Chapter 1657: Truth Mends the Flaw
Beneath the Black Mountain and White Water, the Immeasurable Wall was lost in contemplation, long unaware of Bai Shuyue's transformation.
Bai Shuyue did not reveal her presence, observing it in silence.
With her current transcendent perspective, a closer look naturally revealed many things she could not see before.
"Cheng Dao was originally a spirit stone by the sea, enlightened by Shou Qiu, and transformed into a man. This Black Mountain and White Water is the culmination of his transformation and his comprehension of the Mountain and Sea Great Dao."
"His insights on transformation can indeed serve as a reference for the Immeasurable Wall. But his comprehension of the Mountain and Sea..."
Bai Shuyue gently shook her head.
After all, Cheng Dao had not yet truly transcended. The Black Mountain and White Water he left behind could hardly compare to the true Mountain and Sea Great Dao.
The Immeasurable Wall was already on a crooked path; contemplating the Dao on this foundation was like adding another twist to an already winding road.
Bai Shuyue used her hand as a brush, adding touches to the barren Black Mountain and White Water.
Infused with this vitality, the mountains and water appeared even more vast and magnificent.
The mountains grew taller, the waters deeper.
Just like the true Mountain and Sea!
Amidst such a world-shaking change, the Immeasurable Wall let out a strange, creaking cry and finally awoke.
"What's happening? What's happening?"
Alarmed and confused, the Immeasurable Wall looked around.
It immediately spotted the smiling figure of Bai Shuyue standing nearby.
Being so familiar with her, it didn't initially connect her to the cause of the transformation.
It just asked quietly, "Did Senior Cheng Dao just return?"
Bai Shuyue's smile froze on her face, and she let out a sigh.
She flicked her finger, tapping the Black Mountain and White Water below.
As if the Dao Annihilation had descended, the landscape began to tremble violently, looking as if it might disintegrate at any moment.
The Immeasurable Wall was terrified. It stared wide-eyed at Bai Shuyue.
For a long moment, it couldn't process what was happening. "No, you... you, you!"
It sputtered three "you"s, unable to form a complete sentence.
Only then did Bai Shuyue feel satisfied. She smiled and asked, "You once said that when your cultivation was accomplished, you would guide me. Is it time now?"
"I was just worrying about having no path to the Other Shore."
Hearing her words, the Immeasurable Wall was finally, utterly convinced: Bai Shuyue had transcended!
The Immeasurable Wall was stunned. It asked in a daze, "What year is it?"
Its first thought was that it must have slept for too long while contemplating the Dao, and that Bai Shuyue had finally achieved transcendence in that vast expanse of time!
"It seems you're still not fully awake."
Bai Shuyue continued to tap her finger. Amidst the earth-shattering tremors of the Black Mountain and White Water, the Immeasurable Wall finally calculated the correct time.
It was so shocked it ignored the danger of the landscape collapsing, screaming in utter disbelief, "How is that possible? It's only been so long, and you've transcended?"
"Have I gone mad, or am I still dreaming?"
Completely unable to accept this reality, the Immeasurable Wall was dumbfounded for a moment.
"Once the foundation is laid, so-called transcendence is but a single thought away. Don't make such a fuss," Bai Shuyue said with perfect composure.
But how could the Immeasurable Wall not make a fuss?
Having seen so much, it knew with perfect clarity how difficult transcendence was. In the Immortal World of old, among countless True Immortals, only a handful ever managed to transcend. And every single one had done so only after an unimaginable accumulation over vast eons.
How was it that for Bai Shuyue, transcendence had become as simple as eating and drinking?
Even with the truth right before its eyes, the Immeasurable Wall found it hard to accept.
"The Mountain and Sea has produced countless geniuses and extraordinary talents. My cultivation speed might be a bit fast, but compared to the Three Saints, it's nothing special. You once stood before a Sage Lord's gate, yet you're making such a big deal out of this," Bai Shuyue teased.
"I suppose... that makes sense." With this bit of reasoning, the Immeasurable Wall's shock slowly began to fade.
"Right, right! You may have transcended, but I stood at a Sage Lord's gate. You might be strong, but I'm not afraid of you!" the Immeasurable Wall declared, trying to sound tough.
Yet, knowing the terrifying power of a transcendent being, its tone lacked its usual arrogance. It was all bark and no bite.
Seeing this, Bai Shuyue's amusement waned.
She knew that a tragic, thick barrier now stood between her and the Immeasurable Wall.
"If Fan'er were still here, he certainly wouldn't be so afraid of me. No matter how strong I became, I would still be the same aunt he always knew."
No longer teasing the Immeasurable Wall, Bai Shuyue took the time to explain her insights on transcendence to it alone.
Like the immortals on the Dao Net, the Immeasurable Wall listened, utterly entranced. Afterward, it was moved to tears with gratitude for Bai Shuyue.
"I have reshaped the Black Mountain and White Water for you. If you observe it day and night, transformation and even transcendence will be within your reach."
After saying this, Bai Shuyue vanished.
Though the Immeasurable Wall felt a pang of loss, it quickly immersed itself once more in observation and comprehension.
To be personally instructed by a transcendent being was indeed a monumental stroke of fortune. The words "at a Sage Lord's gate" were true, but the Immeasurable Wall knew that the lofty Sage would never have deigned to guide it in such matters.
"Transcendence is within reach! It's within reach!" The Immeasurable Wall was overjoyed, its thoughts gradually sinking deeper into contemplation.
After fulfilling her promise to the Immeasurable Wall, Bai Shuyue stood amidst the starry sky and suddenly felt a sense of being out of place.
The possibility beneath her feet was simply too small, its entirety visible in a single glance.
Even a few casual movements on her part could overturn it completely.
"I finally understand why most who transcend eventually leave."
Bai Shuyue sighed deeply, her thoughts having quietly shifted.
Originally, she had no intention of traversing the Mountain and Sea to see the unknown lands in its depths.
But her experiences after transcending had, without her realizing, changed her mind.
Overcome with a sense of tedium, the idea of a long journey began to take root.
However, Bai Shuyue didn't leave right away.
Instead, she waited for another hundred years.
This time, she was waiting in the hope of seeing Cheng Dao again.
Yet, even though Bai Shuyue had spread the method of [Shadow Projection for Dao Bearing], he didn't seem particularly concerned and never returned to investigate.
"It seems Cheng Dao won't be coming back. I wonder where in the Mountain and Sea he is now."
With nothing left to hold her here, Bai Shuyue leaped into the void and drifted away.
Within her transcendent truth, which resembled a Xuanhuang home, Bai Shuyue sat quietly in her designated seat, facing a phantasmal image of Li Fan.
Outside, the Dao Annihilation raged on, but inside, it remained ever peaceful and serene.
The Xuanhuang Home, carrying Bai Shuyue, silently drifted into the depths of the Mountain and Sea.
And disappeared completely.
The Primal Possibility didn't stop its own turning just because someone had disappeared.
In fact, thanks to the boon of Bai Shuyue's transcendence, this possibility—once fragmented and devoured by the Dao Annihilation—began to show new signs of life bursting forth from the Guangwu and Shuo Xinghai.
After an unknown amount of time, a figure descended upon the Primal Possibility like a phantom.
He first scanned his surroundings, then stared in the direction where Bai Shuyue had vanished and chuckled enigmatically. "I never expected Aunt's condensed transcendent truth to be 'Home.' And there's even a seat for me."
"It's truly touching. Hehehe..."
Li Fan laughed in a low voice, but his expression showed not a hint of being moved.
"Finally, she's reached the step of transcendence."
"What comes next..."
"Is beyond my control."
Li Fan had no intention of following Bai Shuyue.
In fact, the moment he sensed she was about to achieve transcendence, he stopped observing her in secret. He deliberately distanced himself, only returning after she had left.
Although Bai Shuyue was still weaker than him after transcending, their realms were now in the same category.
If he were to forcibly track her, there was a risk of being discovered.
"Besides, as long as I choose to inherit Aunt's memories after using Truth, I'll know everything she experiences."
"The only downside is that I have to wait for her to perish before I can activate Truth. Otherwise, I'll definitely reveal my hand. A transcendent being's lifespan is nearly infinite. Under normal circumstances, she would only face mortal danger when this segment of the Mountain and Sea reaches its end. However..."
Li Fan smiled confidently. "In the current Mountain and Sea, 'that Li Fan' no longer exists. For the sake of her dear nephew, Aunt probably won't force herself to live that long. She might even choose to end her own life."
"And with the seat she left for me in her transcendent truth, I will sense it the moment she perishes."
"All I need to do is wait patiently," Li Fan said, full of confidence.
From the very beginning until now, Li Fan's Saint Creation Plan had been nothing short of perfect.
Even Bai Shuyue, having reached the same transcendent realm, hadn't noticed the slightest flaw.
But the step from transcendent to Saint was beyond Li Fan's control.
He could only hope that his aunt, who had reincarnated over thirty times, could truly bring him a surprise.
"Considering that Aunt might actually have a chance to enter the Other Shore next, I need to prepare for a rainy day."
"If I'm not mistaken, the moment she sees the phantoms of the Nine Saints, her reincarnation memories will be exposed, with nowhere to hide. The Nine Saints might connect it to Truth and then search the entire Mountain and Sea."
"I'd better hide myself well."
Li Fan narrowed his eyes, deducing the various things that would happen once Bai Shuyue entered the Other Shore.
His greatest trump card was that the choice of whether Bai Shuyue could inherit the memories of her past lives was solely in his hands.
If, after using Truth, he discovered that his secret of being the mastermind had been exposed in the Other Shore under the guidance of the Saintly phantoms...
...then he simply wouldn't let his aunt inherit her memories, letting her remain an ordinary farm woman.
He would then find another way to deal with the Saints.
At worst, it was just the waste of over thirty lifetimes of reincarnation.
For his infinite spirituality, the cost was negligible.
Looking back on the Saint Creation Plan, perhaps the only flaw was the image of Li Fan that should never have appeared on the [Solitary Sail]!
"My calculations are flawless. I had already severed my connection to the Solitary Sail's transcendent Dao. How could that little boat still reflect my image?"
Fortunately, the link between that figure and Li Fan wasn't particularly obvious. And even eroded by the Dao Annihilation, the Mountain and Sea still contained a near "infinite" number of possibilities. So, Bai Shuyue assumed it was just a "Li Fan" from another possibility and didn't investigate further, preventing the flaw from being exposed.
However, Li Fan, the architect of it all, would naturally not see it so simply.
A sharp glint flashed in Li Fan's eyes, and his figure vanished.
When he reappeared, he was already within the Immortal Dyke of the Guangwu Star Sea.
Now familiar with the [Shadow Projection for Dao Bearing] method, the Guangwu Immortal Dyke had nearly three hundred new, densely packed Heavenly Pillars compared to when Li Fan had last seen it.
All of them were forged with fished immortal treasures as their foundation, and the might of these new Heavenly Pillars surpassed that of the old ones.
With so much more support, the Guangwu Star Sea's ability to resist the Dao Annihilation had strengthened several times over. It even faintly showed the transcendent momentum Li Fan had once created with his "Xuanhuang Immortal Ark."
"Tsk, tsk, what a transformation."
"But in my experience, while it might last for a time, it can't endure for an eternity."
"After all, it's not true transcendence. No matter how high or sturdy it's built, this Immortal Dyke will ultimately be destroyed by the corrosion of the Dao Annihilation."
To avoid alerting Bai Shuyue in case she returned, Li Fan didn't disturb the immortals of Guangwu. He simply made his silent commentary and went to find his target.
Arriving inside the molt of the Solitary Sail, Li Fan stared at the figure at the front of the small boat with an inscrutable expression.
"Though it points to me, in reality..."
"It has nothing to do with me."
"I truly did sever my connection with the Solitary Sail's transcendent truth. The reason my image appeared here is because of..."
"Truth?!"
"What are you up to?"
A profound question arose in Li Fan's mind.
The truth of the Solitary Sail was like a clear mirror, reflecting the Mountain and Sea.
It projected and linked all beings who had comprehended the "Solitary Sail" path of transcendence.
Although Li Fan had long since severed his own connection to the Solitary Sail's truth, he never imagined that Truth would still maintain a faint, almost imperceptible link to it.
"With Truth's power, if it deliberately concealed itself, it would be impossible for a mere transcendent truth to detect it. Could it be that this figure appeared to remind me of something?"
As if to confirm this.
The moment this thought surfaced in Li Fan's mind, the image of "him" on the Solitary Sail actually gave him a slight nod.
Then, as if its mission was complete, its aura changed inexplicably.
It remained, still pointing to someone in the Mountain and Sea.
But it no longer had any connection to Li Fan or Truth.
"What... is this?"
Li Fan carefully examined the altered phantom and discovered that its reflection had truly become a "Li Fan" from a certain possibility!
Following the connection of the shared path within the Mountain and Sea, Li Fan tried to peer into this phantom's life.
"I'm certain that just a moment ago, he didn't exist."
"He came into being out of thin air after I realized Truth was giving me a hint."
"His life, his cultivation path, his various encounters, and even the possibility he exists in—all of it was created from nothing."
"If Aunt really were to investigate this later, she wouldn't find anything amiss. It would perfectly match her initial guess. She might even sigh with emotion, thinking how two people can be the same yet have such different fates."
Li Fan stared intently at this other, newborn "Li Fan."
"Creating something from nothing... that is indeed Truth's handiwork. It has perfectly patched the flaw I might have left behind."
"But the question is, why?"
Li Fan's brow furrowed deeply.
"And the fact that it could proactively fix this... does that mean Truth is not only slowly waking from its slumber, but is also recovering more of its power?"
Li Fan couldn't help but wonder.
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