My Longevity Simulation Chapter 1518: All Living Beings Return to the Dao

Images of countless divine abilities and spells were slowly spilling out from the light point.

Although the projection of the Dao Epoch had been suppressed in an instant by Purple-Robed man, Li Fan and Inherit Dao could not help treating the slightest signs of instability from this supreme treasure as an imminent threat.

After all, it contained the combined total of every divine ability that had ever appeared throughout the entire existence of a possibility, from its birth to its annihilation. The power it could unleash was simply unimaginable. Even if that possibility might not have contained an expert like Lord Hill Guardian, and Transcendents such as the Three Sages of the Immortal Realm had not been recorded within it, the projection of the Dao Epoch was still far beyond what Li Fan and Inherit Dao could withstand at their current level.

In fact, even the entire High Wall and Shuo Star Sea would be utterly helpless before it.

They could only do their utmost to suppress it before it erupted.

Inherit Dao reacted the fastest. He had already manifested the wondrous phenomenon of Mountains and Seas. Gale-force winds howled as they compressed the light and shadows, forcing them inward.

At the same time, he smiled bitterly.

"Senior Purple-Robed acts swiftly and decisively. He arrives quickly and leaves just as quickly. Unfortunately, he seems to have forgotten this projection pearl."

"Perhaps it was a test from Senior Purple-Robed," Li Fan replied cautiously.

He had already retreated far into a safe area and was remotely assisting in suppressing the pearl through the Myriad Aspects Dao Net.

Working together, the two fellow disciples spent more than half a year before finally managing to suppress the Dao Epoch Projection pearl, albeit only temporarily.

Looking at the small point of light before them, whose radiance had now completely faded, Inherit Dao wore a worried expression.

"This only treats the symptoms, not the root of the problem. Although we forcibly suppressed it this time, the next eruption will undoubtedly be even more violent..."

"I am afraid the two of us might not be able to withstand it."

Li Fan nodded in agreement.

"It is indeed a good treasure, but it is also a dangerously hot potato."

During the half year he had spent sealing the Dao Epoch Projection Pearl, Li Fan had also gained tremendously from the experience. It was as though he had been personally experiencing an endless stream of Dao arts and techniques at every moment.

Although the vast majority of them were worthless to Li Fan, with only one in ten thousand offering any meaningful insight, the sheer scale of the total made the number of useful insights truly astronomical.

Li Fan even felt that, even with the enhanced version of the Derivation Dao Art, deducing such an enormous number of different divine abilities would probably require tens of thousands of years.

Li Fan accepted everything without discrimination, accepting it all and turning it into nourishment for his own cultivation.

With computational power comparable to that of the Dao Deviation Stone Mother, he was still able to process everything in an orderly manner.

Yet, despite facing such an extravagant feast of Dao arts and divine abilities, Li Fan felt little excitement.

After receiving Purple-Robe's guidance, his gaze had already transcended the mortal world and turned toward the vast Mountains and Seas.

For Li Fan, with the assistance of [Truth], reaching the level of strength and cultivation required to traverse the Mountains and Seas was practically a certainty.

Even if he were to remain forever within the confines of the High Wall from this point onward, through the gradual accumulation of time, he would eventually be able to advance step by step and reach the realm of Transcendence.

The real problem lay in the method of making a boat.

The requirements concerning one's state of mind were exceedingly profound and mysterious. They could not be fulfilled merely through quantitative accumulation. If one did not possess the necessary conditions, then even cultivating for hundreds of millions of years would not change the outcome.

If one was incapable of achieving it, then one simply could not.

Li Fan had once attempted to use Dao Xuanzi and Kou Hong as raw materials, recreating and altering their life experiences in an attempt to cultivate an Eternal Remnant Will within them.

Naturally, the attempt had failed without the slightest doubt.

Now, as Li Fan recalled that experience, he realized that although it had seemed as if he had been only a hair's breadth away from success, the actual gap might have been an insurmountable chasm that could never be crossed.

Thinking of this, Li Fan could not help feeling somewhat envious of those individuals who had already managed to condense an Eternal Remnant Will.

"Seeds of Transcendents..."

"Unfortunately, cultivators possessing this innate talent are exceedingly rare. Throughout the entire history of the Xuanhuang Realm, there have only been a handful. Even if I wanted to study their examples, there would be very little I could learn from."

"It seems that, just as Purple-Robed said, I must walk a path that belongs exclusively to myself."

Li Fan pondered silently. Yet, for once, a rare trace of indecision emerged in his heart.

An important question now lay before him.

[Truth], the Transformation Between Truth and Falsehood.

Could this be considered his own path?

With the protection of [Illusion Is Also Truth], once his cultivation reached the required level, he should be able to disregard the various dangers lurking within the Mountains and Seas and traverse them freely.

Compared with the methods of traversal employed by those so-called Transcendents, his would be thousands of times easier and more effortless.

Did this mean that he no longer needed to worry about his own Dao path? That he no longer needed to cultivate and reinforce the principle of "Only I Make My Boat"?

Judging from the power [Truth] had demonstrated so far, that certainly seemed to be the case.

Yet, for some reason, Li Fan could never quite shake the feeling that something was wrong.

It was as though, after becoming involved with the Mountains and Seas beyond the mortal world, his former unconditional and unquestioning trust in [Truth] had naturally begun to disappear.

This matter concerned the direction of his future Dao path and was therefore of paramount importance. Consequently, Li Fan found himself feeling somewhat lost, an extremely rare occurrence for him.

More importantly, it seemed that no one other than [Truth] could provide him with an answer.

Yet, [Truth] remained silent throughout, seemingly oblivious to Li Fan's thoughts.

Although he continued to stay by Inherit Dao's side as usual, discussing insights into the Dao with him.

Li Fan's thoughts actually remained deeply immersed in contemplating the relationship between [Truth] and his own Dao path.

"Junior Brother, does something seem to be troubling you?"

Although Li Fan had concealed his thoughts quite well, he had still failed to escape Inherit Dao's notice.

Ever since witnessing the true appearance of the Mountains and Seas again and comprehending the meaning of traversing them, Inherit Dao's cultivation seemed to have advanced even more rapidly.

Seeing that he had been found out, Li Fan no longer bothered hiding anything.

"Senior Brother, have you already found a direction for your own path of traversal?"

Li Fan had originally assumed that Inherit Dao would be just as uncertain as he was. Unexpectedly, Inherit Dao answered with absolute conviction.

"Why would I only come to this realization today? Ever since Master enlightened me, I have already had my answer. No matter how difficult it is to traverse the Mountains and Seas, I only need to continue walking along Master's path."

"Since our esteemed Master can traverse the Mountains and Seas with such ease and composure, then I will certainly be able to do the same."

"It cannot possibly be that simple..." Li Fan opened his mouth, intending to refute him.

But after thinking it over carefully, he realized that perhaps it really was that simple. Moreover, this line of thought coincided perfectly with the meaning of Inherit Dao's very name, ‘Inheriting the Dao’.

Li Fan revealed a thoughtful expression.

"Perhaps I have been thinking about this the wrong way."

"There is no need to agonize over it so much."

"If I cannot determine whether [Truth] truly constitutes my own path of traversal, then I will simply set it aside for the time being. Perhaps I have indeed become far too dependent on it."

"From today onward, I shall act as though I do not possess this extraordinary treasure at all and seek a path of traversal that belongs to me alone. I will continue until the day I reach the realm of Transcendence."

"If I succeed, then naturally there will be nothing more to say. But if I fail..."

"[Truth] might still be able to serve as my safety net."

The moment this thought arose, Li Fan ruthlessly suppressed it.

"If I harbor such thoughts, it will probably be impossible for me to forge my own path of traversal. Now that I have made my decision, I must commit myself to it completely, leaving myself no way back."

Li Fan recalled the [Unceasing Reincarnation] function he possessed, and a preliminary idea immediately took shape in his mind.

However, this was not the right lifetime to conduct such an experiment.

He would wait until his next life, when he could create a possibility environment most conducive to comprehending the Dao, before attempting it.

The faint confusion in his heart gradually subsided.

Li Fan bowed toward Inherit Dao. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother."

Inherit Dao waved his hand. "You figured it out yourself. It has nothing to do with me."

After this brief interruption, the two turned their attention back to the Dao Epoch Projection Pearl.

"Senior Brother, I have a proposal that might resolve its hidden danger," Li Fan said.

"Oh?" Inherit Dao was pleasantly surprised.

"The reason this Projection Pearl has gone out of control is that, when the man from the Guangwu Star Sea released this treasure earlier, he had already prepared to perish together with it. The divine abilities recorded within the Projection Pearl had, in fact, all been triggered. However, he never imagined that there would be someone in this world capable of suppressing all these detonated divine abilities with ease through their own strength alone."

"The moment Senior Purple-Robed made his move, he suppressed all the divine abilities erupting within the Projection Pearl. However, Senior Purple-Robed has already departed. The suppressive force he left behind cannot last forever." Li Fan explained calmly and at length.

"I naturally understand this principle." Inherit Dao slowly nodded.

"Then the key lies in the divine abilities recorded within this treasure. Senior Brother, are you reluctant to part with it?" Li Fan suddenly asked.

Inherit Dao chuckled. "Junior Brother, what are you talking about? Although this treasure is extraordinary..."

"But how could it possibly compare to the Dao of Crossing Mountains and Seas? Even if one possesses a thousand arts and ten thousand Great Daos, can they cross the Mountains and Seas?"

"In the end, they would still perish amid the Dao Annihilation." Inherit Dao clearly possessed a firm understanding of this matter.

Li Fan smiled. "Then this will be easy to resolve. Blocking a river is not as effective as giving it an outlet. If we continue forcibly suppressing it, we will only achieve the opposite result. When it eventually erupts in the future, the backlash will likely be even more violent. Instead, why don't we release the divine abilities recorded within the pearl? Naturally, we must do so gradually."

Inherit Dao stroked his beard and pondered for a moment before furrowing his brows.

"However, the divine abilities and spells recorded within this Dao Epoch Projection Pearl are simply too numerous. Even if we release them to the greatest extent possible without affecting the surrounding starry sky, I fear it will still be difficult to fully dissipate the pressure before the Projection Pearl eventually explodes."

Li Fan did not answer directly. Instead, he pointed toward the High Wall, beyond which the Shuo Star Sea was shrouded in boundless darkness and devoid of vitality.

"Senior Brother, don't you think this stretch of the starry sky seems a little too desolate? How does it compare to the Immortal Realm at the height of its prosperity?"

"It naturally falls far short." Inherit Dao was an intelligent man as well, and quickly understood what Li Fan was getting at.

He asked somewhat unexpectedly, "Junior Brother, are you suggesting that we distribute the divine abilities and spells within this Dao Epoch Pearl among the living beings of the Star Sea?"

"Exactly!" Li Fan clapped his hands and laughed.

"Although the Star Sea is currently desolate, as long as we give its inhabitants some time and a suitable environment, their numbers can increase without limit. Having them absorb the contents of this Dao Epoch Projection Pearl will be an exceedingly easy task."

"Furthermore, the divine abilities recorded within the Projection Pearl can also serve as keys to initiate their cultivation. As long as their population is sufficiently large, perhaps we can even produce several Nameless True Immortals."

Inherit Dao stared at the Dao Epoch Projection Pearl, clearly tempted by the proposal.

"This supreme treasure also contains the Great Daos of numerous other possibilities. If the starry sky beneath our feet absorbs them, it might be able to make up for some of its deficiencies."

"Moreover, you and I, as sworn brothers, can use the eyes of the countless living beings throughout the Star Sea to examine every divine ability recorded within this Projection Pearl. It truly achieves several goals at once." Li Fan smiled in agreement.

...

After carefully discussing the matter, the two soon reached a decision and finalized this plan to return the Dao to the countless living beings of the Star Sea, which they named the [Returning the Dao] Plan.

The key to carrying out this plan was having a sufficiently large population of living beings.

For Li Fan and Inherit Dao, this was hardly a difficult matter.

Under the coverage of the Dao Net, the reproductive urges, conception rates, survival chances, and growth rates of living beings all increased severalfold.

Within the High Wall, the Xuanhuang Realm and the Archaic Immortal Realm were also subject to Li Fan's decisions with a single word.

With an unlimited supply of energy from the Infinite Ocean, there was no need to worry about resource shortages, no matter how numerous the living beings became.

Consequently, the overall population of living beings throughout the Shuo Star Sea beyond the High Wall began to increase at an astonishing rate.

Sixty years passed. Only after the total population of the entire Darkest Star Sea had increased nearly one hundred thousandfold did Li Fan and Inherit Dao finally slow things down somewhat.

The [Returning the Dao] Plan had not waited until that moment to begin. Rather, it had been gradually implemented throughout those sixty years.

Whenever a new living being was born, Li Fan and Inherit Dao would personally oversee the process, randomly extracting a strand of Great Dao and divine ability fluctuations from the Dao Epoch Projection Pearl and fusing them with the newborn life.

Under the protection of these two mighty experts, the fluctuations of these divine abilities would not harm the fragile newborns. Instead, they became innate divine abilities, much like natural talents.

Firmly imprinted within the depths of their souls, these abilities would also accompany them as they grew, serving as guiding lights along their paths.

Of course, the divine abilities and spells recorded within the Dao Epoch Projection Pearl varied greatly in quality. The power of the innate divine abilities each living being received also differed. This was simply unavoidable.

However, to Li Fan and Inherit Dao, it made little difference who obtained the divine abilities recorded within the pearl.

Every living being participating in the Returning the Dao Plan, along with their every action and movement, remained entirely under the control of Li Fan and Inherit Dao.

Inherit Dao was not particularly familiar with this aspect.

Fortunately, Li Fan possessed abundant experience accumulated from the Xuanhuang Realm, making him exceptionally proficient at handling such matters.

With the support of immortal formations, even with an enormous number of living beings participating, there was not the slightest sign of anything slipping out of control.

"I never expected Junior Brother to possess such profound attainments in the Dao of Formations as well." Inherit Dao stroked his beard and praised him.

"Merely a minor skill. It is just one of the detours I took along my past cultivation journey." Li Fan shook his head slightly.

"Junior Brother need not be so modest. Who is to say that the Dao of Formations cannot also allow one to cross the Mountains and Seas?" Inherit Dao spoke with unusual seriousness.

"I remember that, back in the Immortal Realm, there was once a formation called the [Xuanyuan Primordial Spirit Formation]. Even Master repeatedly praised it as an ingenious and extraordinary formation. It is said that the Immortal Realm's continuous expansion into the mountains beyond was made possible, in no small part, by this formation."

Inherit Dao's words immediately caught Li Fan's attention.

"Xuanyuan Primordial Spirit..."

"I am somewhat familiar with this formation myself. However, as far as I know, it does not seem to possess such extraordinary power." Li Fan asked tentatively, a hint of confusion in his voice.

As he spoke, Li Fan displayed five formation diagrams he knew, including the [Desolate Fall, Flowers Bloom in an Empty Room] formation, before Inherit Dao.

Although Inherit Dao was not proficient in formations, matters of the mortal world ultimately could not escape the principles of the Mountains and Seas. After carefully examining the diagrams, he was nevertheless able to discern some of their underlying mysteries.

"Each formation appears to possess limited power when considered individually. However, when they are combined and layered together, the power they can unleash increases by hundreds or even thousands of times."

"It is much like the explosive increase in the population of the Star Sea during this period."

"Furthermore, from what I remember, the portions of the Xuanyuan Primordial Spirit Formation that you are missing seem to be its most crucial components."

Inherit Dao narrowed his eyes and manifested an image of the Xuanyuan Primordial Spirit Formation being activated, which he had witnessed in the past.