The cultivators of the past truly performed feats akin to plucking stars from the sky and seizing the moon. Li Fan mused inwardly, awestruck by the countless grotto-heavens and minor worlds within the Xuanhuang World.
It was precisely the accumulation of their efforts that had forged the world's exceptionally deep reserves. This was what had allowed it to endure millennia of plunder by cultivators.
When cultivators of this world die, their Dao returns to heaven. This is a countermeasure that the world itself spontaneously developed after sensing the threat to itself. Li Fan reasoned. This method of reclamation has also significantly slowed the rate of “weight loss.” Li Fan pondered.
The so-called weight was just a term he had come up with, coined with limited information, to describe the Xuanhuang World's ability to resist the pull of the Immortal Ruins. From what he could see, after a cultivator perished and their Dao returned to heaven, the resulting weight overall was far less than when they were alive.
Perhaps it's because when a grotto-heaven collapses, the energy returning to the world is formless. An immense span of time is required for the world to reconstitute that energy into tangible matter with weight. He hypothesized.
When the rate of grotto-heaven creation falls below the rate of their destruction, it threatens the Xuanhuang World's safety. Therefore, the number of cultivators must be controlled, a balance maintained. That is one possibility.
Another possibility is... Li Fan's brow furrowed. When a cultivator dies, not all of their Dao returns to heaven. A portion simply vanishes... It's a chilling thought, but in this Xuanhuang World, one grows accustomed to such things.
Li Fan recalled the scene recorded by the Medicine King Cauldron after it broke through the world's boundaries.
Upon leaving the world's protection and attempting to traverse the void, the Medicine King Cauldron was like a moth drawn to flame, inevitably falling toward the Immortal Ruins.
The Immortal Ruins...
The greatest fear was the fear of the unknown.
How had the ancient passage to the Immortal Realm become this thing that devoured everything in sight? Was the Immortal Realm itself still out there? And if not, what had brought it to ruin?
The more Li Fan turned these questions over, the more a deep, primal fear rose in him, unbidden and impossible to push down.
After a moment, Li Fan took a deep breath, suppressing the multitude of distracting thoughts.
These matters were still far too distant. At the very least, he would need to reach the level of an Eternal Heavenly Venerable before he could begin to consider such questions.
Burying these thoughts deep within for now, Li Fan turned his contemplation to his own circumstances.
Although the world I've transmigrated into teeters perpetually on the brink of destruction, upon reflection, this situation is actually better for me. He concluded.
After all, even the lofty cultivators of the Eternal Life realm are, in reality, no different from the ordinary beings of the Xuanhuang World—they're all just crickets on the same sinking ship.
Aboard the Xuanhuang World, this vessel destined to founder, even the Eternal Heavenly Venerables must act with some restraint. They cannot afford to be utterly reckless.
If this were a world completely controlled by a single supreme powerhouse, one who could refine or erase all living beings within it on a mere whim without a second thought, that would be true damnation. Even with the aid of Return to Truth, I'd likely be powerless. This is a fortunate turn within misfortune!
With this thought in mind, Li Fan's heart gradually settled.
The Tianxuan Soul-Locking Array is equivalent to the concept of “nuclear deterrence” that existed in the world before my transmigration.
Until the Five Elders Council finds a way to overcome it, large-scale war is unlikely. There will only be occasional, minor skirmishes.
However, it also confirms the disappearance of the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher. It's hard to say how things will truly unfold from here.
Li Fan summoned Return to Truth’s panel.
Biological Age: 884/899.
One must stand high to see far. In the past, I could never live past Anchor Year 50 before being forced to Return to Truth. Fifty years of foresight is more than enough for a mortal. But in this unpredictable Xuanhuang World, it feels somewhat insufficient.
Perhaps in one lifetime, I could try doing nothing, just quietly observing the changes in the Xuanhuang World. As the sediment settles over time, I might even uncover more valuable information.
Soon, he sorted out his thoughts. To avoid raising suspicion, Li Fan took out the jade token given to him by Guide C-3 and resumed his tour of the Museum of Divine Treasures.
Truth be told, at this point in this life, Li Fan could simply Return to Truth right now.
However, the Museum of Divine Treasures, being a crucial site of the Myriad Immortals Alliance, was not an easy place to visit after all.
Since he was here, it wouldn't hurt to broaden his horizons. Li Fan had been very interested in the head of the first cultivator infected with Immortal-Mortal Miasma, located at the center of the Museum, for a long time.
According to Guide C-3's introduction, the Museum of Divine Treasures was divided into several major sections based on the nature of the collections.
The section Li Fan entered was also the first one every cultivator visiting the Museum would come across: the Golden Era.
"What is this?" Li Fan asked with interest, looking at the massive orb of light floating before him.
The orb was composed of several sections, each showing a different scene. Images flickered past at an extremely rapid pace, offering only brief glimpses of buildings and human figures. But even those glimpses were enough to make clear how drastically the scenery and architecture differed from one section to the next.
"This is The Eras," C-3 dutifully explained to Li Fan.
"Using a Dao Transformation Stone as its core, it deduces and materializes scenes from various historical periods of the Xuanhuang World.
"This desolate, uninhabited era full of ruins is the former Wasteland Era.
"This one, brimming with bloody light and killing intent, is the Dark Ages.
"This one, with many figures flashing by, is the Great Plague Era. Hmm, it seems to have simulated up to the period of the Great Migration, when cultivators forcibly relocated mortals."
As C-3 spoke, the mentioned section would enlarge, allowing Li Fan to just barely make out the rapidly changing details.
Dao Transformation Stone... Li Fan stared at the light orb for a moment, then couldn't help but ask, "What then is the meaning of this so-called Golden Era?"
C-3 smiled. "The Dao Transformation Stone is a wondrous treasure from the ancient Taiyan Sect, possessing the ability to deduce heavenly mechanisms and predict the future.
"The illusions resulting from its deductions are indistinguishable from reality, so profound they approach truth.
"Perhaps for us external observers, the many worlds simulated within The Eras are just illusory. But for the millions upon millions of living beings within, everything they experience is undoubtedly real.
"By splitting off a sliver of our divine sense and sending it into The Eras, we can personally experience these events that truly occurred in history."
C-3 first explained the background of The Eras’ creation, then continued: "We once conducted an experiment using one million blank souls whose memories had been wiped clean.
"We placed them separately into different historical periods, simulated five hundred years of development, compiled the final results, and ranked them.
"And our era, the era under the control of the Myriad Immortals Alliance, unquestionably ranked first.
"Whether measured by cultivator survival rates or the overall cultivation realms achieved, our era utterly surpasses all other eras."
"Thus, the title ‘Golden Era’ is truly well-deserved!"
C-3 declared with pride.