The Purpose of Revert to the True

"Could it be that you understand Revert to the True better than I do?" Perceiving Archmage Tiandu's obstinate words, Li Fan's true body could not help but find it amusing. Yet for some unknown reason, that amusement was accompanied by an inexplicable surge of irritation. For the Li Fan of today, this was decidedly out of the ordinary. Li Fan paused briefly. After careful deliberation, despite some reluctance, he pinpointed the source of that irritation. "Could it be... that the Archmage isn't wrong?" His expression turned somewhat grave. Pondering for a moment, Li Fan attempted to communicate with Revert to the True. But he was met with nothing but silence. "The upper limit of Revert to the True's reversal—Anchored Year 1—is the moment I first transmigrated here." "With Revert to the True bound to me, no matter how many times I return, it can only ever begin from this single point in time." "But what exactly determines this?" After a few moments of thought, an uncontrollable idea welled up in Li Fan's heart. "It is 'I'—the moment the host of Revert to the True began to exist—serving as the starting point." "If this speculation is true, then..." From afar, Li Fan looked toward the sky above Yuandao Prefecture, where the Archmage remained filled with hope. "The Archmage was born before Taiyi, before the mortal world had even come into being." "If it were truly possible to reverse all the way back to that time, perhaps everything really could be turned around." "The descent of the Dao Annihilation Tribulation, the destruction of the Immortal Realm... stopping it at the source would certainly be far easier than dealing with today's monstrous catastrophe." Li Fan could hardly conceal the shock in his heart. However, back when the Black Heavenly Physician sought to seize Revert to the True, the lifespan of the mortal realm had surged drastically as well. Looking at it from the perspective of the outcome, handing Revert to the True over to the Black Heavenly Physician or to the Archmage seemed to make no difference. And Li Fan would never surrender Revert to the True. Not for any reason whatsoever. The real reason his mind was uneasy was that he had suddenly thought of the legendary Reverse Vessel. "All along, I have felt some regret. Even with the power of infinite reversals, I have always been bound within the time following Anchor Point 1. What if..." "What if, through some method, I could return to before Anchored Year 1? Would that mean I could reconstruct an even more ancient past?" He had never carefully considered this question before because every reincarnation had begun from Anchored Year 1 from the very start. His long experience had ingrained a powerful mental inertia, causing him subconsciously to believe it was impossible. Until today, when the Archmage's inadvertent remark had jolted him awake. "What on earth is the purpose of Revert to the True?" Naturally, this question crossed Li Fan's mind. He could not help recalling the bizarre, intricately tangled emotions that had welled up from Revert to the True when he was in the Sea of Infinity. Revert to the True undeniably possessed its own consciousness. Through countless past cycles of reincarnation, Li Fan had already confirmed this. Yet compared to the mighty power of Revert to the True, even though Li Fan was now at the half-immortal realm, he was merely a slightly larger ant. Perhaps not even an ant. That Revert to the True was "willing" to attach itself to Li Fan's body was naturally due to his extraordinarily abundant spirituality—a spirituality that seemed never to be whittled away no matter how many times Revert to the True was activated. "So what Revert to the True wants is a vessel capable of supporting its continuous reversions." "Therefore, it must have its own purpose." Realizing this, Li Fan's mood calmed down instead. Regardless, being chosen by Revert to the True was indeed his fortune. Otherwise, he would have grown old and died as a mere mortal in the Daxuan pocket world of the Xuanhuang Realm long ago. Li Fan felt no aversion to Revert to the True attaching itself to him with a purpose. In fact, he was faintly pleased. In the past, he had harbored lurking worries on many occasions that Revert to the True might suddenly depart from him. That anxiety had not dissipated as his strength grew; on the contrary, it had only deepened. But now... "A union of mutual interest is far more reassuring after all." Li Fan closed his eyes and forcefully suppressed the tens of thousands of thoughts surging like raging waves in his mind. Only after a long while did he slowly reopen his eyes. Calm as before. Although Revert to the True possessed immense power, judging from their interactions so far, its actions and will were at the very least logical. Hence, it could be deduced and speculated upon from certain angles. Though a lack of information meant the conclusions might not be entirely accurate, they could at least reconstruct the general contours of the truth. "That unknown, terrifying existence sunken beneath the Sea of Infinity is an old acquaintance of Revert to the True." "Something happened between them in the past." "The resulting consequences were something even Revert to the True itself could not reverse." "Thus, it seeks to rely on 'external power.'" ... The moment this thought emerged, Li Fan felt as if struck by lightning. A tempest erupted within his divine soul. Countless lights and shadows swept over him, blotting out heaven and earth. Every single droplet of rain condensed hundreds of millions of years of time. Just like the magnificent wonder Li Fan had witnessed in the Sea of Infinity, it was enough to inspire boundless awe in anyone who caught a glimpse of it. This was an amount of information his divine soul could hardly bear. Every inch of his divine soul felt crushed continuously by the entire world. His memories grew faintly blurred, threatening to lose themselves amidst the boundless light and shadow. Li Fan had once created the formation array Refining the Divine through All Living Beings. It condensed the wills of billions of living beings between heaven and earth into a magnificent force to resist or even refine a True Immortal. Yet what he was suffering now was the theoretical pinnacle of Refining the Divine through All Living Beings' power. Within that torrential wind and rain were not merely the world's living beings. There were also the past memories of everything that had ever existed in the world! Even with his extraordinary spirituality, Li Fan came close to losing himself in this great downpour, utterly forfeiting his sense of self. Fortunately, at the critical juncture, the storm came to an abrupt halt. That awe-inspiring rain of light and shadow vanished without a trace in an instant, as if it had never occurred. Only Li Fan's near-exhausted state confirmed that none of this had been an illusion. It took a long time for Li Fan to recover somewhat, his heart still pounding with lingering dread. "What was that just now...?" The entire anomaly had taken place inside Li Fan's body. Though caught off guard at the time, looking back, Li Fan vaguely understood what had happened. His heart leaped, seized by an unspeakable terror. "Did my deduction finally trigger the true thoughts of Revert to the True?" "Its consciousness is simply too colossal. Just the ripples stirred by its fluctuating thoughts almost tore me into countless pieces!" Li Fan tried his utmost to steady himself. Yet hearing of a supreme entity's terror and experiencing it firsthand were entirely different matters. It was as if both his body and soul had been branded by that violent storm. Every time he recalled it, it felt as though he were right back there. He found it hard to breathe, his heart skipped beats, and cold sweat poured down... All manner of instinctual reactions occurred one after another. After enduring another baptism of that tempest, Li Fan finally grew cautious. Reining in his mind, he dared not let his thoughts run wild any longer. "No wonder Revert to the True, despite possessing consciousness, has always remained so taciturn. The few fluctuations of its consciousness have only ever conveyed simple emotions." "It isn't that it disdains communicating with me." "Rather..." "I simply cannot bear the cost required to communicate with it!" One had to realize that Li Fan was already at the half-immortal realm. Aside from lacking the boundless nature of immortal spirit energy, his strength was far greater than that of an ordinary True Immortal. Yet even so, he lacked the capacity even to endure Revert to the True's thoughts... Even the Duke of Shouqiu, who could resist the Dao Annihilation Tribulation, had not made Li Fan feel such a chasm of disparity. Only when facing that Sea of Infinity had Li Fan ever felt this brand of powerlessness. "The true power of Revert to the True is actually..." Li Fan remained speechless for a long time. Every time he thought he had seen the limits of Revert to the True, reality showed him that what he had glimpsed was merely an unremarkable peak among continuous mountain ranges. Precisely because one stood inside the mountains, obscured by the towering peaks all around, one could not see the panorama of the entire range. Now, the mountain range had trembled ever so slightly, nearly turning heaven and earth upside down. Only then had the person within the mountains been granted a glimpse of the true face of the peaks. "At the very least, it proves one thing." "That my speculation just now could stir the thoughts of Revert to the True means it was somewhat close to the truth." Li Fan let out a long breath. Looking toward the Archmage again, his mindset was entirely different. "It isn't that I am hoarding a supreme treasure for myself." "Rather, ours is a union of mutual interest." "You claim to be some incarnation of Wuji, yet wanting to step in just like that... is far too naive!" "Did you truly think Revert to the True never examined you?" "It simply found you unworthy of its notice!" Amidst the storm stirred by the thoughts of Revert to the True, Li Fan had faintly glimpsed the memories of everything that had ever existed in the mortal realm. "When the real is taken for false, the false becomes real. Perhaps these memories are the very reason the transformation of true and false can be realized." The Archmage was an innate being, so he had naturally fallen under Revert to the True's observation much earlier. Yet since Revert to the True had not chosen him, it proved this Archmage was simply not qualified! "Fulfilling Revert to the True's purpose seems by no means easy." "The further back into antiquity one reverses to reconstruct the past, the greater the repulsion might become." "Moreover, it is not something that can succeed in one or two attempts." "Archmage Tiandu..." "'Wuji precedes even Taiyi.' What bold words, daring to demand I hand over Revert to the True." "Then let me see just how much Revert to the True you can endure!" Within a few breaths, Li Fan had already recovered to his peak state. From afar, he lightly pointed a finger toward Archmage Tiandu. His fingers formed a pair of shears, slicing through the air. "I followed Master and witnessed the rise and fall of countless eras in the Immortal Realm. This treasure appeared in legends of the primeval Immortal Realm long ago, known to the earliest mighty beings. But it was far too ethereal; people had only ever heard of it, and none had truly seen it." "Hence, the entire Immortal Realm gradually forgot its existence. Only when Master chatted casually with the two Sacred Sovereigns Lianshan and Guihai, reminiscing about the past, would it occasionally be mentioned." "When the Dao Annihilation Tribulation drew nearer and every method that could be tried had failed, the immortals of the Immortal Realm finally remembered this rumor from the corners of history..." Archmage Tiandu continued chattering ceaselessly, flaunting his "pedigree" before Li Buren. As he spoke, his figure suddenly froze, his face filled with shock and suspicion. Ordinary figures would have had no perception of a slight diminution in their spirituality. Yet the Archmage was worthy of being an innate being; his body and divine soul were round and whole as one. The loss of this single sliver was immediately noticed by him. "What did you do?!" The Archmage's voice turned somewhat shrill, demanding an answer with anger laced with panic. Expressionless, Li Buren shrugged. He offered the exact same old line: "I don't know anything." This time, Li Buren truly was not lying. He genuinely had no knowledge of Li Fan's strike. When the thoughts of Revert to the True erupted, the subtle connection between him and the main body had been temporarily severed, and even now, it had still not recovered. Even though the connection between this avatar and the true body was built upon the projected Dao Net and carried the legacy of the Duke of Shouqiu's Dao-bearing phantom, it still could not prevent such isolation. The Archmage's expression changed a thousand times in a flash. He seemed to search everywhere, yet could not retrieve that lost strand of "spirituality." And for an innate being like him, the completeness of spirituality seemed to be a matter of utmost importance. Fear gradually crept onto the Archmage's face. His expression contorted, and he began cursing Li Buren vehemently. He did not even care about the "treasure" he had been yearning for. "Give it back to me!" He simply screeched repeatedly. With the piercing screech echoing around him, Li Buren frowned slightly. He noticed this screeching was not merely the Archmage's impotent rage. The power of the Duke of Shouqiu's phantom that he was channeling began to destabilize amidst those echoing cries. The property that dispersed all Great Daos was activated to its utmost. No matter how tightly Li Buren gripped the other's throat, he could not stop him from making sound. It was like a roar from before the birth of heaven and earth, growing louder and louder. Accompanying the birth of the mortal world, it reverberated to this day, threatening to beat this newborn world back to its original form— Returning everything to the opening of heaven and earth, to the era of Wuji. The Duke of Shouqiu's phantom was not the Duke of Shouqiu himself after all. The five phantoms he had left behind had not transcended heaven and earth either; their purpose was, after all, to "bear the Dao." Amidst the Archmage's roar that aimed to purge all the Great Daos of heaven and earth, the phantom actually showed signs of faltering. Yet Li Buren remained unperturbed. His connection with the true body had already been re-established. He knew his true body had struck again. Upon the land of Xuanhuang, Li Fan slashed through the empty air once more. As if struck by a fierce kick, the Archmage's voice broke off abruptly. Li Fan gave the Archmage no breathing room. The blades of "true becoming false" fell without pause. Every time this ethereal blade struck the Archmage, it landed as if possessing true substance. Weirdly enough, the agony the Archmage suffered was thousands, tens of thousands of times more intense than what an ordinary person would feel! When Li Fan had tested this on cultivators in the Xuanhuang Realm before, even when their spirituality was completely shorn away, they showed hardly any notable reaction. Yet on the Archmage, it was no different from carving flesh from his living body! A few breaths later, the Archmage was already on the verge of death. Only then did he finally realize what was happening. In a feeble voice, he tried to cry out for help to someone. Yet without mercy, Li Fan brought down the final blade.