Days passed one by one, and after half a month, Zheng Fa still hadn't recovered from his Heart Demon Tribulation.
A group of people stood outside the Immortal Strife Island, looking at Zheng Fa on the light screen, all of them puzzled.
" The Yin Fire Tribulation happened so quickly..." Blood River Ancestor frowned and said, "Why has this Heart Demon Tribulation taken so long?"
Senior Sister Zhang's expression also looked rather unpleasant.
For others, the Heart Demon Tribulation ends in three to five days at most, but Zheng Fa's tribulation has lasted several times longer than others, naturally causing great concern among everyone in the Nine Mountains Sect.
Not only Senior Sister Zhang and her group, but also Zheng Fa's mother and sister, as well as Zhao Jingfan, came over. The Heart Demon Tribulation is an internal tribulation and has nothing to do with others. Senior Sister Zhang was afraid that Mother Zheng and the others would worry, so she did not stop them from coming.
Aunt-Master Huang was pacing back and forth, looking very agitated.
" Zheng Fa's cultivation time is too short... his mental fortitude is insufficient to combat his Heart Demon?"
Her conjecture made everyone around her think deeply.
Senior Sister Zhang initially trusted Zheng Fa, but now, given the situation, she seemed somewhat uncertain. However, after a while, she affirmed:
"I know my junior brother's character; he wouldn't go that far."
The Blood River Ancestor glanced at Zheng Fa's face and agreed, "Judging from the Sect Leader's expression, he doesn't seem to be suffering from Heart Demon."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
This is why they still have the leisure to discuss it.
Although Zheng Fa had been trapped in his Heart Demon Tribulation and hadn't emerged, his aura and the feeling his Divine Soul gave off were exceptionally calm—they would believe he was asleep.
Seeing that both Senior Sister Zhang and Blood River Ancestor opposed his idea, Aunt-Master Huang's expression became much more relieved.
One of these two people understands Zheng Fa best, and the other understands Shen Divine Soul best; their judgments are always more accurate than mine.
But the next moment, another guess came to her mind:
"So... Zheng Fa's Heart Demon, though not gaining the upper hand, are exceptionally tenacious?"
Where did he get such a powerful Heart Demon?
Everyone was taken aback upon hearing this, but they found the explanation quite plausible.
Blood River Ancestor also agreed:
" Heart Demon are adept at exploiting the weaknesses of the human heart, especially the painful past of cultivators. Therefore, we, the cultivators of the Holy Church, fear Heart Demon the most..."
" Sect Leader..." Blood River Ancestor's voice lowered, "Have you suffered any great injustice in the past?"
Upon hearing this, Senior Sister Zhang's eyes flashed with a cold light. She turned her head to look behind her and stared at Zhao Jingfan.
Zhao Jingfan slowly opened his mouth wide, only four words echoing in his mind—"Coming for me?"
He certainly understood what True Person Zhang meant. Zheng Fa's deeds at the Nine Mountains Sect were simple in essence; although there were twists and turns, he hadn't suffered any major injustices...
But True Person Zhang knew nothing about what happened in the Zhao Family.
He knew that within the Nine Mountains Sect, Zheng Fa had a fairly good temper, but Senior Sister Zhang's temper... well, only Zheng Fa could control her.
Zhao Jingfan racked his brains and began to recall:
" Zheng Fa... um..."
" Wang Gui's family bullied him."
Zheng Fa's younger sister, Zheng Shan, was stunned when she heard this, seemingly forgetting the name she had used to grit her teeth over a few years ago.
Where is Wang Gui?
Senior Sister Zhang was already irritable, so her voice was even colder, and her aura made Zhao Jingfan, a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator, tremble with fear.
" Wang Gui..." Zhao Jingfan seemed to be thinking as well, and after a while, he patted his forehead, "He seems to have died during the Great Freedom Devil Tribulation!"
He muttered to himself, "Actually, I don't think Zheng Fa cares much about their family."
Senior Sister Zhang nodded slightly, turned to look at Zheng Fa, who still had his eyes closed, and said coldly to Zhao Jingfan:
"Anything else?"
"And... and..."
Zhao Jingfan seemed to remember something, and cold sweat immediately broke out on his forehead.
"..."
Senior Sister Zhang was looking at him. Zhao Jingfan swallowed hard and said dryly:
"... I."
Didn't he bully Zheng Fa a bit back then?
"And my mother..."
It seems his mother is even more ruthless...
Senior Sister Zhang frowned and looked him up and down.
True Person Huang of the Nine Mountains Sect and Blood River Ancestor, who were standing to the side, also looked at Zhao Jingfan, seemingly lost in thought.
It was Zheng Shan who spoke first:
"My brother didn't take it to heart... He used to correspond with Madam Zhao Family quite often, and the Seventh Young Master and my brother also had a good relationship; he always brought me elixirs whenever he came!"
Senior Sister Zhang, of course, knew that Zheng Fa and Zhao Jingfan in front of her had a very good relationship. Hearing Zheng Shan's words, she withdrew her scrutinizing gaze and turned to look at Zheng Fa.
Seeing her like this, Zhao Jingfan couldn't help but turn around and look at Zheng Shan gratefully. He felt that the elixirs he had obtained through betrayal had finally been contributed to the sect today.
From the looks in Senior Sister Zhang Zhang's eyes, he had no doubt that Senior Sister Zhang and the others had just had the idea of killing the Zhao Family, or even destroying the Azure Wood Sect.
He only knew that Zheng Fa was doing well in the Nine Mountains Sect.
Now I understand. Judging from the current state of the Nine Mountains Sect, if Zheng Fa fails his tribulation, these Nascent Soul from the Nine Mountains Sect will probably go insane...
No, those Golden Core disciples seemed to have some killing intent just now...
He glanced at Zheng Fa, whose eyes were closed and whose face was as calm as still water, and thought to himself, "This is outrageous!"
He felt that if anything happened to Zheng Fa, the Hundred Immortals Alliance would definitely be embroiled in a bloodbath.
Is it Zheng Fa undergoing tribulation, or is it someone else undergoing tribulation?
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa thought the same thing.
He looked at Zheng Fa, his expression one of utter despair.
So... you are truly countless versions of me?
Zheng Fa's eyes lit up, clearly indicating that he had thought of many things.
He was quite curious about Heart Demon. Besides wanting to test the strength of the Heart-Demon Oath, he had two other important considerations:
One is how the disciples of the Nine Mountains overcome their Heart Demon Tribulation.
To be fair, the Heart-Demon Zheng Fa in front of them is so harmless is mainly because of Venerable Tianhe's Yin-Yang Fish Jade Pendant.
But the disciples of the Nine Mountains Sect do not possess this treasure.
Further research into Heart Demon would greatly benefit the disciples of the Nine Mountains Sect and their < First Fifty-Year Plan >.
On the other hand, it's actually more important--
Who exactly is he?
Traveling to the modern era is certainly a perk, but given Zheng Fa's personality, there's always been a knot in his heart.
What is the relationship between the Zheng Fa of this world and the modern Zheng Fa?
He saw a glimpse of the answer to his question in his Heart Demon.
"So, rather than being Heart Demon, you're actually... another possible version of myself?"
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa looked blank, clearly not understanding what Zheng Fa was talking about.
Zheng Fa's thoughts, however, were far away.
Tang Mudao once spoke about his views on the nature of Spiritual Qi, one of which was the explanation of parallel worlds.
Is this Heart Demon a composite of my past self from parallel universes?
Parallel world...
"So, what do you remember? Cultivation Secret Method? Ancient secrets?"
Zheng Fa pressed for further details.
"I don't remember." The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa shook his head and said, "What I know is actually only the techniques and Divine Ability Cultivation Method you possess."
"..."
Understood.
It's not that my parallel universe self is stupid.
It was my own stupidity.
It doesn't seem like I was comforted much...
Zheng Fa's expression turned thoughtful.
Although this Heart Demon was somewhat useless, it gave him many other insights.
He could clearly see that the Divine Soul coming from those stars were of all ages, both male and female.
But now this Heart Demon is exactly the same as his own.
If this Heart Demon hadn't been deceiving itself before.
In this process, it could be said that... any other possibility for Zheng Fa disappeared?
Or perhaps, some of Zheng Fa's "fate" simply vanished?
After cultivating for so long, the biggest problem for Zheng Fa at the beginning was: why was his Spiritual Qi declining?
This issue has now evolved into a more in-depth question:
What is the essence of Spiritual Qi?
Now, Zheng Fa has his own rudimentary answer to this question:
Physical rules.
For example, the Dao Fruit is actually a combination of physical rules.
When a cultivator practices a set of Cultivation Method for Dao Fruit cultivators, they are essentially reorganizing their life form according to these rules.
The Zheng Fa Cultivation Method of the Supreme Dao cannot be determined.
However, Zheng Fa was quite familiar with the Cultivation Method of the Tianhe Sect, the Heavenly Venerable, and the Great Freedom Devil Ancestor.
Essentially, this is a purposeful evolution of life, and the ultimate goal of this evolution is the Dao Fruit.
The problem is the opposite: Dao Fruit cultivators stand at the end of this path, using all living beings as nourishment to evolve themselves.
To put it simply, a Dao Fruit cultivator is like the progenitor of a gene, and their descendants inherit some of their genes and, through recombination, produce new traits.
This beneficial trait, or ability, was absorbed by the ancestor and used to perfect his genome.
According to Zheng Fa, the Demonic Sect Method techniques are closest to this essence.
But the Divine Way and Immortal Way also subtly point to this.
If we combine this with his observation that this Heart Demon originates from the stars, or, as he suspected, from a parallel world...
An idea popped into his mind:
Are those parallel worlds, like the Nine Mountains Realm, actually the Dao Field of some Dao Fruit cultivator?
However, the physical rules within the Dao Field, just like in the Nine Mountains Realm before, are special—determined by the Dao Fruit of that cultivator.
These stars are even more special than those in the Nine Mountains Realm:
There is no other self in the Nine Mountains Realm...
And among these stars there will be.
Even in modern times, this still exists.
If the Modern World can be considered the Dao Field of Venerable Tianhe, then does this distinction mean:
The Heavenly Venerable is weaker than the masters of these stars, and also weaker than the Venerable Tianhe.
As for who is weaker, the master of these stars or the Venerable Tianhe.
He naturally had no way of knowing.
Even when Venerable Tianhe raised his sword to the sky, his target was probably these stars.
If the distinction between strong and weak cultivators at the Dao Fruit stage is valid, then Ancient Immortals... might be stronger than I imagined?
All sorts of speculations made Zheng Fa's mind increasingly confused.
Now he can be certain of two things:
First: Although we don't know what the Ancient Immortals mentioned by the Five Sects are, the stars in the sky are stronger than ordinary Dao Fruit cultivators, obviously they are people of another level, and we cannot take them lightly, but they are far from Zheng Fa.
Second: There are countless versions of himself among the stars, which made Zheng Fa even more concerned.
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa looked at him, not quite understanding what he was thinking.
"How about you share some of your Divine Soul power with me for research?"
Zheng Fa suddenly asked.
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa stared blankly at Zheng Fa, his face showing indignation that Zheng Fa was not human.
Zheng Fa then smiled.
"No!"
"..."
Soon, the Heart-Demon Zheng Fa realized that the sentence he had just uttered was not a question!
"They really are exactly the same..."
Holding the torn-off Divine Soul fragments of Heart-Demon Zheng Fa, Zheng Fa murmured.
Although his research on the Divine Soul was not as deep as that of the Blood River Ancestor, he still understood his own Divine Soul.
The fluctuations in the Divine Soul of this Heart Demon were indeed no different from his own.
"... That's so weird."
What's strange about it?
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa has clearly given up and admitted defeat, and even dared to ask a question.
We can't win a fight, and we can't leave either; besides, we've already come all this way...
Have you... heard of Wave Function Collapse?
"?"
He asked unnecessary questions!
But he did retain Zheng Fa's memories, and upon hearing this, he instantly understood. "You mean, I... uh, collapsed?"
"When you first arrived, you actually possessed countless Divine Soul, but after approaching my Nascent Soul, you transformed into something exactly like me."
Zheng Fa nodded slightly.
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa is clearly not stupid:
"Does the Nascent Soul involve... the Observer Effect?"
A look of annoyance crossed his face; he clearly found the theory too convoluted. He said, "Why don't you think about it yourself?"
"..."
"I'm stupid! I don't understand this thing."
"... I won't allow you to call yourself stupid."
"... I really don't know how, and there's too little information available."
Indeed, this theory contains too much speculation—mainly because the gap in strength is too large, and everyone is completely in the dark about this stuff.
On the other hand, this Heart Demon is indeed somewhat incompetent.
There was absolutely nothing beyond his own knowledge and ideas.
She also likes to cry.
This made Zheng Fa look down on him.
"... Should I leave?"
Under Zheng Fa's disdainful gaze, the Heart Demon spoke cautiously again.
Wait a minute!
"..."
"You know all my Cultivation Method and all my memories?"
"Um..."
"Then could you help me refine this < Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Transformation >?"
The Heart-Demon Zheng Fa suddenly looked up at Zheng Fa, his lips trembling.
I'm a Heart Demon, and you want me to work?
Under the despair in his Heart Demon's eyes, Zheng Fa slowly nodded:
I think you can do this.
The Heart Demon may not have anything new, but its mind contains all of one's knowledge—isn't that top-notch artificial intelligence?
Zheng Fa wanted to create a fundamental law that progressed from the " Talisman Dao Foundation Establishment Method " to the " Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Transformation ".
In fact, many details are still incomplete, especially the " Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Transformation," which is extremely complex.
Even Senior Sister Zhang was having a headache.
Heart Demon are perfectly suited for this job.
Judging from Heart-Demon Zheng Fa's expression... he clearly no longer wanted to live.
"Woke up!"
Another half month passed before everyone saw Zheng Fa slowly open his eyes.
He was overjoyed.
Zhao Jingfan was overjoyed.
For the past two weeks, Zheng Fa has remained unconscious, and True Person Zhang has been glancing at him frequently.
He was extremely uncomfortable!
Seeing Zheng Fa awaken, Zhao Jingfan's eyes welled up with tears...
But why does Zheng Fa still look a little regretful?
Zheng Fa is indeed regrettable.
A month wasn't Zheng Fa's limit, but it was the limit of his Heart Demon...
He opened his eyes.
The Divine Soul flew from the Mud Pill Palace into the newly born Nascent Soul, and the two quickly merged into one. The Nascent Soul, which had originally closed its eyes, also opened them!
"It's done!"
Even the usually aloof Aunt-Master Huang was excitedly shouting.
Clearly, Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul Tribulation had exhausted her.
It's done.
As Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul opened its eyes, a tremendous change occurred throughout the Nine Mountains Realm:
The Spiritual Qi from beyond the boundary surged and poured into the Nine Mountains Realm, causing the earth, fire, water, and wind to tremble incessantly.
The Sun-Moon Bell hangs in the sky, suppressing the turbulent Spiritual Qi.
Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul was already larger than others'. At this moment, he opened his mouth and devoured the surrounding Spiritual Qi and radiant light, making his body more and more solid. His aura made Aunt-Master Huang and the others look horrified.
"This is the Nascent Soul Early Stage?"
Aunt-Master Huang and Senior Sister Zhang exchanged glances, realizing that although Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul was only in its early stages, the sheer amount of spiritual power he possessed surpassed theirs, at least ten times that of an average Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivator.
Senior Sister Zhang's expression was also somewhat complicated, and she spoke again:
"Actually, it's quite normal for Junior Brother Zheng to have a profound Golden Core and a powerful Nascent Soul..."
Aunt-Master Huang grinned.
Previously, Zheng Fa relied on the Fusang Wood.
Judging from his current cultivation level alone, Zheng Fa is one of the most profound Nascent Soul in the Nine Mountains Realm.
According to her estimation, in terms of sheer spiritual power, only Senior Brother Yuan could probably outmatch Zheng Fa.
But you should know that Senior Brother Yuan is already in seclusion, having reached the Spirit Transformation.
Zheng Fa has just Nascent Soul!
How can you compare?
Not seeing Blood River Ancestor and Jiao Wuji, their eyes were filled with surprise and doubt—and even their faces showed more respect than usual.
Zheng Fa was unaware of the group's astonishment.
The feeling of Nascent Soul is completely different from that of Golden Core.
His own Divine Soul, like a wanderer returning home, merged seamlessly with the Nascent Soul soul, quickly becoming one with it.
As the Nascent Soul gradually solidified, Zheng Fa also felt that the range of his Divine Soul was gradually increasing.
Just as he was gaining insight, a strange attraction came from above.
It's here!
Zheng Fa had long hoped that he would Innate Divine Ability when he Foundation Establishment and Golden Core stages.
There should also be a Nascent Soul!
As before, his Divine Soul slowly rose along with this attraction, but unlike before, Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul also flew towards the outside of the Nine Mountains Realm.
Watching the rosy light drag Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul out of the Nine Mountains Realm.
Aunt-Master Huang's eyes widened even more.
"To ascend... to heaven? Is what's in the stories true?"
Senior Sister Zhang didn't know either, but when she looked at Paradise Island, she saw many mortals devoutly worshipping the departing Nascent Soul Zheng Fa, clearly also shocked by this legendary scene.
Let alone the mundane.
Even Elder Xiong and Sect Master Song from the Azure Wood Sect, along with some other sect Sect Leader who came to participate in the preparatory meeting, were staring with their mouths open, looking up as they watched Zheng Fa's Nascent Soul figure disappear into the distance, their expressions somewhat doubtful—clearly, they felt that Zheng Fa's cultivation style was quite different from theirs.
Zheng Fa's face was also full of doubt.
He followed this attraction to the barrier in the Xuanwei Realm, where he initially gazed at the stars in contemplation.
After all, if those stars are parallel worlds, or even represent individual Dao Fruit cultivators...
That would be a huge problem.
Who knows how many powerful cultivators exist beyond the heavens?
This made him take it seriously.
But after watching for a while, he felt something was off...
I came here to collect my rewards, but the progress seems to be... stuck?
He could sense that his Nascent Soul was resonating with some being from beyond the heavens.
However, the Innate Divine Ability upon them from beyond the heavens were slow to arrive.
Finally, there was even a feeling that the sensation was slowly fading away.
No... where are my Divine Ability?
Suddenly, the sky brightened abruptly. Zheng Fa looked up and saw a streak of light, like a shooting star, coming from the depths of the starry sky.
That light overshadowed the brilliance of all the stars.