Chapter 1577: Xuanhuang Crossing Path Obscured

Due to his ancestor, King Xuanyu, and the mysterious "Grandfather Ancestor," Chuanfa knew significantly more about possibilities beyond Xuanghuang than other Dao Integration cultivators there.

"Brother Su's condition seems to be a sensation of another self from other possibilities. The impact is so profound that it even..."

"A transcendent powerhouse?"

Chuanfa naturally understood the paths that existed outside the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm's cultivation system. That was a realm he could not attain and had reluctantly given up on. His ancestor, Xuanyuan Hong, was indeed a powerhouse of that very realm.

For a moment, Chuanfa looked at Su Fan, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

However, connecting it to the fear that periodically arose in the other person's heart, Chuanfa vaguely understood that the existence of other selves at the transcendent realm might not be a good thing.

After careful consideration, Chuanfa told Su Fan everything he knew.

Unexpectedly, after learning all of this, Su Bai's state of mind became calm.

"So that's how it is," he said calmly, letting out a long breath.

"Other me, huh..."

"If I'm not mistaken," he continued, "when all these 'selves' meet, one must be devoured. And currently, I am the weaker one being consumed. All the fear in my heart comes from this."

Chuanfa nodded slightly.

"If that's all it is, then there's nothing to be afraid of," Su Bai said with a free-spirited smile. "At worst, I'll just stay here for the rest of my life and never leave."

"The world we are in is already vast enough," he mused. "Perhaps we cannot explore it entirely in our lifetime. So why then should we aspire to go further, stepping into the mountains and seas? Human desires are endless. How do we know if there are other mountains and seas beyond these? Where will the end truly be?"

"Moreover, I have a faint premonition," Su Bai said softly. "As long as we remain within the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, perhaps we won't need to take that step ourselves to survey all the mountains and seas."

Chuanfa was initially stunned and didn't immediately grasp Su Bai's meaning. However, after pondering for a moment, he slowly realized, "Perhaps your premonition is correct."

The two, in perfect understanding, did not look up but simply watched the Daoist temples gradually rising in the Heavens Beyond Heaven. They felt an aura of an impending storm.

A hundred years passed in a flash.

The changes in the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm were subtle yet significant. The Investiture of the Gods was almost full of names, more stars appeared in the sky, and the Daoist temples and palaces in the Heavens Beyond Heaven had also grown considerably.

On this day, the number of Dao Integration Immortals in Xuanghuang reached its zenith at ninety-nine.

Those with names on the Investiture of the Gods had already surpassed a thousand.

The stars throughout the sky were countless.

Li Fan sat in the center of Xuanghuang, looking at the Immortal Ark of Salvation he had personally built. The satisfaction in his heart was beyond words.

The feedback effect of the Sky-Seating Art still persisted. In fact, due to the deepening connection between him and the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, the feedback power he received over the past hundred years surpassed what he had gained when the Xuanghuang Realm first ascended and sublimated.

A flickering phantom image in his palm showed the current scene of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, now filled with immortals.

"With these feedback phantom images," he thought, "the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark seems to have an almost endless supply of backup repair energy. Even if a certain area is damaged, as long as the overall structure of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm remains, I can instantly restore it."

"Crossing mountains and treading seas, my certainty has increased by several points."

"Now that the time has come," he declared, "let's see how the Immortal Ark performs when facing the waves of the mountains and seas."

Li Fan suddenly stood up, as if standing at the bow of the Immortal Ark, his gaze fixed beyond the Land of Annihilation, towards the distant Guangwu Star Sea.

"To brave the winds and waves, this is the day!"

Inside the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, everything remained motionless. It seemed as if nothing had changed compared to before.

But in reality, the entire world, along with the Lan Ke Dao Field, had transformed into a vessel and began to move slowly.

Right from the start, it stirred up tremendous waves!

Although the Shuoxing Sea had been swept clean by the Xuanghuang Immortals over the past century, it was still a place where vitality gathered. Now, with the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark setting sail, the Shuoxing Sea was like a block of ice in front of the ship.

It was easily shattered into pieces.

Although the destruction was less severe than that caused by Dao Annihilation, it would likely take millions of years for life to be conceived there again.

After shattering the Shuoxing Sea, they arrived at the border of the Sea of Vitality.

There was no path forward, but Li Fan waved his hand, continuing to control the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark, heading straight into it.

The speed grew faster and faster until it violently collided with that void boundary!

The Xuanghuang Immortal Ark, its phantom image flickering.

The massive world disappeared from view. Only the remnants of the ruined, desolate Shuoxing Sea were left behind.

Without the support of the Guardian Mound phantom image, this starry sky could no longer withstand the pressure of Dao Annihilation.

Dao Annihilation's reaction was also extremely swift. Wisps of black mist soon emerged from all parts of the Shuoxing Sea.

It seemed that this starry sky would not see the day of its vitality's recovery.

At this moment, the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark seemed to have suddenly crashed into a violent storm, its hull shaking violently without stop. It looked as if it was on the verge of collapse!

Li Fan vaguely remembered that in his previous life, Zi Yi had simply waved her hand gently, forcefully opening up a path in the void swallowed by Dao Annihilation.

Walking through the void of Dao Annihilation was effortless and completely without danger.

However, when Li Fan himself attempted to cross the mountains and seas, the situation was completely different.

Even purely in theory, with the current configuration of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, it should definitely be able to cross safely.

But that was only in theory.

The Xuanghuang Immortal Ark, facing Dao Annihilation for the first time, encountered various situations that had not appeared in previous derivations.

The most obvious was the pervasive corrosive impact of Dao Annihilation.

The Xuanghuang Immortal Realm was only nearing completion, not truly complete. Although the cracks in the ark's hull had been filled by Li Fan using various means as much as possible, they had not been completely eliminated.

The moment it entered Dao Annihilation, the corrosive power flowed along these cracks, slowly seeping into the Immortal Ark.

The sky of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm instantly seemed to be covered by a black cloth, becoming dim and lightless.

Not only in the sky, but in every corner of the world, countless tiny black fissures simultaneously appeared in an instant. A terrifying aura emanated from these cracks.

This was precisely the phenomenon of Dao Annihilation's engulfment!

As the master of the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark, Li Fan, though surprised, remained calm and quickly instructed Mo Sha and Dao Yi Worm to fill these cracks as much as possible.

At the same time, he crushed a phantom image in his palm.

Infinite energy surged from the shattered phantom image, rushing to all parts of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, like a flash of lightning illuminating the dim realm.

With the rapid replenishment of backup energy, the Xuanghuang world itself began to rapidly evolve, regenerating the areas that had been swallowed by Dao Annihilation.

The cracks in the world slowly diminished, and the anomalies seemed about to disappear.

However, these mending and patching actions ultimately could not fundamentally stop the erosion of Dao Annihilation. The imperfect cracks in the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm still remained.

After being temporarily repelled, Dao Annihilation quickly returned.

In other different places throughout the world, it created a large number of corrosive black fissures.

With the experience from the first wave, Li Fan was even less flustered and proceeded with mending in an orderly manner.

Thus, in this confrontation, the sky of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm continuously shifted back and forth between dim and bright states.

"Unless one personally enters the mountains and seas, one does not know their own shortcomings."

"I originally thought the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm was already nearing perfection," he reflected, "but upon entering Dao Annihilation, I didn't expect so many flaws. Fortunately, I had ample preparations."

"Moreover..."

Mo Sha and Dao Yi Worm, on whom Li Fan placed great hopes, were rapidly adapting to survival within Dao Annihilation while also attempting to repair the tiny cracks in the Immortal Ark.

"The fewer the cracks, the smaller the waves."

"With a perfect hull, crossing will be worry-free."

The Xuanghuang Immortal Realm itself was currently fine, but the situation of the living beings within it was not optimistic.

Crossing Dao Annihilation meant formally being within the mountains and seas.

Because of this, in the world interwoven with light and darkness, grand, continuous phantom images of mountains and seas appeared from time to time.

The Infinite Sea, the Mountains Above.

These were things Li Fan had gradually grown accustomed to.

For the living beings in the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, however, they were still incredibly shocking existences.

More than ninety percent of the living beings, the moment they suddenly saw the mountains and seas, were reduced to ashes because they could not withstand the pressure.

They disappeared and perished too quickly, so much so that even their lingering consciousness could not be preserved by the world. There wasn't even a possibility for them to cultivate again in their Yin Soul state.

The originally vibrant Xuanghuang Immortal Realm instantly became desolate.

Witnessing such a tragic sight, Li Fan, as the 'parent' of Xuanghuang, showed not the slightest emotional fluctuation on his face.

In his view, these lives that couldn't even withstand the first wave of impact were of no value to him whatsoever.

Let them die.

With a slight shift in his thoughts, new and numerous lives were quickly conceived again.

What was truly worth paying attention to were the surviving beings, those strong enough to serve as crew members and sailors.

Although they barely managed to save their lives, most of them fell into a state of extreme panic when faced with the constantly flickering phantom images of the mountains and seas.

"What... what exactly are these things?"

"Such vast mountains and seas, and I am in them, not even considered an ant! Not even an ant!"

"The seas are overturning, the mountains are inverted. They're coming down on us!"

"Is this what it's like beyond Xuanghuang? Holy Venerable above, Holy Venerable above..."

Alarm, terror, and panic consumed their minds. Countless illusions appeared chaotically in their minds.

Even though they desperately tried to remain calm, they found it difficult to protect their mental composure. Inevitably, they started to go insane.

Moreover, like sinking into a quagmire, once fear of the mountains and seas arose, they would sink deeper and deeper. At first, they could barely resist, but eventually, they would completely succumb.

Just as all living beings were terrified by the overwhelming power of the mountains and seas, unable to cope with the endless despair.

A magnificent and towering figure once again appeared above the sky of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm.

It was none other than the Primal Chaos Xuanghuang Holy Venerable of World Governance and Ethereal Firmament!

Unlike before, this time, the Holy Venerable looked down, a hint of sorrow flashing in his eyes, and let out an inexplicable sigh.

His voice was like a thunderclap, continuous and resounding throughout heaven and earth.

The Holy Venerable's colossal figure also emitted boundless warm light.

Sound and light converged, as if bringing all still-living beings into a warm sanctuary. The terrifying phantom images of the mountains and seas in their hearts slowly disappeared.

The crowd, whose minds were gradually regaining clarity, all wept bitterly, knelt on the ground, and praised the Holy Venerable's merits.

However, they did not know that Li Fan had only intervened to save them out of consideration for the Immortal Ark's stability. Those among them who could not face the power of the mountains and seas on their own had already been added to a list of those who could be discarded at any time.

When they officially entered the mountains and seas, facing the impact of Dao Annihilation and needing buffer material, that would be their time to contribute themselves.

"There are seven hundred and sixty-two individuals who faced the might of the mountains and seas without shrinking back."

"One hundred and sixty-seven individuals remained calm and fearless."

"And seventy-six individuals were even brave-hearted, rising to face the difficulties."

"Very good. This is the true foundation of my Xuanghuang Immortal Ark."

Being able to perceive the hearts of Xuanghuang's people at any time, Li Fan was quite satisfied with the current outcome.

Although they were under the protection of the Immortal Ark, the mountains and seas they saw were not the true ones. However, in reality, these individuals had already met the most basic mental fortitude requirements for crossing the mountains and seas.

"However, this is only the first wave of impact."

"The real calamities are yet to come."

Li Fan thought to himself.

If crossing Dao Annihilation were that simple, then over the years in the mountains and seas, countless transcendent powerhouses would likely have emerged.

Based on Li Fan's understanding of Dao Annihilation, he deeply knew that it was extremely cunning and possessed its own offensive consciousness.

After detecting anomalous objects floating within Dao Annihilation, it would soon launch even fiercer attacks against them until they were completely swallowed.

"The longer one persists in Dao Annihilation, the harder it is to survive."

"Thousands of waves, tens of thousands of surges; if one cannot hold on, all efforts will be in vain!"

"Fortunately, this journey is not too far."

Li Fan's prediction was correct.

After safely passing through a period of time, the erosion of Dao Annihilation not only did not subside but became even fiercer.

Not only were anomalies rampant in the world, but the entire world itself began to shake uncontrollably.

Mountains collapsing and rivers changing course were common occurrences.

Moreover, a large number of stars fell from the sky.

That was the phenomenon caused by Nascent Soul cultivators of the Xuanghuang Immortal Realm, who could not bear the pressure and perished due to their weakness.

Normally, once one achieved Nascent Soul, they would become immortal and indestructible, existing as long as the Xuanghuang world did. But the current situation was that the Xuanghuang world itself was in a state of crisis, and the grotto-heaven regions refined by the Nascent Soul cultivators were unfortunately swallowed by Dao Annihilation.

Naturally, there was no reason for them to survive.

Only those on the Investiture of the Gods and the Dao Integration cultivators could safely survive under the protection of the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark.

"The waves are indeed quite large," Li Fan said, standing between heaven and earth.

This crossing could truly be described as somewhat disheveled.

"Constant repairs consumed a full three phantom images of the Xuanghuang Immortal Ark."

"But fortunately, it ultimately held together and did not disintegrate."

"Furthermore, the Immortal Ark's overall state remains intact. As soon as it exits Dao Annihilation, it can instantly recover to its peak condition."

"Most critically, this maiden voyage exposed all the flaws of the Immortal Ark. Once back ashore, after I refine it again, the Immortal Ark will truly be perfect."

Li Fan was quite satisfied with the results of this crossing experiment.

"Let's rest and resupply just ahead!"

The Guangwu Star Sea had been reached.