Chapter 1301: The First Revival of Xuanhuang

"Carefree Dreamland." The scene of countless demonic cultivators devouring humans, which he had just witnessed, reappeared in Sun Erlang's mind. He simply couldn't reconcile it with the word "carefree."

The three looked again at the border of Qiuxi Prefecture. The demonic sect's world, which had been there, had vanished.

A barrier of white mist had taken its place, blocking their view.

"Can we go back?" Wang Xuanba exclaimed, overjoyed.

However, things were clearly not as simple as he imagined. When the Great Xuan trio tried to pass through the white mist barrier to return to their homeland...

What was originally just a simple soul-devouring mist had now transformed into an impenetrable, solid wall of bronze and iron!

Wang Xuanba, who was at the forefront, crashed straight into it, leaving him dizzy and disoriented.

"It seems that completely leaving the Carefree Dreamland might not be an easy task," Yue Zhenwei said with a heavy tone.

The three instinctively looked towards the remaining two border worlds.

They had a premonition that perhaps only by completing the trials of all three worlds would they learn what to do next.

The experiences of the Great Xuan trio within the Land of Carefree Joy were transmitted flawlessly into Li Fan's mind through the silver eyes of the Preaching Platform.

"Interesting," Li Fan thought.

Li Fan had reincarnated over a hundred times, witnessing the destruction of the Xuanhuang Realm, the resurgence of the Star Sea, and the collapse of high walls.

From similar experiences, he discerned far more than his three Core Formation disciples.

"This should just be the shallow layer of the Land of Carefree Joy. The dream's construction still incorporates some events from the Xuanhuang Realm as blueprints, such as the giant boulder by the sea in Shilinzhou, or the purple lightning that fell from the sky to eliminate demonic beasts. A cultivator's experience and knowledge within the Xuanhuang Realm will be somewhat helpful when exploring dreams of this level. Do they need to pass the trials in these peripheral dreams, slowly growing stronger, to qualify for deeper dream layers...?" Li Fan smiled; this pattern seemed very familiar to him.

"The Land of Carefree Joy seems to have its own rules. To gather more information about it, we'll let Sun Erlang and the others explore it slowly."

Sun Erlang and his two companions were merely the vanguard. Next, a continuous stream of disciples under the Saint Master would journey to the Land of Carefree Joy.

Their mission was to gather information there.

As the saying goes: though the Land of Joy is vast, even the humble can explore it!

The reason Li Fan paid so much attention to the Land of Carefree Joy was the remarkably conspicuous dark cloud that hovered over the territory of the Five Elders Association when he activated the Immortal Array to destroy the world in his previous life.

Under the shroud of the dark cloud, even beings who had already perished were protected.

One must remember that when the Immortal Descent, Myriad Things Return to Void Array was activated, even those who transmitted Dharma could only struggle to survive.

Yet, this dark cloud not only remained intact amidst the world-destroying immortal array, but also had the power to save people...

In Li Fan's previous understanding, it was utterly impossible for the five Immortals of the Five Elders Association to achieve this with their power!

Even after so many reincarnations, Li Fan had never discovered this secret of the Five Elders Association. This showed how deeply they had hidden it.

However, during the world-destroying storm, all these deeply hidden existences were exposed.

"Besides the Land of Carefree Joy, there's something else from the Five Elders Association that also withstood the immortal array's assault."

Li Fan's eyes flickered.

The Relics of the Dharma Transmitters, the Soul-Grinding Disk.

In his 119th life, Li Fan had seen and heard of this item. In that lifetime, the Myriad Immortal Alliance launched a surprise attack on the Five Elders Association by summoning the Dharma Transmitting Heavenly Venerate's avatar through the Immortal Chosen. This ultimately forced the Five Elders Association to hand over what was called the Immortal Alliance's relic.

"Within the Soul-Grinding Disk, there are fifty-six residual souls and one hundred and three skeletal remains."

"Yet these residual souls and remains remained perfectly intact amidst the raging immortal power..."

"Even the entire area where the Soul-Grinding Disk was preserved turned into nothingness, but it remained unharmed. The Soul-Grinding Disk is merely an ordinary magical artifact..."

Four words instantly appeared in Li Fan's mind.

Eternal Remnant.

"An Eternal Remnant cannot be brought into the 'Revert to Truth' state. Neither a clone nor a separated spirit can perceive its existence. Only I, myself, can absorb it through Revert to Truth."

"Unfortunately, just like Mr. Bai's skull, it's located in the core area of a power. It's not so easy to acquire."

"In this life, I can try to maneuver and see if I can obtain both items. If not, I'll simply seize them by force after achieving Dao Conjunction!"

Li Fan hummed softly, his thoughts returning to the present.

Standing in the world of Xuanhuang, Li Fan held an ordinary steel spear, his eyes slightly narrowed.

A chilling cold, as if to freeze all things, suddenly descended upon Li Fan's head.

Yet, it vanished just as quickly.

It was the Heavenly Dao Soul, summoned by Li Fan using his divine ability of "Transforming Heavenly Principles through Fallacy."

He canceled the casting before it fully materialized.

Although the Heavenly Dao Soul appeared and then dissipated, seemingly leaving no trace, in this process, the steel spear in Li Fan's hand seemed to have absorbed its power, gradually becoming extraordinary.

Silver light shimmered, emitting an intense chill. Faint, ethereal snowflakes occasionally drifted around the spear shaft.

After just a few attempts, this steel spear had transformed from an ordinary object into a truly peerless divine weapon.

Li Fan once again used his "Transforming Heavenly Principles through Fallacy" ability, but this time, instead of an icy Heavenly Dao Soul, it was a fiery red, pulsating flame.

*Poof...*

The crimson flame poured onto the silver-white steel spear, instantly engraving a lifelike image of nine dragons onto its shaft.

Sensing the increasingly dense hostility of the heavens and earth in that location, Li Fan flickered, moving to another spot.

"I'll call you the Blazing Dragon Ice Soul Spear," Li Fan casually named the newly crafted Heavenly Dao weapon, then threw it into the Preaching Platform's inventory, among tens of thousands of wondrous items.

Crafting wondrous items by manifesting the laws of the Xuanhuang Realm.

He was now increasingly proficient at such things.

Not only was it to prepare foundation-building materials for his students, but more importantly, it was to constantly assess the specific progress of the Xuanhuang Realm's recovery through these newly created wondrous items of heaven and earth.

The nourishing effect of the Xuanhuang Malice on the Xuanhuang Realm was somewhat beyond Li Fan's expectations.

Even after all this time, the Xuanhuang Realm's improvement was still ongoing.

And because the sublimation was concentrated within the Xuanhuang Realm, conventional methods couldn't determine its exact progress. Therefore, Li Fan needed to find an alternative approach.

He couldn't help but care.

The Heavenly Dao's feedback for helping the malice return to Xuanhuang had not yet arrived.

"After I separated a portion of my consciousness and attached it to Mr. Bai back then, the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao actually became incomplete. This missing part wasn't replenished by absorbing other fragmented realms. Instead, as the realm grew stronger, this incompleteness became even more... pronounced."

While creating artificial wondrous items of heaven and earth, Li Fan observed meticulously.

"In short, the Xuanhuang Realm previously always had a weakness. Returning the Xuanhuang Malice is equivalent to completing that weakness."

"Wonderful! It seems this generation's Super Xuanhuang Realm will be even stronger than what I had deduced."

As his thoughts churned, another wondrous item was at hand.

"Hmm? This time, the improvement is almost negligible. It seems it's finally about to complete its digestion." Li Fan's heart stirred slightly as he looked at the sky.

A marvelous sensation slowly arose in his mind.

After about half a day, the subtle connection with the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao re-emerged.

However, because his true self possessed the Dao Foundation of the Xuanhuang World-Ending Transformation, the Xuanhuang Realm naturally harbored hostility towards him.

The "Heavenly Favor" feedback in this life merely almost nullified this hostility, with a slight surplus.

It was utterly incomparable to the Heavenly Emperor of old.

"But since its attitude has changed, there will be plenty of ways to increase its goodwill in the future," Li Fan mused inwardly.

In his perception, Elder Yin, Qiaogong, and others also successively noticed the descent of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Favor.

For cultivators from outside the realm like Qiaogong and Baihua, the long-standing sense of estrangement from the Xuanhuang Realm finally vanished.

Xu Ke was originally a person of heavenly destiny. However, after guarding and sealing the Xuanhuang Malice and the death of his companion spirit beast, Xiao Hei, his heavenly destiny had dissipated over thousands of years. But now, Xu Ke once again received heavenly favor. His white hair turned black, and his stooped back straightened. In the blink of an eye, Xu Ke transformed from a frail, dying old man into the image of a steady middle-aged man.

Elder Yin's reaction, however, was somewhat subtle. It was as if something had directly exploded in his head, and Elder Yin's skull instantly turned into a mist of blood.

From the wound on his neck, one could faintly see the puppet-like body inside Elder Yin's, disintegrating inch by inch.

The small figure's face was ferocious, constantly spitting out frothy blood and fragments. The flesh of his external body wriggled, absorbing the regurgitated matter once more.

Li Fan waved his hand, stopping the others who wanted to go forward and help.

Elder Yin let out a strange laugh.

Li Fan's figure appeared beside the group at just the right moment.

"Don't worry, this is a good thing for him," Li Fan said, reassuring them.

Elder Yin was a World Specter. He was a conglomerate of fragmented realms that could not be absorbed by the Xuanhuang Realm, forced to parasitize within it like a specter.

Before this, the Xuanhuang Realm had merely acknowledged Elder Yin, adopting an attitude of disregard.

But now, after Elder Yin helped return the Xuanhuang Malice, the Xuanhuang Realm's attitude changed.

In other words, it labeled Elder Yin as "beneficial."

The consequence of this was that the Xuanhuang Realm began to try and accept him, incorporating him into the natural operation of the Heavenly Dao.

If no other forces intervened, then in several years, Elder Yin, as a specter of fragmented realms, would become an existence akin to the Stone Tablet or Ruomu, fully integrated into the Xuanhuang Realm.

Li Fan was not lying; this truly could be considered a good thing for Elder Yin.

Firstly, by leveraging the power of the Xuanhuang Realm's Heavenly Dao, the consciousnesses of other fragmented realms within his body could be crushed. He would become purer, no longer intermittently mad or delirious as before.

Secondly...

Within the Xuanhuang Realm, there also remained a large amount of residue, known as "Anomalies," left behind during the process of devouring fragmented realms.

These laws, which did not integrate with the Xuanhuang Realm, previously often required destructive methods like 'Ink Kill' to be completely eradicated.

However, once Elder Yin was integrated into the Xuanhuang Realm's Heavenly Dao system, he could voraciously devour these Anomalies. While strengthening himself, he could also help the Xuanhuang Realm purge the residue within its body. It was a win-win situation.

Although it was a "good thing" in every sense, Li Fan perceived a sense of resistance from Elder Yin.

If Elder Yin himself resisted, it was highly possible that he could interrupt this integration process.

Li Fan's expression turned solemn, and he sent a telepathic message: "Why bother resisting? After integrating into the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, you will essentially be no different from an Immortal Cultivator who defies logic."

"The Star Sea is recovering, and the Xuanhuang Realm is currently the only pure land in the Star Sea. In the future, it might be able to leverage this recovery power to break through mortal limits and ascend into the legendary Immortal Realm. At that time, your achievements will likely be immeasurable!"

"This is the grand trend of the Dao; those who follow it prosper, and those who oppose it perish!"

Amidst Li Fan's continuous admonishments, Elder Yin's struggling expression slowly calmed down. Especially after hearing the words "Immortal Realm," his last trace of resistance vanished.

His exploded head regrew.

The wounds healed, concealing the sound of flesh being chewed within his body.

Elder Yin returned to his original appearance.

However, compared to his previous self, who hid madness within his ordinariness, the current Elder Yin indeed resembled the Stone Tablet.

Ancient and profound.

"Congratulations, everyone," Li Fan said with a slight smile.

"Thank you, Saint Master, for your benevolence!" Elder Yin and the others no longer used their previous address of "fellow Daoist." Instead, like the students on the Preaching Platform, they called him "Saint Master."

After all, whether it was leading them to the center of the Star Sea to observe the Dao of Recovery, or teaching them to purify and return the Xuanhuang Malice, thereby gaining vast heavenly favor...

Any one of these acts could be considered a profound act of recreation.

To Elder Yin and the others, Li Fan was entirely worthy of the title "Saint Master."

"The Xuanhuang Realm has completed its initial transformation. Next, it will require our efforts and guidance to help it digest the fragmented realms from various places. However, some preparatory work is needed before that."

"Please elaborate, Saint Master."

"Although Xuanhuang has devoured its own malice and compensated for its weaknesses, over thousands of years, cultivators have swallowed lands and seized skies, leading to some depletion. It's like a person who hasn't eaten for a long time suddenly gorging themselves. Abruptly stimulating the digestion of fragmented realms might lead to negative consequences." Li Fan explained the reasons in detail.

Baihua nodded slightly, understanding. "So, what we need to do now is first help the Xuanhuang Realm digest one or two fragmented realms? Where do we start?"

"The fragmented realms within Xuanhuang have subtly become one entity. A single movement affects the whole. Therefore, using these fragmented realms within the Xuanhuang Realm as a primer won't work." Li Fan offered a slight smile, looking at everyone.

Qiaogong couldn't help but look at the void outside the Xuanhuang Realm. "So, we need to go outside to find world fragments?"

"But where could we find them? We previously crossed more than half the Star Sea, and all we saw were vast expanses of void. It's likely that all the fragmented realms in the entire Star Sea have fallen into the Immortal Ruins!"

Elder Yin snorted coldly. "Then where did the fragmented realms that the Xuanhuang Realm devoured all these years come from?"

Li Fan nodded slightly. "Exactly. There are still many fragmented realm pieces in the Star Sea."

"On the fringes of the Star Sea, beneath the high walls!"

Li Fan said in a deep voice.

Upon hearing this, Elder Yin and the others all trembled.

Li Fan waved his hand, and a continuous expanse of countless fragmented realms, resembling a vast and magnificent Great Wall, instantly appeared before them.

The few of them couldn't help but stare in a daze.

"This..."

Even though they were quite powerful, faced with such an incredible scene, they were all rendered speechless.