NOVPUBIf it were an ordinary cultivator, even one in the Realm of Unification, their lifespan would drastically decrease under the erosion of this Black Death Aura.
But he, Saint Emperor Li Ping, was the Incarnation of Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao, a part of Xuanhuang Law. Even if it was an uncontrollable part, how could it harm him?
Ever since he forcibly devoured the Xuanhuang malevolent thoughts, Saint Emperor Li Ping indeed felt that the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao seemed to have become somewhat distant.
However, Li Ping was convinced that this was just the instinctual reaction of the Heavenly Dao after devouring the malevolence.
Given some more time, the bond between him and the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao would ultimately return to normal.
Although they are currently in a weak period of their relationship, it was still not something to be shaken by the death aura of this place.
True to his expectations, even without taking any protective measures, Saint Emperor Li Ping remained inviolate like an impenetrable fortress, and the Black Death Aura merely swirled around him, finding no breach.
Li Ping’s gaze pierced through the dense death aura, staring directly at the Bai Hua of life below.
"At the border of life and death, the origin of all Wanspirit."
"The Xuanhuang World has now become like this, merely hiding in this secret realm, lingering on with the last gasp of life…"
"What use have I for you!"
A sense of grim determination suddenly arose from Saint Emperor Li Ping.
He forced the surrounding death aura to retreat.
"Stand down for your Emperor!"
With a low shout from Li Ping, a pathway unexpectedly split open through the layers of death aura below him.
Space stopped stretching, Saint Emperor Li Ping’s form went floating, passing through it in an instant.
A rich vitality faced him, the white Bai Hua of life was within arm’s reach.
The black clouds of death, floating above, lingered for a long time.
Facing the rich vitality, Li Ping’s heart suddenly felt somewhat solemn.
Compared to the pure Death Aura, an excess of useless vitality seemed more like a deadly poison.
Because fundamentally, vitality is a beneficial state.
As the Incarnation of the Heavenly Dao, Li Ping naturally could enjoy this favor from Heaven and Earth.
He didn’t know how many years had passed since a cultivator not repulsed by Heaven and Earth had come to this place.
The vitality accumulated beside the Black Abyss White Flower for thousands of years now seemed to finally have found an outlet, rushing crazily towards Saint Emperor Li Ping.
Even though he intended to stop it, he could not counteract the overwhelming quantity of vitality here.
It was inevitable that some of it would surge into Saint Emperor Li Ping’s body.
Vitality indeed would bring certain benefits.
But Li Ping was not a cultivator of the Immortal Cultivator who relied purely on his Cultivation Base.
The Essence of Source Power, Holy Dynasty’s Luck, and the Heavenly Dao’s blessing…
Under the combination of various forces, he had already reached a strength comparable to that of the Immortal Realm.
Li Ping’s state had already reached a State of Balance with his ascension.
Now, this balance was slowly being disrupted by the incessant influx of endless vitality.
Li Ping’s hair, as if coming alive, grew wildly.
In just a moment, it had already spread to his ankles.
His body was swelling in sync.
One zhang, two zhang...
Amidst the creaking sounds of bones, it only took Li Ping a few breaths to become a thirty-foot giant.
His presence was even more majestic, but it was not a good thing for Saint Emperor Li Ping now.
Frowning slightly, he tried to transform and absorb the surging vitality as much as possible.
But the speed of reduction was far slower than the speed of growth.
While maintaining the balance of the various forces within his body, Li Ping examined his surroundings, looking for a way to enter Ruo Mu’s hiding place.
After devouring Xuanhuang malevolent thoughts, there was very little in the Xuanhuang World that could escape his eyes.
Even if the memories of the malevolence were somewhat faded, as long as he saw them with his own eyes, he would quickly be able to sense them again.
In a flicker of his figure, Saint Emperor Li Ping disappeared at the bottom of the Black Abyss.
Without a target to infuse into, the vitality suddenly became somewhat aimless. The white flowers swayed gently and had no choice but to reabsorb the vitality.
In a world full of Strange Phenomena, like faded yellow leaves, the nearly fifty-foot tall Li Ping suddenly appeared.
The boundless vitality he carried spilled out from his body and spread into the surroundings.
But in this bizarre environment, it seemed utterly unable to propagate.
Soon after, like autumn leaves falling, it turned into desiccated solids, floating down from the air.
Having found a way to release the unwanted vitality, Saint Emperor Li Ping gradually expelled the culprits of imbalance from his body.
His size gradually shrank.
But due to the short time before, the state of balance within his body had already changed.
When Li Ping reverted to normal, some details of his body did not revert with him, instead becoming a part of his physical characteristics.
For example, his height remained at nine feet, with hair dark as ink that fell to his waist.
His figure also became fuller, exploding with power beneath his golden robe.
Li Ping did not pay particular attention to these changes.
They were merely external appearances, and if he wished, he could revert to his original form at any time.
At this moment, however, his attention was focused on the peculiar surroundings.
The decayed scent flowing here even made him somewhat uncomfortable.
What concerned him more was the center of this place.
An enormous tree stood silent, reaching into the sky yet withered yellow and covered in spots.
Even as a giant nine feet tall, Li Ping was no more than an ant at the base of the great tree.
Countless cultivators hung densely from the withered yellow branches.
Like fruits laden on a tree.
They were all with their eyes closed, their faces wearing strange and contented expressions.
Li Ping’s gaze swept over them, and besides this withered ancient tree, he found no other figures.
"Is it just the true body here..."
Li Ping knew that Ruo Mu had an incarnate that often went out to lure cultivators here, producing Golden Core Fruits to vent its internal resentment.
It seemed that at this moment, the incarnate had gone out.
Li Ping was not in a hurry, continuing his careful observation of this space.
On the towering trunk of the tree, one could vaguely see deep engravings, as if it had received some fatal injury.
Li Ping narrowed his eyes, trying to awaken the connection between this object of the world and the Xuanhuang Heaven Path.
Maybe due to the contamination of the withered yellow, Li Ping’s call did not receive any response.
Instead, it provoked the old tree’s innate defense.
Tiny specks of decay followed the veins of the great tree from the ground beneath Li Ping’s feet, starting to erode.
Li Ping deliberately let down his guard, absorbing a wisp of the decay into his body.
He enveloped it with the Essence of Golden Source Energy to prevent it from spreading, and then observed carefully.
The force of decay was strange indeed, yet it could not break the seal of the Essence of Source Power.
Li Fan felt more from this decayed force than just the common sense of aging.
He sensed, it seemed, the decline of the entire world.
As if the heavens were about to fall, presenting an irreparable and evident decline.
"This is..."
"The world is heading towards ruin."
In his Spirit Consciousness, countless images emerged, all from the Various States of the Xuanhuang World, scenes of natural disasters befalling due to the decline of Heaven and Earth.
But Li Ping knew that in reality, these state regions of the Xuanhuang World had not experienced these events that should have occurred.
"Ruo Mu is indeed the source of all spirits in the Xuanhuang World and to a certain extent, it truly reflects the vitality of the Xuanhuang World."
"Nowadays, Ruo Mu has become this way, yet the Xuanhuang World still appears vibrant..."
Li Ping frowned slightly.
He quickly learned the answer.
"If there were no infusion of external vitality, the Xuanhuang World would definitely decay in sync with Ruo Mu."
"The source of this vitality is..."
"Fragments of the Cultivation World being devoured."
"Although they have been dismembered, during the Fusion process, the remaining vitality was drawn from those Fragments of the Cultivation World."
"Thus, Xuan Huang was reborn..."
Li Ping thoughtfully said,
"This celestial surgery is indeed exquisitely unmatched."
As a Heavenly Dao Incarnation, nominally a victim, he could not help expressing sincere admiration after coming to terms with what had transpired over these thousands of years.
"Life and death are unpredictable. Death and life are unpredictable."
"I was once an existence that controlled life and death, yet now I’ve fallen to this state."
"The world wants to abandon me, how could I not harbor hatred..."
While Li Ping was lost in thought, a strange voice suddenly rose from behind him and faded without a trace.
Li Ping knew that the owner of the voice was none other than Ruo Mu.
