Chapter 1753: The Great Thief of the Mountain and Sea
The Dao Annihilation forces of the void realm prostrated themselves before Li Fan, yet their reverence was not for him, but for something else.
It was for the mantle of starlight he wore.
As an emissary of the "Star," he naturally possessed the authority to command the Dao Annihilation army. However, should the true master of the void realm reveal itself, his control over them would shatter in an instant.
But what Li Fan sought in this life was to become the one true [Master of the Void Realm].
"It is time for the Dao Annihilation forces to swear fealty to a new master!"
Li Fan unleashed the starlight, seizing firm control over the thousands of Dao Annihilation entities swirling around him.
He then manipulated the Mountain Sea Map, beginning to reshape them in batches.
The ink-black mountains and seas of the map pulsed, breathing in and out. Amidst the swirling chaos, the formless Dao Annihilation forces were gradually imbued with the aura of "Dao One."
Before entering the map, they were pure Dao Annihilation. But after passing through its depths, they emerged branded as soldiers of Li Fan's army.
...but Li Fan was confident that with the seeds of change sown, it was only a matter of time before the entire landscape shifted in his favor!
The Dao One Mountain Sea Map acted like a vortex, slowly eroding the original Dao Annihilation forces.
Still, Li Fan found it insufficient. "The conversion rate is still too slow..."
His gaze sharpened as he looked toward the nearby Mountain and Sea.
With a mere thought, he commanded his forces to act as a great spear, plunging straight into the heart of the Mountain and Sea!
The Saints of the Other Shore were certainly no strangers to Dao Annihilation.
In the past, even when facing a monstrous tide of Dao Annihilation, the white light of the Armillary Ring, empowered by the Saints, could always hold it at bay, at least for a time.
But this time...
The white light held for only a fleeting moment before shattering violently upon impact!
Li Fan's elite Dao Annihilation forces drove onward unimpeded, descending upon the Mountain and Sea.
They became a world-ending deluge, reducing countless possibilities to dust in an instant.
The Saints of the Other Shore were stunned by this sudden turn of events. That the Dao Annihilation forces could treat the Armillary Ring's defenses as nothing was utterly unprecedented!
The eyes of all the Saints turned instinctively to the Three Saints.
Before the Returning to Sea Saint, countless visions flickered into existence, only to dissolve into chaos. He could not divine the cause of this anomaly.
The Connecting Mountains Saint, however, had already recalled his true body from the void realm. With a thrust of his Connecting Mountains Staff, he intercepted the sword-like Dao Annihilation forces that were wreaking havoc.
"Withdraw!"
Among all the Saints on the Other Shore, only the Three Saints gave Li Fan pause. With the Connecting Mountains Saint's true form present, Li Fan, who knew his power, had no intention of a direct confrontation.
A third of his elites stayed behind to cover the retreat while the main force withdrew with haste.
Their arrival had been swift, their retreat, even more decisive.
In a matter of moments, what had seemed a world-ending catastrophe vanished without a trace.
"The Connecting Mountains Saint's power is truly profound. He dispelled the Dao Annihilation calamity with such ease," the other Saints praised.
Yet, the Connecting Mountains Saint had a nagging feeling that something was amiss.
"This wave of Dao Annihilation... its arrival was peculiar."
"Indeed. They may return with a vengeance. We must be vigilant."
...
Back in the void realm, Li Fan had lost some of his elite forces due to the Connecting Mountains Saint's intervention, but the price had been well worth it.
"When Dao Annihilation devours the Mountain and Sea, the essence of the god returns to the void, and from there, to the Lone Star."
"That is how it should be. But..."
Li Fan stared intently at his Mountain Sea Map, where pinpricks of light were slowly beginning to rise.
The destination of these motes of light seemed preordained.
Even though it was Li Fan's own forces that had completed the purge, they could not retain even a fraction of the spoils. The light drifted out of the Mountain Sea Map, ascending toward the unknowable Lone Star far above the void.
No force could hold it back.
"This is why the master of the void realm is destined to be nothing more than a pitiful laborer."
"It expends immense energy to destroy the Mountain and Sea, only to reap none of the rewards. All of it goes to the Lone Star..."
The image of the Lone Star devouring everything flashed through Li Fan's mind again, and a sudden thought struck him.
"Perhaps it is not a matter of will, but of ability."
"The god's spirit divides to create the Mountain and Sea. When the Mountain and Sea is destroyed, all returns to the god."
"Even if the master of the void realm covets that essence, it is likely powerless to take it."
"But..."
Within the Dao One Mountain Sea Map, as Li Fan's will flowed through it, the Mountain Sea No-Boundary Stele began to pulse with a faint, mystical light.
Even though it was not the true stele, merely a faint phantom...
...the moment its light appeared, the ascending starlight seemed to lose its way.
It hesitated, its path now uncertain.
"Just as I thought..." A flicker of delight crossed Li Fan's face.
But his delight was short-lived. The phantom stele, after all, could not truly contend with the influence of the Lone Star.
Ultimately, the vast majority of the essence harvested from the Mountain and Sea continued on its path toward the Lone Star, vanishing from sight.
Only a minuscule fraction, perhaps one-millionth of the total, was lured away by Li Fan to remain within his Dao One Mountain Sea Map.
This starlight descended and clung to the No-Boundary Stele.
The phantom stele instantly grew a fraction more distinct.
The light seemed to carry the weight of the Mountain and Sea itself. Though there were only a few wisps, Li Fan could feel the [Dao One Mountain Sea Map] become tangibly more substantial.
And the surprises didn't end there.
Siphoning off the starlight was one reward, owed entirely to Li Fan's own ingenuity.
But for having his forces devour a part of the Mountain and Sea, the master of the void realm offered a "reward" of its own.
A consciousness descended upon him, then receded just as abruptly.
The arrival was sudden, but thanks to the dual protection of his Fantasy Becomes Truth ability and the Mountain Sea Map, Li Fan's true nature remained hidden.
Inspecting the changes, Li Fan discovered that his contingent of Dao Annihilation forces, having received the approval of the void's master, had been promoted. They were now "leaders" among the thousands of other entities in the vicinity.
"I can now mobilize even more of the surrounding Dao Annihilation forces... and even use the [Void Realm's Memory] to shape a Mountain and Sea Saint! For now, the number is limited to one, but the potential is immense!"
From this development, Li Fan began to grasp the operational model of the void realm's Dao Annihilation.
The will behind the void realm oversaw the grand strategy.
Individual Dao Annihilation forces fought their own battles, carving off and consuming pieces of the Mountain and Sea.
Those that succeeded were promoted, their effective methods of attack then used to influence and reshape the surrounding forces.
"As for the Void Realm's Memory..."
"It originates from that mysterious will behind the void realm."
"Though the Dao Annihilation forces cannot keep what they consume, in the process of erosion they observe everything with absolute clarity—from the Mountain and Sea itself down to the Saints and every living creature. With sufficient power, recreating them would be a simple matter."
Within his own contingent, Li Fan could sense the faint impressions of many fleeting figures.
They were, unmistakably, the Saints he knew.
"The forces I currently command are insufficient to recreate the Three Saints. However..."
A thought flickered. The Dao Annihilation forces roiled, and shadows converged.
Before long, an ink-black replica of Shou Qiu stood before him.
Upon its manifestation, it seemed briefly disoriented.
But it quickly grasped its situation and offered a respectful salute to Li Fan.
Forged from Li Fan's own forces, it was naturally bound to his commands.
"It's more than an empty shell. It still possesses a sliver of its former will and consciousness."
"But it is not the real Shou Qiu, of course."
"However..."
Li Fan had shared a unified mind with Shou Qiu several times and had repeatedly chosen to inherit his memories.
He gathered everything he knew of the man—every detail, every nuance.
A point of light materialized on his fingertip, and Li Fan pressed it into the brow of the ink-black Shou Qiu.
Comments