Chapter 1643: The Saints Counter the Spirit Calamity
"Do you truly mean that, fellow Daoist?" He Gan Xian froze, his expression clearly hesitant.
"Heh, of course..."
"I don't," Li Fan suddenly shifted his tone.
"Though I have pursued them for a long time, their strength has undergone a qualitative change. It seems to me now that the five of them, united, possess power approaching that of a Saint. They are not an enemy I can defeat at my current level. This requires a more long-term strategy..."
Li Fan's candor caught He Gan Xian by surprise.
"Do you know what kind of beings these Five Fellow Calamity Venerables are?" Li Fan asked.
He Gan Xian shook his head.
"Unlike the Saints on the Other Shore or the Tai Wei Saint Emperor, their goal is not to save the Mountain and Sea. Instead, like a Dao that would usurp a nation, they forcibly seize wonders from countless possibilities to empower themselves. They aim to build a possibility that can rival, or even transcend, the Mountain and Sea and its eventual Dao Annihilation," Li Fan said, his voice deep and distant as he gazed into the depths of the Mountain and Sea.
He spoke as if he had personally visited that Life and Death Realm.
"Besides, their actions are nearly equivalent to rebuilding the Mountain and Sea from scratch. How could it be so easy? Never mind that the five of them together barely have the power of a single Saint. Even five true Saints working in unison would struggle to achieve such a feat, wouldn't they? Otherwise, why would the Saints on the Other Shore endure such hardships to cross the Eternal Silent Void Realm?"
"Originally, I thought the same. I believed the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables were merely engaged in a meaningless, desperate struggle. But now..."
Li Fan's mind flashed to the Heavenly Net Emperor successfully leading the Primitive Immortal Realm to transcendence, and to the time the Five Venerables had personally visited that realm to steal True Immortal Seal Characters from the Supreme Dao Scripture.
Judging from the Inscription Immortal's expression back then, the thirty stolen Seal Characters were anything but simple.
"If my suspicions are correct, and the Primitive Immortal Realm truly transcended the Mountain and Sea, then it might not be impossible for the Life and Death Realm to repeat that story."
The thought flickered through his mind, and Li Fan continued, "Their power has grown beyond my expectations. I fear the Life and Death Realm has as well. This just goes to show how much of the Mountain and Sea's foundation they have secretly plundered."
"Perhaps they still fall short for now. But if we allow them to continue..."
An image formed in He Gan Xian's mind: a band of shadowy thieves, roaming freely throughout the Mountain and Sea, ceaselessly stealing its resources.
A surge of uncontrollable anger rose within him.
If not for the certainty that he was no match for the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables, he might have dragged Li Fan off to investigate the Life and Death Realm himself.
Li Fan noted the subtle shifts in He Gan Xian's expression and nodded inwardly, gaining a deeper understanding of his character.
He smiled and said, "The Five Fellow Calamity Venerables may be audacious, but we need not worry too much. After all, the Mountain and Sea does not belong to us alone, but to all the immortals, the Saints, and the Saint Emperor."
"The Saints and the Saint Emperor are fighting in a time more ancient, beyond the Eternal Silent Void Realm. How could they possibly allow such parasitic creatures to fester in their rear?"
He Gan Xian grew thoughtful. "What you mean is..."
"We need only spread the news of the Life and Death Realm and then watch from the sidelines. The Five Fellow Calamity Venerables are strong, but how can they possibly compare to the full might of the Other Shore?"
He Gan Xian looked slightly embarrassed. "Because of the unique nature of my Dao, I have always been wary of the Other Shore and have never visited. I only know the names of its Saints by reputation."
"No matter, I have my methods. Just watch, fellow Daoist."
As he spoke, a figure materialized before Li Fan, almost perfectly identical to his true self.
Except its face was a distorted blur, its features impossible to discern, but its aura was indistinguishable from Li Fan's.
Yet, in He Gan Xian's eyes, it seemed to be a completely separate individual.
"Fellow Daoist, this art of extra-corporeal incarnation..." The more He Gan Xian observed it, the more astounded he became.
The clone Li Fan had created was remarkably similar to the other self he produced through his own Moral Separation technique.
But his ability was entirely reliant on the unique properties of the Dao of Morality. Furthermore, his Dao and Virtue were intrinsically linked; even when separated, they remained connected by a thousand threads.
Just as he had been able, moments ago, to use his technique of unity to perceive the memories of his other self before its demise.
He Gan Xian could sense, however, that the clone created by Li Fan's divine art... was a completely independent entity.
In an instant, He Gan Xian understood what Li Fan planned to do next.
Just as he expected, the newborn Li Fan, having received its mission, was engulfed in scorching, brilliant flames.
It gathered its power for a moment, then transformed into a streak of light and vanished into the Mountain and Sea.
The great fire of True Spirit, which had never fully subsided, was reignited.
This time, the newborn Li Fan was even more reckless, speeding through the Dao Annihilation, setting aflame every possibility it passed.
"Fellow Daoist, you..." He Gan Xian watched, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably.
Li Fan simply waved his hand with a faint smile.
If the previous True Spirit fire, meant to wall off the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables, had been confined to a single corner of the Mountain and Sea...
Then the disaster Li Fan was now orchestrating threatened to engulf a vast expanse of it.
If it were allowed to burn unchecked, it was not impossible that this entire segment of the Mountain and Sea would meet a premature end.
Knowing the Other Shore would have to respond, Li Fan estimated the timing and decisively dispersed the wisp of divine thought he had left in the clone.
This divine thought was not for communication but was the catalyst for unleashing the True Spirit incineration technique.
Li Fan's incarnation art, born from his comprehension of the transformation between truth and falsehood, was profound, but it had not yet reached the point of creating infinite spiritual essence from nothing. He couldn't even apportion his own infinite spiritual essence.
Therefore, to set the Mountain and Sea ablaze, his true self still had to act.
Now that he had created a large enough commotion, he ignited and scattered the remnants of his divine thought, destroying the only clue that could be traced back to his true body.
The clone, meanwhile, fled at top speed toward the location of the Life and Death Realm, just as planned.
"This move will certainly expose the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables, but isn't the price too steep?" He Gan Xian lamented, his heart aching at the sight of the Mountain and Sea consumed by flames.
"A serious illness requires harsh medicine. If we can eradicate the Five Fellow Calamity Venerables in one fell swoop, this sacrifice is absolutely worth it. Do not worry; these few possibilities are unrelated to the final outcome."
"You see? If not for this, why would the Other Shore make such a grand move?"
He Gan Xian saw Li Fan point into the distance, though for some reason, Li Fan's eyes were closed.
Assuming he was afraid of his act of arson being exposed, He Gan Xian didn't press the matter.
He looked in the direction Li Fan indicated.
A resplendent white ring, seemingly infinite in breadth and boundless in size, descended from beyond the Mountain and Sea, blanketing countless possibilities within it.
Within the white ring, several figures flickered into existence.
But shrouded as they were in the halo of light, He Gan Xian could not see them clearly.
He only felt a primal fear seize him the moment his eyes met the light, a certainty of imminent doom.
He felt as if all his innermost secrets were laid bare, like being stripped naked and cast into the light of day for all to see.
Wherever the white ring passed, the True Spirit fire, which had been raging uncontrollably, was instantly extinguished.
The surging tide of Dao Annihilation crashed against it as if hitting an unbreakable dam; no matter how the tide churned, it could not advance a single inch.
As the calamity subsided, an illusory image of the Mountain and Sea emerged from within the white ring.
The very possibilities that had been devoured by the True Spirit fire and the Dao Annihilation tide reappeared within this phantom landscape!
It filled the "blank" spaces that had been created!
Then, a simple wooden boat sailed through this newly manifested Mountain and Sea.
Like a clock being wound back, countless beings that had vanished reappeared.
It was as if time had returned to the moment before this segment of the Mountain and Sea was touched by the True Spirit fire!
The phenomenon was not over.
After the wooden boat reversed the course of the Mountain and Sea, a small, unassuming brush flew out and began to paint in the void.
A figure materialized beneath its strokes.
It looked exactly like Li Fan!
Or rather, like Li Fan's clone that had set the Mountain and Sea ablaze!
A thin black line extended from the painted figure, connecting it to a specific location within the Mountain and Sea—the Life and Death Realm!
The white ring abruptly shrank, descending upon that very spot!
And then...
There was no earth-shattering battle as he had imagined.
Just a moment later, the white ring vanished from the Mountain and Sea.
And along with it, it seemed, the Life and Death Realm itself was gone?
He Gan Xian was filled with astonishment and doubt. He stared for a long time but could not make a clear judgment.
He only saw that the Mountain and Sea was once again teeming with life and vitality.
It was as if the cataclysm of fire and water had never happened at all.
"Is this... the might of a Saint?"
He Gan Xian had never before witnessed a Saint take action personally. Seeing it today was truly a world-shaking, mind-bending experience.
With a mere gesture, they could reverse the catastrophic collapse of the Mountain and Sea.
Such divine power was truly beyond imagination!
Recalling Li Fan's calm and composed demeanor as he set the fire, a thought struck He Gan Xian. "Could it be that he anticipated the Saints of the Other Shore would intervene?"
"What happened out there?" just as He Gan Xian was lost in speculation, Li Fan suddenly asked.
He Gan Xian was taken aback.
Only after Li Fan urged him again did he recount in detail everything he had just witnessed.
Hearing that the Saints were gone, Li Fan slowly opened his eyes.
Indeed. Having personally experienced the terrifying power of the Saints, Li Fan had done more than simply close his eyes.
He had severed all observation of the outside world, guarding only his inner self.
He was terrified that the act of observation itself would be detected by the Saints.
Even if they were just illusory projections.
At the same time, his internal vigilance was at its absolute peak, using his intuition as a guide. He was ready to use [Truth] and return at the first sign of danger.
The grand spectacle of the Saints unleashing their divine might, restoring the collapsing Mountain and Sea, and suppressing the Life and Death Realm in an instant...
He hadn't dared to watch a single second of it.
Only now, after the situation had completely settled, did he return to normal and hastily question He Gan Xian.
"A white ring, the Mountain and Sea, a wooden boat, a brush..."
Li Fan listened intently, a strange light in his eyes.
He Gan Xian had truly overestimated him.
He had never imagined that the Saints of the Other Shore possessed the means to reshape the Mountain and Sea and reverse time!
"Even though it was the Saints working together, such an act is nearly identical to my [Truth]."
"Especially that wooden boat..." Li Fan narrowed his eyes.
He didn't try to connect it to the names of the Saints he had glimpsed on the Other Shore.
He only pondered the great Daos of the Mountain and Sea that these phenomena represented.
"The phantom landscape symbolizes the Mountain and Sea."
"That wooden boat seems capable of reversing the time and space of the Mountain and Sea. But it's clearly not on the same level as the common Dao of [Reverse]; it far surpasses it."
"And that brush..."
"It's definitely not as simple as just tracking an enemy."
Li Fan had a premonition that his clone had not met a pleasant end.
"No wonder they were unconcerned by my threat to burn down the Mountain and Sea, treating it as a joke."
"The Saints' power is this terrifying?"
"And remember, this was merely the power of their illusory projections. The Saints' true bodies are not within this segment of the Mountain and Sea."
"The Five Fellow Calamity Venerables, whom I considered a major threat, were suppressed without making so much as a ripple..."
Amid his awe, Li Fan's resolve to stick to his previous plan hardened.
Until he found a way to deal with the Saints, he would never willingly reveal himself to them.
To do so would be tantamount to suicide!
Li Fan was not the only one whose mind was racing.
Beside him, He Gan Xian, and indeed every transcendent expert within the Mountain and Sea fortunate enough to witness the Saints' projections in action, had fallen into a state of enlightenment. They were like starving men, greedily savoring the profound mysteries within the Saints' phenomena.
Saints were beings of legend.
It was difficult enough to even catch a glimpse of them, let alone watch them act personally.
This opportunity was truly a rarity in the world!
All thanks to Li Fan!
Unfortunately, it seemed his Mountain Sitting Technique could not generate feedback cultivation from this.
Otherwise, it would have been another unimaginable return of power.
"Morality..."
He Gan Xian murmured to himself. After witnessing true Saints, he seemed to have gained a new understanding of the true meaning of morality.
After a long while, he said to Li Fan, "Perhaps I have a chance to attain Sainthood without your help."
"Of course, if I fail, I'm afraid I will still have to ask for your assistance," He Gan Xian quickly added.
"It seems you've gained quite a lot this time. It will be my pleasure," Li Fan agreed readily.
"The Five Fellow Calamity Venerables seem to have been suppressed by the Saints. Why don't we take this opportunity to investigate what remains of the Life and Death Realm?" Li Fan proposed.
"It seems there's nothing left there, is there?"
"Even the residual power of the Saints is extremely valuable."
He Gan Xian thought Li Fan's words made sense, so he nodded in agreement.
The two traveled together, crossing the vast expanse.
By the time they reached the original location of the Life and Death Realm, five figures were already standing there.
They kept their distance from one another, silently observing the traces left behind.
They paid no mind to the newly arrived Li Fan and He Gan Xian.
"All transcendent experts."
"None that I recognize."
Li Fan observed them for a moment before noting to himself.
He sensed that more and more transcendent experts were arriving from all corners of the Mountain and Sea.
Li Fan hurried to examine the traces in the area.
Just then, He Gan Xian sent a silent message, pointing Li Fan in a certain direction.
"My other self... seems to have perished right here."
Li Fan's interest was piqued, and he focused more of his attention on the investigation.
The Saints' projections had not destroyed the Life and Death Realm.
Rather, as if moving house, they had relocated the entire possibility.
All the people, events, and objects within that possibility were gone.
All that remained was a blank space, a buffer against the Dao Annihilation.
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