My Simulated Road to Immortality Chapter 2342: 1749: Gracefully Toying with the Three Saints
Previously on My Simulated Road to Immortality...
The ink-black visage of Guardian Hill contorted and writhed in a flash.
His form had morphed into a servant of the Void Realm, clashing utterly with his deeply ingrained convictions. This inflicted a profound jolt upon his soul.
The outburst proved fiercer than Li Fan had foreseen.
“Ideas clashing with the Dao must not stand. Self-annihilation looms as a threat!”
Li Fan hadn't anticipated such unyielding righteousness in Guardian Hill's faith. Upon grasping his predicament, he'd opt for ending himself over serving as a Void Realm pawn.
Yet, ensnared by Li Fan's grasp, his choices over life, death, longing, or loathing no longer belonged to him alone.
With a mere notion, the roiling Dao Yan welled forth, mending Guardian Hill's fractured frame.
Next, Li Fan steadily poured in recollections of rebirth and deliverance.
“Razing the world to redeem it, slaying to safeguard. Daoist Guardian Hill, you truly misjudge my intent!” Li Fan uttered with a deep sigh.
As expected, Guardian Hill's resistance, aware of Li Fan's prior deeds, began to ebb away.
Still, his bitterness lingered over his role as a Void Realm manifestation. He merely fixed his gaze on Li Fan, silent.
“A Lone Star plummets into the realm, no matter your view or role; the Mountain and Sea's fate of ruin remains unaltered.”
“Whether we bring its end or the Void Realm does, what's the core variance?”
“Better to fuel our stand against the Void Realm and Lone Star than dissolve pointlessly into Dao Yan.”
“Beyond the ultimate outcome, Daoist, you've yet to pierce the veil!”
To Li Fan's remarks, Guardian Hill offered no retort, though his scorn shone clear.
Li Fan paid it no heed, issuing a soft chuckle.
“Never mind; I realize Daoist Guardian Hill won't converse idly with me.”
“Yet, regardless of your view on my ways, you must concede my resolve to rescue the world.”
“The Mountain and Sea's tomorrow rests solely on my shoulders. Without bold tactics, how else to seize a spark of chance from the hopeless?” Li Fan voiced with melancholy.
Guardian Hill's eyes flickered a bit, his face turning grave.
“In this existence, I aim to claim mastery over the Void Realm.”
“Since you refuse to join me, Daoist, I'll tread this path solo—what of it?”
“That said…”
“There's a matter I'd seek your aid in grasping.”
Li Fan declared, gradually revealing the [Dao Yi Mountain and Sea Map].
Dark-hued peaks and oceans, shrouded in tempests and mists, appeared tangible yet ethereal.
For the first time beholding it, Guardian Hill's eyes held a hint of astonishment. Quickly, he spotted the Mountain and Sea Boundaryless Stele at the Dao Yi Diagram's heart.
“This is…”
“True God Finger.”
Li Fan's tone resounded mysteriously.
At those three syllables, even Guardian Hill's steady demeanor faltered, his dark form quivering faintly.
“The True God Finger's descent reshaped the Mountain and Sea. It marks the primal root of the Mountain and Sea Meld.”
“Within this Mountain and Sea Map lies merely a shadow I've discerned. Despite that, it wields might to shift skies and lands!”
Li Fan explained, directing a gentle point from emptiness toward the dark Guardian Hill.
In that split second, it felt like confronting the full expanse of Mountain and Sea, as if beholding the True God transcending it all.
The Dao Yan form churned in wild unrest. The dark Guardian Hill's features subtly altered.
The True God Finger's force was utterly novel to him. To overhaul the Mountain and Sea's very genesis defied mere labels like “profound.”
The ripple from Li Fan's finger, poised to strike Guardian Hill, halted sharply.
“Surely you perceive that with this True God Finger, against your will, I could effortlessly reshape your mind. But considering our many battles as allies…”
Whether drawn by the innate allure True God enigmas held for Mountain and Sea Cultivators, or stirred by Li Fan's closing plea, after prolonged quiet reflection, Guardian Hill at last assented with a nod.
He'd shun aiding wickedness, yet lend aid to unravel the True God Finger's enigmas.
“I request Daoist Guardian Hill to first attune to the True God Finger's shadow I've embedded. Its full emergence in this era will herald the pivotal insight.”
The dark Guardian Hill settled in meditation, shrinking to a speck that hovered near the Mountain and Sea Without Boundary.
“As the proverb warns, caution toward allies is wise. Though you've consented, Daoist Guardian Hill, and I esteem your integrity, this touches on True God arcana…”
“To avert mishaps, precautions are necessary. Bear with me, Guardian Hill.”
With those words, tendrils of darkness erupted from the Dao Yi Mountain and Sea Map, akin to myriad chains, ensnaring and confining Guardian Hill.
Guardian Hill gave a light laugh, unperturbed, as he directed his focus to the Mountain and Sea Boundaryless Stele.
Li Fan offered a polite bow, while escalating darkness swirled, sealing Guardian Hill off from the exterior. Only the stele's dim glow seeped through.
The subtle grin faded from his face. Li Fan mused inwardly, “My choice proved wise indeed. The Void Incarnate's backlash was fierce; the authentic self would be worse. Had he sided with me, he might've pulled me into ruin.”
“Still, though I've swayed him, he's merely an avatar after all. His insight won't rival the genuine Guardian Hill's.”
Li Fan's gaze sharpened, resolve firming.
“If depth falls short, then amplify with numbers.”
His stare turned icy and steady upon the far-off Mountain and Sea.
Diverting a hefty share of Dao Yan's essence to shape Guardian Hill's Void Incarnate wouldn't stall Li Fan's encroachment on the Mountain and Sea.
As a past Mountain Sea Saint, he knew his conquest's mark intimately.
Even the Other Shore's All Saints' maneuvers largely fell within his foresight.
Employing the familiar ploy once more.
When All Saints' true essences lingered in the Mountain and Sea, they bided time to bolster their strength.
The moment All Saints sought passage to the Void Realm for convergence,
Li Fan unleashed his Dao Yan forces, plunging directly into the Mountain and Sea to consume unbound.
Dao Yan surges climbed to heights of ten thousand feet, poised to engulf infinite fates.
Right then, a staff, a shovel, and a rod materialized abruptly.
They clamped down fiercely on the Dao Yan.
The trio forged a formation, encircled by a pale ring like a barrier wall. Despite Dao Yan's furious assaults, the barrier held firm.
The Three Saints' forms flickered into view inside the pale ring.
They eyed the contained Dao Yan surge, faces etched with gravity.
“This Dao Yan differs from before.”
“Has a new consciousness arisen in the Void Realm?”
The Three Saints pondered briefly, reaching a verdict that bordered on the unbelievable.
As the Three Saints grappled with their baffling sentiments, the trapped Dao Yan abruptly stirred to life.
It seethed and converged, ultimately forming a spectral image.
The specter flashed a malevolent grin at the Three Saints.
Then it burst apart in a flash.
Spectral rays pierced the Xuanji Ring's barrier instantly.
Despite the snare set by the Mountain Lian Staff, Sea Returning Shovel, and All Living Beings Stick—deemed sacred relics—it treated them as mere illusions.
The pale glow endured, apparently unscathed.
Yet the ensnared Dao Yan surge inside had evaporated entirely.
“What!”
The Three Saints' outlines trembled, betraying their shock.
The Sea Return Saint strained every inference yet failed to trace this fresh Void Realm will's source.
“The crisis was dire enough; now another twist arises…”
“From whence springs this twist?”
The Three Saints, driven by reflex, turned their sights to the Mountain and Sea's origin.