Although the pure, ultimate yang crimson flame was swift and fierce enough to incinerate all evil in this world, it ultimately found itself at a disadvantage against the black tide surging endlessly from the spatial rift.
The black tide that had nearly enveloped Chen Yan continued to converge and close in on him, and as the dark waters constantly merged and contracted, the gaps left for him to escape grew smaller and smaller.
As for the remnants of the Divine Ability Realm being that had been completely devoured by Chen Yan's Li Fire Seal, after the crimson flame dissipated, all that remained standing atop the black tide was a skeleton burnt to a crisp black—nothing more.
This was entirely within Chen Yan's expectations. After all, his current cultivation was at the peak of the Divine Ability Realm, while that Divine Ability Realm remnant wearing the tattered daoist robes of the Xiaori Immortal Sect was not only at the mere mid-stage of the Divine Ability Realm, but was also a soulless husk with no consciousness, driven solely by the black tide. Under Chen Yan's crimson flame, it had no chance to fight back at all.
Following that, Chen Yan continued to search for gaps through which he could break through and escape within the constantly converging and merging black tide.
Just then, something utterly baffling unfolded before his eyes.
The black tide began to surge toward the skeleton that was now completely charred black, gradually taking human form. When the black tide receded, what appeared before Chen Yan was once again that Divine Ability Realm remnant in tattered Xiaori Immortal Sect daoist robes, with a pallid face and hollow eyes—as if it had never been burned by the crimson flame at all.
As long as the black tide existed, this remnant could never be completely destroyed.
Chen Yan immediately reached this conclusion, and his expression grew even more somber.
In just a few breaths, over a dozen Divine Ability Realm cultivator corpses and over a hundred Unity Realm cultivator corpses began to emerge atop the black tide, one after another.
These corpses alone were enough to make Chen Yan's situation dire, let alone the black tide that was relentlessly sweeping toward him.
The number of remnants emerging from the black tide continued to grow. These corpses that could not be completely "killed" each carried the aura of their former lives, and their daoist robes, along with the characteristics of the techniques they had cultivated, all originated from the twelve Immortal Sects of this domain in ages past.
What did this black tide—or rather, the withered eyeball behind it—truly represent?
So far, the highest cultivation among the cultivator corpses that could be driven by the black tide was limited to the peak of the Divine Ability Realm.
As for why no Dao Union Realm cultivator corpses had appeared, the reason Chen Yan could deduce was likely the Dao Basis.
The gap between the Divine Ability Realm and the Dao Union Realm was the Dao Basis; the gap between the Dao Union Realm and the Immortal Ascension Realm was the Immortal Platform.
Whether one had forged a Dao Basis or not was a very clear dividing line.
Cultivators who had not yet forged a Dao Basis were ultimately like drifting duckweed in the rain. Only after forging a Dao Basis could one be considered to have a true foundation that connected with this world. Forging an Immortal Platform, on the other hand, meant truly claiming a piece of the Great Dao in this domain.
One after another, the cultivator corpses launched attacks toward Chen Yan. Clenching his teeth, he activated the Li Fire Seal once more, and the blood-red flames instantly enveloped his entire body, simultaneously blocking the cultivator corpses surging toward him.
"Perish!"
Chen Yan roared, channeling even more spiritual energy and natal spiritual energy to fuel the ultimate yang crimson flame, making it blaze even fiercer.
The Unity Realm and Divine Ability Realm corpses that had charged in were swallowed by the towering inferno, evaporating completely in the blink of an eye, vanishing without a trace.
Then, the chanting of the lingering resonance of the immortal path rang out.
A sword aura, brilliant like starlight, carrying traces of that lingering immortal resonance, swept forward, cleaving several remnants that had emerged atop the black tide in two at the waist.
Chen Yan stood floating in mid-air, the Falling Star Sword in hand.
But this was far from enough.
Almost the very next moment after Chen Yan had evaporated those cultivator corpses with the Li Fire Seal and severed their bodies with the Falling Star Sword, they all reappeared atop the black tide once more.
Endless and inexhaustible.
The black tide continued to close in on Chen Yan, sealing every possible gap for escape. Once again, Chen Yan was trapped in a dead end.
He was faced with two choices once more.
Either be devoured by the spatial rift, or save-scum again.
Chen Yan still chose the latter.
But just before he was about to activate the Great Derivation Art to manifest Immortal Qi, his gaze fell upon the cultivator corpse before him.
Through the Emptiness Annihilation Art, Chen Yan could vaguely see the threads of cause and effect entangled around that corpse.
Wait... could there be a possibility...
Having finally realized something, Chen Yan began to activate the Emptiness Annihilation Art to interfere with the corpse's threads of cause and effect.
Sever.
Just like how Chen Yan had severed his own karmic ties to this world, or how he had severed the karmic connection between Su Hongzhen's ferry and this world.
The moment Chen Yan severed the corpse's karmic threads, the corpse that had been madly attacking him froze instantly.
Then it rapidly crumbled, never to reappear atop the black tide.
So that was it!
If he could sever the karmic connection between these corpses and the black tide, he could destroy them completely!
Chen Yan had finally found a way to counter them. This method could, to some extent, buy him more room to escape.
It was time to start over.
Chen Yan began to activate the Great Derivation Art. Immortal Qi condensed at his fingertips, while the spiritual energy in his Martial Spring and meridians completely evaporated.
As long as he had not yet forged an Immortal Platform, Chen Yan could never withstand the power of Immortal Qi.
The Immortal Qi at his fingertips burst forth toward the black tide, evaporating countless Unity Realm and Divine Ability Realm cultivator corpses along its path, plunging straight into the black tide itself.
Then it was devoured by the black tide.
Even Immortal Qi was the same.
With his meridians shattered, Chen Yan sighed inwardly.
[Reincarnation Ended]
[This Reincarnation Rating: D+ (This should count as a bonus round, probably?)]
[Accumulated Cultivation: Divine Ability Realm Peak]
[Reincarnation Reward: Accumulated Cultivation Coefficient × 1.1]
[Reincarnation settlement complete, host will return to the previous reincarnation save point, inherit this reincarnation's accumulated cultivation, and restart life.]
...
When Chen Yan regained consciousness again, what met his eyes were countless cultivator corpses wearing the tattered daoist robes of the twelve Immortal Sects, along with the black tide that was slowly converging and merging.
The reincarnation save point seemed to have advanced slightly.
Feeling the spiritual energy in his Martial Spring and meridians grow thicker due to the increased accumulated cultivation coefficient, Chen Yan, holding the Falling Star Sword, began to mutter to himself:
"A bonus round, huh..."
He put away the Falling Star Sword, then activated the Great Derivation Art. In the span of a single breath, a foot-long verdant bamboo flute appeared in his hand.
Countless cultivator corpses surged toward Chen Yan, but he merely unhurriedly raised the flute to his lips and gently blew into it.
Just a single melodious note.
The countless cultivator corpses floating in the air froze mid-motion, and the threads of cause and effect binding them to the black tide were severed one by one.
Then, they turned to ashes and vanished into nothing.