Chapter 1002 : The Ancient Path to Immortality

"It is complete!"

One hundred years later.

Within the Boundless Starry Sky, the Demonic Abyss stretched across heaven and earth, and within that abyss, an ancient path snaked its way into the depths of the void.

Deep within this ancient path, Eldrin Chen stood shoulder to shoulder with Lyra Jiang and the others, gazing silently at a celestial stele before them.

Ever since the fall of the Extraterrestrial Demon God all those years ago, Eldrin Chen had extensively gathered the relics of the Demon Race and constructed this Path to Immortal Ascension at the End of the Demonic Abyss.

To forge this Path to Immortal Ascension, Eldrin Chen had conscripted hundreds of millions of cultivators. Over the course of more than a century, they had expended an incalculable amount of Spiritual Object [rare materials imbued with spiritual energy], ultimately succeeding in refining the Path to Immortal Ascension.

Upon this ancient path, Eldrin Chen had left behind countless legacies and opportunities, among them treasures of the Pure Yang Grade [a supreme realm of cultivation].

When future generations tread upon this Ancient Path to Immortality, even a fraction of its blessings would be enough to benefit them for a lifetime.

Thinking of this, Lila who stood nearby spoke up: "The Ancient Path to Immortality is complete. When shall we ascend to the Immortal Realm?"

"Ascend..." Read the full novel exclusively on audio–novel.com.

Upon hearing this, Lyra Jiang [the Immortal Maiden Lyra] also revealed a faint smile in her eyes.

Ascend to Immortal Eternity [to transcend mortality and ascend to the eternal realm of immortals], to soar into the Immortal Realm [the celestial plane where true immortals reside], was the lifelong pursuit of countless cultivators. Having reached this stage themselves, they naturally yearned for the Immortal Realm with profound longing.

However, Eldrin Chen [the Abyssal Emperor Eldrin] standing nearby shook his head and spoke, "Before ascending, I intend to journey into the depths of the starry void. Consider it a final act to sever a lingering threat for the Purple Realm [the world known as the Purple Realm]."

"Sever a threat for the Purple Realm?" Verdant Consort [the Verdant Consort, a powerful immortal] frowned slightly, a flicker of surprise crossing her features as she inquired.

"Indeed."

Eldrin Chen nodded. With a sweep of his sleeve, he manifested the constellations of the cosmos, as if performing some profound calculation.

At his current realm, his immortal eyes alone could perceive the mysteries of heaven and earth. Mundane affairs of the mortal world could scarcely be hidden from him, and he no longer required the assistance of the Star-Gazing Tower [a mystical artifact for celestial divination] to deduce worldly events.

After only a brief moment, Eldrin Chen retracted the Great Derivation Yin-Yang Stellar Dao [the supreme art of stellar derivation based on Yin and Yang principles] and looked at the others. "The Purple Realm drifts within this expanse of void. Should its location be exposed, calamities may yet descend upon it."

"Although we have refined the Demonic Abyss [the Demonic Abyss, a chaotic spatial anomaly] and used it to shroud the Purple Realm, there remains one final matter that requires resolution."

Lyra Jiang's pupils contracted slightly. "You mean...?" she could not help but ask.

"Hmm."

Eldrin Chen nodded, his gaze seeming to pierce through the Boundless Void to behold the Great Thousand World that lay on the other side of the starry The Other Shore.

Endless Primordial Chaos filled the cosmos, and the Great Thousand World within were as countless as the sands of the Ganges.

Within this universe, the myriad Great Thousand World shone like stars. Even the Great Luo Immortal Lord residing within the Nine Heavens Celestial Court might not be able to calculate their exact number.

The starfield where the Purple Realm was located was a particularly remote and desolate corner of the deep starry expanse.

Such remote and obscure corners of the cosmos were virtually innumerable, making it exceedingly difficult for them to draw the attention of the greater powers.

Yet Eldrin Chen understood that while this place was desolate, the possibility of its discovery was not entirely absent.

"This is the place!"

Eldrin Chen traversed the Endless Void, crossing an immeasurably vast distance, until he finally arrived before an ancient, yet utterly ruined world.

It was a shattered world, its entire surface scoured by endless winds and blanketed in desolate sands.

Within this expanse of heaven and earth, ancient immortal mountains had been brutally sheared off, and the World's Primordial Membrane [the fundamental barrier separating a world from the primordial chaos] was torn asunder, leaving a gaping, colossal rent.

The spiritual energy [the vital essence that permeates all things and fuels cultivation] of heaven and earth had drained away completely. Across the eight directions of the world, fire, storms, and tsunamis raged in relentless succession, painting a scene of true cosmic annihilation.

"The Void Realm,"

Lyra Jiang murmured softly as she gazed upon this ruined world, her expression turning grave.

This Void Realm was once a Great Thousand World [a major world within the cosmic hierarchy]. Though its glory paled in comparison to the Purple Realm, over millions of years it had produced three Immortal [beings who have ascended to true immortality].

Such a illustrious world held significant standing among the myriad starry realms; ordinary Demon God [powerful demonic entities] would think twice before provoking it. Continue reading this story at audio-novel.com (official site).

Alas, in his quest to annihilate the Purple Realm, the Calamity Demon God [a demon god who brings cataclysm] did not hesitate to forcibly assault the Void Realm. He captured eight of its Demi-Immortal [cultivators one step below true immortality] to refine the Eight Demons Immortal Refining Formation [a formation that refines immortals using eight demonic powers].

In that cataclysmic battle, the Void Realm's Heaven and Earth Will [the collective consciousness and destiny of a world] was shattered. The vast world was nearly torn apart completely, and billions upon billions of living beings could not escape the world-ending calamity.

Now, nearly three Millennium [periods of one thousand years] later, the spiritual energy of the Void Realm has leaked away entirely. The ambient spiritual energy between heaven and earth has grown so thin it is nearly extinct.

Consequently, within this once-great Great Thousand World, the number of living beings is less than one ten-millionth of what it once was. Astonishingly, the highest cultivation realm among its practitioners now reaches only the Nascent Soul Realm [the realm where a cultivator forms their nascent soul, a spiritual infant].

"The Cataclysm of World's End, the twilight of heaven and earth."

Gazing upon the Great Thousand World before him, Eldrin Chen could not help but sigh, a trace of helplessness coloring his expression.

Had it not been for generations of heroes from the Purple Realm resisting with their lives, had they not fought desperately to quell the final calamity, this very scene might well have been the fate of the Purple Realm.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen sighed once more and stepped into the Void Realm. "Let us go in and see."

"Father! Father!"

The setting sun bled across ten thousand Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters], an endless sea of yellow sand.

A youth, bare-chested, trudged through the desert carrying an old man withered by hardship on his back.

The old man's lips were parched and cracked. Looking down at the youth beneath him, he spoke with a bitter smile, "Foolish child, your father is spent. Do not worry for me. You must keep walking. You must find the Crimson Profound Oasis."

"Father, hold on just a little longer. The Crimson Profound Oasis lies just ahead."

"They say there are cultivators [practitioners of the mystical arts] at the Crimson Profound Oasis, Immortal [a being who has achieved great power and longevity through cultivation] of great compassion. We will surely survive."

The youth shook his head resolutely, a glimmer of tears welling in his pupils.

To mortals, this desolate land was akin to a living hell. Not long ago, the oasis where they had made their home was utterly destroyed amidst a sandstorm.

Though their group had escaped with their lives, after traversing the vast desert to this point, only the father and son remained.

Perhaps the youth's determination moved the heavens. After cresting one more dune, they finally saw, at the distant edge of the world, an oasis gracing the desert sands.

"Father, Father, look! It's the Crimson Profound Oasis!"

"We are saved."

Ecstatic, the youth couldn't help but shake his father, ready to summon his last ounce of strength to run towards it.

But at that very moment, he saw it—a boundless wall of sand and dust surging from the horizon, threatening to engulf both the Crimson Profound Oasis and them completely.

"It's over!"

Watching the sandstorm bear down upon them, the youth slumped to the ground, his face etched with utter despair.

His journey had drained him to the last dregs of his strength; sheer will alone kept him moving, let alone sustaining the hope of finding another oasis.

"Alas…"

In that very moment, the youth heard a sigh. From the horizon's edge, boundless immortal radiance cascaded down, and where it passed, the sandstorm calmed in an instant.

Immortal light and spiritual rain showered between heaven and earth. Vast stretches of desert transformed before his very eyes, miraculously becoming a verdant grassland.

After what felt like an eternity, the youth felt his vigor restored, his very being having undergone a profound metamorphosis.

Lifting his gaze, he finally discerned a figure standing at the edge of the void, its silhouette reminiscent of a Nine Heavens Banished Immortal.

"Is that… an Immortal [a being who has transcended mortality and ascended to a higher plane of existence]?" Official source: audio-novel`com. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.