The moment his gaze locked onto the Holy Embryo Li Fan, an insatiable hunger erupted in his mind.
Since he was "hungry," he had to eat!
Every piece of flesh and blood in his body seemed to awaken with its own consciousness, yearning to devour everything around it endlessly, attempting to alleviate the overwhelming sense of "hunger."
Even Li Fan himself was completely consumed by this thought.
As a resultâŠ
In an instant, the Holy Embryo Li Fan shrank like a punctured balloon.
With a muffled bang, he collapsed inward, rapidly diminishing into a tiny particle, before ultimately vanishing from the world entirely.
Yet, in his final moment, his thoughts remained frozen at the instant he saw the remains of the Immortal Ruins open their eyes.
To put it in simpler termsâ
The mortal-bodied Holy Embryo Li Fan was utterly incapable of withstanding even a single gaze from the remains of the Immortal Ruins. In the blink of an eye, he was reduced to nothingness.
Of course, even if one were to remove the limitations of his "mortal body," the outcome wouldnât change.
Even if his true body at the Nascent Soul stage had been present, the result would have been no better.
For cultivatorsâat least those below the Longevity Immortal realmâthe gap between them and an actual Immortal was as vast as heaven and earth. The disparity was so immense that words could not begin to describe it.
With the disappearance of Holy Embryo Li Fan, logically speaking, what should have followed in this timeline was the natural exhaustion of his existence.
Once the time of his manifestation ran out, his incarnation, trapped within Gu Xinghanâs coffin, would automatically revert to its true form.
However, the occurrences within the Immortal Ruinâ
Be it the humanoid remains bound by dark-red chains, or the ominous ăHungeră inscribed upon the desolate wastelandâ
They were entities beyond "common logic" and comprehension.
The Holy Embryo Blood Transformation Technique, modified and perfected by the Empire, had created Holy Embryos as independent entities, completely separate from their true bodies.
Yet, they still shared a [Same-Body Connection] as clones.
Even though the true body had perished, this faint connection transcended time and space, persisting within his manifested incarnation.
Ordinary cultivators could not perceive this link.
Even the supreme experts of the Xuanhuang Realmâthose in the Longevity Immortal stageâmight not be able to detect it.
HoweverâŠ
The Immortal Ruins housed beings known as "Immortals."
Thus, through this lingering connection, the figure within the Immortal Ruinsâ
Its gaze transcended the barriers of time and space, reaching across into the Xuanhuang Realm itself!
A terrifying suction force descended upon the world.
In an instant, the entire Beast Realm collapsed into a singularity of darkness.
Everything within it fell and vanished into the void.
In the next moment, the suction force expanded, reaching the depths of Longevity Valley.
After more than two centuries of development, the Medicine King Sect had reached its peak of prosperity.
Ten Dao Integration cultivators, seventy-six Soul Transformation cultivators, and countless Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators populated its ranks.
It had surpassed even the strongest era of ancient times.
Yet at this moment, all these so-called "great cultivators"â
Liu San, Fang Zaiji, Jiang YushanâŠ
Every last one of themâ
They stood no chance. They didnât even have time to react.
All of them were instantly devoured by the black singularity.
Even after consuming two entire small worlds, the black singularity showed no sign of satiation.
Instead, it expanded even more rapidly.
A pitch-black sphere, capable of swallowing all existence, emerged in the Xuanhuang Realm.
A true apocalypse had arrived.
The moment the black singularity was born, the protective energy surrounding Li Fanâs incarnation plummeted to zero in an instant.
Had it been Li Fanâs true body standing here, he would have likely met the same fate as the countless fallen cultivators.
He might not have had enough time to activate [Truth] in response.
Fortunately, this time, [Truth] activated on its own.
However, unlike beforeâ
When it triggered, the surrounding scenery did not immediately dissolve into illusion.
Instead, a bizarre phenomenon occurred.
Beyond the [Truth] Form barrier, an endless abyss of darkness stretched outward, forming a circular domain.
Outside this domain, the destruction of the Xuanhuang Realm played out in rapid succession, flashing by like a distorted nightmare.
It seemed as if someone let out a heaven-shaking roar, attempting to halt the black sphereâs relentless devouring.
It seemed as if a towering, decayed ancient tree emerged in the heavens, accompanied by a maniacal, crazed laugh:
"You all must die! Thatâs right, all of you must die!"
It seemed as if two intersecting beams of light swept across the soon-to-be-erased Xuanhuang Realm.
Then, they tore through space and fled toward the endless void beyond the realm.
It seemed as if countless cultivators stood frozen in terror, gazing up at the rising black sun in the sky, awaiting their inevitable demise in despair.
...
The scene accelerated faster and faster.
In the end, everything plunged into complete darkness.
ThenâŠ
Brilliant silver light suddenly burst outward from the pitch-black domain of [Truth].
Anchor Point: 1 Year.
Jieli Mountain Peak!
Li Fan, at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, abruptly opened his eyes.
His pupils were blood-red, like a wild beast!
Hungry! Hungry! Hungry! Hungry! Hungry!
An endless hunger consumed his mind, making him nearly lose all reason in an instant.
He was starving.
An overwhelming urge surged within himâto devour everything in sight.
With a violent motion, he shattered the wooden bed beneath him and, like a whale gulping down water, swallowed it whole.
But the hunger did not subside in the slightest.
On the contrary, it intensified!
A powerful sense of crisis suddenly emerged in Li Fanâs heart.
If this continued and he let hunger take control, he would inevitably meet his demise.
He was well aware that [Truth] had not yet fully recharged. If he lost this opportunity, there would be no second chance to start over!
Seizing this fleeting moment of rationality, Li Fan glanced at the [Truth] panel.
In the section for cultivation techniques, he saw the words "Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Mantra".
Without hesitation, he activated it.
"Endure the tribulations of countless lifetimes, and let the Immortal Heart remain unchanged!"
The Xuanhuang Immortal Heart Mantra could not reduce the effects of ăHungeră.
However, it could help Li Fan maintain his sanity.
It kept him from becoming a mindless monster that only knew how to devour.
The mantra operated at full power, resisting the endless waves of hunger.
Though it kept him alive, the price was excruciating tormentâlike suffering in an inescapable hell.
For eight whole years, Li Fan was forced to stay at Jieli Mountain Peak, struggling against the relentless hunger.
He was so consumed by this battle that he didnât even notice when, at Year 6 of the Anchor Point, [Truth] had already completed its recharge.
"Eight years have passed⊠but this hunger shows no signs of weakening."
A hint of determination flashed in Li Fanâs eyes, now resembling those of a crazed beast.
He turned to the long-standing notification from [Truth]:
ăThis simulation has ended.ă
ăYou may choose one of the following options to retain:
1. An item you possessed during this simulation.
2. Your cultivation realm from this simulation.
3. The memory of a closely connected individual from this simulation (this memory can be inherited by that individual).
4.Abandon all choices and accelerate the recharge process.ă
Without hesitation, he chose the first option.
At that moment, an item named "Final Dissociation Disc" appeared in [Truth] storage space.
"Truth!" Li Fan called out again.
"Would you like to virtualize the current scene and return to the set anchor point?" [Truth] prompt sounded at the right moment.
Li Fan decisively selected "Yes."
The next instant, the scene at Jieli Peak began to blur and fade once again.