To call it a "world" might be somewhat inaccurate.
More fitting would be a "pocket world" or a "grotto-heaven"—an existence of a lower tier.
Without a doubt, a nascent Five Elements Great Grotto-Heaven was forming right here.
"The gateway of the Mysterious Female is the Root of Heaven and Earth," Li Fan murmured under his breath.
Similar words were preserved in the ancient records of the Xuanhuang Realm.
Heaven and Earth nurtured all things.
Yet where did Heaven and Earth come from?
The cultivator community never lacked figures possessed of an exploratory spirit.
Aside from the cultivators mentioned previously who had been striving to reestablish contact with other cultivation worlds outside the Xuanhuang Realm, there was also a group of cultivators dedicated specifically to researching the birth of Heaven and Earth and the origin of living beings.
Li Fan had once read several books on the subject.
These cultivators believed that Heaven and Earth were like a human being, constantly growing and evolving.
In the very beginning, the Xuanhuang Realm had very likely been nothing more than a miniature grotto-heaven.
Only after unimaginably vast spans of time had it finally evolved into what it was today.
As for those miniature grotto-heavens, they might have been created out of nothing by mighty cultivators and ancient True Immortals, or they might have evolved and arisen spontaneously from the void.
Cultivators remained far from certain just how vast the entire "spacetime" they inhabited truly was.
Yet what was beyond doubt was that the Xuanhuang Realm was merely an insignificant speck within the sea of endless spacetime.
Even if few cultivators truly cared about this fact, it did not alter the reality of its existence.
In endless spacetime, that which evolved into the embryonic form of a world was known by cultivators as the "Root of Heaven and Earth."
It was the origin of worlds, the convergence of laws, the genesis of creation.
It had existed purely in theory; no one had ever been fortunate enough to witness it in truth.
Li Fan had never expected that today, after gathering information across several cycles of reincarnation, bolstered by his unyielding willpower, he would ultimately set foot in this place.
Even though the myriad fledgling laws contained here were far too profound for his current self to comprehend, they still uncontrollably stirred an impulse within him: *If one hears the Dao in the morning, one may die without regret at dusk.*
Intersecting prismatic particles collided, bringing forth diverse spectacles.
And the horizontal and vertical lines spanning the entire space resembled a colossal loom, weaving the birth of a "world."
Li Fan lost himself in the magnificent vista for a long time before reluctantly pulling his thoughts back.
Though upon closer examination it seemed like drawing water with a sieve—he had grasped no profound enlightenment—his entire soul felt as if it had been soaked in warm water. Not only was it incomparably soothing, but it also felt mysteriously sublimated.
Amid his delight, Li Fan did not forget the objective of this journey.
"Seize the essence of Heaven and Earth to form the Nascent Soul."
Li Fan's eyes flickered.
At that moment, he had genuinely entertained the thought of plundering this Root of Heaven and Earth and turning it into something akin to his own Nascent Soul grotto-heaven.
If that could truly be done, combined with the Dao Foundation forged from half of True Reversion, he should surely be able to freely evolve his own grotto-heaven domain at will, just as he could transform his Foundation Establishment wonders.
Hidden Dragon, Volcano, Dharma Eye...
As long as he grasped their specific information, he could manifest them in an instant.
Alas...
"My foundation is too shallow. Calling it a snake trying to swallow an elephant doesn't even do it justice; it's an ant trying to swallow an elephant," Li Fan mocked himself softly.
After observing for only a few moments longer, Li Fan dismissed that suicidal idea.
An ant swallowing an elephant could only court its own destruction.
Perhaps far in the future, once Li Fan attained the Dao Integration realm and possessed a sufficiently profound understanding of the principles of Heaven and Earth, he could return here in the Golden Core realm. Only then might he have a sliver of confidence in plundering it.
For now...
Better to be pragmatic and focus his target on the Five Elements Great Grotto-Heaven first.
Having lingered here for a while, Li Fan had also discerned a few clues.
Perhaps stimulated by the original Five Elements Grotto-Heavens being forcefully relocated, the Root of Heaven and Earth was reweaving a new grotto-heaven amid its crisscrossing threads.
"In that case, all I need to do is wait patiently."
"A nascent grotto-heaven is frail and far easier to subdue."
"Moreover, there is no need to worry that its strength will compromise my actual combat power after advancing. The Five Elements Grotto-Heavens possess all five elements and form a self-contained whole. Ceaselessly generating and perpetually evolving."
With a plan settled in mind, Li Fan let out a breath of relief.
Paying no heed to whatever might transpire in the outside world, he settled in completely to observe the birth of the grotto-heaven.
Li Fan had originally thought that since a human birth required ten months of pregnancy, the birth of a grotto-heaven should be dozens of times more difficult.
Yet clearly, attempting to fathom Heaven and Earth using human principles was bound to lead to error.
The speed at which the new Five Elements Great Grotto-Heaven was forming far exceeded Li Fan's expectations.
The collisions of the intersecting particles grew increasingly frequent.
Like bursts of fireworks, they erupted before Li Fan's eyes.
Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth...
Li Fan began to sense energy fluctuations of five distinct attributes coming into being within this space.
Yet each was restrained within its own bounds, not scattering wildly.
Li Fan's eyes could not see the actual scenery of the grotto-heaven's birth.
He could only indirectly perceive it through the shifts in energy within the Root of Heaven and Earth.
As the embryonic form of the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens neared its emergence into the world, Li Fan's heart could not help but quicken with excitement.
Yet at that very moment, he discovered that the lines composing his body had begun to break down toward the outside.
Li Fan conjectured that perhaps weaving the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens had caused the Root of Heaven and Earth to deplete a portion of its energy, leading it to draw upon anything it could from outside to replenish itself.
Consequently, Li Fan, an invading foreign entity, had become its foremost target.
Should he devour the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens right here and advance to the Nascent Soul realm?
Or should he leave the Root of Heaven and Earth first, and only devour it after the Five Elements Grotto-Heavens had fully formed and manifested in the void of Tianling Province?
Li Fan could not help hesitating.
Yet before long, he made up his mind.
Although there was a risk of disintegrating here, at least there were no bystanders to interfere.
Out near the void of Tianling Province, cultivators from the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals were still on patrol.
No matter how lax they were, the fluctuations generated by a breakthrough from Golden Core to the Nascent Soul realm would surely never escape their notice.
When that time came, no matter how glib-tongued Li Fan was, he would likely fail to talk his way out of it.
"It's worth a try."
"If I truly slip up and fail, the worst that can happen is trying again next life."
Thus, Li Fan ceased resisting and allowed this space to draw upon his own lines.
Like a ball of yarn having threads continuously pulled from it, Li Fan's body shrank at a rate visible to the naked eye.
Yet he showed no fear. Instead, he borrowed this pulling force to ride the current toward the location of the nascent Five Elements Grotto-Heavens.
"Above" the Root of Heaven and Earth...
Five distinctly colored clusters of light were coalescing.
From the crisscrossing threads below, nodes continuously exploded, rendering the five clusters of elemental light clearer and more stable.
Right as this unfolded, with only half his body remaining, Li Fan arrived before the clusters of light.
Chapter 579