an idea—a willingness to "carry another."
"Should we meet by chance upon the Mountain and Sea, and your humble boat has yet to capsize, what harm is there in carrying you for a part of the journey...?"
A light chuckle seemed to echo by his ear, and Li Fan was momentarily stunned.
"This person... was quite gallant."
"Even I wouldn't mind making a friend of him."
"What a pity..."
"I wonder... how did he actually die?"
A thread of doubt inevitably rose in Li Fan's mind.
The Solitary Sail was not yet completely destroyed.
It had more than enough power to resist the Dao Annihilation. Its owner should not have perished.
"Dao Yi..."
To peer into this secret, it was time for the Dao Yi worms to make their entrance.
A familiar scene played out once more.
Only this time, it was not the Mountain Sea ancient object being eroded.
It was a boundless swarm of insects!
The corrosion of the Dao Yi worms was even more efficient than that of the Mountain Sea ancient object.
Whoosh...
A rushing sound filled the air, and Li Fan's vision blurred. It was as if he had been plunged into a vast, boundless ocean.
Aside from this ocean and a lone boat, there was nothing.
All around, the weather shifted—one moment a raging gale, the next a dead calm, then a torrential downpour.
But through it all, the lone boat sailed forward, impossibly steady.
"This is... the memory of the Transcendent's journey across the Mountain and Sea while he was alive."
Li Fan's mind stirred, and he began to examine it closely.
The great ocean before him seemed to have no end.
The scenes within the memory were almost entirely repetitive.
All of it was just the boundless, churning ocean.
The original owner of the Solitary Sail maintained a state of unshakable calm.
In contrast, Li Fan, the observer, gradually began to grow impatient.
Because this journey of crossing was taking far, far too long.
"This shouldn't be. How could crossing to another possibility take so much time?"
Li Fan gazed into the distance, trying to catch a glimpse of other possibilities within the Mountain and Sea.
After an unknown amount of time, Li Fan finally saw faint, blurry images on the distant horizon. They must be other possibilities.
But the lone boat seemed to take no notice at all, simply ignoring them.
It continued to sail steadily forward.
"I saw them, so the owner of the remains must have seen them too."
"So..."
A moment later, Li Fan understood.
Ordinary possibilities were not his goal.
Transcendence. What was transcendence?
To leave this common dust of the world, and travel to the legendary Other Shore.
Li Fan stared blankly at the boundless ocean before him.
The Other Shore... where was it?
The beings he had encountered before—Ziyi, the Black Heaven Physician, the Evil Su Bai—they had all appeared in a flash and vanished in an instant.
So Li Fan had naturally assumed that the Other Shore was not far.
That as long as one had the power to cross the Mountain and Sea, one could naturally journey to the Other Shore.
But now, it seemed...
...that was not the case at all.
At this point, Li Fan had a faint guess as to the cause of the Solitary Sail owner's death.
But he still needed the complete memory to confirm it.
The Dao Yi worms relentlessly pressed their invasion, and the memories of the Solitary Sail flooded in like a tide.
The owner of the Solitary Sail may have truly been an exceptionally peaceful person in life.
Li Fan felt not a trace of malice from him. Instead, he felt as if bathed in a spring breeze, his body and mind at ease. This was true even when facing an endless ocean.
He sailed alone on the Infinite Sea, his heart so broad and open that the seemingly hopeless situation did nothing to diminish it.
Even as this ocean, so vast it defied imagination, began to instill a sense of despair in Li Fan, the observer...
...the Solitary Sail remained optimistic.
"At the very least, I have seen and personally traveled this ocean."
The light chuckle echoed by his ear once more.
The lone boat continued to sail, the end of its journey nowhere in sight.
...
Li Fan actively withdrew from the memory.
Not everyone possessed such an open and magnanimous state of mind. At least, the current Li Fan did not.
Especially since he already knew the fate of the Solitary Sail, knew that there was no destination waiting ahead.
Prolonged immersion in the Solitary Sail's memory caused a sense of frustration and malice to stir faintly within Li Fan's heart.
His mind became unbalanced, and a murderous impulse arose.
It reminded him of his journey upstream in the river of time, when he had almost lost himself.
"But at least back then, I had familiar things in the past to serve as lighthouses and beacons, to guide my way."
"But this lone sail, navigating the Infinite Sea, had nothing."
"Only a vague sense of direction..."
Entering the memory of the Solitary Sail once more, Li Fan chose not to immerse himself. Instead, he skimmed through, looking only for the key points.
As it turned out, there were no key points.
Or rather, the ever-present lone sail, hanging high, was the entirety of the story.
Not until the Dao Yi worms had completely breached the defenses of this transcendent true intent, and Li Fan had mastered all the memories within...
...did the scene change in any meaningful way.
The owner of the Solitary Sail had simply died of old age on the Infinite Sea.
Li Fan found it difficult to estimate just how long a period of time this was.
It must have been an unimaginably long time.
It was a span of time so long that even an expert who could calmly face the Dao Annihilation could not outlast it.
"A Transcendent... can have their time run out?"
Li Fan's first thought was one of disbelief.
At the same time, he once again truly understood the immense value of Shou Qiu Gong's Great Dao of Longevity.
"Still, the lifespan of a Transcendent must be exceedingly long."
"So..."
In a daze, Li Fan began to understand.
The era in which the owner of the Solitary Sail lived was perhaps the ancient period when the Other Shore was first being established.
In those days, Transcendents were few and far between, and not many knew where the Other Shore was located.
They could only rely on a vague, intuitive sense of direction, and set out on their own.
As pioneers, there was naturally no one to guide them.
And so, they became lost in the Mountain and Sea, adrift until this very day.
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