[Biological Age: 882/899]
Li Fan’s hands never slowed as he continued constructing the array, even as his gaze briefly flicked to Return to Truth’s panel.
This prolonged labor without any regard for himself had come at a steep cost.
When he finally emerged from that state of total mental immersion, a crushing wave of weakness washed over him. While pushing himself to the limit, his biological age had risen dramatically.
Li Fan had truly reached the end of his lifespan.
It’s time to rest. The thought surfaced unbidden.
But the instant it appeared, he seized it and used it as material to inversely refine his Dao Heart.
He ruthlessly suppressed every trace of exhaustion, every impulse toward collapse.
If I’m not ruthless with myself, how can I hope to transcend in a cultivation world this dangerous? He thought coldly.
With that, Li Fan shook off the lethargy, forcing his aged body to burn its final embers of vitality as he resumed the work of array construction.
The reactions of Yan Hang and the others below unfolded exactly as Li Fan had anticipated. In truth, he hadn’t even needed their report.
Earlier, when he had used the Celestial Oversight Ledger to submit a cross-region work request to Qi Buyi, he had already explained his current physical condition in detail. After failing to persuade him otherwise, Qi Buyi had decisively approved the request.
In theory, the Myriad Immortals Alliance should grant me a life extension . Li Fan reflected. But nothing is absolute. I must be prepared for the Alliance to act unpredictably.
Fortunately, I still have ample contribution points and one Rebirth Longevity Fruit left. If necessary, I can purchase or trade for other life-extending items. That should buy me enough time to conclude this life properly.
Once submitted, the report from Yan Hang and the others sank like a stone into the sea, stirring not a single ripple.
The five of them were left both confused and deeply disappointed. Li Fan himself, however, appeared entirely unaffected by the silence, which only deepened their admiration for him.
And so, with everything proceeding without incident, another half a year passed.
On this day, a sudden and violent upheaval erupted within the previously tranquil water attribute grotto-heaven.
Without any warning, the vast cerulean world began to shake violently.
Caught completely off guard, Li Fan was forced to halt his work. He instinctively tried to observe his surroundings, but it felt as though the entire world were spinning. A wave of dizziness surged over him, leaving him unable to focus.
Fortunately, Yan Hang and the others reacted with astonishing speed.
The instant the sudden change occurred, they flew to Li Fan’s side, producing various protective artifacts and forming a defensive circle around him. Within the barrier of shimmering light, the destructiveness of the external upheaval was finally dampened.
Only then was Li Fan able to clearly perceive what was happening inside the water attribute grotto-heaven.
The once-straight boundary between water and wood now looked as though it were being crushed by some immense force, twisting into a distorted, undulating line.
The eternally calm water surface roiled violently, towering waves rising like mountains as they surged upward to meet the invading wood-attribute grotto-heaven above.
Amid a deafening, thunderous grinding, the colossal inverted tree suspended overhead seemed to draw closer. Its dense, razor-like branches thrust downward. Upon contact with the water grotto-heaven, they withered and shattered, yet this only slowed them slightly.
They continued pressing forth, relentlessly piercing the boundary between the two realms.
Meanwhile, the once-pure and tranquil water attribute spiritual qi suffusing the world grew increasingly chaotic and violent.
Li Fan and the others watched the drastic changes occurring within the grotto-heaven with grave expressions.
A warning from Qi Buyi had already been sent through the Celestial Oversight Ledger.
"Everyone, do not panic. This is a sign of the five elements convergence progressing further.
"It's occurring even earlier than we anticipated. It seems we must all pick up the pace.
"Be vigilant against the changes that may arise from the intersection of the two realms. Report any unusual circumstances immediately."
Once the changes began, there was no stopping their momentum.
Yet human adaptability was nothing to scoff at.
Soon, Li Fan and the others grew accustomed to working amidst the environment of surging tidal waves and grating, thunderous roars.
For them, these disturbances affected their state of mind at most, posing no real physical threat.
The true danger came from the bizarre entities born from the fusion of the water and wood realms.
These were monsters formed when the withered, broken branches of the inverted giant tree fell into the water grotto-heaven, and both water and wood elements merged.
Their shapes were varied, their bodies entirely composed of sallow, desiccated wood.
Cerulean-blue water flowed across their wooden surfaces like blood coursing just beneath the skin.
They were fiercely aggressive and acutely sensitive to the aura of cultivators. Even separated by tens of thousands of li, they would instinctively seek out and attack the nearest cultivator.
The Myriad Immortals Alliance had tried many approaches but still failed to find a suitable method of dealing with them.
Combat, therefore, became unavoidable.
Although these monsters' bodies resembled dried, dead wood, their hide was unexpectedly hard. A full-force strike from a Nascent Soul cultivator could only leave a shallow wound on them.
Fortunately, they were truly clumsy in combat, and their numbers were relatively scarce.
The cultivators of the Myriad Immortals Alliance fought in coordinated groups, relying on numerical superiority and their equipment to suppress the creatures.
Given enough time, they could eliminate the monsters, though not without some close calls.
After each engagement, Yan Hang and the others meticulously reported the entire battle process through the Celestial Oversight Ledger.
Once sufficient data had been gathered, the Myriad Immortals Alliance summarized the most effective combat tactics and distributed them to all cultivators.
The monsters that emerged across the various grotto-heavens differed depending on the attributes involved in the fusion.
The type encountered by Li Fan’s group—a fusion of wood and water, with wood as the dominant element—was designated Sinkwood.
Against Sinkwood, two categories of techniques proved especially effective.
The first was fire attribute techniques. Under searing flames, the wood burned and the water boiled, reducing Sinkwood to ash.
The second was separation type techniques.
By completely severing the flow of water on the Sinkwood’s surface from its body, the creature would collapse on its own, instantly reverting from a vicious monster back into pure wood and water qi.
Separation techniques were not only useful on Sinkwood; they were highly effective against most monsters formed from fused attributes.
Unfortunately, such techniques were extremely obscure, mastered by only a small handful of cultivators.
With no other option, the group could only rely on conventional techniques of various attributes to hold the line.
Still, with these key tactics summarized and disseminated, the cultivators faced the monsters spawning from the grotto-heaven with noticeably greater ease and confidence.
Even so, unease lingered among most of them.
On this day, another mass of withered wood debris fell from above. It rapidly transformed into a broken, incomplete creature that was part human and part beast, then charged straight toward Li Fan and the others.
Yan Hang’s team of five quickly moved to intercept.
Li Fan continued to lay the array, observing the battle unfolding in the distance.
Compared to the first one we encountered, these Sinkwoods have clearly improved in both combat methods and skills.
These fragments that split off from the inverted trees... they seem to share a collective consciousness.
Watching the fierce clash, a chill crept into Li Fan’s heart.
And this is only the fusion of wood and water. If one or multiple more attributes were added, how terrifying would those monsters become?