In the past, whenever Trueness was activated, an illusory layer of watery mist would envelop his surroundings.
Everything in the world would cease to be real.
By the time Li Fan's consciousness awakened once more, he would already have returned to the designated anchor.
But now...
When Li Fan silently chanted "Trueness" in his heart, no thick watery curtain emerged to veil his surroundings.
With a single thought from Li Fan, the entire world entered a state of stillness. The only difference was that its former vibrant colors had transformed into a monotonous black and white.
Li Fan had never observed the world from such a perspective. He stared blankly as the residual gales of the shattered All Things Return to Void Great Array seemed frozen in midair.
Countless Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essences of diverse forms circled around him.
Farther in the distance, a gaunt figure could be faintly seen descending upon heaven and earth. It was none other than the Hunger Immortal who had attained the Dao in the Immortal Ruins.
...
Everything before his eyes seemed no different from how it was prior to Trueness. The sole difference was that they were caught in a black-and-white stasis.
Li Fan observed warily for a long time. Suddenly, an idea stirred within him; his figure flickered, and to his surprise, he began to move directly within this frozen world!
This was an utterly novel experience. Squinting his eyes, Li Fan reached out to touch a nearby Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essence.
Even in its black-and-white form, Li Fan recognized it at a glance as an old acquaintance: Crimson Flame.
Compared to when it was merely a Heaven-and-Earth Essence, Crimson Flame's expression was now even more lifelike, barely distinguishable from a living human. Yet its eyes remained shut tight, and the phantom garments draped over its form were tattered and frayed, making it appear somewhat out of place alongside the other Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essences.
The moment Li Fan made contact with the Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essence Crimson Flame, Crimson Flame's body suddenly flashed, dissolving into countless specks of light that drifted away with the wind.
Li Fan also sensed that the boundaries of this frozen world shrank significantly inward in response.
Putting distant matters aside for the moment, Li Fan narrowed his eyes, savoring the images that had just surfaced in his mind.
Besides a few fragments of the purest laws of crimson flame, there were scattered glimpses of memory.
They were the past experiences of a blind cultivator who had attained supreme status through fire.
And the might demonstrated by this blind cultivator in those memories struck Li Fan with shuddering awe.
In an icy, desolate star field stretching beyond sight, the blind cultivator sat in meditation on the Dao. Who knew how many years had passed before sparks of starlight-like flame slowly gathered around him.
The frigid star field gradually grew warm, then blisteringly scorching. In the end, the entire star field was incinerated by invisible flames, reduced to an empty, void-like expanse where even coldness no longer existed.
At the very end of the vision, the blind cultivator seemed to vanish into heaven and earth as well.
Li Fan had now achieved Dao Integration through a Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essence. Although he was nominally at the Dao Integration realm, in truth, he possessed the strength of a half-immortal.
Because of this, he could truly appreciate just how immense the power displayed by the blind cultivator in that memory really was.
"The mere phenomena stirred by his enlightenment were this terrifying."
"A True Immortal... Absolutely a True Immortal!"
Li Fan's heart was shaken to its core.
Yet very quickly, he realized something even more astounding.
"Wait, what I just saw..."
"A True Immortal meditating on the Dao, vanishing into heaven and earth."
"Could that be the scene of his ascension to the realm of a Nameless True Immortal?"
Li Fan felt another jolt of terror and awe, his body trembling faintly despite himself.
His thoughts raced. After a few breaths, Li Fan vaguely deduced the underlying reason for all of this.
"Heaven-and-Earth Essences are formed by the laws of the Xuanhuang Realm drawing upon the imprints left behind by cultivators throughout history."
"When the Xuanhuang Realm ascended to an immortal domain, this trait was preserved. Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essences are likewise formed by the law power of the Xuanhuang Immortal Domain drawing upon deeper imprints within heaven and earth."
"Becoming one with the Dao, even merging with the Dao. Those who could resonate most deeply with the myriad laws would naturally be the Nameless True Immortals who had once 'proven Dao through Dao'!"
"Once entering the Nameless realm, one vanishes from heaven and earth forever after. All the Xuanhuang Immortal Domain could perceive was the final scene before his attainment of the Dao..."
Li Fan looked grave.
Once a Nameless True Immortal proved the Dao, he became that Great Dao itself.
He knew that if his conjecture held true, what he had just absorbed were the past Dao-attainment insights of a Nameless True Immortal!
Even though he had only captured a mere wisp among the sky full of light specks,
for Li Fan, who had only just taken half a step into the immortal realm, the benefits were immense.
Carefully savoring the thoughts and realizations in his mind,
after a brief rush of excitement, Li Fan suddenly felt that something was amiss.
"Above True Immortals, one proves the Nameless through the Dao. Each Dao path is unique. This Path of Flame is already occupied, so what use is it to me?"
"Unless..."
"That blind Nameless True Immortal is already dead."
The more Li Fan thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
He quickly glanced at the surrounding Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essences. Those that, like Crimson Flame, had manifested an appearance resembling a human cultivator were exceedingly rare—there were only three instances.
"If I absorb them, I should likewise be able to perceive the scenes of corresponding Nameless True Immortals attaining supremacy in the past."
Just as Li Fan prepared to act, his expression suddenly shifted.
During the time he had spent pondering, the effective range of the frozen black-and-white world had drastically collapsed once more.
Only a spherical zone with a radius of ninety-nine zhang around him remained.
And coincidentally, not a single Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essence was within it.
A wave of helplessness welled up in Li Fan's heart. "So, in addition to absorbing objects within the frozen world accelerating the collapse of its range, lingering in here for too long also..."
"This zone preserved after activating Trueness doesn't exist indefinitely. For now, its duration is still quite brief."
Li Fan now understood the new change that had occurred with Trueness after he advanced to Dao Integration—or rather, after he became a half-immortal.
Namely, after he activated Trueness, everything in the world would not immediately dissolve into illusion. Instead, a vast expanse centered on Li Fan would be preserved in a black-and-white stasis.
As for just how large this area was, Li Fan had not had time to verify on this occasion. But it was bound to be extraordinarily vast; at the very least, the entire Xuanhuang Immortal Domain within his sight had been enveloped.
Li Fan also surmised that the effective radius and duration of this black-and-white static zone were likely positively correlated with his own strength.
Having only just crossed into the immortal realm, the effect he could sustain was naturally quite limited.
"For now, I'll call this black-and-white static zone the 'Dao Concealment' zone."
"Within the Dao Concealment zone, everything other than myself seems to exist in a superposition of 'both real and unreal.' Maintaining the Dao Concealment zone also requires some form of energy associated with Trueness."
"When I touch and perceive things within the Dao Concealment zone, it equates to dragging them from that 'both real and unreal' state into the same 'real' state as myself."
"The energy sustaining the Dao Concealment zone is consequently drained in large amounts, causing the zone's boundaries to drastically contract..."
Even though he barely had standing room left, Li Fan still did not depart the Dao Concealment zone right away.
He had already realized that comprehending the Transformation of Real and Unreal was ten million times easier within the Dao Concealment zone than in the normal world. Every additional moment he lingered brought him endless benefits.
"When the real is taken for false, the false is also real."
Li Fan pondered and comprehended the true meaning of Trueness,
while looking at the perimeter of the Dao Concealment zone ninety-nine zhang away.
Just like during his past uses of Trueness, it was already enveloped in layers of watery mist.
"The real is also false; the false is also real."
Li Fan furrowed his brows, straining to parse the most ethereal, wondrous mystery in all existence.
Before long, the Dao Concealment zone contracted once more.
Billowing watery mist swallowed everything other than Li Fan.
Li Fan's consciousness gently sank into darkness.
Yet this time, Li Fan did not slip completely into a deep sleep or lose all consciousness.
Suspended in a daze between waking and dreaming, he seemed to witness an endless radiance erupting from the darkness.
Amidst the blazing white light, countless events, countless people, and countless things surged forth.
When Li Fan's consciousness fully cleared...
Anchored Year 1, the peak of Mount Jieli!
Li Fan appeared somewhat dazed.
He extended his hands, examining them closely.
Everything he had experienced from the activation of Trueness until now felt exceedingly unreal.
His mind remained immersed in his insights regarding the Transformation of Real and Unreal.
A full day and night passed before he could no longer catch any fleeting ripples of inspiration, and he finally paused his meditation.
Only then did Li Fan's attention shift to the prompts from Trueness.
[This simulation has concluded.]
[You may select one of the following options to retain:
1. An item held by yourself in this simulation.
2. Your cultivation realm in this simulation.
3. The simulated memories of an individual closely associated with yourself in this simulation. These memories may be inherited by that individual.
4. Forfeit the above options to accelerate the recharge progress.]
...
"Even though I've attained the status of a half-immortal, there's still no prompt about an extra interfering variable allowing me to choose an additional option to inherit."
"It seems my becoming a half-immortal was entirely within Trueness's expectations," Li Fan remarked with self-deprecating irony.
"Still, if even the newly born Xuanhuang Immortal Domain doesn't count as an extra interfering variable, while things descending from beyond the wall do..." Li Fan sank briefly into contemplation.
Then he shook his head and snapped back to attention.
"Thinking too much serves no purpose. Now that I have attained half-immortality, I am completely invincible throughout the starry sea."
"In this lifetime, my sights must be set beyond the High Wall."
"Whatever mysteries lie there, I will know once I investigate!"
After countless twists and turns, he had finally reached the Dao Integration realm and attained half-immortality.
Although it was far from perfect, it was nonetheless an immortal standing above all mortals.
Among the four options of Trueness, he would undoubtedly choose to inherit his cultivation.
However...
Strolling slowly to the edge of the cliff on Mount Jieli, he looked up at the fragile Great Xuan pocket world, and even the Xuanhuang Realm beyond.
Li Fan could not help but sigh.
"If I inherit my cultivation here, the Great Xuan pocket world would likely be torn to shreds immediately by the celestial ascension anomalies."
"Even the Xuanhuang Realm, stitched together from various worlds, would fracture under such colossal tremors and tumble into the Immortal Ruins."
"Never mind."
"There's still use for them."
Li Fan looked solemn and softly chanted, "False becomes true."
The next moment, through visualization, the feeling of the cultivation from the previous lifetime after he attained half-immortality descended and was conferred upon Li Fan's body.
Thanks to his sustained, prolonged contemplation within the Dao Concealment zone, Li Fan's understanding of the Transformation of Real and Unreal had risen to a dramatically higher tier.
Compared to previously, when this visualized cultivation could only last for a fleeting instant, it could now persist for a full three breaths of time!
Amidst the chant, Li Fan had already restored his peak half-immortal power from the previous lifetime.
Within the first breath, Li Fan's wooden sword unsheathed, and he had already arrived deep within the empty, desolate starry sea.
During the second breath, Li Fan selected the option in Trueness to inherit his cultivation.
Instantly, clouds roiled and monstrous waves surged through the starry sea!
Centered on Li Fan, who was descending like an immortal upon the mortal realm, countless remnants of the power of True Immortal seal characters formed a terrifying storm that shook the entire starry sea.
As if pulled by an invisible tether, the dormant residual power of True Immortal seal characters scattered across the starry sea converged toward the eye of the storm like hundreds of rivers returning to the ocean.
The tempest grew fiercer and fiercer.
As the third breath elapsed, Li Fan had completely inherited the cultivation achieved by fusing with the Mo Sha Heaven-and-Earth Immortal Essence.
In this era, since Heavenly King Xuan tens of thousands of years ago,
a second half-immortal had finally appeared!
"Trueness never fails,"
Li Fan marveled, sensing the surging, fathomless power within his body. Unlike the power he visualized through his insights into the Transformation of Real and Unreal—which was like rootless duckweed that could vanish at any moment—
once Trueness intervened, the false had completely become the real.
As a half-immortal, Li Fan looked at the burgeoning storm of residual True Immortal power that had risen because of him, and slowly extended his left hand.
The roiling, expanding storm stopped dead in its tracks. Then, it was continuously drawn into Li Fan's hand.
In just a few breaths, this terrifying calamity, which could have plunged the starry sea into ruin once again, was dissolved into nothingness by Li Fan.
Li Fan curled his lip as he looked at the aggregate of residual True Immortal power in his hand, crumpled together like a ball of paper scrawled over with countless different handwritings.
Even without deliberately using his power to protect himself, these forces of ancient catastrophe—which Li Fan had previously treated like ferocious tigers and guarded against at every moment—could not harm him in the slightest.
"It isn't that these residual powers have lost their efficacy."
"Rather, the laws they construct simply cannot affect me, who is already an 'immortal.'"
"After all, they are merely the aftershocks of True Immortal seal characters."
Li Fan was thoroughly satisfied with his strength after the breakthrough.
"In truth, aside from lacking immortal spiritual energy within my body, I am hardly any different from the True Immortals of old. At the very least, our status is identical."
"Immortal spiritual energy..."
Li Fan's attention could not help but turn to his bound item: the Dissociation Disc.
Under normal circumstances, regardless of what changes a bound item underwent during a cycle—be it damage or sublimation—the item stored within Trueness's bound space remained unaffected.
Once Trueness was activated, it would always revert to the state it was in when initially bound.
Yet now...
With a thought, Li Fan brought out the Dissociation Disc.
Within his sea of consciousness, countless stars seemed to rise, dazzling and resplendent.
The "Dissociation Disc, Immortal Rank" had shockingly accompanied Li Fan back to the present!
"Just like the Faceless True Immortal's leg bone before."
Li Fan looked toward the "... leg bone" in Trueness's bound space, lost in thought. "I fear that only things of the True Immortal caliber possess the qualifications to be carried by me through the Transformation of Real and Unreal."
Chapter 1404