Chapter 1333: Casting the Immortal Realm Fragment

The Enraged Squid

The Great Wall of Fragmented Realms.

Li Fan piloted the phantom wooden sword, carrying Nangong Lie and two other Immortal Ark Elders as they slowly moved through it.

"Brother Li, this escape art of yours is truly extraordinary," Nangong Lie exclaimed. "Not only is it incredibly fast, but it also lessens the impact of the resonating stellar energy outside. With this protection, our search for the grey chess pieces should be considerably smoother."

Lu Yuzhi chimed in, "Exactly. Otherwise, merely resisting this terrifying suction force would deplete most of our energy."

Xu Gongding remained silent, surveying the void outside and diligently searching for any trace of the grey chess pieces.

The sensation of being part of the same set of artifacts wasn't enough to pinpoint their exact locations; it only vaguely indicated a general area.

Within the Great Wall of Fragmented Realms, countless fragments of worlds stretched endlessly.

Moreover, the grey chess pieces were hidden in artifact form among these world fragments.

Finding them among so many fragments was like searching for a needle in a haystack.

Spiritual perception was also affected in this place, making the search even more challenging.

Li Fan was now experiencing it firsthand and finally understood the Celestial Physician's predicament.

It now made sense why it took thousands of years to collect the fragments of the Heavenly Law Realm, and why the task remained incomplete.

Fortunately, the mysterious power the grey chess pieces used to conceal themselves was quite peculiar. Knowing their hidden nature, one could spot their abnormality with a single glance.

There was no need to worry about overlooking them during the search.

Their luck was indeed good; they found the first lost chess piece after only three days.

It lay quietly on the desolate ruins: a rusty bronze war chariot.

Five magnificent warhorses stood proudly with their heads held high in front of the chariot.

The chariot's surface was covered with sword and saber marks, clearly showing the wear of countless battles.

Instead of transforming the chariot back to its original form directly in the void, the four simply collected and preserved it, intending to hand it over to the Immortal Ark Elder Council upon their return to the Ark.

Encouraged by their initial success, they continued their search. Over the next ten days, the phantom wooden sword moved continuously, constantly shuttling through the Great Wall of Fragmented Realms.

They found three more disguised chess pieces.

These included a broken sword, an unremarkable-looking wine gourd, and a small wooden boat.

"I can't go on," Li Fan suddenly said, looking pale and very weak, just as they were about to redouble their efforts. "I need to rest."

Lu Yuzhi realized, "We were negligent. Such a heaven-defying divine ability must consume an immense amount of energy. It's no wonder you've reached your limit, Brother Li, after using it continuously these past few days."

Nangong Lie, however, asked with concern, "How long do you need to rest, Brother Li? Without the boost from your escape art, our search efficiency would be too slow on our own!"

With a solemn expression, Li Fan assured them, "Don't worry, I'll recover in three days. The consumption of spiritual energy is secondary; the main issue is the immense mental exhaustion."

Lu Yuzhi first praised Li Fan profusely, then took the opportunity to inquire about the principles behind this escape art.

All the Immortal Ark Elders had long coveted Li Fan's miraculously skilled flying escape art using the phantom wooden sword.

Yet Li Fan, who was usually generous in sharing his knowledge, was exceptionally tight-lipped about this wooden sword divine ability, never willing to reveal a single detail.

The Immortal Ark Elders had not given up hope and tried to inquire whenever the opportunity arose.

This time, however, Li Fan's secretive stance seemed to have loosened slightly.

"My escape art is formed by the convergence of two supreme Dao intents," Li Fan began. "The first is Sword: the momentum of forging ahead, bravely advancing."

"As for the second..."

Li Fan paused, piquing the trio's curiosity, before unhurriedly continuing, "It is 'Heaven's Edge Within Reach'! The ends of the earth are but a step away. Crossing the vast star sea is indeed incredibly long, but if it's merely a footstep away, then one step can bridge it!"

He then thoroughly explained these two supreme True Meanings to the three elders.

The three elders listened intently, nodding repeatedly as they fell into deep thought.

Li Fan, meanwhile, wore an inscrutable smile.

During his explanation, he did not twist or falsify anything. Given the Immortal Ark Elders' knowledge, any fabrication or falsification would have been easily exposed.

Li Fan had merely hidden the most crucial element.

That element was the core of the escape divine ability: the transformation between true and false.

Forget Sword Dao or Heaven's Edge Within Reach. Without the core augmentation of the true-false transformation, it would be impossible to achieve what Li Fan did: directly ignoring the many dangers and remnants of True Immortal power pervading the star sea during flight.

Li Fan did this to use his intentionally "leaked" divine ability to distract the three Immortal Ark Elders.

Li Fan's goal, naturally, was the four retrieved chess pieces.

Perhaps it was a lingering psychological effect from the method's transmission years ago; even though the four individuals searching for the chess pieces this time were theoretically almost incapable of betraying the Immortal Ark, the Ark still maintained strict protocols.

The Immortal Ark still maintained the rule of joint custody by four individuals.

Each of the four controlled a spherical fragment. These four fragments combined to form a sealed storage space where the found chess pieces were stored.

Only with the combined efforts of all four could the sealed chess pieces be retrieved.

Otherwise, they could only observe and supervise.

Initially, all four paid close attention to the chess pieces, their gazes often sweeping over them. But after Li Fan inadvertently yet actively exposed the mysteries of his supreme escape art, the other three elders inevitably became distracted, trying to fathom everything Li Fan had taught.

Consequently, Li Fan had more time to study the mysteries of these grey chess pieces without the other three noticing.

"Transforming from the grey chess piece form again requires a significant amount of energy," he mused.

"Spiritual energy is insufficient, and True Immortal power is also ineffective."

"Yet the Immortal Ark quietly transformed them into an armored chitinous form..."

"It seems there are still treasures in the second and third layers of the Immortal Ark's secret vault!"

Li Fan snorted inwardly as his divine sense continuously swept over the four chess pieces.

"Forged from worlds, perhaps these are chess pieces that lost their value and became inert."

"If the Celestial Physician's 'Heaven-Mending Record' likens the world to a person, then the being who forged this set of chess pieces viewed the world as an artifact."

"Although humans and artifacts differ, their fundamental principles are interconnected."

"The prerequisite for transformation is complete mastery of their fundamental mechanisms..."

Sensing the four creations before him, Li Fan silently recited the 'Heaven-Mending Record' in his mind.

Then, after being comprehended and modified by Li Fan, those tiny characters transformed into different chapters.

"However, by following the same pattern, I've adapted the principles of the human body within it into methods for forging artifacts."

"Although some parts were forcibly converted and make absolutely no sense, most of it..."

"...is effective!"

Li Fan's eyes brightened slightly.

In his vision, the four artifacts within the sealed space transformed accordingly.

The specific forms of the broken sword, war chariot, and others ceased to exist.

They were replaced by glowing lines interwoven horizontally and vertically.

These lines all converged at a common starting point.

Beyond these, there were even more numerous and incredibly complex faint lines.

"The starting point of these lines is the original grey chess piece form."

"And those dim lines represent other forms the chess pieces can switch into."

"It's so beautiful..."

Li Fan was almost mesmerized.

He had once directly faced the principles of heaven and earth in the Profound Yellow Realm.

The horizontal and vertical lines that formed countless diverse beings and various scenes interwove and spanned across heaven and earth. Li Fan had originally thought that the world's principles of heaven and earth were already complex enough.

But compared to what was revealed by these grey chess pieces before him...

"What constitutes the Profound Yellow Realm is merely a small part of this."

"The rest were forged by True Immortals using Immortal Realm laws, transcending the world itself!"

Li Fan's heart was inexplicably shaken.

"Observing these, perhaps I can vaguely glimpse a corner of the former Immortal Realm!"

Li Fan closed his eyes, pretending to rest. In reality, he was trying to conceal the tumultuous waves that had suddenly erupted within him.

The Immortal Realm suffered the Calamity of Dao Annihilation and has been destroyed for over ten thousand years.

Everything about the former Immortal Realm has become a thing of the past.

Even the True Immortals of yesteryear have become extremely rare, hunted by civilizations beyond the high walls.

But now, Li Fan had discovered some fragments of the Immortal Realm, forged and hidden using special methods.

Or rather, describing them as "fragments" would already be an exaggeration.

It was merely that when processed and forged in the lower realm cultivation worlds, some higher Immortal Realm law fragments had been incorporated.

Nevertheless, for future generations ten thousand years later, with the Immortal Path severed, this still held extraordinary significance.

Especially for Li Fan.

"The law fragments contained within a single chess piece are too scarce."

"But what if it's an entire set of chess pieces?"

"Sun Piaomiao founded the Medicine King Sect, and judging purely from medical principles, his understanding of the world and the Heavenly Dao might not be inferior to the Celestial Physician's."

"If I can perceive the mysteries of these chess pieces, there's no reason Sun Piaomiao couldn't have; especially since he used such a unique method to leave these secrets to later generations through his travelogues."

"If it's truly possible to restore the Immortal Realm fragments through fusion..."

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck Li Fan.

"Could this be, in a sense, a 'seed preservation plan'?"

But only a moment later, Li Fan naturally thought of the true purpose of these grey chess pieces.

"My grand plan for the Profound Yellow's sublimation was already quite complete."

"If I could add some fragments of the former Immortal Realm..."

"Immortal Realm laws, like heavenly pillars, could strengthen the principles of heaven and earth in the Profound Yellow Realm."

"Its sublimation into a true Immortal Domain would be within reach!"

Li Fan quickly deduced the possibilities, and the results made his heart pound.

"Moreover, if the Immortal Ark truly collected all these grey chess pieces, I fear they would lose the ambition to cross the high wall."

With his keen insight, Li Fan naturally saw that Zhong Daogong's previous statements were merely for temporary appeasement.

"However, this matter will require someone to help me act."

After some thought, he had already made up his mind.

Another day later, Li Fan pretended to have barely recovered his strength.

After briefly sensing the locations of Venerable Yin and Bai Hua, he piloted the phantom wooden sword and flew towards them.

Coincidentally, their direction of travel overlapped with the sensing area of one of the chess pieces.

This did not arouse the Immortal Ark Elders' suspicion.

"Oh, the Great Wall of Fragmented Realms here seems to have changed somehow?" Li Fan suddenly exclaimed with uncertainty during their flight.

As soon as these words were uttered, the three Immortal Ark Elders, who had been secretly comprehending Dao, were instantly jolted awake.

They carefully checked, then all shook their heads in confusion. "Could it be that Brother Li is overly exhausted and experiencing an illusion?"

"We don't feel anything unusual."

Facing their doubts, Li Fan's expression remained solemn, but he couldn't explain why.

The three Immortal Ark Elders exchanged glances and couldn't help but become tense.

Li Fan's inexplicable tension didn't seem feigned.

Sometimes, a cultivator's inexplicable vigilance is even more accurate than active probing. The elders dared not be negligent, their spirits highly tense as they guarded against potential disasters.

Perhaps it truly was Li Fan's paranoia.

An incense stick's worth of time passed, and nothing unusual occurred.

The tense three elders finally began to relax.

"It seems you were overly concerned, Brother Li!" Nangong Lie said with a smile.

Li Fan sighed, "Perhaps so!"

They continued their search within the Great Wall of Fragmented Realms.

Not long after things settled, Li Fan suddenly startled again.

"No! Be careful!"

With his sudden alarm, the Immortal Ark Elders' auras suddenly surged and fluctuated, their True Immortal Seal Script still ready.

However...

They looked around and waited for a long time, but still nothing unusual occurred.

The three elders gazed at Li Fan.

Li Fan said somewhat awkwardly, "I don't know what's wrong today; my heart keeps pounding as if a great disaster is about to strike at any moment."

"Perhaps you don't know, but my spiritual perception has always given me extremely accurate warnings throughout my life. It was precisely by relying on this keen spiritual perception that I was able to avoid multiple fatal calamities before..."

"I have to believe it!" Li Fan said with a bitter smile.

Lu Yuzhi consoled him, "It's fine; being cautious is good. Perhaps the mental exhaustion from our previous journey was too great, and you haven't fully recovered yet. Why don't you rest a bit more?"

Li Fan shook his head. "Stopping would make me feel even more uneasy. Let's continue."

The three elders found it difficult to refuse.

They could only continue following Li Fan.

After Li Fan set up two more deliberate feints, the three Immortal Ark Elders also became somewhat exhausted.

Nangong Lie hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.

Lu Yuzhi was deliberating on how to advise Li Fan to take a good rest for now.

Little did they know, Li Fan had already located Venerable Yin and Bai Hua.

He had also successfully and secretly made contact with them.

Their communication was quickly completed.

In front of the three Immortal Ark Elders, Li Fan's expression changed once more. "Be careful!"

This time, the Immortal Ark Elders not only didn't brace themselves but instead laughed in exasperation. "Brother Li, you..."

Before they could finish speaking, a terrifying death qi instantly swept over them.

As if they had personally fallen into a scene of world destruction, all four of them froze slightly.

At the same time, the vitality in their bodies was quietly draining away at an extremely rapid pace.

As they stood stunned, the sealed spherical artifact containing the four grey chess pieces, which they had jointly guarded, inexplicably lost control.

It fell out into the void.

"Oh no!" Nangong Lie's expression drastically changed, and he instantly snapped out of it.

He immediately sent out the 'Suppression' character spell towards the direction from which the death qi had attacked.

However, the opponent seemed to have anticipated his move and had already fled the area.

Nangong Lie's attack missed its target.

Lu Yuzhi also snapped out of it at this moment. He checked the state of their rapidly draining vitality, and his expression drastically changed.