Chapter 58: 悟天地气机

Li Fan had been stuck in the mid-stage of Qi Refining for several years, making no progress. Even after cultivating both techniques to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, he still couldn't find his own opportunity.

At this moment, as Li Fan looked at the Ocean Pearl, he suddenly felt an unseen opportunity for a breakthrough. It was to connect with and perceive the Ocean Pearl using his own consciousness, just as before. Li Fan naturally knew how dangerous that was; it was essentially no different from seeking death.

*Miscellaneous Records of Cultivation* contained many accounts of cultivators sensing their own opportunities. While there were certain risks, it was also definitely accompanied by opportunities. Why hadn't he sensed it before, and why was it suddenly appearing now? Li Fan instantly understood.

The *Xuanhuang Heart Tempering Spell*. Perhaps activating the *Xuanhuang Heart Tempering Spell* could help Li Fan resist assimilation by the Ocean Will. He made his decision immediately.

Li Fan held the Ocean Pearl in both hands, lowering it slightly towards his dantian. Sitting cross-legged, he simultaneously activated both the *Thousand Machines Jade Ring Golden Tome* and the *Xuanhuang Heart Tempering Spell*. Li Fan was initially a bit unaccustomed to using two minds at once. However, the Heart Tempering Spell didn't involve the circulation of spiritual energy, only the tempering of the mind, so the two techniques didn't conflict. After hundreds of attempts, Li Fan finally gradually mastered the method of running both techniques simultaneously.

His mind drifted into a trance, as if he had once again become an ocean, observing the changes in the world. Sunrise and sunset, the shifting of constellations, clouds drifting and rain scattering. All of this accelerated tens of thousands of times, flashing rapidly before Li Fan's eyes. A single thought seemed to span over a hundred years.

A distant, ancient, and weathered aura gradually permeated Li Fan's consciousness. He began to get used to perceiving the world from the perspective of the ocean. He gradually started to forget that he was a human.

Just then, a cool sensation suddenly emerged. It was like a clear mountain spring, slowly washing away the mottled traces of time. Li Fan's consciousness gradually returned.

"It really works."

Having confirmed his conjecture, Li Fan felt neither joy nor sorrow. Although the *Xuanhuang Heart Tempering Spell* could, to some extent, reduce the Ocean Will's assimilation of him, he was still too small compared to the Ocean Will. He was still inevitably affected. His lifespan was still consumed many times faster than during normal cultivation, and human emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness were infinitely diluted.

There were, of course, benefits. At this moment, he could already tap into a sliver of the Ocean Pearl's power. His divine sense was strengthened by thousands of times, and with a slight movement, it easily covered the entire Tai'an Island. Without stopping, Li Fan's consciousness extended rapidly outwards like concentric ripples. Islands devoid of life appeared one after another in Li Fan's mind.

Through his divine sense, he saw that beneath a certain island, a previously dormant volcano, affected by the fiery calamity, was reawakening. He saw a gigantic fish skeleton lying among numerous human remains not far from Liuli Island. In the center of the fish skeleton, a massive Glazed Pearl glowed under the sunlight. He saw that in various hidden corners of the Cloudsea, a few cultivators he had thought were long dead still survived. He saw many secrets hidden within the Cloudsea that would only manifest in such an apocalyptic era.

However, none of this concerned him anymore. All greed had vanished from his heart.

His divine sense quickly retracted. He then mobilized the Ocean Pearl, drawing the remaining moisture from the heavens and earth of the Cloudsea, gathering it above Tai'an Island. As a result, the surviving humans on Tai'an Island saw dark clouds gradually forming in the sky.

"Boom!"

As the heavy rain fell, people wept with joy. They embraced each other, rolling in the rain. The heavy rain lasted for half an hour. A faint trace of clouds still lingered above Tai'an Island, not completely dissipating. This was Li Fan's doing; every half month, the Ocean Pearl would automatically draw moisture to bring rain to Tai'an Island once, ensuring the survival of the mortals on the island.

Having done all this, Li Fan quietly gazed at the sky. The reason he had no desire for the many hidden treasures and secrets in the Cloudsea was not because Li Fan had suddenly become extraordinary or enlightened, but because he had found something far more valuable to pursue: an opportunity to connect with the Will of Heaven and Earth.

The ideal state of cultivation in the theory of the *Thousand Machines Jade Ring Golden Tome* was to sense and refine the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The Qi of Heaven and Earth, as the external manifestation of the Will of Heaven and Earth, was immense and unparalleled. If an ordinary cultivator came into contact with it, even a slight lapse could lead to their lifespan rapidly diminishing, just as Li Fan had experienced before. Even losing one's self-will and becoming a puppet of the Heavenly Dao was perfectly normal. But Li Fan now had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: to connect with the Will of Heaven and Earth while retaining his own consciousness.

Because now, he was not just an ordinary Qi Refining stage cultivator. A part of his consciousness was already connected to the Ocean Pearl. If a cultivator trying to fathom Heaven and Earth was seeking their own demise, then using the ocean to fathom Heaven and Earth might not be without a path to survival.

Li Fan's heart subtly stirred with excitement. This was truly "to hear the Dao in the morning, and die content in the evening!"

He transformed into the ocean, quietly observing this world, sensing the various auras flowing through it, and feeling the will of Heaven and Earth.

One year, two years... The passage of time was no longer important to Li Fan. The more he gazed at the sky, the more insights he gained. His previous perceptions were overturned one by one. He had thought that the pervasive killing intent in the Cloudsea had gradually faded. But now he discovered that the killing intent of Heaven and Earth had never diminished; it was still present.

The violent killing intent Li Fan had previously sensed did not belong to the Heavenly Dao itself. The killing intent of Heaven and Earth would not be noticed by ordinary cultivators at all. It wouldn't be so violent, so enraged, so laden with emotions. It was merely a pure will, a pure rule. It was "Heaven and Earth are not benevolent; they treat all things as straw dogs." It was "It destroys you, what does that have to do with you?"

Under the Heavenly Dao, all are ants. Mortals, cultivators, oceans... In its eyes, there was no difference. When cultivators plundered the heavens and seized the earth, the Heavenly Dao naturally generated killing intent. However, the Heavenly Dao would not act directly, because cultivators themselves were also a part of the Heavenly Dao. Corresponding laws would naturally evolve, aligning with the killing intent of Heaven and Earth. For example, immortal arts cannot be cultivated concurrently, and also... what Li Fan witnessed at this moment.

Above the Cloudsea, a translucent crimson figure gazed indifferently downwards. In her hand, a tiny flame pulsed continuously, roasting the Cloudsea. Sensing Li Fan's gaze, the crimson figure turned its head. Their eyes met. The seawater within the Ocean Pearl instantly began to boil. Fortunately, she merely glanced and then withdrew her gaze. Only then was Li Fan's consciousness preserved. Precisely because of that single glance, Li Fan understood her identity.

The Soul of Heaven and Earth: Yan!