The First Cultivator - Changing Existence

"I call that power Fate, but I failed to fully comprehend it. Instead, I received a glimpse of what could be."

"And you saw the future?"

"Something like that. Something deep within me tells me that it is the truth. It is so irrefutable that I cannot even begin to disbelieve or deny it." The Buddha said. "All I ask is that when that time comes, you consider what I have said here today. For the sake of our friendship, please, do not resist that seal."

Zhou Fan nodded. "I cannot guarantee it, as circumstances are sure to change, but I promise to seriously consider it."

The Buddha nodded. "Then I am satisfied. I am not sure if we will ever meet again, as perhaps I will end up dead at the hands of those who wish to replace me, so I will thank you now, for the opportunity you have given me. I have helped so many more souls achieve inner peace and nirvana than I ever could have on Earth. You have my eternal gratitude."

Zhou Fan nodded. "Few can be said to have impressed me more than you. I hope you do survive this ordeal so that your overwhelming talent may shine brightly, as it should have for so long now."

"When all is said and done, I will be unburdened. Then, I will surely reach your expectations." The Buddha smiled. "Until then."

The Buddha left with peace in his heart and a smile on his face.

Zhou Fan had always admired the Buddha, and as always, he was once again impressed.

"It is a shame you've yet to realize that their plan has already taken hold of you. Even if you wanted to escape, it is too late." Zhou Fan said.

A mysterious power had latched onto the Buddha, slowly integrating into him. It was nearly undetectable, but as it latched onto him, this power grew. With the Rule of Growth mastered, Zhou Fan could naturally sense all things that grew.

Otherwise, even he had no way to spot this abnormality.

The Buddha was being silently replaced.

Had he not come to him, or perhaps had expressed his unwillingness to let the fate he had seen take place, Zhou Fan would have used the Rule of Growth and try and sever this power. As it stood, even if he could not, he could simply force Ye Li and the other to remove it or die. They could not resist him just yet.

But it was clear that the Buddha would not like that. He had chosen his path, and like always, Zhou Fan would accept it.

He had rarely interfered in someone's path when they didn't want him to, very rarely. And he had never done so out of fear or jealousy.

Even now, he was like a god among men. As a higher being, it was his duty to not interfere with the weak simply because they could surpass him. Even now, it was still possible for Ye Li to one day surpass him.

He had just yet to realize that himself. It wasn't just Ye Li either. Most notably, the Buddha, the Grand Empyrean, and the fish had the potential to surpass him.

Zhou Fan looked behind him.

"Leaf could as well, though in some ways he already has."

Leaf seemed happy to be spoken to for a moment before Zhou Fan turned back around.

Zhou Fan did what he was best at, and began to cultivate. In the Origin Civilization, a man rode on a large boat through space. A few steps behind him stood a woman with long hair covering her face.

"According to these records, Immortals really do exist." The woman said.

The man snorted. "I told you long ago. Even if God and Immortals exist, the only advantage they have over me is the countless years they've been alive. Since then, we learned that gods do exist, and I have become one. Now, we learn of Immortals, and all the same, I will surpass them."

This man was none other than the mortal that had entered the tent many years ago. Sage years had passed, but he was only in the True God realm. This was not due to his lacking talent, but due to the fact that he and this woman had fallen into some sort of temporal anomaly.

An instant passed to them, but when they exited, Sage Years had passed.

They hadn't really had any connections, so the only sign of this was the change in how the nearby things looked.

The temporal anomaly was the result of the path to the Origin Era and the fish trying to regain control of time. Even if he wanted to, he could not intentionally create something like this. The temporal anomalies were rare and unpredictable, but they did exist.

What the two didn't know was how rare it was to fall into one of these things and come out alive.

Less than 1% of people did so.

Yet both of them had.

Now, the man was once again on his journey, and with so many years passed, anybody that had enmity with him was long dead. Of course, with his Divine Physique, it was only a matter of time before he made more life or death enemies.

He set sail into the sea of stars with infinite killing intent.

Zhou Fan naturally noticed this little event from the corner of his eye, but hadn't paid it any actual attention. He continued to cultivate, and a few thousand years passed.

The man had already become a sage, and his name was well known throughout the Universe.

He was advancing towards the High Sage realm at a never before seen pace.

The woman following him hadn't seemed to change at all. That was because she was not truly alive, not in the normal sense anyway.

She was what was known as an artifact spirit. She had appeared after he had binded his body, mind, and soul with the artifact he had received. She had given him unimaginable help along his journey, though her memories only truly started when he had binded with the artifact. It was just that she sometimes had spurts of knowledge from who knows where she would pass on.