An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

”I am not going back!” exclaimed Zeng Yilong.

Luo Chen fixed his gaze on him. Zeng Yilong held his head high, showing no intention of lowering it. Yet a few moments later, he failed to withstand the pressure and dropped his head, saying in a low voice, ”They are all fighting on the battlefield. How can I sit safely in the rear? Besides, I also want to witness the final battle. It’s definitely going to be grand.”

Luo Chen frowned. ”Where did you hear about this final battle?”

Zeng Yilong replied without hesitation, ”Everyone outside is saying it now. They say the Falling Cloud Sect does not intend to rest and recuperate but plans to strike in one decisive push and fight the Wolf Court to the death at the Heavenly Drum Plains, to contend for Howling Moon. I asked Aunt Murong, and she did reveal some hints. She says the Falling Cloud Sect is summoning all its members and gathering strength. This kind of battle is something cultivators like us might only see once in a lifetime. I don’t want to regret it!”

Luo Chen fell into silence. After a long while, he finally spoke softly, ”Then you may stay. I can still protect one person. But when the time comes, you must obey my orders. Do you understand?”

Upon receiving the reply, Zeng Yilong’s eyes lit up. ”I understand!”

After dismissing Zeng Yilong, Luo Chen did not go back to heal but also left the cave residence, heading toward the dwelling of Fairy Ruthless.

***

”Is the news of a final battle true?”

”I am not a hundred percent certain, but judging from the Falling Cloud Sect’s movements and the speculations of the major powers, it is very likely true.”

”Did the Adepts from those upper sects not give any explanation?”

”The thoughts of Sage are beyond what they can fathom. Even though they’re members of those sects, what they know is not much more than we know. They’re merely piecing together intelligence and making guesses. Dan Chenzi, why are you so concerned about this?”

”Well, you know... Preparing early is always a good thing.”

Fairy Ruthless said calmly, ”In fact, you don’t need to worry. You achieved great merit in the previous battle, and the Luo Tian Alliance also suffered heavy losses. Even if there is a final battle, the Sword Enforcer Hall will not assign you any dangerous tasks.”

”I hope so.”

Seeing that he could not obtain any accurate information from Fairy Ruthless, Luo Chen prepared to take his leave.

Yet Fairy Ruthless called out to him, ”There have been many private gatherings of Adepts lately, and there is one tonight. Do you want to go?”

Luo Chen hesitated briefly, then declined with the excuse that his injuries had yet to recover and he still needed quiet rest. At the same time, he asked her to help collect some Fire Spirit Diamonds if she happened to come across any. Fairy Ruthless naturally had no objections.

Seeing her demeanor, Luo Chen instead grew curious. ”You don’t usually enjoy attending such gatherings. Why have you been so eager to participate recently?”

Fairy Ruthless rolled her eyes. ”Do I look eager to you?”

She did not explain anything. However, as Luo Chen returned, he gradually came to understand. With Ice Torrent gravely injured and no longer handling affairs, and with the loss of several Adepts, the Ice Fortress now lacked figures who could uphold its presence in public. Fairy Ruthless was taking on that burden; it was not something she enjoyed doing, but something only she could do.

”It’s not easy for her...”

Luo Chen sighed softly and resumed his healing.

***

Half a month later, Xu Haizhen led his team back to the sect. Luo Chen wrote two letters and entrusted him with delivering them to Sima Huiniang and Gu Caiyi.

As for other matters, he did not say much. However, before departing, he noticed Wan Ting, the surviving Initiate of the Myriad Phenomena Sect, looking at him with a hesitant expression, as though he wished to speak yet was holding himself back. Luo Chen quietly took note of this. Thus, he secretly transmitted a message to Xu Haizhen, instructing him to inform Sima Huiniang after returning and have her pay close attention to the Myriad Phenomena Sect’s movements.

With that, Luo Chen could be considered free of lingering concerns, at least for the time being. He therefore declined the many invitations to social engagements that followed and once again entered seclusion.

***

Within the cave residence, the crisp sound of metal striking metal rang out incessantly. It was only when the sharp weapon snapped in half that the noise finally came to a stop. Luo Chen lowered his gaze to the white mark on his arm, surprise clearly surfacing on his face.

Not long ago, his injuries had fully recovered, and there were no longer any internal or external threats. After his recovery, he was astonished to discover that his progress in Physique Refinement on his status panel had undergone a change. It had changed from Third Tier Archaic (26/100) to 28/100, a solid increase of two points!

He had anticipated some improvement. After all, for years he had maintained dietary supplementation while practicing Myriad Path Convergence and tempering his body with primordial true fire. However, a sudden jump of two progress points was completely beyond his expectations. At this point, even a supreme-grade flying sword driven with full force could not injure him in the slightest. It was obvious that this abrupt transformation stemmed from the Black Sovereign Paste.

”This is really good stuff. If I can get a stable supply of Black Sovereign Paste, then I won’t even need a hundred years to get to major mastery and advance to the fourth tier!”

For a moment, Luo Chen’s heart burned with excitement, and his thoughts were fixed entirely on the Black Sovereign Paste. Yet after the excitement faded, he grew somewhat dejected. He had since found out that the production of this secret medicine within the Falling Cloud Sect was extremely limited. Ordinary puppets were not even worthy of using this paste. Only those of the third tier could apply for a small amount. That Han Zhan had been willing to grant him a portion was already exceedingly generous.

Moreover, with rumors of the impending final battle spreading ever more intensely, the Falling Cloud Sect’s chief alchemist, Mu Yunyan, had devoted her efforts to refining other pills and naturally had no time to produce Black Sovereign Paste. No matter how much he was willing to pay for it, there was no way for him to acquire more.

”But if I can’t get Black Sovereign Paste, then what about the formula?”

This thought suddenly surfaced in Luo Chen’s mind. Alchemical formulas were never passed down lightly, especially auxiliary formulas tied to a sect’s foundation. However, it was clear that the Falling Cloud Sect’s foundation did not consist solely of puppet techniques. It also encompassed methods for refining the divine soul.

In fact, it was obvious to him that the Falling Cloud Sect’s preferential treatment toward him had come after he’d revealed the second-tier Spirit Passage Pill. For their members, puppets were merely tools, while the divine soul was the true foundation!

”If I use the second-tier Spirit Passage Pill formula to exchange for the Black Sovereign Paste formula...”

There was indeed a disparity in level, with one being second-tier and the other third-tier. However, pills that enhanced the divine soul were rare and therefore more valuable than others. Meanwhile, the latter appeared more valuable at first glance, yet the Dao of Physique Refinement had long declined, and the Falling Cloud Sect used it mainly for puppets. From this, it could be seen that the value of an alchemical formula did not strictly correspond to its tier.

”Perhaps it’s feasible,” Luo Chen murmured. He then began to seriously consider the specific details of such a transaction.

After some time, a rough plan gradually took shape in his mind. There was no need to rush. If he took the initiative to approach them now, he would be the one seeking favors, and the other party would likely demand exorbitant terms. However, if he waited until the situation in the Howling Moon Mountain Range was firmly settled, when the Falling Cloud Sect was severely weakened and consequently desperate to restore its strength...

Since they knew that he could refine second-tier Spirit Passage Pills, he was definitely on the radar already. At that time, it would be their turn to seek him out. Then he could negotiate calmly and present the Spirit Passage Pill formula, and the Falling Cloud Sect would surely be delighted.

After thinking this through, Luo Chen’s heart finally settled, and he went back to cultivation. After all, that day of the final battle was not far off!

***

Even after his injuries had fully recovered, Luo Chen continued to keep his doors closed and declined all visitors. For the time being, he lacked no cultivation resources, and any doubts regarding cultivation had already been clarified during several previous gatherings among Adepts. At the very least, advancing to the late stage of the Golden Core Realm was completely assured. Since that was the case, social engagements were pointless. Maintaining some measure of aloofness instead helped raise his reputation.

At this moment, he was waiting for the day of the final battle. Or rather, it was not just him waiting; everyone was. The Falling Cloud Sect no longer made any effort to conceal its movements. Powerhouses from various sects returned one after another, and under relentless, day-and-night work by Falling Cloud Sect and Skysail City cultivators, powerful puppets were churned out continuously.

As it turned out, the Falling Cloud Sect had also paid some unknown but undoubtedly absurd price to acquire a warship from Skysail City. Yes, a true warship!!

This was a treasure unique to Skysail City. Eight hundred years back, it had shone brightly during Skysail City’s own Frontier War. After that war, Skysail City rarely deployed it, and no other sect could even borrow it, let alone purchase it, no matter how much they offered.

Even Luo Chen went out to look at it once. A massive flying vessel with a fearsome appearance hovered above the main encampment. Yet it was only a fearsome appearance; even Luo Chen’s sharp eyes could not see anything special about it. Perhaps only when the final battle began would the warship’s full might be revealed.

The Falling Cloud Sect’s actions did not stop there. They summoned every sect that had participated in the Frontier War and ordered them to dispatch cultivators to gather at the outer region of the Heavenly Drum Plains. Hence, countless cultivators began to converge like clouds. From ten thousand to twenty thousand and up to a full hundred thousand! These were all high-level cultivators with rich combat experience, not some ragtag force dragging families along and mixed with low-tier weaklings.

Beyond the hundred thousand sect cultivators, there were also countless rogue cultivators. All of them had caught wind of the situation and came hoping to claim a share. Naturally, those who dared to be here naturally had considerable confidence in their own abilities.

The atmosphere within the encampment grew increasingly restless. It was like a volcano on the verge of eruption, waiting for the little quake that would finally trigger the explosion. Clearly, the ones to do so would be the Falling Cloud Sect!

As time slowly reached the tenth year of the Frontier War, the Sage of the Falling Cloud Sect finally revealed himself before the eyes of the world.

On Thousand Leaf Peak, under the gaze of all eyes, Sage Han Zhan stood dressed in azure robes, with a solemn expression on his face.

He drew a deep breath, then let out a light shout. ”The war begins!”

That shout was bolstered by surging mana, and it rolled forward like crashing waves, spreading in all directions. Aside from the rapid rumbling sounds echoing through the Heavenly Drum Plains, there was a single word that answered his call.

”CHAAARGE!!!”