The way an ordinary commoner and a cultivator looked at the world was as diverse as magma and ice.
Unlike an ordinary person who could only take in a limited view of their immediate surroundings, a cultivator had a much broader vision but more crucial than that was their ability to glimpse at the Cursed Ocean of Malice.
The Cursed Ocean, formerly Supreme Ocean of Immortality, was a humongous entity as vast as the world itself and existed in a separate plane of existence, such that it remained just half a step away from every living being. It was also the place of origin of the seventeen elements of resentment.
Due to its sheer size and proximity to the living world, even a minor change to it resulted in an easily visible phenomenon inside the living world. Especially if the said change was an appearance of a brand new anchor inside the Cursed Ocean.
"Well, damn;"
Di Tanxue commented as his anchor completed its full formation and became as real as anything could be. It was due to the appearance of his anchor that the parts of the Cursed Ocean in his immediate vicinity came to a standstill which in turn influenced the world of living to halt for the briefest of the moment.
Not giving it any further thought, Di Tanxue returned back to resisting the waves of comfort penetrating deep in his psyche to make him forget everything that made him 'him'.
Sometimes like a warm and tender touch of a mother calling her child to return back home, other times like the sweet and passionate caressing of a young lover inviting him to bed. The comfort changed every so often to break Di Tanxue's resistance from every which way.
Fortunately, his complete anchor helped him greatly in retaining his sense of self.
This however was just the beginning, with each passing moment the physical pain and psychological pressure upon Di Tanxue grew more and more intense, almost reaching a level where he might be erased out of existence from the brute force of it alone.
Were it somebody else in his place, be it a seventh stage Mortal Transcendence cultivator or even a ninth stage expert, they wouldn't have been able to handle it as skillfully as Di Tanxue.
Sacred Integrity.
The inheritance contained within the engraving etched on the top section of his anchor, gave him an overly tenacious soul and a highly resilient body. This inheritance made it possible for him to at least ensure his survival despite being in such a precarious situation.
His body corroded away into blood essence yet he could feel his connection to it remain intact. His soul suffered yet remained relatively unscathed.
"If it's just this, I think I can handle it. Hehe"
Letting out a feigned grin, Di Tanxue tried to ease the pain he felt by even a small margin but… unfortunately for him, his words appeared to have provoked his adversary.
"Shiet!"
Letting out a loud profanity, Di Tanxue winced in pain as a blow akin to a hammer hitting a piece of glass struck him mercilessly. His mind and soul went in disarray having sustained injuries that might take too long to heal.
His physical body on the other hand was in a much more sorry state. The body that had remained functional despite being corroded into blood essence, was finally forced to shatter.
'Happy times… think of happy times that await you, shiet, I'm crying;"
He clenched his teeth while his nails dug into his palms as he tried to distract himself away from the pain of the entire area below his chest being reduced to a gruesome mess of meat.
The injury was such that even the bottom section of his anchor, the one that represented his physical body, appeared to have been damaged beyond repair.
"What a mess! Do I have no other choice but to prepare for the worst?"
A lament escaped Di Tanxue's lips. What Di Tanxue referred to as the worst was not his death, in fact he had never even considered that possibility to begin with.
To survive his current ordeal with a damaged anchor would be nearly impossible, but there still existed an option that would surely ensure his survival, albeit in a twisted sense.
He had the option of restoring his anchor back to its peak by accepting something foreign as a part of his own, something that'll give a large boos–
"....?!"
"Guess I never actually had the freedom to pick my own choice…."
Letting out a hollow laugh, Di Tanxue felt a sensation oddly reminiscent of a 'gaze' settled upon him. Looking up, he got the illusion as if the crimson clouds in the sky were churning into the shape of a pupil.
A crimson pupil surrounded by the darkness of the night sky. The World, it was staring straight at Di Tanxue!
A moment as infinite as an eternity passed by and Di Tanxue found himself sitting up straight on the ground, his body back to its pristine condition.
It was as if Di Tanxue had just woken up from a very realistic nightmare or perhaps the World had somehow helped him travel back in time, as Di Tanxue knew for sure what he had experienced couldn't be false.
Not to mention, the oddly unsettling and misplaced everything appeared to seem all of a sudden. Was what he feared come to pass?
"Phew. That nearly gave me a heartattack!"
"shuuu. Keep silent. Who knows there might be others here beside us."
"The World had turned its gaze here just now, there'll surely be a treasure waiting for us here. Be quick!"
A sound of discussion echoed within his mind, breaking him out of trance, Di Tanxue found himself surrounded by a dozen or so individuals from each direction.
"Eh? There's nothing here. You there! Did you pocket the treasure that appeared here just now?"
A particularly haughty individual among all the newcomers dressed in azure robes and a jade medallion with a dragon inscription hanging on their waist pointed at Di Tanxue and interrogated with no hesitation.
"Jade Dragon Pavillion. As annoying as always;"
Di Tanxue commented with a frown as he confirmed the identity of the newcomers.
"You brat! What did you say just now?!"
The same individual among the newcomers raised his voice in abject fury, seemingly prepared to go physical with him. Yet, just the next moment a shiver inexplicably ran down his spine as he took a step back in horror.
The reactions of his other compatriots was much the same as they all took a step back and some even broke into a sprint.
"Pilgrim! It's a f**king humanoid pilgrim!"
One of them roared, yet indifferent to all of this. Di Tanxue calmly shook his head in disappointment.
"Tsk, tsk. Dogs of the Church truly live up to their reputation. How cowardly, how pathetic."
Reflexively, he brought his right hand forward and moved it as if pulling down a thread when suddenly an intense thunder rang in his ears.
"Run! It's raining blood!"