Li Fan lingered at the barrier's edge, still reeling from the sudden turn of events. The eighteen Star Spirits had abandoned the Profound Immortal Vessel at the crucial moment of its crossing. This was undoubtedly against their will. The vessel elders' devotion was unquestionable; they had willingly sacrificed their lives for its survival.
"The Star Sea consciousness must have sensed something at that instant." Li Fan narrowed his eyes, cautiously retreating.
"The Star Sea consciousness acts on instinct, without human-like bluffs. A terrifying presence must have appeared."
"But I, witnessing everything, remained completely unaware." This was what truly troubled him.
Li Fan recalled a scene from before his transmigration. He had been strolling along a boardwalk in a wetland park, observing the underwater world through a glass panel. Young fish, oblivious to the onlookers, continued playing. Larger, older fish, however, sensed the danger and quickly darted away.
This scene mirrored the recent events. The memory sent a chill down his spine.
"I'm still like a young fish, unable to perceive the danger."
"Only those at the level of the Star Sea, Supreme Beings at the Star Sea's limit, are like the adult fish."
"But compared to the unseen observer beyond the barrier…" Li Fan's face darkened. He grew even more wary of what lay beyond.
"Did the Profound Immortal Vessel make it through?"
Li Fan carefully recalled the sensation from the vessel as it vanished. After a long while, his expression shifted. To confirm his suspicions, he returned to the barrier, sending a sliver of his divine sense towards it.
The fragile sliver was instantly annihilated. Undeterred, Li Fan continued, sending more and more strands.
Finally, after thousands of attempts, he sensed a subtle difference.
"Its annihilation by the barrier felt different from the vessel's disappearance."
"I could faintly sense the process of destruction, however brief. But the vessel's disappearance felt like a departure, not an annihilation."
"The Profound Immortal Vessel succeeded! It broke through the barrier!"
Li Fan was deeply shaken.
"The combined power of eighteen Star Spirits, infinite Star Sea energy, and the explosive force of the True Immortal script was enough to achieve transcendence."
The vessel's success gave Li Fan hope. He could replicate this. Excitement surged within him, but quickly faded as he considered the vessel's fate.
"The moment it crossed, I lost all contact. Even success is meaningless if it's the same as failure."
"There are clearly dangers beyond the barrier, perhaps even entities hunting True Immortals. I can't blindly venture out there without knowing what awaits."
Prioritizing his safety was Li Fan's fundamental principle. He wouldn't break it for a small gain. Of course, unforeseen circumstances were a different matter.
"I need a way to maintain contact across the barrier."
"I might need to understand the barrier's true nature first."
Li Fan looked towards the only known weakness in the barrier. A thought struck him. He moved closer, carefully examining the direction the vessel had vanished. Threads of golden light, like liquid mercury, spread outwards – the technique he had learned from the Healer to probe the barrier.
He retracted the threads, his expression unreadable. "Even though the vessel broke through, I still can't detect any weakness in the barrier."
"Yet, a single thought transmission from the Profound Heaven King left a lasting mark?"
"Clearly, the barrier is weaker against non-physical forms. Perhaps that's the key to communication."
Li Fan's current strength relied mainly on the Interplay of Truth and Illusion and various Immortal Arrays. Mental and spiritual power weren't his forte.
"Blissful Ignorance… the Land of Dreams…" He thought of the Longevity Celestial Venerable in the Xuanhuang World.
"I wonder how far the Land of Dreams has spread within the Star Sea. Has it reached the barrier?"
The Medicine King Sect disciples and the beings from the various Small Worlds continued their exploration of dreams. But the Land of Dreams was vast, and newcomers could only progress slowly. Even the vanguard, Sun Erlang's trio, had only reached Dream Level 6. Unraveling the true secrets of dreams was still a distant goal.
However, Li Fan believed that even without significant breakthroughs in this lifetime, the accumulated experience and the endless stream of explorers would eventually uncover the truth.
"Ultimately, I'm still too weak. Otherwise, I wouldn't need to rely on Blissful Ignorance." Li Fan sighed inwardly.
"Perhaps integrating with the Xuanhuang Immortal Soul will improve the situation."
"However…" Li Fan looked towards the barrier. "The observer beyond might return when Xuanhuang ascends. I need to prepare, to buy myself time."
The incident where Mao Bao hunting Immortals caused the barrier to collapse provided valuable insight.
"This time, it's an entire world ascending. The repercussions might be even greater. To be safe, I must devour the Immortal Soul before half the time it took for the previous incident."
"Heavenly and Earthly Immortal Souls, despite the name change, are still born from the same principle, fulfilling their designated roles."
"For swift devouring, the Immortal Soul's birth must be rapid."
Li Fan, having cultivated the Xuanhuang World and possessing the ability to summon Heavenly Souls with Twisting the Threads of Heaven and Earth, was intimately familiar with them.
"The time it takes for a Heavenly Soul to manifest varies greatly. In all my cycles, the fastest manifestation I've witnessed…"
"Was Ink Slaying!" A glint flashed in Li Fan's eyes.
He remembered Zhang Haobo, who had become the youngest Dao Integration Immortal Venerable in Xuanhuang's history by slaying Chi Yan with the Twenty-Eight Swords of Congyun. He had then died instantly to Ink Slaying.
Ink Slaying had been activated the moment Chi Yan was slain.
"Unlike other Heavenly Souls, Ink Slaying, as part of the world's mechanisms, is likely always active, ready for instant deployment. This is probably a change brought about by the merging of external fragments with Xuanhuang." Li Fan quickly understood.
"Ink Slaying will likely ascend alongside Xuanhuang, transforming into a Heavenly Immortal Soul. Moreover, it's among the strongest of all Heavenly Souls."
"It's perfect." Li Fan nodded, locking onto his target.
"The vessel's matter is settled. It's time to return and prepare for Xuanhuang's ascension." Sensing the Star Spirit power he'd sealed within an array, his confidence grew.
As he prepared to leave, another anomaly occurred at the barrier's edge, not from the barrier itself, but from the entrance to the crevice.
A surge of life force erupted like a geyser, reaching towards the Star Sea. A figure, propelled by this force, emerged. It was the Ingenious Craftsman, Craftsman Qiao, who had been missing for so long!
He had been lost in the labyrinthine crevice after being caught in the Star Power storm. Li Fan had lost contact, sensing only a stable aura, indicating he wasn't in mortal danger. Now, he had finally escaped.
Craftsman Qiao seemed ecstatic, waving his arms and shouting.
Li Fan brought him over. The sudden change of scenery made Craftsman Qiao's face pale, thinking he'd escaped one danger only to fall into another. Recognizing Li Fan, he relaxed.
Clearing his throat, he bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Sacred Teacher."
"It's been a while," Li Fan said. "I searched for you, but the crevice network is too vast, spanning beneath the entire Star Sea. I eventually gave up."
"It seems you've benefited from this experience."
Craftsman Qiao's aura had clearly improved. He had encountered a fortuitous opportunity.
A smug expression appeared on Craftsman Qiao's face. "Your discerning eyes see all, Sacred Teacher. I did indeed gain something."
"At first, I panicked when I realized I was lost. But I soon discovered the crevice was teeming with life. Even if I were trapped forever, I wouldn't die. That eased my mind."
"You know me, Sacred Teacher. I'm used to staying in my laboratory, rarely venturing out. The crevice was simply a change of scenery. And I had Shangguan's puppet to… experiment on, so I wasn't bored…" Craftsman Qiao rambled.
"Get to the point," Li Fan interrupted.
Craftsman Qiao chuckled. "After settling in, I started studying the crevice out of curiosity."
"And I stumbled upon its secret!" His voice rose with excitement. "The underground river is incredibly complex. I tried to memorize its paths, but there were too many branches."
"I didn't give up. For a while, all I could think about was the river's shape."
"One day, after… damaging Shangguan, I was repairing him. On a whim, I incorporated the river's shape into his design! What happened next was unbelievable!" Craftsman Qiao licked his lips, a strange glint in his eyes.
Li Fan knew "Shangguan" was a puppet containing a backup of Shangguan Tuo's memories, the Ingenious Craftsman's master and an elder of the Heavenly Mechanism Realm. According to their rules, memory backups had no standing, obligated to obey the original's commands.
Li Fan had always known about Craftsman Qiao's peculiar… hobby. Since it was harmless, he hadn't interfered. But now, seeing Craftsman Qiao's expression, he was intrigued.
Craftsman Qiao seemed to savor the memory before continuing. "I never expected the repaired puppet to not only disobey my commands, but also hurl insults at me…"
"They were so vile, they brought back unpleasant memories. In a fit of anger, I… damaged him again."
"Much later, I realized something extraordinary had happened!"
"You mean the river's shape awakened Shangguan's self-awareness?" Li Fan mused.
Craftsman Qiao shook his head vehemently. "It was a complete consciousness backup, but bound by the Heavenly Mechanism Realm's restrictions. It had to obey me."
"But after inscribing those shapes, everything changed." He licked his lips again. "The new Shangguan wasn't a backup anymore. To the Heavenly Mechanism Realm's restrictions, he was Shangguan Tuo himself!"
"Shangguan Tuo has been dead for ages, so that's impossible."
"But because of those shapes, he was, in a sense, resurrected!"
"And I only used a tiny fraction of the river's shape. It's… it's…"
"Unimaginable!" Craftsman Qiao exclaimed.
Li Fan suddenly understood the purpose of the crevice network beneath the Dark Star Sea. It wasn't just a reservoir of vitality.
It was an incredibly powerful technique.
A technique that allowed the sealed Dark Star Sea to develop its own independent consciousness.
(End of chapter)