"I cannot adequately repay you for saving my life. I will go through fire and water without hesitation!" Li Fan responded with cupped hands. As he spoke, he checked his attributes on the panel of Revert to the True.
His remaining lifespan had skyrocketed from barely ten years to over five hundred. This was testament enough to the formidable might of the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique.
*Now that the divine technique has been cast upon me, my lifespan should be identical to these Celestial Vessel elders.*
*Five-plus centuries is neither vast nor meager. What matters most is...* Li Fan meticulously examined the current condition of his body.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed slightly. *This extra lifespan is unstable?*
He had always possessed a healthy, normal physique, allowing him to perceive with acute sensitivity that his present body—forcibly altered and prolonged by the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique against the decrees of fate—was aging at an unnaturally rapid pace.
It aged at several times the normal rate. Occasionally, the number would abruptly plummet without any apparent reason. As Li Fan watched, the sudden shift in the age counter on the panel of Revert to the True confirmed his suspicion beyond doubt.
Li Fan made no attempt to conceal the shift in his expression. Zhong Daogong immediately picked up on his confusion.
"The Heavenly Dao is inconstant, ebbing and flowing without pause," Zhong Daogong explained. "Change is eternal; equilibrium is fleeting. Equalizing Heaven is itself an act that defies the heavens. I imagine that even the authentic True Immortal seal characters inscribed by genuine immortals could scarcely maintain a perpetual state of 'Equalize,' let alone us. Therefore, you need not worry. Slipping from the state of 'Equalize' is completely normal.
"There are two ways to alleviate this. First, consult the original True Immortal seal character for 'Ancient' once more. A brief temporal rewinding can slow the rate of decline.
"Second, whenever your lifespan nears exhaustion again, perform the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique anew. In truth, this is precisely what the Celestial Vessel's Council of Elders has been doing all along. By pooling the lifespan of the collective, we prolong the lifespan of the individual. Everyone helps me, and I help everyone in turn." Zhong Daogong glanced around at the gathered elders and smiled.
Li Fan feigned sudden realization.
"In that case, I am relieved." Letting out an appreciative sigh, Li Fan added, "At last, I understand why the elders of the Celestial Vessel can maintain a unified direction for the collective on major matters despite seeming to hold differing opinions amongst yourselves.
"This Equalize Heaven Divine Technique is truly profound and marvelous! Even in Great Qi, it would undoubtedly rank among the supreme divine abilities!"
Despite Li Fan's lavish praise, Zhong Daogong showed no trace of smugness. Instead, a wry smile flickered across his eyes. "It is merely out of necessity. Constrained by limited resources, the population of the Celestial Vessel has always been kept at a low level. Generational succession of talent is sluggish. If we wish to survive in this Pitch-Black Star Sea, we must maintain the number of Council members.
"Researching True Immortal seal characters is fraught with perils. The slightest carelessness exposes one to the backlash of True Immortal power. Throughout history, no small number of elders have perished because of this. Yet it concerns the vital lifeline and future of the Celestial Vessel, so we cannot abandon it under any circumstances.
"Hence, every single elder is the Celestial Vessel's most precious treasure..."
Li Fan remained noncommittal toward Zhong Daogong's rationalization.
He was well aware that the Celestial Vessel possessed the secret art of the Dao Pill, capable of refining geniuses into pills and ingesting them to claim all their innate talents for oneself.
*The number of geniuses who have emerged within the Celestial Vessel over the years is surely not small. Unfortunately, becoming a new elder requires far more than raw talent alone. In truth, the Celestial Vessel elders resemble the mortals of the Xuanhuang Realm: there cannot be too many, nor too few. A delicate balance must be maintained,* Li Fan mused, keeping the thought to himself.
After the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique was performed on him, the surrounding elders' attitudes toward him underwent a subtle shift. If Li Fan had previously earned their approval solely through utility and performance, then now, the elders regarded him with genuine, heartfelt kinship—just like "family."
Taking advantage of the atmosphere, Li Fan inquired about the Equalize Heaven Plan, which required the living beings of Great Qi as sacrificial offerings.
"To require so many lives to collectively shoulder the backlash, just what is the target of the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique...?"
This time, Zhong Daogong and the others made no attempt to be evasive or secretive.
Instead, they laid bare the answer directly: "The target of our plan is none other than... the Star Sea's primordial consciousness!"
Hearing this, Li Fan's eyes brightened.
"Thanks to your earlier instruction in the Taijia Divine Technique, Fellow Daoist, we were able to catch a glimpse of the vast Star Sea will currently awakening.
"Only by personally contacting it can one appreciate the immense majesty of the Star Sea. Not diminished in the slightest by its desolation, it remains beyond the reckoning of mortal cultivators like us.
"However..."
The elders of the Celestial Vessel wore expressions of profound marvel. With a broad wave of his sleeve, Jian Daosheng conjured a vision of the desolate, deathly Pitch-Black Star Sea for Li Fan.
At the center of the Star Sea, glittering with brilliance akin to a diamond, sat the primordial essence of the Star Sea.
"The Star Sea consciousness is fundamentally the same as the Heavenly Dao of past cultivation realms," Jian Daosheng declared with ringing conviction. "In ancient times, cultivators achieved the Unity of Heaven and Man, allowing them to partially control a realm's Heavenly Dao. Now, by joining forces to unleash the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique, there is no reason we cannot jointly command the power of the Star Sea!"
Stroking his beard, Zhong Daogong chuckled. "If we can equalize the power of the Star Sea, scaling the High Wall will be well within our grasp, even without the aid of True Immortal seal characters!"
Li Fan furrowed his brow, sinking into thought.
Before long, he nodded slowly. "The High Wall may blockade the Pitch-Black Star Sea, but that constraint applies only to the living beings within it. If we draw upon the Star Sea's own power to stir up monstrous waves, the droplets riding the crest may well vault over the High Wall!"
"Precisely! Only by reaching the height of a True Immortal can one cross the High Wall. Yet the power of the Star Sea has never been beneath that of a True Immortal! In ancient times, the numerous anomalies blazing across the Star Sea forced even True Immortals to steer clear. From this, one can see the sheer ferocity of the Star Sea's might. Even though it was caught in the calamity of the Immortal Realm and plunged into destruction, its vitality has never been extinguished..."
The elders grew increasingly fervent.
"It is the absolute finest candidate for us to equalize with!
"If the technique succeeds, even if it fails to hoist the Celestial Vessel completely across the High Wall, commanding the power of the Star Sea for a brief period will be more than enough to carve out an absolute safe haven for us within this Pitch-Black Star Sea!"
...
Having heard out the elders' grand design, Li Fan clapped his hands in praise. "Brilliant! Truly brilliant!
"This can truly be called usurping Heaven's merit for one's own benefit. However..." Li Fan shifted the tone, his brow furrowing once more. "I have previously made contact with the Star Sea consciousness via the Taijia Divine Technique. Before It, cultivators of our standing are genuinely like mere ants. And now, a swarm of ants presumes to steal Its power and stand on equal footing with It..."
Li Fan fixed the gathered elders with a somber gaze. "Heaven has its wrath, and so too must the Star Sea. Even if we succeed, we will likely have to face the frenzied retaliation of the Star Sea's primordial consciousness, to say nothing of the consequences if we fail.
"When that day comes, the Celestial Vessel might not be able to bear the brunt!
"Victory or death... is the risk not a bit too extreme?"
Li Fan seamlessly assumed the mindset appropriate for someone who had just gained five centuries of longevity; his reasoning and mannerisms were no longer as reckless as before.
Zhong Daogong nodded, essentially concurring with Li Fan's perspective. "You speak truthfully. The Celestial Vessel has not yet reached the point of wagering everything on a single throw of the dice. That is precisely why your journey to Great Qi is necessary." Zhong Daogong radiated absolute confidence.
Puzzled, Li Fan asked, "Can the lives of a hundred million mortals alone truly quell the Star Sea's fury?"
Zhong Daogong smiled, his eyes glinting sharply. "Not as mere people. But as a realm!
"If we relied solely on a head count of mortals, even multiplying it several times over would likely make no difference to the Star Sea's primordial consciousness. But if we use those hundred million human lives as a foundation, dressing them up as a realm, and siphon away the Star Sea's power in the name of an entire realm...
"Then the Star Sea's backlash will be drastically diminished!" Zhong Daogong affirmed with conviction.
"This is dictated by the Star Sea's intrinsic mechanics. Based on the clues and records preserved aboard the Celestial Vessel, we are nearly ten parts certain of this."
Li Fan quieted down, turning over the meaning behind Zhong Daogong's words.
"Nurturing and evolving cultivation realms is a foundational law inherent to the Star Sea. Even if a cultivation realm's power swells to the point of impacting the Star Sea itself, the Star Sea will not directly annihilate it.
"At most, it will respond through various star sea anomalies.
"And star sea anomalies are vastly easier to deal with than the wrath of the Star Sea's primordial core!" Jian Daosheng did not leave Li Fan room to ponder in isolation, eagerly providing the answer.
Zhong Daogong wore a proud look. "For the overwhelming majority of star sea anomalies that have occurred in history, our Celestial Vessel possesses records and fundamental countermeasures. Currently, the Star Sea is merely reviving from annihilation; it has not yet reached the stage of new birth or mutation. The likelihood of novel star sea anomalies spawning is...
"Extremely low.
"Even if one does emerge against the odds, it will likely be tied to the residual True Immortal power pervading the void. With True Immortal seal characters in our possession, weathering the storm will present no difficulty at all."
The elders of the Celestial Vessel were brimming with confidence.
A brief silence settled over the room. Finally, Zhong Daogong added in a low voice, "Naturally, to prevent the worst-case scenario, we will depart from the Xuan Celestial Vessel when casting the Equalize Heaven Divine Technique, taking only essential supplies with us.
"Even if our plan truly fails, the Celestial Vessel will be preserved. With the sparks of civilization we leave behind, the Celestial Vessel can continue to endure for hundreds or thousands of years."
...
From the looks of it, while the Xuan Celestial Vessel's plan to equalize the Star Sea sounded mad, it had actually been meticulously thought out by the vessel's leadership.
If it succeeded, the sea would be broad enough for fish to leap freely. With half of the Star Sea's power under their control, they would secure a foothold even if the space beyond the High Wall teemed with dangers.
If it failed, they would not lose everything. Compared to previously crashing the entire vessel blindly against the High Wall, this was immeasurably better.
And this was the transformation Li Fan's introduction of the Taijia Divine Technique had brought to the Celestial Vessel. One had to admit that the Council of Elders was not a stubborn, inflexible relic.
They embraced new knowledge flawlessly and put it into practice with remarkable speed.
"Then when do we act?"
"Since we are equalizing the Star Sea's power, theoretically, wouldn't it be better the more powerful the Star Sea becomes upon its revival?" Li Fan proposed.
Yet he soon overturned his own deduction: "No, if the Star Sea grows too strong, its future retaliation will be correspondingly fiercer. Being overly greedy might push it past the threshold we can endure..."
Zhong Daogong agreed, "Indeed. Therefore, we must choose the optimal moment.
"The Celestial Vessel has already established a dedicated contingent. Elders take turns continuously using the Taijia Divine Technique to approach and observe the Star Sea consciousness.
"According to our projections, the optimal window should arrive within thirty years.
"During this interval, the Star Sea's strength and the residual True Immortal power will counterbalance one another, forming a delicate equilibrium.
"Beyond that...
"As one waxes and the other wanes, the residual True Immortal power will likely dissipate entirely into the Star Sea." Zhong Daogong had arrived at the exact same conclusion as in Li Fan's previous lifetime.
Pleased by this confirmation, Li Fan said, "Very well. In any case, I have ample lifespan now and plenty of time to wait.
"What preparatory work remains for me to carry out?" Li Fan volunteered proactively.
Zhong Daogong pondered for a moment before offering a few suggestions. "First, it would be best to see if you can increase the number of humans enveloped by the ritual..."
Li Fan's brow instantly knit tight.
After a moment's hesitation, his expression smoothed out. "Though it carries risks, it should be manageable if done prudently. Still, one cannot repeat such an act indefinitely. If we do it, we should make it substantial in one stroke, lest we regret it later."
Li Fan's words pleased Zhong Daogong greatly. "The number of ritual offerings is paramount. Every time it doubles, our odds of success increase by ten percent. We must trouble you to expend extra effort on this front."
"Agreed," Li Fan conceded, looking grave as if actively contemplating how to achieve it.
"As for the second matter..." Zhong Daogong paused. "You may simply pursue it in passing. It would be best if accomplished, but if not, it will have no critical impact. It is merely an alternative safeguard."
Li Fan asked, "Oh? Elder Zhong, pray tell."
"The crux of the ritual's success lies in disguising it as an immortal cultivation world within the Star Sea," Zhong Daogong explained, projecting simulated deduction imagery before Li Fan.
"As you know, the worlds within the Star Sea have all shattered, with the sole exception of your Great Qi...
"However, Great Qi's strength is by no means inferior to our Celestial Vessel's. Attempting to seize it as a ready-made staging ground would inevitably spark an all-out war, which would be exceedingly foolish.
"Thus, disguising the corpses of already annihilated worlds serves as a viable alternative.
"Within the Great Wall of Remnant Worlds, the fragments of past worlds are linked together as an interconnected whole; pulling a single hair moves the entire body. Extracting them is no simple task. Yet we do not truly require the physical world wreckage itself; we need only retrieve as many imprints left behind after past Heavenly Daos were destroyed as possible..." Zhong Daogong gestured toward the distant Great Wall of Remnant Worlds.
"Hmm?" Li Fan wore a look of mild incomprehension. "What exactly do you mean by an imprint left after the destruction of a Heavenly Dao?"
Zhong Daogong reached out and produced an object.
It resembled amber, yet looked like white jade as well, completely seamless as though formed naturally by heaven without a trace of carving. It was shaped like a wooden umbrella.
"This is the sole surviving relic of an immortal cultivation world after its destruction. It was retrieved from the void by our Celestial Vessel after a star sea anomaly subsided.
"If one searches carefully, there are bound to be numerous identical objects within the Great Wall of Remnant Worlds. With your divine movement arts, Fellow Daoist, searching will be vastly easier for you than for us." Zhong Daogong swiftly stowed the wooden umbrella jade away.
"Still, do not force the matter. Within the Celestial Vessel's vaults, there remain a few such Heavenly Dao imprints. They should be sufficient to complete the disguise."
Chapter 1348