Chapter 1344: Dao Vanishes in the Star Sea

Guided by Li Fan's subtle hint, Wuming did not immediately leave the Thirteen Peaks World. Instead, he naturally rose from his supine position, gazing at the sky. He drew slightly closer to the Heavenly Dao of this world. He subtly extended his arms, touching the wind and the sky. The blue sky and white clouds remained. The beings of the Thirteen Peaks World noticed nothing. Only Li Fan could see that the entire world subtly trembled from Wuming's touch.

"It seemed as though the Heavenly Dao of this world, sensing Wuming's impending departure, accelerated its integration with him. From now on, the world's Heavenly Dao would remain, but a replica of it would accompany Wuming into the larger world beyond." Li Fan sighed faintly, remarking, "How similar! If given the chance, who would wish to remain forever a bird in a cage?" Then, with a solemn expression, he said, "Then I'll help you one more time." The illusory image of the Divine Creation True Immortal seal script flashed across the firmament of the Thirteen Peaks World. This world was simply too tiny; the mere appearance of the Divine Creation characters was enough to cause world-altering effects. Spiritual energy began to proliferate within the world. The Thirteen Peaks mountain range slowly ascended. The vegetation in the mountains burst with vitality.

Standing atop the mountain, Wuming felt something profound. He awoke from his immersive state and looked around, but ultimately found nothing. Though he didn't understand the changes occurring in the surrounding world, a happy smile gradually appeared on his face. The changes in the Thirteen Peaks World continued. Li Fan, however, left a wisp of his divine sense in the world to monitor Wuming's actions, departing ahead of him.

Back in the Mystic Yellow Realm, he took out a jade talisman from his person; it was flashing rapidly, indicating urgency. It was the jade talisman Mo Rubin had given him earlier. Mo Rubin had stayed within the Eye of the Beast of Heaven, intending to use its power to search for traces of King Xuantian in the Mystic Yellow Realm and the Sea of Utter Darkness. He had said results would appear within three to five months at most. Considering the time, it was nearly due. Upon contacting it with his divine sense, Mo Rubin's voice instantly appeared in Li Fan's mind. It seemed to be interfered with, intermittent and not very clear. "I've found... something strange..." "Come quickly." The message consisted of only these few words. The talisman's light then dimmed, but Li Fan faintly perceived that it was guiding him towards the bone-mountain range of the Beast of Heaven in Jiushan State.

Taking a single step, Li Fan arrived in the territory of Jiushan State. The so-called bone-mountain range of the Beast of Heaven refers to the nine mountain ranges spanning across the land. Following the jade talisman's guidance, Li Fan reached the summit of Yu Prison Mountain, one of the nine. Yu Prison Mountain was the highest among the nine. Standing at its peak, he could survey the entire layout of the nine mountain ranges. This must have been due to the power of the Eye of the Beast of Heaven imbued in Mo Rubin's talisman; although Li Fan had often overlooked Jiushan State from high altitudes before, it had never been so clear. All mountains and rivers that had evolved from the Beast of Heaven's remains were now gone. In Li Fan's eyes, only the most primordial parts of the Beast of Heaven remained. Just as Mo Rubin had previously stated, though the Beast of Heaven was dead, its bone-mountain range endured. Through these nine mountain ranges, even after ten thousand years of vicissitude, Li Fan could still vaguely discern the indistinct form of that ancient colossal beast.

"'The Nine Mountains are Tianchang, Tianduan, Tianxu, Tiancu, Tianjie, Tiandai, Tianlao, Tiandong, and Tianxi,'" Mo Rubin's voice continued. "'These are precisely the nine forms of meridians. This Beast of Heaven was formed from a jade pendant King Xuantian brought back from the Immortal Realm. Its internal meridians, however, are no different from those of a human...'" The guiding power emanating from the jade talisman grew stronger, and suddenly, Li Fan felt as if he was enveloped by a thin membrane. Li Fan did not resist this enveloping force, allowing it to lead him. A moment later, Li Fan found himself back inside the Eye of the Beast of Heaven. The sense of danger he perceived made him instinctively reinforce his personal defenses. Compared to when he left, something here seemed to have changed. And Mo Rubin's condition looked far from good. He didn't appear to have any obvious injuries, but his entire being was too weak and listless, as if his essence blood had been completely drained. For a cultivator of Mo Rubin's power level, this was something that typically only happened after a fatal blow. "Brother Mo, what happened?" Li Fan exclaimed in a low voice.

Mo Rubin waved his hand. "I'm fine now. It was caused by that strange thing I told you about." Without further ado, he got straight to the point. "Friend, observe." The space within the Eye of the Beast of Heaven suddenly lit up. On the countless spherical bubbles along the curved boundary, the same scene was displayed. "This isn't real-time observation by the Eye of the Beast of Heaven," Mo Rubin reminded him. "These are previously recorded images." Innumerable bubbles overlapped, and a myriad of images merged. Instantly, Li Fan felt as if he were truly there.

It was a star sea, dormant yet teeming with vitality. A miniature black vortex slowly and ceaselessly rotated. It was the black color of all-consuming destruction, expanding outwards slowly but resolutely. Be it residual True Immortal power, or the revitalizing force of the star sea—whatever it was, it was all swallowed and assimilated under the sweep of this black vortex. The visual perspective abruptly zoomed out. It expanded from a corner of the star sea to encompass almost the entire Sea of Utter Darkness. The black vortex was inconspicuous within the already pitch-black Sea of Utter Darkness. However, after witnessing the full panorama of the star sea, Li Fan's gaze remained firmly fixed on that vortex. The sense of crisis in his heart was utterly irrepressible. His heart, quite unusually, thumped several times in quick succession. Only then did Li Fan realize that the black vortex was located precisely in the center of the star sea, where he had previously gone and made contact with the true essence of the star sea's origin! Furthermore, the black aura comprising this black vortex was extremely similar to what he had obtained by using the "White Ring Falling into the Mortal World" to decompose True Immortal flesh and blood, and also to what was contained within Han Zhong, who was trapped in the Eye of the Beast of Heaven. However, the three gave Li Fan distinctly different feelings. There was a clear hierarchy. The one in the black vortex was the most dangerous. Li Fan couldn't help but frown slightly. "What is this?" he asked. "I'm not sure," Mo Rubin said with great solemnity, his words astonishing, "but I can confirm it's related to the Calamity of Dao Annihilation from the former Immortal Realm."

Li Fan was startled. "The Calamity of Dao Annihilation?" Mo Rubin waved his hand, and the black vortices on the countless bubbles around them vanished, restoring the normal observation of the star sea scene. "I stumbled upon this black vortex when I was using the Eye of the Beast of Heaven to search the star sea for Brother Xuanyuan," Mo Rubin explained. "At first, I didn't pay much attention. I thought it was just a normal anomaly that had evolved in the star sea over the years. But then..." Mo Rubin coughed, then extended all ten fingers towards the bubbles of the Eye of the Beast of Heaven. In the blink of an eye, tens of millions of ink-colored threads flew from Mo Rubin's fingertips, each heading towards a different bubble. Li Fan clearly saw that the end of each ink-colored thread was a miniature figure of Mo Rubin himself. However, the expressions on their faces varied: some were ferocious, some fearful, some mad. When the myriad miniature Mo Rubins surged towards the Eye of the Beast of Heaven bubbles and made contact, they all simultaneously let out sharp screams, as if instantly subjected to torture. But their bodily movements did not stop. Their hands were firmly embedded in the bubbles, and then they pulled violently. As if a rotten, foul-smelling layer of skin was being peeled off, they tore a layer of viscous, black, unknown substance from the Eye of the Beast of Heaven. "Ahhh!" The miniature Mo Rubins wailed even more fiercely. Their figures became blurred and indistinct, corroded by the black substance, as if they could vanish at any moment. But under the control of Mo Rubin's true self, they never let go. They completely tore the black, decaying skin from the Eye of the Beast of Heaven. Gurgle gurgle... Instead of collecting these black substances, they directly opened their already indistinct mouths and gulped them down. As the thick, decaying black substance entered their bellies, the faces of the miniature Mo Rubins became even more unrecognizable. "The demonic heart is immortal, the immortal body inextinguishable," Mo Rubin's indifferent voice suddenly sounded. A mysterious power instantly enveloped and descended upon those blurred figures, keeping them from completely dissipating. Just like bags, unbroken, carrying that viscous black substance. Mo Rubin's expression was utterly solemn; he cautiously summoned his demonic hearts back into place. Not back into himself, of course. Instead, he took out a jade box and stored them all inside. Only after completing all of this did Mo Rubin let out a long sigh of relief. Li Fan, however, could see that Mo Rubin had become even weaker. He stared intently at Mo Rubin, waiting for an explanation.

Mo Rubin rested for a moment, then spoke weakly, "This is already my fourth cleansing. I originally thought this black mist was just a normal phenomenon of the star sea, harmless. I never imagined that after merely observing it a few times, the Eye of the Beast of Heaven would be corroded by it. Fortunately, the Eye of the Beast of Heaven originated from the Immortal Realm itself, making its essence superior to the lower realm's star sea. Moreover, it wasn't direct contact. Therefore, there was still room for recovery. I was able to clear away the attached black mist using my previous cleansing method." Upon hearing this, Li Fan also breathed a sigh of relief. "That's a blessing in disguise, then." However, he quickly realized something and asked in alarm, "The Calamity of Dao Annihilation, which you said once destroyed the Immortal Realm... has it now appeared in the star sea? Even True Immortals couldn't resist it. Aren't we facing a great disaster now?"

"Friend, there's no need to be so nervous. The situation isn't that dire," Mo Rubin said, shaking his head. He paused, carefully choosing his words, then slowly said, "Back then, Brother Xuanyuan had concerns about the Calamity of Dao Annihilation from the Immortal Realm spreading to the lower realms. Although he never explicitly stated it, I could tell. I've told you before that if one doesn't know the name of the Calamity of Dao Annihilation, even if they encounter it directly, they won't understand its true nature. But if one knows its name, even the first glimpse of its signs will spontaneously evoke a feeling. Since you already know the name of Dao Annihilation, did you feel anything when you saw this black mist?" Mo Rubin asked. Li Fan recalled what he had just seen. "No, I didn't." "Precisely," Mo Rubin said gravely. "I suspect this black mist isn't the Calamity of Dao Annihilation itself. Rather, it's a premonition of the Calamity of Dao Annihilation's arrival! Just as dark clouds gather before a heavy rain, and earth veins inevitably shift before mountains collapse and the ground cracks, worldly calamities are often accompanied by certain omens. This black mist might be the harbinger of the Calamity of Dao Annihilation." Mo Rubin's expression grew increasingly serious. "And what's more, it's not merely a harbinger. As you observed, this black mist seems capable of devouring anything that approaches it in the star sea. So, if we don't take precautions and allow it to spread, the increase in the black mist's scale might accelerate the Calamity of Dao Annihilation's arrival."

Upon hearing this, Li Fan's brows furrowed deeply, and his expression became equally solemn. He remained silent for a long time, seemingly processing the information in Mo Rubin's words. After a long while, Li Fan merely uttered, "How can this be?" His tone carried a hint of dismay. Mo Rubin could only respond with silence. "Life is unpredictable. Or perhaps, all of this was destined from the day the Immortal Realm was shattered," Mo Rubin sighed after a long pause. "Is there truly no way to stop the spread of this black vortex?" Li Fan asked, somewhat unwilling to accept. "Even if there is, it's beyond what we can know. Brother Xuanyuan might have a way."

Li Fan's eyes lit up, as if he had found a lifeline, and he quickly asked, "By the way, friend, have you found any traces of King Xuantian while searching the Mystic Yellow Realm and the star sea with the Eye of the Beast of Heaven?" Mo Rubin gave a self-deprecating smile. "If I had, I wouldn't have to bother cleaning this Dao Annihilation black mist myself. However... it wasn't a complete loss." Li Fan's gaze immediately fixed on Mo Rubin.

"When Brother Xuanyuan mysteriously disappeared back then, at the very last moment, he sent out several warnings," Mo Rubin began. "Among them, we few King-ranked brothers should have all received them. But there was another one, transmitted beyond the Mystic Yellow Realm, even beyond the starry sky. This transmission was extremely secretive. Originally, I wouldn't have been able to detect it. It was only by utilizing the Eye of the Beast of Heaven that a trace of it was left behind, allowing me to perceive it," Mo Rubin whispered. Li Fan narrowed his eyes upon hearing this. "Beyond the starry sky? Could it be..." His heart jolted. "There's only one possibility. Brother Xuanyuan's message was likely intended for the Faceless Immortal," Mo Rubin stated directly.

"I remember you said that when King Xuantian disappeared back then, the Faceless Immortal's stone statue, its head, mysteriously broke off...," Li Fan said. Mo Rubin nodded. "So I speculate that Brother Xuanyuan encountered danger, and the Faceless Immortal protected him. Yet, even that couldn't fully preserve him; the medium for transmitting power, the stone statue, was severed. At the last moment, Brother Xuanyuan discovered something, and thus, through the Eye of the Beast of Heaven, which is part of the Floating Starry Sky Array, he sent a message towards the location of the Faceless Immortal beyond the star sea. He wanted to convey his discovery to that True Immortal, the Faceless Immortal." Li Fan was absorbed in listening and couldn't help but ask, "Is it possible to figure out what message King Xuantian actually sent back then, by using the traces left in the Eye of the Beast of Heaven?"

"That, unfortunately, is impossible," Mo Rubin said with deep regret. "Firstly, Brother Xuanyuan would undoubtedly have encrypted it back then. The secret hidden in this message was not revealed to us, his King-ranked brothers, but rather chosen to be conveyed to the Faceless Immortal. It's clear that even if he had told us, we would have been utterly incapable of dealing with it. Just like the true nature of the Calamity of Dao Annihilation, knowing it would only add to our troubles."