An Alchemist's Path to Eternity

Chapter 1240: Divine Origin’s Condition; Going to Skypiercing Pass in Person

Divine Origin had said that Luo Chen would invite him in, and Luo Chen did. Yet the world seemed to lurch into silence after his invitation. The ”guest” remained where he stood, quietly gazing at the solitary figure floating far above.

One, two, three. Three whole Nascent Soul combatants. Nine Spirits has always been well known for his mana, while Luo Chen... From the intelligence, he has an extremely powerful and overbearing mystical fire that’s suspected to be peak fourth-tier, if not fifth-tier. And then there’s also this unknown aura; it must have fused itself with this land and it was the first to detect my presence, but I never noticed it existed until it announced itself.

I was too late, after all. Luo Chen has already come into his own!

That was the conclusion Divine Origin arrived at. He had originally come here with the intention to observe the target in secret; his so-called ”being a guest” was merely to test Luo Chen’s attitude after he was unexpectedly discovered. Now, the situation, as it had turned out, was clearly not in his favor.

Divine Origin cast one last deep look at Luo Chen, then quietly withdrew.

Luo Chen did not stop him, but to say he was scared would be an overstatement. He knew this day was bound to come sooner or later when he would have to face Divine Origin in person. Besides, he happened to have a powerful ally today.

Luo Chen could have done something. But he did not, out of certain reservations. Divine Origin had naturally never told the world about his covetous schemes for Luo Chen’s body. They also hadn’t yet had an official and open falling-out, and they still maintained minimum cordiality on the surface. Under these circumstances, attacking first was not a wise course of action—especially since, after having seen Divine Origin in the flesh, Luo Chen was not confident that he could kill him. And as they say, unless you beat the snake to death, it will come back to bite you.

What a tremendous pressure! A hostile late-stage Sage really is something else...

Luo Chen looked in the direction the other party had left and let out a long, heavy breath.

***

”I didn’t bring him here!” Nine Spirits denied any involvement with the matter as soon as Luo Chen returned.

Luo Chen nodded and did not pursue it.

Seeing that, Nine Spirits let out a relieved sigh. But then his eyes carried a hint of apprehension as he asked, ”That was the supreme elder of the Five Elements Divine Sect. Do you two have a grudge or something?”

Luo Chen smiled and asked back, ”What do you think? I killed their most promising disciple who was on the cusp of Nascent Soul, right in front of countless eyes.”

Nine Spirits frowned, not entirely convinced by this explanation. Never mind just one disciple, back when his sect was forced to flee the Five Elements Domain, a great many of their outstanding disciples died. Even when two of their five Sages perished and one was fatally injured, that old fellow still never once stepped in.

Luo Chen seemed remarkably relaxed despite what had just happened. Maintaining a smile on his face, he asked, ”What do you know about Divine Origin?”

Nine Spirits mentally organized what he knew before replying, ”He is extremely powerful. There are countless cultivators in the Eastern Wilderness, but he is among the strongest outside the Nether Origin Sect. If he hadn’t been gravely wounded in that battle at Green Parasol Mountain, the Five Elements Divine Sect wouldn’t have fallen into their current state.

”Before that battle, he practically single-handedly elevated the declining Five Elements Divine Sect to the upper rank. He led his members in the Frontier War, and later he personally trained and produced five Sages; that’s also when he established complete dominance over a domain.

”All things considered, Divine Origin is phenomenal in both personal strength and leadership charisma. Back then, even those like the Silktree Sect Grand Elder and Heavenly Apex Huiping couldn’t stack up against him; only the supreme elder of the East Sun Sect could be considered his equal. Precisely for this reason, no one has dared provoke him, even though his sect has fallen into decline and rumors say that his injuries are beyond recovery.”

Luo Chen quietly listened to Nine Spirits without interrupting. While there might be some bias in his account, the admiration for Divine Origin evident in his words, both explicit and implied, could not be feigned. Nine Spirits himself was a top-tier powerhouse with a well-established reputation in the Eastern Wilderness, and the fact that he held Divine Origin in such high regard spoke volumes about the latter’s influence.

And yet, a figure of such caliber was Luo Chen’s enemy!

”If there’s a grudge between you and him, you really should settle it as soon as possible,” Nine Spirits suggested after some hesitation, his tone earnest. ”If you’d like, I can act as your mediator.”

Luo Chen asked with a smile, ”If my feud with him happened to be very, very, very serious, would he still give you face?”

Nine Spirits scrunched his brow, but only for a second. He said with confidence, ”Certainly not right now, but once I use the Nine Separation Pill and master our ace technique, I believe he will.”

Luo Chen laughed heartily.

”It’s alright, don’t trouble yourself. We’ll deal with it when the time comes! I’m just grateful that you’ve offered to help.” He sent the nine jade bottles containing the pills toward his interlocutor. ”Here you go, mission accomplished!”

Nine Spirits took a deep breath, and only then did he accept the bottles and begin inspecting them one by one. Referring to his sect’s records, he examined the pills’ color, patterns, and the medicinal energy emanating from them.

By the time he was done, he could no longer contain his joy, and it showed on his face. Stowing away all the bottles, he clasped his hands and bowed toward Luo Chen. ”Fellow Daoist Luo, thank you!”

Luo Chen smiled and waved his hand. ”If you ever need anything else in the future, feel free to come find me. On the path of cultivation, we should support one another and journey toward the Great Dao together, don’t you agree?”

”Indeed! Indeed!”

How could Nine Spirits refuse the Great-Grandmaster Alchemist’s goodwill? Besides, the courage Luo Chen had displayed earlier, confronting a Divine Origin as an early-stage Sage, had truly made him view Luo Chen in a new light. Such a prodigy, so long as he did not fall prematurely, was bound to rise to the pinnacle of the Eastern Wilderness cultivation world one day.

”Well then, I shall take my leave.”

”Let me see you out!”

Luo Chen personally escorted the honored customer down the mountain, all the way to the outskirts of Hundred-Li Green River. He couldn’t have done any better to fulfill his role as the host.

Just before departing, Nine Spirits suddenly said, ”From what I can tell, your mana far surpasses that of your peers; it’s incredible that you have as much mana as a middle-stage Sage. As long as you keep going steadily on your path, then by the time you reach my level, you will surely be no weaker than me. So why bother seeking something extreme?

”Though my cultivation method may seem impressive, it actually entails terrible drawbacks. Absorbing extreme substances into the body disrupts the Three Treasures, and that really hurts, miserably so. The world only speaks of my powerful mana but never praises my cultivation technique, and that’s merely one of the costs involved.

”Now that I’ve been fortunate enough to obtain the Nine Separation Pill, I can finally break free from these shackles. And for that, I am deeply grateful to you. Therefore, fellow Daoist, please take my advice and do not rush down the wrong path!”

With that, Nine Spirits gracefully floated away without waiting for Luo Chen’s reaction. The latter was left standing there, seemingly deep in thought.

***

Back in his cave residence, Luo Chen silently reflected on the parting words of Primal Sovereign Nine Spirits. Something flickered in his mind, right within grasp, and he seemed to catch a vague understanding, yet he could not quite touch the crux of it.

Just then, mist seeped from the ground and filled the room. Black King cautiously emerged. ”Did that guy leave?”

Without looking up, Luo Chen asked, ”Are you talking about Nine Spirits or Divine Origin?”

Black King let out a sigh of relief upon seeing his master’s calm attitude. ”That old fart Divine Origin, of course!”

Luo Chen put aside Nine Spirits’s advice for now and turned to Black King. Earlier, the dragon had been startled awake by Divine Origin’s presence.

”How did you discover him? Both Nine Spirits and I didn’t notice at all when he got here. If you hadn’t alerted me, I’d still be in the dark right now.”

As Luo Chen said this, his expression revealed lingering fear for what could have happened. No matter how powerful late-stage Sages were described through the mouths of people, their strength had remained a vague concept to him. It was only during his direct encounter with Divine Origin had Luo Chen finally felt that indescribable pressure. The pressure hadn’t just come from Divine Origin’s mana; Luo Chen had also felt an oppressive weight on his soul!

The other party had managed to sneak into Hundred-Li Green River undetected, without setting off the protective formation on the mountain in the slightest. This clearly demonstrated the strength of his divine soul. Yet, despite such remarkable stealth, he had been spotted by Black King.

Luo Chen’s question caught Black King off guard. After a stunned moment, he smugly said, ”He was too conspicuous, like a candle flame in a pitch-black night. He woke me up instantly.”

Luo Chen was astounded. ”Conspicuous? How conspicuous exactly?”

”Yep. When that old fart moved, the spirit energy in the area couldn’t wait to rush toward him. Although he forcibly suppressed that tendency, it couldn’t escape me. In case you forgot, the spirit energy within a hundred li around Verdant Mountain has all gathered here due to my breathing. I naturally sense it right away when someone tries to take control of it.”

Black King looked quite angry toward the end. The abundant spirit energy currently on Verdant Mountain had been drawn here during his sleep. He was certainly not pleased to wake up to someone trying to wrest control of it from him.

Luo Chen asked, ”Are you sure it was just spirit energy?”

Black King was stunned. As he mulled it over, he gradually grew bewildered. ”Now that I think about it... maybe it really wasn’t just spirit energy?”

Luo Chen didn’t press him further because he already had a likely speculation in mind: That wasn’t just spirit energy, but the primal energy of the world. In other words, primal qi!

On the surface, it sounded like an impressive achievement that Divine Origin could make primal qi actively seek him out. But in reality, it was by no means a good thing.

Primal qi was tremendously domineering and also incredibly mixed. As the foundational energy from which all things in the world were derived, it contained spirit energy of all attributes, which made it impossible for a Sage to effectively absorb and harness primal qi.

Luo Chen, for example, still hadn’t completely refined the primal qi he had absorbed after comprehending the Law of Withering and Flourishing in the Mirage Dragon Pocket World. But precisely due to the difficulty of this endeavor, he had gained a deeper understanding of primal qi: Only Ascendants could control and utilize this power by carefully sifting through it and extracting the specific spirit energy corresponding to their roots. Sages, on the other hand, needed to avoid primal qi like the plague, ideally by using their Purple Mansion as a barrier.

When a mere Sage got engulfed by a massive amount of primal qi, there were only two possible outcomes: Either they used it to advance to Divine Transformation, or their Nascent Soul would be assimilated and thus become part of the primal qi itself!

Given Divine Origin’s current cultivation, he was still a long way from Divine Transformation. Therefore, only the latter possibility remained.

He didn’t die during that battle at Green Parasol Mountain, but he certainly didn’t come out in one piece! Since primal qi was actively surging toward him, he must have sustained severe damage, to the point that even now, his Purple Mansion still can’t perfectly isolate his Nascent Soul from the outside world. That’s why he chose to retreat of his own accord knowing he was up against three Sages. If we’d actually fought, it’s hard to say who would have emerged victorious, but it would certainly have worsened his injuries.

If that’s really the case, then maybe... dealing with him might not be as difficult as I imagined?

In his contemplation, Luo Chen subconsciously curled his fingers. A trace of something occult flickered between them.

Black King caught this, and his eyes widened at once!

***

The days of peaceful cultivation eventually came to an end. One could not live off others’ generosity without paying anything. The Luo Tian Sect could no longer delay its patrol duties and was to send people to Skypiercing Pass very soon.

Originally, it should have been the Luo Tian Sect’s turn two years ago. Ye Lingtian had allowed them to enjoy these two years of peace, but now, it was finally time.

In the Luo Tian Sect’s main building, Li Yingzhang was talking to the Nether Origin Sect disciple sent by Ye Lingtian, while Heavenjade was standing in a corner.

Li Yingzhang’s expression was one of utmost respect as he tried to... argue. ”Why do we have to send so many people?”

The young cultivator clad in a dark-blue Daoist robe before Li Yingzhang replied with natural arrogance, ”Times have changed. Previously, you were only a major sect. Now that you have a Sage and you’ve been approved as an upper sect, you naturally should contribute more.”

Li Yingzhang never would have expected such a fortunate thing to bring them such misfortune. As he was at a loss for words, Luo Chen walked into the hall.

Li Yingzhang hurried over to receive him. ”Supreme Elder!”

”I’m already aware of the situation.” Luo Chen waved his hand and turned to the young cultivator.

The young man’s cold and proud expression softened as he bowed respectfully to Luo Chen. ”Greetings, Sage Luo. I am Ye Hong!”

Luo Chen nodded and asked with an amiable smile, ”Ye Hong? Are you a descendant of City Lord Ye?”

Ye Hong nodded. ”Yes, he is my grandfather.”

Luo Chen looked pensive for a moment, then asked, ”Is this also his order?”

Ye Hong hastily explained, ”Yes, that is indeed the case. Two years ago, Grandfather announced that the Luo Tian Sect was to be given time to undergo restructuring after its promotion, and that’s how he was able to delay your patrol duties for so long. But the pressure on Skypiercing Pass has been growing. Unfortunately, we can no longer afford to let you rest.”

I see. Luo Chen understood Ye Lingtian’s good intentions. If the Luo Tian Sect wished to enjoy the prestige of an upper sect, it naturally had to shoulder the corresponding responsibilities. The other sects would not stand it when someone only reaped the benefits without making any contributions, and considering the circumstances, Luo Chen knew that two years was already long enough. He had also reached his goal and cultivated a reputation for himself, so he could not really complain.

”I understand. In that case, our sect will dispatch appropriate personnel!”

Ye Hong breathed out in relief. ”Thank you for thinking of the greater good, Sage Luo. Then, I must return at once to report back.”

”Heavenjade, see our guest off.”

”Yes, Master.”

Heavenjade personally escorted Ye Hong out of Verdant Mountain. As she did, she said a few good words to ease the strained mood earlier.

After they left, Li Yingzhang reported to Luo Chen about the requirement from Skypiercing Pass. For their patrol duties, the Luo Tian Sect was to send 100 late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators, 20 Initiates, and 3 Adepts. In case of personnel shortage, every late-stage Qi Refinement cultivator was to be substituted with two middle-stage counterparts, and every Initiate with three late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators. As for Adepts, the possibility of a major sect not having at least three Adepts was out of the question, or else it wouldn’t have qualified as a major sect in the first place.

Since the Luo Tian Sect only had a paltry three hundred members, deploying so many at once meant almost half of their forces would be gone. The sect would suffer a severe blow if anything were to go wrong at the front lines. Luo Chen inquired about the number of personnel dispatched by other upper sects, and Li Yingzhang confirmed that they had it even worse.

Luo Chen nodded slightly. ”It seems the city lord is still treating us quite generously.”

Li Yingzhang gave a wry smile. ”We can afford to send three Adepts, and we can also gather twenty Initiates, although just barely. But we’re really short on late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators; where on earth are we supposed to find a hundred of them now?”

Luo Chen, however, seemed entirely unconcerned about this. ”Fifty will do.”

Li Yingzhang was puzzled. How’s that going to work? We are already sending out fewer people than other upper sects.

Luo Chen stood up and nonchalantly swung his sleeve. ”I’m more than enough to make up for fifty Qi Refinement cultivators.”

Li Yingzhang’s eyes widened in shock. Fifty!? Are you kidding me!? Even fifty THOUSAND of them wouldn’t hold a candle to a single finger of yours. But why would you...

Luo Chen continued with a smile. ”Stillness breeds restlessness. I’d like to pay a visit to Skypiercing Pass to see for myself what the situation is like at the front lines. I imagine the people there will welcome me with open arms!”

No shit they will! Who would refuse the honor of seeing the legendary Great-Grandmaster Alchemist descend at the front lines?