Chapter 404 - Chapter 404: 403

Chapter 404: 403

“This is the Purple Thunder Destruction Tribulation, a notable one among the trials of becoming an immortal,” explained the ageless elder.

The Golden Taoist’s Golden Pestle Body lived up to its fame; even when hit by the Immortal Purple Thunder, only his clothes were damaged and his body remained unscathed.

After the Purple Immortal Thunder disappeared, the Heavenly Tribulation descended, leaving everyone with grave expressions.

This is a hurdle all cultivators find hard to overcome—The Heart Demon Tribulation.

The Golden Taoist, caught in the Heart Demon Tribulation, stood blankly as everyone with keen hearing could hear his murmuring despite the thundering.

“The Immortal Realm knows I’m about to transcend, they’ve sent people to restore the Immortal Pathway, reestablishing the connection between Jiuzhou and the Immortal Realm. I’ve become an immortal, I’ve become an immortal…”

“…No, don’t try to deceive me, how could such a coincidence happen…”

“…it’s not impossible, I’m destined to become a Heavenly Immortal, it’s not impossible for the Immortal Realm to send someone to greet me…”

“Become immortal! Become immortal! Become immortal! No one can prevent me from becoming an immortal!”

The Golden Taoist, with a blank look in his eyes, reacted to the scenario and received the baptism of the Immortal Thunder.

“Not good, he’s about to transform into an Immortal Body, stop him quickly!”

Everyone’s faces changed in fear. The Golden Taoist was lost in the Heart Demon Tribulation and was about to transform into an Immortal Body through the Immortal Thunder. Without the support of Immortal Power, having only the Immortal Body would lead to a dead end.

Everyone used various methods to attract the attention of the Golden Taoist, hoping to wake him up.

The trials of becoming an immortal didn’t allow external interventions, thus blocking all transmission methods from everyone.

The Golden Daoist bathed in the Immortal Thunder, his body visibly becoming stronger at an astonishing speed. He broke through the Heart Demon Tribulation and became sober again at this moment.

“Golden Taoist, quickly interrupt the immortal tribulation, it’s not too late!” Yuan Shang shouted loudly.

The Golden Taoist felt a body comparable to an Earth Immortal. He turned his head towards the crowd, smiling, “It’s already too late.”

The Golden Taoist spread his arms, basking in the leftover light of the Heavenly Tribulation, relishing his moment of immense power with a hint of helplessness.

“Long Eyebrow, I lied to you. In fact, I’ve been practicing secretly for the past twenty years.”

“Why?” The Long Eyebrow Buddha was taken aback that the Golden Taoist would do such a thing.

“I couldn’t resist. I was so close to becoming an Immortal, simply because there’s no Immortal Pathway, and I couldn’t go to the Immortal Realm to officially become an Immortal. I could not accept that.”

“We are cultivators, we practice to become immortals. Now we don’t know when the Immortal Realm will reconstruct the Immortal Pathway, are we to wait forever?”

“If the Immortal Realm sends someone in a hundred years, all would be well. But what if it happens after a thousand years, or ten thousand years? I don’t want to wait forever, wasting my time…”

The Golden Taoist hadn’t finished talking when his body started to disintegrate into ashes under everyone’s watchful eyes due to the lack of Immortal Power support; ashes turn to ashes, and dust returns to dust.

The cultivation achievement he had meticulously strategized for his entire life dissipated with his death, feeding back into Jiuzhou.

After the death of the Golden Taoist, the atmosphere was heavy, everyone was silent. They seemed to be sending off the Golden Taoist, as well as worrying about their own future.

Yes, who among those who have reached the Transcendence Tribulation Stage would willingly wait for the resurrection of the Immortal Pathway, uncertain of when it will reappear?

But what else can they do if they don’t await? Have the same deep-rooted obsession to become immortal like the Golden Taoist, transcend the Immortal Tribulation, then die in the Heart Demon Tribulation?

Everyone used to be fearless about the Heart Demon Tribulation. Before reaching the Transcendence Tribulation Stage, they had already polished their spiritual platform to be so clear that they have no defects. The Heart Demon will use all means, but it can’t deceive them.

But now, no one is confident in overcoming the Heart Demon Tribulation.

…

Eighty years passed, sighting of the Immortal Pathway is still nowhere in sight. The upper echelons of Jiuzhou have been plunged into an eerie silence. Everyone wishes to cultivate to immortality, but none dare to cultivate too intensely for fear of inadvertently reaching the standards of the Immortal Tribulation and following in the footsteps of the Golden Taoist.

As for the Heavenly Demons from outside the realm, no one paid them any mind. There’s no need to cultivate just to combat the Heavenly Demons.

The ageless elder once said that to the Immortal Realm, the Heavenly Demons from outside the realm are merely small fry. The strong immortals from the Immortal Realm would take care of the Heavenly Demons, and Jiuzhou would be untroubled.

Before the disappearance of the Immortal Pathway, Jiuzhou was at its peak. According to the ageless elder’s calculations, within a hundred years, three to four people might transcend and ascend.

This is a terrifyingly large number.

But all of these who should have ascended have fallen silent.

If we were to discuss advantages, there is one: the cultivators at the Transcendence Tribulation Stage no longer seek to slaughter living beings for rapid leveling. Jiuzhou has entered a rare era of peace, and the ordinary cultivators no longer live their days in constant fear.

Those cultivators who are just a stones’ throw away from the Transcendence Tribulation stage are ambitious, determined to stand at the pinnacle of Jiuzhou. In contrast, those at the edge of human limitation, at the Transcendence Tribulation Stage, are desolate and sorrowful, indulging in wine and merriment in a bid to forget about becoming immortal for a moment.

Yet when they sober up, they stare blankly in the direction where the Immortal Pathway has disappeared, and stay dumbfounded for a while.

It’s too painful.

Whether it’s twenty years or eighty years, it’s just the duration of one closed-door cultivation for those who are at the Transcendence Tribulation Stage.

This is not a matter of time, but the lack of hope for the future.

If they knew that the Immortal Pathway would surely appear after one hundred years, two hundred years, or even five hundred years, no one would care about becoming an immortal, and would simply wait.

But there has to be a timeline.

Many people visited the ageless elder, hoping to get reliable information from this wise man.

The ageless elder couldn’t give a definite answer, and simply advised them to wait patiently.

The ageless elder, who tells others to remain calm, is actually the one who’s most restless.

The Immortal Pathway would not reappear. Even if it did appear again, it won’tcome from the Immortal Realm to welcome Jiuzhou. It’s better if it did not appear at all.

The ageless elder named his cave dwelling the Sealing Self Cave, and refused to meet visitors.

However, astonishing news prompted the ageless elder to leave the mountain once again.

“Long Eyebrow Buddha has gone into a state of madness?!”

Upon hearing the news, the ageless elder rushed to Mount Sumeru.

At this time, the entire Mount Sumeru was shrouded in dark clouds, where even the Buddha light couldn’t penetrate the heavy clouds.

Long Eyebrow Buddha had his eyes tightly shut, mumbling words and exhibiting signs of transcendence – clearly showing that he wasn’t able to control himself.

“What happened?”

The ageless elder was confused. Among all the Transcendences, Long Eyebrow Buddha had the best mental state and would not lapse into a state of madness.

The situation with Long Eyebrow Buddha was perilous. He was desperately trying to suppress his volatile spiritual energy, trying not to break the final boundary, to prevent it from advancing to Transcendence Tribulation.

The novice monk replied: “Master has been behaving strangely for some time; he is no longer chanting scriptures on schedule, but instead is striving to unravel the laws of space and unusual ways to become an immortal. I asked the Master about his intentions, and he said he wanted to use the laws of space to find the Immortal Realm or bypass the Immortal Pathway and become an immortal.”

“I thought it was a great vow set by the Master, so I didn’t take it seriously. Looking back now, Master’s actions were indeed abnormal.”

“Just now, as usual, Master was multitasking, chanting scriptures in the Great Hero Treasure Hall while trying to unravel the laws of space. But as he was chanting, Master stopped unraveling the laws of space. His voice became more and more hurried, and the scriptures he was chanting were replaced by the words ‘becoming immortal.’”

After hearing the novice monk’s explanation, the ageless elder could finally hear clearly what Long Eyebrow Buddha had been murmuring.

The ageless elder sighed. After the departure of the Golden Taoist, Long Eyebrow was the one closest to becoming immortal. Becoming an immortal was not only his goal but also his obsession.

Long Eyebrow Buddha became uncompromising in his pursuit of becoming an immortal, straying off the true path. If this continued, he was likely to meet an outcome where he died, and his cultivation went to naught.

“This is not just Long Eyebrow’s problem, other Transcendences have similar obsessions, but Long Eyebrow’s situation is the most severe.”