There was little time to rest.
Just after breaking through to the Soul Transformation realm, Xu Bai made another move.
And this time, it sent Li Fan, who was still immersed in shock, into a state of rapid heartbeat and suffocating pressure.
It was well known—
In the Xuanhuang Realm, ever since the Dharma-Transmitting Immortal Ancestor established the new cultivation method, achieving the Dao Integration realm required sacrificing the Spirit of Heaven and Earth.
Previously, Li Fan had speculated on the possible paths Xu Bai’s Sacred Embryo might take to step into the Dao Integration realm.
Crimson Flame, Azure Wind, Black Swamp…
Or even the immensely powerful and world-ending force of Ink Death.
However, at this moment, as Li Fan truly perceived what was happening to Xu Bai’s Sacred Embryo, his understanding was completely overturned!
Yet, it felt as if something was descending from the heavens—
Falling upon him!
Boom!
A flash of imagery streaked through Li Fan’s mind.
A vast and fertile land, brimming with vitality. A vague figure descended, and in an instant, an ice age spread for a thousand miles. Everywhere the eye could see was plunged into absolute silence and death.
Spirit of Heaven and Earth: Hoarfrost!
A streak of frosty white suddenly appeared in Xu Bai’s previously jet-black hair.
Although it quickly returned to normal, this brief transformation shook Li Fan to his core.
Because in that moment, through his own perception, he realized—
Xu Bai had already seized control of the power of Hoarfrost, the Spirit of Heaven and Earth!
The Spirits of Heaven and Earth are born in accordance with the heavenly laws, each possessing unique powers.
When a cultivator kills and sacrifices one, they can instantly steal and command the power that originally belonged to heaven and earth.
This is why cultivators of the new Dao Integration method are generally far stronger than those of the old method.
But now, something had happened to Xu Bai that seemed to defy the ironclad rules of the new method.
He had not slain the Spirit of Heaven and Earth, yet its power had still transferred to him!
And this was only the first one!
Without a sound, a second wave of power arrived, seemingly crossing millions of miles.
It descended upon Xu Bai once more.
Another vision surged before Li Fan’s eyes.
A barren wasteland stretching for a thousand miles, plagued by monstrous insects, devoid of even a single blade of grass.
Suddenly, drizzling rain began to fall.
The once-desolate land was nourished and gradually became fertile. Meanwhile, the monstrous insects, as if encountering their mortal nemesis, let out despairing screeches.
Their bodies slowly melted, washed away by the rain, dissolving into fertilizer for the rejuvenated earth.
Spirit of Heaven and Earth: Daiyu!
Xu Bai’s hair seemed to grow slightly longer.
Li Fan’s heart stopped for a brief moment.
Because in that instant, Xu Bai had also gained control over Daiyu’s power.
In mere moments, he had already absorbed two Spirits of Heaven and Earth.
Yet Xu Bai was not satisfied.
He closed his eyes.
Facing the sky, he stretched out his arms, opening himself to the heavens.
From east to west, from south to north—
The Spirits of Heaven and Earth came forth, one after another.
“Damn it!”
Li Fan cursed inwardly, instantly snapping out of his daze and quickening his movements.
“At the speed he’s reaching Dao Integration, I won’t have time to set up puppets in every state.”
“I can only target the ones with the most cultivators.”
“Once it’s done, I need to return to Longevity Valley as fast as possible.”
While flying toward the nearest Heavenly City, Li Fan continued observing everything happening to Xu Bai, his mind racing.
“Without slaying the Spirit of Heaven and Earth, one can still obtain its authority.”
“This is [Distortion of Heavenly Principles]…”
“Even for an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao, this is simply too outrageous!”
“Ordinary cultivators can inherit the power of the Spirit of Heaven and Earth by slaying it, thanks to the blessings of the new Heavenly Sovereign law.”
“But what Holy Embryo Xu Bai is doing…”
“This isn’t about offering sacrifices to the Spirit of Heaven and Earth—it’s about becoming the Spirit of Heaven and Earth!”
In an instant, Li Fan understood Holy Embryo Xu Bai’s plan.
Even with the innate talent of a Heavenly Dao incarnation, attempting to reverse the principles of Heaven and Earth was not something that could be achieved overnight.
In fact, from the eavesdropped conversation between Sun Liancheng and Sun Qi, he had already learned that the deeper one was favored by Heaven, the harder it was to reverse its principles, and the stronger the backlash would be.
It was very likely that Holy Embryo Xu Bai would never be able to reach the Longevity Immortal realm.
However, after his resurrection, his opponents would inevitably include those Longevity Immortal Heavenly Sovereigns.
The difference between Dao Integration and Longevity was like the difference between heaven and earth.
How could he possibly stand against them?
There was only one way—to push the power of Dao Integration to its absolute limit.
Each Spirit of Heaven and Earth equaled the power of a Dao Integration cultivator.
If one Dao Integration cultivator was not enough to match a Longevity Immortal Heavenly Sovereign, then what about ten? A hundred?
Various Spirit of Heaven and Earth, each with different powers, fused into Holy Embryo Xu Bai’s body.
With every fusion, his aura ascended to another level.
The vision that Li Fan was sensing also gradually blurred—
From the initial feeling of being there in person, to watching through a thin veil, to seeing through a mist.
Li Fan was losing his absolute control over Holy Embryo Xu Bai.
Which could only mean…
Mr. Bai was awakening!
Li Fan seized this final opportunity to extract as much information as possible from Holy Embryo Xu Bai.
“So that’s how it is…”
“He hasn’t absorbed the power of the Spirit of Heaven and Earth in a way that erases them from the Xuanhuang Realm.”
“Instead, through [Distortion], he has temporarily transferred the power that originally belonged to the Spirits of Heaven and Earth onto himself.”
“Countless different types of energies are interweaving—yet there is no rejection at all.”
“This method… other than an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao, no one else could withstand it. No matter how high their talent…”
“No, this isn’t a matter of talent at all.”
Li Fan also keenly noticed something else.
As more and more of the Spirit of Heaven and Earth’s powers were transferred to him, Holy Embryo Xu Bai’s physical form was subtly changing.
His height, his silhouette—gradually becoming more like the ethereal projection of the Spirit of Heaven and Earth itself!
The pressure grew stronger and stronger, and Li Fan felt the overwhelming weight of impending doom upon him.
Fortunately, when Holy Embryo Xu Bai had transferred all the power of the free-floating Spirits of Heaven and Earth in the world…
His Dao Integration process began to slow down.
Because up next, it would be time for those Spirits of Heaven and Earth that had never existed in this world before—those that only descended in critical moments—to appear.
The skies over Tianling Prefecture suddenly darkened.
An almost imperceptible shadow attached itself to Holy Embryo Xu Bai’s body.
BOOM!
It was as if his brain had been struck by a hammer.
Li Fan, who had hurriedly finished his preparations and was rushing toward Longevity Valley, nearly stumbled and fell straight out of the sky.
Spirit of Heaven and Earth: Phantom Shadow!
Sensing the information pouring in, beads of sweat slid down Li Fan’s forehead.
Not out of fear.
But because sharing the same body with Holy Embryo Xu Bai was already exerting immense pressure on him.
To put it simply—”Who do you think you are, using the same body as me?”
The vision flickered in and out.
Li Fan sensed that somewhere within Tianling Prefecture, yet another immensely powerful Spirit of Heaven and Earth was descending.
“PS: The so-called distortion refers to transferring the numerical attributes of one item to another item.”