Chapter 1036 : The Fallen Pillar and the Crimson Sun

"Now!"

Seeing this, Immortal Maiden Azure Luan instantly summoned a length of azure silk, which swiftly coiled around the Celestial Pillar [one of the four divine pillars supporting the heavens].

This silk, named the 'Gale Feather-Filigree Ribbon', was Immortal Maiden Azure Luan's signature treasure, its rank reaching the lofty tier of a Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure [the pinnacle grade of immortal artifacts].

Like the final straw that breaks the camel's back, the ribbon wrapped around the Celestial Pillar and gave a mighty pull, actually toppling the colossal pillar.

"BOOM!"

In that instant, with one of the Four Extremities Celestial Pillars [the four divine pillars that uphold the corners of the world] felled, the entire Earth Immortal World [a realm sustained by immense spiritual power] began to shake violently.

Eldrin Chen felt the heavens spin and the earth turn; the vast Earth Immortal World seemed on the verge of flipping over entirely.

"Success!"

Watching the Celestial Pillar collapse and transform into a divine tree, the group's faces lit up with joy.

That Lingering Sun Child wanted to seize the divine tree, but saw it swiftly whisked away by Immortal Maiden Azure Luan. His expression darkened profoundly, and he nearly lunged forward to snatch it by force. The complete novel can be found at audio—novel.com.

Seeing this, the Immortal Maiden Azure Luan spoke calmly, "There are four Four Extremities Celestial Pillars. We can each take one and still have one left. Why be so hasty to turn hostile?"

The Azure Firmament Goddess was about to speak when her expression suddenly shifted to one of profound gravity.

For in that moment, the heavens and earth trembled. From the distant, boundless end of the Heavenly Vault, a hazy, indistinct source of light began to bloom.

"It has awakened!"

The three murmured, their faces etched with unparalleled solemnity.

Eldrin Chen looked up. Above the endless Heavenly Vault, he saw a crimson sun slowly descending.

At first, they all thought it was a true celestial body. But as it drew nearer, its silhouette gradually clarified, revealing its true form to the astonished onlookers.

It was an immeasurably ancient alchemical furnace. Forged seemingly from crimson bronze, its body was etched with countless weathered patterns, exuding an aura of profound antiquity.

With but a single glance, Eldrin Chen sensed that this furnace was older than the very world around them.

It had weathered tens of millions of years, a primordial treasure born even before the opening of this heaven and earth.

In the primordial dawn of this world's creation, an ancient Immortal [a being who has transcended mortality and attained eternal life] used this object to World-Opening [the foundational act of separating chaos to form a new cosmos], infusing it with the exceedingly rare and precious World-Opening Energy [the primordial creative force released during the genesis of a universe]. It ultimately transformed into a World-Opening Treasure [an artifact of supreme power, forged from the very essence of creation itself].

Indeed, this was a World-Opening Treasure.

Its name was the 'Solar Flame Divine Furnace' [the Divine Furnace of Solar Flames], one of this world's Three World-Opening Treasures [the three supreme artifacts born from the act of creation], and the only one among them that had fused with the World-Opening Energy.

"Hmm—"

In that very instant, a profound silence descended upon the heavens and the earth.

Eldrin Chen looked up. He saw the Solar Flame Divine Furnace unleash countless divine chains woven from Path Principles [the fundamental laws and truths that govern cultivation and reality itself]. An immeasurably vast power pierced through the cosmos, miraculously stabilizing the heavens and earth that had been on the verge of collapse.

Immediately after, the Solar Flame Divine Furnace trembled slightly, then descended with crushing force towards the trio: Lingering Sun Child, Azure Firmament Goddess, and Immortal Maiden Azure Luan.

"Hold it back!"

As the Solar Flame Divine Furnace bore down upon them, expressions of utmost gravity settled on the faces of all three.

Daring not hold back in the slightest, they instantly unleashed their most formidable techniques, their combined might surging forth to meet and contest the descent of the Solar Flame Divine Furnace.

In a single Ksana-time [an infinitesimal unit of time from Buddhist cosmology, less than a second], the Myriad Miles Lingering Sun Pearl, the Gale Feather-Filigree Ribbon, and the Azure Firmament Divine Thunder Mirror blasted forth in rapid succession, colliding with the Solar Flame Divine Furnace.

This was a clash between a Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure and a World-Opening Treasure, unleashing the earth-sundering might of a World-Opening strike from the very first blow.

In that instant, the entire world roared. Within the vast expanse of the Earth Immortal Blessed Land [a realm of profound spiritual energy cultivated by an Earth Immortal], mountains and rivers shifted, and the very landscape underwent a massive transformation.

Affected by this upheaval, structures like the Scripture Pavilion within the Blessed Land erupted with radiant light, and dozens of streaks of light actually flew out from them.

It seemed these spiritual treasures possessed a will of their own. Sensing the imminent collapse of the Blessed Land, many of the Immortal Artifact [powerful enchanted artifacts used by Immortals] within the Earth Immortal Blessed Land had taken flight from the Scripture Pavilion and the Artifact Forging Pavilion.

"A perfect opportunity!" The complete novel can be found at audio-novel . com.

Seeing the dozens of luminous streaks take flight, many of the Immortal immediately surged forward, beginning to vie for them.

Eldrin Chen and the Void-Refining Immortal were not slow either. In the blink of an eye, they had each seized a streak of immortal light.

With so many contenders, Eldrin Chen only had time to secure two ancient scrolls before realizing the majority of the Spiritual Object [objects imbued with spiritual energy] had been claimed by the other Immortals.

He was about to withdraw when he noticed a black-gold Great Cauldron adorned with dragon patterns soaring up from the Artifact Forging Pavilion, flying directly toward him.

And the one who pursued closely behind the Great Cauldron was none other than the Crimson Dragon Child.

"Forged from Dragon-Patterned Black Gold?"

"Most likely a supreme treasure."

With fortune right before his eyes, Eldrin Chen acted decisively. His Five-Colored Divine Light swept out, collecting the Great Cauldron, before he transformed into a streak of light and shot towards the exit of the ruins.

Behind him, the Crimson Dragon Child's face twisted with madness, his roar of fury shaking the air: "That upstart Eldrin, how dare you steal this venerable one's treasure! You deserve death!"

"…"

Faced with the Crimson Dragon Child's frenzy, Eldrin Chen remained utterly unperturbed, his expression unchanged.

He and the Void-Refining Immortal flew out of the ruins together. As they departed, he glanced back and saw that the great battle in the void had already reached its conclusion.

The Solar Flame Divine Furnace, infused with World-Opening Power and bolstered by the power of an entire Earth Immortal World, unleashed a force that suppressed all opposition. Even the combined might of three peak Immortals, each wielding a Supreme-Grade Immortal Treasure, was insufficient to overcome it.

All three were defeated, with no possibility of turning the tide.

The azure luan, bleeding profusely, fled deep into the Spatial Rift [a tear or fissure in the fabric of space] and vanished from sight in an instant.

The Verdant Firmament Thunder God transformed into a streak of lightning, disappearing to who knows where, while Lingering Sun Child relied on the Myriad Miles Lingering Sun Pearl [a magical pearl that can project the power of the lingering sun across vast distances] to barely resist, fleeing desperately towards the outer reaches of the Earth Immortal World [a realm inhabited by Earth Immortals, beings who have transcended mortality but are not yet true celestial immortals].

With another glance, Eldrin Chen realized he was already outside the ruins.

"Let's go!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Eldrin Chen immediately departed with the Void-Refining Immortal [an immortal title signifying mastery over refining the void], vanishing into the emptiness of the void in the blink of an eye.

"..."

The two had no time to inventory their treasures. They traveled for several months before finally returning to the Crimson Dragon Sea.

Upon their return to the Crimson Dragon Sea, they headed straight for Green Chariot Island.

"How did it go?"

Seeing the two return in such a frantic hurry, Exquisite Jiang and Verdant Consort hurried over, unable to resist asking.

Eldrin Chen exchanged a glance with Void-Refining Immortal [a title for an immortal who has mastered the art of refining the void], then took a deep breath and said, "Let us first take stock of the treasures."

"Agreed."

Void-Refining Immortal [a title for an immortal who has mastered the art of refining the void] also nodded.

As they spoke, the two of them brought out the spoils from their journey.

When they laid out the harvest before them, even Exquisite Jiang's expression shifted dramatically. "So many?" she exclaimed, utterly astonished.

"Even more than I imagined."

Gazing at the treasures before him, Eldrin Chen drew another deep breath.

Although this treasure hunt had been perilous in the extreme, even incurring the wrath of Crimson Dragon Child and Nether Wind Immortal, the rewards it yielded for the two of them were immense.

Eldrin Chen began his inventory, swiftly sorting the haul into clear categories.

The treasures they had acquired were numerous and could broadly be divided into three main categories: Immortal Treasure [powerful enchanted artifacts used by immortals], ancient tomes of inheritance, and Immortal Herb [plants of immense spiritual potency used in high-level alchemy] and Spirit Herb [plants imbued with spiritual energy, used in cultivation and pill-making].

Among these, Spirit Herb [plants imbued with spiritual energy, used in alchemy and cultivation] were the most abundant. Because the Blessed Land [a region of concentrated spiritual energy and natural fortune] and the Earth Immortal World [a higher plane of existence for powerful cultivators] had remained untouched for hundreds of thousands of years, they had accumulated a truly incalculable number of Spirit Herb.

Eldrin Chen conducted only a preliminary inventory, yet he discovered that the Spirit Herb he had obtained numbered in the millions.

The majority of these Spirit Herb were only at the Golden Core [the third major stage of cultivation, where energy condenses into a solid core] or Infant Soul [the fourth major stage, where the cultivator's nascent soul takes form] level. However, there was no shortage of Primordial Solar Spirit Herb [spirit herbs of immense power, corresponding to the Primordial Spirit realm] that surpassed the Primordial Spirit [the fifth major stage, where the cultivator's spirit achieves a fundamental transformation] realm.

Just the Sixth Rank [a classification denoting the sixth major stage of cultivation] Primordial Solar Spirit Herb, which Eldrin Chen harvested, amounted to over three thousand specimens. Among these, more than thirty were ancient herbs that had transcended their inherent limits.

These ancient herbs had surpassed the limits of the Primordial Spirit realm. Nurtured within them was a wisp of Immortal Energy [a pure, transcendent energy of the immortal realms]. They were but a single, final step of metamorphosis away from becoming true Immortal Herb [legendary herbs of the immortal realms, possessing miraculous properties]. Original English translation available at audio novel.com.