Countless images of divine abilities and magic arts slowly seeped out from the speck of light.
Although the Dao Epoch Projection had been suppressed in an instant in Ziyi's hands, now, facing the slightest sign of this supreme treasure slipping out of control, Li Fan and Chengdao both had to treat it as a formidable foe.
After all, this was the sum total of every divine ability that had ever emerged across an entire possibility from its inception to its extinction. The might it could unleash was simply unimaginable. Even if that possibility lacked powerhouses like the Mound-Guarding Lord and did not record transcendent beings like the Three Sages of the Immortal Realm, this Dao Epoch Projection was still not something the current Li Fan and Chengdao could withstand. Even the entire Great Wall-Shuoxing Sea was utterly vulnerable before it.
Their only option was to do everything they could to suppress it before it erupted.
Chengdao acted the fastest, already manifesting his mountain-and-sea anomaly. Howling gusts of wind compressed the light and shadows, blowing them inward.
At the same time, he gave a bitter smile. "Senior Ziyi acts with thunderous efficiency, coming and going like the wind, yet he went and forgot this projection bead."
"It might well be a test from the senior," Li Fan said cautiously as he retreated to a safe distance, using his Myriad Manifestations Dao Net to assist in suppressing it from afar.
The two fellow disciples joined forces, spending more than half a year before they managed to temporarily keep the Dao Epoch Projection Bead under control.
Looking at the tiny speck whose brilliance had completely receded, Chengdao showed a look of concern. "This merely treats the symptoms, not the root cause. Though we forcibly suppressed it this time, the next eruption will surely be even fiercer...
"The two of us might not be able to hold it."
Li Fan also nodded. "A supreme treasure it may be, but it is also a hot potato."
During the six months spent sealing the Dao Epoch Projection Bead, Li Fan had also benefited immensely. It was as though he were personally experiencing boundless Dao arts every single moment. Even if the vast majority were dross to him and he gained insight from only one in ten thousand, against such a colossal base, that remained an unimaginably astronomical figure.
Li Fan even felt that even with an enhanced Dao Deduction Technique, deducing so many distinct divine abilities would probably take thousands of years.
Refusing none, Li Fan absorbed them all to serve as nourishment for himself.
With computational power rivaling that of the Dao Transformation Mother Stone, he managed to process everything in an orderly manner.
Yet, faced with this gluttonous feast of Dao arts and divine abilities, Li Fan felt little excitement.
After receiving Ziyi's guidance, his perspective had already leaped beyond the mortal realm, gazing far toward the Mountains and Seas.
For Li Fan, with the aid of Revert to the True, reaching the strength and realm required to cross was practically set in stone.
Even if he were to hide within the Great Wall forever from now on, by slowly accumulating power over time, he would eventually reach the realm of transcendence, step by step.
The problem lay in the method of making a boat.
The requirements of the mind and temperament were profoundly subtle, far from something achievable merely through the accumulation of quantity. If the conditions were not met, even cultivating for countless eons would not change the outcome.
Unfit meant unfit.
Li Fan had once attempted to use Dao Xuanzi and Kou Hong as raw materials, orchestrating and altering their life experiences in an effort to foster an Eternal Lingering Thought.
Naturally, it had ended in utter failure.
Reflecting on the situation back then, what had appeared to be separated by a mere thread was in truth an impassable chasm.
At the thought, Li Fan could not help but feel a touch of envy toward those figures who had managed to condense an Eternal Lingering Thought.
*Seeds of transcendent powerhouses...*
*Unfortunately, cultivators blessed with such talent are exceedingly rare. Throughout the entire history of the Xuanhuang Realm, there were only a handful. Even if I want to draw inspiration, there isn't much to go on.*
*It seems that, just as Ziyi said, one must forge a path that is entirely their own.*
Li Fan pondered, feeling a rare hint of hesitation rise in his heart.
A crucial question now lay before him.
Did Revert to the True and the transformation of true and false count as his own path?
With the protection of Illusion is Reality, once his cultivation reached the required level, he would presumably be able to disregard all the perils of the Mountains and Seas and cross freely.
Compared to the methods of crossing used by those so-called transcendent powerhouses, it would be thousands of times easier and more leisurely.
Did that mean he no longer needed to worry about his own Dao path, and no longer needed to maintain the mindset of "only I make the boat"?
Judging by the power Revert to the True had displayed so far, that seemed to be the case.
Yet for some reason, an unsettled feeling lingered in Li Fan's heart.
It was as if, once the Mountains and Seas beyond the mortal realm were involved, his past unconditional, blind trust in Revert to the True naturally vanished.
This matter bore directly on how Li Fan would tread his future path, making it of paramount importance. Consequently, in a rare turn, a sense of bewilderment surfaced in his mind.
More critically, no one seemed capable of giving him an answer other than Revert to the True itself.
Yet Revert to the True remained utterly silent, as if completely unaware of Li Fan's thoughts.
Though Li Fan continued to stay by Chengdao's side, exchanging insights on comprehending the Dao, his thoughts remained deeply immersed in the relationship between Revert to the True and his own Dao path.
"Junior Brother, is something weighing on your mind?" Even though Li Fan had concealed it well, it did not escape Chengdao's notice. Ever since seeing the true face of the Mountains and Seas again and witnessing the intent to cross, Chengdao's cultivation seemed to have advanced even further.
Seeing that he had been seen through, Li Fan no longer hid it. He asked, "Senior Brother, do you have a direction for your own path of crossing?"
He had expected Chengdao to be as lost as himself, but to his surprise, Chengdao answered decisively, "How could I have only realized it today? Ever since Master enlightened me, the answer has been clear in my heart. Even if the Mountains and Seas are difficult to cross, I only need to follow Master's path.
"Since Master could cross the Mountains and Seas with leisurely ease, then I surely can as well."
"How could it be that simple..." Li Fan opened his mouth to object.
Yet on closer thought, it truly did make sense. Moreover, that very thought coincided perfectly with the name "Chengdao"—to inherit the Dao.
A pensive look appeared on Li Fan's face.
*Perhaps I was overthinking it.*
*There is no need to be so conflicted.*
*If I cannot determine whether Revert to the True is my path of crossing, I will simply set it aside for now. Perhaps I truly have relied on it far too much.*
*Starting today, I will act as though I do not possess this anomalous treasure, and seek my own path of crossing until the day I attain the realm of transcendence.*
*If I succeed, all the better. If I fail...*
*Revert to the True can perhaps serve as my fallback.* The moment this thought arose, Li Fan ruthlessly crushed it.
*If I harbor such a mindset, it will likely be difficult to forge my own path of crossing. Once decided, I must burn my boats.* Li Fan thought of his Unceasing Reincarnation function, and an initial plan formed in his mind.
However, this lifetime was not suitable for experimentation.
He would wait until the next life, after creating an optimal possibility environment for comprehending the Dao, before attempting it.
The slight confusion in his heart gradually settled.
Li Fan bowed toward Chengdao. "Thank you for the guidance, Senior Brother."
Chengdao waved his hand. "You realized it yourself; it had nothing to do with me."
After this interlude, their attention returned to the Dao Epoch Projection Bead.
"Senior Brother, I have a plan that might resolve this hidden danger," Li Fan said.
"Oh?" Chengdao was pleasantly surprised.
"The reason this projection bead is losing control is that when the man from the Guangwu Star Sea unleashed it earlier, he had already prepared to go down together in mutual destruction. The divine abilities recorded within the bead had in fact all been detonated. However, he never imagined that someone existed who could single-handedly suppress all those detonated divine abilities with ease.
"When Senior Ziyi intervened, he held back every single erupting divine ability inside the bead. But now that Senior Ziyi has departed, the suppressing force he left behind cannot last forever," Li Fan explained fluently.
"I naturally understand this principle," Chengdao nodded slowly.
"So the key lies in the divine abilities recorded within this bead. Senior Brother, could it be that you are reluctant to part with this treasure?" Li Fan suddenly asked.
Chengdao gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Junior Brother, what are you saying? Although this object is extraordinary...
"How could it possibly compare to the Dao of crossing the Mountains and Seas? Even with a thousand arts and endless Daos... can they cross the Mountains and Seas?
"In the end, do they not still drown in Dao Annihilation?" Chengdao clearly had a lucid understanding of the matter.
Li Fan smiled. "Then it is simple. Channeling is better than blocking. Blindly and forcibly suppressing it will only backfire, and the future eruption will likely be even more violent. It would be better to release the divine abilities recorded within the bead. Naturally, it must be done gradually."
Chengdao stroked his beard and pondered for a moment before frowning. "However, the divine abilities and magic arts recorded within this Dao Epoch Projection Bead are far too numerous. Even if we release them to the greatest extent without affecting the surrounding starry sky, we likely won't be able to vent all the pressure before the projection bead ultimately erupts."
Rather than answering directly, Li Fan pointed toward the Great Wall-Shuoxing Sea, which was shrouded in boundless darkness and barren of vitality.
"Senior Brother, do you feel this patch of starry sky is rather desolate? How does it compare to the Immortal Realm at its peak?"
"It naturally falls far short." Chengdao was a sharp mind and caught on quickly.
He asked with some surprise, "Junior Brother, do you intend to distribute the divine abilities and magic arts within this Dao Epoch Bead to the living beings of the starry sea?"
"Exactly!" Li Fan clapped his hands and laughed.
"Do not look down on how desolate the starry sea is right now. As long as we give all living beings a little time and a suitable environment, their numbers will climb without limit. Absorbing this Dao Epoch Projection Bead will be child's play.
"Moreover, the divine abilities recorded in this projection bead can also serve as the key to initiating their cultivation. As long as the base population is large enough, perhaps several Nameless True Immortals might even be born."
Chengdao stared at the Dao Epoch Projection Bead, clearly tempted. "This supreme treasure also contains the numerous Daos of another possibility. If absorbed by the starry sky beneath our feet, it might even mend its deficiencies."
"Furthermore, the two of us can use the eyes of the starry sea's myriad living beings to observe every single divine ability within this projection bead. It truly kills multiple birds with one stone," Li Fan added with a smile.
...
After a thorough discussion, the two quickly finalized this "Dao Restitution" plan to benefit the living beings of the starry sea.
The key to accomplishing the plan was a sufficiently large population of living beings.
For Li Fan and Chengdao, that was hardly a difficult task.
Under the coverage of the Dao Net, the living beings' desire to reproduce, conception rate, survival chance, and growth rate all multiplied several times over.
Within the Great Wall, both the Xuanhuang Realm and the Primordial Immortal Realm answered entirely to Li Fan's word.
And with an infinite supply of energy from the Sea of Infinity, no matter how many living beings there were, there was no worry of resource scarcity.
As a result, the total population of the Great Wall-Shuoxing Sea surged dramatically.
Sixty years passed, and only after the total population across the entire Pitch-Black Star Sea had multiplied nearly a hundred thousand times did Li Fan and Chengdao slightly slow the pace.
The Dao Restitution plan had not waited until this point to begin; rather, it had been initiated gradually over those sixty years.
With the birth of each new life, Li Fan and Chengdao would preside over the process, randomly drawing a wisp of Dao divine ability fluctuation from the Dao Epoch Projection Bead and merging it into the newborn.
Under the protection of the two powerhouses, these divine ability fluctuations caused no harm to the fragile new lives. Instead, they became akin to innate divine abilities.
While remaining firmly imprinted in the depths of their divine souls, they could also serve as guiding beacons throughout their growth.
Naturally, the divine abilities and magic arts recorded in the Dao Epoch Projection varied in quality. The power of the innate divine ability each living being received differed accordingly, which was unavoidable.
Yet for Li Fan and Chengdao, no matter whose hands the divine abilities recorded in the bead fell into, it made little difference.
Every single action of all the living beings participating in the Dao Restitution plan was entirely under Li Fan's and Chengdao's control.
Chengdao was not particularly adept at such matters.
Fortunately, Li Fan possessed abundant experience from the Xuanhuang Realm, making him well-versed in carrying it out.
With the aid of immortal arrays, no matter how vast the number of participating living beings became, there was not the slightest sign of losing control.
"I did not expect Junior Brother to possess such profound mastery in the Dao of arrays as well," Chengdao praised, stroking his beard.
"A minor path, nothing more. Merely a detour I took along the path of cultivation in the past." Li Fan shook his head slightly.
"You need not be so modest, Junior Brother. Who is to say the Dao of arrays cannot cross the Mountains and Seas?" Chengdao said with great seriousness.
"I recall that in the past, the Immortal Realm possessed an array named Xuan Yuan Shi Ling. It was a marvelous array that even Master praised repeatedly. It is said that this array contributed greatly to the Immortal Realm's continuous expansion of territory within Mount Shangfang."
Chengdao's words immediately caught Li Fan's attention.
"Xuan Yuan Shi Ling..."
"I happen to know a portion of that array. Yet it does not seem to possess such might?" Li Fan inquired tentatively with a hint of doubt.
As he spoke, Li Fan displayed the diagrams of the five great arrays he knew, including Huangluo, Flowers Blooming in an Empty Chamber, for Chengdao to see.
Although Chengdao was not versed in arrays, matters of the mortal realm ultimately did not stray far from the Mountains and Seas. After examining them closely, he managed to discern some profound mysteries.
"Viewed individually, each array has limited might. But once they merge and stack together, the power they can unleash multiplies thousands of times.
"Just like the explosive growth of living beings in the starry sea during this period.
"Moreover, according to my recollection, the portion you lack in the Xuan Yuan Shi Ling Great Array seems to be an even more crucial component."
Narrowing his eyes, Chengdao manifested an image of the Xuan Yuan Shi Ling Great Array being activated, just as he had witnessed in the past.
Chapter 1518