NOVPUB"I caused the disturbance in the Fishing Pond? Fellow Daoist, you seem to hold me in too high regard," said the golden figure with a hint of self-mockery before introducing herself, "My original name is Daoist Baihua, I was the Sect Master of the Celestial Lotus Sect in the Millions Prosperity Realm..."
"But that was thousands of years ago."
Daoist Baihua spoke with a tinge of sorrow in her voice, "Back then, the Secret Technique of [Vanish] suddenly erupted, sweeping across many realms. Despite the Millions Prosperity Realm’s desperate resistance, we could not halt its spread. Out of desperation, we had no choice but to abandon our world and flee. We intended to find a safe haven to take refuge, but alas..."
"Wherever we passed, it resembled scenes of an apocalypse."
The golden light of Daoist Baihua’s figure flickered slightly, as if brushed by a gentle breeze, revealing the turmoil within her heart. Even after so long, every recollection of those days would bring abrupt waves of emotion.
"Different realms faced different tribulations. In the star domains around the Millions Prosperity Realm, the grey mold spot surged like an overwhelming sea, engulfing everything in the world. In other realms, twisted creations appeared, and they destroyed themselves in unceasing slaughter, much like a blood-red purgatory."
"If it were only these disasters, if we ran far enough, perhaps we could find a thread of vitality. But..."
"Inside the Immortal Ruins, there were True Immortals," Li Fan remarked in a deep and distant tone at this moment.
Daoist Baihua glanced at Li Fan and nodded slightly.
"Beyond the Abyssal Star Realm, there are intangible barriers that prevent our departure. And within the Abyssal Star Realm, there are True Immortals who comprehend the Secret Technique of [Hunger], indifferent to the lives and deaths of the masses..."
"Hmm? Wait. You just said there are True Immortals using the Secret Technique of [Hunger] for enlightenment? What do you mean by that?" Li Fan’s eyes flashed as he asked.
"Aren’t True Immortals suppressed by the Secret of the Famine Rune?" Li Fan voiced the doubt in his heart.
Daoist Baihua was momentarily stunned before realization dawned: "It appears that you, Daoist friend from the Profound Yellow World, are not very familiar with True Immortals and thus have some misunderstandings."
"According to the research of surviving cultivators from each Cultivation World, the calamities that befell our star domain were caused by the seal characters such as [Hunger], [Chaos], [Vanish], and the like, which were all likely from the hand of one True Immortal."
"This True Immortal possessed the supreme capability to manifest the laws of the world into characters. With just a few strokes, they could easily destroy an entire realm and countless Cultivation Worlds."
"Does that mean everything we suffered from the tribulations was due to this True Immortal?" Li Fan asked, his gaze shifting, as he spoke in a grave voice.
To Li Fan’s surprise, Daoist Baihua shook her head in denial: "Didn’t I just mention, if that True Immortal had taken action, our entire star domain would have been instantly annihilated. The Secret Techniques of [Hunger] and [Chaos] that erupted during the tribulations, despite causing boundless apocalyptic disasters, still do not compare to the methods of a True Immortal."
"Then it’s..." Li Fan paused briefly before something dawned on him.
"Copying?"
"Exactly. The surviving cultivators from various realms, after synthesizing the records about True Immortals passed down from world to world, unanimously concluded that the seal characters causing the tribulations in the Lower Realm all originated from the hand—or rather, the hand of one Immortal," Daoist Baihua explained slowly, her voice devoid of hatred but filled with powerlessness.
Li Fan, upon hearing this, couldn’t help but feel puzzled: "In our Profound Yellow World, we have undergone various tribulations, and our knowledge of True Immortals is very little. But unprovoked, why would that Immortal create such boundless slaughter?"
"Immortals do not act without meaning. Just like the Immortal in the Immortal Ruins who sat withered for tens of thousands of years, delving into the ultimate essence of the [Hunger] rune, all to advance further and achieve the state of a Nameless True Immortal," said Daoist Baihua with infinite sorrow.
"Nameless True Immortal? I have indeed heard something about it. Unable to know their names, with all records of them erased..."
"Could it be that not all Immortals are the same? There are levels among Immortals?" Li Fan asked earnestly for guidance.
"Indeed. When the path to immortality was not extinct, we cultivators could also ascend to become immortals. Having been baptized by the Immortal Spirit Energy, and shedding our mortal bodies, we could officially become Immortals. Our strength, in an instant, would overturn heaven and earth, expanding more than a hundredfold."
"But compared to the Nameless True Immortals, we are still worlds apart. Each Immortal is the ultimate seeker of the Way. Only when one can fully master a certain path in the world, do they become an existence transcending all things. All their past is wiped clean, and mortals are unable to know their names. They can only be addressed by the path they have mastered."
"That Nameless True Immortal who inscribed his path with characters, we respectfully call the [Inscription Dao Immortal]."
…
Hearing Daoist Baihua speak of the realms above that of immortals, Li Fan couldn’t help but feel envious and intrigued.
Information about immortals in the Profound Yellow World had long disappeared into the river of history, and even the Dharma Transmitters knew very little.
Perhaps only the remnants of the Immortal Dao Ten Clans within the Five Elders Organization still had some of that information.
To encounter an ancient survivor of the Immortal Tribulation by chance today and learn the secrets of True Immortals was certainly no small fortune.
Of course, Li Fan didn’t fully trust this Daoist Baihua.
But for now, he chose to listen.
…
Daoist Baihua continued, "The Inscription Dao Immortal has already achieved transcendence, but he might have left behind some Inscribed Dao true marks."
"That year, something unknown happened in the Immortal Realm, causing the Immortal paths to collapse, and the immortals scattered to flee. It’s possible that one of the immortals obtained these true marks."
"He traced and wrote down characters like [Hunger], [Chaos], [Vanish], bringing chaos to the world. This must be related to the path he cultivated."
"[Chaos] and [Vanish] have destroyed countless Cultivation Worlds, but the Secret of the Famine Rune was obtained by another immortal. Perhaps because the famine rune was compatible with his path, he sat in meditation at the site of the former Immortal Realm Passage and began to understand it on the spot."
"You must know, ten thousand years of time may seem very long to us. But for an immortal, it is just the duration of a retreat."
"As for what consequences his enlightenment of the famine rune might have caused…"
"We cultivators from the Lower Realm are but ants in their eyes. Why would they care about us?"
At this point in his speech, a touch of resentment crept into Daoist Baihua’s words.
After absorbing the other’s words, Li Fan slowly pondered.
"These are all your speculations, right? Is there any substantial evidence?"
Daoist Baihua shook her head but remained very certain, "Those of us who survived from that catastrophe, were already the most powerful individuals from all realms. Using the remnants of various realms’ information, we speculated..."
"Even if it is not the absolute truth, it is not far off."
"Especially those who traced the True Immortal Seal Characters, and understood the Secret of the Famine Rune, they are merely at the level of immortals. Although their strength is absolutely dominating over us cultivators, they have not reached the unfathomable extent of the Nameless True Immortals," said Daoist Baihua with an inherent pride in her tone.
However, Li Fan recalled the time in the 115th era, when in the Immortal Ruins, that being had suddenly opened its eyes upon sensing his gaze. And through a split spirit connection, the famine rune was transmitted into the Profound Yellow World, thereby causing the destruction of that world.
