Chapter 59: Transformation of the Cong Yun Sea
Upon seeing the crimson figure, numerous pieces of information suddenly appeared in Li Fan's mind.
A Heavenly Spirit is the embodiment of a certain law of the world.
When a specific condition is met, a Heavenly Spirit will come into being and appear in a certain area.
If the heavens emit killing intent and set a plan to eliminate cultivators...
Then the Heavenly Spirit is the executor of that plan.
They don't have their own thoughts and only act according to predetermined instincts.
They are the very embodiment of the law itself, slaughtering cultivators like slaughtering chickens and sheep.
Their mission is to eradicate those cultivators who defy the heavens and the earth.
For cultivators, the Heavenly Spirit is extremely dangerous.
Once targeted, it basically means a certain death situation.
But at the same time...
As the incarnation of the Heavenly Dao's laws, the Heavenly Spirit also represents a tremendous opportunity for cultivators.
One could sacrifice a Heavenly Spirit to merge with the Dao.
Once a cultivator was able to sacrifice a Heavenly Spirit, regardless of their previous cultivation level, they could immediately achieve the Dao Integration Realm.
It is the cultivator's natural enemy, but at the same time, it holds an unparalleled allure for them.
At this moment, witnessing the crimson Heavenly Spirit, an inexhaustible greed welled up from the depths of Li Fan's heart.
"Kill it! Killing it will allow me to comprehend the Dao, and I'll ascend immediately!"
It was as if a person starving to death encountered a sumptuous delicacy, or as if a traveler who had been walking in the desert for days encountered clear lake water.
This greed whispered like a demon, constantly speaking in Li Fan's ears.
Driving and tempting him to rush towards the crimson figure in the sky.
While Li Fan eased the intense sensation coming from the Canghai Pearl, he madly operated the Venerable Heart Refinement Mantra to dispel the surging greed in his heart.
He knew that he could currently observe the Heavenly Spirit, Crimson Flame, only by using the Canghai Pearl.
In the eyes of the Crimson Flame, Li Fan was merely the unformed consciousness of the Canghai Pearl. Therefore, even if the Crimson Flame noticed Li Fan's gaze, it only took note and then no longer paid attention.
However, if Li Fan were to lose his reason and attack the Crimson Flame, revealing the identity of a cultivator, he would undoubtedly be mercilessly killed by it.
Reason and desire tore at Li Fan's soul.
The two extreme thoughts were almost tearing his consciousness in half.
Li Fan could only barely maintain the operation of the Venerable Heart Refinement Mantra and preserve his Dao heart.
He didn't know how long had passed until the storm caused by greed gradually subsided.
Li Fan was still trembling, not daring to probe further.
To glimpse at heavenly secrets and still maintain a clear consciousness was already a great fortune.
Li Fan had obtained a great harvest already. As his consciousness was about to leave the Canghai Pearl and return to his own body, he discovered an extremely awkward situation.
It turned out that resolving the madness of greed brought by the Heavenly Spirit had actually taken Li Fan nearly half a year!
He used the Canghai Pearl to observe the Crimson Flame, which led to the greed. Resolving it took up a significant portion of his time.
The time he spent merging his consciousness with the Canghai Pearl had far exceeded the limits a Qi Refining cultivator could endure.
At this moment, his consciousness was still connected to the Canghai Pearl, which was alright. If he returned to his body, it wouldn't be long before he aged and died.
Just a fleeting glance had brought about such dreadful consequences.
Perhaps his cultivation journey in this world was coming to an end.
Although Li Fan felt some regret, he had no remorse.
He had learned the truth behind the Cong Yun Sea's dramatic change, encountered the Heavenly Spirit Crimson Flame, and personally experienced the mysteries of the heavens and the earth.
Li Fan's gains were undoubtedly substantial.
Even if this life were to end now, he could accept it.
Moreover, he currently didn't plan to activate [Truth] and end this life.
Since he was already trapped within the Canghai Pearl, he might as well take this opportunity to once again comprehend the secrets of the heavens and the earth.
As long as he didn't recklessly probe the Heavenly Spirit Crimson Flame and simply focused on comprehending, it should be safe.
Now, his body's lifespan had ended. Without a body to nourish his consciousness, he was like water without a source or a tree without roots. His consciousness would gradually dissipate within the Canghai Pearl.
According to Li Fan's estimate, he could sustain for a dozen or so years at most.
If he could make good use of this time, he might still achieve something.
Li Fan invoked a pure strand of power from the Canghai Pearl, protecting his body from decay. Afterward, his consciousness once again immersed itself in the perspective of the Canghai Pearl.
He observed the circulation of the Heavenly Dao and the rising and setting of the sun, moon, and stars.
He watched as the remaining life in the Cong Yun Sea continued to pass away.
He felt the cold and indifferent, eternal, unchanging killing intent within heaven and earth.
In this way, in the blink of an eye, five years passed.
After 40 years, the Cong Yun Sea had long since completely dried up, truly becoming a lifeless place.
Only Taian Island, which was under Li Fan's protection, still harbored a small number of ordinary people.
On this day, Li Fan suddenly had a feeling and looked towards the sky.
That crimson figure that had stood in the sky for over ten years had finally disappeared.
Its mission was completed, and it naturally dissipated.
No one could predict where it would reappear in the cultivation world someday.
Li Fan stared in the direction where the Crimson Flame disappeared, and his consciousness once again sank into the Canghai Pearl.
As time passed, Li Fan's consciousness became weaker and weaker.
His thoughts also became increasingly sluggish.
He lost the ability to think for himself and could only silently observe this world through the perspective of the Canghai Pearl.
In the second year after the disappearance of the Crimson Flame, several cultivators dressed in blue Daoist robes arrived at the Cong Yun Sea.
After various spells were cast, rain finally fell from the sky after a long absence.
More cultivators arrived thereafter.
Blue light blossomed on the dried seabed.
Vegetation, representing the breath of life, appeared on the land.
A gentle breeze passed by, and trees sprouted from the ground.
In just a year, the once scorched land had once again become vibrant.
The scene of the Crimson Flame boiling the sea, which had happened not long ago, seemed to have gently dispersed like a nightmare.
The Cong Yun Sea had also completed its transformation into the Cong Yun Mountain Range.
A city, standing tall in the sky, began to be built above the Cong Yun Mountain Range.
Once completed, it attracted more and more cultivators from all directions.
The Cong Yun Mountain Range became even more lively.
Occasionally, some cultivators would come out of curiosity, visiting the only surviving island in the calamity, attempting to find opportunities.
But through Li Fan's instinctive concealment, they found nothing.
After 48 years, a Foundation Establishment cultivator returned to the Cong Yun Sea.
He arrived at the former Liuli Island, now the Liuli Mountain Range, with a sorrowful expression.
Li Fan's consciousness scanned over, seeing this scene, and also felt a wave of emotion.
This person, Li Fan knew him.
He was Zhang Haobo, who had decided to migrate from the Cong Yun Sea due to his inner unease.
Twenty-plus years had passed, and through various unknown circumstances, this man had actually become a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Scenes from this life flashed rapidly in Li Fan's mind. His consciousness was about to dissipate.
Before completely disappearing, Li Fan's consciousness returned to his own body.
Over a dozen years of understanding the aura of the heavens and the earth allowed the bottleneck hindering Li Fan's breakthrough to suddenly dissipate.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth surged, and Li Fan's cultivation instantly broke through to the later stage of Qi Condensation.
A slight smile appeared on Li Fan's face but quickly froze.
His body rapidly aged, and with a gust of wind, he turned into dust, dispersing into the heavens and the earth.
Only a set of white bones remained, lying there quietly.
[Truth]!
Before dissipating, Li Fan called out in his heart.