"This is just a struggle of interests. How can one truly distinguish good from evil?
"If we were truly the epitome of wickedness, how could we have endured a thousand years of conflict against the Myriad Immortals Alliance without falling?"
The scholar's question thundered through the minds of his listeners once more.
Among the Myriad Immortals Alliance cultivators, many wore thoughtful expressions. Even more looked utterly lost, as if their entire worldview had been shaken to its foundations.
"Very well. Let me first describe to you the current state of the Five Elders Council."
The scholar's colossal form stood firm between heaven and earth, dominating their vision as he began his tale.
"The territory of the Five Elders Council is now divided into five regions. Five Heavenly Venerables each govern their own domain. I will not presume to speak of the others' domains—you may explore them yourselves, should the opportunity arise. For now, let us speak only of the Celestial Realm of Man's Dao, in which you now find yourselves."
His words held every cultivator present in rapt attention. Li Fan was no exception.
"Each of the five Heavenly Venerables has defied the principles of heaven and earth to create a unique domain. In our Celestial Realm of Man's Dao, the most important principle is the Axiom of the Heavenly Venerable. It is the very fabric of our world, the constant law that governs all, a law none can defy."
The scholar paused, then revealed the origin of the realm's name.
"Compared to heaven and earth, a human is but an insignificant speck. The body and name turn to dust, yet the rivers flow on eternally, undiminished. This is true even for a cultivator who can overturn rivers and seas, who seems to reshape the world itself. The rivers will one day return to their courses, but when that cultivator dies, all becomes emptiness. Every deed dissolves like a bubble, ceasing to exist.
"Only an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, by defying the principles of heaven and earth, can be said to have truly reshaped the heavens and remade the earth.
"Why must one reach that height to achieve such a feat? In our Celestial Realm of Man's Dao, reshaping heaven and earth is something anyone can do!"
The declaration rang out, firm and resonant.
It stirred awe in their hearts, yet the crowd bristled with doubt and confusion. Several cultivators, emboldened, called out: "Mister, what do you mean when you say anyone can reshape heaven and earth?"
The scholar smiled faintly. "When you arrived, did you see the sky ablaze with brilliant starlight?"
The crowd nodded.
"Those are not true stars," he said, his words falling like a thunderclap across the land. "They are cultivators of the past."
He swept one great hand across the sky. The brightness vanished in an instant, then returned, the heavens blazing once more with countless points of starlight.
"In the Celestial Realm of Man's Dao, regardless of one's cultivation level, with sufficient conviction and courage, one can transform into a star and ascend into the firmament. And while illuminating the world for eternity, one can also alter the world's original form."
The scholar began another story.
"Long ago, in the Celestial Realm of Man's Dao, there was a youth born between two great mountains. The mountains blocked all passage, making travel to and from his village extremely difficult. The villagers lived in poverty. Witnessing this from childhood, the youth made a grand vow: to remove both mountains entirely and carve a path for his kin.
"The mountains were remote, seldom visited. The youth knew nothing of immortals and attempted to dig through them using only human strength. He was met with incomprehension and ridicule, yet he never wavered, never regretted his decision.
"Sincerity can split metal and stone. A hundred years passed. The youth became a hoary old man, and on his deathbed, his resolve remained unchanged.
"After death, he transformed into a star and ascended into the heavens. And beneath the light of that star, the two great mountains vanished without a trace.
"This is an example of a mortal, with a purely mortal body, reshaping heaven and earth. If a mere mortal can achieve this, how much more so a cultivator? Within the Celestial Realm of Man's Dao, those who have changed the heavens and revolutionized the earth are too numerous to count."
***
While Li Fan's puppet body was absorbed in the scholar's tale, his true self had already arrived in Shilin Province via teleportation array.
With Myriad Immortals Island relocated, all teleportation nodes leading to the Congyun Sea had been deactivated. He had no choice but to travel through a chain of arrays until he reached Shilin Province, which bordered the sea.
When he attempted to fly into the Congyun Sea, he found an invisible barrier enveloping the entire expanse of water, sealing it shut against any outsider.
So they've finally reacted and locked it down. Li Fan narrowed his eyes, and chose not to force his way through.
Instead, his true self withdrew to a nearby immortal city. He shifted his attention to his avatar, Zhou Qing'ang.
Ignoring the steady stream of notifications from the spirit talisman on his person, the avatar flew straight toward the former location of Myriad Immortals Island. Along the way, he passed many cultivators with panicked expressions rushing in the same direction, none of them certain what had happened. Only after losing access to the teleportation arrays did one truly appreciate the value of crossing vast distances in an instant.
It took the avatar more than ten full days to reach its destination. A large crowd of cultivators had already gathered there, pointing and muttering among themselves.
At the center of the crowd was a massive, dark void. The surrounding seawater seemed held back by some unseen force, unable to flow into it. Against the backdrop of the azure sea, that black emptiness looked profoundly wrong.
Li Fan's brow furrowed.
Why does this look so similar to when I first witnessed Crimson Flame scorching the sea?
A conjecture surfaced in his mind, and he stilled.
Back then, upon seeing Myriad Immortals Island gone, sensing the scorching energy lingering around the void, and watching Crimson Flame standing high in the sky with flames in hand, evaporating the Congyun Sea, Li Fan had instinctively assumed that Crimson Flame had utterly destroyed Myriad Immortals Island. It had certainly looked the part.
But since he hadn't personally witnessed the island's destruction, a second possibility existed: that Myriad Immortals Island, like this world, had been completely erased by some other means.
Even later, after Crimson Flame was slain and the manifestation of Ink Death was drawn forth, he still hadn't witnessed the island's final moments. Before Myriad Immortals Island had fully vanished, he had already been swallowed by those black particles.
Now, watching the Five Elders Council forcibly abduct Myriad Immortals Island a second time, Li Fan felt uneasy.
Could it be that Myriad Immortals Island truly hides some secret?
He recalled the many records he had browsed through before, but none had contained anything on this matter. He began to doubt his own judgment.
That doesn't hold up either. If Myriad Immortals Island concealed something significant, the Myriad Immortals Alliance couldn't possibly be unaware. They would have guarded it fiercely. How could they have allowed the Five Elders Council to simply take it?
While he was still puzzling over this, a cultivator nearby let out a long sigh. "Truly, the world is ever-changing. Who would have thought that even the site where the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher first preached the Dao would one day vanish?"
Li Fan paused.
He stepped forward, offered a greeting, and asked, "Fellow Daoist, what did you mean just now—'the site where the Heavenly Venerable Dao Teacher first preached the Dao'?"