Seeing Han Lang's panicked expression, the old man in white waved his hand, his body not moving an inch, but his ethereal voice began to echo in the cave.
"Little friend, do not panic. I am merely a faint residual soul and cannot harm anyone!"
Han Lang sneered inwardly.
"Just like in the movies. They pretend to be harmless to make you lower your guard, then suddenly go berserk when you're not paying attention, forcibly entering your sea of consciousness to possess you. I may not have experienced this cliché plot, but I've seen enough of it. Art truly imitates life!"
Having figured all this out, Han Lang felt a sense of smugness. While still warily watching the old man, he unabashedly spoke again.
"Don't try that trick on me! Do you think I don't know what you're up to? Hmph, I'll tell you, I'm not afraid of possession at all!"
Seeing Han Lang's unyielding stance, the old man looked helpless. He simply sat down cross-legged and continued,
"I can understand your reservations, little friend. However, this also proves that I have not waited in vain for you these past thousands of years!"
Han Lang was immediately puzzled by this statement.
"Waited for me for thousands of years? Does that mean you have foresight? If you could foresee everything, why would you fall on this small Blue Star and become a residual soul? With your abilities, even immortals shouldn't be able to harm you!"
"Haha…"
The old man chuckled upon hearing this. Instead of being annoyed by Han Lang's questioning, he appeared exceptionally pleased.
"Heh heh… Little friend, your thoughts are clear and your logic is sound. You are indeed the one I have chosen. To be frank, little friend, I was once the Chaos Emperor of the Nine Heavens. Not only could immortals not harm me, but even those above the immortal realm could not touch me. If I had any ill intentions, I could have annihilated a mere Qi Condensation cultivator like you with a flick of my finger!"
Han Lang scoffed at the old man's words.
"Tsk! Anyone can brag! If you were truly that powerful, why would you be babbling here with me? I think you're just all talk!"
The old man remained unperturbed, still with his benevolent smile, and continued to reply with a chuckle.
"Since little friend does not believe me, I shall fulfill your wish and let you witness my strength. Otherwise, you won't have the patience to listen to me further."
With that, the old man's brow twitched, and a powerful pressure surged towards Han Lang.
Han Lang tried to resist.
But before he could even make a move, the pressure made it impossible for him to breathe. At this moment, he was convinced that if the old man had moved his eyebrows any further, he would have instantly exploded.
Under such circumstances, how could he dare to harbor any doubt? He immediately cried out in agony.
"Alright, alright! I believe you! Let me go first!"
Hearing Han Lang's plea for mercy, the old man finally retracted his divine ability. Han Lang, having narrowly escaped, gasped for air, his expression as wronged as a child's. The old man, however, reverted to his previous amiable demeanor and said softly,
"Well? Now, can you listen to me quietly?"
Han Lang rubbed his sore body and sat on the stone stool with a sulky expression. Despite his reluctance, he dared not show it. He replied resentfully,
"Speak! I'm listening!"
The old man nodded in satisfaction and said slowly,
"This is a long story, so I'll make it short! About nine thousand years ago, I used my great divine powers to probe the Heavenly Dao and discovered that ten thousand years later, a powerful being would be born among the alien races from another realm who had long been coveting our world. This powerful being would be immensely strong, even I would not be his match. Ultimately, he would tear open the cracks in the Heavenly Dao and lead an alien army to invade our realm. To find a solution, I did not hesitate to deplete my life force searching the Sea of Time. Finally, I discovered that ten thousand years later, a Son of Destiny would be born in our realm to prevent this catastrophe. To ensure the smooth growth of the Son of Destiny, I scattered my cultivation and divided my divine consciousness into several residual souls to provide assistance at each stage of the Son of Destiny's growth! Your current cultivation matches the initial encounter I planned. However, as your cultivation improves, we will meet again in similar ways. At that time, I will not only provide the help you need for your growth but also tell you in detail everything I have seen in the Sea of Time!"
After hearing this, Han Lang was deeply moved. He knew that the "our realm" the old man spoke of included Blue Star, the Li Chuan Continent, and even the Immortal Realm. What a spirit of selfless dedication! To save the entire world from catastrophe, he did not hesitate to scatter his immense cultivation, all to assist the Son of Destiny in ascending to divinity and saving all sentient beings.
However, despite his admiration, Han Lang soon discovered a flaw in the old man's words.
"That's not right, old man… esteemed elder! According to you, I am that Son of Destiny! Since you could foresee everything in the Sea of Time, why couldn't you just tell me all the details at once?"
"Also! You already possessed immense cultivation, so why didn't you cultivate yourself to stop the catastrophe, instead placing all your hope on a weakling like me?"
The old man seemed to have anticipated Han Lang's questions. He smiled faintly and then replied unhurriedly,
"This matter is of great importance. No one knows you are the Son of Destiny except me. If I were to reveal everything to you now, and the alien forces discovered it, it would be very difficult for you to protect yourself with your current cultivation."
"Besides that, there are countless cultivators in various realms, and their cultivation techniques are incredibly diverse. As far as I know, some evil cultivators have the ability to seize the innate destiny of others. If their fate were altered by those individuals, it would be difficult to guarantee that the Son of Destiny's luck would not deviate. Who would then prevent this catastrophe?"
"As for why I don't rely on myself…"
The old man chuckled self-deprecatingly and continued,
"Heh heh… Little friend, since you have entered the path of immortality, you should know that everyone's talent and abilities are limited. For some, once they encounter a bottleneck, they can never break through in their entire lives."
"I understand the principle of relying on oneself rather than others, but some things are not achievable simply through effort!"
The old man's words left Han Lang speechless. He couldn't find any flaws to refute and decided to put everything aside and say directly,
"In that case, how do you plan to help me this time? Are you going to teach me your ultimate cultivation method or your powerful combat skills? You can't just give me empty words, can you?"
"Heh heh… My cultivation methods and divine abilities are all at the Immortal level or above. Even if I gave them to you now, could you wield them? However, if I'm not mistaken, you should have a supreme artifact hidden within your sea of consciousness, right?"
Han Lang's expression stiffened. He hadn't expected his sea of consciousness to be seen through by someone like this.
"That's right! I do."
"Then do you know that your artifact is incomplete?"