An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

In Dragon Abyss City, inside a cave residence where spirit energy was so dense it had nearly condensed into clouds, the unusually youthful-looking Sage Dragon Abyss was talking to three cultivators standing below him.

”You grew up in the Central Continent. Under the Heaven Origin Dao Sect, everything’s kept in order. If you want to break through, you compete with people for resources, and that’s it. But the Northern Sea is different. Here, you’re not justfighting people but also demons. High-tier demonic beasts are intelligent, their techniques are unpredictable, and some of them are no weaker than us. Don’t take them lightly. As for that Sea-Devouring Golden Toad... take it as a lesson. Don’t forget it.”

It was rare for a dignified Sage to speak with such patience to Adepts. Longwind and the others quickly acknowledged his words; the fear from that encounter still lingered in their hearts.

Guan Xiaoping, usually headstrong, had turned noticeably obedient at this moment. ”You’re right. We really were careless this time. It was my first time seeing an archaic beast. It looked so small at first, but the moment it opened its mouth, it felt like it could swallow the entire sea. Even the three of us together couldn’t escape.”

Sage Dragon Abyss only smiled at that. The Central Continent had remained peaceful for far too long. Ever since the Heaven Origin Dao Sect cleared the field three thousand years ago, even ordinary demonic beasts had become exceedingly rare, let alone archaic beasts. It was only natural that Longwind and the others knew little about them.

Guan Xiaoping hesitated for a moment, then asked, ”If archaic beasts and modern demonic beasts are the same thing, why do archaic beasts feel so much stronger?”

Dragon Abyss’s expression grew serious. ”They were actually the same at first, but not anymore. Their choices led them down different paths. You’ve all studied the sect’s texts, haven’t you?”

Tens of thousands of years before, the human race had fought bitterly against the demons in order to finally carve out the Five Territories that existed today. That era became known as the ancient war between humans and demons. It was only after the truce was established more than three millennia ago, when the demons withdrew into the wilderness, that humanity truly became the favored race of heaven and the rulers of this world.

Indeed, before the rise of humanity, the true rulers of the world had been the Titan Beasts. They roamed freely across mountains, rivers, deserts, and seas as the favored children of heaven. The so-called demonic beasts of today were, in truth, more like cultivators—hence the later designation of ”demon cultivator.” Like humans, they walked the path of Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and beyond, gradually abandoning the primal road of their ancestors. The archaic beasts that still remained were either descendants of ancient bloodlines or the few modern demonic beasts that followed that original path. Their cultivation speed was vastly inferior, but at the same level, their bodies and innate strength far surpassed those of demon cultivators.

Longwind and the others vaguely recalled reading such records within the sect, though their understanding had always been superficial. Now, after personally witnessing the strength of an archaic beast, those old records suddenly felt far more real, even if they still could not fully make sense of it all.

Dragon Abyss did not explain much. Some things could only truly be understood after enough experience and reflection. With that, he changed the topic. ”Demon cultivators and archaic beasts are dangerous, but right now, the biggest threat in the Northern Sea is still humans. With the fall of the devil sect, order has collapsed. The cultivators here were already ruthless, but now, they truly act without restraint, and if you happen to face them, you will find out right away what the term ”devil cultivator” means. Some of them may lack refined techniques, but in terms of combat experience, they are not inferior to the prodigies of our sect.

”Take Devil Lord Azure Yang, for example. He spared you out of respect for me. But if it had been someone more vicious, you’d be lucky if they didn’t take advantage of the situation, let alone help you. Think about it—if he had made a move while you were trapped by the Sea-Devouring Golden Toad, even with the life-saving measures your elders gave you, would you really have made it out alive?”

The three of them were visibly uncomfortable. After all, they had already been forced to use one of their life-saving measures just to survive their encounter with the Merman Emperor Liu Jun.

Seeing their remorseful expressions, Sage Dragon Abyss merely smiled. ”So, whether they are demons or humans, never underestimate the strong of the Northern Sea.”

Longwind bowed deeply. ”Thank you for your guidance, Second Uncle!”

The other two followed suit and bowed in gratitude. Once they straightened up, however, Wu Tao could no longer hold back the question that had been weighing on his mind. ”Sage, are we really not going to the Sunken Sea?”

”The Sunken Sea?” Sage Dragon Abyss’s lips curved faintly as he was about to answer, but his expression suddenly shifted, and his ears twitched.

BOOOOMMM!!

He frowned. The sky outside remained perfectly clear, without the slightest trace of storm clouds, yet that sound had been unmistakable. He sent out his divine consciousness at once, across the city and all the way to the Hidden Dragon Mountains. Yet everywhere it reached was calm and undisturbed, as though nothing had happened at all.

For a brief moment, even he felt a trace of uncertainty. In the end, however, he slowly withdrew his divine consciousness and dismissed the matter. ”As for that land where demons have fallen, none of you should entertain any thoughts about it.”

Wu Tao felt unwilling, but he knew his cultivation and abilities were lacking, so there was no point indulging in such fantasies.

Longwind, however, still looked puzzled. ”Second Uncle, with your strength, why not go yourself? I’ve heard the Sunken Sea is full of treasures. If we leave it alone, wouldn’t others just take advantage of it?”

Dragon Abyss answered calmly, ”I’m not going because I’m not interested. As for who benefits... As long as the Sunken Sea is there, it won’t be so easy for anyone to take advantage of it. When the time comes, our sect will send the right person in.”

The right person? The three exchanged uncertain looks, unsure of who he was talking about.

***

Han Zhan stood high in the sky above Surging Island. His divine consciousness spread outward and reached the two demons. ”Heavenjade, go to Lotus-Picking Island and make sure no one from the Zhang family leaves. Black King, stay close to Surging Island and stand guard for your master.”

Once the orders were given, his focus returned to the island below. His eyes settled on the great hall wrapped in dense spirit energy, though every so often, he glanced up at the sky sealed by formations.

Time slipped by. Dark clouds gathered overhead, yet no lightning came. Instead, those clouds slowly shifted in color, red to orange, then yellow and green, the hues flowing into one another.

Han Zhan watched in silence, a faint glint of understanding in his eyes. So this is what it means to be favored by heaven... No lightning tribulation when breaking into the fourth tier. Instead, spirit energy pours into the body, as if even the heavens are celebrating. I didn’t expect him to push his Physique Refinement to this level...

Inside the spacious Starry Palace, Luo Chen stood in his dark armor, with a massive cauldron hanging above him as a precaution. However, the calamity he had prepared for never came. In its place, an unprecedented amount of spirit energy gathered.

The hall lit up as luminous pearls shone brightly, and formation flags whipped in the rising currents. Spirit energy from across the entire Surging Lake poured in waves, transforming the Starry Palace into a pool of energy comparable to a fourth-tier spirit land. Luo Chen instinctively began to absorb the energy contained within. It was raw and unrefined, much too fierce to guide into his sea of qi. Yet it did not flow there at all. Instead, it went straight into his body, seeping through his muscles, bones, and meridians, even blending into his blood.

A thought instantly surfaced in his mind. Marrow Cleansing and Meridian Unblocking!

This was nothing like Foundation Establishment, where cultivators used refined spirit energy to temper the body. This time, heaven and earth themselves were acting on him directly. As the energy continued to pour in, the pressure mounted until even Luo Chen began to feel the strain.

He let out a growl, and his body began to expand. One zhang, then two, continuing until it reached nine zhang in height!

His massive form filled the entire hall, making even its spacious interior feel cramped. Yet as his body grew, so too did its capacity to endure. The pressure eased, and he regained control over himself. Using his Myriad Path Convergence, he began to guide the energy to actively refine his body.

Along with that, his Sky Roc True Form began to change. What had once been a purely bestial transformation gradually shifted, its towering frame slowly taking on the shape of an enlarged human figure. The change came naturally, born from his growing understanding of those Physique Refinement techniques. The Sky Roc True Form was ultimately unfit for a human, too crude to continue supporting the path he sought to walk. If Wang Yuan had witnessed the scene, he would have recognized the resemblance immediately—the transformation looked quite a lot like his own Giant Spirit Transformation.

Luo Chen adjusted it instinctively, refining the form little by little as it drew closer to the structure of a true human body. After all, as Wang Yuan had once said, transformations that leaned too heavily toward demonic beasts could not possibly be truly compatible with humans.

As the transformation continued, he began to sense a strange energy spreading through him. It was neither mana nor demonic energy; if anything, it resembled the Pill Force Wang Yuan had cultivated after comprehending the transformation of blood qi, yet it lacked that same purity. There was a faint impurity within it, yet surprisingly, rather than weakening the energy, it made it feel steadier and easier to control, as though it possessed a more tangible foundation. The energy seemed to have formed from the fusion of blood, marrow, and natural spirit energy. It permeated every part of his body, present everywhere yet impossible to isolate, until a thin crimson membrane gradually formed around him.

After roughly the time it took to burn an incense stick, Luo Chen let out a muffled groan and finally regained full control of his body. A deep sense of fullness welled up from within him.

Is it done?

The thought lingered in his mind as he slowly shrank back to his original size. The crimson membrane sank into his flesh, and the ambiental spirit energy he hadn’t absorbed gradually dispersed, flowing back into Surging Lake. When everything settled, he sat cross-legged in the hall, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

Then, he raised his hand and pulled up the sleeve of the Profound Dust Armor covering his arm. Then, his right hand’s fingers straightened into the shape of a blade, and, without hesitation, slashed down toward his left wrist!

Anyone witnessing the scene would have been horrified by such ruthless self-mutilation, yet Luo Chen’s expression did not even waver. He did not defend himself in the slightest and even deliberately relaxed, ensuring that his body was at its weakest.

With a crisp sound, his left hand instantly separated from the forearm. He let out a low grunt and lowered his eyes to inspect the wound. The exposed flesh carried a faint crimson sheen; the bones beneath it were smooth and translucent as jade, while the severed tendons appeared thick and astonishingly resilient.

After a brief moment of observation, he drew in a deep breath. The strange energy filling his body immediately surged toward the wound. A sharp tingling sensation spread through the severed wrist, painful and unbearably itchy. Right before his eyes, fresh flesh buds began to wriggle outward, rapidly regenerating along the original shape of his wrist.

Luo Chen’s pupils tightened. ”Flesh regeneration!”

After confirming his suspicion, Luo Chen withdrew the strange energy flowing toward the wound and reached out to retrieve his severed hand. He pressed it back against the broken wrist. After all, newly regenerated flesh could never compare to the original body that had been tempered over centuries. Without using any healing spell, the crimson membrane spread across the injury. Flesh and bone fused together; slowly but surely, his hand was fully reattached, without even the faintest scar left behind.

Luo Chen swallowed hard. ”Severed limb reattachment!”

The hall fell silent once more. Only after witnessing both forms of regeneration did he truly realize the extent of the transformation his body had undergone. This was no simple increase in strength; his body had changed on the most fundamental level. The strange energy flowing through him was unlike mana, demonic energy, or fortified qi. It was sparse in quantity, yet the effects it produced bordered on the miraculous. Right now, he no longer felt entirely human. In many ways, he resembled an archaic beast more than a cultivator!

After some thought, he decided to call this energy ”origin energy.” It granted him astonishing control over his own body, and, while it could not achieve the legendary feat of rebirth from a single drop of blood, it was more than enough to regenerate flesh and restore severed limbs so long as most of his body remained intact. He could even sense that his separated hand still retained a degree of vitality and responsiveness, meaning that it was still very much alive.

If that was the case, then killing Luo Chen would no longer be the simple matter of crushing his heart or something of the kind. It would now require severing all four limbs, beheading him, and destroying his torso entirely. He had no idea whether other archaic beasts had such terrifying vitality, but this was now the reality of his own body. More importantly, he still walked the path of Qi Refinement! Even if his physical body was destroyed, as long as his Golden Core remained intact, his divine soul would still have something to reside in.

After realizing all this, he slowly raised his right hand and clenched it into a fist. A terrifying sense of power surged through him, as though this hand alone possessed the strength to shatter mountains and split seas.