"Superb cultivation talent, was it...?"
"Perhaps it was merely words of encouragement from Third Senior Brother before his end."
"If his natural talent were truly astonishing, how could he have remained stuck at Golden Core throughout his life?"
"He even had to rely on the power of earth fire, absorbing and refining it over thousands of years, just to barely attain Soul Formation."
"He took an unconventional detour to reach his goal. Though he eventually became a Soul Formation cultivator, it certainly had nothing to do with exceptional natural talent."
Li Fan shook his head in secret and sighed.
After a moment, he began to piece together the information he had gathered over this period.
Back when he first entered the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace ruins, he had learned from Qin Tang and Daoist Chong that an extraordinarily massive and brutal war had taken place in ancient times.
Though he did not know whether it was due to the Longevity Heavenly Venerable's sorrow-erasing oblivion, Li Fan had been unable to find any relevant records within the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
Yet later, within *Seeking Immortals*, the horrific scenes of war once experienced by the cultivator named Bu'erren subtly confirmed that this war truly existed.
And from Master Tianyang's Eternal Lingering Thought, Li Fan had gained a far deeper understanding of just how cruel that conflict had been.
Even an ordinary, obscure mountain sect of the cultivation world back then was driven to near-total extinction.
One could well imagine just how savage this great war was.
Just which two sides were fighting?
And what were they fighting for?
Tianyang's Eldest Senior Brother, Sixing, had once contemptuously called the opposing side "barbarians."
Yet judging from the war's outcome, the enemy was by no means weak.
Although the Ten Great Immortal Sects' alliance emerged victorious in the end, it could only be described as a pyrrhic victory at best.
Across his continuous reincarnations, Li Fan had encountered Dao Integration powerhouses.
He knew with absolute clarity just how terrifying Dao Integration cultivators were.
Yet in ancient times, Dao Integration figures were not necessarily everywhere, but the powerful sects certainly possessed them in no small number.
Not to mention, the Ten Great Immortal Sects undoubtedly possessed Longevity Heavenly Venerables as well.
Just thinking about it was enough to realize what a dreadful force these sects formed when united.
What kind of enemy could drive such cultivators to the absolute brink of total ruin?
Li Fan's heart was filled with questions.
The truth lay hidden in the mists of history; even with all Li Fan's opportunities, he had only caught a fleeting glimpse of a single corner so far.
To truly understand what had transpired back then, he needed more information.
With that thought, Li Fan quietly suppressed the scattered musings about the ancient war.
He turned his attention to another matter.
"During the era of the great war, sects flourished beyond measure. The alliance of the Ten Great Immortal Sects held absolute dominion over the entire cultivation world."
"The jade slip left by Tianyang's Third Senior Brother, Lian Chang, did not record the cultivation method of 'borrowing wonders of heaven and earth.'"
"Therefore, it can be inferred that the [Ancient War Period] should have occurred before the Immortal Venerable's reformation."
"Perhaps it was precisely because of this great war that these ancient sects suffered devastating losses."
"Only then was there room and fertile ground for the Immortal Venerable's new method to develop fully."
"When the [Reformation Period] arrived, the new method ultimately supplanted the old."
"In just a few years, the cultivation world returned to its former glory."
"However, cultivators plundered heaven and seized the earth, eventually inviting the backlash of heaven and earth itself. Techniques could no longer be practiced concurrently, and the [Great Tribulation Period] abruptly descended."
"In the early stages of the Great Tribulation, mutual slaughter inevitably broke out, but general order could still be maintained."
"Yet as time passed, more and more cultivators approached the end of their lifespans. Collapse became unavoidable."
"Right at this critical juncture, the immortal-mortal miasma erupted. This was the [Great Plague Period]."
"Choosing the lesser of two evils under the threat of the immortal-mortal miasma, cultivators were forced to halt their mutual slaughter and seek a solution to the miasma."
"Massacring mortals proved counterproductive, leaving no choice but to migrate them entirely into surrounding minor worlds."
"Once this world was cleared of mortals and the issue of the immortal-mortal miasma was thoroughly resolved..."
"...the true chaos and slaughter descended. The orthodox order that had endured in the cultivation world for untold tens of thousands of years collapsed overnight. The good and bad were swept away together; cultivators were reduced to mere ants, struggling desperately for their lives."
"This era, I would call the [Great Dark Period]."
"Even the darkest days must eventually come to an end. Once the number of cultivators dwindled to an absolute minimum, the killing finally ceased."
"By then, the cultivation world had long since become a wasteland. Only solitary survivors who had eked out an existence through the Great Dark Period lived across this desolate expanse."
"This could be called the [Wasteland Period]."
"After that came the founding of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association, and a new cultivation order emerged once more in the Xuanhuang Realm."
Li Fan organized everything he had seen and heard since stepping onto the path of cultivation.
A clear historical thread gradually surfaced.
*The vitality of cultivator civilization is truly astonishing,* Li Fan could not help but sigh inwardly.
*Even after enduring one catastrophe after another, even when pushed to near-total extinction, it can take root and sprout anew from the ruins.*
And at the thought that his future adversaries might be ancient monsters who had survived through each of these calamitous periods, Li Fan felt a prickle of chills run over his scalp.
Yet he remained completely undaunted.
*I can fail countless times.*
*But no matter what your cultivation realm may be, fail just once, and you lose everything.*
*What do I have to fear?*
*Whoever blocks my path to longevity, I shall slay without mercy.*
Li Fan had long since recognized that the new order of the Xuanhuang Realm bore a striking resemblance to "fish picking."
To survive, merely becoming the new Fish Champion was not enough.
Only by evading the collective hunt of those ancient fish kings watching greedily from the shadows would one truly possess the right to control their own destiny.
His emotions slowly settled.
The world simulated by True Reversion had not yet ended.
Li Fan guessed that Tianyang's "story" was not over.
In any case, within this realm akin to the Fallen Immortal Realm, the flow of time differed from the real world.
Li Fan was in no hurry to leave.
He simply remained inside this Path of Bodily Transformation cave abode and, using Tianyang's body, began practicing [Self-Transformation into Another at Will].
Cultivating the ancient method was a novel experience for Li Fan.
It was not blunt and crude like the new method.
It placed greater emphasis on comprehending the technique itself, as well as perceiving and contemplating the Great Dao.
Compared to the mechanically repetitive, bitter drudgery of the new method's cultivation process, practicing the old method gave Li Fan a sense of greater autonomy and genuine enjoyment.
Of course, this was also because Li Fan's current body was Master Tianyang's own body, which was capable of cultivation.
A mortal without cultivation aptitude certainly would not find it so pleasant.
Without needing any wonder of heaven and earth, after reaching Qi Condensation perfection, Li Fan naturally broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage using Tianyang's body, like water carving out a channel.
Afterward, he advanced in great strides through mid Foundation Establishment, late Foundation Establishment...
Only upon reaching peak Foundation Establishment did his progress finally come to a halt.
Chapter 230