On this day.
Chen Jichuan quietly returned to Wuhe Star.
"It has been a long ti."
Returning to Wuhe Star, which he hadn’t set foot on in years, Chen Jichuan felt a surge of emotions.
Looking back on his life, spanning a total of 8,363 years, he had actually lived for 4,982 years.
It could truly be called long.
His holand in his previous life had a recorded history of only 5,000 years.
Chen Jichuan’s present life had already far exceeded that.
The stars shift.
Billions shine brightly.
Chen Jichuan had witnessed too much, experienced too much, and gained too much.
The peak of Divinity Transformation.
Mastery in four absolute skills.
Trendous harvests.
Even now, though the path ahead seed to end, he still had the option of soldier dissolution and becoming an Independent Immortal.
"Soldier dissolution."
"When the limit of one’s lifespan arrives, it is one of the hardest tribulations under heaven. Cultivators who know there’s no way to extend their lives willingly destroy their physical bodies to preserve their Primordial Spirits, thus escaping the restrictions of lifespan and becoming Independent Immortals."
"But Independent Immortals ultimately seize fortune in defiance of heavenly laws, so the heavens send down calamities specific to them. If they fail to overco these tribulations, they still will die."
"And yet, heaven leaves a sliver of hope in its workings."
"If one can overco twelve cycles of Independent Immortal tribulations, their physical body can be restored, allowing them to return to the mortal realm."
"For great powers of the Fourth Realm of Divinity Transformation who find themselves at the end of the road and unwilling to reincarnate, this becos their final path."
Chen Jichuan had long understood soldier dissolution inside and out.
In recent years.
During his leisure monts, he often considered the road ahead.
When interacting with great Independent Immortals in the starry sky, he frequently asked deeply about the twists and turns of the Independent Immortal path, its advantages and disadvantages, understanding it perfectly.
After much deliberation.
Seeing the limit of his lifespan approach, watching his Dao still unable to break through, stuck at the peak of Divinity Transformation.
Chen Jichuan made his decision—
"Soldier dissolution!"
"I will beco an Independent Immortal!"
Independent Immortals face heavenly tribulations, always needing vigilance, progressing mont by mont. Every thousand years sees a new cycle of tribulations testing them. To embark on this path would undoubtedly help Chen Jichuan’s cultivation and his eventual breakthrough to the Fourth-order.
"If I can overco the tenth tribulation, my realm will already be on par with Fourth-order powers."
"Ordinary Independent Immortals worry about failing the eleventh and twelfth tribulations, because once they embark on the Independent Immortal path, unless they fulfill their tribulations completely, it is nearly impossible to return to the righteous path."
"But I am different."
"As long as I surpass the tenth tribulation, whether I live or die, I can reincarnate, and return to the righteous path."
"With the Daoist realm of a Ten Tribulations Independent Immortal, I will no longer be stuck at the peak of Divinity Transformation and can easily break through."
"While the Independent Immortal path consus ti, it can also be considered a roundabout way to achieve the ultimate goal!"
Chen Jichuan had thought it through clearly.
Now the only concern left was—
"In my current condition, can I still dissolve my soldier essence smoothly and transition into an Independent Immortal?"
Chen Jichuan’s figure flickered as he stood.
He now appeared astonishingly aged, his hair entirely gray, hands emaciated, resembling an old man near the end of his life.
Even more unsettling was—
Green hair grew densely across his body!
"Covered in green hair."
"An ill on in old age."
Chen Jichuan sighed deeply.
There was no doubt that his life had entered its twilight. In fact, as far back as a century ago, he had been feeling increasingly powerless, with green hair gradually growing across his body.
This was neither poison nor illness, but karma.
It was the accumulated consequences and sins from the countless tis he had cursed and slain Divinity Transformation practitioners and Independent Immortals across the starry sky.
Although he had exercised restraint each ti, ensuring his lifespan wasn’t shortened, with only minor losses to his Primordial Qi.
Nonetheless, he had sowed seeds of suffering.
Now in his old age, they had finally blossod.
"Sin accumulated, karma entangled."
"Curses, after all, are not the righteous path. Over the years, I have cursed and slain Nine Tribulations and Ten Tribulations Independent Immortals, leaving nurous hidden dangers unresolved."
"Now they’ve co to haunt , likely preventing even soldier dissolution."
Chen Jichuan’s thoughts stirred, though his actions were swift—
Clang! Clang! Clang!
tallic sword cries erupted as swords descended from the heavens.
A seven-foot sword light pierced through the top of his skull. Chen Jichuan grasped the sword and ended his own life without resistance. The blade ran through, and the Sword Qi road destructively, reducing his mortal body to ashes, obliterating even the tiniest particles.
Erased completely.
All his Mana funneled inward, Primordial Qi preserved, and his Primordial Spirit remained in the world, continuing to transform and strengthen.
In this state.
Once his Primordial Spirit absorbed enough Mana and Primordial Qi, the first round of Independent Immortal tribulations would manifest.
Survive it, and he would beco a First Tribulation Independent Immortal.
The Independent Immortal path begins here.
Typically, cultivators who reach the Fourth Realm of Divinity Transformation, qualified for soldier dissolution, rarely struggle with the first Independent Immortal tribulation.
Unless unlucky.
For instance, if soone was forced into soldier dissolution by having their mortal body destroyed by another. In such cases, the Primordial Spirit might be damaged, and tribulations could descend abruptly, the success of survival hinging on fate.
Chen Jichuan’s na shook the stars, and no one dared provoke him, sparing him this concern.
But he faced another difficulty.
"Karma entangled, with no physical body to shield it, directly binding to my Primordial Spirit."
Chen Jichuan felt the heaviness weighing on his Primordial Spirit, sensed the binding karma pulling him, dragging him toward Abyss Hell and Nine Netherworld Reincarnation.
The pulling force was overwhelming, and resistance was futile.
"This won’t do!"
"I can’t hold on!"
Chen Jichuan stopped forcing his resistance. Seizing the mont before his consciousness completely faded and before plunging into the Underworld, he channeled all his cultivation into deducing the "Xuanwu Black Water Scripture".
Successive progress.
Successive progress.
Successive progress.
...
Chen Jichuan’s cultivation rapidly declined as the deducing progress surged forward at a remarkable pace.
By the ti his cultivation reached the bottom.
The deduction had achieved its tenth iteration and advanced to 20% completion.
"Just a little more!"
Chen Jichuan’s final thought erged before he sank into an endless darkness.
...
In the real world.
Dragon Scale Domain.
Seven Emotions Marsh.
Chen Jichuan opened his eyes. A glimpse of ancient years flashed within them, adding a layer of mystique to his aura, which carried an additional weight of ti.
"One lifeti!"
"It’s over again!"
Chen Jichuan sighed inwardly.
Over 8,000 years of existence, nearly 5,000 years spent cultivating.
Even in the real world.
This lifeti, spanning from beginning to end, lasted twenty years, eleven months, and twenty-seven days.
From a young man of twenty-nine.
To a fifty-year-old middle-aged man in the blink of an eye.
Ti cuts like a blade.
Only in looking back does one realize the sharpness of its edge.
After spending so many years in the Starry Sky World, having it abruptly end evoked a sense of loss and lancholy, difficult to let go.
But fortunately—
"A hundred years later, I’ll be a hero again!"
"This lifeti hasn’t allowed to break through to the Fourth-order or dissolve into an Independent Immortal, but the next life offers another chance."
"I have left behind ’Qilin Treasure dicine’ and the wealth of Wuhe Immortal Sect, cultivated for years in the Starry Sky World. When I live again a century later, I will quickly return to the peak of Divinity Transformation within a very short ti."
"A hundred years to reach Divinity Transformation is no re dream."
"After that, I’ll have nearly five thousand years to seek breakthrough. If I’m still unsuccessful, I’ll have the Independent Immortal path as fallback."
"I don’t need to aim for the eleventh or twelfth tribulations; achieving ten tribulations will be sufficient."
"One way or another, breakthrough will be inevitable!"
Chen Jichuan held unwavering confidence and anticipation for his next life.
Though just recently deceased and having failed to condense his Dao Fruit, the next life required him to forge a new identity, including spending a hundred years in the Dao Fruit World.
That equates to three months in the real world.
Chen Jichuan could bear such a wait.
Having not condensed a Dao Fruit, he no longer paid attention to the ’Immortal Record’ interface, instead summarizing his achievents in this lifeti—
"Cultivation: Peak of Divinity Transformation."
"Alchemy: Third-order peak."
"Artifact Refining: Third-order middle-upper."
"Talisman Making: Third-order middle-lower."
"Array Formation: Third-order upper."
"Cultivation Techniques: Three true sect-level techniques, one quasi-true sect-level technique."
"Magic: Specialized in twenty-six super-level techniques, all reaching the fifth layer, among which ’Wind Thunder All Heavens Great Escape’ showed the deepest attainnt. After reaching the fifth layer, it underwent a thousand rounds of Enlightennt, equivalent to ten thousand years of cultivation, nearly touching the sixth layer."
Cultivation.
Skill.
Cultivation Techniques.
Magic.
These were the four most vital aspects for a cultivator, and he had made imnse progress in all.
When viewed individually, the results were subtle.
But compared to the ti when the Central Continent World had ended, the progress was astonishing.
"At the end of the Central Continent World—"
"Cultivation: Peak of Enlightennt."
"Skills: Alchemy and Artifact Refining just beginning the Third-order, no involvent in talisman formation or arrays."
"Cultivation Techniques: Only one true sect-level technique, "White Tiger Sword Prison Scripture"."
"Magic: Specialized in twenty-two super-level techniques, highest at the fourth realm."
In comparison.
The progress and achievents of this lifeti were extraordinary.
"These accomplishnts in my lifeti stem first from my diligence and perseverance, cultivating fervently without a single day of laziness."
"Second, they rely on various strokes of fortune."
"Be it the ’Immortal Vine Fruit’ obtained while still on Wuhe Star or the inheritance of the Nine Peak Daoist. Without the ’Immortal Vine Fruit,’ I might have been delayed for decades, even centuries, before advancing to Divinity Transformation. Without the inheritance of Nine Peak Daoist, even after reaching Divinity Transformation, without guidance from the star maps, or without the aid of the ’Universe Spirit Shuttle,’ I might have wandered aimlessly for centuries or millennia before finally reaching Magic Sound Mountain, costing imasurable ti."
"Then there is the Suru Immortal Sect."
"As well as other varying opportunities."
"Most notably, the ’Qilin Treasure dicine’ of Qilin Mountain, which proved invaluable. Without the ’Qilin Treasure dicine,’ this lifeti might have seen stuck at the Third Realm of Divinity Transformation, hardly advancing to the Fourth Realm, let alone reaching the peak of Divinity Transformation."
"Because of the Qilin Mountain encounter, I obtained two stalks of ’Qilin Treasure dicine.’ Not only did they grant swift achievent of the peak of Divinity Transformation, but one remains preserved for the next life, allowing swift rise once again. A single opportunity yielding prosperity across two lifetis."
"It was certainly worth the camaraderie shared with Xiao Lan!"
Thinking about these fortunes, Xiao Lan always ca to mind.
Whether the Immortal Vine Fruit, the Nine Peak Daoist, the Suru Immortal Sect, or the Qilin Treasure dicine, all were connected to Xiao Lan.
The Immortal Vine Fruit was obtained through a hint relayed from Gan Chen, who had been kept within Xiao Lan’s Fire Phoenix Ring.
The Suru Immortal Sect.
The Qilin Treasure dicine.
All were due to Xiao Lan’s presence and invitation, leading him along and allowing him to harvest countless benefits.
In the Qilin Mountain confrontation, Xiao Lan was undoubtedly the leading force.
Without her restraining Mo Yanzhen, without her wielding the ’Ten Thousand Demon List,’ Chen Jichuan would never have secured the ’Qilin Treasure dicine.’
"I knew it all along!"
"Following individuals blessed like her could never go wrong!"
In the first half of this lifeti, Chen Jichuan had been looked down on and disrespected by figures like the Ten Star Lords, who believed him dependent on Xiao Lan, labeling him as a man who lived off a woman’s fortune."
Chen Jichuan endured the indignity.
While Xiao Lan ascended to greater heights, he didn’t get to seize her Dao Fruit.
But just by riding alongside her during the first half of her ti, his cultivation years were shortened by several millennia.
When Xiao Lan departed, Chen Jichuan began his rise.
The Ten Star Lords who once held him in contempt perished at the hands of this ’soft-spoken,’ ’dependent man.’
For over two millennia following, Chen Jichuan built connections with nurous allies, his reputation spreading throughout the Golden River Domain.
The early years of humiliation.
The later years of prominence.
Everything had proven worthwhile.
Even though this lifeti hadn’t resulted in condensing his Dao Fruit, the path laid for his next life was a road to glory.
"In my next life, the Fourth-order is within sight!"
Chen Jichuan reflected upon his achievents and summarized them, his joy growing ever fuller, filling his heart.
After a long while.
He suppressed the joy and stepped out of the cave abode.
...
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