Chapter 1679: Three Saints Ascend on the Same Day
"Defy the heavens, rewrite fate, and attain sainthood?"
Li Fan's audacious claim left the cultivator momentarily stunned.
A cold sneer followed.
"The Mountain Sea is teeming with heroes and prodigies, yet those who reach the realm of a Sage can be counted on one hand."
"Even a Sage wouldn't dare claim they could help another attain sainthood. And you?"
The cultivator's voice dripped with disbelief.
"I may not be a Sage," Li Fan declared, "but I can accomplish what even a Sage cannot."
He wasted no more words. He simply gestured towards the nearby Eternal Silent Void Realm.
This cultivator's sensitivity to the formless True Spirit was, in fact, even sharper than that of the Moral True Immortal.
Without needing any explanation from Li Fan, the cultivator's expression contorted in shock. He stared, transfixed, at the stagnant True Spirit cupped in Li Fan's hand.
"How is that possible!" he gasped, struck speechless with the same astonishment.
What followed was simple.
Using the [I Birth Infinite] technique, Li Fan infused the True Spirit directly into the cultivator's body.
Throughout the infusion, Li Fan came to understand the Dao this cultivator followed.
Calamity turns the wheel, from ashes I am reborn. As all things rise, I witness their return.
To be reborn from every annihilation, each time taking one step further.
This was the Dao of Jingui—the Ash Return.
Though his path allowed him to grow stronger through endless cycles of self-annihilation, the vast chasm between his current state and true sainthood was an abyss he could never cross, even if he sought death a thousand times over.
Thus, Li Fan's assistance was monumental for Jingui.
Feeling his own potential surge, as if he were utterly reborn, Jingui's gratitude overflowed.
"Friend, this act of remaking me... I truly don't know how I could ever repay such a kindness!"
"It's quite simple, actually. Just hold back your breakthrough. Wait for my signal before you take the final step. Rest assured, I won't keep you waiting long. Before you become a Sage, spending more time in contemplation before this Void Realm will build your foundation, which will be of immense benefit for your future journey."
Jingui now held an almost instinctual trust in Li Fan's words.
Li Fan's request was peculiar, but it was hardly an ordeal. Jingui agreed without hesitation.
After leaving a phantom imprint for communication, Li Fan departed as gracefully as he had arrived.
"His identity is a true mystery," Jingui mused.
"But it doesn't matter. As long as he can help me attain sainthood..."
"...I wouldn't care if his goal was to overturn the Other Shore itself."
Jingui took a deep breath. Gazing at the dark, silent, and frigid Void Realm ahead, he took a proud step forward.
The previous limit, a barrier he had reached only with his utmost effort, shattered with ease now that his True Spirit had been enhanced.
He even had strength to spare. Jingui strode forward seven more steps before finally coming to a halt.
He was now truly a single step away from entering the Eternal Silent Void Realm completely.
Jingui sat cross-legged, once more immersing himself in the terrifying aura of the Void Realm, while silently awaiting Li Fan's signal.
The desperate urge to attain sainthood burned within him like a furious, unquenchable flame.
It seared his very soul.
Yet Jingui savored the sensation, using the agonizing restraint to temper his will.
Jingui was no honorable man bound by his word, but he was a pragmatist who would seize any opportunity to cultivate and empower himself.
"Forcibly restraining the final step into sainthood..."
"What exquisite torment!"
Jingui recalled the enigmatic look on Li Fan's face before he departed. It suddenly occurred to him that perhaps the man had perceived his nature and, for that very reason, had so generously shared his secret art.
"Once I attain sainthood," he mused, "I should seek him out again."
A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, only to be swiftly extinguished.
He submerged himself once more in contemplation.
But Jingui could never have guessed that he was merely Li Fan's backup plan.
If Jingui honored their agreement and ascended at the appointed time, all the better.
If he broke his word and ascended prematurely...
...it would have no real impact on Li Fan's plans.
The Moral True Immortal was more than enough to set the stage.
And with the protection of [Truth], even if Jingui ascended first, Li Fan could simply hide within the Mountain Sea, unafraid of being found.
Encountering Jingui, this perfect pawn for his plans, had perhaps exhausted all the miraculous luck Li Fan had recently acquired.
In the time that followed, Li Fan found no other suitable candidates to assist.
Until, one day, he sensed that the conceptual body he had created for Moral True Immortal was trembling faintly, on the verge of complete dissolution.
He knew the day had come for the Moral True Immortal to attain sainthood.
Gazing into the distance, he prepared himself to receive the Xuanpin Dao.
The placid Mountain Sea suddenly began to tremble.
From within infinite possibilities, streams of black and white energy surged forth.
They swarmed toward a single point within the Mountain Sea, gradually coalescing into a magnificent taiji symbol.
It blotted out the sky, stretching over mountains and across the seas.
The moment it appeared, it captured the attention of countless powerful beings. Even the encroaching tide of the Dao Annihilation was momentarily repelled by its presence.
Within the symbol, a figure sat in meditation.
Or perhaps, there were two.
The mystical pattern swirled, black and white energies intermingling—each within the other, the other within each—seemingly expounding the ultimate principles of the universe.
"Such a tremor... it is the sign of ascension to sainthood!"
"Is the Mountain Sea truly about to give birth to another Sage? When was the last time anyone ascended!"
It was not just the cultivators who were left in awe.
Even from the Other Shore, the phantoms of the nine Sages turned their attention to the phenomenon.
"This alone won't be enough," Li Fan thought to himself.
As if in response to his thoughts, the scene shifted once more.
After spinning to its absolute limit, the taiji symbol slammed to a halt.
The black and white energies fused, becoming one.
And the two figures within it finally merged into a single being.
The Moral True Immortal sat at its center and abruptly opened his eyes.
"Radiant is Virtue, profound is the Dao.
Virtue defines humanity, the Dao pervades the cosmos."
"The Earth sustains all things, the Heavens display their signs.
The highest good is like water, ultimate virtue is like spring."
...
The voice of the Moral True Immortal, ethereal and distant, echoed throughout the Mountain Sea.
At this moment, every living being, whether sentient or not, could hear the sermon.
Though they could not see his form when they looked up, they instinctively listened, absorbing the profound truths.
A Sage preaching the Dao—it was an event unheard of since the dawn of time.
Though most of the Mountain Sea's inhabitants did not grasp the full significance of the title "Sage," it did not stop them from absorbing his words like a parched desert drinks the rain, engraving every syllable upon their souls.
The sacred cadence continued to resonate throughout the Mountain Sea. Every word was a pearl of wisdom, and even the other Sages on the Other Shore listened with rapt attention.
"As Heaven moves with vigor, the Earth offers its devotion.
Virtue aligns with the mean, the Dao follows nature."
...
"Within the spirit's tiny altar, the cosmos fits.
Sow wisdom in the void, a raft on calamity's sea."
...
The Mountain Sea fell silent. Only the voice of the Moral True Immortal echoed on.
"The time is right," Li Fan noted, and sent his signal to Jingui.
On the fringes of the Mountain Sea, just beyond the Void Realm, Jingui had witnessed the magnificent spectacle of the Moral True Immortal's ascension. He could no longer contain the fire in his heart.
"What a grand display! Am I to be outdone?"
Perhaps it was to honor his pact with Li Fan. Or perhaps it was born from a simple desire to compete.
With a booming laugh, Jingui's form shattered, dissolving inch by inch.
And then...
...from every corner of the Mountain Sea, a sky full of ash inexplicably began to swirl.
It fell like a great snow, blanketing the sky of every possibility, faintly muffling even the sound of the Moral True Immortal's sermon.
Yet as the ash gathered, it brought not a sense of despair and annihilation, but the promise of a nascent, restorative power.
"This is..."
"Another Sage is being born?"
"What day is this? Am I dreaming?"
"Two Sages in one day! The Mountain Sea... it may yet be saved!"
Once they understood what was truly happening, the transcendent masters were all struck dumb.
Amid their profound shock, they were momentarily lost, torn between listening to the Moral True Immortal's sermon and observing the ash from which life was being restored.
Though Jingui did not preach directly like his counterpart, he displayed the full depth of his Dao in that ceaseless fall of ash-snow.
The twin Sages shone in unison, casting all other phenomena across the Mountain Sea into shadow.
The attention of every living being was fixed upon the Moral True Immortal and Jingui.
Just as the two Sages were about to be fully realized, Li Fan emerged with a faint smile.
"And now, it is my turn."
Compared to the world-shaking ascensions of the other two, Li Fan's actions were remarkably understated.
Using the art of conceptual construction, he swiftly simulated the Xuanpin Dao.
He was already intimately familiar with it, and through the inheritance option of [Truth], the Xuanpin Dao had been imbued with his own essence.
His conceptual simulation was unnaturally smooth.
It was as if he had always been the Xuanpin Sage. The Great Dao of the Mountain Sea descended upon him in a matter of breaths.
The birth of the Xuanpin Dao was like a gentle spring rain, nourishing the world without a sound.
The beings who were immersed in the spectacle of two Sages ascending at once had grown somewhat weary from their efforts to comprehend the Dao.
But a gushing vitality bloomed, silently replenishing all that they had lost.
It did not stop there.
This segment of the Mountain Sea had been swallowed by the Dao Annihilation, its infinite possibilities erased. But with the descent of the Xuanpin Dao, new possibilities began to gestate from within the Mountain Sea itself.
Slicing through the Dao Annihilation to reappear in the world!
It was like an ancient tree sprouting new shoots, like deadwood blooming in the spring!
"The Xuanpin Dao, after this double superposition..."
"...is truly extraordinary. It can turn the tide of the conflict between the Mountain Sea and the Dao Annihilation in an instant."
Li Fan stared at the [Truth] panel, where the four words—The First Xuanpin—now shimmered with an even more brilliant luster. He was astounded.
Even as the architect of this event, he had not anticipated such a change in the Xuanpin Dao.
"With the end of the last life, the Mountain Sea and the Void Realm all returned to the Star. All Great Daos ceased to exist," he mused. "My inheritance of the Xuanpin Dao was merely a creation of [Truth] through its power of True False Transformation."
"In that case, my actions have, in fact, used [Truth] to strengthen the Xuanpin Dao, helping it... perhaps even to surpass its own limits..."
A flood of new insights washed over him.
With practiced ease, Li Fan donned the mantle of the Xuanpin Dao.
Unlike the previous life, this new Xuanpin garment felt as if it had been tailor-made for him.
It was a perfect fit. Gone was the feeling of forcing it on, the constant worry that an external force could rip it away at any moment.
"Even if all the Sages were to gaze upon me, they could not easily discern my true nature."
The certain death he once faced in their presence was a danger no more.
Li Fan could finally face the Sages of the Mountain Sea without fear.
His spirits soared.
He casually sent another wave of Xuanpin vitality into the Mountain Sea.
The rain of life force grew heavier.
And it finally drew the attention of others.
"This is..."
"A third Sage?"
Within the halo of the Other Shore, the phantoms of the nine Sages became clearer than ever before.
And the Tai Wei Saint Emperor finally revealed his form.
Beneath his crown, a look of utter astonishment could be faintly seen.
Gradually, the other beings in the Mountain Sea also realized what was happening.
For a moment, they were paralyzed by sheer disbelief.
The birth of one Sage could be the culmination of a long accumulation.
The simultaneous arrival of two Sages could be a blessing for the Mountain Sea.
But what did it mean for three Sages to appear at the same time?
Overwhelmed by a phenomenon they could not comprehend, a sudden, inexplicable fear gripped the hearts of all living things.
"He made such a grand spectacle just to ascend alongside us?" Both Jingui and the Moral True Immortal turned their gaze to Li Fan's location, a flicker of confusion in their minds.
They thought this new Xuanpin Sage would make another move.
But it was like a thunderclap that ended in a gentle rain.
He simply fell silent.
The three new Sages glanced at one another, a silent, mutual understanding passing between them. Wordlessly, they converged.
And from the dazzling halo of the Other Shore, one of the Sages stepped forth.
The Tai Wei Saint Emperor, for his part, casually sent out three Great Luck Saint Medicines.
Though not the highest grade capable of creating a Sage, they were still incredibly valuable and could stabilize the realm of a newly ascended one.
As the Sages gathered, the strange phenomena across the Mountain Sea vanished, hidden from the eyes of mortals.
"Congratulations, friends. To gain three Sages in a single day is truly a blessing for us all."
The phantom representing the Other Shore was none other than the Sage, Karma Judge!
But it was merely a phantom left behind by the Sages, not their true selves. Karma Judge recited the words mechanically while carefully studying the three new Sages of the Mountain Sea.
Aside from Li Fan, the origins of both the Moral True Immortal and Jingui could be traced back to this segment of the Mountain Sea.
As for Li Fan, he was not only cloaked in the Xuanpin Dao but also shielded by [Truth].
Karma Judge naturally could not detect anything amiss.
Normally, if a new Sage was born in the Mountain Sea, the Other Shore would spare no effort to win them over.
But for three to appear at once... it was strange, no matter how one looked at it.
For a moment, the phantom of Karma Judge seemed to be at a loss.
The fact that the Tai Wei Saint Emperor had immediately offered three Great Luck Saint Medicines made him even more hesitant.
It was Li Fan who broke the tension, his words stunning the assembled Sages. "I know you all have your doubts. In truth, the ascensions of both the Moral Sage and the Jingui Sage were brought about by me."
At his words, both Karma Judge and the Tai Wei Saint Emperor froze.
Seeing that the two new Sages did not deny it, merely showing a trace of surprise, their expressions became utterly serious.
"We implore you, friend, to enlighten us!"
This matter was of grave importance. The phantom of Shou Qiu also flew out from the halo of the Other Shore, appearing before the Sages.
Li Fan gave a slight nod of acknowledgment to Shou Qiu.
Then, he began to explain. "You are all Sages. You must know that within the Eternal Silent Void Realm, there exists an endless, stagnant pool of True Spirit from the wreckage of the Mountain Sea."
"We can only gather a sliver of it for our own use when we make the crossing. However..."
"That boundless True Spirit... I can summon and dismiss it at will!"
Li Fan's voice was resolute.
As proof, he waved a hand toward the void beyond the Mountain Sea.
Just as he said, under the watchful eyes of the Sages, a mass of stagnant True Spirit was summoned into his palm.
Karma Judge, Shou Qiu, and the Tai Wei Saint Emperor witnessed this impossible phenomenon, their expressions growing heavier as they pondered Li Fan's origins.
Li Fan continued, "The last Sage of the Mountain Sea also created the [I Birth Infinite] technique. When combined with my unique ability, it can be used to infuse True Spirit into living beings."
"It can create Sages!"
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