Chapter 725: Astral God

"The Astral World," Li Pin said out loud.

At this moment, his Natal Planet, or to be more precise, the resonance between the Astral World itself and his Natal Planet within his Astral World Fragment had reached its peak. Like a drop of water falling into a river, the two began to merge at a swift pace.

During the fusion, the Astral World Fragment seemingly transformed into a barrier that enveloped and protected his Natal Planet, much like an atmosphere shields a world. His Natal Planet, in turn, turned into an island that floated in space, one that was filled with the power of Eternal Oblivion.

Throughout the entire process, Li Pin did his best to control the evolution of the Astral World Fragment and his Natal Planet, striving to avoid carrying an excessive burden of the Eternal Oblivion Force.

Many Divine Beings throughout history had fallen at this step. During the fusion of their Natal Planet with the Astral World, they would fail to control the dissipation of power and ultimately be crushed by the power of Eternal Oblivion.

Even if they barely managed to succeed in becoming Astral Gods, being burdened with an overwhelming amount of the power of Eternal Oblivion rendered them handicapped. Even the slightest accident could become the final straw that breaks them.

Following the fusion, the island, wrapped in a protective barrier, would become Li Pin's new body. It manifested into material form, energy, and tangible forces, such as mental spirit and inner spirit.

From this moment on, he was the island itself. Destroying it would be no different from destroying himself, something as vital and untouchable as his Natal Planet.

However, just as the fusion reached deeper into his mental spirit and even his inner spirit, invisible ripples suddenly spread outward, disrupting the process.

Li Pin’s heart skipped a beat.

This is... the Great Dao Radiance?

Almost as soon as the power of Great Dao Radiance manifested, the previously near-empty surroundings of the Astral World trembled violently. It was as if a calm sea had suddenly erupted into raging waves, continuously crashing against the island he had become.

The force forming these waves was not just the pure power of Eternal Oblivion, but also another powerful repelling force. This repelling force primarily targeted the Great Dao Radiance deep within his mind.

The power of the Astral World and the Great Dao Radiance seemed completely incompatible, causing a strong rejection reaction. This reaction even affected his inner spirit state, mental spirit fluctuations, and the material and energy form of his island in the Astral World.

With a faint rumbling sound, his island seemed to be actively rejected by the Astral World, forcibly squeezed out of the fusion process.

This feeling... it’s essence!

Li Pin instantly realized what this was.

A drop of ink was of a different color than water, but their essence was the same, allowing them to blend seamlessly. However, a steel ball dropped into a river would remain a ball of steel no matter how much the water tried to accommodate it. Water would be water, and the steel ball would still be a steel ball.

An integration of the two was simply impossible.

"Your power..." Sasha projected herself, looking at the scene in astonishment. "This is very similar to the rejection of the Astral World's power that is caused when a Transcendent or a Highlord attempts to forcefully enter the Astral World. Have you managed to condense Supreme power?"

Then, she frowned in confusion. "No, even if you have cultivated the Primordial Supreme Technique to the fourth level, that only means you have stepped onto the Supreme path. You should still be far from actually condensing true Supreme power. So why now..."

Li Pin pondered,

Supreme power...

If the Astral World rejected even the Supreme and Highlord’s power, then it made sense that it would do the same to an even higher form of power like his Great Dao Radiance. Because of this, it was only natural that he could not integrate into the Astral World while carrying such power.

Theoretically, he could still condense True Spirit without integrating into the Astral World. It seemed that the Astral Gods of ancient times had cultivated in this way.

However, without relying on the omnipresent Eternal Oblivion Force, the time required to achieve perfect control and ultimately condense the True Spirit would be countless times longer than usual.

If he did not integrate into the Astral World, he would not get to enjoy the infinite lifespan that came with it.

Unless a lifeform reached Supreme, Highlord, or Transcendent status, or belonged to a rare and special race, their lifespan would be limited to just one hundred thousand stellar years, equivalent to a single epoch. For almost all beings, this was an insurmountable limit.

However, this was not the key point. The key point was, if he did not enter the Astral World, how could he reach the Humanity Sanctum? How could he rise to the top of the Black List?

After a moment’s thought, he asked, “You said that when a Supreme or Highlord forcefully enters the Astral World, it triggers its repelling force. What happens if a Transcendent being does the same?”

"A Transcendent being?”

Shasha quickly gathered some information and concluded, "As long as one does not exhibit a force that threatens the Astral World, it will not trigger the repelling force of the entire Astral World."

"Not exhibiting a force that threatens the Astral World...."

"Do you also possess Transcendent power?" asked Shasha, confused.

She felt like she couldn’t see through Li Pin anymore.

"No, but... I can try tricking it into thinking that I do," replied Li Pin.

As Li Pin spoke, he focused his mental spirit on the radiance that was emanating deep within his inner spirit.

In the next moment, the power of the radiance rapidly retracted, and the glow that had been emanating seemed to disappear, becoming void and transparent.

Under these circumstances, the surging power of the Astral World slightly calmed down.

However, it merely calmed down and did not completely dissipate.

Clearly, his understanding of Transcendent power wasn’t enough to fully evade the force of Eternal Oblivion... or rather, the Astral World’s detection.

Shasha's voice echoed in Li Pin's ears. "Compared to Supreme and Highlords, the Transcendent path is harder, especially for those of us from the Existence Faction. Even as intelligent lifeforms, if we strip away all external factors, it makes no difference. As long as we still exist, external factors will inevitably affect us."

"But I am merely becoming an Astral God, not truly achieving Transcendence. It is enough to calm the power of the Astral World."

As Li Pin spoke, the nearly transparent and void-like radiance of the Great Dao Radiance directly reflected into his inner spirit.

It not only reflected his inner spirit, it also covered the fluctuations emanating from his mental spirit. Through his mental spirit, it further came into contact with energy and matter.

As the power of the Great Dao Radiance flowed through these forces, his fusion with the Astral World faced no further obstacles. The island, formed from matter and energy, became a part of the Astral World, moving through the region according to the Astral World's operation.

The nature of its existence also began to neutralize with the non-existent nature of the Astral World, forming an almost stable state.

As Shasha watched this scene, she was left surprised. "You... used the characteristics of a Transcendent being to lower the presence of that power, and with that power, you disguised yourself as an ordinary, ascending Divine Being, thereby integrating into the Astral World?"

"It's not exactly a disguise. I am, in fact, a normal Divine Being who is ascending," countered Li Pin with a smile. "It's just that my power's essence is slightly stronger, causing the Astral World to repel me, so I had to mask it a little."

Feeling that his explanation did not quite make sense, he added, "Setting aside the process, the fact remains that I have integrated into the Astral World and become an Astral God."

"But your true essence has not merged with the Astral World, has it?" Sasha questioned.

"But look, how am I any different from an Astral God?" Li Pin asked.

Sasha carefully scanned the island body that Li Pin had transformed into.

After a long while, she finally spoke up. "It's true that I can't tell the difference. The essence of your power is extremely high. Even if my true form were present, I might not be able to see through your disguise. Perhaps only a true Transcendent could distinguish the difference between you and other Astral Gods."

"That’s more than enough," Li Pin said. "There is a saying in the secular world. When a program is running, don't worry about the process. As long as it continues to function steadily, leave it be."

"I do not agree with that statement, but... your condition makes it impossible for me to argue, so please allow me to refrain from commenting," Sasha replied.

Li Pin smiled but didn't say anything further. His reason for entering the Astral World was different from others. He merely sought to use the Astral World's environment to hasten his perfection to the point where he could condense a True Spirit.

As for the so-called eternal immortality granted to cultivators by the Astral World, it was not important. As long as he continued evolving and surpassing his limits, he believed that one day, he would attain immortality without relying on the Astral World. Just like those Supremes, Highlords, and Transcendents.

As for losing the trait of eternal immortality and being left with only one epoch of lifespan, after which he would face the ultimate boundary of life and death... that was his choice. When the time came, he would accept it with peace, without regret for the path he chose.

***

In the void space, which was primarily composed of Eternal Oblivion Force, there was another power opposing existence and reality interwoven in.

The island, now only ten kilometers across, floated through space like a drifting satellite, pushed along by the mysterious forces of the Astral World in a nearly random path.

Of course, there were actual rules. However, only those who followed the Transcendence path or specialized in this field, such as the scholars of the Heaven Ordainment Sect, could calculate them.

Nevertheless, Li Pin's location had been precisely calculated by the Heaven Ordainment Sect. This area would remain safe for a long time, free from threats or the danger of colliding with other Astral World Fragments drifting into the high-speed channels. For now, he was quite secure.

Compared to his current calm state, many newly ascended Astral Gods had fallen at this stage.

Upon achieving Astral God status, they immediately faced numerous external dangers. As a result, despite reaching this stage, many ultimately failed to establish a firm foothold in the Astral World.

***

Li Pin maintained his human form on this island and quietly felt the force pushing the island.

After a long moment, he pointed out, "Compared to the Humanity Sanctum's simulations, the real environment increases the efficiency of self-improvement and inner spirit tempering by more than tenfold."

Sasha responded with a smile. "That is only natural. No matter how advanced it may be, the Eternal Oblivion Force in the Humanity Sanctum is still just a simulation. No matter how real it seems, the inner spirit can always tell. When you know it's simulated, your mind naturally relaxes and cannot enter a true state of stress response.

"The real Astral World is different and this small difference makes the Astral World's effect on inner spirit refinement ten, or even dozens of times stronger than the outside world."

"And this is why I chose to integrate into the Astral World." Li Pin commented.

"I cannot fully analyze the process, but...." Sasha smiled slightly at Li Pin before continuing, "Congratulations on becoming an Astral God."