My Simulated Road to Immortality Chapter 2306 - 1726: Devouring Mountains and Seas Array (Part 2)
Previously on My Simulated Road to Immortality...
Though a handful might still be oblivious, through the collective awakening, they swiftly decode the enigmas with aid from their allies.
Out of a basic clash of power and endurance, heavenly arts start to surface.
The fight wraps up in no time.
What began as a minor edge soon turns into a total domination once the awakened creatures all unlock their heavenly arts.
The awakened ones charge like fierce predators toward the leftovers scattered across the field.
Yet the spoils are few while the hungry pack is vast, nowhere near sufficient for everyone.
Hence, an intense eagerness builds for the upcoming horde of foes!
A strange sentiment and vibe start to swell and deepen in their souls.
Once the first bewilderment fades, realization dawns. This is the gift Li Fan has granted them.
In response, they drop to their knees in deep respect and loyalty.
"Rise."
"I don’t need your kneeling. What I need is..."
"Join me, and tear this sky asunder!"
Li Fan gestures toward the Vault of Heaven and declares offhandedly.
A profound bond seems to brew inside. Following a heavy hush, the horde of creatures bellows at the skies.
Instantly, their cries boom through the cosmos, shaking the firmament.
At the same time, a fleeting shade darts over the heavens.
Next, boundless storm clouds gather thickly.
Winds howl fiercely, and thunder crashes loud.
This marks the Vault's counteraction.
Though the awakened legion has surged in might, unless it surpasses the Vault's limits, the Vault will conjure foes anew to balance the scales.
Indeed, this fresh batch of morphed beasts proves far mightier than the last.
Leaving the freshly empowered ones feeling as though their gains meant little.
No guidance from Li Fan required, they dive into absorbing and fortifying themselves right in the thick of combat.
And through Li Fan's gaze, within this immense Vault of Heaven, another subtle web appears to form and tighten.
"Not enough yet."
Li Fan watches intently for ages before murmuring this abruptly.
With that, he escalates the challenge once more.
"You are born of chaos, ignorant. Therefore you can instinctively kill enemies, yet ultimately fall short."
"I have a technique to impart unto all beings."
"Absorb the spirit of Heaven and Earth to gather its essence. Borrow the wonder of Heaven and Earth to establish the Tao Foundation..."
With each phrase Li Fan utters, the myriad awakened creatures gaze upon the encircling Heavenly Vault in a new light.
Much like how they first noticed the battlefield scraps.
The atmosphere brims with sweet scents, stirring joy in their cores.
This realm, forged by reshaping the former devouring Taichu Immortal Realm, is indeed a realm of marvels, riches abound.
But now, all turned into fuel for the awakened ones' growth.
"Devour mountains, swallow seas..."
"Who wouldn’t know!"
"If we don’t change, even with the foundation of the Taichu Immortal Realm, we would only end up like the Past Xuanhuang World."
Li Fan fixes a stern glare.
Though it draws from the old Xuan Huang method's name, it's no identical path of cultivation.
The key to these creatures truly consuming this world lay in...
Li Fan's breakdown of the Vault's web.
The Vault's core was yet another form of the ultimate Mountain Sea consumption.
Holding Hai Zhen, Li Fan had observed endless shifts between real and illusory Mountain Sea.
Particularly bolstered by the essence and ethics from Guardian Hill, his grasp on true-false shifts had reached an entry-level proficiency, if not full insight.
Recalling how Guardian Hill once banished myriad Saints' Void Realm avatars, and ascended to Sainthood via Mountain Sea illusions.
This realm, born from Mountain Sea derivatives. Li Fan's unraveling posed no great hurdle.
The tricky bit was locating the concealed [Suo].
Thus, Li Fan awaited So's next rule rewrite.
Any alteration breeds weaknesses.
Evolving from merely consuming morphed beasts to devouring the very world.
The shift carried wholly new implications.
One versed in [Suo]'s art of swallowing mountains and seas would grasp this truth.
As Li Fan noted, without rule changes, letting these awakened ones run wild could soon shatter the web.
Embodying So's intent, upheavals erupt across the skies and lands.
Myriad bolts of lightning erupt at once, blazing light across the gloomy vault.
The bolts don't flicker out but halt in place, linking into the overhead dome.
Resembling fractures, resembling threads.
Thick and widespread, covering the entire expanse.
Moments later, legions of creatures spill from these rifts.
All aimed straight at Li Fan and his awakened followers!
Unacquainted with terror though they are, the awakened ones freeze at the sight.
Exactly as their guide foretold, they had ripped the heavens open.
However...
The sheer volume of foes emerging together is utterly staggering!
Against such a vast disparity in numbers, no amount of resistance will save them from being ground to dust.
"At this juncture, what use is there?"
"Only a desperate fight. Killing one will suffice, killing two is profit."
As their resolve wavers, Li Fan's words resound in their minds once more.
Snapping them back to focus just enough.
They cluster their barriers tightly. Confronting the onslaught as one.
Still, the odds are hopelessly lopsided.
The awakened army crumbles at the initial clash.
This clash isn't the Vault's typical setup for a fatal bout followed by absorption. It's a full-scale purge now.
Li Fan pays no mind to his dwindling awakened forces nearby.
He brushes off the approaching Vault beasts targeting him too.
"Finally found you!"
A sharp chill gleams in his eyes, his moves echoing Grand Emperor Tai Wei's.
He extends both arms and yanks with raw force.
Yet it's no simple mimicry of the Saint Emperor.
The Saint Emperor's blow had only revealed the lurking [Suo].
Li Fan aims to rip away a chunk of its substance!
Not for Mountain Sea's sake, but solely for his own gain.
"The original Saint of Mountain Sea, how different is their path from now!"
"Devour Mountain, Swallow Sea, this path suits me perfectly!"
In a remote emptiness, linked only by Mountain Sea's threads.
The distant Chiming Ring, seen by saints via Li Fan's projected visions alone.
Li Fan shows no fear in baring his hidden arts.
One mere notion, and real and unreal blend seamlessly.
"Since you came, don’t leave."
Li Fan stands as a mere human amid the endless beast surge, tiny and overlooked.
Yet without a single move, every nearby beast vanishes in a blink.
As though wiped from existence by unseen hands.
None spared.
As Li Fan strolls at ease, rising gradually into the air.
Amid the brooding monster clouds, a massive gash forms with his advance.
Even born without fear or retreat, facing this uncanny display, the Vault's morphed spawn recoil instinctively, loath to rush toward oblivion.
Beyond the awe of instant vanishing through true-false shifts, it stems from their maker.
[Suo], too, senses a twinge of alarm.
For all its prowess in devouring mountains and seas, against true-false mastery, it unravels in moments.
Suo, the ultimate predator, stays wary beyond measure.
Confronting the enigmatic Li Fan and his unfathomable heavenly art.
In scarcely a heartbeat, it resolves.
Withdraw!
This Mountain Sea realm no longer safe to linger.
The toll is heavy, but preferable to total ruin.
As if time's pause lifts, the stalled lights in the sky fade gradually.
The realm starts to fracture, the shrouded presence withdraws into hiding.
Those morphed beasts, meanwhile...
They turn into a lavish banquet for the surviving awakened ones.
"Teacher’s divine technique is unmatched, proving true leading us to tear open this canopy!"
Ecstatic beyond words, they pursue and devour the lingering morphed creatures with fervor.
Certain morphed ones even outmatch them in power.
But now, they seem disoriented and frozen in place.
Offering themselves up for the kill and consumption.
"Truly, following the right person matters greatly."
A faint idea starts to take root in the awakened ones' thoughts.