Chapter 1574: Immortal Ship About to Sink

The turning point occurred after the abdication of the previous Immortal Emperor of the Immortal Realm, Emperor Zhaiyang. The successor was not Emperor Tianluo, but Xuanyi.

Unlike Emperor Tianluo, who was overly ambitious and sought to resolve the Dao Annihilation calamity plaguing the entire Immortal Realm in a single decisive effort, Emperor Xuanyi's objective was clear from the very beginning. He aimed to concentrate all available resources and power to ensure the continued existence of the central nine starfields of the Immortal Realm. Other starfields in the Immortal Realm, and even the countless cultivation realms in the mortal world, were considered expendable.

Emperor Xuanyi's strategy proved remarkably effective. The nine central starfields of the Immortal Realm stood like towering highlands, firm amidst the surging tide of Dao Annihilation. Although this was achieved at the cost of countless submerged starfields below, it at least secured a temporary victory.

In contrast to the fate of many Immortal Realm starfields, the numerous cultivation worlds in the lower realms fared considerably better. Their power level was too low to even qualify as sacrifices, thus allowing them to be preserved until the very last moment. Absorbed into the Immortal Realm, they not only escaped the threat of Dao Annihilation but also, by a stroke of fortune, saw their mortal inhabitants ascend to immortality.

The reason the new Immortal Realm needed to absorb the lower realms was simple. Although temporarily victorious against the Dao Annihilation calamity, Emperor Xuanyi did not relax his guard. He knew that the calamity had not truly disappeared. As the overall Dao Annihilation process of Shan Hai deepened, the calamity was highly likely to return and sweep through everything at some point in the future. The countless lower worlds absorbed were a precautionary measure. These worlds, fragile as dust compared to the vast starfields of the Immortal Realm, were also more sensitive to impending disaster. Therefore, they could serve as early warning indicators for the arrival of Dao Annihilation.

When the great calamity approaches, the attached worlds perish first. By observing the number and speed of destroyed attached worlds, the Immortal Realm could make an early assessment of the coming Dao Annihilation's power.

"This Emperor Xuanyi is certainly more dependable than Emperor Taitian," Li Fan mused, secretly nodding. "I might even learn a thing or two from his warning method."

"I just don't understand why, when there are countless possibilities within Shan Hai, and certainly many like Emperor Xuanyi who successfully resisted Dao Annihilation, other possibilities don't directly adopt their methods. I imagine even if Immortal Emperors cannot traverse Shan Hai, they should possess the ability to observe other possibilities..."

"Could it be that, due to differing circumstances between each possibility, there is no universal method for salvation?"

Among the twenty-eight possibilities, twenty-six were quite similar to the 'Original' one Li Fan inhabited. As for the other two...

One possibility saw all living beings abandoning their physical bodies to exist as pure spirit forms. Free from the constraints of the flesh, they could attach themselves to the Grand Dao of Shan Hai at any time, making it easier to survive the Dao Annihilation calamity.

The other possibility was exceedingly bizarre. It seemed that at a very early stage, the course of history had diverged, and the Immortal Realm never even came into existence. Instead, there was only a vast, primeval, endless starry sky. This starry sky itself was connected to Shan Hai. Its vitality was exceptionally vigorous, allowing it to autonomously resist the Dao Annihilation calamity to some extent. In fact, even parts of the silent, dead starfields swallowed by Dao Annihilation could occasionally and slowly recover their vitality. Consequently, although the residents of this primeval starry sky were significantly weaker in strength compared to Immortals, they could paradoxically survive longer against the erosion of Dao Annihilation with less effort.

"However, it seems this primeval starry sky is extremely hostile to cultivators. The Saint Merchant pioneer who infiltrated it barely survived after completely abandoning his own cultivation. According to his conjecture, the stronger a cultivator's power, the stronger the backlash from heaven and earth they would face there. What if a True Immortal were to go..."

Li Fan estimated that given the primeval starry sky's ability to resist Dao Annihilation to some extent, anyone entering without transcendent power would likely face death or severe crippling.

"In reality, this primeval starry sky itself can be seen as a powerful entity connected to Shan Hai. I just don't know what happened in the past that prevented the birth of the Immortal Realm. Logically, the three Saints—Lianshan, Guihai, and Taiyi—should exist across all realms..." A flicker of doubt crossed Li Fan's mind.

"However, it's also possible that the information passed down by the Saint Merchant pioneer was inaccurate. After all, with his strength, he might not have been able to grasp the full truth of that entire possibility."

Li Fan shook his head slightly. Among these twenty-eight possibilities, the Saint Merchant pioneers were like towering, bright lighthouses. If one possessed the ability to traverse Shan Hai, they only needed to follow the subtle direction, continuously moving forward, and would generally arrive at their destination smoothly. Li Fan also found the method by which the pioneers could travel alone to other possibilities in the memories of the Saint Merchant Lord.

It was an eyeball, crystal clear, like a diamond! The light projected from the eyeball alone seemed capable of traversing Shan Hai. A single charge could send a wisp of consciousness to another possibility.

However, this wondrous item, considered a supreme treasure of the Saint Merchant, had pitiably weak defenses. It was extremely fragile, unable to withstand even the impact of a Nascent Soul cultivator's power. Therefore... it had most likely vanished completely with the destruction of the Saint Merchant. Li Fan felt a touch of regret, surprised that such a wondrous item had existed within the Saint Merchant.

But it was only a slight regret. Once the Xuanyellow Immortal Realm matured and could serve as a world-crossing Immortal Vessel, Li Fan would be able to explore Shan Hai himself. Knowing the conditions of his destinations beforehand would merely be a convenience.

"Furthermore, beings of the Transcendent realm should have ways to observe the possibilities within Shan Hai, right? Otherwise, how would they precisely find their destinations in the vastness of Shan Hai?" Li Fan wondered. "Even if I reached the Transcendent realm through clever means and cannot foresee the path ahead, I can still proceed by relying on these twenty-eight Saint Merchant coordinates. I won't be completely in the dark."

The path Li Fan was currently walking was likely unique throughout Shan Hai. Other Transcendent beings, and even the revered Saints, could not serve as references for Li Fan. Everything required him to proceed one step at a time.

After processing all the information in the Saint Merchant Lord's mind regarding possibilities beyond the 'Original,' Li Fan redirected his attention to matters within the 'Original' itself.

"The Ancestral Land."

"If I'm not mistaken, the so-called Ancestral Land should also be within the high wall, inside the Lan Ke Daochang."

"However, having inherited the Tomb Guardian's legacy, I have a complete grasp of the worlds within this experimental space, and there's no existence matching the description of the Ancestral Land from his memory." Li Fan's consciousness re-entered the control center of the Lan Ke Daochang, searching thoroughly to ensure nothing was overlooked.

"When the Xuan Merchant Immortal Vessel escaped, it activated defensive measures. The Ancestral Land fell into a sealed state. Perhaps that's the reason?"

Li Fan carefully checked again. His gaze swept back and forth across the familiar light screen composed of countless divided cube-shaped spaces. This time, Li Fan's focus was not on the areas shimmering with light, but on the pitch-black starfields that Li Fan had initially thought had transformed into dead zones.

"These black starfields are all regions swallowed by the Dao Annihilation calamity. Given my familiarity with Dao Annihilation, I couldn't be mistaken. Otherwise, I wouldn't have failed to discover the so-called Immortal Vessel Ancestral Land for so long." Li Fan meticulously observed each one. Once, twice...

Logically, no matter how deeply hidden the Immortal Vessel Ancestral Land was, it shouldn't have been able to evade Li Fan's detailed investigation. Yet, Li Fan had a vague premonition that the Immortal Vessel Ancestral Land might be extraordinary. Therefore, he patiently searched back and forth, not missing a single detail.

His divine sense enveloped all the black spaces for a hundred days. Suddenly, a flicker of an extremely subtle fluctuation, almost imperceptible, inexplicably occurred in one of them. It vanished in an instant. If Li Fan hadn't been watching intently, he would have largely overlooked it.

"This is..." A sharp light flashed in Li Fan's eyes.

"An aura disguised as being swallowed by Dao Annihilation?!"

"Using Ink-kill as a trump card, I can't believe Ink-kill actually tricked me!"

Li Fan was both surprised and pleased. He immediately split off a wisp of divine sense and sent it surging into this black starfield. To his surprise, as soon as the divine sense entered, it vanished instantly, as if swallowed. Immediately afterward, wisps of black qi inexplicably emerged around Li Fan's main body.

"This..."

"It's not a deceptive illusion; it's true Dao Annihilation! My divine sense rashly entered, and Dao Annihilation found its way to my main body through the connection between them!" Li Fan's hair stood on end instantly; he instinctively cast the Illusion-is-Reality divine ability.

The Dao Annihilation black qi, having sought its target, instantly lost it. But instead of becoming disoriented, it turned and attacked the Outer Heaven of the Xuanyellow Immortal Realm. It was as if the still-incomplete Immortal Vessel was being gnawed through by borers, creating several holes. Surging Dao Annihilation slowly began to pour through these openings.

"The holes are small now; I can still salvage this. If they get any bigger..."

"My Xuanyellow Immortal Vessel will sink before it even launches!" Li Fan's heart tightened. He quickly instructed Ink-kill and Dao-One Worm to mend these holes. He himself swiftly teleported to the Shuoxing Sea. Following clues from the Grand Dao Scripture, he consecutively captured and suppressed several True Immortals, as well as the three Unnamed Reverends — Fugui, Yanjian, and Buyan — to use as Heaven Pillars. After considerable effort, he barely managed to quell the Dao Annihilation.

Half a day later, Li Fan toured the Xuanyellow Immortal Realm, ensuring there were no longer any signs of Dao Annihilation spreading, before wiping cold sweat from his brow and exhaling a sigh of relief. He looked at the new Heaven Pillars in the world and sighed, "I originally planned to leave these few for the Xuanyellow Dao Harmonization Immortals to practice on. But now, I had to act expediently." Since regaining his memories in this life, he had not suffered such a significant loss.

Li Fan's expression turned somewhat grim. He looked again at the black-shrouded starfield within the Lan Ke Daochang. It was pitch black, swallowed by Dao Annihilation.

"The strange fluctuation I sensed earlier couldn't have been wrong."

"So, there's only that one fleeting moment of opportunity?"

Li Fan narrowed his eyes, focusing intently, waiting for that fluctuation to appear again. This time, he waited for over 150 days. With prior preparation, Li Fan fully observed the change this time. Like a black curtain being lifted, it revealed the normal white light of vitality within. It lasted only for a brief instant before the black curtain began to fall again. Li Fan seized the opportunity, and his divine sense entered it.