Chapter 359: The Confusing Seal of the Enchanted Domain

This piece of rubble seemed to have lost its original power over time.

Li Fan paused for a moment, then held his breath and slowly approached. He felt no changes in himself even as he reached the rubble. Still, Li Fan remained vigilant. This enigmatic realm, filled with various bizarre phenomena, must not be taken lightly. Without touching the rubble, he observed it carefully again from a distance.

A small portion of the rubble was embedded in the earth. It was roughly square, about an arm's length in width and height. Its edges showed clear signs of being broken, appearing to have been split from a larger, complete stone. Other characters were likely engraved before and after the character "乱" (Luàn). Unfortunately, only the isolated character "乱" remained, with no trace of strokes from preceding or following characters.

"This piece of rubble doesn't look naturally broken. Instead, it appears to have been deliberately cut.""Luàn.""Could the strange phenomena in the area centered around this circular pit—the disorientation, and even the bizarre human transfiguration—be related to this character?""If a single character truly triggers such numerous anomalies...""And what connection does this 'Luàn' stone have with the Heavenly Physician?"

Li Fan pondered for a moment, deciding to leave it for now and instead search the surroundings for any signs of an "exit." Unfortunately, the bottom of the circular pit contained nothing but an unknown, viscous, lake-like substance covering the ground. Only the "Luàn" stone was present.

"The 'inverted' monster now acts purely on instinct, so it shouldn't be trying to deceive me."

After considering, Li Fan returned to the rubble, activated his spiritual power, and lifted it from the ground. It didn't feel like a rare treasure; it was as heavy as a common stone. Moreover, after he lifted it, no suppressed exit appeared beneath the rubble as he had anticipated. Nothing unusual happened.

"Strange..."

Li Fan set the "Luàn" stone down and stroked his chin. With little time remaining, Li Fan stopped searching for other possibilities. Instead, he intently scrutinized the stone before him, pondering where the exit might be hidden. With no time to waste, Li Fan extended a finger moments later and casually shot a black light towards it. As he retreated, he observed the changes that occurred when his Nirvanic Sword struck the "Luàn" stone.

The black sword light instantly flew towards the rubble. Just moments before impact, the black light suddenly twisted. Under Li Fan's gaze, three energy masses, exceedingly familiar to him, separated from the black light: madness, pitch-black darkness, and swirling vortexes. These were precisely the three forces comprising the Great Five Elements Nirvanic Sword: Celestial Fiend, Ink Oblivion, and the Power of the Five Elements.

Under the "Luàn" stone's influence, the black light gradually receded. Subsequently, these energies, which should have been under Li Fan's control, turned against each other and began to clash. Simultaneously, an inexplicable wave violently erupted from the "Luàn" stone. It swept outwards across the circular pit. Li Fan was caught off guard and unable to dodge; the wave passed right through him. His expression instantly changed; he thought he had been tricked. However, to his surprise, the wave was pure bluster, with little actual effect. He merely felt a tingling sensation like ants crawling over his body, but after his spiritual energy circulated once, it was quickly suppressed.

Li Fan paused, staring thoughtfully at the "Luàn" stone.

"The 'Luàn' character has dissipated, retaining its form but losing its essence.""Yet, even in this state, it can affect my Five Elements Nirvanic Sword."

Li Fan glanced at the spot where the three energy masses had been entangled. During the recent wave, they had annihilated each other in their struggle. The last Black Death Talisman he wore had dimmed to the point of being almost invisible. It seemed on the verge of collapsing completely.

Anyone else facing such a desperate situation would have been overwhelmed, unable to think calmly. Yet, with his 'Reversion to Truth' as a foundation, Li Fan remained completely unfazed. With no need to worry about his own peril, Li Fan's thoughts raced as he continued to ponder.

After trying many different methods, the Black Death Talisman finally shattered completely. The ubiquitous white mist around him, now unconstrained, began to devour Li Fan's lifespan. In just a few breaths, Li Fan's physiological age on his 'Reversion to Truth' panel jumped from 51 to 52. While part of this was due to already being well past 51, it also revealed the terrifying speed at which the Soul-Devouring White Mist consumed life. Life rapidly drained away at a visible rate, yet instead of panicking Li Fan, it made his mind even calmer.

By the time Li Fan's lifespan reached one hundred, inspiration struck, and Li Fan's eyes suddenly lit up. He leaped to the broken stone, and using his hand as a brush, he traced the outline of the "Luàn" character on its surface. He meticulously wrote stroke by stroke. His hand moved swiftly and vigorously, completing the character in an instant. A faint golden light flickered and vanished. The character "Luàn" on the rubble seemed to regain a faint luster.

What horrified Li Fan was that the moment the "Luàn" character reappeared, the spiritual energy within him instantly drained away. If his Nine Laws Golden Core hadn't sensed the crisis and instantly circulated, transforming the Power of the Five Elements into an endless supply of spiritual energy to replenish his depleted body, he might have been completely drained. Even so, Li Fan's vision went black, and he nearly collapsed.

Fortunately, after absorbing all of Li Fan's spiritual energy, the "Luàn" stone underwent an inexplicable transformation. The character seemed to come alive, naturally exuding a chilling aura of power. The entire stone became ethereal. It emitted a dreamlike glow. Even the Soul-Devouring White Mist was repelled by the "Luàn" stone's radiance, forming a zone of clear space around it. Upon seeing this, Li Fan quickly moved into the clear zone to prevent further loss of his lifespan.

Perhaps because the "Luàn" stone's activation this time had absorbed Li Fan's spiritual energy, Li Fan didn't feel its influence on himself after approaching it. However, constant creaking sounds emanated from the surroundings, and the viscous substance covering the ground began to twist and undulate eerily, as if alive. Li Fan also acutely noticed that the transfigured corpses standing motionless in the circular stone pit were faintly trembling, as if they would animate at any moment. As the instigator of all this, Li Fan couldn't help but feel his hair stand on end.

"This is no place to linger."

Li Fan observed the "Luàn" stone, flickering between luminescence and etherealness, and a faint sensation arose within him. It felt like a doorway he could enter at any time. His spiritual sense detected no danger ahead; on the contrary, the only chance of survival lay within it. Li Fan no longer hesitated, launching himself towards it. Just as Li Fan had expected, the stone seemed to not exist. Li Fan passed straight through it.

His vision blurred, and endless white mist filled his view. Li Fan had finally left that treacherous, enigmatic realm and returned to the confines of the normal white mist barrier.