My Simulated Road to Immortality Chapter 2370 - 1764: Abandoning Hai Zhen (Part 2)
Previously on My Simulated Road to Immortality...
The pathways merged seamlessly, all of them belonging to the Mountain Sea Path in particular.
The duration demanded stretched out endlessly, gauged by the lifespan of the Mountain Sea itself.
Zhang Fan appeared to have sunk fully into a deep sleep.
In the shadows, the fortune of the Mountain Sea began to weave its subtle influence.
Zhang Fan remained seated in stillness, immersed in cultivation and deep reflection on the Path.
Across the endless flow of time, immense waves of thoughts raced above without pause.
However, none of them managed to uncover Zhang Fan's hidden location.
No one could tell exactly how much time had elapsed, yet Zhang Fan's entire aura had withdrawn completely. His presence seemed to vanish entirely from the Mountain Sea.
Meanwhile, the Mountain Sea's lifespan neared its final moments.
Fortune could no longer shield the beings caught in uncertain fates, as Dao Yan surged upward from the depths.
Still, the Dao Yan capable of consuming the Mountain Sea Path held no power over Zhang Fan.
Dark waves churned wildly, surging past with zero impact.
Zhang Fan remained utterly untouched by it all.
Noticing the strange disturbance nearby, Zhang Fan slowly stirred back to awareness.
"Hm? How long have I been asleep?"
Zhang Fan felt a jolt of surprise, but as he checked his own cultivation realm, every mixed feeling within him dissolved.
"I have become a Saint?"
Sensing his present condition, Zhang Fan's face showed an expression hard to read.
The boundless Mountains and Seas that had once awed him now appeared far less imposing and vast from his perspective.
Now able to bear their weight, his own form stood equal in scale.
"Mountain Seas, nothing more than that."
Such notions rose unbidden in Zhang Fan's mind.
A breakthrough from transcendence into the Saint Realm ought to shake the heavens and earth.
But for Zhang Fan, it unfolded in utter silence.
Like water flowing smoothly into a channel, without the slightest ripple.
Not even a flicker of aura erupted.
He simply ascended to Saint.
To tell the truth, Zhang Fan sensed a touch of letdown. He missed out on feeling that exhilarating instant of becoming a Saint firsthand.
"At least, I've managed to finish this stage at last."
"With this strength, I hold enough power now. No one in the Mountain Seas can make me cower anymore."
At first, Zhang Fan planned to head straight to the spot he'd detected earlier, facing off against the lord of [Real]. Yet, seeing the near-extinct state of the Heavenly Destiny Children and the cluster of True and False Dao in the vicinity, he shifted his plans.
"Someone has to seek justice for all of you."
"Let me, the survivor, take on that role."
Zhang Fan moved forward with gentle steps, venturing further into the heart of the Mountain Sea.
There, every Saint had assembled.
However, the focus of all Mountain Sea Saints locked completely on one specific spot.
His quiet entrance drew not a single notice from them.
Zhang Fan's eyes turned in the same direction.
A massive tree rose tall within the emptiness.
Countless forms dangled inverted, as if forming ripened fruits upon its branches.
The auras of True and False Dao emanating from them, varying in intensity, clearly marked who they were.
The Heavenly Destiny Children!
Within that throng of figures, Zhang Fan spotted several known faces.
Including Zhou Fan, who once unleashed the Divine Technique [All-Known] and nearly doomed him.
But after eons had passed, Zhang Fan's grudge had long since ebbed away.
No grudge lingered, only profound sorrow for these fellow Heavenly Destiny Children.
Even as they clutched "Real" close by, as if ready to restart at any moment.
Still, every Heavenly Destiny Child remained ensnared in a mighty Illusion Dream.
It formed a web of restraints, woven together by the Mountain Sea Saints as one.
This snare warped and manipulated the Heavenly Destiny Children's senses.
The reality they lived through was no true one. The [Real] they believed triggered stayed dormant in truth.
"Are all these Saints attempting to..."
"Use the Heavenly Destiny Children's forms to grasp the secrets of True and False Dao?"
That thought struck Zhang Fan first.
But he soon saw the flaw in it.
No one understood the elusive nature of True and False Dao better than he did.
Even drawing on the Heavenly Destiny Children's emotions and paths, no insight into [True and False] could emerge.
Zhang Fan knew beyond doubt that any effort to fathom [Real] would end in vain.
"Aside from the master of Real, nobody in existence can truly grasp and wield True and False."
"Given the brilliance of these Saints across endless years, they must have seen this truth. So, what are they aiming for...?"
What came next revealed the reality to Zhang Fan.
The Mountain Sea hurtled toward its Apocalypse, with Dao Yan boiling over without end.
Yet none of the Saints displayed the least alarm.
From that tree laden with Heavenly Destiny Children, strands of peculiar ripples started to spread outward.
Zhang Fan recognized them instantly.
"Real?!" His inner shock flared.
Soft gleams of light washed gently across the Mountain Sea swallowed by Dao Yan, pulling it back into being once more.
As though the Mountain Sea had undergone a full reset.
Still, the tree bearing the countless Heavenly Destiny Children persisted.
The Saints lingered in place.
The Mountain Sea, fated for ruin, now glimpsed a spark of life from this renewal.
"But what's the point of all this?" Zhang Fan felt a twinge of confusion.
"Survival itself holds the meaning." A voice rang out, drawing every Saint's attention to Zhang Fan.
"Who are you?" Zhang Fan eyed the youth who stepped into view, brimming with caution.
"Qiu Xinhui." The youth replied plainly, then questioned, "Have you come to avenge them?"
His intent exposed, Zhang Fan refused to confirm it. He just let out a cold huff, "I'm here to free them!"
Though Zhang Fan believed his power now let him stand tall against the Saints, he still detected a subtle threat from this youth.
So, he held back from striking right away, choosing to watch the scene unfold for the moment.
Strangely, Qiu Xinhui's words stirred a faint echo of recognition in him.
"Free..." Qiu Xinhui smiled once more.
He repeated, "Existence carries purpose. The freedom you seek..."
"Do they really desire it?"
Sensing he might falter in this debate, Zhang Fan narrowed his gaze, "Whether they want it or not, that's my call!"
"What, you plan to block me?"
Facing the array of Saints before him, Zhang Fan's spirit stayed bold and fearless.
He even sensed a quiet thrill building.
His existence had grown rather dull, after all.
Right after leaving that humble thatched cottage, the old fisherman and other powerhouses had curbed him, keeping him confined like a fledgling in the beginner's haven.
Once he broke free at last, he tasted only a short burst of battles.
Most days afterward passed in seclusion and evasion.
In terms of true lived moments, his years barely topped a century.
Utterly ordinary.
Now, with cultivation perfected at last, the chance to clash against the Mountain Sea Saints lay open—how could he let it slip?
This urge also drove him to arrive here ahead of all else.
Heart pounding with fervor, in an instant, a flash of blade light hovered above the Saints.
Right then, a faint glow abruptly caught his eye.
The Life Cutting blade's radiance faded completely.
Zhang Fan's inner alarm spiked, but a hand had already settled on his shoulder.
"Let's discuss this calmly, no need to shatter the peace."
"In the end, we share the same aim."
Though the other didn't spell it out, Zhang Fan knew exactly who the words pointed to.
The one who forged the myriad "Heavenly Destiny Children."