While shocked by this unknown power, the Healer was also wary of the body's original owner.
Taking advantage of Xuanyuan Tuo's coma, he began subtly manipulating the body.
Aware of the protective power of the murmuring sound, he didn't employ conventional methods. Instead, using the link between their two souls, formed through the Heavenly Soul Transmigration, he slowly began to influence Xuanyuan Tuo, like a medicine gradually taking effect.
In a sense, he was Xuanyuan Tuo, and Xuanyuan Tuo was him. But the mystical power surrounding the Xuanyuan bloodline allowed Xuanyuan Tuo to retain control, despite the Healer's presence.
The stronger Xuanyuan Tuo became, the stronger the Healer became as well.
As his injuries healed, Xuanyuan Tuo awoke and escaped the Sea of Darkness.
The disappearance of six Longevity realm experts caused a great commotion.
But the ten sects, with their deep foundations, while shaken, weren't crippled by this loss.
Xuanyuan Tuo had a premonition that he would soon face their true counterattack.
But, for some reason, he seemed to have overestimated them. Until he reached the Longevity Celestial Venerable realm, the ten sects didn't launch a coordinated offensive. They consolidated their power, focusing on defending their territories.
They allowed the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance to chip away at their subordinate sects.
When Xuanyuan Tuo finally achieved Longevity, the laws of the Xuanhuang World changed forever.
The old methods became obsolete, replaced by his new method.
His dream was realized. Anyone who wished to cultivate could do so without limitations.
He foresaw that, with the increasing number of cultivators, resources would become a bottleneck.
But he had a plan.
Having absorbed the Golden Authority, he could manipulate the Xuanhuang World, generating treasures, Grotto-Heavens, and even Heavenly Souls.
Internally, the Xuanhuang World continued to evolve.
Externally, it absorbed the remaining cultivation worlds within the Star Sea, replenishing its resources.
As the number of new method cultivators grew, so too would his power.
Even with the path to the Immortal Realm severed, he could reach the pinnacle of the Star Sea. Then, he would repair the ancient formation left by the Profound Heaven Sect and lead the Xuanhuang World out of the Immortal Ruins' influence.
Once they reached a safe zone, he would use the power of a Longevity Celestial Venerable, defying the principles of heaven and earth, to further transform the Xuanhuang World.
According to his calculations, with the combined efforts of a few dozen Longevity Celestial Venerables, along with the ancient formation, they could breach the wall!
Xuanyuan Tuo, the Legacy Transmission Celestial Venerable, while accumulating power, was also secretly searching for worthy successors within the Xuanhuang World.
He didn't prioritize talent, but character and virtue.
Those who passed his tests would receive his guidance, attaining the Longevity realm by defying the natural order.
He had identified several promising candidates.
But before he could act, a calamity struck the Xuanhuang World: the incompatibility of different cultivation methods!
This unforeseen event caught him off guard.
Wielding the Golden Authority, he should have complete control over the Xuanhuang World's laws. Yet, this had happened…
He realized that the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao had somehow awakened a power that could counter the Golden Authority.
The Grand Celestial Venerable of Xuanhuang!
This name appeared in his mind.
He bore no ill will towards this newly ascended Grand Celestial Venerable. He even wanted to speak with him.
But the Grand Celestial Venerable, empowered by the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, remained hidden.
And Xuanyuan Tuo had to deal with the chaos within the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance caused by the incompatibility calamity.
The ten great Immortal sects, with their deep foundations and diverse cultivation methods, maintained order, avoiding immediate collapse.
But the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, despite its rapidly growing numbers, mostly practiced Xuanyuan Tuo's Heavenly Net Divine Technique.
This all-encompassing technique, created by Xuanyuan Tuo himself, became their downfall during the calamity!
The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance was still young, a loose coalition of new method cultivators. Besides Xuanyuan Tuo, no one held significant authority. With the calamity, they descended into infighting.
The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, once a major threat to the ten sects, crumbled from within!
This taught Xuanyuan Tuo a valuable lesson about the importance of a strong foundation.
While the alliance had initially seemed powerful, its lack of depth made it vulnerable.
He tried to salvage what remained of the alliance while searching for the Grand Celestial Venerable of Xuanhuang.
But without the Golden Authority, his new cultivation method was fundamentally opposed to the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao.
Naturally, the Grand Celestial Venerable considered him an enemy.
"They misunderstand me deeply. They judge by actions, not intentions." Xuanyuan Tuo felt a tinge of regret.
But his pride as a supreme expert prevented him from offering explanations.
Even the Grand Celestial Venerable couldn't stop him!
Soon, two unexpected events occurred.
First, Xuanyuan Tuo, the most powerful being in the world, experienced bouts of anxiety and sorrow. He was shocked to discover these emotions weren't his own, but originated from another consciousness within him, one he hadn't noticed before!
Second, before the incompatibility calamity subsided, a new disaster, the Celestial Mortal Miasma, descended upon the world, accompanied by the death of the nameless Grand Celestial Venerable of Xuanhuang!
This was even more surprising than discovering another consciousness within him. Xuanyuan Tuo realized that the Grand Celestial Venerable had sacrificed himself, defying the natural order.
He had created two Celestial Venerables, one for the old method and one for the new, but perished from the backlash.
Xuanyuan Tuo couldn't comprehend this act.
But he knew that someone capable of empowering two opposing Celestial Venerables wasn't foolish. There must have been a reason.
He couldn't understand it.
Until he discovered that the Celestial Mortal Miasma, even after being dispelled by a cultivator, would linger in their descendants' bloodline.
As a part of the Heavenly Dao laws, it prevented mortals from cultivating.
But if a mortal overcame this suppression, it was akin to a small act of defiance.
While insignificant on its own, over time, as countless mortals embarked on the path of cultivation, each new cultivator would weaken the foundation of Xuanyuan Tuo's power.
"Unable to kill me, they instead neutralized a significant portion of the power I gain from each new cultivator."
"Originally, every new cultivator within my system would strengthen me, eventually pushing me to an unimaginable realm!"
"But now…"
"They've severed my path!"
Even a clay figurine had its breaking point.
Enraged, Xuanyuan Tuo wanted revenge. But the Grand Celestial Venerable was dead. Where could he direct his anger?
At the height of his fury, his consciousness was pulled into a dark void. He lost control of his body.
Before him floated an aged man with white hair.
Though their appearances were different, Xuanyuan Tuo felt as if he was looking in a mirror!
"The Healer!" he exclaimed instinctively.
The Healer didn't waste words.
Tears of blood streamed from his eyes.
Like a broken record, he repeated, "Return to the Heavenly Law World! Return to the Heavenly Law World!"
Xuanyuan Tuo finally understood the source of his unease.
He tried to reason with the Healer.
But the Healer, fixated on the Heavenly Law World, was deaf to his words.
Xuanyuan Tuo tried to suppress him, but was shocked to discover the Healer was almost his exact replica, equal in power.
Fueled by his desperate longing for his homeland, the Healer was even stronger than Xuanyuan Tuo!
He gradually regained control of the body.
The Legacy Transmitter's appearance slowly shifted, becoming that of the Healer!
Trapped within the darkness, Xuanyuan Tuo could only faintly perceive the outside world.
He saw the Healer, after countless hardships, finally return to the Heavenly Law World.
Only to find it utterly destroyed, its inhabitants slaughtered.
The gruesome scene was unbearable even for Xuanyuan Tuo.
The Healer, driven mad by the destruction of his homeland, was consumed by a storm of rage, severing Xuanyuan Tuo's connection to him.
Xuanyuan Tuo gathered his strength, trying to regain control.
After an unknown amount of time, a transparent figure, besides the Healer, appeared in the darkness.
This figure, seemingly devoid of consciousness, filled Xuanyuan Tuo with dread.
It could attach to and erode his consciousness.
This was a power he had never encountered before.
Despite his resistance, he couldn't stop its encroachment.
Just before this transparent figure completely consumed him, the ethereal murmuring resurfaced in Xuanyuan Tuo's mind.
With its power, he barely maintained his consciousness.
Time became meaningless in the darkness.
After an unknown period, Xuanyuan Tuo sensed an opportunity.
The body seemed to have entered a strange space.
And within this space, the mystical murmuring became incredibly clear.
With his accumulated strength, he launched a counterattack, briefly regaining control of the body.
Though fleeting, it was enough. Understanding his current situation, he devised a plan.
This space seemed to be within an Immortal Artifact. This was why it resonated with the Immortal-level power of the murmuring sound.
He softly chanted, imprinting the murmuring sound within the artifact's space.
With the murmuring's power to influence the future through past memories, he was confident he could use future visitors to this space to find a way out.
After imprinting the murmuring sound, he lost control again, sealed within the endless darkness.
He attempted several more counterattacks, but the power suppressing him grew stronger. Escape seemed impossible.
But he never gave up.
The murmuring sound he had imprinted was constantly gathering energy for him.
His escape would just take longer.
…
Back in the present, Li Fan's expression shifted as he watched the scenes unfold within the illusion, based on the Legacy Transmitter's memories.
Even though he thought he knew their story, the truth was far more complex and…
…ironic.
But what intrigued him most were the peculiarities of the Xuanyuan clan.
Not just the mystical murmuring sound.
But also the Madman, Xuanyuan Sheng, whom Xuanyuan Tuo encountered as a child.
"Goudan, you must understand, everything in the world has already happened countless times…"
Li Fan narrowed his eyes, pondering these words.
"Was it meaningless rambling, or a hint of truth?"
It reminded him of True Return.
And whether Xuanyuan Sheng truly died that night was uncertain.
"The Xuanyuan clan venerated Xuanyuan Hong. It must have been a measure left by Profound Heaven King."
"Profound Heaven King possessed the power of the murmuring sound, such a heaven-defying technique?"
"Or is that the true power of a Half-Immortal?"
Despite being a Half-Immortal, Li Fan's only Immortal-level method was the formation.
His other techniques were essentially the same as in his mortal cultivation stage.
"Imprinted within the Heavenly Profound Mirror?"
Li Fan's gaze pierced the Dark Star Sea, towards the Xuanhuang World.
He had entered the Heavenly Profound Museum countless times.
Experiencing various illusory recreations of the Legacy Transmitter's life.
"Seemingly experiencing the Legacy Transmitter's past."
"But actually being influenced by the murmuring sound…"
(End of Chapter)