Simulating the River of Time, the Illusory Realm Stirs!

Dao Ancestors! Emperors! The supreme existences of both the immortal race and the You clan had appeared. An Emperor of the You clan was equivalent to a Dao Ancestor. As for the You clan ancestor, he belonged to an entirely different realm, towering above both Emperors and Dao Ancestors. Dao Ancestors and Emperors had clashed countless times within the chaos, neither side ever able to overcome the other. For a long time now, they had essentially observed a truce. Yet now, the You clan Emperors had abruptly emerged and even penetrated deep into the Heaven Realm. This was plainly abnormal. *Rumble!* The Dao Ancestors struck. Every strike unleashed thunderous, crushing power. The entire Immortal Palace shook violently, fracturing into fragments within the blink of an eye. Countless Immortal Monarchs and Immortal Venerables fell back in haste. Such was the might of Dao Ancestors and Emperors. Once they fought, even the slightest aftershock was more than other immortals could bear. Lu Changsheng stood among the multitude of Immortal Monarchs and Immortal Venerables. Confronted with a battle of this caliber, he felt utterly powerless. There was simply no way for him to intervene. "Immortal Venerable Kuhai, what in the world is happening?" Spotting Immortal Venerable Kuhai, Lu Changsheng flew over immediately and called out to ask. Immortal Venerable Kuhai wore an equally solemn expression. He shook his head. "I don't know what the You clan is up to either. By all logic, the You clan Emperors shouldn't recklessly push so deep into the Heaven Realm. Here in the Heaven Realm, Dao Ancestors can draw upon the world origin, granting them an absolute advantage. The You clan Emperors attempted this a few times before and all ended in failure. Trying the same trick again means they must have some scheme!" Even as a Taiyi Immortal Venerable, Immortal Venerable Kuhai had no idea what had transpired. Within the Heaven Realm, Dao Ancestors enjoyed the world's augmentation. This was dictated by the immortal race's cultivation system. Even if Emperors shared the same realm of cultivation with Dao Ancestors, Dao Ancestors were distinctly stronger inside the Heaven Realm. The Emperors naturally knew this. Under normal circumstances, they would never set foot inside the Heaven Realm. Yet this time, the Emperors had come. Not only had they come, but nearly all of the You clan's Emperors had mobilized en masse. This was extraordinarily unusual. Lu Changsheng also watched the grand battle unfold. The clash between Dao Ancestors and Emperors truly shook heaven and earth. The entire Heaven Realm trembled. However, it was readily apparent that the Dao Ancestors held the definitive upper hand. Given enough time, they would certainly drive the Emperors out. *Hmm?* *That's...* Suddenly, Lu Changsheng's gaze fell upon a particular region of the Heaven Realm. The You clan Emperors stood firmly within that expanse, while the Dao Ancestors refrained from entering it, remaining strictly beyond its perimeter. Yet that region was plainly a part of the Heaven Realm. Lu Changsheng could see the anomaly, and the Dao Ancestors had realized it long before. "Conversion?" "You are actually converting a portion of the Heaven Realm?" "You even went so far as to expend precious You clan origin stones for this!" Pan Ancestor halted. Watching the steadily expanding region, his heart sank. He understood now. The You clan Emperors had mobilized together for the sole purpose of conversion. And now, they had actually succeeded. Though it was only a small patch of territory, it granted the You clan a foothold. As long as they remained inside that small patch, the Dao Ancestors could no longer harness the Heaven Realm's origin against them. Could they sever the region away? Or collapse it outright? That was impossible too. With the Emperors present, they would never allow the Dao Ancestors to blast the region into collapse. Nor was severing it feasible—not unless the Dao Ancestors possessed an overwhelming advantage capable of annihilating the Emperors. Yet they held no such advantage. Fighting in the chaos, the two sides were at best evenly matched. It was only inside the Heaven Realm that the Dao Ancestors held some edge. But with a piece of the Heaven Realm converted and the Emperors stationed within it, the Dao Ancestors naturally lost that advantage. The Dao Ancestors exchanged glances. All of them knew that real trouble had arrived. By allowing the You clan to secure a foothold in the Heaven Realm, the You clan could use this territory to slowly encroach upon the rest of it. Knowing full well that the You clan would steadily eat away at their territory, the Dao Ancestors had no good countermeasure. Now, the battlefield beyond the heavens was turning into a battlefield within the Heaven Realm itself. Shifting the conflict from the chaos into the interior of the Heaven Realm would undoubtedly inflict massive attrition on the realm. "Pan Ancestor, our world was destroyed. We wish only to make a home in the chaos world, to secure a foothold where we may rest and recuperate. We can promise you not to provoke war lightly. What say you?" one of the You clan Emperors spoke up. Pan Ancestor gave no reply. None of the Dao Ancestors said a word. Just because the You clan's world was ruined, they were justified in invading the Heaven Realm? It sounded pleasant enough, but everyone knew the You clan was merely biding time, waiting for their ancestor to awaken. Once the You clan ancestor awoke, the Heaven Realm would be finished, destined to fall into their grasp. As for why the You clan insisted on forcibly converting a section of the Heaven Realm right now, it was because they could no longer survive out in the chaos. Cultivating in the chaos was practically impossible. The You clan had remained barred beyond the heavens, trapped in the chaos. Waging constant war against the immortal race gave them no chance to recover and rebuild. They desperately needed to enter the Heaven Realm to rest and recuperate. With their ancestor still asleep, their only choice was to expend their precious You clan origin stones. Every origin stone spent was one gone forever, yet they had no other recourse. Entering the Heaven Realm was a prerequisite for recovery. For a time, both sides were locked in a stalemate. A steady stream of You clan members and lifeforms from beyond the heavens entered the converted zone, while the Dao Ancestors were unable to breach it. "Guard every approach strictly! Under no circumstances may we permit them to convert a second region." The Dao Ancestors reached a consensus. This time, they had indeed grown careless. Furthermore, the Dao Ancestors had been at the battlefield beyond the heavens when, in an unguarded moment, the You clan Emperors breached the realm's interior. By the time the Dao Ancestors reacted, the conversion was already underway. It had been too late to prevent it. Yet they would never allow it to happen again. From now on, the Dao Ancestors would remain inside the Heaven Realm, keeping watch over the You clan with undivided attention. The moment the You clan Emperors made an unusual move, the Dao Ancestors would mobilize the realm's origin to suppress them. They would never give the Emperors a second chance at conversion. Still, what was already converted could no longer be retaken. They could only allow the You clan to remain within the Heaven Realm. Days slipped by. Months later, the You clan and the immortal race had each reconstructed a defensive line inside the Heaven Realm. Both sides watched one another like predators. However, the You clan Emperors settled down, making no further aggressive moves. Yet everyone knew that the You clan had taken the critical first step. Moving forward, all they needed to do was wait silently. Or, even if their ancestor did not awaken, they could bide their time across the ages to seize an occasional opportunity and continue converting the Heaven Realm. The immortal race was powerless to stop it. *** Inside the Dao Ancestor Hall, the seven Dao Ancestors of the Heaven Realm had been conferring for several months. Yet none of them had found any effective solution. "Pan Ancestor, things have reached this point. If the You clan seeks gradual encroachment, we can do nothing to prevent it. Still, their origin stones cannot possibly be sufficient to convert the entire Heaven Realm. Had their reserves been ample, they would have used this strategy long ago. Why wait until now?" "Indeed. This method of slow encroachment is formidable and steady, leaving us no opening to exploit, but it consumes vast quantities of origin stones. The You clan's chaos world has collapsed; how many stones could they possibly have left? Converting the entire Heaven Realm would require an astronomical amount—an amount they almost certainly do not possess." "The You clan could not remain in the chaos indefinitely. Did we not anticipate long ago that they would force their way into the Heaven Realm at all costs? We merely failed to foresee that they would deploy origin stones to convert the land. Seen from another angle, this is not entirely bad news. Their resorting to origin stones proves they were reaching their limit and had to enter the realm to recuperate. Moreover, the You clan ancestor will likely not awaken anytime soon. Otherwise, they would simply have waited for him instead of wasting origin stones." At this thought, the eyes of the seven Dao Ancestors brightened. The You clan ancestor would not awaken for the time being. That was genuinely good news. All along, the You clan ancestor had weighed upon the Dao Ancestors like a colossal boulder pressing down on their chests. Everyone understood that once he awoke, the entire Heaven Realm would be doomed. Pan Ancestor nodded slowly. "Then we will most likely remain locked in a standoff with the You clan here in the Heaven Realm. But we cannot pin our hopes on the You clan ancestor never awakening. No matter how severe his injuries, so long as he lives, he will wake one day. What will become of our Heaven Realm then?" "Our only hope is for the immortal race to grow, to surpass the Dao Ancestors, and to thoroughly break through into chaos lifeforms. Only then can we stand against him and drive out the You clan once and for all." "Yet achieving the level of a chaos lifeform within the Heaven Realm is virtually impossible. The cultivation system of our realm was created and passed down by us Dao Ancestors alone. If even we cannot break through into chaos lifeforms, how could any other immortal do so?" "If any among the immortal race are to reach that level, they must venture out into the chaos. Yet the chaos is fraught with mortal peril. Therefore, I propose that only those who have attained the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm and merged their Dao Fruit into the realm be permitted to roam the chaos. That way, even if they meet disaster, they can be reborn from the Heaven Realm." Pan Ancestor's words drew nods of agreement from the other Dao Ancestors. Indeed, under the current circumstances, there was no better alternative. Continuing as they were was merely waiting to die; whenever the You clan ancestor awoke would mark the end of the realm. If the immortals ventured into the chaos, there might yet remain a thread of hope. Of course, the probability was minute. Even in the vast, boundless chaos, becoming a chaos lifeform was exceptionally difficult. It was not as though the Dao Ancestors had never traveled beyond, yet what had come of it? Long before the You clan's arrival, great numbers of immortals had roamed the chaos, and what had come of that? Still, not a single chaos lifeform had been born—proof of how arduous the feat truly was. The Dao Ancestors' decision was merely doing everything within human power while resigning the rest to fate. *** Lu Changsheng gazed toward the distant territory converted by the You clan. For now, the immortal race and the You clan had reached a temporary standoff. Seeming to recognize that neither could overpower the other, both settled into mutual vigilance with very little open conflict. Yet Lu Changsheng could faintly sense that, in truth, the immortal race had lost this round. The You clan had invaded the Heaven Realm, and the immortal race had been powerless to expel them. If that was not a defeat, what was? Still, at least a stalemate had formed. The You clan showed no intention of pushing further for the moment. Looking toward the You clan's region, Lu Changsheng recalled a novel term he had heard repeatedly over recent days: conversion. That region occupied by the You clan was described as converted. It seemed that once transformed by the You clan, even the Dao Ancestors lost all advantages within it. This gave Lu Changsheng food for thought. Lately, he had been attempting to comprehend his Dao Fruits, striving to bring them to consummation. His first attempt had been with the Illusory Realm. The Illusory Realm seemed to have everything in place; anything could be constructed within it. Lu Changsheng had hoped that quantitative accumulation would prompt a qualitative leap, and so he had attempted to "transplant" the entire Heaven Realm into the Illusory Realm. Yet even as the Illusory Realm grew fuller and increasingly resembled the Heaven Realm, his progress remained fixed at ninety percent, refusing to budge. Lu Changsheng understood that it lacked time. There was no rule of time within the Illusory Realm. No matter what he constructed inside it, everything remained a static picture. All of it was utterly still. Whether the Boundary Sea or Dao fields, all were frozen, like scenes on a painted scroll. No matter how marvelous the Illusory Realm was, it remained nothing more than a painting, incapable of becoming a true world. "Time..." Lu Changsheng was at a complete loss. He could not comprehend the rule of time. He did not even have an inkling of where to begin. This was the very first time since acquiring top-tier comprehension that Lu Changsheng had felt a sense of frustration. He possessed top-tier comprehension, yet when it came to grasping the rule of time, he had no idea where to start. There seemed to be no purchase to be found anywhere. Right then, a message spread throughout the Heavenly Court, reaching Lu Changsheng as well. "All those at or above the realm of Taiyi Immortal Venerable may apply to leave the Heaven Realm and travel the chaos!" This brief announcement instantly stirred up massive waves. Lu Changsheng could hear the surrounding immortals discussing it. "We can leave the Heaven Realm and head into the chaos?" "After so many years, this is the first time! Ever since the You clan invaded and the battlefield beyond the heavens opened, the Heavenly Court pulled back all forces, forbidding any immortal from traveling the chaos and stationing everyone beyond the heavens to hold the line. Why are they suddenly letting Taiyi Immortal Venerables leave?" "Perhaps it has something to do with the You clan converting a piece of the Heaven Realm..." Information regarding the You clan ancestor was actually kept secret from Immortal Monarchs and those below the rank of Immortal Venerable. Very few knew of his existence. Even Lu Changsheng had learned of him only through the royal bloodline of the You clan. Immortals below the venerable rank were unaware of the dire situation confronting the immortal race. Lu Changsheng had made some guesses, though he could not be certain. "Immortal Venerable Changsheng, Pan Ancestor summons you." A message appeared on Lu Changsheng's message transmission stone. With Pan Ancestor summoning him, Lu Changsheng naturally set off for the Dao Ancestor Hall without delay. Soon, he arrived. Only Lu Changsheng and Pan Ancestor were present in the hall. "Greetings, Pan Ancestor!" Lu Changsheng bowed respectfully. Before a Dao Ancestor, he would never neglect etiquette, maintaining the utmost reverence. After all, the cultivation system of the immortal race had been created almost single-handedly by the Dao Ancestors; all immortals were effectively their disciples and descendants. "Immortal Venerable Changsheng, you have arrived. Be seated." Pan Ancestor appeared quite amiable. Lu Changsheng sat cross-legged. "Immortal Venerable Changsheng, you have received the news?" Pan Ancestor asked. Knowing Pan Ancestor referred to Taiyi Immortal Venerables being permitted to travel the chaos, Lu Changsheng nodded. "This disciple has received the news that Taiyi Immortal Venerables may roam the chaos. Does this mean a major battle with the You clan will not occur for the time being?" "Indeed. For now, we are merely in a standoff, and no major war will erupt. Besides, even if war does break out, the Dao Ancestors can control the situation inside the Heaven Realm, so we do not require so many immortals." "Allowing Taiyi Immortal Venerables to roam the chaos is done in hopes of bringing a glimmer of hope to our realm. You know of the You clan ancestor; we cannot passively wait for death. If someone can ascend to become a chaos lifeform, they can withstand the You clan ancestor and save the Heaven Realm!" Understanding dawned upon Lu Changsheng. It was indeed as he had suspected. "Is the You clan ancestor a chaos lifeform?" Lu Changsheng asked. "Yes, he is a chaos lifeform. However, he fought another chaos lifeform and suffered irreversible, grievous wounds. He has remained asleep ever since. Perhaps he will never awaken, or perhaps he will open his eyes tomorrow; no one can say for sure." "Nevertheless, the likelihood of his awakening is high. Once he wakes, he can easily crush the immortal race and claim the Heaven Realm!" Pan Ancestor's voice was calm, yet the implications were chilling. The situation had deteriorated to such an extreme extent that even the Dao Ancestors lacked any good solution, forced to place their hopes upon the numerous Taiyi Immortal Venerables, wishing that someone roaming the chaos might chance upon an opportunity to ascend to a chaos lifeform. Yet the odds were exceedingly small, practically negligible. "Pan Ancestor, can only those at or above Taiyi Immortal Venerable travel the chaos?" Lu Changsheng asked. "Yes, only Taiyi Immortal Venerables and above. As for the reason, you have likely deduced it: a Taiyi Immortal Venerable's Dao Fruit is merged into the Heaven Realm, making them immortal and indestructible. They can roam the chaos freely without fear of falling." "Perhaps this is the greatest advantage of our immortal cultivation system," Pan Ancestor sighed softly. He, too, had once roamed the chaos, encountering many chaos worlds and witnessing diverse cultivation systems. The immortal system could not be proclaimed the absolute strongest, but it possessed its own unique merits—such as a Taiyi Immortal Venerable achieving immortality once their Dao Fruit merged into the Heaven Realm. That was singularly distinctive; not even the You clan possessed such a trait. Lu Changsheng actually held a comparable ability in his flesh avatars, but there was a distinction. If his true body died, the flesh avatar that matured would lose everything held within the physical form—such as the Flesh Dao Fruit, the Myriad Spirits Dao Fruit, and the Mortal Dao Fruit. Only the analytical ability of a Mortal Immortal and top-tier comprehension would remain. Given time, Lu Changsheng might cultivate them back, but there was no telling how long it would take. A Taiyi Immortal Venerable was different. If a Taiyi Immortal Venerable perished while roaming outside, they would be nurtured anew within the Heaven Realm. Once reborn, they would be identical to their former self, without the slightest discrepancy. In that sense, having one's Dao Fruit merged into the Heaven Realm was truly superior to Lu Changsheng's flesh avatars. "Taiyi Immortal Venerable..." Lu Changsheng wished to venture into the chaos as well. To do so, he had to become a Taiyi Immortal Venerable. And to achieve that, he had to bring his Dao Fruits to consummation. Standing before Pan Ancestor was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and Lu Changsheng had no desire to let it slip by. Thus, Lu Changsheng spoke, "Pan Ancestor, this disciple has a request. May the Dao Ancestor permit me to gaze upon the Heaven Realm's River of Time..." Lu Changsheng's resolute voice echoed throughout the Dao Ancestor Hall. "The River of Time?" Pan Ancestor was slightly taken aback. Lu Changsheng actually wished to see the River of Time. Dao Ancestors grasped the "Dao" of the Heaven Realm and could even mobilize its origin. While they could not manipulate time, simply granting someone a look at the River of Time presented no difficulty. Still, Pan Ancestor was astonished. Lu Changsheng was merely an Immortal Venerable. Was he already seeking to comprehend the rule of time? When not even Dao Ancestors could grasp it, how could an Immortal Venerable? Yet the Dao Ancestor neither refused nor immediately agreed. He silently gazed at Lu Changsheng for a long while before speaking slowly, "It is permitted." "However, we must abide by the rules." "To view the River of Time for one shichen requires one million immortal merit!" In the Heavenly Court, everything could be exchanged for immortal merit. Having a Dao Ancestor guide someone to view the River of Time was no exception; it likewise required merit. "This disciple needs only half a shichen. Would five hundred thousand immortal merit suffice?" Lu Changsheng inquired. In truth, whether it was one shichen or half made little difference to him. He was not attempting to comprehend the rule of time; he intended to *simulate* the River of Time. If he could successfully simulate it, the Illusory Realm would undergo an earth-shattering transformation. "It suffices," Pan Ancestor agreed. Whether it was one million or five hundred thousand immortal merit meant nothing to Pan Ancestor. Yet rules were rules. "Thank you, Pan Ancestor!" Lu Changsheng was overjoyed. He would finally behold the River of Time. This was the sole method he could conceive to break the deadlock—at least in the short term. Otherwise, faced with three Dao Fruits, he was at his wit's end, left with no choice but to slowly grind through vast stretches of time, unsure of how many years it would cost him. "Are you prepared?" Pan Ancestor asked. "This disciple is fully prepared." "Good." Pan Ancestor nodded. He then raised a finger and tapped lightly toward the void. *Hum.* With that single tap, space shattered instantaneously like a massive pane of smooth glass. Everything in the surroundings vanished. Just a moment ago, Lu Changsheng had been seated inside the Dao Ancestor Hall. Yet as the void shattered, where was the hall? He found himself plunged into sheer darkness, adrift in an empty void, uncertain of where he stood. Nevertheless, Lu Changsheng did not panic. He could still see Pan Ancestor. Reassured, he remained calm, sitting quietly in place. After an indeterminable time, a pinpoint of light appeared in the silent, pitch-black void. The light expanded steadily. Seen from afar, it resembled a luminous river cutting across the dark expanse, surging forward to some unknown destination. "This is..." Lu Changsheng's spirit shook. He had already guessed. "This is the River of Time!" "Remember, you do not have much time..." Pan Ancestor's voice echoed beside his ear. Lu Changsheng's heart leapt. Indeed, the River of Time! This was the River of Time he had yearned to see, and now his wish had finally come true. Yet he kept Pan Ancestor's warning in mind. He had little time—only half a shichen. Lu Changsheng brought his analytical ability to bear with all his might. Augmented by his top-tier comprehension, his analytical prowess reached an unfathomable degree, far surpassing even that of Dao Ancestors. However, he did not attempt to analyze the rule of time. He knew his own limits. Even with the River of Time directly before him, attempting to decipher the rule of time in such a brief window was nothing short of a fool's dream. Forget half a shichen; even a year, a decade, or a century would not guarantee success. Yet Lu Changsheng's goal had never been to analyze the rule of time. It was to *simulate* it. Yes, he would simulate it within the Illusory Realm. "Illusory Realm..." The next instant, Lu Changsheng's Illusory Realm descended. *Hmm?* Pan Ancestor seemed to sense something and glanced toward Lu Changsheng. Yet it was only a brief glance before he looked away, paying it no further mind. Lu Changsheng had only half a shichen; how much he could gain depended entirely on himself. Once the Illusory Realm manifested, Lu Changsheng fixed his gaze intently upon the River of Time. Then, he went to work. Within the Illusory Realm, he began constructing the River of Time. It was pure simulation. Supported by the analytical power of his top-tier comprehension, mere simulation should not have posed an insurmountable challenge. Yet Lu Changsheng had underestimated the River of Time. The moment he began, he ran into immense difficulty. The River of Time appeared simple at a glance, but was far from it. Time was divided into past, present, and future. The past was eternal and immutable, whereas the future held myriad transformations. Every minute detail could drastically alter the course of the future; a single slight movement in the present could spawn hundreds or thousands of possibilities down the line. Such was the terrifying nature of time, and the reason it was the hardest to master. "No, simulating the River of Time is something I simply cannot achieve right now." Lu Changsheng's expression turned grim. He had once felt that with top-tier comprehension, he could grasp anything, that nothing could stump him. Yet faced with this vast River of Time, he was rendered speechless. A single small splash within the River of Time might represent tens of thousands of future branches, and each branch could split further into hundreds of millions of variations. Faced with such monstrous variables, who could simulate it? No one! It was utterly impossible! Even if his comprehension were multiplied ten-thousandfold, he still could not master it. This was not something mere analytical power could replicate. Yet Lu Changsheng was unwilling to let this opportunity slip through his fingers. If he could not simulate the entire River of Time, could he not simulate a single droplet from its spray? Yes—just a single spray of water. Or weaken that spray to a hundredth, or a ten-thousandth of its scale. In short, the quantity did not matter. What mattered was constructing a "River of Time" within the Illusory Realm, even if it were only a tiny ditch of water. Guided by this concept of continual reduction, a "River of Time" genuinely began to form within Lu Changsheng's Illusory Realm. Naturally, it could not compare to the real River of Time. Perhaps it was truly just a little ditch. Time ticked away. When Lu Changsheng finished simulating this "ditch of time," regardless of the vast difference in scale, it remained a ditch of time—a River of Time weakened hundreds of millions of times over. The moment the simulation was complete— *Boom!* Lu Changsheng's Illusory Realm shook. At the same time, Lu Changsheng clearly felt the Illusory Realm, which had previously been frozen like a painting, stir. At that very moment, the Illusory Realm moved!