[This simulation has ended.]
In the study that felt familiar yet strange, Li Fan stood motionless, still immersed in the lingering sensation of executing the Heaven-Overturning Palm.
After a long while, he finally took a deep breath.
Though he had slain a Nascent Soul cultivator as a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, Li Fan felt little pride.
One reason was that the red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator wasn't particularly strong.
More importantly, Li Fan hadn't relied entirely on his own power.
He had used the Technique Eruption Spirit-Startling Array to forcibly elevate the power of his techniques to the Golden Core realm; then activated numerous supporting arrays.
Finally, he unleashed both ultimate killing moves simultaneously—Twenty-Eight Congyun Swords and the Heaven-Overturning Palm.
Yet in the end, he had only managed to trade his life for his opponent's. If not for Return to Truth, he would likely be dead by now, with his Dao extinguished.
On the other hand, if he hadn't had Return to Truth as his safeguard, given Li Fan's temperament, he probably wouldn't have fought with such desperate abandon, ultimately comprehending the Heaven-Overturning Palm that allowed him to turn the tides.
Gazing at the options offered by Return to Truth, Li Fan naturally chose the second option without hesitation, retaining his cultivation level.
As he confirmed his choice, he concentrated on the inside of his body, focusing on the changes taking place.
When he had regained his late-stage Qi Refinement cultivation before, the Immortal-Mortal Miasma within him had silently dissolved and vanished as his cultivation appeared.
What Li Fan was most curious about was how Return to Truth would handle this world's law that one must borrow a Curio of heaven and earth to establish their foundation.
As he held his breath, late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation suddenly surged forth within his body.
The Immortal-Mortal Miasma vanished like snowflakes dissolving in water.
Spiritual qi inexplicably emerged within him, and his aura began climbing steadily.
In an instant, he reached the late-stage Qi Refinement realm.
Then, within his dantian, a deep blue pearl suddenly appeared without any warning. It was none other than the Deepsea Pearl that shouldn't have descended into the world yet!
The Heaven-Earth Root attached itself to the Deepsea Pearl, transforming the laws it encompassed into Li Fan's Dao Foundation. Yet this Foundation Establishment process was hundreds, thousands of times faster than when Li Fan had done it himself!
In moments, the Deepsea Pearl disappeared without a trace, and a shimmering blue projection of a sea now resided within Li Fan's dantian.
In the space of a breath, Li Fan had completed the Foundation Establishment process.
Then his aura continued rising until it finally stopped at the late-stage Foundation Establishment realm.
It seems that even when relying on Return to Truth to enhance my cultivation, in this world, I must still follow the cultivation rules established by the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher step by step. [1]
This is the power of defying the principles of heaven and earth.
The rules of cultivation have been completely and fundamentally altered. To play this game of immortal cultivation, one must follow the newly established rules.
Li Fan pondered for a moment, recalling scenes from his previous life.
After the Eternal Heavenly Venerable defied the principles of heaven and earth, they no longer appeared in the world.
Dao Unity powerhouses who suppress entire provinces represent the strongest power in the open.
Below Dao Unity...
Remembering how the various Spirit Transformation experts in Yuandao Province had slaughtered each other, only to serve as sacrifices for Immortal Venerable Lan Yu to attain the Dao, Li Fan couldn't help but sigh.
Below Dao Unity, all are ants.
Spirit Transformation, Nascent Soul, Golden Core, Foundation Establishment... there's no fundamental difference between them.
Only after sacrificing the soul of heaven and earth and achieving Dao Unity can one barely enter the sights of the Eternal Heavenly Venerables.
But... without achieving eternal life, all is ultimately illusory.
Immortal Venerable Lan Yu clung to life for thousands of years, yet his time still came.
“Achieving eternal life... Achieving eternal life...”
Li Fan murmured these three words repeatedly, as if contemplating something profound, his brow deeply furrowed.
Without achieving eternal life, all is ultimately illusory. But even if one achieves eternal life, then what?
Back then, the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher established the new path of cultivation. From that moment, if one didn’t follow his cultivation path, cultivation became impossible.
But if one truly walks his cultivation path, one would still remain beneath his shadow even upon achieving eternal life.
Li Fan’s expression suddenly smoothed, as if he’d reached some profound realization.
In this world, the path of cultivation has already been set according to his will, becoming an established rule.
To transcend this, one must step outside the gameboard from the very beginning.
But as mere pieces—and the weakest pieces at that—how can we leap off the board ourselves?
Unless... we borrow external means.
Return to Truth...
Li Fan stared at Return to Truth’s panel before him, his gaze flickering intensely.
From the moment I learned everything in existence could be considered a Curio of heaven and earth, I conceived the idea of using Return to Truth to build my Dao Foundation.
For this purpose, I’ve observed over a thousand Foundation Establishment processes and unlocked two anchor points.
Now, it’s time to attempt it.
Having reached this decision, Li Fan flew to the peak of Jieli Mountain where he’d once comprehended Formless Killing Mechanism.
He built a simple grass hut and set up protective measures around it to prevent accidental intrusion.
Then he sat cross-legged inside, and with a thought, Return to Truth’s prompt appeared at precisely the right moment.
[Set current time as 2nd Anchor Point?]
Without hesitation, Li Fan answered: “Yes!”
With a click, the second anchor point was set.
Now, we wait for Return to Truth to finish charging.
Return to Truth’s charging speed hasn’t improved; it still requires about nine years. But I shouldn’t remain idle during this time.
I haven’t studied He Zhenghao’s Mountain River Hundred Veins Array Diagram much, but I remember the general principles of Zhang Zhiliang’s Unlimited Art.
This is the perfect opportunity to further strengthen my array proficiency.
It’s just unfortunate that this Immortal Forsaken Land of Great Xuan only allows me to improve my theoretical understanding, with no way to practice actual array deployment.
Li Fan sighed briefly, then immersed himself in contemplation of the array path.
Nine years passed in the blink of an eye.
It’s time!
With the ability to revert to his current state at any moment, Li Fan finally felt confident enough to begin building his Dao Foundation using Return to Truth.
Currently, his Foundation Establishment Curio of heaven and earth remained the Deepsea Pearl.
So the first step was: Shattering his Dao Foundation.
The Taishang Primordial True Scripture operated, transforming all his cultivated power into pure cultivation, which was stored within his body.
Then, looking at the projection of the sea hovering between reality and illusion within his dantian, Li Fan struck his dantian fiercely with a finger.
Li Fan coughed up a mouthful of blood, his life force rapidly fading.
The Congyun Sea phantom trembled violently, and a black fissure appeared at its center.
The projection of the sea grew increasingly faint.
Li Fan struck again.
After three such strikes, the Congyun Sea phantom completely vanished from the world.
Li Fan’s breath grew faint as gossamer, and his face pale as paper, teetering on the brink of death.
I overdid it this time. Next life, I’ll go a little lighter. Li Fan thought to himself.
As he refined the cultivation within him, his injuries healed swiftly, and he returned once more to the final-stage Qi Refinement realm.
If not for the Taishang Primordial True Scripture, attempting to build my Dao Foundation with Return to Truth as a Curio would have been a hundred times harder. He mused inwardly, reflecting on the abrupt rise and fall of his cultivation level.
Steadying his mind, Li Fan began his first attempt.
Unlike establishing a foundation with a tangible Curio of heaven and earth, Return to Truth existed within Li Fan without form or substance. Sensing it proved incredibly difficult.
Fortunately, Zhang Haobo’s own Foundation Establishment Curio, the Heaven-Scorning Sword Intent, had also been formless.
Having witnessed the entire process, Li Fan used that experience as a reference, striving to perceive the principles of Return to Truth embedded within his body.
After a long while, a faint, hazy white light emerged from Li Fan’s dantian. And then—
Boom!
Li Fan’s dantian exploded.
Return to Truth. Li Fan murmured inwardly, just before his consciousness faded.
Light and shadow shifted. He did not return to the study from before, but remained inside the small thatched hut atop Jieli Mountain.
He had naturally chosen to return to the second anchor point.
He opted to shorten the charging time.
After reducing it by thirty percent, the charging process now took only six years.
Frowning slightly, Li Fan carefully reviewed the Foundation Establishment processes from his previous life, pondering and reflecting on his insights.
Six years flashed by in an instant, and Return to Truth was fully charged once more. Thus, Li Fan began his next attempt.
With three strikes, he shattered the Dao Foundation. This time, though Li Fan’s face remained pale, he only spat out a small mouthful of blood.
Returning to the final-stage Qi Refinement realm, he immersed himself in sensing the principles of Return to Truth.
This time, the glowing white light appeared slightly gentler.
The situation had improved, but it didn’t last long.
Boom!
Li Fan’s dantian exploded again.
Return to Truth!
Six years later, Li Fan began his third attempt.
The white radiance symbolizing the principles of Return to Truth grew a little milder still. This time, he lasted longer than the previous two attempts. But it was still far from the point where the projection of Return to Truth could take shape.
Li Fan’s dantian exploded once more.
Return to Truth!
It was now his fourth attempt.
Why does my dantian keep exploding? Li Fan wondered, recalling the Foundation Establishment processes he had observed in his previous lives.
The cultivation path laid down by the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher emphasized stability above all.
No matter how poor one’s aptitude, given sufficient lifespan and necessary conditions, success in cultivation was guaranteed.
But Li Fan’s current process of establishing his foundation with Return to Truth ran counter to the Heavenly Venerable’s teachings.
I originally thought the main difficulty in my Foundation Establishment process would lie in sensing the formless, intangible Return to Truth.
Yet, perhaps because Return to Truth is already fused with my very being, sensing its presence isn’t as difficult as I imagined.
Instead, this apparent incompatibility with the Heavenly Venerable’s cultivation methodology has become the greatest obstacle to my Foundation Establishment’s success, leading to dantian explosions.
Perhaps, if I can resolve this issue, I won’t be far from establishing my foundation with Return to Truth.
With that thought, Li Fan’s spirits lifted slightly. He began his fourth attempt.
Boom!
Fifth attempt!
Boom!
Sixth attempt!
Each attempt represented six years of time.
Though each effort ended in failure at the final moment, with his dantian exploding and shattering, the radiance of Return to Truth was indeed growing increasingly warm and gentle. Things were progressing in a positive direction, which strengthened Li Fan's conviction.
Through countless cycles, Li Fan tirelessly repeated the Foundation Establishment process again and again.
His mind focused entirely on this one task, casting aside all other distractions.
Tenth attempt...
Twentieth attempt...
Thirtieth attempt...
Only after fifty-six attempts did Li Fan finally achieve significant progress.
Within his dantian, the warm white light seemed to condense into solid form. It was as smooth as polished jade and pleasing to the eye.
The light itself no longer changed; what he now saw changing was its shape.
Could it be that... I'm finally about to succeed?
Witnessing this, even Li Fan's normally placid heart couldn't help but ripple with emotion.
But clearly, success wouldn't come so easily.
This time, his dantian remained intact, without exploding. Yet Li Fan felt as if tiny insects were constantly wriggling deep within his bones and muscles throughout his body.
The sensation—simultaneously itchy, numb, and painful—drew a muffled groan from him.
And this was merely the beginning.
One circular lump of flesh after another suddenly bulged from Li Fan's body. Then, as if possessing their own consciousness, they began swimming across his skin.
The fleshy lumps grew larger and larger, becoming almost half the size of a human head in a few breaths.
Covered with these terrifying crimson tumors, Li Fan now appeared like some inhuman monster. And still, the bloody tumors continued to swell.
Finally, the tumors reached the limits of what his Qi Refinement body could endure, bursting open like balloons with a loud pop .
Chunks of flesh and blood sprayed in all directions, splattering across the entire grass hut.
Li Fan was drenched in his own flesh and blood, yet he remained unmoved.
Within his sea of consciousness, the Blue Flame phantom spirit emerged. Simultaneously, the Xuanhuang Heart Refinement Sutra operated. Li Fan entered a state free from worry, fear, or terror.
Maintaining complete composure despite his physical body's corruption, he focused on Return to Truth’s phantom condensed within his dantian.
But a Qi Refinement cultivator’s body was ultimately frail. Gradually, Li Fan's vital aura grew faint, then approached complete extinction.
At the final moment, Li Fan silently recited "Return to Truth" in his heart.
The fifty-seventh time!
Six years later, Li Fan attempted it again.
The white jade shifted shapes according to Li Fan's insights. Tumors swelled and receded across Li Fan's body.
After a long while, failure came once more.
The fifty-eighth time.
Failure!
The fifty-ninth time.
Failure!
The string of failures did not diminish Li Fan's determination or conviction.
He analyzed each failed attempt, comparing each Foundation Establishment process.
He discovered that when he deliberately tried to control it with his insights, he actually persisted for shorter periods than when he remained in a state of ignorant chaos.
Return to Truth has merged with me. Though I cannot perceive it directly, my body is subtly and unconsciously influenced by it.
My Foundation Establishment should proceed much more smoothly if I use my unconditioned consciousness than my ego consciousness. [2]
During the seventy-fifth Foundation Establishment attempt, a flash of insight struck Li Fan.
Just as he had anticipated, the white jade began taking on a more regular form.
Each attempt was like a sculptor's careful stroke, carving it back toward its original shape.
By the ninetieth attempt, when the white jade finally stabilized into an elliptical form, the grotesque tumors ceased appearing on Li Fan's body.
The light pulsed, shifting from ethereal to substantial. It seemed on the verge of manifesting within his dantian.
But a sudden clarity dawned within Li Fan—something was still missing.
At that moment, it was as though some invisible presence had abruptly descended upon the humble cottage atop Jieli Mountain.
In that fleeting moment, Li Fan's hair turned snow-white. His skin withered and wrinkled. Terrifying furrows and cracks carved across his face. His muscles dissolved until only a thin layer of skin draped over his skeletal frame.
His appearance was no longer human.
Li Fan was aging at an alarming rate, moments away from dying of old age right then and there.
Return to Truth!
Li Fan acted without hesitation.
From the ninety-first to the ninety-eighth attempt, the pattern repeated.
Each time, he fell just short of successfully establishing his foundation with Return to Truth.
On the ninety-ninth attempt, he found himself back atop Jieli Mountain.
What exactly am I missing?
Li Fan frowned slightly.
He knew success was within reach, separated by the thinnest of margins. Yet this wasn't something repetition could solve. It required a moment of sudden epiphany to identify the missing piece.
Li Fan sensed that the answer was a simple one.
He was separated from it by nothing more than a paper screen—one poke away from breakthrough. But standing on the mountain himself, he couldn't perceive its true shape. The solution eluded him.
Contemplating deeply, Li Fan drifted down the mountain.
He wandered through the mortal world, seeking his answer.
For the first time, he observed the events of Great Xuan unaffected by his influence.
In Anchor Year 5, Jiangnan suffered a great drought.
A band of refugees stormed the Prince of Langya's estate.
The Prince of Langya's estate suffered heavy losses. Only the Prince of Langya escaped through a dog hole, barely keeping his life. Everyone else in the mansion was brutally slaughtered by the refugees.
News spread, shaking both court and country.
The Emperor flew into a rage, ordering troops to suppress the refugees. Simultaneously, he summoned the Prince of Langya to the capital, comforting him personally.
Henceforth, the Prince of Langya remained in the capital.
In Anchor Year 15, the Emperor suddenly fell gravely ill.
Before passing away, he summoned the Prince of Langya to the palace and passed the throne to him.
The Prince of Langya ascended the throne, and the era name was changed to Xuanjing.
In Anchor Year 16, rebellions large and small erupted simultaneously across the land.
Emperor Xuanjing appointed his trusted aide as Grand General, commanding him to quell the rebellions.
Grand General Zhenwei spent three years pacifying the various uprisings. After which, he returned to court in glory.
Emperor Xuanjing ordered all officials to welcome him outside the capital, receiving him with imperial honors.
Grand General Zhenwei wore an expression of arrogance, accepting these honors as his due. He neither dismounted upon seeing the officials nor knelt when meeting the emperor.
Emperor Xuanjing showed no change in expression, personally supporting him and welcoming him into the palace.
A lavish banquet was held in his honor.
After three rounds of drinks, the officials quietly withdrew, and dozens of axemen swarmed in.
The thoroughly drunken Grand General Zhenwei instantly sobered, demanding answers from Emperor Xuanjing.
Emperor Xuanjing remained ominously silent.
Despite the Grand General's peerless bravery, he accumulated numerous wounds under the assault of the axemen.
Hovering near death, he pointed at Emperor Xuanjing and venomously declared: "If I get another chance, I shall personally lead my army to raze Xuanjing to the ground, and fashion your skull into a wine vessel! Only then will my hatred be quenched!"
With these final words, he fell beneath the blades.
***
Time seemed to freeze in that instant.
Li Fan, who had been silently observing all along, now revealed his form.
His eyes shone with sudden clarity, and a profound realization dawned upon him.
People never get second chances. This world offers no do-overs.
But I am different.
Return to Truth transcends the very boundaries of this reality.
In a flash, his surroundings grew hazy and indistinct, and Li Fan found himself once more atop the peak of Jieli Mountain.
Li Fan activated Return to Truth once again.
[When truth becomes falsehood, falsehood becomes truth.]
He stared at the seven magnificent characters formed by Return to Truth, his mind turning perfectly clear and serene.
I shall use the principles of Return to Truth within this world to forge my Dao Foundation!
Like water flowing naturally along its course, without the slightest obstruction, a sphere of pure white jade light instantly manifested within his dantian.
The third anchor was set with a click.
1. When he preached the new methodology, he was still an Immortal Venerable. Later on he became a Heavenly Venerable ☜
2. 本我意识 (Běnwǒ Yìshí): refers to the original, primordial, unconditioned self—the core of one's being before it is shaped by ego, desires, and worldly identity. Translated here as unconditioned consciousness.
自我意识 (Zìwǒ Yìshí): refers to the constructed, individual ego—the sense of "I" that is separate from others and the world. It is associated with personal will, desires, attachments, and the stubborn insistence on one's own identity. Translated here as ego consciousness. ☜