Chapter 1071 : A Pillar of Power and Peril

Gazing at the Polarity Supreme Polarity Pill before him, Eldrin Chen could not help but fall into deep contemplation.

A millennium ago, Eldrin Chen had consumed a Primordial Solar Immortal Augmentation Pill. In principle, he should not ingest another Immortal Pill [a pill of immense power used by immortals to enhance their cultivation] that boosts cultivation base for another three thousand years.

It is only because Eldrin Chen possesses an exceptionally profound and solid foundation, coupled with a pair of mid-grade Lifebound Immortal Treasure [a magical artifact intimately bound to a cultivator's life force, used to refine and temper their spiritual power] to temper his spiritual power, that he can consider it. An ordinary Immortal [a being who has transcended mortality through cultivation] who consumed such pills so recklessly would likely ruin their foundational potential.

Yet, even for Eldrin Chen, consuming this Polarity Supreme Polarity Pill would render his spiritual power more unstable and unrefined. For a very long Future [a conventional term for a long period of time to come], he would be unable to take any more Immortal Pill that enhance cultivation.

If he dared to risk consuming another, it would certainly damage his foundational roots, greatly increasing the difficulty of any future breakthroughs.

The reason Eldrin Chen was so eager to take the Polarity Supreme Polarity Pill was to swiftly accumulate his spiritual power to its peak, preparing to charge towards the realm of the Ascendant Immortal 4th Tier [the fourth level of the Ascendant Immortal stage, a significant milestone in cultivation].

Once he broke through to the Ascendant Immortal 4th Tier, Eldrin Chen's strength would enter a period of rapid and explosive growth.

The Three Realms of Ascendant Immortality [the three sub-realms within the Ascendant Immortal stage] are respectively known as the Profound Mystery, the Creation [the act of creation or foundation-building], and the Sky-Touching Realms.

Among these three realms, there is a saying: the Profound Mystery Realm cultivates Immortal Essence [the refined spiritual energy of an immortal], the Creation Realm [the realm focused on building and perfecting one's foundation] solidifies one's foundation, and the Sky-Touching Realm [the realm where one begins to comprehend the fundamental laws of existence] connects one to the Great Path [the fundamental laws and principles of the cosmos, the ultimate goal of cultivation].

Cultivating Immortal Essence in the Profound Mystery Realm naturally means refining one's own Immortal Essence to perfection. An Immortal's cultivation progresses fastest during this stage, requiring only the continuous accumulation of Immortal Essence. Read, share, and discuss at audio~novel.com.

The Creation Realm [the realm of creation and foundation] is for mending one's foundation, specifically patching the inherent deficiencies within oneself.

Cultivators who ascend to immortality through the path of the physical body must cultivate both Path Principles [the fundamental laws and truths of a cultivation path] and a Path Fruit [the ultimate fruit or achievement of a cultivation path] within this realm.

Conversely, Path Principles Immortal [an immortal who ascended via mastering Path Principles] must also cultivate an Immortal Body [a body refined to an immortal level of resilience] within this realm and consolidate their own Immortal Ascension Path Fruit [the Path Fruit achieved upon immortal ascension].

Failing to remedy one's flaws leaves behind fatal weaknesses.

For example, a Path Principles Immortal, while possessing formidable offensive power, lacks the stabilizing willpower of an Immortal Path Fruit [the Path Fruit of an immortal]. They will ultimately be assimilated by their own Path Principles, becoming an emotionless avatar of those principles.

While a Path Fruit Immortal [an immortal who ascended via achieving a Path Fruit] possesses great wisdom and fears not the corrosive agony of Path Principles, the formation patterns of Immortal Artifact [immortal-grade artifacts] and even Immortal Treasure [supreme immortal treasures] are all manifestations of Path Principles. Without mastering Path Principles Power [the power derived from Path Principles], one is destined for limited future achievements.

Furthermore, an Immortal Body is an absolute necessity. Without forging an Immortal Body, one's physical form remains as fragile as a newborn, utterly incapable of bearing the Immortal Embryo [the nascent immortal core] and Primordial Spirit [the spiritual essence of a cultivator]. In combat, one would be forced to guard it with extreme caution.

Therefore, Immortal [immortals] must linger within the Creation Realm for a considerable span of time. They harness the potent power of their Immortal Essence [immortal spiritual energy] to Creation [create or forge] what they lack: an Immortal Body, Path Principles, or a Path Fruit.

Only when all three paths—body, principles, and fruit—have reached the immortal tier, completely mending one's shortcomings and achieving a flawless, leak-proof immortal foundation, does the possibility of further advancement emerge.

Eldrin Chen, who cultivates the Immortal Body, Path Principles, and Path Fruit simultaneously, will not face such complications once he breaks through to the Creation Realm.

He merely needed to continue accumulating Immortal Essence [the foundational energy of an immortal cultivator]; once his Immortal Essence reached a state of perfect fullness, he could advance to the next stage.

For others, it might take seventy or eighty thousand years of arduous cultivation, coupled with the search for rare treasures to mend their foundational flaws, just to progress a single tier.

Some Immortal [a being who has transcended mortality through cultivation] with lesser fortune or talent might even remain stagnant at this realm for seven or eight hundred thousand years.

Yet for Eldrin Chen, progressing within this realm was a matter of steadily accumulating Immortal Essence; he could advance a tier in less than ten thousand years.

For Eldrin Chen, once he broke through to the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm [the middle stage of the Ascendant Immortal cultivation realm], he would have a fair chance of refining the Innate [Primordial] One Breath.

Furthermore, before the Great Tribulation [a cataclysmic heavenly trial] arrived in sixty thousand years, reaching the Sky-Touching Realm [a legendary cultivation realm] was uncertain, but he could at least cultivate to the Ascendant Immortal 6th Tier [the sixth tier of the Ascendant Immortal realm].

"Since that is the case, there is no need for hesitation."

With this thought, Eldrin Chen's heart settled. Without delay, he swallowed the Polarity Supreme Polarity Pill [a supreme elixir of ultimate polarity].

Within the Three Realms of Ascendant Immortality [the three foundational stages of the Ascendant Immortal path], the Profound Mystery Realm [the first and most mysterious of the three realms] was where Immortal Essence grew the fastest. Eldrin Chen had already begun converting his energy into Immortal Essence before achieving immortality; now, the power of Immortal Essence within him had increased more than tenfold since then.

Yet even so, upon consuming the Polarity Supreme Polarity Pill, Eldrin Chen felt an immense and potent medicinal force surge into his body.

The potency of this medicinal energy was overwhelmingly vast. Eldrin Chen spent a full century merely on the initial refinement and conversion of it into Immortal Essence [the foundational energy cultivated by an immortal].

By the time he had completely refined and absorbed the energy, another century had passed. Only then did he realize his Immortal Essence had reached the peak of the Ascendant Immortal 3rd Tier.

"My Immortal Essence has reached a bottleneck. I am not far from the Ascendant Immortal 4th Tier now," Eldrin Chen murmured to himself.

Breaking through to the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm required not only a reservoir of Immortal Essence filled to its absolute limit but also a continuous process of tempering and purifying that very energy.

One had to refine the Immortal Essence until it underwent a qualitative transformation, becoming more potent and condensed, reaching a standard befitting the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm before attempting the breakthrough.

Eldrin Chen possessed a mid-grade Lifebound Immortal Sword [a sword forged from and intrinsically linked to its wielder's life force and cultivation]. By using the sword to temper his Immortal Essence, he could drastically shorten that time.

Although his Lifebound Immortal Sword had only recently advanced to the Middle Grade Immortal Rank, it would take merely another ten thousand years of such tempering to complete the refinement and purification of his Immortal Essence, elevating it to the level required for the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm.

Yet, Eldrin Chen had no intention of waiting. The Creation Immortal Fruit [a legendary fruit said to contain the essence of creation, aiding in profound breakthroughs] he had purchased was precisely for preparing his ascent to the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm.

The Minyan's Alchemy Manual contained a pill formula named the Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill. This pill could assist an Immortal in breaking through to the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm, and the Creation Immortal Fruit served as its primary ingredient.

Once the Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill [a potent elixir that aids in the breakthrough to the Ascendant Immortal Realm] was successfully refined, Eldrin Chen could leverage the pill's power to assail the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm [the middle stage of the Ascendant Immortal cultivation stage].

As long as he broke through to the Mid Ascendant Immortal Realm, and subsequently elevated his Lifebound Immortal Treasure [a cultivator's personal magical artifact that grows with their cultivation] to the Upper Grade Immortal Rank [the highest grade for an immortal artifact], the higher cultivation base and the vastly more powerful Lifebound Immortal Treasure would make the subsequent refinement and tempering of his Immortal Essence [the foundational energy of an immortal] a matter of relative ease.

At that point, it would likely take only about a thousand years for Eldrin Chen to fully consolidate his cultivation.

Exchanging a single Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill to condense over a hundred thousand years of arduous work into a mere millennium was an exceptionally profitable trade by any measure.

After a brief mental calculation, Eldrin Chen set about refining the Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill.

The Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill was a mid-grade Immortal Pill [a pill of immortal rank]. Even at the Ascendant Immortal 2nd Tier [the second tier of the Ascendant Immortal Realm], Eldrin Chen had been confident in his ability to refine it. Now, with the significant growth in his Immortal Essence, the process promised to be far smoother.

In less than a single Sixty-Year Cycle [a conventional cycle of sixty years], Eldrin Chen successfully completed the refinement of the Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill.

"*Hummm—*"

Seated cross-legged before the Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Cauldron [an alchemical cauldron forged from black gold and inscribed with dragon patterns], Eldrin Chen channeled a series of hand seals. The cauldron's lid lifted, revealing three lustrous Immortal Pill spinning within its depths. A satisfied smile touched his lips.

The medicinal potency of one portion of Creation [a fundamental concept of creation and genesis] ingredients could typically yield only five or six Immortal Pill at most. The fact that Eldrin Chen had produced a full three pills from this batch was clear testament to his considerable skill in the alchemical arts.

Typically, only Earth Immortal Realm [a high-level immortal cultivation stage] Patriarch [a venerable leader or founder] can refine more than five pills per batch of the Ascendant Immortal Creation Pill [a legendary pill that aids in ascension to immortality]. An alchemist skilled enough to produce Superior Grade Immortal Pill [high-quality immortal elixirs] would usually only manage to refine two or three of these pills in a single furnace session.

Even the legendary Minyan Immortal, with his mastery capable of crafting Immortal Pill [elixirs of immortality] of the highest grade, typically produced only four or five pills per batch when refining this particular elixir.

"It is time for seclusion and breakthrough," he murmured to himself.

Having successfully refined the Immortal Pill, a wave of profound satisfaction washed over Eldrin Chen.

He emerged from his Seclusion Chamber [a chamber dedicated to deep meditation and cultivation] and made his way towards the mountain's Immortal Spring Grotto [a cavern housing a spring imbued with immortal spiritual energy].

However, just as Eldrin Chen arrived at the Immortal Spring Grotto, he saw Exquisite Jiang flying towards him, her expression a complex tapestry of worry and joy.

Eldrin Chen understood that something significant must have occurred. "What is the matter?" he inquired without delay. Original publication: audio-novel.com (official site) - The source of this chapter.