As if a fallen Unnamed True Immortal was being reborn from bone, light flickered and shifted, and a blurry figure materialized from the merging bones. The Immortal Domain surrounding the figure distorted, as if the Unnamed being was rejecting the Dao laws composing it.
Li Fan, using the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power, saw that the Unnamed figure wasn't simply rejecting, but also subtly transforming everything it touched, merging it into itself. "Absorption" wasn't the right word. "Transformation" was more accurate. The vanished parts of the Immortal Domain weren't absorbed, but transformed into something similar to the figure's essence.
This was identical to the scene Li Fan witnessed during the first manifestation of the Immortal Domain and the Wordless Stele: everything returning to its primordial state, reverting to the origin of the Dao!
At this moment, Li Fan saw clearly the Dao this Unnamed figure had merged with: Primordial.
The weight of these two words was immense. It could re-establish the fundamental elements, reverting a world to its nascent state.
The Immortal Heavenly Pillar, originally meant to resist Dao Obliteration, now, after manifesting its true form, became a vortex devouring the Immortal Domain. This happened faster than Li Fan anticipated. What alarmed him more was that as the Primordial Dao intensified within this space, the Unnamed figure grew blurry, as if about to escape. Even with the Hill-Guarding Immortal's perspective, Li Fan could barely grasp its location.
Knowing he had to act quickly, Li Fan didn't hesitate. Within the armchair, it was as if trillions of supernovas exploded simultaneously. Li Buren's projected Dao Net transformed into a blinding white light. Within the projection space, two giant hands materialized, grabbing the Primordial being at the center of the disintegrating Immortal Domain.
The struggle was brief. Li Fan glimpsed the nature of their powers. Primordial, the origin of the Dao, though sacred and elusive, was still a manifestation of the Dao's power. The Hill-Guarding Immortal's power, however, seemed closer to the essence of "Mountains and Seas," binding even the transcendent Primordial Dao.
"Although this bone represents only a fraction of the Primordial Dao's power, it's facing only a projection of the Hill-Guarding Immortal."
"This demonstrates that the Hill-Guarding Immortal is stronger than even the Primordial Dao."
"Watching the sea, guarding the hill…"
Single-handedly resisting a calamity capable of obliterating even the Dao clearly exceeded the limits of a cultivator.
"Only the mountain can control the sea."
"But what does this 'mountain' truly represent?"
The earth-shattering arrival of the Primordial projection was silently suppressed. Under Li Buren's precise control, the giant hands compressed it, along with the remnants of the Immortal Domain and the Wordless Stele fragments, into a single stone pillar.
He then hurled it towards the area within the testing ground's Star Sea where Dao Obliteration black Qi appeared most frequently.
The effect was immediate. The unsettling fluctuations vanished. The spreading Dao Obliteration black Qi, like water without a source, began to dissipate.
"As expected of the Primordial Dao, a crucial component of the Great Dao. Its effect in resisting Dao Obliteration is even better than I imagined."
"No wonder it was chosen as the material for the Southern Immortal Heavenly Pillar." Li Fan observed the Dao Pillar.
After its initial materialization, within moments, it merged with the Great Dao of heaven and earth, becoming invisible to ordinary eyes. Even Li Fan's main body could only sense something amiss in that area, unable to pinpoint it. Only through the Hill-Guarding Immortal's perspective could he clearly perceive it.
"Perhaps the other Immortal Heavenly Pillars also contain the bones of Unnamed True Immortals merged with Daos comparable to Primordial."
"These must be the remnants of transcendent Unnamed True Immortals."
From Qian Ruochang and the Nothingness Immortal's memories, Li Fan had gleaned many secrets. When a True Immortal transcended, escaping the constraints of the Great Dao, the Dao they merged with vanished from this possibility. This was one of the reasons Li Fan suspected caused the Dao Obliteration Calamity.
However, not all these powerful cultivators were completely indifferent to their peers' fate.
"According to Qian Ruochang, before transcending, they would leave behind remnants, projections, or treasures to partially fulfill the role of the missing Dao."
"The contents of these Immortal Heavenly Pillars must be remnants of transcendent True Immortals."
"However, compared to the Hill-Guarding Immortal's Projection Dao Bearing technique, leaving behind remnants seems…"
Li Fan observed the pillar, recalling how the Primordial bone seemed to react to True Return, wanting to merge with it, and how the merging of two identical bones manifested a Primordial figure.
"It's not completely independent like a Dao-bearing projection. Although it can be temporarily abandoned, but…"
Li Fan pondered, "After minor transcendence, escaping a single possibility, comes major transcendence, the convergence of countless possibilities. True transcendence."
"To achieve this, one probably needs to reclaim what they left behind."
Li Fan understood. This was probably why some transcendent True Immortals were unwilling to leave behind anything.
As Li Fan pondered, the aftereffects of using the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power subsided. The two Primordial bones, now acting as pillars, shared the burden of Dao-bearing, as he had anticipated.
Li Fan sensed, "If quantified, I can now freely utilize the equivalent of one and one-third Primordial bones' power."
"I only need to consider the gradual changes in Li Buren, without worrying about the Dao Obliteration Calamity."
"Of course, the pressure from Dao Obliteration will increase over time, and the available power will decrease."
However, Li Fan was satisfied with the current outcome.
"In other words, if I can capture another Unnamed True Immortal and turn them into a pillar, I can free up more power."
"Until I completely unleash the power of the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections."
As Li Fan fantasized, Li Buren's dire situation snapped him back to reality. Having used the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power so frequently, Li Buren had suffered immense damage.
Li Fan focused on his avatar's Dao Net projection. For a moment, he saw the figure standing with its back turned, watching the sea and guarding the hill. He broke out in a cold sweat before snapping out of the illusion.
"Even without malice from the Hill-Guarding Immortal, such frequent use is like forcing something into a mold. My avatar is involuntarily transforming from the inside out."
"It's similar to when the Heavenly Dao used my avatar to descend."
Knowing he couldn't rush, Li Fan decided against using the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power for now.
"Unless it's an emergency."
"Now, I need to address the root cause and restore my avatar."
This wasn't difficult for Li Fan. With his main body as an anchor, he could compare and gradually remove the Hill-Guarding Immortal's influence. It was just a time-consuming process.
"After restoring him, I need to find a way to increase his resilience."
"Otherwise, even with the power of the Unnamed, its duration is limited."
Li Fan had an idea. The Hill-Guarding Immortal's power seemed to originate from the mountains and seas. Only the mountains and seas could control each other. And within Li Fan, there was something vaguely related to the "sea": the power of the Ink Slaughter Immortal Soul.
Although he could freely utilize this power after merging with the Heavenly and Earthly Immortal Souls, he didn't fully understand its nature. Now, after experiencing the Hill-Guarding Immortal's eons of contemplation by the sea, he had a vague understanding.
Li Buren's Dao Net projection distorted and deformed, its connection to the main body temporarily severed. Li Fan didn't rush to his avatar's aid. He remained calm, slowly restoring the Dao Net projection while infusing traces of Ink Slaughter Immortal Soul power into his avatar's repaired divine sense.
"Black Qi is a precursor to the Dao Obliteration Calamity."
"Like waves crashing against a mountain."
"Or rather, the point where the mountain and sea meet." Li Fan's eyes gleamed.
With the infusion of ink-like power, a shadowy outline appeared around the previously pure, dazzling Dao Net projection. Although it still reflected the Great Dao of the heavens, it was different. Li Fan instinctively felt that the projected net was more "resilient."
But he didn't rush to experiment. Instead, he repeated the process, like adding layers of paint. Under this constant reinforcement, Li Buren's divine sense solidified, his entire body seemingly formed from the Dao Net projection, with the Ink Slaughter Immortal Soul power acting as flesh and blood.
A new body was finally complete. Li Buren clenched his fists. Although seemingly weaker without the Immortal Domain body, he felt much more durable. He looked at the lingering Dao Obliteration black Qi in the testing ground's Star Sea.
Expressionless, he opened his mouth wide and swallowed the dissipating clouds of black Qi. The destructive black Qi churned within him, causing intense pain, but his body didn't disintegrate. His previous Immortal Domain fragment body wouldn't have been so resilient.
"Just as I thought."
His theory was confirmed. Li Fan felt the turmoil within his avatar.
"The clash of the mountain and the sea."
His thoughts returned to the Hill-Guarding Musings, to those long eons, watching the vast ocean relentlessly battering the mountain below, each collision bringing about change in the mortal world.
"Unfortunately, the Hill-Guarding Immortal's inheritance was shared among the other chess pieces. Otherwise, I might have grasped the true essence of the mountain and the sea." After prolonged contemplation, with no results, Li Fan reluctantly withdrew from his meditative state.
The mountain and the sea were clearly beyond the mortal realm. Even merely visualizing them had affected him. The most direct effect was on his lifespan.
After reaching the Half-Immortal realm, Li Fan's lifespan was infinite, equivalent to the current mortal world's lifespan of 7,360,000 years. Although not fixed, fluctuating slightly with his actions, the changes were minimal.
But now, his lifespan abruptly decreased by a third!
Li Fan stared at the number, a strange expression on his face.
"Logically, as my power increases, my ability to save the mortal world should also increase."
"My lifespan should be increasing."
"Why did contemplating the secrets of the mountain and the sea decrease the mortal world's remaining lifespan?"
Li Fan was puzzled. This clearly wasn't a good omen. He didn't persist.
"The secrets of the mountain and the sea are beyond my current understanding."
"I should focus on perfecting my avatar's body and increasing his resilience."
"If I can fully unlock the power of the Hill-Guarding Immortal's projections, it should be enough for me to navigate this fragmented possibility."
For Li Fan, the projections' power within the testing ground was like a scale. To utilize the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power, he needed to place an equivalent weight on the other side.
"I can currently utilize the equivalent of one and one-third Primordial bones' power without strain. The Primordial Dao, the origin of all Daos, even in its fragmented form, shouldn't be much weaker than an ordinary Unnamed True Immortal."
"If necessary, I can unleash more of the Hill-Guarding Immortal's power."
Li Fan considered his next target. There weren't many Unnamed True Immortals whose identities he knew. He first looked towards the Immortal Ruins beyond the Xuanhuang World. Besides the Hunger Immortal, who was nearing the Unnamed realm, there was the power beneath her, possibly left behind by the previous Hunger Immortal to resist Dao Obliteration.
Although the Hunger Immortal was being unknowingly manipulated by the evil Su Bai, dealing with her still required careful planning. Li Fan wasn't just aiming for the current Hunger Immortal. He also greedily eyed the true Hunger Immortal who had achieved the Unnamed realm.
(End of chapter)