Return journey

"Boom!"

The Boundary Sea's waves surged, roaring like mountains and seas. Another Dark Storm arrived, exceptionally terrifying, sweeping over the island.

That was law, that was order. Dao Symbols emerged from the end of the sea, and they had not vanished even after countless ages.

Lin Fan sat cross-legged here. Now, he was strong enough to directly confront the Dark Storm; he remained unmoving despite the waves crashing against him.

This was astonishing. If it were an ordinary Immortal King, they might have been torn to shreds.

But for Lin Fan, this was just a daily routine over the past hundred thousand years—no big deal.

In comparison, he was more concerned about the willow tree Cultivating not far behind him—that was the Dark Willow Deity, its entire body emitting an ominous black light.

Over the years, in order to accelerate its evolution, Lin Fan had not hesitated to hunt Kings, feeding it with their essence, a truly extravagant act.

"It's like returning to the Age of the Emperor's Fall, the joy of raising a mother…" Lin Fan sighed softly, the corner of his mouth curving slightly.

It could be seen that around the Willow Tree undergoing Nirvana, there were several Immortal King corpses whose vital essence had been completely refined.

One had to sigh; this was extremely extravagant. Few people in the world could Cultivate like this; only Lin Fan, this great filial son, could afford it.

"Boom!"

Suddenly, the Dark Willow Tree revived. Its terrifying aura soared, climbing to an unprecedented extreme state.

Using the Immortal King corpses as furnace fire to temper itself and rapidly deplete that substance, it finally completed an astonishing transformation!

Undoubtedly, the newly born Willow Deity had formally stepped into the Immortal King Domain. Both its Physical Body and Primordial Spirit were flawless and at Perfection.

"The slumber ends!"

The Dark Willow Deity sent out Divine Thought. Its gender was unknown; it was wrapped in nebulae, surrounded by flashing lightning and thunder, and its power was practically world-destroying.

Now, even facing the Dark Storm, it could dissolve it on its own and was not subjected to violent impact.

This method far surpassed that of an ordinary Immortal King!

Lin Fan was not surprised. The Willow Deity was an Immortal King to begin with; after falling into darkness, how could its newly born Primordial Spirit be weak?

One must know, this was a super-evolved being nourished by an Immortal King body! Its Dao progress advanced unreasonably fast, achieving astonishing results!

In fact, any being that falls into darkness, especially an Immortal King, will not be weaker after their revival than they were before.

Furthermore, with the King corpses provided by Lin Fan, burning their vital essence to temper the true self, even a pig could make progress, let alone the Willow Deity.

"The Dark Substance is depleted. We can begin our return journey," Lin Fan said.

Ultimately, this willow tree followed Lin Fan back to the Immortal Domain, free of hidden dangers.

Although it was no longer the former Willow Deity, and its Primordial Spirit was different, Lin Fan didn't mind. At worst, he would just raise it again.

Moreover, he had already been doing this for a long time. As long as the other party's nature wasn't evil, he had no scruples and could tolerate it.

"Whoosh!"

Next, one person brought one tree back. Using the formation array they came with saved hundreds of thousands of years of travel time.

However, they still flew for twenty thousand years. Just like when they arrived, some parts of the journey could not be covered by the formation array.

There was no alternative; the Boundary Sea was too vast. A single wave was a shattered realm, and traveling above it was like crossing myriad heavens and Domains.

This was also why the original Willow Deity had considered Primordial Spirit Leaving the Body, passing through the Ancient Guiding Palace to quickly reach the Ultimate Land.

Time was long; the round trip consumed a total of over one hundred forty thousand years. When Lin Fan reappeared in the Immortal Domain, it caused a huge sensation.

"Heavens! the Holy Emperor has returned, safe and sound, and he even brought back a master!"

Many people were surprised. His disappearance for over one hundred forty thousand years had caused quite a stir.

Some beings believed he had plunged into the depths of the Boundary Sea, like the butcher and the chicken raiser of the past, never to return.

Others pessimistically believed that Lin Fan was too arrogant, and by entering the vast ocean like that, he might have perished within it.

Now that he had returned safely, all rumors collapsed on their own.

All sides were shaken, and the Holy Emperor Palace was delighted.

Some Immortal Kings even came to visit, wanting to understand the situation.

However, when they saw the dark willow tree, people were startled and apprehensive—this was a fallen one!

"So powerful! It's a Giant! Did the Holy Emperor subdue a Dark Creature?" someone wondered suspiciously.

Soon, an Immortal King recognized it: this willow tree was too similar to the former Ancestor Sacrifice Spirit!

"That's right, it is her!" Lin Fan admitted openly.

"Hiss—the Ancestor Sacrifice Spirit fell into darkness." Many people were horrified, sucking in a cold breath.

The Ancestor Sacrifice Spirit of the Immortal Ancient Era was originally a top-tier powerhouse. Now that she had become dark, how dangerous would she be if she lost control?

Some Immortal Kings opened their mouths. After a slight hesitation, they warned Lin Fan that if such a creature harbored ill intentions, he would suffer a backlash.

Furthermore, this type of being carries Dark Substance, which is full of strangeness and ill omen, and can erode other Cultivators.

At this moment, if they weren't wary of Lin Fan's terrifying strength, the Kings probably would have driven it away already, fearing the contamination of the Immortal Domain.

"I can guarantee that it has already depleted that substance; it will not contaminate the Immortal Domain, nor does it harbor ulterior motives to turn against this realm," Lin Fan stated.

"Willow Deity!"

Just then, Shi Hao arrived. The moment he saw the willow tree, his eyes turned red. He almost couldn't hold back, disregarding the dignity of an Immortal King, letting his true feelings show.

"Willow Deity, do you still remember me? I am your Disciple, Shi Hao."

"Stone Village, Shi Hao?" The Willow Deity's tone was doubtful as she posed the question.

"Yes, I am Shi Hao, who once lived with the Willow Deity in Stone Village in the Lower Realm—" Shi Hao reminisced, recounting past events there.

Unfortunately, the current Willow Deity was not the previous Willow Deity. What she knew was limited, relying only on a few pieces of information left by her predecessor.

Shi Hao was saddened because the Willow Deity had changed. Her appearance was black, unlike the sacredness of the past, and she didn't remember previous events.

"Little Fan Brother, what happened to the Willow Deity?" he asked.

Lin Fan transmitted his voice, explaining briefly that the true Willow Deity was still alive, having undergone Soul Emergence, and this was the newly born Primordial Spirit.

"That's good. We will meet again someday," Shi Hao whispered.

Ultimately, the Dark Willow Deity remained. Although the Kings were apprehensive, they tested her one after another and confirmed that Lin Fan had not spoken falsely.

Now, having depleted that substance, it was like Yu Tuo from the Foreign Realm, having become a super-evolved being that no longer emitted a dark aura.

Furthermore, with Lin Fan, the Devil King, present, the others were unwilling to openly break ties.

In the years Lin Fan was absent, Shi Hao also displayed astonishing strength, winning over the Kings of the Immortal Domain.

With two supreme Giants vouching for her, no one dared to say anything more!

Subsequently, the Kings departed one after another, leaving only those close to Lin Fan.

"Has Lu Gu, the one behind Ao Sheng, returned?" Lin Fan inquired.

"That Old Scoundrel returned ten thousand years ago. He wanted to take advantage of your absence and break in, demanding that I hand over Ao Sheng's and Great Beginning's Primordial Spirits, but I suppressed and killed him."

Shi Hao said.

It was because of this battle that his hegemonic status was confirmed, which is why the Kings who visited earlier were so wary.

Lin Fan nodded. Logically, that Old Scoundrel should have taken a while longer to return from the Boundary Sea, but he had arrived early.

However, he didn't waste much thought on a dead man. Even if Shi Hao hadn't killed him, Lin Fan would have personally struck him down.

Besides that, during the more than one hundred thousand years he was gone, people continuously landed and even rushed into the Immortal Domain, but they were all repelled.

As for the other matters, they were irrelevant, and Lin Fan paid them no further attention.