Chapter 1361: Eternal Obsession Raised

Li Fan covertly scanned his surroundings.

After the Azure Orb shattered and dissipated, it was as if an invisible boulder had fallen into the sunken fissures.

The endless, labyrinthine underground rivers in the Star Sea fissures rippled gently.

An inexplicable aura surged within them, adding an enigmatic vitality to the area.

It seemed the complete dissipation of the Azure Orb had activated something.

Li Fan vaguely sensed that the sunken fissures here had become somewhat different.

"It seems that for ten thousand years, the Azure Orb has continuously released its energy outwards. It was already nearing its limit, about to be completely drained."

"Our approach was merely the final push," Li Fan sighed.

Mo Rubing also noticed this; his previously agitated and somewhat discomposed expression gradually softened.

He looked back at the entire sunken fissure area and, in a trance, understood its purpose: to accumulate vitality, await the opportune moment to trigger an event, and then guide the full recovery of the Star Sea!

"Such an intricate project surely couldn't have been formed naturally by the Star Sea. Not to mention the Azure Orb serving as the catalyst for vitality supply..." Mo Rubing's thoughts raced.

"Could this be Elder Brother Xuanyuan's arrangement? But when exactly?"

"The Azure Orb, as Elder Brother Xuanyuan's most important treasure, never leaves his side. How could it be here... while Elder Brother Xuanyuan disappeared into that mysterious pond?"

Mo Rubing's expression was a mix of surprise and uncertainty.

"This matter is indeed quite peculiar," Li Fan nodded. "Either King Xuantian wasn't directly missing the day he was attacked but fell into a deep sleep due to severe injuries, only to awaken later and arrange these sunken fissures. Perhaps the pond in the Xuanhuang Realm is connected to a fissure here."

"Or, King Xuantian had already handed over the Azure Orb to someone else before he was attacked. For all these years, that person has been acting on his behalf, carrying out various plans related to the Star Sea's revival..."

"Absolutely impossible!" Mo Rubing instinctively interrupted Li Fan before he could finish.

Li Fan stared meaningfully at Mo Rubing. "Brother Mo, could you tell me, among the twelve Dharma Kings back then, whom did King Xuantian trust the most?"

"No need to speak of treating everyone equally. Distinctions in closeness are a fundamental principle, something even saints can hardly avoid."

Mo Rubing's face was cold, and he seemed hesitant to speak.

Then, surprisingly, he closed his eyes directly, to conceal his inner turmoil.

But in the end, Mo Rubing didn't evade the question. "I think, if Elder Brother Xuanyuan truly had someone he trusted the most, it would certainly be Xing Wuque."

"Xing Wuque..."

Information about this Dharma King instantly appeared in Li Fan's mind.

All four limbs missing, facial features disfigured. Always wearing a bronze fanged mask, he hardly ever communicated with others.

"Within the Profound Heaven Sect, no one but Elder Brother Xuanyuan knew Xing Wuque's true identity. As you said before, there are distinctions in closeness. Our twelve Dharma Kings also formed small groups due to our relationships."

"Sun Xingwang and Sikong Lin often kept each other company, speaking in ways others couldn't understand; Gongye Tianzong and Tianxing Ke always conversed jovially, exchanging toasts; Luo Yichen, Aunt Nie, Ji Yuzhen, the three ladies always had endless whispers..."

"But only Xing Wuque always kept his distance from the other Dharma Kings, never proactively interacting with anyone in the sect. When he appeared, he was always alone. Yet, he never made a mistake in any assigned task and completed them with extreme efficiency," Mo Rubing reminisced.

"As if a machine that had severed its emotions and desires, no longer living for itself."

"It's precisely because of this that Elder Brother Xuanyuan might have trusted him the most."

"Furthermore, on the day of the incident, Xing Wuque indeed seemed not to be within the sect," Mo Rubing frowned.

Li Fan nodded slightly. "If it was truly this Xing Wuque who took the Azure Orb back then, then for all these years, he must have been working on King Xuantian's tasks. Brother Mo, do you have a way to contact this Dharma King Xing?"

Mo Rubing shook his head. "Xing Wuque only ever had direct contact with Elder Brother Xuanyuan. However..."

As if suddenly remembering something, Mo Rubing looked again at where the Azure Orb had dissipated.

"I wonder if we can use the Manifestation Art on the Azure Orb again? It would surely allow us to track it further..."

"The Azure Orb is an immortal artifact; true immortal script might be useless against it. Besides, it has already dissipated," Li Fan said, pointing to the still rippling waves around them.

"Dissipation doesn't mean disappearance. Even among the many treasures Elder Brother Xuanyuan acquired from the immortal realm, the Azure Orb was among the most precious. How could it completely vanish so easily?"

"The Azure Orb hasn't vanished; rather, it has transformed into vitality in another special form, existing within these underground rivers..."

Mo Rubing stated emphatically, regaining the demeanor of a former Profound Heaven Sect's Twelve Dharma Kings. "Just use the Manifestation Art directly on these endless vital underground rivers!"

Li Fan re-perceived the boundless underground rivers within the fissures, vaguely understanding.

Gathering his focus, he once again solemnly wrote the character for 'manifestation' in the air. The moment the profoundly abstruse character formed, it melted into the underground river like ink.

The echoing ripples, with their regular rhythm, were quickly disrupted.

It was as if another completely unrelated, independent ripple had appeared.

Li Fan and Mo Rubing swiftly followed the direction in which the ripple propagated.

This time, they delved even deeper into the fissures, navigating countless twists and turns, taking over thirty days before finally reaching their destination.

"Be careful, there seems to be a living person's aura ahead!" Mo Rubing suddenly transmitted a warning.

Li Fan had already conjured a wooden sword phantom to guard himself and slowly approached.

At the end of the underground river, a solitary figure sat.

Its aura was erratic, and it wore a fanged mask on its face!

"Xing Wuque?" Seeing the familiar appearance, Mo Rubing couldn't help but exclaim loudly.

However, after a brief moment of surprise, a sense of oddity rose in Li Fan's heart.

Xing Wuque had long lost both hands and feet, yet this figure clearly had all four limbs.

More importantly...

The clothes and attire he wore were extremely familiar to Li Fan.

They were identical to those of Xu Ke, who had previously disappeared deep within the underground river!

"Is it Xu Ke?"

"Or Xing Wuque?"

"No wonder I sensed his aura was erratic earlier..." Li Fan mused, not making a move rashly.

After a brief moment of shock, Mo Rubing naturally discerned the differences between the person before him and his old acquaintance.

After observing for a while, he made a judgment: "It's similar yet not. Could they be in some peculiar state of fusion? Has Xing Wuque also reached the end of his lifespan after all these years, and resorted to a survival method he had no choice but to use?"

Li Fan, however, saw that this fusion was likely dominated by Xu Ke. Rather than Xing Wuque's continued existence, it was more like a succession of legacy.

"As expected of the Child of Destiny; even after being swept by the echoing star power into this deathly realm, he could still encounter such a fortuitous opportunity."

"If Mo Rubing's previous guess was correct, and Xing Wuque has been carrying out King Xuantian's assigned tasks for ten thousand years..."

"Xu Ke also, due to Mr. Bai's dying wish years ago, took on the responsibility of single-handedly suppressing the Xuanhuang evil thoughts for eternity."

"These two are quite similar in this aspect. Perhaps this is precisely why Xu Ke could inherit Xing Wuque's legacy?" Li Fan secretly mused.

Mo Rubing, however, shook his head slightly. "This new body is too weak; it can't possibly withstand Xing Wuque's full power. But we can help!"

With that, Mo Rubing sent out a Demon Heart.

As it flew towards the target, the somewhat grotesque expression on the Demon Heart slowly dissolved.

It transformed into a faceless form, then completely melted, becoming a viscous grey solution.

In an instant, it permeated Xu Ke's body.

A moment later, Xu Ke's erratic aura began to stabilize.

"The Myriad Demon Hearts can not only harm others and seize bodies, but also suppress calamities and save lives. Truly worthy of being an immortal art of the Divine Witch Tribe," Li Fan couldn't help but exclaim upon seeing this. Not to be outdone, he shot out dozens of golden needles.

Just as he had helped Mo Rubing before, he infused pure spiritual energy and soul power through golden threads.

With the combined help of the two powerhouses, Xu Ke's process of fusing with the bronze mask accelerated by more than a thousand times!

Originally, it would have taken at least several decades to fully absorb the inheritance.

But now, before long, Xu Ke's aura had gradually become stable.

Li Fan and Mo Rubing waited quietly.

Finally, two bright lights ignited in the mask's eye sockets.

Seeing the two figures before him, Xu Ke's body trembled slightly.

"Holy Master?!" he instinctively cried out, his voice filled with astonishment.

His voice and tone were completely different from Xu Ke's usual, but the content of his words undoubtedly revealed the true identity of the figure now.

"Hmm?" Hearing a familiar voice but uttering unfamiliar words, Mo Rubing was momentarily stunned before finally reacting and looking at Li Fan.

Li Fan, at this moment, also wore a shocked expression. He asked incredulously, "Xu Ke? How could it be you?!"

He completely appeared as if he hadn't noticed before.

Mo Rubing, on the other hand, asked coldly, "You're not Xing Wuque? What did you do to him?"

His eyes gleamed with a dangerous light, only refraining from immediate action because Xu Ke was acquainted with Li Fan.

"Senior Xing... he had already reached his limit and passed away."

"By a fortunate coincidence, I picked up this mask and passed his test; I've barely inherited his mantle," Xu Ke's voice was somewhat somber.

Xu Ke recounted the full story in detail.

Just as Li Fan had previously guessed. Perhaps Xing Wuque initially did harbor the thought of seizing a body for rebirth, but after sensing Xu Ke's extremely similar life, Xing Wuque ultimately chose to give up.

The fusion thus became an inheritance.

"Senior's inheritance was truly too vast. Even if he let me absorb it freely, I couldn't fully accept it all at once. Instead, I fell into a state of mental instability..."

"Fortunately, both seniors offered their help," Xu Ke bowed respectfully.

The voice of his former companion speaking to him in such a way, Mo Rubing was suddenly a little unaccustomed.

Li Fan, meanwhile, directly inquired about the relationship between Xing Wuque and the dark fissures of the Star Sea.

"In Senior Xing's inheritance, it seems memories related to this aspect were intentionally hidden."

"However, through some fragmented memories, I can deduce the general situation."

"These underground rivers within the fissures, spread throughout the Star Sea, were precisely dug inch by inch by Senior Xing over these years, using the power of the immortal artifact, the Azure Orb." Xu Ke spoke, directly stunning both Li Fan and Mo Rubing.

"The underground rivers wind throughout the entire Star Sea. It's truly hard to imagine such a project being accomplished by a single person. But even though the senior intentionally deleted them, there are still many surviving memories of him carving out these dark rivers, which undoubtedly demonstrates his achievements," Xu Ke said with great sadness.

"Ever since Senior Xing received King Xuantian's command back then, he has continuously held the Azure Orb and carried out this work."

"For ten thousand years, he never rested for a single moment."

"Even if the senior's cultivation was extraordinary, activating the immortal artifact Azure Orb was an extremely taxing task. Ten thousand years without rest, the persistent effort over the years finally pushed him to his limit..."

"And with regret, he perished at the very end of these underground fissures," Xu Ke said, his face etched with sorrow, narrating everything in detail.

Li Fan remained silent.

Although it sounded so unreasonable.

But if Xing Wuque truly had the personality Mo Rubing described earlier...

It might not be impossible.

Mo Rubing was even more shaken, several times wanting to speak but hesitating.

He looked ahead, to the end of the underground river in the fissure. "Xing Wuque... he didn't complete Elder Brother Xuanyuan's assigned task even until his death?"

Xu Ke nodded. "This is also what I will continue to do for the rest of my life. Since I have inherited Senior Xing's mantle, I naturally must help him complete what he left unfinished in life."

His tone was calm, yet incredibly resolute.

Hearing this, Mo Rubing's expression subtly changed, and he looked at Xu Ke with surprise.

"Absurd..."

"Putting aside the meaning of this endeavor for a moment. The immortal artifact Azure Orb is already shattered. With your current cultivation, how can you carve out new underground rivers in the fissures?"

Xu Ke showed no hesitation. "Persisting in fulfilling Senior Xing's obsession is the meaning itself."

"As for the shattered immortal artifact..."

A dazzling cyan light suddenly bloomed on the mask on Xu Ke's face.

It was identical to what Li Fan had seen on the Azure Orb itself earlier!

"During Senior's ten thousand years of pioneering, he had already transformed the act of carving out these underground rivers into an instinct. Now that it has been passed down to me, even without the immortal artifact, I can still do it!"

"It's merely another repetition, ten thousand years later!"

A gleam of cyan light shot forth from the mask.

Illuminating the path ahead, the end of the underground river.

Under the joint witness of Mo Rubing and Li Fan, a new section of the fissure was indeed opened by Xu Ke!

However, after advancing less than three zhang, the cyan light abruptly cut off.

Xu Ke, as if exhausted, then collapsed to the ground.

"At this rate, when will you ever finish?" Li Fan couldn't help but let out a cold snort.

"As long as there's progress every time, there will eventually be a day it's completed," Xu Ke said with a difficult smile.

"As Senior Xing said, King Xuantian's instructions must have their meaning."