The Hill-Guarding Immortal's power was awe-inspiring. However, Li Fan wasn't concerned about the limitations Qingyin mentioned came with inheriting his legacy.
Firstly, although the Hill-Guarding Immortal was the most powerful being he knew, Li Fan still believed True Return was stronger.
Secondly, it was Li Buren who received and cultivated the Hill-Guarding Musings. If necessary, he could be used as a scapegoat. It wouldn't affect Li Fan directly.
"There are still some questionable points in Qingyin's recording."
"Why did he leave this record in the testing ground? His final glance towards the viewer was clearly intentional."
"Even Sun Piaomiao, the True Immortal once responsible for overseeing the Xuanhuang World, didn't fully understand the connection with this Lankedao Domain…"
Too many secrets were lost with the Dao Obliteration Calamity and the Immortal Realm's destruction. Li Fan didn't intend to uncover everything.
"Although I can't fully comprehend the secrets of the wall, having received the Hill-Guarding Immortal's inheritance and Qingyin's acknowledgment, my 'access' within this testing ground is now much higher than a mere visitor's."
As Qingyin's image dissipated, Li Buren stood in the circular hall, contemplating. The previously unresponsive objects now seemed somewhat manipulable. Besides the humanoid statue that controlled the recorded images, the object resonating most strongly with him was a dark red wooden armchair.
Stroking it, Li Buren sensed the faint aura of the Hill-Guarding Immortal.
"It seems the Hill-Guarding Immortal once sat in this chair."
Li Buren sat down.
Boom!
His vision shifted abruptly, as if leaving the circular hall and the monitored square spaces. He ascended, rising above the testing ground!
Li Buren saw a familiar Star Sea: the narrow stretch of the Obliterated Lands outside the Shuo Star Sea. He could even see the distant, vibrant starlight within! Focusing his vision, he could clearly observe the World Crossing Profound Coffin and the sleeping Immortal Hunters!
Having examined the coffin before from his own perspective, observing it now from a different angle, Li Buren immediately noticed the difference. His first feeling was one of unease and regret, like a blemish on a perfect creation.
"This is the mark I left on the World Crossing Profound Coffin with my 'True becomes Fake' divine ability. I couldn't even see it clearly myself, but from this perspective, the imperfection is glaringly obvious…"
Suppressing his discomfort, Li Buren continued observing the coffin. The surrounding starry sky and the Great Dao of heaven and earth transformed into undulating waves. Within this vast ocean, the coffin was like a small boat.
Although still tossed by the waves, it could weather the storms. If not for that blemish…
"This mark I created is like a crack in the hull."
"Seawater seeps in through the crack. If it continues sailing, it will inevitably sink."
Li Buren's vision seemed to leap forward in time, seeing the future, not through deduction, but as a direct image.
"This feeling…"
"Is this what true power allows one to see?"
Li Buren realized he was now seeing through the perspective of the "wall" itself. Although it incorporated restrictions and formations left by other True Immortals, its core foundation was the five Dao-bearing projections of the Hill-Guarding Immortal.
Through the wooden chair the Hill-Guarding Immortal had used, and its connection to the projections, Li Buren could borrow a portion of their power, enough to resist the Dao Obliteration Calamity and shield against the gaze of the Unnamed.
The significance of the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections was self-evident. Borrowing their power, Li Buren not only saw the imperfection on the coffin but also vaguely understood its world-crossing mechanism.
Just as Li Fan had speculated, this boat that seemed capable of traversing the endless ocean wasn't special in its material, but in its countless overlapping layers. Each layer increased its stability, allowing it to withstand the waves.
"This… must be the same principle as the Black Heaven Healer and the evil Su Bai hunting down their counterparts from other possibilities."
Li Buren was captivated by the overlapping layers on the coffin, his vision seemingly extending to other possibilities. However, due to the blemish he had created, this coffin was now diverging from those layers.
Initially, the deviation was negligible. But Li Buren saw it widening over time, like a boat drifting off course in a storm! His vision distorted, unable to truly see into other possibilities, not even a glimpse.
Li Buren felt a pang of regret.
"If the coffin were intact, I might have seen the path to other possibilities."
Compared to the coffin itself, the method used to seal it seemed crude, like rough ropes haphazardly tied around a flawless white wall. It was secure, but through the wall, or rather, the perspective of the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections, Li Buren easily saw the key to untying the knots.
"So, at the Hill-Guarding Immortal's level, one understands all methods. Any divine ability or spell, from his perspective, is easily deciphered."
Lost in thought, an idea struck Li Buren.
"I wonder if I can access more of the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power, beyond just 'seeing'?"
Once the thought arose, it couldn't be suppressed. He recalled the Hill-Guarding Musings, sensing the aura lingering on the armchair. He saw the solitary figure watching the sea and guarding the hill for eons.
For a moment, Li Buren felt like he was back at the wall's core, surrounded and observed by the five projections. He felt immense pressure. This time, he wasn't receiving an inheritance, so the projections offered no protection. It was like facing the mountain and the sea, and the Hill-Guarding Immortal himself.
Li Buren felt himself being pressed into the armchair, both physically and mentally. He noticed the five projections drawing closer and quickly jumped out of the chair.
Like falling from the clouds, his boundless vision shrunk back to its normal scope. Li Buren felt momentarily disoriented, but his weak consciousness quickly adapted.
"I can indeed borrow the projections' power."
"However, they are primarily for withstanding Dao Obliteration, so not much power can be drawn. And it's a double-edged sword."
"The disparity between me and the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections is too great. Even without malice from him, using their power risks assimilation."
This was Li Buren's conclusion. However, Li Fan's main body was far more elated.
"Since leaving the Dark Star Sea and encountering the Dao Net, the Immortal Hunters, and Unnamed True Immortals, I've been walking on thin ice, constantly wary of these powerful beings tracing the connections back to the Xuanhuang World."
"But now…"
Li Fan stood up abruptly, looking towards the wall, overjoyed. He hadn't felt the assimilation Li Buren experienced. This meant that any negative effects from using the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power wouldn't affect him.
"The Hill-Guarding Immortal could single-handedly resist the Dao Obliteration tide. Even the ruling Immortal Emperor treated him with respect…"
"His projections are probably beyond the reach of ordinary True Immortals."
"The more of their power I can utilize, the stronger I become."
"In other words, near this wall, I fear no one, not even an Unnamed True Immortal!"
Li Fan hadn't been this excited in a long time. With True Return, worldly treasures held little value. Theoretically, he could make anything, no matter how rare, infinite.
But the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections weren't valuable because of their quantity, but because of their inherent nature, similar to True Return. It was like finding a game-breaking item. Li Fan couldn't wait to test it.
He looked at the coffin floating outside the wall.
"You two have rested long enough."
"Let's see what the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections are truly capable of!"
Utilizing their power did carry significant risks, perhaps even hastening the arrival of the Dao Obliteration Calamity. But these were no longer Li Fan's concerns!
Following Li Fan's command, Li Buren rested briefly before sitting back in the armchair. Simultaneously, the sleeping "Ma Tiande" in the Obliterated Lands opened his eyes.
The Hill-Guarding Immortal's perspective merged with his vision. The previously impenetrable World Crossing Profound Coffin now seemed easily breakable.
Ma Tiande smiled, gently gesturing towards the "knots" in his vision. The intricate knots unraveled effortlessly. With a muffled rumble, the coffin lid slid open.
Qian Ruochang and the Nothingness Immortal, startled by this sudden turn of events, immediately tried to escape in different directions. As they leaped out of the coffin, Li Fan saw their true forms.
First, Qian Ruochang. From a normal perspective, he was a muscular giant wielding a massive pillar. But through the Hill-Guarding Immortal's perspective, he wasn't even "human."
He was a cloud of Qi, or rather, a construct of the Great Dao. Just like the silvery bones Li Fan had seen before, resembling the Dao Net, Qian Ruochang's entire body was formed from interwoven Dao strings. Only the core controlling this body was a normal human soul, like a miniature Dao Net draped over a soul.
"No wonder Qian Ruochang felt strange."
"What is this? Dao Embodiment? Or a Dao Net mecha?"
This method allowed a mortal body to wield the power of the Great Dao, surpassing even True Immortals below the Unnamed realm. However, its drawbacks were obvious. Without a connection to the Infinite Sea, or even a true connection to the Great Dao of heaven and earth, any expended power couldn't be replenished. Even the seemingly limitless power of the miniature Dao Net was unsustainable.
More importantly, the soul within was constantly constricted by the Dao strings, like being sliced by a thousand blades. This wasn't something sheer willpower could overcome. Under such pressure, the soul's fragmentation was inevitable. A powerful soul and strong will could only slow the process.
"Even a divine ability like my Boundless Completion Method wouldn't help."
"At Qian Ruochang's current soul strength, he can only last for three hundred years at most."
"A long life for a mortal, but too short for a True Immortal."
Li Fan looked at the Nothingness Immortal, who supposedly severed all worldly connections. However, Li Fan now saw it differently. If every being in the world was a rich, multi-faceted projection of the Great Dao, then this Nothingness Immortal had reduced himself to a thin "bamboo pole," minimizing his interaction with the Dao.
Indeed, he seemed disconnected from everything, but his essence had nothing to do with true "nothingness." It was closer to the Dao of "solitude" or "isolation."
"This Immortal's ultimate goal isn't the profound Dao of Nothingness, but to transform himself into a Dao law, becoming part of the Great Dao while remaining independent of it."
"Upon completion, he achieves minor transcendence."
"不愧是worthy of a True Immortal who has survived to this day!" Having seen through the Nothingness Immortal's essence, Li Fan couldn't help but admire him.
Observing from above, through the Hill-Guarding Immortal's perspective, had its advantages. All disguises were stripped away.
As Li Fan observed, Qian Ruochang and the Nothingness Immortal, as if pre-planned, used their escape techniques to flee in opposite directions. Li Buren drew upon more of the projections' power, focusing his gaze.
The fluctuating Great Dao in this region froze. Qian Ruochang and the Nothingness Immortal, like insects trapped in a web, were completely immobilized.
(End of chapter)