Chapter 1396: Dao Yin Moment Pause

In the past, whenever "Huanzhen" was activated, a layer of illusory mist enveloped the surroundings. Everything in the world would become unreal. When Li Fan's consciousness reawakened, he had already returned to the predetermined anchor point.

But now... when Li Fan mentally invoked "Huanzhen" this time, it was no longer a thick curtain of water appearing and obscuring his surroundings. Instead, the entire world entered a state of stillness at his mere thought, though it had transformed from its previous vibrant colors into a monotonous black and white.

Li Fan had never observed the world from such a perspective before. He stared blankly at the shattered 'Myriad Things Returning to Void Array,' with the lingering forces of wind seemingly frozen in mid-air. Countless Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth, each with a distinct form, encircled him. In the distance, a gaunt figure could vaguely be seen descending upon the world. It was the Hunger Immortal, who had achieved enlightenment in the Immortal Ruins.

Everything before him seemed no different from before "Huanzhen" was activated. The only distinction was that they were frozen in a black and white stillness. Li Fan observed cautiously for a long time before a sudden thought struck him, and his body flickered, actually moving directly within this static world!

This was an incredibly novel experience. Li Fan narrowed his eyes, attempting to touch a nearby Celestial Soul of Heaven and Earth. Even in its black and white form, Li Fan immediately recognized it as his old acquaintance, Chiyan. Compared to its state as a Soul of Heaven and Earth, Chiyan's expression now was much more vivid, almost indistinguishable from a living person. However, its eyes remained tightly shut, and its illusory clothing was tattered, making it seem somewhat out of place among the other Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth.

The moment Li Fan made contact with the Celestial Soul of Heaven and Earth, Chiyan, its body suddenly shimmered, transforming into countless particles of light that drifted away with the wind. Li Fan also sensed that the scope of this static world had significantly shrunk in turn.

Ignoring the distant matters for the moment, Li Fan narrowed his eyes, reliving the images that had just appeared in his mind. Besides a few pure fragments of Chiyan's law, there were also scattered snippets of memory. These were the past experiences of a blind cultivator who had ascended to veneration through fire. The power displayed by this blind cultivator in the memories, however, struck Li Fan with profound awe and shock.

In a cold, desolate star domain with no visible boundaries, the blind cultivator sat in meditation, seeking enlightenment. After an unknown number of years, specks of firelight slowly began to gather around the blind cultivator. The frigid star domain gradually warmed, then became intensely hot. Ultimately, the entire star domain was consumed by invisible flames, turning into a void, a hollow place where even coldness ceased to exist. In the final image, the blind cultivator seemed to vanish from the world.

Currently, Li Fan had merged with the Dao through Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth. Although only at the Dao-Merging stage, he possessed the actual strength of a Half-Immortal. Thus, he could truly comprehend just how immense the power displayed by the blind cultivator in the memories was. "Just the phenomena triggered by enlightenment were this terrifying." "A True Immortal... definitely a True Immortal!" Li Fan's heart was shaken.

But soon, he realized something even more extraordinary. "Wait, what I just saw..." "A True Immortal achieving enlightenment, vanishing from the world." "Was that the scene of their ascension to the realm of an Unnamed True Immortal?" Li Fan was once again filled with dread, his body even trembling slightly uncontrollably.

His thoughts raced, and a few breaths later, Li Fan vaguely guessed the reason for all this. "The Souls of Heaven and Earth were formed by the laws of the Xuanhuang Realm, utilizing the imprints left behind by cultivators who had appeared throughout history." "When the Xuanhuang Realm ascended to an Immortal Domain, this characteristic was retained." "The Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth are also manifestations of the Xuanhuang Immortal Domain's laws, formed from deeper imprints within the world." "They are one with the Dao, even merged with it." "Naturally, those who can resonate most deeply with various laws are the Unnamed True Immortals who once proved the Dao!" "Once they enter the unnamed realm, they vanish from the world." "All that the Xuanhuang Immortal Domain can perceive is their final scene before achieving enlightenment..." Li Fan's expression grew serious.

After an Unnamed True Immortal proved the Dao, they *became* that very Great Dao. He knew that if his conjecture was correct, what he had just absorbed was the past enlightenment of an Unnamed True Immortal's ascension! Even if he only captured a tiny thread amidst the myriad light particles, for Li Fan, who had just taken half a step into the immortal realm, this was undoubtedly immensely beneficial. He carefully savored the thoughts and insights in his mind.

After a brief burst of excitement, Li Fan suddenly felt that something was amiss. "Above True Immortals, one proves the Unnamed through the Dao. Each Dao path is unique." "The Dao of Flame is already occupied. How could this be useful to me?" "Unless..." "That blind Unnamed True Immortal is already dead." The more Li Fan thought about it, the more he felt this was possible. He quickly looked at the surrounding Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth; those that had evolved into a near-human cultivator appearance, like Chiyan, were extremely rare. There were only three such instances.

"If I absorb them, I should similarly be able to perceive the scenes of their corresponding Dao path, when the Unnamed True Immortals achieved veneration in the past." As Li Fan was about to act, his expression suddenly changed. Just as he was pondering, the effective range of the static black and white world drastically shrunk again. Only a spherical area with a radius of nine zhang and nine chi (approximately 30 meters) remained around him. Conveniently, no Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth were present within this area.

A wave of helplessness immediately surged in Li Fan's heart: "So, besides absorbing objects in the static world accelerating the collapse of its effective range, lingering here for too long also causes it to shrink..." "The area preserved after 'Huanzhen' is activated doesn't last indefinitely. It seems its duration is quite short." Li Fan now understood the new changes that had occurred in "Huanzhen" since he ascended to the Dao-Merging realm, or rather, became a Half-Immortal. That is, when he activates "Huanzhen," not everything in the world immediately becomes illusory. Instead, a large area with Li Fan at its center remains in a black and white static state. As for the exact size of this area, Li Fan hadn't had a chance to verify it this time. However, it should be extremely vast; at the very least, the entire Xuanhuang Immortal Domain, as far as Li Fan could see, was encompassed within it.

Li Fan also speculated that the effective range and duration of the black and white static region might be positively correlated with his own strength. Since he had only just entered the immortal realm, the effect he could maintain was naturally very limited.

"For now, I'll refer to this black and white static region as the 'Dao Concealment Zone'." "Within the Dao Concealment Zone, everything except me seems to be in a superimposed state of both real and unreal." "Maintaining the Dao Concealment Zone also requires certain energy related to 'Huanzhen'." "When I touch or perceive things within the Dao Concealment Zone, it's equivalent to pulling them from their real-and-unreal state into a truly real state, like myself." "The energy used to maintain the Dao Concealment Zone is then consumed in large quantities, which is why the zone's range dramatically shrinks..."

Even though he had virtually no space left, Li Fan still did not immediately leave the Dao Concealment Zone. He had already realized that comprehending the transformation between real and unreal was immensely easier within the Dao Concealment Zone. It was thousands of times simpler than in the normal world. Every extra moment spent there brought him immeasurable benefits.

"'When the real is made fake, the fake is also real.'" As Li Fan pondered and comprehended the true meaning of "Huanzhen," he also looked around at the boundary of the Dao Concealment Zone, nine zhang and nine chi away. Just like previous times "Huanzhen" was activated, it was already enveloped in layers of mist.

"'Real is false. False is real.'" Li Fan furrowed his brow, striving to decipher this profound and elusive principle of the world. Soon after, the Dao Concealment Zone's range shrunk again. Rolling mist engulfed everything except Li Fan. Li Fan's consciousness also slowly drifted into darkness.

This time, however, Li Fan did not entirely fall into a comatose state, losing all consciousness. He was merely half-asleep, half-awake, and in a daze, he seemed to witness an infinite burst of light erupting from the darkness. Within the blazing white light, countless events, people, and objects emerged. When Li Fan's consciousness fully awoke...

Anchor year 1, Mount Jie Li's peak!

Li Fan's expression was somewhat dazed. He extended his hands, examining them carefully. Everything he had experienced from "Huanzhen" until now gave him an extremely unreal sensation. His mind was still immersed in comprehending the transformation between real and unreal. A full day and night passed before Li Fan could no longer grasp any ripples of inspiration, and he temporarily ceased his enlightenment.

Only then did Li Fan's attention focus on "Huanzhen"'s prompt.

This simulation has ended.You may choose one of the following options to retain:1. One item you possessed during this simulation.2. Your cultivation realm from this simulation.3. The simulated memories of a person closely related to you in this simulation. These memories can be inherited by that person.4. Forfeit the above choices to accelerate charging progress.

"I've already achieved Half-Immortal status, yet there were no extra interfering variables, or a prompt to choose an additional inheritance option." "It seems my ascension to Half-Immortal was entirely within 'Huanzhen''s expectations," Li Fan said with a touch of self-mockery. "However, the newly born Xuanhuang Immortal Domain isn't considered an extra interfering variable." "But those descending from beyond the wall are, aren't they...?" Li Fan briefly fell into thought.

Then, Li Fan shook his head and snapped out of it. "Overthinking is pointless. Now that I've achieved Half-Immortal status, I am invincible within the Star Sea." "In this life, I must look beyond the high wall." "Whatever mysteries lie there, I'll know once I investigate!" After numerous twists and turns, he finally reached the Dao-Merging and Half-Immortal realms. Although far from perfect, he was, after all, an Immortal, transcending all mortals.

Among "Huanzhen"'s four options, he would certainly choose to inherit his cultivation. However... He slowly walked to the edge of the cliff on Mount Jie Li, looking up at the frail Grand Xuan Small World, and even the Xuanhuang Realm itself. Li Fan couldn't help but sigh.

"If I were to inherit my cultivation here, the Grand Xuan Small World would likely be instantly torn to shreds by the ascension phenomenon." "Even the Xuanhuang Realm, formed by the stitching together of various worlds, might shatter into pieces and fall into the Immortal Ruins due to this immense tremor." "Never mind!" "There are still places where I can use them." Li Fan's expression grew solemn, and he softly chanted, "'Fake is also real.'"

The next moment, the sensation of his cultivation from his previous life, after ascending to Half-Immortal, descended and empowered Li Fan's body through visualization. Thanks to his prolonged and continuous comprehension within the Dao Concealment Zone, Li Fan's understanding of the real-unreal transformation had significantly advanced. Compared to before, when his visualized cultivation could only last for a fleeting moment, it could now last for a full three breaths!

As he chanted, Li Fan had already regained his peak Half-Immortal strength from his previous life. Within the first breath, Li Fan's wooden sword was unsheathed, and he had already arrived deep in the empty, desolate Star Sea. In the second breath, Li Fan chose "Huanzhen"'s option to inherit his cultivation. In the Star Sea, winds immediately surged, and monstrous waves rose! With Li Fan, a descended Immortal, at its core, countless remnants of True Immortal seal script power formed a terrifying storm that shook the entire Star Sea. As if drawn by an unseen force, all the dormant residual power of True Immortal seal scripts from various parts of the Star Sea converged like rivers flowing into the ocean, heading towards the storm's center. The storm showed signs of intensifying.

As the third breath passed, Li Fan had fully inherited the cultivation of merging with the Dao by slaughtering Celestial Souls of Heaven and Earth with Mo. In this era, starting from King Xuantian tens of thousands of years ago, a second Half-Immortal finally emerged! "It truly has to be 'Huanzhen'," Li Fan sighed, feeling the surging, profound, and infinite power within him. Unlike the cultivation he visualized using his understanding of real-unreal transformation, which was like rootless duckweed that could disappear at any moment, with "Huanzhen"'s intervention, the fake had completely transformed into reality. Half-Immortal Li Fan looked at the growing storm of True Immortal residual power, which had arisen because of him, and slowly extended his left hand.

The surging, expanding storm halted instantly. It was then continuously absorbed into Li Fan's hand. In just a few breaths, this terrifying calamity, which could have plunged the Star Sea back into ruin, was invisibly neutralized by Li Fan. Li Fan pursed his lips, looking at the collected True Immortal residual power in his hand, which was crumpled together like a ball of paper covered in countless different writings.

Even without intentionally using power for protection, these ancient cataclysmic forces, which Li Fan had once regarded as ferocious tigers requiring constant vigilance, could not harm him in the slightest. "It's not that these residual forces have lost their effect." "Rather, the laws they construct simply cannot affect me, who is already an Immortal." "After all, they are merely the aftershocks of True Immortal seal scripts." Li Fan was quite satisfied with his strength after his ascension.

"In fact, apart from lacking Immortal Spiritual Qi within me, I am not much different from the True Immortals of old." "At the very least, our status is consistent." "Immortal Spiritual Qi..." Li Fan's attention involuntarily shifted to his bound item: the Disintegration Disc. Normally, no matter what changes—damage or sublimation—a bound object undergoes during a cycle, it wouldn't affect its state within Huanzhen's binding space. Once Huanzhen was activated, they would always revert to their original bound state. But now...

With a thought, the Disintegration Disc was immediately retrieved. Within his Sea of Consciousness, countless stars seemed to rise, dazzling brilliantly. The Disintegration Disc, ranked among Immortals, had astonishingly returned to the present alongside Li Fan! "Just like the Faceless True Immortal's leg bone before." Li Fan looked at the leg bone within Huanzhen's binding space, thoughtfully remarking, "Perhaps only True Immortals or similar beings are qualified to be carried by me through the transformation of real and unreal."