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Chapter 1697: The Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele

It seemed that after the true forms of the Three Saints—Lian Shan, Gui Hai, and Tai Yi—departed for the void, Truth had indeed lowered its guard considerably.

Li Fan could distinctly perceive the fluctuations from Truth within him spreading out, enveloping the many ancient markings on the stone stele before him.

It was as if faint shadows were being imprinted from the stele's surface.

Correspondingly, a change occurred in the Dao Return Hall section of the Truth panel.

Black lines materialized out of thin air. They did not display the names of their respective Daos but simply arranged themselves in sequence, each occupying its own position.

The once sparse Dao Return Hall, which had previously held only two entries, suddenly felt spacious and even substantial.

The myriad Daos were solemnly arrayed. Though they had not yet taken their final places, their ultimate fate was already sealed.

The scene reminded Li Fan of the great hall of Daos that Saint Tai Yi had once encountered. Although this Dao Return Hall still lacked its grandeur and scale, it already possessed a hint of that profound and wondrous atmosphere.

"Ten thousand Daos in order, all contained within. Spread like a star-studded sky, reflecting the primordial divinity..."

Even though the space was still mostly empty, with only two great Daos and a number of unformed lines, he felt as if he were home, reluctant to leave.

It wasn't until Truth forcibly expelled him that he jolted back to his senses.

In the Dao Return Hall section, the newly absorbed lines vanished in an instant. It seemed Truth had deliberately hidden them, leaving only the First, Xuanpin Dao, and the Second, Zhouhui Dao, to prevent Li Fan from getting lost in his contemplation again.

"Though it had no active intent to charm, it surpassed all temptations in the world," Li Fan mused, his heart still racing.

"It felt like the homeland of all beings."

As his mind cleared, he wistfully recalled the scene he had just witnessed in the Dao Return Hall.

"I didn't see any traces representing the Three Saints, though. It seems Truth is still somewhat wary of them."

"Or perhaps, everything Truth absorbed were ownerless Daos of the Mountain Sea—a future hunting list."

Li Fan focused his attention once more on the Dao Return Hall.

He discovered that although Truth had hidden the traces of the Daos, he could still faintly perceive their existence if he concentrated hard enough.

However, that feeling of a grand, orderly array—that sense of home—was gone, ensuring he would not lose himself within it again.

"When my mind locks onto one of these lines, it's just like viewing it on the stele itself."

"And what's more..."

Li Fan had a premonition that he could follow some unseen guidance to find each of the Mountain Sea Daos represented by these lines!

Of course, that was assuming these Daos still existed in the current segment of the Mountain Sea.

A thrill shot through Li Fan as he scanned over all the targets. Unfortunately, the Dao traces recorded on the stele were far too ancient. Not a single one had any corresponding mark in the present-day Mountain Sea.

"However, since Truth has recorded them, it must believe that I will encounter and devour them sooner or later. They haven't truly disappeared; they still exist somewhere in the Mountain Sea."

Li Fan lifted his gaze slightly, as if peering through the endless void, all the way back to the beginning of the Mountain and Sea.

"But what did the Three Saints mean by specifically pointing out this stele to me?"

Although the stele seemed to have no further use, Li Fan did not leave immediately.

"It's either a test, or this stele offers some immense benefit to the newly ascended Zhouhui Dao..."

The first boon had been for Truth.

Now, Li Fan had to find something that would benefit him as a Saint of the Zhouhui Dao.

After a long period of contemplation, an idea suddenly struck him.

He attempted to emulate the Three Saints and leave his own mark on the stele before him.

The power of time and cycles swirled around Li Fan. He stood motionless before the stele, like a statue, trying to engrave the power of the Zhouhui Dao upon its surface.

But the stele seemed completely uninterested in the power Li Fan displayed.

It remained utterly unresponsive, no matter what he tried.

"Is my current strength still too low?"

"No, that can't be it. Even if I haven't reached the level of the Three Saints, I'm definitely no weaker than some of the Daos represented by the lines on the stele."

"..."

After observing it for a while longer, Li Fan had a flicker of understanding.

"Ultimately, I am merely wearing the cloak of the Zhouhui Dao; I am not a true Saint of Zhouhui."

"If this were a blank sheet of paper, I might be able to leave a trace with my current understanding of this Dao. But on an ancient stele like this..."

"Forget carving three inches deep; I can't even manage to scratch the surface."

"Simply put, my skill isn't profound enough."

"An expert like one of the Three Saints need only stand before this stele, without making a single move, and their image would be left behind."

Understanding this, he felt no discouragement.

Now that the Zhouhui Dao was part of the Dao Return Hall, comprehending it would be more than twice as effective!

As the thought crossed Li Fan's mind, the words "Second, Zhouhui Dao" on the Truth panel began to glow with a brilliant, iridescent light.

Under the enhancement of Truth's power, the Zhouhui Dao shed its outer layers, revealing all its secrets to Li Fan without reservation.

Others had to seek enlightenment from the Dao. For him, the Dao was actively throwing itself at him.

Everything was laid bare for him to see.

With every passing moment, Li Fan's comprehension of the Zhouhui Dao increased at a frantic pace.

Theoretically, Truth's control meant Li Fan's control.

He could have used Truth's absolute power to leave a mark on the stele.

But for some reason, Li Fan wanted to try to comprehend the Zhouhui Dao on his own.

On the empty, desolate plain, a wind seemed to rise.

The aura of the Mountain Sea Dao emanating from Li Fan grew increasingly potent.

Like gusts of mountain wind, like crashing ocean waves.

It continuously blew against and battered the ancient stele before him.

Slowly, as time passed, a trace truly began to manifest!

The stele was like a mirror, engraving and recording everything around it.

And those who could enter the mirror...

Boom!

In that instant, Li Fan felt as if he had plunged into the stele itself.

He was transported back to the dawn of time, surrounded by towering figures—peerless experts who could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Mountain and Sea.

In that era, mountains encircled the sea, not yet distinct entities.

The sea was just sea, and the mountains were just mountains.

Beyond the Mountain and Sea lay a misty, unknown realm, a place where creation had yet to unfold.

Suddenly, a stone stele appeared, as if springing forth from within the Mountain and Sea itself. Or perhaps it came from beyond.

It fell into the midst of the Mountain and Sea.

The mountains trembled, and great waves surged.

The Mountain and Sea merged, and because of it, they became boundless!

...

Li Fan abruptly withdrew from the endless vision.

He was still standing before the stele. What he had just seen felt like a fleeting illusion.

But the primordial imagery and aura from a time before the Mountain and Sea were divided...

They were undeniably real!

"What is the origin of this stone?"

Li Fan tried to re-enter the stele to witness that scene again, but he could no longer succeed, no matter how hard he tried.

He stood in silence for a long time, replaying what he had seen in his mind.

"This stele... is the Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele."

"Because of this stele's existence, the Mountain and Sea are without boundaries."

Li Fan couldn't help but recall the prophecy left by Sun Piao Miao.

"From that description, it seems that when the Mountain and Sea were first born, they were indeed more 'independent' than they are now."

"There was once a record of a creature born in the sea that wished to reach the mountains. After immense hardship, it finally succeeded, but it died upon arrival."

"It's nothing like now, where immortals and Saints stand tall in the Mountain and Sea as if it were their own backyard. Although the contributions of Saints Lian Shan and Gui Hai are significant, it now seems..."

"That this Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele played an indispensable role."

"Or rather, an even more crucial one."

"Without this stele making the Mountain and Sea boundless, even the birth of life within them would have been an exceedingly difficult affair."

Li Fan reached out, attempting to touch this ancient artifact and investigate its source.

But it was just as before; his hand passed through it like a shadow, unable to make contact.

"When my Dao entered the stele, besides the vision of the stele defining the Mountain and Sea, there was another benefit."

After examining himself, Li Fan made another discovery.

The cloak of the Zhouhui Dao now fit him more "snugly." It no longer felt like something he was wearing, but rather like his own skin. It was perfectly integrated, so much so that even the Three Saints would find it difficult to see through his disguise.

This change was partly due to his own enlightenment, but also thanks to the stele's assistance!

"Having my Dao carved into the stele feels like a form of acknowledgment."

"I am now truly a Saint worthy of the Zhouhui Dao."

"Although I was able to comprehend it so quickly entirely due to Truth's help, all roads lead to the same destination..."

"Even if I lost Truth right now and returned to being a mortal, I could, with my own abilities, step by step, reach the realm of a Saint!"

It was as if claps of thunder were continuously exploding in Li Fan's mind.

For the longest time, his greatest hidden fear—"What would I do if, one day, I lost Truth, or if Truth left me?"—was first exposed.

Then, it shattered like a bubble.

Li Fan's expression was dazed. He didn't feel the joy he had expected.

Instead, a sense of wistful loss arose within him.

It felt as though something had changed between him and Truth, yet at the same time, it felt like nothing had changed at all.

Even if he now had the aptitude to become a Saint, if he were to abandon Truth...

So what if he was a Saint?

At the end of the Mountain and Sea, at the edge of time, even with heaven-defying abilities, one could only watch helplessly as they were devoured by the Star.

Without Truth's help, it was ultimately a dead end.

And as for Truth abandoning him...

Across the entire Mountain and Sea, could it find another being who possessed an infinite true spirit?

Although he didn't know what Truth needed an infinite true spirit for, Li Fan was certain that he was equally irreplaceable to Truth!

"The path of an ordinary Saint is ultimately not for me."

"With Truth by my side, I am destined to possess so much more."

"However..."

"It's good to have a safety net."

Li Fan silently gazed at the faint mark he had left on the Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele, thinking to himself.

He had undergone such a dramatic transformation, yet Truth remained silent as ever.

Li Fan was already used to it and couldn't be bothered to dwell on it.

His consciousness returned to the Other Shore. His true form's eyes snapped open, and he gave a slight bow to the Three Saints.

"To be able to leave a mark so quickly..." the illusion of Saint Tai Yi said, somewhat surprised.

"I thought that after switching from the Xuanpin Dao, it would take you a much longer time to consolidate your new path."

"It is merely a bit of aptitude. The mark I left is faint and cannot compare to those of the Three Saints," Li Fan said, shaking his head.

Following their exchange, the other Saints finally noticed the stone stele hidden within the endless cycles.

"I thought our fellow Daoist of Zhouhui was still consuming the Great Luck Saint Medicine. I didn't expect him to have found another fortuitous encounter," the All Knowing Immortal remarked curiously. He was the first to approach the Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele.

However, after fumbling with it for a long time, he was completely unable to leave a trace of his own Dao.

Naturally, he was also unable to see the vision of the stele defining the Mountain and Sea.

The other Saints each tried their turn, but only Shou Qiu, Sundial Fate, Karma Judge, and the Saint of Xuanpin Dao succeeded.

And at the moment their Daos entered the stele, they all saw the same vast, primordial scene from before the Mountain and Sea were divided.

Returning to the Other Shore, the Three Saints began to explain to the others.

"The Zhouhui Dao was reluctant to leave precisely because of this stele's existence."

"It was hidden so deeply that even we nearly missed it."

"As a newly certified Saint, Zhouhui can leave his mark on the stele to fully consolidate his Dao. This will ensure his future is secure. Even if some mistake occurs during the True Spirit Infusion or the Mountain Sea Connect project, his foundation will not be affected. That is why we let him go first."

After the Returning to Sea Saint finished, the Tai Yi Saint added, "When this stele first appeared, even I had not yet been born. However, I have heard fragments of information about it from other, more ancient beings."

The All Knowing Immortal was dejected because he couldn't leave a mark on the stele. He couldn't help but ask, "What is the origin of this stele? How could it single-handedly establish the structure of the Mountain and Sea? If the Mountain and Sea came from the True God, then this stele must be..."

"Could it be one of the so-called Primordial Creations?"

"You could call it that," Saint Tai Yi nodded, then shook his head.

"Our guess is that the Primordial Creations are remnants of the True God's divided consciousness. Based on the various abilities this stele has displayed, it does indeed fit the criteria of something originating from the True God. However..."

"Who can truly know what happened in the primordial past? Perhaps there was another being on par with the True God," Saint Tai Yi said meaningfully.

Upon hearing this, the Saints all fell silent.

But Li Fan suddenly spoke up, "I see it differently. This stele... does not appear at the end of the Mountain and Sea, which means it cannot escape the corrosion of the Dao Annihilation."

"Rather than a creation of the True God, it seems more like a manifestation of the Mountain and Sea's own will."

A hush fell over the Saints.

The illusion of Lian Shan chuckled lightly. "On this point, fellow Daoist of Zhouhui, you are mistaken. This stele is different from all other things in the Mountain and Sea. It doesn't continue to exist within the Mountain and Sea as we do. It exists only in this single instant, this one moment."

"Before this, and after this, there is no other Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele on that plain."

Li Fan was momentarily stunned.

The other Saints hadn't noticed this either. Now, looking back at the existence of the Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele, they slowly began to see the truth of it.

"Indeed, it's as if it exists in its own time and space, independent of the Mountain and Sea."

"This must be why the previous Zhouhui Dao was able to hide it by creating so many cyclical possibilities. The center point of those cycles was the location of the No-Boundary Stele. So that's how it was..."

"In that case, this No-Boundary Stele must truly be an object of the True God. It's unique in the entire history of the Mountain and Sea, and we were fortunate enough to encounter it. What a tremendous stroke of luck!"

"We all have the Saint of Zhouhui to thank for this. If not for searching for an opportunity for him to re-certify his Dao, we might have missed this chance."

"But... besides leaving a Dao imprint, what other uses does this No-Boundary Stele have?"

...

Next, the Saints discussed the matter further.

However, regarding this ancient creation, they ultimately couldn't come to any conclusions.

Through this incident, Li Fan also realized that even the Three Saints were not omniscient.

They had simply lived longer and were stronger than ordinary Saints.

They, too, would encounter things that were beyond their cognition.