Chapter 1433: Fruits of the Thoughts of All Beings

After consuming a bowl of red soup, the expressions on the faces of the three cultivators from the Sword Domain began to contort dramatically. Clearly, not everyone could, like Li Fan, serenely enjoy the wondrous desires of all living beings on their first taste.

Ji Xingdao's eyes were wide, and his aura surged like ocean waves. Situ Tiantian's brows were tightly furrowed, her face a mask of frost. Around her, countless ice crystals seemed to swirl like snowflakes; upon closer inspection, these white crystals were distinctively shaped like flying swords! Zhao Xing, however, was the best among the three. He merely appeared to have consumed a very spicy wine, a peculiar expression fleeting across his face before he quickly returned to normal.

Regardless of the three cultivators' reactions, Scholar Zhu, draped in a long robe, slowly descended from the main seat. The hunched figure hidden beneath the robe emitted an eerie creaking sound of growth, quickly elongating and straightening. A sorrowful, plaintive female voice began to sing, echoing through the hall.

"Paradise of Rainbow Skirts and Feathered Robes, a long feast with golden goblets and jade wine. Drums and music fill the air as dances swirl gracefully, the lamps grow dim but the night is still young…"

Scholar Zhu sang softly, dancing as he chanted. Li Fan stared unblinkingly at the graceful, faceless figure.

As Scholar Zhu's song continued, the gates of the City Lord's Mansion seemed to swing open. The previously silent hall instantly erupted into a cacophony, as myriad sounds of life from Paradise City flooded in from all directions, converging within the manor. In a daze, Li Fan witnessed everything unfolding in Paradise City. Laughter, indulgence, conflict, lust; freedom, pleasure, intoxication, exhilaration. Simultaneously, images of countless beings reveling in unrestrained pleasure exploded before Li Fan's eyes.

"Paradise City, a true paradise."

Yet, all of this abruptly shifted with a change in Scholar Zhu's tone.

"Extreme joy turns to sorrow, a universal truth; blades flash, blood turns to slurry. Malevolent shadows and myriad ghosts emerge in the night, heads become rammed earth, bones form the beams…"

His tone was chilling, and a monstrous killing intent surged forth. "Clang!" Like the sound of a sharp sword striking the ground, it startled the countless beings in Paradise City awake, rousing them from their blissful illusion. All the ornate lamps extinguished, and Paradise City was instantly plunged into darkness.

The darkness, however, did not last long. A blood-red sun slowly ascended from the horizon, casting its crimson light upon the city. The slaughter had begun. During the long night of extreme pleasure, intimate bed partners suddenly turned on each other, fighting to the death. All bonds of friendship, kinship, and love… lost all meaning in the long night that followed. Only survival remained the sole and eternal concern.

"Die! Die! Die! Die!""Kill!""Ah!"

Screams and the sounds of frenzied slaughter resounded through the City Lord's Mansion like a grand symphony. Scholar Zhu had already transformed from his dancer guise back into a hunched old man, his eyes full of perverse enjoyment as he watched the carnage in the city.

Meanwhile, the three young cultivators from the Sword Domain, gradually awakening from their red soup-induced hallucinations, turned pale and began to tremble as they confronted the terrifying spectacle of human depravity unleashed in Paradise City. Li Fan, too, feigned an expression of extreme discomfort.

"What a pity," Scholar Zhu sighed. "Such a spectacle ought to be appreciated by more people. Yet, only a few of you youngsters have arrived." Scholar Zhu's voice was tinged with loneliness and melancholy. Nevertheless, the slaughter in Paradise City did not cease.

"Still, it mustn't become boring and disgrace me." Scholar Zhu's voice, like that of a devil, reverberated in their ears.

In Paradise City, another change began to manifest. Beings who had already been killed miraculously returned to life, not as living creatures, but as invisible specters. At this point, they had two choices: either directly exact vengeance as a malevolent ghost, instantly killing their foe, but causing their own specter form to vanish; or possess a survivor, using them to exact their full revenge. A possessed individual's power would be amplified as if two beings' strengths were combined, significantly increasing their chances of vengeance. Those killed by a possessed individual would also transform into specters. In their specter form, they could attack each other, but the outcome would always be mutual annihilation. Therefore, most would choose to seek out other survivors to possess.

As the carnage continued, Paradise City was gradually reduced to a population of survivors possessed by specters. If a specter-possessed survivor was defeated, no new specter would emerge, and the possessing specter would likewise vanish into thin air. This slaughter was slowly reaching its climax.

When the final count of survivors reached one hundred, the possessed individuals would become aware of the specters possessing them. They could choose to coexist, or they could launch relentless mental attacks against their possessors. Those who defeated a specter could fully absorb its power and make it their own.

"Tell me," Scholar Zhu suddenly asked those present, "among the final victors, will there be more humans or more specters? This grand ceremony will culminate in ten victors. Each of you four will receive one fruit. If you guess correctly, I shall bestow an additional one upon you."

Upon hearing this, the three cultivators from the Sword Domain immediately brightened. Their earlier fear and revulsion at witnessing the slaughter in Paradise City were instantly cast aside.

"I predict there will definitely be more specters surviving," Situ Tiantian declared confidently. The other two cultivators from the Sword Domain also offered their predictions. Some guessed specters, others guessed humans. When it was Li Fan's turn, he pondered for a moment before seriously responding, "Among the ten victors, I believe humans and specters will be evenly split." The three cultivators from the Sword Domain all showed surprise at his answer. Scholar Zhu, however, gave Li Fan a meaningful glance but offered no reply.

As the sun reached its zenith, the slaughter in Paradise City continued unabated. Those who had survived the initial massacre already possessed considerable survival experience. Their tactics of lurking, hiding, and striking from the shadows gradually slowed the pace of the slaughter. However, the constantly shrinking Paradise City forced them into closer proximity, thereby re-accelerating the game's tempo. Repetitive viewing eventually led to aesthetic fatigue. No matter how bloody or bizarre the scenes, they eventually began to feel ordinary. The three cultivators from the Sword Domain had grown numb, their faces devoid of any unusual expressions. They even began to show signs of impatience. Only Li Fan remained, meticulously observing the varying reactions and choices of every living being in Paradise City when confronted with life and death.

It was said that Paradise City operated on a three-year cycle. This protracted battle truly endured for three full years. It seemed a mysterious force was secretly orchestrating the game's progression from behind the scenes. Over these three years, the three cultivators from the Sword Domain consumed bowl after bowl of red soup. By now, drinking it was no different from drinking plain water; they felt nothing. Li Fan's treatment, however, was not as generous. In the first year alone, he was awarded a total of six bowls. Afterward, Scholar Zhu deliberately ignored him. Li Fan understood that Scholar Zhu was gradually enhancing the endurance of the three Sword Domain cultivators to prevent them from being overwhelmed by the fruit's immense murderous intent upon consumption, which could otherwise turn them into imbeciles. After all, they belonged to the Sword Domain, so Scholar Zhu had to show them some deference. As for "Ma Tiande," his fate was purely left to chance.

The three-year period concluded. The blood-red sun finally vanished below the horizon. Paradise City, reduced to a small final zone, once again descended into darkness. At this moment, it seemed to enter a state of suspended animation, with all survivors frozen as if encased in ice. Light and shadow contracted, directly flying into the City Lord's Mansion. The survivors, glowing faintly, floated out from the illusory projection of Paradise City. Specters and humans separated into distinct groups.

"Five specters, five humans? You actually guessed it, you brat!" Situ Tiantian exclaimed, looking at Li Fan with a hint of shock. The three cultivators from the Sword Domain were visibly dejected that their potential bonus reward had slipped away. Li Fan, however, knew that Scholar Zhu was, in fact, saving their lives. Given these young cultivators' current strength, they might barely tolerate consuming one fruit. Swallowing two consecutively, however, would surely lead to their demise.

"It seems this Scholar Zhu is truly petty-minded," Li Fan thought with a sneer. The fact that the duration of the slaughter in Paradise City could be precisely manipulated suggested that the entire process was merely a formality. The final outcome was entirely at Scholar Zhu's discretion. Since Li Fan had predicted an equal number of humans and specters as the final result, the final tally of survivors was bound to be an even split between humans and specters.

"Excellent. These two fruits are for you!"

The survivors, glowing with a faint white light, curled up as if returning to the womb, their bodies transforming into the shape of fruits. Scholar Zhu selected the two most robust ones and personally placed them in Li Fan's hands. Li Fan bowed in gratitude. The three cultivators from the Sword Domain looked displeased but dared not act presumptuously. With clear dissatisfaction, they each swallowed their own allotted fruit.

Li Fan felt Scholar Zhu's gaze continuously fixed upon him. Following suit, he swallowed one of the fruits. The Fruit of All Beings melted instantly upon entering his mouth, leaving no discernible taste. Immediately, a superposition of countless thoughts, memories, and emotions violently erupted in Li Fan's mind. It was as if a terrifying, all-consuming storm had inexplicably arisen on level ground. Li Fan's original consciousness was swept away by this tempest, leaving him helpless and precarious.

"This is what is meant by, 'the thoughts of all beings can refine all gods.' With my divine sense, tempered through a hundred reincarnations and reflecting the Great Dao, no storm, however powerful, could faze me. But Ma Tiande utterly lacks such an ability… unless he can utilize the Dao Net." Shielded within the storm of communal thoughts, Li Fan observed Scholar Zhu from the corner of his eye, sneering inwardly. He had already devised a countermeasure. "Within the Dao Net, there are nameless True Immortal 'life anchors.' From one of its nodes, I subtly detected an aura remarkably similar to Scholar Zhu's…" Li Fan's thoughts raced.

In reality, Ma Tiande was weeping profusely, his face contorted in agony. A single face displayed several conflicting emotions simultaneously, and his limbs thrashed uncontrollably as if he were a drowning person desperately clutching at any possible lifeline. Scholar Zhu watched the struggling Ma Tiande with an expression of enjoyment. His peripheral vision, however, instinctively glanced skyward. The death of a Dao Net operator would generate a signal, which would be transmitted via the Dao Net to the Governance Council. Within the Scorpius Star Sea, there were surviving factions from various immortal cultivation realms, and even from different star seas, including former True Immortals. Countless peculiar and hidden methods constantly emerged, yet only the Dao Net could bypass all obstacles and transmit the real-time status of its operators to the Governance Council. This was how the Scorpius Star Sea maintained its stability. Yet, this was precisely the phenomenon Scholar Zhu was anticipating and waiting for. This was also the true reason he had always desired "Ma Tiande's" demise.

However, Scholar Zhu's expectations were not met. The Dao Net operator, who was already in a death throe, seemed to have genuinely found something to cling to. Despite the extreme contortion of his face, Scholar Zhu could discern that Ma Tiande's inner consciousness had not dissipated.

"Hmm?" This piqued Scholar Zhu's interest. "This is…" Squinting to observe, Scholar Zhu's expression abruptly changed. He saw it within the other's sea of consciousness. Ma Tiande, whose life was under threat and who faced imminent death, instinctively inscribed a multitude of seemingly meaningless Dao Yuan symbols. These Dao Yuan symbols did not form a Dao Net command. Thus, they did not trigger any unusual activity within the Dao Net. Yet, inexplicably, they coalesced into a long barrier, effectively blocking the storm generated by the Fruit of All Beings.

"By sheer coincidence, without a formal Dao Net connection, he still managed to invoke the Dao Net's power?" Scholar Zhu possessed a profound understanding of the Dao Net. He now understood the fundamental reason for Ma Tiande's survival. The Dao Net was a genuinely existing entity. Although it had fallen under the manipulation of certain individuals, the Dao Net controllers could only regulate its actions and commands. They could not, however, control all of the Dao Net's innate reactions. After all, the Dao Net was a reflection of all the Great Daos in the cosmos. "The Dao Yuan symbols activated the Dao Net. Theoretically, this should have triggered a Dao Net anomaly. However, the Governance Council must have suppressed this unusual activity. Among an infinite number of combinations, he happened to form one that saved his life. Is this a coincidence?"

Scholar Zhu remained silent. He did not intervene, allowing Li Fan to fully swallow and digest the first fruit. The storm of consciousness gradually subsided. Li Fan awoke from his state of confusion and agony.

Before he could fully process the changes brought about by consuming the fruit, Scholar Zhu coldly stated, "Continue. There's still another one." Li Fan paused, seemingly unable to grasp the reason for Scholar Zhu's indifference. Nevertheless, he gritted his teeth and swallowed the second fruit. In his sea of consciousness, the storm re-ignited. This time, it seemed even more intense than before. It once again engulfed Li Fan's consciousness.

"I'd like to see if you can be so lucky a second time!" This time, Scholar Zhu's gaze was fixed on Ma Tiande's sea of consciousness from the very start.

Sure enough, as Ma Tiande struggled weakly and gradually lost consciousness, his dying instinct once again conjured countless Dao Yuan characters. The symbols formed a different instruction this time.

"It seems good fortune won't strike twice," Scholar Zhu mused, feeling somewhat satisfied. He waited for the storm of communal thoughts to utterly consume Ma Tiande. But soon, his expression grew peculiar. Although these Dao Yuan symbols did not form a protective barrier like before, they inexplicably transformed into another storm. The two storm forces counteracted each other. And once again, Ma Tiande remained unharmed!