Immortality Starts With Investment

The golden Nirvana Sacred Liquid flowed slowly, flecked with countless sparkling motes that shimmered like stars. Amid the shifting radiance, faint divine patterns seemed to flicker. A single whiff penetrated straight to the depths of the soul.

Ye Chen’s spirit surged with vitality. The Heavenly Spiritual Root within him grew even more frenzied, as though it were shouting at him: I want it! I want it!

The Nirvana Sacred Liquid was a byproduct formed while the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade gestated its holy spirit. Most importantly, it did not reside inside the jade itself but circulated outside it.

Normally, it ringed the jade’s surface, seemingly serving some mysterious purpose. Now, it had retreated to the pool at the very crown. This made things infinitely easier for Ye Chen. He could harvest it without damaging the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade at all.

There was, however, one complication. Before emergence, the Holy Spirit’s consciousness remained muddled. Instinct alone would treat the Nirvana Sacred Liquid as part of itself. Any attempt to take it would register as mortal danger, prompting the spirit to emerge prematurely. That was the problem.

Yet Ye Chen did not dwell on it overlong. For him, the liquid’s value far outweighed that of an eight-thousand-times holy spirit. He urgently needed a superior spiritual root to accelerate his growth.

As for this eight-thousand-times spirit—if allowed to continue gestating, its multiplier would indeed climb higher in the future. But by then, eight thousand or even ten thousand times might mean little to him. Thus, he had to claim the Nirvana Sacred Liquid.

The holy spirit itself was optional. Even if it forced the spirit’s premature emergence, he would still take the liquid. Still, the jade’s earlier response to his voice transmission gave him hope. Amid its chaos, the gestating spirit might vaguely sense his goodwill.

A few gentle words could convince it that he bore no malice, preventing its emergence altogether. Then he could place the entire jade into his cave heaven. There, gestation might even proceed faster—a form of compensation.

With that in mind, Ye Chen gently touched the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade, feeling its faint tremor and resistance. He spoke as softly as he could.

”Fellow Daoist, I harbor no hostility toward you! On the contrary, I wish only the best for you. This place has already been discovered. I have prepared a far superior haven for your gestation. It will benefit you greatly. In the future, I will spare no cost to repair the crack in your body. But I face my own difficulty—my cultivation advances too slowly.

”I need your sacred liquid to enhance my spiritual root and hasten my progress. After all, the liquid is merely a derivative of yours, useless to you. If I take it to strengthen myself, I will grow more powerful and better able to protect you—ensuring no external threat ever disturbs you again…”

Holy spirits born from Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade were exceedingly rare. Thus, few in the world truly understood the Nirvana Sacred Liquid.

Directly touched on its main body, the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade felt profoundly unsettled. Though the outer layer was merely a gestational shell that would eventually slough away, being caressed like this made it feel as though Ye Chen were stroking her directly. A strange, twisting discomfort surged through it, intensifying its rejection.

His words only fueled its disdain. This small world had been birthed by the heavens themselves—the most perfect place for its gestation.

How could anywhere else possibly be better?

Liar.

And by the end, it was utterly convinced. This human was simply coveting its body.

Moreover, who told him the Nirvana Sacred Liquid was useless to it? It was vital—immensely so!

Upon emergence, the liquid would fully form. During the tribulation of its birth, it would evolve into a sacred weapon perfectly attuned to it. If its foundation proved deep enough, the liquid might even directly transform into an immortal artifact. Such priceless Nirvana Sacred Liquid ranked among the cultivation world’s supreme treasures.

Yet this human dared claim it held no value to it and that he could take it without issue. Had he no shame?

Compounding its fury, Ye Chen’s hand never stopped moving. Enraged to the extreme, the holy spirit caused its body to tremble even more violently…

…

Meanwhile, Ye Chen continued gently stroking the jade, doing his utmost to convey goodwill to the chaotic spirit within. Noticing the increasing amplitude of the tremors, he smiled. Holy spirits truly possessed remarkable sensitivity. It must be responding to his kindness.

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He spoke at once. ”If you are willing to gift me the Nirvana Sacred Liquid, keep shaking… If you are unwilling, then stop!”

The instant his words fell, the man-high jade—its interior so profoundly hazy that even Heavy Pupils could not pierce it—grew perfectly still. It did not quiver in the slightest, as steady as a pillar anchoring the seas.

Now Ye Chen was genuinely astonished by its spiritual acuity. Without an awakened consciousness, it had still instinctively grasped his meaning.

The only pity was that it couldn’t yet comprehend more complex speech. He had said to keep shaking if willing, but it had misunderstood and stopped instead. Still, Ye Chen paid no mind to such details. As long as the spirit inside was agreeable, all was well!

Grinning warmly, he produced a top-grade jade vial and spoke softly. ”In that case, my thanks.”

In the next moment, he carefully guided the Nirvana Sacred Liquid upward, drawing it into the vial. The Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade sensed every bit of this and nearly shattered from shock.

Watching drop after drop of the liquid vanish into Ye Chen’s possession, its heart bled. That was its future immortal weapon! Overwhelmed by emotion, it nearly abandoned the pretense and roared at him: I clearly stopped—how can you still take it?!

If its divine sense had not yet awakened, instinct alone would have driven the spirit to emerge and slaughter him on the spot. But with consciousness awakened by divine arts, it could now weigh pros and cons—and thus hesitated deeply. The heartache was real. The reluctance was real.

Yet compared to the integrity of its gestational body, those feelings paled. If this human only took the sacred liquid and nothing more, it could perhaps endure the loss. At worst, upon emerging in the future, it would simply hunt him down and exact vengeance.

But if it revealed its awakened consciousness now, escaping later would become far harder. Therefore, though the jade fiercely trembled as if to widen the crack and emerge, it ultimately gritted its metaphorical teeth and endured. It watched helplessly as Ye Chen siphoned away its sacred liquid, drop by precious drop. So wronged it nearly wept…

Moments later, Ye Chen gripped the jade vial, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. Acquiring the Nirvana Sacred Liquid had proven almost effortless. He would gift it to Lan Nuo shortly. The reward she yielded would surely not disappoint. This was in the bag. He glanced back toward the distant battlefield.

Lan Nuo dominated the two holy spirits, unleashing a dazzling barrage. Her performance radiated sheer elegance and overwhelming presence. High in the sky, she bombarded them until cracks spiderwebbed across their bodies; they teetered on the brink of utter annihilation.

By now, others had entered the small world. The moment they arrived, the sight of Lan Nuo single-handedly overwhelming two self-severed saints left them stunned. Those were self-severed saints. Even in their diminished state, their combat prowess far exceeded ordinary peak quasi-saints.

As these newcomers had hurried here, they had debated whether the Heavenly Emperor’s heir or the two saints would prove stronger. None had imagined the one fighting would be Lan Nuo. She had reduced two self-severed saints to origin-crippled wrecks, their cultivation plummeting, on the verge of complete eradication.

Were they dreaming? Did Lan Nuo truly possess strength rivaling the Heavenly Emperor’s heir? Or had he merely held back because he found her beautiful?

For a moment, everyone stared in utter shock. Yet some soon noticed the scene atop the divine peak. When they spotted Ye Chen and the man-high Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade before him—its interior holding a faint, illusory silhouette—their eyes widened in disbelief.

A Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade gestating a holy spirit?

Many present were disciples of great sects, well-read and experienced. They instantly recalled the jade’s companion treasure, and greed flashed in their eyes. The gestation of a holy spirit meant the birth of Nirvana Sacred Liquid, capable of forging a Sacred Spiritual Root!

It was the sole treasure in existence that could elevate a spiritual root to the sacred grade. Few items in the entire cultivation world could compare. A Sacred Spiritual Root—what did that entail?

It was the absurd lineage that, across two lifetimes, had produced two immortals. Practically a guaranteed pass to immortality. And it had appeared in this era?

In that instant, every informed cultivator’s eyes burned red with desire. Whoever obtained it would never hold it in peace; a storm of blood would inevitably follow. Everyone craved it.

The last time Nirvana Sacred Liquid had surfaced predated even the Heavenly Emperor’s age. Immortals had clashed over it, several falling in the carnage. Legend claimed blood rain drenched the heavens for years. This era might lack true immortals, yet once word spread, even Quasi-Immortals would emerge for it. Its importance was beyond measure.

But when their bloodshot gazes shifted to Ye Chen’s calm, smiling sweep over them, the redness instantly faded. Reason returned. They gnashed their teeth in bitter regret.

Outside, even if they couldn’t defeat Ye Chen, they could call for reinforcements. The liquid’s value was enough to shatter all conventions—everyone would gamble their sect’s full heritage, pitting ancestral might against ancestral might.

Here, however, they were on the Immortal Path, in the fourth realm. Only quasi-saints and those below could enter. Not even Quasi-Immortals could take a single step inside. No matter how many elders backed them, none could lend aid. They were on their own.

And yet, Lan Nuo alone toyed with two self-severed saints. How terrifying, then, must the still-untouched Heavenly Emperor’s heir be?

In the fourth realm, he was invincible. Even if every last one of them attacked together, it would be futile. Still, excitement pulsed uncontrollably through them, emotions churning wildly.

Ye Chen paid their stares no mind. If any grew reckless and acted on greed, they would simply contribute another harvest of origin. As for the Nirvana Sacred Liquid, he had no intention of carrying it out. He would give it to Lan Nuo right here and have her consume it on the spot. Once the pure liquid was used, the outside world would naturally lose interest in it.

Of course, such a massive chunk of Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade would still draw countless covetous forces. And Ye Chen had deliberately let them see it—precisely to bait the hook.

You want it? Then come into my cave heaven!

Thus, under the gaze of all present, Ye Chen opened the portal to his cave heaven and prepared to draw the Seven-Colored Nirvana Jade inside.

”Fellow Daoist, this is a wonderful place—do not resist!”

”I’ll reserve the finest spot within my cave heaven just for you!”

”Hurry into my cave heaven…”