kàn zhe zhuō shàng kòu hóng de kǒu gòng ， lǐ fán yǒu xiē xīn huī yì lěng 。
看着桌上寇洪的口供，李凡有些心灰意冷。
Looking at Cao Hong's confession on the table, Li Fan felt a sense of disappointment and despondency.
kòu hóng méi yǒu piàn tā ， tā dí què bù zhī dào néng gòu shǐ fán rén lí kāi zhè xiān jué zhī dì de bàn fǎ 。
寇洪没有骗他，他的确不知道能够使凡人离开这仙绝之地的办法。
Cao Hong hadn't lied to him; he truly didn't know how to help ordinary people leave this Realm of Immortal Desolation.
“ xiān jué zhī dì ……” wǔ shì lún huí ， sān bǎi nián de qī pàn ， cǐ kè quán dōu huà zuò le kě wàng ér bù kě jí de pào yǐng 。
“仙绝之地……”五世轮回，三百年的期盼，此刻全都化作了可望而不可即的泡影。
"Realm of Immortal Desolation..." Five reincarnations over three hundred years of anticipation had all turned into unattainable dreams.
xiū xiān cháng shēng mèng suì ， lǐ fán sì hū yī yè zhī jiān chè dǐ lǎo le xià qù 。
修仙长生梦碎，李凡似乎一夜之间彻底老了下去。
His immortal cultivation dream shattered, Li Fan seemed to have aged overnight—both physically and mentally.
bù jǐn shì shēn tǐ shàng ， hái yǒu xīn lǐ shàng 。
不仅是身体上，还有心理上。
"Realm of Immortal Desolation... " He repeated the name in his mind, filled with endless regret.
“ xiān jué zhī dì a ……” tā zài cì xīn zhōng mò niàn zhè ge míng zì ， xīn zhōng yǒng qǐ wú jìn de bù gān 。
“仙绝之地啊……”他再次心中默念这个名字，心中涌起无尽的不甘。
"Why did I end up in such a place? If I were born outside this cultivation world, relying on [Truly Real] for infinite simulation, my chances of immortality would be high. But how hateful that it's this Realm of Immortal Desolation!"
“ wǒ zěn me huì chuān yuè jiàng shēng zài zhè zhòng dì fāng ne ？ ruò shì chuān yuè zài wài miàn de xiū xiān jiè ， píng jiè zhe 【 hái zhēn 】 wú xiàn mó nǐ lún huí zhī néng ， wǒ bì dìng shì cháng shēng yǒu wàng 。 kě hèn ， piān piān shì zhè xiān jué zhī dì ！”
“我怎么会穿越降生在这种地方呢？若是穿越在外面的修仙界，凭借着【还真】无限模拟轮回之能，我必定是长生有望。可恨，偏偏是这仙绝之地！”
The information from Cao Hong’s confession flashed through Li Fan’s mind again.
kòu hóng kǒu gòng zhōng de qíng bào zài dù huá guò lǐ fán nǎo hǎi 。
寇洪口供中的情报再度划过李凡脑海。
As the name suggests, a Realm of Immortal Desolation was where immortal cultivators had vanished. Thousands of years ago, the ancient cultivation world faced a major upheaval.
suǒ wèi xiān jué zhī dì ， gù míng sī yì ， nǎi shì xiān rén jué jì zhī dì 。 shù qiān nián qián ， shàng gǔ xiū xiān jiè zāo yù dà biàn 。
所谓仙绝之地，顾名思义，乃是仙人绝迹之地。数千年前，上古修仙界遭遇大变。
Initially, it was just an epidemic sweeping across ordinary people's lands, and no cultivator paid much attention to it.
qǐ chū ， zhǐ shì yī cháng xí juǎn zhěng gè fán rén jiè de wēn yì ， méi yǒu rèn hé xiū xiān zhě zài yì 。
起初，只是一场席卷整个凡人界的瘟疫，没有任何修仙者在意。
But after one cultivator accidentally contracted this mysterious disease, things spiraled out of control.
dàn shì hòu lái ， yī míng xiū xiān zhě ǒu rán gǎn rǎn le zhè zhǒng mò míng de wēn yì hòu ， shì qíng zé biàn dé chè dǐ shī kòng qǐ lái 。
但是后来，一名修仙者偶然感染了这种莫名的瘟疫后，事情则变得彻底失控起来。
Following the infection of this cultivator, the disease seemed to gain some unknown strength, spreading among other cultivators through their life essence.
jīng guò zhè cì gǎn rǎn xiū xiān zhě zhī hòu ， zhè zhǒng wēn yì sì hū dé dào le mò míng de jiā qiáng ， biàn dé néng gòu zài xiū shì zhī jiān chuán bō 。
经过这次感染修仙者之后，这种瘟疫似乎得到了莫名的加强，变得能够在修士之间传播。
The transmission route was none other than the life essence that cultivators relied on.
chuán bō tú jìng bú shì bié de ， zhèng shì xiū xiān zhě lài yǐ shēng cún de líng qì 。
传播途径不是别的，正是修仙者赖以生存的灵气。
The epidemic spread rapidly via the celestial life essence, quickly engulfing the entire cultivation world. Those infected with it suffered varying degrees of setbacks—minor cases saw a regression in cultivation, while severe cases lost all their cultivation prowess overnight, turning them into ordinary people who would soon die.
wēn yì tōng guò tiān dì líng qì ， xùn sù chuán biàn zhěng gè xiū xiān jiè 。 ér gǎn rǎn le zhè zhǒng wēn yì de xiū xiān zhě ， qīng zé xiū wèi dào tuì ， diē luò jìng jiè ； zhòng zé yī yè zhī jiān xiū wèi jǐn shī ， biàn dé hé fán rén wú yì ， zhī hòu bù yòng jǐ tiān biàn huì shēn sǐ dào xiāo ， hái dào yú tiān 。
瘟疫通过天地灵气，迅速传遍整个修仙界。而感染了这种瘟疫的修仙者，轻则修为倒退，跌落境界；重则一夜之间修为尽失，变得和凡人无异，之后不用几天便会身死道消，还道于天。
With large numbers of cultivators dying, despair began to spread among the cultivator community.
suí zhe dà pī dà pī xiū xiān zhě de sǐ wáng ， yī gǔ jué wàng de qíng xù kāi shǐ zài xiū xiān zhě qún tǐ zhōng màn yán 。
随着大批大批修仙者的死亡，一股绝望的情绪开始在修仙者群体中蔓延。
Some cultivators, driven by desperation, vented their anger on the ordinary people seen as the source of this calamity.
yǒu xiū xiān zhě jué wàng zhī xià ， jiāng nù huǒ fā xiè zài zhè yī qiè de yuán tóu ， fán rén shēn shàng 。
有修仙者绝望之下，将怒火发泄在这一切的源头，凡人身上。
Thus, mass killings commenced.
yú shì ， dà guī mó de tú shā xíng dòng kāi shǐ le 。
于是，大规模的屠杀行动开始了。
Facing the powerful immortals, ordinary people had little resistance and were left at the mercy of these cultivators.
miàn duì zhe gāo gāo zài shàng de xiān shī ， fán rén jī hū méi yǒu shén me dǐ kàng de lì liàng ， zhǐ néng rèn qí zǎi gē 。
面对着高高在上的仙师，凡人几乎没有什么抵抗的力量，只能任其宰割。
However, not long after, such killings were forcibly halted. It wasn't because they suddenly felt remorse but because the cultivators realized that as they killed more ordinary people, the disease within them didn’t disappear with death; instead, it spread freely through the life essence permeating the world.
dàn mò guò duō jiǔ ， zhè zhǒng tú shā xíng dòng biàn bèi qiáng xíng zhōng zhǐ le 。
但没过多久，这种屠杀行动便被强行终止了。
The cultivation world was soon overwhelmed by this epidemic.
bú shì yīn wèi tā men liáng xīn fā xiàn ， ér shì yīn wèi xiū xiān zhě men hài rán de fā xiàn ， suí zhe tā men de tú shā ， dà liàng fán rén de sǐ wáng ， zhè xiē fán rén tǐ nèi de wēn yì bù jǐn méi yǒu suí zhe sǐ wáng ér xiāo shī ， fǎn ér shī qù le shù fù yì bān ， quán bù shùn zhe biàn bù tiān dì jiān de líng qì kuò sàn kāi lái 。
不是因为他们良心发现，而是因为修仙者们骇然的发现，随着他们的屠杀，大量凡人的死亡，这些凡人体内的瘟疫不仅没有随着死亡而消失，反而失去了束缚一般，全部顺着遍布天地间的灵气扩散开来。
This led to even more cultivator deaths.
yī shí jiān ， xiū xiān jiè nèi de wēn yì de hán liàng bào zhǎng 。
一时间，修仙界内的瘟疫的含量暴涨。
Unable to sit idly by, the cultivators began researching ways to treat and resist the disease. On the other hand, they proposed a notorious plan known as the "Great Migration."
zhè fǎn ér dǎo zhì le gèng duō de xiū xiān zhě de yǔn luò 。
这反而导致了更多的修仙者的陨落。
Although this proposal faced significant opposition from many cultivators at first, most eventually voted in favor of it for their own survival.
wú nài zhī xià ， xiū xiān zhě zhè cái fàng qì le zhè zhǒng zhēn duì fán rén de shā lù xíng wéi 。
无奈之下，修仙者这才放弃了这种针对凡人的杀戮行为。
The so-called "Great Migration" was based on the following considerations:
dàn zuò yǐ dài bì xiǎn rán yě bú shì xiū xiān zhě de xíng shì fēng gé ， yì fāng miàn ， yī zhòng xiū xiān zhě kāi shǐ yán fā zhì liáo dǐ kàng zhè zhǒng wēn yì de fāng fǎ ， lìng yì fāng miàn ， xiū xiān zhě men tí chū le chòu míng zhāo zhù de 【 dà qiān xǐ jì huà 】。
但坐以待毙显然也不是修仙者的行事风格，一方面，一众修仙者开始研发治疗抵抗这种瘟疫的方法，另一方面，修仙者们提出了臭名昭著的【大迁徙计划】。
Killing ordinary people wasn't an option, and finding a cure seemed out of reach. Allowing them to freely reproduce would only exacerbate the problem.
suī rán zhè ge jì huà zài tí yì zhī chū jiù zāo dào le xiāng dāng yī bù fèn xiū xiān zhě de fǎn duì ， dàn shì wèi le zì shēn de shēng cún ， dà bù fèn de xiū xiān zhě hái shì tóu le zàn tóng piào 。
虽然这个计划在提议之初就遭到了相当一部分修仙者的反对，但是为了自身的生存，大部分的修仙者还是投了赞同票。
Since this strange disease spread through life essence, a logical solution emerged: exiling all ordinary people in the cultivation world to small worlds or shattered dao heavens devoid of life essence, sealing them off with arrays so they couldn't return.
suǒ wèi de 【 dà qiān xǐ jì huà 】， zhèng shì jī yú yǐ xià kǎo liáng ：
所谓的【大迁徙计划】，正是基于以下考量：
This would solve the immediate issue of ordinary people and allow cultivators to focus on researching ways to combat the disease.
fán rén men shā yòu bù néng shā ， ér zhǎo dào chè dǐ jiě jué zhè zhǒng wēn yì de fāng fǎ yě shì yáo yáo wú qī ， ruò shì ràng fán rén men zì yóu fán yǎn ， suí zhe wēn yì yuè lái yuè duō ， xiū xiān zhě men bì dìng huì guò dé yù fā jiān nán 。
凡人们杀又不能杀，而找到彻底解决这种瘟疫的方法也是遥遥无期，若是让凡人们自由繁衍，随着瘟疫越来越多，修仙者们必定会过得愈发艰难。
With countless unexplored small worlds available, there was no concern about accommodating these people.
ér zhè zhǒng guǐ yì de wēn yì yòu shì kào zhe líng qì cái néng chuán bō de ， suǒ yǐ yí gè lǐ suǒ dāng rán de fāng àn yě jiù suí zhī tí chū le 。
而这种诡异的瘟疫又是靠着灵气才能传播的，所以一个理所当然的方案也就随之提出了。
Thus, under the unified will of the cultivation world, all ordinary people in the cultivation world began a centuries-long migration.
bǎ xiū xiān jiè de quán tǐ fán rén quán dōu fàng zhú dào zhōu biān méi yǒu líng qì de xiǎo shì jiè 、 pò suì dòng tiān zhī lèi de dì fāng qù ， zài yòng zhèn fǎ jiāng qí yǒng yuǎn gé jué ， bù ràng zhè xiē fán rén fǎn huí 。
把修仙界的全体凡人全都放逐到周边没有灵气的小世界、破碎洞天之类的地方去，再用阵法将其永远隔绝，不让这些凡人返回。
The deaths of many during this migration were not considered; after all, ordinary people had no means to resist the cultivators' power.
rú cǐ yì láo yǒng yì xiān jiě jué fán rén de wèn tí ， zài huí guò tóu lái màn màn yán jiū wēn yì de duì kàng zhī dào 。
如此一劳永逸先解决凡人的问题，再回过头来慢慢研究瘟疫的对抗之道。
After several hundred years of migration, the entire cultivation world's ordinary people were dispersed across various small worlds. Nearly a millennium later, the concentration of the epidemic in the cultivation world finally dropped to a manageable level.
fǎn zhèng wèi kāi fā de xiǎo shì jiè jī hū wú qióng wú jìn ， gēn běn bù dān xīn fàng bù xià zhè xiē fán rén 。
反正未开发的小世界几乎无穷无尽，根本不担心放不下这些凡人。
Over centuries, through continuous research, the cultivators found ways to purify this disease.
yú shì ， zài zhěng gè xiū xiān jiè tǒng yī yì zhì de ān pái xià ， xiū xiān jiè de quán tǐ fán rén men ， kāi shǐ le zhǎng dá shù bǎi nián de qiān xǐ 。
于是，在整个修仙界统一意志的安排下，修仙界的全体凡人们，开始了长达数百年的迁徙。
It took thousands more years for them to completely eliminate its threat.
zhì yú zhè shù bǎi nián jiān huì yǒu duō shǎo fán rén sǐ yú qiān xǐ tú zhōng ， zé bù zài zhè xiē xiū xiān zhě de kǎo liáng fàn wéi zhī nèi le 。 fǎn zhèng zài xiū xiān zhě de lì liàng miàn qián ， fán rén gēn běn méi yǒu fǎn kàng de yú dì 。
至于这数百年间会有多少凡人死于迁徙途中，则不在这些修仙者的考量范围之内了。反正在修仙者的力量面前，凡人根本没有反抗的余地。
However, what embarrassed the cultivators was that the disease lingered, hidden within ordinary people's bloodlines.
jiù zhè yàng ， jīng guò shù bǎi nián de dà qiān yí ， zhěng gè xiū xiān jiè de fán rén dōu bèi qiān xǐ fēn sàn dào le zhōu biān gè gè xiǎo shì jiè zhī zhōng 。 zhè zhī hòu yòu guò le jìn qiān nián ， xiū xiān jiè zhōng de wēn yì nóng dù cái zhōng yú xià jiàng dào le yí gè jiào dī de shuǐ píng 。
就这样，经过数百年的大迁移，整个修仙界的凡人都被迁徙分散到了周边各个小世界之中。这之后又过了近千年，修仙界中的瘟疫浓度才终于下降到了一个较低的水平。
While the entire world had no ordinary people left, not every offspring of a union between cultivators possessed the potential for cultivation.
qiān nián lǐ ， xiū xiān zhě men jīng guò bù duàn de yán jiū ， zhōng yú zhǎo dào le jìng huà zhè zhǒng wēn yì de bàn fǎ 。
千年里，修仙者们经过不断的研究，终于找到了净化这种瘟疫的办法。
Thus, over time, many new ordinary people emerged with this disease lurking in their bodies.
zhī hòu yòu yòng le shù qiān nián de shí jiān ， xiū xiān zhě men cái chè dǐ jiāng zhè zhǒng wēn yì de wēi xié sǎo chú 。
之后又用了数千年的时间，修仙者们才彻底将这种瘟疫的威胁扫除。
Due to its special lethality towards cultivators, these descendants needed to cleanse themselves of the disease if they wished to cultivate.
zhǐ shì ， ràng xiū xiān zhě men gǎn dào gān gà de shì ， zhè zhǒng wēn yì jū rán yīn hún bù sàn ， àn cáng yú fán rén de xuè mài zhī zhōng 。
只是，让修仙者们感到尴尬的是，这种瘟疫居然阴魂不散，暗藏于凡人的血脉之中。
Over time, this disease became synonymous with the distinction between immortals and mortals, hence it was named Immortal-Demon Mist.
yuán běn zhěng gè shì jiè yǐ jīng méi yǒu le fán rén ， dàn bú shì měi gè xiū xiān zhě jié hé chǎn shēng de hòu dài ， dōu yǒu zī zhì xiū xiān de 。
原本整个世界已经没有了凡人，但不是每个修仙者结合产生的后代，都有资质修仙的。
The widespread impact of Immortal-Demon Mist left a deep psychological scar on all cultivators, who agreed not to venture into the places where ordinary people were exiled to prevent its resurgence.
yú shì cháng jiǔ xià lái ， shì jiè shàng yòu dàn shēng le xǔ xǔ duō duō shù liàng zhòng duō de fán rén 。 zhè xiē fán rén tǐ nèi ， dōu yǒu zhe zhè zhǒng wēn yì de yǐng zi 。
于是长久下来，世界上又诞生了许许多多数量众多的凡人。这些凡人体内，都有着这种瘟疫的影子。
Over time, these areas became known as Realm of Immortal Desolation.
ér yóu yú zhè zhǒng wēn yì duì yú xiū xiān zhě yǒu zhe tè shū de shā shāng lì ， fán rén de hòu dài men xiǎng yào xiū xiān ， jiù bì xū yào qīng chú tǐ nèi de wēn yì 。
而由于这种瘟疫对于修仙者有着特殊的杀伤力，凡人的后代们想要修仙，就必须要清除体内的瘟疫。
There were countless such realms, and few cultivators dared to risk entering them.
jiǔ ér jiǔ zhī ， zhè zhǒng wēn yì jiù chéng le xiān fán yǒu bié de dài míng cí ， yú shì ， rén men jiāng qí mìng míng wèi xiān fán zhàng 。
久而久之，这种瘟疫就成了仙凡有别的代名词，于是，人们将其命名为仙凡瘴。
It was already fortunate that Li Fan had encountered two.
dāng chū xiān fán zhàng de héng xíng gěi suǒ yǒu de xiū xiān zhě dōu liú xià le jí dà de xīn lǐ yīn yǐng ， wèi le fáng zhǐ xiān fán zhàng juǎn tǔ chóng lái ， xiū xiān zhě men yuē dìng sú chéng ， jǐn liàng bù qù zhè xiē dāng chū fán rén men bèi fàng zhú de dì fāng 。
当初仙凡瘴的横行给所有的修仙者都留下了极大的心理阴影，为了防止仙凡瘴卷土重来，修仙者们约定俗成，尽量不去这些当初凡人们被放逐的地方。
Now, with neither of these cultivators having a way to help ordinary people leave this realm, how could he expect another, more powerful cultivator to come along?
jiǔ ér jiǔ ér ， zhè xiē dì fāng yě jiù chéng wéi le suǒ wèi de xiān jué zhī dì 。
久而久而，这些地方也就成为了所谓的仙绝之地。
Moreover, as an ordinary person, his lifespan was limited. Even if he could simulate reincarnation indefinitely, it would only be within the bounds of his life.
xiān jué zhī dì dà dà xiǎo xiǎo bù zhī dào yǒu duō shǎo gè ， ér yuàn yì mào zhe tiān dà de fēng xiǎn jìn rù zhè xiē dì fāng de xiū xiān zhě zé shì shǎo zhī yòu shǎo 。
仙绝之地大大小小不知道有多少个，而愿意冒着天大的风险进入这些地方的修仙者则是少之又少。
At seventy years old, with a maximum biological age of eighty-six, there was essentially no chance of encountering other cultivators in the next sixteen years.
néng ràng lǐ fán pèng jiàn liǎng gè ， yǐ jīng shì wàn xìng le 。
能让李凡碰见两个，已经是万幸了。
Given this, how could Li Fan not feel despair?
rú jīn ， zhè liǎng wèi xiū xiān zhě dōu méi yǒu shǐ fán rén néng gòu chū qù de fāng fǎ ， lǐ fán yòu zěn me kě néng qī wàng yòu lìng wài de 、 gèng gāo xiū wèi de xiū xiān zhě chuǎng jìn lái ne ？
如今，这两位修仙者都没有使凡人能够出去的方法，李凡又怎么可能期望又另外的、更高修为的修仙者闯进来呢？
Seeing the hope of cultivation and immortality, he had never expected it to end in disappointment.
gèng hé kuàng ， shēn wèi yí gè fán rén ， tā de shòu mìng shì yǒu xiàn de 。 jiù suàn tā néng bù duàn mó nǐ lún huí ， yě zhǐ bù guò shì zài tā de shòu mìng fàn wéi zhī nèi chóng fù 。
更何况，身为一个凡人，他的寿命是有限的。就算他能不断模拟轮回，也只不过是在他的寿命范围之内重复。
Wasn't he destined to repeat his ordinary life cycle again and again?
jīn nián tā yǐ jīng shì qī shí suì le ， tā de shēng lǐ shòu mìng shàng xiàn shì bā shí liù suì 。
今年他已经是七十岁了，他的生理寿命上限是八十六岁。
Li Fan truly felt不content with (unwilling).
zhè shí liù nián lǐ ， néng yù dào lìng wài de xiū xiān zhě de kě néng xìng jī běn wèi líng 。
这十六年里，能遇到另外的修仙者的可能性基本为零。
The path to immortality was right before him, within reach yet far beyond.
jì rú cǐ ， lǐ fán yòu zěn me bù gǎn dào jué wàng ne ？
既如此，李凡又怎么不感到绝望呢？
How could Li Fan accept this?
míng míng kàn dào le xiū xiān mì cháng shēng de xī wàng ， què méi xiǎng dào ， dào tóu lái zhǐ shì kōng huān xǐ yī cháng 。
明明看到了修仙觅长生的希望，却没想到，到头来只是空欢喜一场。
Thinking back on all the reincarnations over nearly three hundred years, Li Fan refused to give up on the path of immortality.
nán bù chéng ， zì jǐ zhēn de zhǐ néng yī shì yòu yī shì de chóng fù fán rén de shēng huó ？
难不成，自己真的只能一世又一世的重复凡人的生活？
Was there really no way out?
lǐ fán zhēn de bù gān xīn 。
李凡真的不甘心。
Suddenly, as if a lightning bolt had broken through the fog, Li Fan realized something he had overlooked before.
cháng shēng zhī lù jiù zài yǎn qián ， chù shǒu kě jí ， què yòu yuǎn zài tiān biān ， yáo yáo wú wàng 。
长生之路就在眼前，触手可及，却又远在天边，遥遥无望。
Thousands of years ago, how did these ordinary people migrate here in the first place?
zhè ràng lǐ fán zěn me néng gān xīn ？
这让李凡怎么能甘心？
While small worlds and the cultivation world were adjacent, they weren't the same realm.
xiǎng zhe zì jǐ lún huí jǐ shì suǒ jīng lì de yī qiè ， jìn sān bǎi nián de kǔ kǔ děng dài ， lǐ fán zěn me dōu bù yuàn fàng qì cháng shēng zhī lù 。
想着自己轮回几世所经历的一切，近三百年的苦苦等待，李凡怎么都不愿放弃长生之路。
These ordinary people couldn’t have walked over, right? There must have been some means of transportation to bring them here.
zhēn de méi yǒu bàn fǎ le me ？
真的没有办法了么？
Were those means still around?
hū rán jiān ， fǎng fú yī dào shǎn diàn huà pò le mí wù ， lǐ fán tū rán xiǎng dào le zhī qián zì jǐ hū lüè de mǒu xiē dì fāng 。
忽然间，仿佛一道闪电划破了迷雾，李凡突然想到了之前自己忽略的某些地方。
If he could find them, perhaps he could travel to the cultivation world himself.
shù qiān nián qián ， dà pī de fán rén shì rú hé qiān xǐ ér lái de ne ？
数千年前，大批的凡人是如何迁徙而来的呢？
Even a tiny possibility gave Li Fan hope for cultivation.
xiǎo shì jiè yǔ xiū xiān jiè suī rán xiāng lín ， dàn zǒng guī bú shì yí gè shì jiè 。
小世界与修仙界虽然相邻，但总归不是一个世界。
His mood lifted as he immediately headed to the prison where Cao Hong was being held. He wanted to verify his idea with Cao Hong.
Looking at Cao Hong's confession on the table, Li Fan felt a sense of disappointment and despondency.
Cao Hong hadn't lied to him; he truly didn't know how to help ordinary people leave this Realm of Immortal Desolation.
"Realm of Immortal Desolation..." Five reincarnations over three hundred years of anticipation had all turned into unattainable dreams.
His immortal cultivation dream shattered, Li Fan seemed to have aged overnight—both physically and mentally.
"Realm of Immortal Desolation... " He repeated the name in his mind, filled with endless regret.
"Why did I end up in such a place? If I were born outside this cultivation world, relying on [Truly Real] for infinite simulation, my chances of immortality would be high. But how hateful that it's this Realm of Immortal Desolation!"
The information from Cao Hong’s confession flashed through Li Fan’s mind again.
As the name suggests, a Realm of Immortal Desolation was where immortal cultivators had vanished. Thousands of years ago, the ancient cultivation world faced a major upheaval.
Initially, it was just an epidemic sweeping across ordinary people's lands, and no cultivator paid much attention to it.
But after one cultivator accidentally contracted this mysterious disease, things spiraled out of control.
Following the infection of this cultivator, the disease seemed to gain some unknown strength, spreading among other cultivators through their life essence.
The transmission route was none other than the life essence that cultivators relied on.
The epidemic spread rapidly via the celestial life essence, quickly engulfing the entire cultivation world. Those infected with it suffered varying degrees of setbacks—minor cases saw a regression in cultivation, while severe cases lost all their cultivation prowess overnight, turning them into ordinary people who would soon die.
With large numbers of cultivators dying, despair began to spread among the cultivator community.
Some cultivators, driven by desperation, vented their anger on the ordinary people seen as the source of this calamity.
Thus, mass killings commenced.
Facing the powerful immortals, ordinary people had little resistance and were left at the mercy of these cultivators.
However, not long after, such killings were forcibly halted. It wasn't because they suddenly felt remorse but because the cultivators realized that as they killed more ordinary people, the disease within them didn’t disappear with death; instead, it spread freely through the life essence permeating the world.
The cultivation world was soon overwhelmed by this epidemic.
This led to even more cultivator deaths.
Unable to sit idly by, the cultivators began researching ways to treat and resist the disease. On the other hand, they proposed a notorious plan known as the "Great Migration."
Although this proposal faced significant opposition from many cultivators at first, most eventually voted in favor of it for their own survival.
The so-called "Great Migration" was based on the following considerations:
Killing ordinary people wasn't an option, and finding a cure seemed out of reach. Allowing them to freely reproduce would only exacerbate the problem.
Since this strange disease spread through life essence, a logical solution emerged: exiling all ordinary people in the cultivation world to small worlds or shattered dao heavens devoid of life essence, sealing them off with arrays so they couldn't return.
This would solve the immediate issue of ordinary people and allow cultivators to focus on researching ways to combat the disease.
With countless unexplored small worlds available, there was no concern about accommodating these people.
Thus, under the unified will of the cultivation world, all ordinary people in the cultivation world began a centuries-long migration.
The deaths of many during this migration were not considered; after all, ordinary people had no means to resist the cultivators' power.
After several hundred years of migration, the entire cultivation world's ordinary people were dispersed across various small worlds. Nearly a millennium later, the concentration of the epidemic in the cultivation world finally dropped to a manageable level.
Over centuries, through continuous research, the cultivators found ways to purify this disease.
It took thousands more years for them to completely eliminate its threat.
However, what embarrassed the cultivators was that the disease lingered, hidden within ordinary people's bloodlines.
While the entire world had no ordinary people left, not every offspring of a union between cultivators possessed the potential for cultivation.
Thus, over time, many new ordinary people emerged with this disease lurking in their bodies.
Due to its special lethality towards cultivators, these descendants needed to cleanse themselves of the disease if they wished to cultivate.
Over time, this disease became synonymous with the distinction between immortals and mortals, hence it was named Immortal-Demon Mist.
The widespread impact of Immortal-Demon Mist left a deep psychological scar on all cultivators, who agreed not to venture into the places where ordinary people were exiled to prevent its resurgence.
Over time, these areas became known as Realm of Immortal Desolation.
There were countless such realms, and few cultivators dared to risk entering them.
It was already fortunate that Li Fan had encountered two.
Now, with neither of these cultivators having a way to help ordinary people leave this realm, how could he expect another, more powerful cultivator to come along?
Moreover, as an ordinary person, his lifespan was limited. Even if he could simulate reincarnation indefinitely, it would only be within the bounds of his life.
At seventy years old, with a maximum biological age of eighty-six, there was essentially no chance of encountering other cultivators in the next sixteen years.
Given this, how could Li Fan not feel despair?
Seeing the hope of cultivation and immortality, he had never expected it to end in disappointment.
Wasn't he destined to repeat his ordinary life cycle again and again?
Li Fan truly felt不content with (unwilling).
The path to immortality was right before him, within reach yet far beyond.
How could Li Fan accept this?
Thinking back on all the reincarnations over nearly three hundred years, Li Fan refused to give up on the path of immortality.
Was there really no way out?
Suddenly, as if a lightning bolt had broken through the fog, Li Fan realized something he had overlooked before.
Thousands of years ago, how did these ordinary people migrate here in the first place?
While small worlds and the cultivation world were adjacent, they weren't the same realm.
These ordinary people couldn’t have walked over, right? There must have been some means of transportation to bring them here.
Were those means still around?
If he could find them, perhaps he could travel to the cultivation world himself.
Even a tiny possibility gave Li Fan hope for cultivation.
His mood lifted as he immediately headed to the prison where Cao Hong was being held. He wanted to verify his idea with Cao Hong.