Within the pocket world, spurred by the constant threat of extinction brought by the stele, the You people's urge to reproduce escalated yet another level.
With their subjective initiative fully ignited, it was foreseeable that their rate of reproduction would double once more.
"Aside from resources, the only thing restricting their population expansion is time."
"This constitution..."
Li Fan's eyes flickered slightly. He grabbed a You person at will to study and compare with the previous lifetime.
"As the seals are gradually unraveled, the efficiency of their atavism does not grow linearly. Instead, the further along it goes, the greater the magnitude of enhancement."
Li Fan controlled the tier of energy he exerted, probing continuously.
He discovered that the vitality of these You people had grown terrifyingly vigorous.
With merely their flesh and blood, they could actually withstand ordinary attacks of the late Qi Refining stage.
"An adult You person with robust vital energy can even take a strike from a Foundation Establishment cultivator without dying. With their physical constitution, as long as they don't perish on the spot, before long they can become lively and vigorous once again..."
Li Fan shook his head slightly, and the thought that had previously surged in his mind immediately died down. "At this level, it has already reached the limit.
"Not that I fear these You people turning the tables. No matter how strong they become, before the Nameless True Immortal's thigh bone, they wouldn't possess the slightest power to resist. What I dread is the first Great Heavenly Venerable Xuanhuang...
"Something like reviving through the bloodlines of descendants isn't entirely impossible. It is better to remain prudent.
"As for how to ensure that in this lifetime I can utilize the Nameless Immortal thigh bone to deduce the complete Transformation of Immortal and Mortal..."
Li Fan glanced at the indistinct mark upon the stone stele.
"A True Immortal's transformation—once lost, is lost forever. If I cannot fathom it completely upon our very first encounter, I will never have another chance to comprehend it in this life...
"Once the deduction progress of the Nameless Immortal thigh bone surpasses halfway, I will personally comprehend its mysteries within the You bloodline.
"While comprehending, I will directly channel everything I see and feel into the stele. What I cannot remember or recall, the Nameless True Immortal should not be restricted by."
A plan formed faintly in Li Fan's mind.
Below, the stone statue worshipped by the You people as their savior was already transmitting an endless stream of Source Power Essence to Li Fan.
As the You people's physical constitution grew stronger, the quantity and quality of Source Power Essence produced by each of their prayers far surpassed that of the past.
In this lifetime, Li Fan no longer had to worry about running short of Source Power Essence.
Golden light gurgled as Li Fan laid down another layer of immortal array protection around the Nameless True Immortal's thigh bone.
At the same time, he utilized the [Simulate, Multitude of Living Beings] array to generate a heavenly disposition to oversee every move within this pocket world.
Having made ample preparations, Li Fan nodded in satisfaction and departed.
Over the next six months, utilizing the inexhaustible Source Power Essence, Li Fan deployed immortal arrays into the vast majority of pocket worlds in the Xuanhuang Realm.
First, to promote the return of the pocket worlds to Xuanhuang, preparing for the future sublimation of the Immortal Domain.
Second, to better control the various realms and search for suitable "vessels" for tempering Eternal Lingering Thoughts.
In the previous lifetime, Li Fan had attempted to use Kou Hong, that sincere seeker of the Dao, to foster an artificial Eternal Lingering Thought. Although the final result was a failure, it had provided Li Fan with a degree of inspiration.
In truth, judging from how Revert to the True could barely devour Kou Hong's lingering thought, it was not that far off from the formation of a genuine Eternal Lingering Thought.
Perhaps it was only one step away.
Li Fan pondered that perhaps the time spent tempering had been too short and the maturation insufficient.
"The deepest emotions do not fade with the passage of time; instead, they grow newer with age. The more they are washed by the long river of time, the more crystal-clear and resplendent they become." Li Fan's eyes showed contemplation.
"I have yet to grasp the power to warp time, but through illusory arrays, I can pass off the false as real.
"In this lifetime, I will gather enough seeds. Then, I will cast them all into the [Bewilderment, Xuanhuang Living Beings] grand array!
"As long as I plant enough, I refuse to believe not a single one will ripen!"
A sharp gleam flashed in Li Fan's eyes. "In the previous lifetime, if not for the scenes traced back from devouring Kou Hong's lingering thought, given my disposition, I probably still would have bitten the bullet and attempted Dao Integration.
"An Eternal Lingering Thought can stimulate unknown abilities of Revert to the True. It is simply too important.
"Equally important are the trifurcated tree and the terra-cotta figurine from the celestial vessel, relics left behind by Sun Piaomiao back then. I just don't know whether these things can still serve a purpose for Revert to the True in this lifetime..."
The celestial vessel mastered the power of True Immortal seal characters, and the treasures within the Hundred Inquiries Immortal Record were endless. Above all, they could even control an ancient desolate god.
Before Revert to the True finished recharging, Li Fan would not rashly provoke them.
"Now that Source Power Essence is abundant, I can deploy immortal arrays to slay enemies at any time.
"Yet when it comes to my most lethal divine ability, it is still the Nine Heavens Dust-Descending Finger."
Inside Daxuan's Sermon Platform, three figures lay unconscious.
One adult and two children: two males and one female.
That young figure was naturally Ou Shangtian.
As for the other two, they were just like Ou Shangtian. The Foundation Establishment wonders within their bodies were all suspected to originate from True Immortal skeletal remains.
"In the previous lifetime, I glimpsed many scenes from the True Immortal flesh and blood.
"I wonder if this time, I can see a bit more."
The wonder within Ou Shangtian's body was the Kunqian Bone Hand.
As for the other man and woman, their wonders were the Wind-Treading Foot and the Illusory Sight Divine Pupil respectively.
The Wind-Treading Foot not only allowed one to ride the wind at incredible speed, but could also absorb the fate and fortune of every person one killed, using living beings as stepping stones to ascend to heaven step by step and overlook the world from above the clouds.
The Illusory Sight Divine Pupil not only could see through the world's illusions, but could spontaneously generate visions at critical junctures—whether warnings of the future or sensing treasures hidden within its vicinity. In short, its wondrous uses were boundless.
Even before Li Fan made a move to capture the female cultivator with the Illusory Sight Divine Pupil, she seemed to have sensed it in advance, her expression changing drastically. It was only because the disparity in strength between her and Li Fan was far too vast that even though she perceived something, she had no time to react before Li Fan captured her.
The three bearers of supreme treasures floated quietly in the air.
Li Fan, meanwhile, was finally prepared.
With swift, flowing strokes, the character "Ancient" abruptly appeared in the arena.
The profound power of tracing back the past shone into the True Immortal skeletal remains within the three figures.
True Immortal flesh and blood began to well forth from them.
It was as though that True Immortal who had died in the past was genuinely about to rise from the dead.
Using golden threads as cords, Li Fan manipulated them to draw the three masses of flesh and blood toward one another.
As if truly sharing the same origin, while there was still some distance between them, they instantly attracted and clung together.
Watching that deformed mass of flesh squirming endlessly not far away, Li Fan allowed a character he had long prepared to drift forth and take form.
This character was not some True Immortal seal character, but an array engraved by Li Fan.
Inside the array, it connected to the You people's pocket world.
The simulated heavenly disposition suppressing that side was responsible for channeling everything affected here into the Faceless True Immortal's thigh bone.
Before the array had even fully unfolded, revealing merely a trace of aura,
that deformed mass of flesh trembled as if boiling, like it had encountered some terrifying monster. It retreated at top speed, scrambling backward.
How could Li Fan allow it to have its way? Manipulating the character, he pressed it lightly down upon it.
Even without fully connecting the array, the character still pinned the True Immortal flesh and blood down completely.
As though instantly stripped of all spiritual nature, it became a heap of dead flesh, utterly immobilized.
Holding another character in hand, Li Fan then drifted slowly closer.
Under the deterrent emanating from what was very likely the aura of the Faceless True Immortal, even though Li Fan was merely a mortal existence beneath the realm of immortals, upon his approach the True Immortal flesh and blood displayed not the slightest anomaly.
It allowed Li Fan to probe and inspect it at will.
All its bizarre traits seemed to have become completely ineffective.
Li Fan nodded slightly and split off a strand of divine sense, delving into the True Immortal flesh and blood.
Boom!
After all, Li Fan was not the Nameless True Immortal himself.
Borrowing another's prestige could only suppress this mass of True Immortal flesh and blood on the surface. When a mortal genuinely attempted to probe an immortal, the inevitable backlash would still descend.
Yet this time, perhaps because Li Fan had already glimpsed it before, the backlash he suffered was far smaller than when he first encountered it in his previous life.
His hair did not turn white in an instant; his lifespan was merely consumed at two to three times the normal rate of aging.
This was entirely within Li Fan's acceptable range.
Li Fan looked on with an indifferent expression as scene after scene surfaced before his eyes.
At the very beginning were scenes similar and connected to what he had witnessed in the previous lifetime.
"...Qionglang Star Domain... perish... garrison..."
"...find the objective..."
"This subject obeys."
It was still the dialogue within the Immortal Realm.
Except this time, there was the lingering longing of that True Immortal's final backward glance before departing the Immortal Realm.
Because of this, Li Fan was able to see with his own eyes the legendary Immortal Realm.
It was like an immense sea where countless sprays of water surged simultaneously. Each spray of waves was a star domain of the Immortal Realm.
Within the star domains, True Immortals were as sparse as morning stars. The overwhelming majority of beings were creations of True Immortals.
Images of magnificent and sacred palaces appeared simultaneously within every spray of waves.
The figures seated within the palaces appeared to be mighty figures commanding entire immortal domains.
Even that True Immortal descending to the lower realm did not dare gaze directly at them.
In the impression, there was only an indistinct phantom.
The star sea surged, and all the waves vanished beneath the horizon of the sea.
The True Immortal arrived in the lower realm—Xuanhuang.
...
Even if it was merely a fleeting, superficial glance, the boundless vitality and infinite scenes of the Immortal Realm he had glimpsed still left Li Fan's mind surging with turmoil.
"In rumors, the Immortal Realm is a supreme holy land of limitless resources. Looking at it now, that is indeed true.
"That ocean is far too vast! The star domain contained within each wave can be said to be boundless!
"It is simply inconceivable!"
Li Fan's mind shook, his brow furrowed tightly. What he had seen from peeking into a scene of the Immortal Realm completely exceeded his comprehension.
The memory scenes originating from the True Immortal of the Immortal Realm continued.
It was him garrisoning Xuanhuang, seemingly waiting for something.
The star sea ebbed and flowed; an unknown amount of time had passed.
Even this True Immortal could not help but feel ripples of emotion in his heart.
"Five hundred years have passed since the calculated time.
"It still has not appeared..."
The constant trembling of the images was enough to show the unrest in the True Immortal's heart at that time.
"Let us wait a while longer."
In the Xuanhuang Realm, suns rose and moons set. Another unknown stretch of time went by.
"One thousand five hundred years.
"It has completely exceeded any plausible margin of error...
"The thing I feared most has happened after all. That entity...
"...probably will not come."
With the emergence of this thought, the entire world turned dreary and dim in an instant. As if having lost the final life-saving straw, the True Immortal closed his eyes, boundless despair welling up within his heart.
Yet for reasons unknown, something crossed his mind, and the despair in his consciousness gradually receded once more.
"Mighty figures have the considerations of mighty figures.
"Ants also have their own way of survival.
"..."
The True Immortal's gaze swept across the Xuanhuang Realm of that era, as well as the entire sea of stars.
Boom! The scene shattered abruptly.
...
"Even ranked among True Immortals, one is still an ant?
"Then what manner of existence are the mighty figures he spoke of?
"A Nameless True Immortal?
"Is the disparity between attaining the Dao of Nameless or not truly so immense?" Li Fan's heart shook violently once more.
The True Immortal's own memories were naturally millions of times more credible than baseless speculations.
From this, Li Fan established an initial understanding of the Immortal Realm.
Peeking into these memories caused the rate at which his lifespan drained to accelerate another two to three times.
Strands of gray appeared in his hair, yet Li Fan still did not give up on continuing his inquiry.
He had a premonition that the most crucial piece of intelligence was about to surface.
...
The scenes shifted once more. The True Immortal was no longer looking down upon the Xuanhuang Realm.
Instead, he sat before a stone table beside a pool of water, drinking tea with someone.
That figure was hazy and indistinct.
Yet judging by the True Immortal's deferential demeanor, the other party was undoubtedly an extraordinary, exalted figure.
What shook Li Fan's soul even more violently was that the pool of water beside the stone table where the True Immortal sat was something he was intimately familiar with.
It was none other than the fishing pond!
A voice sounded from the figure opposite him.
The True Immortal nodded respectfully again and again, but in the memories, not a single trace of the words remained.
Once the cup of tea was finished, the figure opposite faded into nothingness.
The True Immortal's persistently tense emotions relaxed as well.
The stone table, stone chairs, and even the cup of tea just finished vanished alongside that figure.
As if from beginning to end it had all been an illusion, having never taken place at all.
Yet Li Fan could perceive the surge of exhilaration in the True Immortal's emotions within the memory.
He looked toward the calm pool of water nearby.
With a flick of his finger, he tossed a certain ball of light into it.
The ball of light entered the water without kicking up the slightest splash. In the blink of an eye, it was swallowed up and vanished.
The True Immortal closed his eyes, sensing something.
After a long time, He walked slowly to the edge of the pool.
He looked down at his own reflection in the water.
Boom!
A face appeared in Li Fan's mind.
The mass of True Immortal flesh and blood pinned beneath the Nameless Immortal thigh bone suddenly rioted violently.
Li Fan's hair turned gray all at once.
He abruptly broke out of peeking into the memory.
"It is merely the aging of the physical body. I still have over three hundred years of lifespan left; it is no serious issue.
"The riot of the True Immortal flesh and blood has quickly subsided as well. It was likely only a brief resonance triggered by the True Immortal's countenance appearing from the memory."
Li Fan quickly made his assessment.
That mass of flesh and blood remained obediently pinned down by the Nameless True Immortal's thigh bone.
Li Fan, however, had not yet recovered from the scene he had just witnessed; his expression was somewhat dazed.
In the reflection on the fishing pond's surface, he had seen the face of the True Immortal.
Yet what left him bewildered and terrified was that that face was completely identical to his own!
Chapter 1386