My Longevity Simulation - Chapter 1278: The Will to Survive at the End of the World

“I’m more afraid that the remains of that True Immortal… might come back to life.”

As Mo Rubin spoke these words, Li Ping was not sure if it was just his imagination, but the depths of this Dark Sea seemed to grow even colder.

It was as if some unknown existence had suddenly fixed its gaze upon him, and a chill rose abruptly in his heart.

The Holy Emperor carefully looked around, but he did not discover any hidden watcher.

Turning his gaze once more to the body of Fang Dingge from the Grand Dao Sect, Li Ping asked, “It has already become like this, can it still come back to life?”

Li Ping was naturally not referring to Fang Dingge, but to that True Immortal whose immortal body had transformed into the Dark Sea and whose will had become the Fallen Immortal Realm.

Mo Rubin also examined the corpse not far away and said softly, “Let me tell you a story.”

“Our Nine Refinements Temple once enshrined a statue of our ancestor. It is said that it was personally crafted by the founding ancestor, Master Miaofa, for himself.”

“This stone statue was worshipped for thousands of years. Whenever disciples encountered doubts on the path of cultivation, as long as they prayed sincerely, most would receive a response from the unseen. Thus, for many years, the incense offerings never ceased.”

“Then one day, tribulation clouds suddenly gathered above the Nine Refinements Temple. Divine lightning struck repeatedly, but the target was that ancestor statue. A figure broke out from the statue and shot straight into the heavens. His strength was terrifying. Even the Nine Heavens Divine Lightning, capable of instantly killing Dao Integration cultivators, could not harm him at all. He laughed wildly within the lightning, about to withstand the tribulation and ascend…”

At the crucial point, Mo Rubin paused again.

After waiting for a long time without hearing the Holy Emperor urge him on, he could only continue, “The fragments of the ancestor statue that had scattered all over the ground unexpectedly gathered together again. They approached the one undergoing tribulation. Taking advantage of his unpreparedness, they swallowed him back into the statue.”

“From then on, no matter how he struggled, he could not escape the statue’s confinement. The statue then ascended together with that figure!”

After hearing this rather mysterious story, Li Ping frowned slightly.

Mo Rubin asked, “Guess, among the two who ascended together, which one was the ancestor of our Nine Refinements Temple?”

Li Ping pondered briefly and replied, “The figure inside the statue had to face the ascension tribulation. It should be him. Failing to ascend in life, he used the statue form, received worship for thousands of years, accumulated power, and attempted ascension…”

Mo Rubin smiled faintly. “Wrong.”

“Our ancestor, Master Miaofa, has clear records of ascending to immortality before countless witnesses. However, what only the successive heads of the Nine Refinements Temple know is that in the second year after entering the Immortal Realm, he died for unknown reasons.”

Li Ping was stunned upon hearing this.

Mo Rubin continued with satisfaction, “However, the statue he personally created contained a backup plan he left behind. Even if his soul was destroyed in the upper realm, he could be reborn through that statue.”

Li Ping frowned again. “Then who was the figure inside the statue?”

Mo Rubin chuckled. “He was the third head of our Nine Refinements Temple. He disobeyed the ancestor’s instructions and tried to establish new rules. After internal conflict, he was severely injured and disappeared. Who would have thought he had been hiding inside the ancestor statue all along, even cultivating to the level of ascension in one stroke.”

“In the end, he merely made a wedding garment for another.”

“Master Miaofa had only ascended for a year and had no deep foundation, yet he could still revive through the statue. Let alone that True Immortal.”

“Just look at this Dark Sea. You can imagine how powerful it was in life. In truth, do not use the perspective of cultivators to speculate about the methods of Immortals. The difference is like heaven and earth.”

Perhaps because they had been talking for some time, Mo Rubin’s emotions had stabilized considerably as he spoke.

Li Ping remained silent.

He felt that Mo Rubin’s account of Master Miaofa’s revival through the statue and the involvement of the third head contained some inaccuracies.

However, this was an ancient secret, and they were deep in a dangerous place. It was not the time to investigate further.

“Should we continue deeper? The way Fang Dingge died does not seem like something an ordinary cultivator could accomplish,” Li Ping changed the subject.

“Let us go in and take a look. If the True Immortal has revived, after so many years, it would not still remain in place,” Mo Rubin said as he bypassed Fang Dingge’s remains and continued descending into the darkness.

They passed through three layers of formation barriers, some originally part of the Spirit Gathering Ascension Formation and others set up later.

With the combined efforts of Li Ping and Mo Rubin, after considerable effort, they finally reached the control core of the Spirit Gathering Ascension Formation.

Along the way, they did not find the remains of the other four fallen Longevity Immortals.

The control core, though located at the deepest part of the Dark Sea, resembled a transparent observation platform.

Through the surrounding formation barriers, which were like panoramic glass, Li Ping and Mo Rubin could clearly see the entirety of the Dark Sea.

Even after being magnified countless times, the Dark Sea still clearly resembled the outline of a human form.

Mo Rubin was clearly not here for the first time. He was not distracted by the magnificent sight and instead walked to the center of the platform.

His expression changed slightly.

“One piece of good news and one piece of bad news. Which do you want to hear first?” Mo Rubin asked.

After a brief silence, Li Ping replied, “The good news first.”

“The good news is that the fallen True Immortal did not revive through its remains,” Mo Rubin said in a low voice.

“And the bad news?”

Mo Rubin let out a cold laugh. “You will know when you see it.”

Li Ping stepped forward and came to Mo Rubin’s side.

The scene before him suddenly changed. The lofty observation platform seemed to be falling rapidly.

The Dark Sea below rushed closer, enlarging quickly. In an instant, it filled his vision and penetrated deep into his soul.

Boom.

The surroundings changed again. It seemed they had left the Dark Sea and arrived at an entirely unknown place.

“Do not move.”

Mo Rubin’s voice sounded within his mind. Li Ping felt slightly reassured and looked around.

He saw the other four fallen Longevity Immortals.

They maintained their final postures from before death. Unlike Fang Dingge, their faces were covered with a gray layer, making their features unrecognizable.

It could only be vaguely seen that they had been desperately trying to resist a terrifying force that devoured them.

Li Ping attempted to find the culprit behind the deaths of these five Longevity Immortals.

From beneath the bodies of the four immortals, gray vine like substances extended, intertwining together, which caught Li Ping’s attention.

From his observation, these gray vines had no life aura at all. They were merely lifeless aggregates of pure energy.

Yet for some reason, when facing them, Li Ping felt as if he were being stared at by a venomous snake.

“What is this?” Li Ping asked without hesitation.

After a long pause, Mo Rubin slowly answered, “This is the will to survive. The will to survive of the True Immortal’s remains.”

“The will to survive?” Li Ping carefully contemplated the meaning of these words.

“True Immortals cannot be judged by ordinary logic. Back when Brother Xuanyuan modified the True Immortal’s remains, he already had such concerns. To prevent it from reviving, he made many additional arrangements. Yet unexpectedly…”

Although Li Ping could not see Mo Rubin’s figure, he could sense that he was staring intently at the gray “will to survive” spread throughout the area.

“Under normal circumstances, a True Immortal’s remains that have already turned into the Dark Sea should not be able to give rise to such a strong will to survive.”

Hearing Mo Rubin’s words, Li Ping also fell into thought. “Unless someone deliberately triggered it.”

“Correct. That person is not simple,” Mo Rubin commented.

“First, being able to break the restrictions left by Brother Xuanyuan is not simple. Second, being able to stir the will of a True Immortal’s remains is not simple. Third, after triggering the will to survive, still being able to retreat unscathed… remarkable.” Mo Rubin praised without any tone of admiration.

“Do not underestimate these things. Even you and I, if we are carelessly targeted by them, would likely find it hard to escape death. We would end up just like these five empty shells.”

Li Ping frowned slightly. He still had some confidence in his own strength.

Mo Rubin did not argue with him and continued explaining in a low voice, “A person who has already died, yet their will to survive is reignited. It is like grasping the final straw, bursting out with power in an instant…”

“Instinctively devouring all nearby life it can touch and converting it into nourishment for its own revival. Only someone at Brother Xuanyuan’s level can barely resist it. Though you and I may appear strong, we are still far behind.”

Li Ping remained silent.

Mo Rubin continued, “Fortunately, the one who triggered it did not destroy Brother Xuanyuan’s arrangements. After this ‘will to survive’ drained those four Longevity cultivators, it could no longer find any target to absorb, and thus fell back into silence.”

“If it were to escape from the Dark Sea…”

“I am afraid the entire Xuanhuang Realm would become its meal.” Li Ping immediately became extremely solemn.

“But then again, Brother Xuanyuan’s methods are not so easily broken. That person who triggered it, the one you called the Immortal Ancestor, did not directly destroy the restrictions of the Dark Sea. He did not even alter them, but instead added his own methods on top.”

“However… possessing a formation control artifact and being thoroughly familiar with the restrictions here, he can move freely.” Mo Rubin seemed to think of something, and the aura he had condensed suddenly became unstable.

“Let us work first.” Just as Li Ping was worried that Mo Rubin might lose control and descend into madness, he instantly calmed down again.

He transmitted a large amount of information into Li Ping’s mind.

“This is… the Spirit Gathering Ascension Formation?” Li Ping immediately recognized its essence.

“Strictly speaking, it is a modified version by Brother Xuanyuan. The original Ascension Formation was created by a demonic cultivator. Heh, this one was a true peerless fiend. He was born of humble origins and had poor cultivation aptitude, reaching only the Golden Core stage at most. Yet he forcibly created this vicious formation. Wherever the formation covered, everything within would be refined into the purest energy.”

“He started from mortal small worlds, progressing from weak to strong, exterminating countless worlds’ living beings before finally ascending to the Immortal Realm. After arriving there, the first thing he did was improve the formation, intending to repeat his methods in the Immortal Realm. Hmph, even such a figure died like a fly during the Immortal Realm catastrophe. All his accumulated treasures ended up benefiting Brother Xuanyuan. However, Brother Xuanyuan was quite disdainful of his legacy…” Mo Rubin said with a cold laugh.

““Someone so violently enraged and brutally vicious… can still attain the Dao and become an immortal? Are the Immortal Tribulations in his world different from those of the Xuanhuang Realm?” Li Ping asked with a frown.

Because in Li Ping’s memory, in the Xuanhuang Realm, such vicious individuals would face heavenly tribulations dozens of times stronger than usual, with no chance of success.

“The heavenly tribulation, no matter how strong, has limits in the lower realms. As long as you surpass it, it is enough. Moreover, good and evil are not absolute…”

Li Ping could clearly feel that as Mo Rubin spoke, he once again fell into a confused state.

“What do you need me to do?” Li Ping timely shifted his attention.

“Your attainment in formations should not be much weaker than Brother Xuanyuan’s. The control core of the Spirit Gathering Ascension Formation here must not be disturbed. If possible, reinforce it with another layer and push it deeper into the Dark Sea. Then sever the connection between the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance’s formation control artifact and this grand formation,” Mo Rubin said after regaining composure.

Li Ping nodded, observing the surrounding formation details while comparing them with the formation diagram in his mind.

“As expected of the Xuantian King, truly the most outstanding genius of the Xuanhuang Realm in ten thousand years.”

As a formation master himself, Li Ping could not help but feel a sense of mutual appreciation upon sensing the ingenuity of this formation.

The source power essence from the prayers of the You race was absorbed and transformed by the Dark Sea, that is, the remains of a True Immortal, and then gathered deep within the formation.

It appeared to accumulate without order, yet Li Ping faintly perceived that through certain means, all this power, capable of rivaling a True Immortal, could be unleashed instantly.

To push the Xuanhuang Realm to escape the control of the True Immortals in Immortal Ruins.

“To use a mortal formation to control the power of a True Immortal… remarkable.”

Li Ping did not find traces of the original world formation of the Xuanhuang Realm within this structure. This formation was likely created independently by the Xuantian King. Even the remains of a fallen True Immortal were utilized, demonstrating Xuanyuan Hong’s extraordinary mastery of formations.

“To reinforce the formation, some materials are needed,” Li Ping said after observing for a while.

“I have them,” Mo Rubin replied immediately.

As if prepared in advance, after they returned from the hiding place of the “will to survive” to the formation core, he took out a pile of materials.

Li Ping checked them. They were all exactly what was needed to reinforce the formation.

“Do not look at me like that. I am even borrowing your face.”

“As a Dharma King of the Xuantian Sect, even while fleeing in haste, carrying resources to make a comeback is perfectly normal, right?”

“By the way, why are you also faceless? Could it be related to that True Immortal who saved Brother Xuanyuan back then? I am timid, do not scare me…”

Li Ping ignored Mo Rubin’s ramblings and focused on setting up the formation.

With the Xuantian King’s prior work as a reference, Li Ping only needed to follow the pattern. It was not difficult for him.

As the formation gradually took shape, the “watchtower” where they stood seemed to rise higher.

Mo Rubin nodded in satisfaction. After Li Ping finished, he took out another batch of materials.

“Go deeper. Completely suppress the True Immortal’s ‘Will To Survive’ in the depths of the Dark Sea.”

Li Ping also agreed with this view. Without any complaints, he continued working.

After the materials were exhausted, the scene of the Dark Sea in their field of vision had already shrunk to only half of what it was when they first saw it.

“If that is the case, it should be safe enough. As long as no one deliberately disturbs it.” Mo Rubin stood beside Li Ping, looking at the Dark Sea below, and spoke softly.

“This concerns the safety of the Xuanhuang Realm. It is better to be extra cautious.” This was not asking for Mo Rubin’s opinion, but informing him of a decision already made. “I will set up additional protective formations here.”

Mo Rubin shrugged. “Do as you like. After all these years, no one has come to this cursed place except us. Who are you even guarding against with your formations? If that will to survive truly breaks free from its cage, your little formations will not be worth mentioning.”

Li Ping ignored Mo Rubin’s mockery and, with utmost seriousness, added the strongest sealing formation he could currently deploy.

“Alright, next is to cut off the hand extended by the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance,” Mo Rubin urged after Li Ping finished.

“The dark power being extracted right now is limited. But if the Dark Sea shrinks to a certain extent, the Will to Survive might sense the vibrant vitality of the Xuanhuang Realm outside. If that happens, the consequences would be unimaginable.”

While reinforcing the formation here, Li Ping had already noticed that within the formation core, there were two thread like connections extending outward, intermittent and faint.

Their destinations were unknown.

“Both formation controlling artifacts, cut off their connection to the core?” Li Ping looked at Mo Rubin.

“The other one is most likely already dead. Cutting it off is fine.” Mo Rubin fell silent for a moment, then nodded.

Li Ping immediately modified the formation core.

The process went very smoothly. The Spirit Gathering Ascension Formation let out a soft hum, then seemed to restart.

It dimmed briefly, then grew bright again.

Standing at the formation core, Li Ping sensed the opening that the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance had cut into the Dark Sea.

Boom. Boom.

Cloud masses churned, stirring up waves of invisible force. They swept up the drifting “clouds” within the Dark Sea, growing larger and larger. By the time they reached the torn wound, they had already turned into a heaven shaking tidal wave.

It slammed fiercely against the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance’s device.

Dozens of Immortal Alliance cultivators, who had been diligently supervising the extraction of Dark power, were silently swallowed.

They vanished from the world without a trace.

Amid the violent tremors, the rift also began to close.

Facing this sudden change, the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance was unwilling to give up. Within the nearly closed rift, the eye type formation controlling artifact appeared once again.

The golden abacus flickered rapidly, attempting to turn the tide.

However, this time it could no longer produce any effect. It could only watch helplessly as the rift of the Dark Sea healed.

Everything settled.

Li Ping and Mo Rubin both watched this scene in silence.

Although it had taken quite some effort, they had finally cut off the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance’s attempt to extract dark power. At the same time, he had also learned many secrets of the ancient Xuantian Sect.

Li Ping felt a deep calm in his heart. He could sense that his connection with the Heavenly Dao of the Xuanhuang Realm had grown even closer.

However, he was also very clear that being able to so easily mobilize the power of the Spirit Gathering Ascension Formation was not only due to his own attainment in formations. A greater part of it was thanks to Mo Rubin’s assistance.

Without the formation diagrams transmitted by him, breaking the restrictions left behind by the Xuantian King would not have been possible in a short time.

More importantly, there was the demonic face that Mo Rubin had split off and attached to Li Ping’s face.

It was precisely because of this face that they could move freely at the deepest part of the Dark Sea. Even when altering the key structure of the formation, they did not suffer any attack or backlash from the grand formation.

In a certain sense, the authority of Mo Rubin’s face was far higher than that of the two eye type formation controlling artifacts.

“Back then, among the Twelve Dharma Kings of the Xuantian Sect, where did your strength rank?” Li Ping suddenly asked.

Mo Rubin was slightly stunned.

Then he sneered. “To be honest, among the twelve, my strength was the weakest. You may barely defeat me, but you would not be able to win against the others.”

Li Ping naturally did not believe him.

Mo Rubin snorted coldly. “In our era, geniuses emerged in great numbers. Peerless talents were as numerous as fish crossing a river. It was an undeniable golden age of cultivation.”

“If the path to immortality had not suddenly been severed, it would not have been impossible for a large number of ascenders to appear within a short time.”

Li Ping fell silent.

According to the records of the Genesis Stone Tablet, all information related to those who ascended to immortality had been erased, so he had no way to judge the truth of Mo Rubin’s words.

However, judging from the performances of the Twelve Dharma Kings before they joined the Xuantian Sect, Mo Rubin’s words might be somewhat exaggerated, but they were not without basis.

“You were all so strong. How did the Ten Great Immortal Sects win back then?”

“Even without the Xuantian King, with the twelve of you joining forces, it should have been difficult for the Ten Great Immortal Sects to defeat you, right?” Li Ping asked the question that had been weighing on his mind for a long time.

“Hmph.” Mo Rubin simply let out a cold snort.

After a long silence, he finally spoke somewhat vaguely. “In any case, a loss is a loss. I will not deny it. Those people from the Ten Great Immortal Sects were not useless either.”

“And moreover…”

Mo Rubin’s tone suddenly turned extremely cold.

“Someone turned a fake act into reality and suddenly defected. Without knowing who the traitor was, none of us dared to trust anyone. On top of that, Brother Xuanyuan disappeared without reason…”

“One by one, we all claimed that our talent was no less than Xuanyuan Hong, saying we only lacked luck and failed to ascend at the right time. But when the real moment came, we realized that without Brother Xuanyuan leading us, we were nothing more than a mob.”

“On the other hand, the Ten Great Immortal Sects truly fought with their lives, because they knew that if they failed, death awaited them.”

“…”

Mo Rubin suddenly laughed. “But now I have come to terms with it. As the saying goes, the Heavenly Dao repays in kind. Did not those Ten Great Immortal Sects also get destroyed by this so called Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance? Hahaha! They deserved to die!”

“Well done, Xuanhuang Realm!”

Mo Rubin patted Li Ping on the shoulder in praise.

“In truth, the core figures of the Ten Great Immortal Sects are probably still alive,” Li Ping suddenly said.

“They have merely withdrawn from the world and remain hidden.”

Mo Rubin’s hand gripping Li Ping’s shoulder suddenly tightened.

“Hmph, hmph…” Upon suddenly hearing this news, not only did Mo Rubin not become enraged, he instead began laughing more and more wildly.

“So they are not dead? Even better.”

“This way, I can take revenge with my own hands. After so many years, they should not be as united as they were back then.”

Mo Rubin flashed away from Li Ping’s side, his figure suddenly dimming considerably.

“It is time to leave.”

“I originally planned to look for Brother Xuanyuan, but by a twist of fate I ended up here first. That is fine. At least I have ruled out one wrong answer.”

Li Ping felt that the demonic mask on his blank face was about to detach.

The surrounding darkness surged in uncontrollably.

Whispers from the depths of his soul echoed, eroding his consciousness.

Knowing this was no place to linger, Li Ping followed Mo Rubin as they returned from the deepest part of this Sea of Darkness.

“By the way, where was your original destination? You even needed to use that immortal artifact command flag?” Li Ping asked.

Mo Rubin remained silent.

As they passed the void shell of Fang Dingge, the Sect Master of the Grand Dao Sect, he suddenly said to Li Ping, “Go search his body. You might find some treasures.”

Li Ping looked at Mo Rubin.

Mo Rubin rolled his eyes. “This man resisted the devouring will to survive and managed to flee all the way here before dying. That alone proves his strength. Experts always carry good things. Brother Xuanyuan taught me that.”

“And if anything on his body managed to survive the erosion of a True Immortal’s will to survive, it must be an extraordinary treasure. Are you really not going to try?” Mo Rubin tempted him.

Li Ping glanced again, but ultimately shook his head slightly.

“The dead are gone. Let him rest here. There are countless treasures in the world. Must we gather them all? Greed clouds the heart and invites disaster.”

“Call you foolish, and you truly are foolish,” Mo Rubin sneered.

However, he also did not loot Fang Dingge’s corpse and simply left it lying there in silence.

After traveling for some time, the two returned to where they had come from.

The white jade flagpole was still planted in place.

However, eroded by the power of darkness, the area covered by its radiance had shrunk noticeably.

“As expected of a refurbished second hand item. Truly useless,” Mo Rubin criticized mercilessly.

“Because of your interference, I now have to go find the other arrangements I left behind back then. Who knows if they still exist after so many years. If not, I will come back to trouble you!” Mo Rubin said coldly as he looked at Li Ping.

Li Ping summoned the You Clansmen and reopened the gateway leading outside.

“I can help you search for Xuantian King.”

“I need his help,” Li Ping said sincerely.

Mo Rubin entered the passage first, laughing loudly. “Do you really think that just because we walked through the Dark Sea together, I will completely trust you?”

“Back then, the other eleven brothers and sisters all went through life and death together.”

“Reality taught me that no one can be fully trusted!”

Mo Rubin’s icy voice gradually faded.

By the time Li Ping returned to Nine Mountains Prefecture, there was no longer any trace of Mo Rubin.

However, the Holy Emperor did not pursue him further.

This Dharma King of the Xuantian Sect was not his enemy.