Eternal Tale

Jiuhua Patriarch suddenly let out a muffled grunt and coughed a few times. That big black ox possessed an extraordinarily powerful physical body, entirely on par with his own—perhaps even stronger. He couldn’t even determine its limits.

“They… are too strange.”

Jiuhua Patriarch murmured to himself, frowning under the oppressive might of heaven and earth. “Even physical attacks do nothing to that black ox fellow.”

His tiny, bean-like eyes fell into deep contemplation, utterly perplexed. He could not make sense of the situation at all.

Could there truly be beings in this realm with a physical body stronger than that of the Jiuhua Demon-Sealing Ape? … Unless they weren’t from this realm at all, but rather beings who had arrived by accident from the outside world!

Just like the meteorite recorded in history, it eventually caused a huge ravine in the sky, but the boundary had already been closed by then, and no one knew how the meteorite came about. 

But many years ago, there was a falling star from outer space, which was seen by countless cultivators in the Great Li Realm, but nothing happened. 

“Could it be... them?!”

Jiuhua Patriarch ’s pupils contracted violently, his gaze stretching into the distance as a low growl escaped his throat. “Descended beings!!”

His eyebrows stood on end, his heart surging with turmoil. In today’s cultivation world, the gap between beings of the same realm should never be this vast.

“Unless they are from the outside world—there is no other reasonable explanation.” The Jiuhua Patriarch’s frown deepened. The secrets of such beings should not be probed too deeply, lest it invite disaster.

He quickly dismissed further thoughts and let out a long howl into the distance. “Descendants, prepare to seek aid from the spirit beasts across The Great Li Realm!”

“Yes… Ancestor.”

From the depths of the Ten Thousand Mountains, scattered cries of pain echoed. Bloodlines were being suppressed to the point of near combustion.

Seeing this, Jiuhua Patriarch’s expression darkened with anger. It seemed his descendants still lacked discipline—they could not even endure this level of suppression.

…

On the ground below.

The big black ox’s round eyes widened as it gazed from afar at Chen Xun, who was now bathed in a hazy radiance. The area around him had been completely sealed off, ensuring that no disturbances could reach him.

Little Red was already lying on the ground, convulsing, having unwittingly become a kindred spirit with the nearby Golden Core spirit beast. They had simply been too close.

Half a month passed, yet Chen Xun remained seated in meditation. The entire land resonated with a low, harmonious hum.

Though the oppressive might of heaven and earth was gradually dissipating, the essence of the five elements still cycled through his body ceaselessly. The small book that once radiated white light was beginning to dim.

However, the characters within it were not written with brushstrokes but inscribed by the very essence of the five elements, forming a celestial manuscript.

“Moo~~” The big black ox snorted. Only it could comprehend those characters—without walking this path, one could never grasp their meaning.

Within the hazy mist, Chen Xun’s expression remained calm as he slowly emerged. His aura had retracted, harmonizing naturally with the world around him. Even the spirit birds perched on nearby branches remained motionless as if drawn to his presence.

He walked through the forest with measured steps and spoke softly, “Old Ox, Little Red.”

At that moment, Chen Xun and the towering green mountains, the lush forests brimming with vitality, and the vast, azure sky with wisps of drifting clouds all came together to form a serene ink-wash painting.

He appeared as though he had stepped out of the painting itself, both real and yet ethereal, untouched by the dust of the mortal world.

Chen Xun felt utterly at peace. Inside his body, the human and earthly apertures continuously absorbed the five elements of heaven and earth.

With his divine aperture guiding the process beyond the limits of his current realm, everything fell into place naturally. At the Nascent Soul stage, he no longer needed to painstakingly refine his cultivation.

He let out a silent sigh. Perhaps he was destined to return to the endless pursuit of longevity points.

However, no sect, not even the Baili Clan, had left behind any legacies on Void Refinement-stage cultivation techniques. Those ancient methods had been severed by the vile lifespans born from the realm’s early battlefield.

Yet Baili Wentian had once mentioned that beyond the Void Refinement stage, cultivating divine sense would no longer provide shortcuts in cultivation. That realm was an entirely different world.

Chen Xun could naturally sense this—he had absorbed too much divine energy and had now completely hit a bottleneck. Those early-stage Nascent Soul impure lifespans could no longer strengthen his spiritual energy.

Yet, at the end of all Nascent Soul cultivation techniques, there was always a passage stating that at the peak of one’s cultivation, one must either seek enlightenment in great mountains and rivers or comprehend the mortal world...

This was because the Void Refinement stage had neither the Heart Tribulation nor the Inner Demon Tribulation. However, breaking through was far more difficult than those tribulations.

If one’s comprehension was insufficient, failure to break through could even lead to a drop in cultivation.

In ancient times, many great cultivators fell at this stage. They had spent too much time cultivating and fighting, leaving too little time to comprehend the heavens and the mortal world.

However, Chen Xun and the big black ox had experienced far too much of the mortal world on their journey.

Now, there were truly no other Nascent Soul cultivators with more experiences and insights than them. This issue was simply not a concern, and they didn’t need to go through the motions.

Once his cultivation and divine sense reached their peak simultaneously, the five elements would merge as one—that would be the day he truly stepped into the Void Refinement realm!

”Moo?!” The big black ox stared intently at Chen Xun, flicking its tail a few times. Only he could see his big brother’s cultivation—it had already reached the mid-stage of Nascent Soul!

”Brother Xun!”

”Prepare to depart. We’ll first visit the Tian Duan Plains, then make a trip back home.”

A faint smile appeared on Chen Xun’s lips as he gazed up at the sky, watching the clouds drift. “I have now stepped onto the threshold of the Great Path. Ximen Black Ox, prepare to receive the Dao Ancestor’s bestowed teachings.”

”Moo!”

The big black ox transformed its hooves into hands, summoning a grand formation of 108 incense burners. Beneath the feet of its Dao Ancestor big brother, it prostrated itself step by step, bowing with utmost reverence in a devout ritual!

Little Red watched with his mouth slightly agape. The legendary Dao Ancestor… was actually Brother Xun?! The Dao Ancestor was his big brother?!

Their eyes were filled with unwavering belief, making Chen Xun inwardly elated as he continued to stand with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the sky.

Wisps of blue smoke curled around him, enveloping his entire body. No matter how one looked at it, this was the sign of an imminent ascension—every angle made it seem as if he was about to ride a crane into the western heavens.

Chen Xun’s brow twitched. Why did it suddenly feel like he was being sent off in a funeral ritual? A thought crossed his mind, and his voice gradually rose:

“Ximen Black Ox… Are you sending me off?!!”

”Moo?!”

”Insolence! With strength to pull mountains, a spirit unmatched!”

”Moo~~!”

”Brother Xun, Brother Ox is innocent~~!!”

From within the forest, an uproar of rage, pleading, and cries for mercy erupted, startling a flock of birds into flight. Their eyes held a trace of disdain—how had they been fooled by that man’s aura?!

The Next Day. Chen Xun and his companions arrived at the ancient teleportation array on the mountain’s edge. The surrounding area was guarded by spirit beasts—clearly, Meng Sheng had been suppressed by them back then…

Upon seeing the big black ox, the spirit beasts were quite perceptive, exchanging a look that said, You’re the boss here, and swiftly making their way.

The big black ox took the opportunity to set up another teleportation array nearby. It even secretly carved out three underground chambers, where it and Little Red arranged three mid-sized teleportation formations in secret.

Chen Xun could only cough lightly, extending his divine sense to scan the surroundings. Old habits died hard—it had already become second nature...

They had already informed the Jiuhua Patriarch about this location and would be borrowing it for a while. The ancestor had always been refreshingly straightforward—use it as you please.

After another two days, once they had—ahem—finished all preparations, it was time to leave.

The many spirit beasts of the Ten Thousand Mountains had exchanged their essence blood with them for thousand-year spiritual herbs. Since they were sworn brothers, of course, good things had to be shared.

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