Chapter 1385: Heavenly Beast's Death and Revival

In the Great Maelstrom, the storm gradually subsided.

Thanks to Li Fan's various methods of nourishment over this period, the vitality of the Xuanhuang Realm was far more robust than before. Now, it was being harnessed by the new Xuanhuang Great Heavenly Venerate, Wu Ming.

This wound, which had existed for ten thousand years, was healing rapidly at a visible pace.

The chaotic energy was calming, and the obstructed view was temporarily reconnected.

Li Fan seized this fleeting opportunity, staring intently at the last remaining crevice that had not yet fully vanished.

Previously, Li Fan had used the spirit of the Boundless Mirror, Sun Luyao, to glimpse the scene ten thousand years ago when the entire Demon Race, led by Di Yi, tore open the realm and departed.

Di Yi revealed his divine countenance and, using a key hidden within the giant python coiled around Mount Nanming, unlocked the terrifying energy concealed within the mountain, directly piercing through the shackles of space and time.

That power was like a sharp sword. While piercing through the spatial passage, it also left a trace of its own imprint within it.

At this moment, Li Fan caught a fleeting glimpse, faintly discerning some blurry images within the rapidly closing crevice.

Unfortunately, before he could examine it closely, the Great Maelstrom's rift had already healed.

Having completed the repair of this wound, Wu Ming did not depart immediately.

Instead, he continued with further transformation efforts.

Continuous vitality still flowed unendingly from all corners of Xuanhuang. On the calm sea, rumbling sounds persisted. Islands rose one after another from the seabed.

On the previously desolate seabed, greenery began to sprout. Under the gentle caress of the sea breeze, vegetation gradually covered the surface of these newly formed islands.

Like shimmering pearls, they dotted the ocean.

Li Fan also noticed that countless creatures from other waters connected to this sea area were now rushing towards it, vying for this newly created perfect home.

From then on, the Xuanhuang Realm had one less perilous dead end and one more vibrant, life-filled region.

The Xuanhuang Heaven's Favor on Wu Ming increased further. However, this time it did not stem from Li Fan, but from Wu Ming's own contributions to heaven and earth.

With the matter of the Great Maelstrom concluded, Wu Ming, without delay, hurried towards his next destination.

Observing his destination, it was the Abyss of Cangwu, located in the southwestern corner of the Xuanhuang Realm.

The scale of this colossal abyss far surpassed that of the Great Maelstrom. It was the temporary dumping ground for various materials created by the Heaven-Healing Transmitters during their process of transforming and mending the Xuanhuang Realm.

According to the normal course of history, this abyss might only be filled after the Heavenly Law Realm truly reincarnated through a vessel. But now, Wu Ming was actively seeking to resolve this persistent issue.

Being able to mobilize almost the entire power of Xuanhuang, eliminating the Abyss of Cangwu was by no means difficult for Wu Ming.

However, this also meant that Wu Ming's actions would inevitably alert the Transmitters and Heaven-Healers, who were still on the other side of the star sea.

In fact, ever since the Xuanhuang Realm was sealed, the Transmitters hiding within the Heavenly Profound Mirror had been trying to establish contact with the main body of the Transmission. But no matter how they tried, their methods were ultimately mortal. How could they break through the immortal array set up by Li Fan?

Consequently, the Transmission and the Heaven-Healers were still completely unaware of the dramatic changes occurring in the Xuanhuang Realm.

Furthermore, there was a three-year waiting period before Wu Ming truly succeeded as the Xuanhuang Great Heavenly Venerate. Before then, they had no inkling of anything.

It wasn't that these two Grand Supremes were incompetent.

Rather, the power of the immortal array already transcended the mortal world. Even if the Grand Supremes arrived in person, they would be bewildered, let alone their minor residual methods.

"If the Transmitters and Heaven-Healers arrive prematurely, it will only disrupt my plan. The Abyss of Cangwu..."

"Let's wait and see," Li Fan said calmly.

There was no one around, yet he wasn't talking to himself; he was communicating with the Heavenly Dao of Xuanhuang.

Li Fan keenly sensed the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao's resistance. It seemed the existence of the Abyss of Cangwu made it very uncomfortable.

"Don't worry, I'll compensate you. And it will be even better," Li Fan said in a calm tone, laced with a hint of temptation.

The Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao seemed to hesitate for a moment. Perhaps out of trust in Li Fan, it ultimately chose to agree.

Waves of mysterious fluctuations descended from the sky. Great Heavenly Venerate Wu Ming, perceiving their meaning, showed a hint of astonishment on his face for the first time.

His rapidly moving form paused in place. He looked up at the sky, filled with confusion.

How would the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao explain? It merely continued to express its demand.

Although Wu Ming couldn't understand, he did not defy the will of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao. He changed direction and hastened towards another desolate region of Xuanhuang.

His direction of travel was towards the Scorched Earth of Ten Thousand Li, a vast expanse of scorched land. Originally a vibrant place, a thousand years ago it suffered an inexplicable catastrophe, turning it into the desolate thousand-mile expanse it was now. Compared to the Abyss of Cangwu and the Great Maelstrom, the Scorched Earth of Ten Thousand Li was indeed much easier to handle. Wu Ming likely wouldn't spend much time there.

Next, he would likely travel throughout Xuanhuang, healing the various wounds on the land.

Li Fan merely instructed the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao to send sensory images at any time, but he himself no longer monitored or followed.

Instead, he intended to fulfill the "benefits" he had previously promised to the Xuanhuang Realm.

With a thought, countless fleeting images from the Grand Array of Sentient Beings appeared in Li Fan's sea of consciousness.

All beings had entered the illusion array, and their thoughts and intentions were simultaneously perceived by Li Fan.

Therefore, they had almost no secrets left from Li Fan.

Furthermore, thanks to his continuous covert searches in his previous life, Li Fan had managed to collect all the semi-immortal artifacts within the currently controlled regions of the Xuanhuang Realm.

They were called semi-immortal artifacts because all thirteen items, like the Boundless Mirror, had once been immortal artifacts. However, after enduring various calamities, they had lost all their immortal spiritual energy. Only residual miraculous abilities from their former immortal artifact state remained.

For instance, there was a fan that could peek into and alter people's emotions, and a blank scroll that could slowly manifest what it depicted into reality.

And a layer of skin that could almost perfectly transform into another person, with extremely similar soul and appearance, making it nearly impossible to distinguish with ordinary methods.

Although semi-immortal artifacts possessed extraordinary powers, in Li Fan's eyes now, they held no significant value.

At this moment, he simply confiscated them all to nourish the Xuanhuang Realm!

Thirteen glowing orbs slowly drifted out of the illusion array, transitioning from the illusory into reality.

Within the illusion array, their owners still held control of their wondrous treasures.

Yet in reality, they silently fell under Li Fan's control.

As the glowing orbs gathered, the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao also seemed to sense what was about to happen next.

An overwhelmingly excited emotion was conveyed, and any slight dissatisfaction it had previously felt towards Li Fan had long vanished.

Li Fan did not immediately refine these immortal artifacts; instead, he first observed them carefully for a while.

"Like the Boundless Mirror, every immortal artifact carries, to varying degrees, traces of the Annihilation Wind Calamity."

"Some even retain considerable remnants of the calamity."

After pondering for a moment, Li Fan still used his previous method, using source energy essence as bait to draw out all the hidden Annihilation Wind Calamity within the thirteen immortal artifacts.

Carefully, he gathered them in one place and sealed them with golden threads for preservation.

"Although the Annihilation Wind Calamity seems to specifically target immortal artifacts, it is after all a terrifying force capable of obliterating them. Anyone below a True Immortal would flee upon encountering it."

"Even if it's not part of the Dao Annihilation Tribulation, collecting a large quantity of it would still be a potent trump card." Remembering the reactions of the Transmitters and other Grand Supremes when the Annihilation Wind Calamity erupted in his life before the last, Li Fan couldn't help but think this.

Without the Annihilation Wind Calamity, these semi-immortal artifacts seemed increasingly palatable to the Heavenly Dao of Xuanhuang.

It incessantly urged Li Fan on.

Li Fan remained still, standing silently for most of the day, thoroughly whetting the Xuanhuang Realm's appetite.

Finally, under the constant yearning conveyed by the Xuanhuang Realm, he proceeded to the next step.

"Xuanhuang World-Ending Transformation: Time flows, seas turn to dust!"

This was a transformation that would only manifest when the Xuanhuang Realm faced an existential crisis. At this moment, the Xuanhuang Realm was full of vitality, so this transformation did not yet exist.

It was identical to his previous refining of the Boundless Mirror.

Under the shroud of mysterious power, the flow of time in the space where the thirteen semi-immortal artifacts were located seemed to accelerate by hundreds or thousands of times.

The power of heaven and earth ceaselessly writhed, like a stomach, digesting these semi-immortal artifacts.

The semi-immortal artifacts gradually grew dim and blurred.

Li Fan looked up slightly and noticed the return of the Spirit of Heaven and Earth, specifically responsible for transforming immortal artifacts into Heaven and Earth Oddities.

His heart stirred slightly as he secretly observed the actions of this transparent figure.

Previously, it only needed to "transport" one immortal artifact remnant at a time, or perhaps at most two simultaneously.

Now, there were a full thirteen items laid out before it. The transparent Spirit of Heaven and Earth seemed somewhat troubled.

"It's alright, I'm watching," Li Fan conveyed a friendly thought to it.

The transparent Spirit of Heaven and Earth was a manifestation of the Xuanhuang Realm's fundamental laws, and naturally inherited its connection to Li Fan.

After nodding slightly to Li Fan, it made a selection. Then, it enveloped three semi-immortal artifacts and re-merged into the Xuanhuang Heaven and Earth.

Seeing this, Li Fan's spirits also lifted.

Because according to previously observed scenes, the transparent Spirit of Heaven and Earth would "transport" the swallowed semi-immortal artifacts into the bodies of newborn creatures in the Xuanhuang Realm, becoming accompanying oddities for newly born life.

But now, under the shroud of the immortal array, most living beings in the Xuanhuang Realm had fallen into slumber. What would it do now?

And what happened next proved that humans, and even animals and plants, were merely a part of heaven and earth. And not even an indispensable part.

Even without their help for the Xuanhuang Realm to "digest."

The Xuanhuang Realm still had other methods.

In Jiushan State, nine towering mountain ranges stretching across the land began to shake violently without warning.

Boom! Boom!

As if heaven and earth were crumbling, the nine mountain ranges collapsed one after another.

The dust and smoke kicked up by the collapsing mountains blotted out the sky and sun.

The earth continued to tremble from the aftershocks of the collapse.

If not for the protection of the immortal array shielding the sleeping beings, this dreadful calamity alone could have killed over ninety percent of the creatures in Jiushan State.

Li Fan watched this scene of the Xuanhuang Realm's self-destruction with great interest.

Soon after, a sharp glint suddenly flashed in his eyes.

No longer observing from afar, his wooden sword unsheathed, he personally arrived within Jiushan State.

As the dust settled, on the land that had turned into hills, a peculiar life form was being conceived.

Inside it, Li Fan saw the shadows of the three semi-immortal artifacts previously transported by the transparent Spirit of Heaven and Earth.

But what concerned Li Fan more was that this newly born life form bore a seven or eight-tenths resemblance to the Xuanxian Sect's sacred beast, the Tian Beast!

Though just born, it was already one-fifth the size of Jiushan State.

It seemed to still be in deep slumber, its snores shaking the heavens.

Li Fan keenly noticed that as this little Tian Beast continuously grew in its sleep, its body size actually became smaller and smaller, constantly condensing!

Li Fan's heart filled with inexplicable joy: "In my previous life, I learned from Mo Rubing that the Tian Beast was actually transformed from a jade pendant brought down from the Immortal Realm by King Xuantian."

"Although the Tian Beast later died in battle and turned into the Nine Mountains, it now seems that perhaps it only ran out of power and reverted to its jade pendant form."

"When the Xuanhuang Realm was looking for a vessel to digest the immortal artifacts, because almost all cultivators were in slumber, it naturally found this sleeping Tian Beast!"

While Li Fan's thoughts churned, the little Tian Beast rapidly shrank to the size of an adult's palm.

In this short span, the three semi-immortal artifacts within its body had become almost invisible!

"As expected of a creature from the Immortal Realm, its digestive ability is terrifying."

Even Li Fan was astonished, he concealed all his aura and slowly approached the little Tian Beast.

He picked up the still sleeping creature.

Even in its infancy, the little Tian Beast felt no weaker to Li Fan than a Dao Harmonizing cultivator of the Xuanhuang Realm.

With each breath, there seemed to be rumbling sounds of wind and thunder.

Falling into Li Fan's hand, the little Tian Beast instinctively felt alert.

But it couldn't open its eyes, only continuously squirmed, trying to escape Li Fan's grasp.

Li Fan tried to nourish it with his own spiritual energy, but the little Tian Beast merely disdained it and recoiled further.

He then switched to a higher-grade source energy essence.

The little Tian Beast poked its head out, examined it, and then quickly drew back again.

No matter how Li Fan tempted it, it showed no interest.

Li Fan frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and then tried, one by one, the power of the Infinite Star Sea and the vitality from the Rift Valley.

Although the little Tian Beast no longer resisted, it still showed little interest.

"Could it be that only immortal spiritual power will do?"

"You picky little rascal! Even I need the Great Heavenly Venerate's legacy to get immortal spiritual energy. Where am I supposed to find food for you?" Li Fan cursed under his breath.

Suddenly, Li Fan thought of something, his eyes glinting.

He flipped his hand and took out a gray chess piece.

It was the secret move left by Sun Piaomiao to revive the Immortal Domain.

Although Li Fan had no intention of collecting all the chess pieces to recreate the Immortal Domain in this life.

He had, however, gathered most of the scattered chess pieces from the starry sky.

He had simply suppressed them in different locations.

"What I need to guard against is only the Southern Immortal Celestial Pillar."

"If each chess piece is unfolded individually, it won't appear."

"In the previous life, the Immortal Boat unfolded one of them, generating a keratinous layer attached to its surface..."

"But that's just theoretical. I originally didn't need to take this risk."

"However..."

Sensing the aura emanating from the Immortal Domain chess piece, the little Tian Beast, as if it had smelled some rare delicacy, scrambled and rolled, rapidly approaching.

It opened its mouth, continuously gnawing.

But the Immortal Domain chess piece had Li Fan's protective barrier, so the little Tian Beast's gnawing couldn't keep up with its regeneration.

After biting for a long time without getting what it wanted, the little Tian Beast grew a little anxious.