"So this is the Immortal Cultivation World…"
The Tai Yan Boat broke through the Immortal Forbiddance Formation, appearing in the midst of a continuous mountain range.
Below was a bottomless pit, and the aura that emanated from within was subtly similar to that of the void abyss.
The mountains rose and fell, shrouded in cloud and mist, presenting a majestic spectacle.
Atop the tallest mountain, a city of unparalleled magnitude floated in mid-air.
Li Fan wanted to laugh heartily, but he could only cough uncontrollably, continuously spitting out fresh blood.
He had grown too old.
Already on the brink of life and death, the pressure wrought from passing through the Immortal Forbiddance Formation had completely destroyed his vitality.
However, being able to take one last glimpse at the Immortal Cultivation World before dying made his life worth living!
"[Real]!"
...
[Simulation ends]
After the darkness, Li Fan's consciousness gradually recovered.
Reflecting on his last life, despite his efforts and attempts at various methods, he failed to break through Immortal Forbiddance Formation. It was not until the end that he stumbled upon the solution unintentionally.
Li Fan couldn't help but sigh at life's unpredictability.
What was even more unforgettable was the scene of him looking back at the Rift Realm Whale Swarm in the end.
"Just how much did the ancient cultivators detest mortals? Not only were they all expelled and sealed off by the Immortal Forbiddance Formation, they even laid out so many Rift Realm Whales…"
"No wonder the dark layer was so vast, larger than the earlier layers combined. It seems these thousands of years have allowed the Rift Realm Whales to create it out of nothing."
"Distance has been growing, and years from now, the Immortal Realm may truly separate from the Immortal Cultivation World…"
Thoughts surged in Li Fan's mind, but he suppressed them one by one.
In their place was a joy he could not hold back.
Nine reincarnations, nearly five hundred years of endless time, he had finally found the doorway to cultivation.
It could be foreseen that the journey ahead would surely be even more difficult.
But Li Fan's pursuit of longevity remained unshaken after a hundred lives, without the slightest regret!
...
Coming back to the present, facing the choice after the simulation's end, Li Fan did face a rare dilemma.
According to his prior plan, Li Fan intended to speed up the recharging progress. The sooner he fully charged "[Real]", the sooner he could go to the Immortal Cultivation World.
Yes, even though the way to the Immortal Cultivation World was now smooth, devoid of danger, Li Fan still decided to wait until he had a chance to restart before setting off.
After all...
The Immortal Way is harsh! The Immortal Cultivation World seemed not too friendly towards mortals.
Being prudent comes first, can't go wrong with that!
However, upon seeing the available items list after the simulation ended, Li Fan hesitated.
Because he spotted the Halting Stele among them.
After pondering, Li Fan decided to keep the broken stele.
He just happened to use it to verify a certain suspicion in his heart.
Name: Li Fan
Stage: Mortal
Physical Age: 20/86
Mental Age: 483/1116
Void Transformation Energy Progress: 0%
Anchor Charging Progress: 51%
Current Anchor Quantity: 1
Bound Items: "The Golden Seal of the Jade Realm of a Thousand Mechanisms," Tai Yan Boat, Halting Stele (Damaged)
...
And thus, Li Fan's tenth life began.
During the first twenty years of waiting for the charging to be completed, Li Fan inclined to follow the established historical trajectory.
In this period, he only accomplished a few things that wouldn't impact the flow of history, in preparation for his journey to the Immortal Cultivation World later on.
After three years of anchor time, Li Fan arrived at Qian Hong's grave.
He fell into silent contemplation for a moment, he didn't choose to use the Immortal-Ordinary Miasma to break the tomb, instead, he directly took out the Stepping Remnant Stele from [Real].
Somewhere amidst the heaven and earth, the Remnant Monument that Li Fan had brought from his previous life underwent some inexplicable change.
The Remnant Monument was enveloped in a layer of gentle white light, making it appear somewhat illusory.
Sometime later, it astonishingly disintegrated slowly, like a block of ice under the scorching sun.
Immediately afterwards, Li Fan ordered people to intensively attack Qian Hong's tomb.
As Li Fan expected, the potential of the Remnant Stele within Qian Hong's tomb had unexpectedly increased substantially!
"Just as I thought! You can't study Immortal Law and siphon it off simultaneously, the situation is the same for this Natural Treasure."
"There won't be two identical treasures in this world, but I utilized the ability of [Real] to artificially create one which is precisely the same. The consequence of this action is that they spontaneously merged, turning into one."
"As for which disappeared and which remained..."
"Of course, the strong survive, the weak perish!"
Li Fan narrowed his eyes and ordered his subordinates to begin the tomb destruction with Immortal-Ordinary Miasma.
The enhanced Remnant Monument was quite extraordinary. Even after using the Immortal-Ordinary Miasma, he had exerted immense effort and spent much time to gradually reduce its power.
Wearing armor, Li Fan entered into Qian Hong's tomb and set his sights on the Stepping Remnant Stele.
There weren't many alterations to its exterior, only that it appeared to be slightly less damaged.
"[Real] still can't absorb it, it seems just a change in quantity hasn't achieved a shift in nature," Li Fan said regretfully to himself.
After his subordinates moved the Remnant Stele out of the tomb, the destructive force lingering around it abruptly disappeared.
This was perfectly convenient for Li Fan.
He took this upgraded Stepping Remnant Stele and placed it into the Tai Yan Boat, to prepare for his journey to the Immortal Cultivation World.
After twenty years of anchoring, [Real] is about to finish charging.
Li Fan ruthlessly hunted down a group of corrupt officials and landlords, and gathered all the gold and silver treasures they and their ancestors had accumulated over generations.
Doing so because he would still have to deal with mortals after he reached the Immortal Cultivation World; therefore, he needed to prepare the gold and silver beforehand.
Additionally, when refining tools, cultivators occasionally mixed in gold and silver. So, he didn't need to worry that the gold and silver would become useless in the Immortal world.
Other than wealth, food was also indispensable.
However, buying bulk grains directly would shake the country's base, moreover, Li Fan needed too much all at once.
Many officials submitted memorandums to oppose him, even the merchants in the Capital City seized the chance to inflate the price of grain, aiming at making a huge profit.
But Li Fan didn't bother arguing, instead, in an early morning court meeting, he amplified the size of the Tai Yan Boat in front of all the civil and military officials, hanging it over the Royal Palace.
The massive Tai Yan Boat floated over Xuanjing City like a dark cloud.
Countless citizens who saw this scene prostrated themselves in worship, and all the civil and military officials in the court reverted their previous attitude after witnessing Li Fan's Immortal-like skills.
The various complaints originally brought about by Li Fan's killing and accumulation of wealth disappeared in an instant, and the people even took the initiative to assist Li Fan in preparing the food.
With the active assistance of the officials, adding to the killing of some unscrupulous merchants, the Tai Yan Boat was finally filled to the brim.
With everything ready, Li Fan had no concerns left in the mortal world.
He manned the Tai Yan Boat and arrived again over the Ruinous Abyss.
He released his divine consciousness, allowing the Tai Yan Boat to autopilot at a constant speed.
It only took a few hours, but in Li Fan's eyes, it seemed far more drawn-out than the hundreds of years he had experienced previously.
After the long wait, Li Fan finally passed through the Immortal Forbiddance Formation and arrived at the Immortal Cultivation World!
After adapting to the feeling of being torn apart from crossing between two realms, Li Fan looked excitedly out of the Tai Yan Boat.
However, after seeing the scenery around him, he was a bit dumbfounded.