Chapter 1442 : Alliance of the Ascendant Immortals

As for Verdant Consort and Nyssa Qu, if they were to achieve a breakthrough, their combat power is estimated to reach the Eighth Level Earth Immortal realm. Working in tandem, they could likely hold their own against a single Earth Immortal Great Perfection [a cultivator at the absolute peak of the Earth Immortal realm].

Calculated this way, that amounts to roughly the combat power of three Earth Immortal Great Perfection cultivators. With the additional aid of five others—Kael Chen, Ethan Chen, Qiyuan Chen, Lila, and Yvonne the Violet Consort—they should at least possess the strength to engage the severely wounded Lord of the Flowing Fire Palace in battle.

Although the group's Mana [the spiritual energy used to power spells and techniques] reserves in depth and potency might not yet match those of an Earth Immortal Great Perfection cultivator, the Lord of the Flowing Fire Star Palace [the ruler of the palace associated with the Flowing Fire Star] is grievously injured and likely incapable of sustaining a prolonged fight.

Therefore, all factors considered, once they break through to the Middle Stage Earth Immortal [the fourth through sixth levels of the Earth Immortal realm], they should be capable of confronting the Lord of the Flowing Fire Star Palace.

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen shook his head once more and sighed, "It has been over fifty thousand years since I broke through to the Second Level Earth Immortal [the second stage of the Earth Immortal realm], yet the accumulation of my Primordial Qi [the foundational life-force energy of a cultivator] has only reached forty percent."

"To advance to the Third Level Earth Immortal [the third stage of the Earth Immortal realm] would require another seventy thousand years or so. The remaining eighty thousand years would be utterly insufficient to reach the Middle Stage Earth Immortal."

Upon hearing his words, a faint sigh echoed in the hearts of all present.

Among them, only Glaze Qu, backed by the resources of the Glazed Blessed Land [a paradisiacal realm rich in spiritual energy], had made the swiftest progress in cultivation. The others had all broken through to the Second Level Earth Immortal not long ago.

By their reckoning, for them to advance to the Middle Stage Earth Immortal realm would require at least two to three hundred thousand years. Eldrin Chen estimated that he himself would also need another two hundred thousand years to achieve the breakthrough.

Judging by the timeline, their goal of breaking through to the Middle Stage Earth Immortal within one hundred and fifty thousand years remained a formidable challenge. This chapter appears courtesy of audio-novel dot com.

"Our cultivation resources are still insufficient," Cultivation Resources [the materials and energies required for advancing one's cultivation path] Eldrin Chen murmured inwardly, then spoke thoughtfully.

"I wonder how many vials of the Galaxy Star-Sand Pill [a precious elixir refined from the essence of celestial stars and cosmic dust] the resources accumulated within the Clan Treasury [the central repository for a clan's wealth and cultivation materials] can purchase?"

Lyra Jiang pondered for a moment before replying, "The Galaxy Star-Sand Pill is far too costly. Without selling our High Grade Heaven-Opening Treasure [a top-tier enchanted artifact capable of cleaving through the heavens], the remaining resources in the treasury would only suffice for three or four vials at most."

"Moreover, this pill is exceedingly rare and precious. It is not something one can simply purchase whenever one wishes."

Eldrin Chen sighed softly upon hearing this. A single vial of the Galaxy Star-Sand Pill contained boundless energy, enough for an ordinary Early Stage Earth Immortal [a cultivator who has recently ascended to the Earth Immortal realm, the first major stage of immortal cultivation] to advance by one full layer of cultivation.

Yet for a cultivator like Eldrin Chen, who had opened the Thirteen-Layered Heavens [a legendary and supremely profound foundation within a cultivator's dantian, representing thirteen layers of perfected spiritual potential], refining at least five vials was required to achieve the same advancement.

The amount needed for Lyra Jiang, Verdant Consort, Nyssa Qu, and the others to elevate their cultivation using this pill would also be a staggering figure.

"For the nine Earth Immortal Progenitor [powerful clan elders who have reached the Earth Immortal realm] of our clan to each advance by one layer, we would likely need over thirty vials of the Galaxy Star-Sand Pill," Eldrin calculated.

"Given the clan's current Deep-Seated Foundation [the profound and extensive accumulation of resources, heritage, and latent power within a clan], it is simply not enough."

Eldrin Chen spoke these words slowly, a palpable sense of immense pressure settling upon him.

Currently, the Chen Immortal Clan possesses nine Earth Immortal Progenitor [powerful cultivators who have ascended to the Earth Immortal realm], and its Deep-Seated Foundation [profound and stable cultivation base] is considered formidable even among the Earth Immortal Blessed Land [regions of immense spiritual fortune suitable for Earth Immortals].

Yet, the more powerful a force becomes, the greater its consumption of resources.

Although the spiritual energy within the Abyssal Sea Region grew denser and birthed vast resources after the fall of Thousand Dragons Lake, it is still insufficient to sustain nine top-tier Earth Immortal [cultivators of the Earth Immortal realm].

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen sighed, "The Flowing Stream Hundred Seas are resource-poor. Relying solely on the three sea regions of Eldrin, the Abyss, Dusk Sun, and Su Wei falls far short of supplying our cultivation needs."

"In truth, from a long-term perspective, even without the catalyst of the Crimson Dragon World-Suppressing Cauldron [a mighty magical artifact], a decisive confrontation with the Flowing Fire Star Palace was inevitable."

Hearing this, everyone present gave a slight, understanding nod.

Compared to the vast Immortal Domain, the resources of the Western Qi Divine Abyss Sea are exceedingly sparse, with the Flowing Stream Hundred Seas ranking dead last among the Thirty-Three Layer Sea Regions.

As the saying goes, shallow waters cannot nurture a True Dragon [a being of immense power and destiny]. Such a barren expanse can scarcely sustain a truly mighty force.

Currently, within the Flowing Stream Hundred Seas, the two supreme Blessed Land [regions of exceptional spiritual fortune] are the Flowing Fire Star Palace and the Glazed Blessed Land.

Among them, the Glazed Blessed Land can cultivate its own heavenly and earthly resources, having little need for external supplies. It is the Flowing Fire Star Palace that monopolizes the lion's share of the Flowing Stream Hundred Seas's resources.

According to Eldrin Chen's knowledge, among the hundreds of seas within the Flowing Stream Hundred Seas, the core Earth Vein [the spiritual arteries of the land that concentrate and channel vital energy] of thirty-eight seas were occupied by the Flowing Fire Star Palace. This number even included three Blessed Land [regions of exceptionally concentrated spiritual energy, ideal for cultivation].

In truth, there were originally eleven Blessed Land within the Flowing Stream Hundred Seas. The reason only eight remained now was fundamentally because the Flowing Fire Star Palace lineage monopolized four of them.

Under these circumstances, if the Chen Immortal Clan wished to rise and become a top-tier Earth Immortal Blessed Land [a Blessed Land powerful enough to support Earth Immortal cultivators], or even glimpse the realm of a Supreme Grotto-Heaven [a transcendent realm of ultimate spiritual purity and power], then the Flowing Fire Star Palace was their stumbling block. Sooner or later, the two sides would have to settle the score.

There was no other way. The meager resources of the Flowing Stream Hundred Seas simply could not sustain two supreme Blessed Land.

"Resources... resources."

Eldrin Chen let out a soft sigh before finally speaking. "Regardless, before the Crimson Dragon World-Suppressing Cauldron [a mighty cauldron artifact capable of suppressing worlds] successfully advances, Lyra and I must break through to the Middle Stage Earth Immortal [the intermediate stage of the Earth Immortal cultivation realm]. Otherwise, overcoming this hurdle will be exceedingly difficult." Original publication: audio~novel.com - The source of this chapter.

"After this journey concludes, regardless of our gains, we must purchase cultivation-augmenting Treasure Pill [pills of immense value that greatly boost cultivation progress] at the next grand auction."

"Understood."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded slightly.

They understood Eldrin Chen's meaning. The High Grade Heaven-Opening Treasure [a supreme-grade treasure of world-shattering power] served as the clan's Deep-Seated Foundation [a profound and unshakable foundation for a clan's power and legacy]. It was also one of their key means to contend against the Flowing Fire Star Palace. They would not part with it lightly unless driven to the absolute brink.

Under such circumstances, to purchase sufficient Immortal Treasure and Rare Object [precious artifacts and rare materials used by high-level cultivators], the entire clan would have to tighten its belt and make sacrifices to prioritize their breakthrough.

In this situation, not only low-level cultivators, but even they, these Earth Immortal Progenitor [powerful cultivators who have attained the Earth Immortal realm], would have to temporarily slow their own cultivation, freeing up resources to prioritize nurturing the combat strength of two Earth Immortal Great Perfection [cultivators who have reached the pinnacle of the Earth Immortal realm].

With the clan's survival at stake, none of them voiced any objections.

Seeing this, Eldrin Chen said no more. He retrieved a map of the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea [a vast, perilous demonic realm] from his sleeve, and after a moment, his brow furrowed slightly as he spoke.

"It seems we must still make a trip to the Demon-Slaying Hall [a hall or organization dedicated to hunting demons] and travel with the group led by that Zixuan the Daoist."

The others were momentarily taken aback by his words. They glanced at the map and soon understood the reasoning behind it.

When an Immortal [a being who has ascended to immortality] slays a Demonic Cultivator [a practitioner of malevolent, demonic arts] or someone deeply entangled with Karmic Burden [the metaphysical weight of negative actions and fate], they can receive immense Merit [a metaphysical "currency" representing good karma or virtuous deeds], coalescing a Merit's Pure Radiance [a protective aura of pure, virtuous light] to shield their body. This is no small temptation.

Given this, naturally, many venture into the demonic realms to hunt Demonic Cultivator.

However, Demonic Cultivator are all formidable, and those bearing Boundless Karmic Sin [an immense accumulation of negative karma] are often exceptionally powerful combatants. Slaying them to accumulate merit is far from an easy task.

Within the Azure Firmament Immortal Domain [a celestial realm of immortals], countless Immortal journey to the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea each year to slay Demonic Cultivator and gather merit. Yet, of these Immortal, those who return often number less than four in ten.

The fundamental reason lies not only in the formidable strength of the Demonic Cultivator within the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea, but more critically, because the Heaven and Earth Origin [the primordial essence of heaven and earth] of that realm has fallen into corruption. The very Primordial Source Treasure [a treasure born from the world's foundational essence] of that world has transformed into a Dark Demonic Treasure [a treasure of immense demonic power].

Within the entire expanse of the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea, all is chaos and disorder. The Demonic Path [the Way of Demonic Cultivation], the Unorthodox Path [heretical cultivation arts], practitioners of Unorthodox [unorthodox divine abilities], and countless other factions rise and contend for power.

Within its depths, even the Heavenly Dao Power [the power of the Heavenly Dao, the cosmic law] has become tainted, spawning a demonic nature. An ordinary Immortal [a cultivator who has ascended to immortality] stepping into the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea is like a candle's flame in utter darkness, exceedingly vulnerable to being hunted and encircled by Demonic Cultivator and followers of the Unorthodox Path.

Even a Heaven Immortal [a higher-tier immortal] entering its domain would face rejection from the corrupted dark Heavenly Dao [the Heavenly Dao, the cosmic law], along with assaults from multiple Demonic Path, heretical sects, and Unorthodox Grotto-Heaven [a blessed paradise realm, often a cultivator's personal domain]. Venturing deep within, the chances of survival are less than one in ten.

According to the records on the map, thirty million years ago, an Ancient Immortal Great Power [a supremely powerful ancient immortal], leading countless Immortal, launched an assault upon the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea, intending to eradicate the Demonic Path in one fell swoop and coalesce the legendary Merit Golden Light [the radiant light of accumulated virtuous merit].

Yet, after that great battle, over ten Heavenly Immortal Paragon [peak-level Heaven Immortals] perished. Even the Ancient Immortal Great Power suffered a crushing defeat and retreated, soon after passing away within his own Grotto-Heaven.

Therefore, entering the Nether Abyss Purgatory Sea to slay demons, achieve the Dao, and condense the Merit's Pure Radiance [the pure radiance of merit] is an exceedingly perilous endeavor. Discover more cultivation stories at (audio-novel.com).