An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Seven cultivators dressed in white landed one after another in a secluded valley. The leader wore flowing robes and a tall crown that gave him an air of elegance. The moment he landed, he unfolded a feather fan and swept away the mist shrouding the area. The scene within came into view immediately. Strange herbs swayed gently in the breeze, each resembling either a kite or a divine bird whose tail feathers had been cut in half.

The elegant cultivator smiled. ”As expected, Jadecold didn’t deceive us. There really is a Divine Iris field here.”

One of the cultivators beside him hurried forward to inspect the herbs. His excitement quickly gave way to disappointment. ”Senior Brother Yu, there are only eight fourth-tier Divine Iris plants here. That’s fewer than I expected.”

Yu Gao smiled and waved his feather fan. ”Too few? I’d say the opposite; there are more than I expected. Junior Brother Zheng, don’t tell me you thought the devil sect left this place untouched for all these years.”

Zheng Yi suddenly understood. ”I see. The mature ones were harvested long ago.”

”Exactly. For another eight plants to reach the fourth tier in just 300 years, this place must be extraordinary.”

He tucked his feather fan behind his neck and slowly rolled up his sleeves. The gesture seemed rather inelegant, but his next words made it understandable. ”Besides, our goal is to move this entire field of Divine Iris, along with this valley itself. Once it’s moved to our sect, it’ll strengthen our sect for generations. Alright! Enough standing around. Check the surroundings. It’s time to break the formation and move this place.”

At his command, the other six immediately sprang into action. Excited discussions broke out among them. Everyone knew that the Divine Iris was one of the finest resources for forming a Nascent Soul. Human cultivators generally possessed weaker physiques, and the Divine Iris solved that problem specifically. It was renowned for strengthening the body and helping it withstand the immense influx of natural spirit energy during Nascent Soul formation. If the Penglai Immortal Sect could obtain not only the Divine Irises themselves but also the spirit land capable of nurturing them, the sect’s chances of producing more Sages in the future would skyrocket.

As for the morality of digging up another’s spirit land, none of them cared very much. Compared to the prosperity and survival of their sect, such concerns were insignificant.

Unfortunately, as they prepared to break the formation, they encountered a major obstacle.

Yu Gao stood still and suddenly frowned. Besides the original formation protecting the area, there was another formation layered on top of it. Moreover, this second formation was clearly a killing formation, and its style was entirely different from the first.

Did the people of the devil sect add this after they harvested the irises?

With a sigh, Yu Gao took out a compass and began circling the valley. This would cost them even more time. As he walked, his gaze drifted toward the six junior brothers accompanying him, and he could not help sighing inwardly.

Outside, the war between the righteous and devilish forces was raging fiercely. The Penglai Immortal Sect and Devil’s Snare had joined forces against the Blue Sea Alliance, and nearly all of the sect’s elite cultivators had already been committed to the battlefield. Although he and another sect brother had been placed in charge of this expedition, the disciples assigned to accompany him were noticeably lacking in both cultivation and capabilities. With no skilled formation masters among them, even breaking a formation required him to proceed personally and at a much slower pace.

No, slow is fine. At least the cultivators of the Blue Sea Alliance are also tied up outside. Without the strongest force competing with us, we shouldn’t suffer too many losses.

The war might appear to be a contest between cultivators, but in the end, victory was determined by foundations. The future generations of whoever possessed the deeper reserves would ultimately prevail. What he was doing now was precisely strengthening the foundations of the Penglai Immortal Sect.

If this expedition succeeded, the resources they brought back would greatly increase the sect’s strength. Given enough time, they could eventually wear down the Blue Sea Alliance. When that day arrived, the Penglai Immortal Sect would take the place once occupied by the devil sect and become the true ruler of the Northern Sea.

As for Devil’s Snare? He had never considered them a factor at all. From the day that force was founded, it had never possessed the potential to achieve anything truly great.

***

After breaking through the outermost illusion formation, Luo Chen stopped before a cave entrance and asked in confusion, ”What is this place?”

The Flesh Ganoderma glanced back at him. ”If I remember correctly, an Infernal Heartbound Tree grows here. The illusion formation outside was still completely intact, which means the cultivators of the devil sect never found this place.”

”An Infernal Heartbound Tree?” Luo Chen looked puzzled. ”Why have I never heard of such a tree?”

The Flesh Ganoderma laughed heartily. ”Of course you haven’t. The Monarch created it himself. As far as I know, there’s only one in the entire world.”

Luo Chen’s eyes immediately lit up. ”What tier is it?”

”It starts at the fourth tier. If everything went according to plan, it was supposed to eventually reach the fifth tier.”

Luo Chen froze for a moment before his expression shifted slightly. ”A fifth-tier spirit tree should have developed sentience by now, shouldn’t it?”

The Flesh Ganoderma waved his hand dismissively. ”Not necessarily. This thing isn’t a natural spirit tree. The Monarch made it by binding together the hearts of a fifth-tier ancient demon and a fifth-tier ancient devil, then crossbreeding them with a True Scale Tree. Something like that doesn’t fit into the natural order. Gaining sentience is much harder for it than for ordinary spirit trees. It can only truly awaken after surviving the twenty-seven-wave lightning tribulation and enduring heaven’s wrath.”

It blinked and added teasingly, ”Fellow Daoist, don’t tell me you think every tree or stone can gain intelligence just by reaching a high enough tier.”

Luo Chen found himself momentarily speechless. At least according to the records he had read, that was precisely how things worked. The higher a being’s tier, the closer it came to true cultivators, and the greater the likelihood that it would develop sentience.

The Flesh Ganoderma smiled. ”The Mountains and Seas Realm isn’t like other realms. It has a high level of spiritual resonance, so it’s easy for all sorts of things to gain sentience. But true sprites and divine spirits are a different story. The stronger their foundations and the higher their potential, the harder it becomes for them to develop sentience. That’s simply how heaven keeps things in balance.”

The explanation only left Luo Chen more confused than before, but this was hardly the time to pursue the matter further. Shifting his attention back to the spirit tree within, he asked, ”Does this Infernal Heartbound Tree really help with Physique Refinement?”

”It should,” the Flesh Ganoderma replied somewhat uncertainly.

Luo Chen frowned. ”What do you mean by that?”

The Flesh Ganoderma shrugged. ”Well... considering what it’s made from, it should be useful. Demons and devils are famous for their powerful physiques, and this tree was created from their hearts and blood. If even that can’t help with Physique Refinement, I’ll be genuinely surprised.”

The reasoning seemed sound enough. Luo Chen took a deep breath and said, ”Then let’s start breaking the formation.”

The Flesh Ganoderma joined the effort alongside Luo Chen and Devil’s Cloud. As the work progressed, it occasionally observed Luo Chen’s techniques. At first, Luo Chen’s approach appeared somewhat crude and noticeably inferior to Devil’s Cloud’s. Yet as time passed and he became increasingly familiar with the Monarch’s formation style, he gradually began to surpass Devil’s Cloud. The Flesh Ganoderma was very pleased about how quickly that improvement came. Among third-tier formation masters, both Luo Chen and Devil’s Cloud stood near the very top. They should prove useful when the time came to free its true body. In many ways, this entire process was a test.

A month later, Luo Chen and Devil’s Cloud stood before the spirit tree deep within the cave. The tree itself was only a zhang tall, but the hazy green light surrounding it left both men feeling completely helpless.

Luo Chen shook his head. ”I have no idea where to begin.”

Devil’s Cloud let out a bitter laugh. ”Neither do I. I can’t find a single flaw.”

Neither man was being modest. Luo Chen’s knowledge in formations was exceptionally solid, and his Spirit Eyes allowed him to perceive weaknesses others could not. Dismantling formations was practically second nature to him. Yet his exposure to high-tier formations was relatively limited, and the one before him had already exceeded the limits of his understanding.

But the Flesh Ganoderma seemed to have anticipated this outcome from the start. ”It’s fine. Leave the rest to me.”

As it spoke, it pressed its lips together and sliced a chunk of fat from its own body. After refining it with mana, it transformed the flesh into a cloud of crimson light and sent it drifting toward the green barrier.

Immediately, the seemingly impenetrable curtain of green light began to melt away like snow beneath the sun. Moments later, an opening large enough for a single person appeared in the formation.

Devil’s Cloud stared blankly at the gap. ”What the...”

A formation that neither he nor Luo Chen could even begin to unravel had been bypassed so easily!

Seeing their disbelief, the Flesh Ganoderma turned back toward them. Its face had become noticeably paler, but its tone remained calm. ”This tree was nurtured using a large amount of my true body’s life force. That’s why this formation doesn’t work on me.”

With that explanation, the Flesh Ganoderma stepped through the opening. Luo Chen followed immediately behind. The moment he crossed the threshold, however, his body suddenly locked in place. A soundless shock exploded through his heart without warning. In that instant, countless demon and devil phantoms rushed throughout his sea of consciousness.

The Flesh Ganoderma immediately withdrew and positioned itself before the entrance, blocking Devil’s Cloud from entering. It watched Luo Chen’s rigid back in silence, a sinister expression gradually spreading across his face.

The Echoes of Demons and Devils! No soul beneath the Nascent Soul Realm should be able to withstand them. I want to see who that third person really is. You can’t keep hiding for long!