Chapter 1512 : Into the Silent Stellar Depths

After reaching an agreement with Heaven Sorrow Human Sovereign, Eldrin Chen and Glazed Divine Lord departed from the Human Sovereign Nebula.

Upon returning to the Netherworld Small Universe, Eldrin Chen recounted the details of their journey to the others.

After listening, Exquisite Jiang spoke up, "The Human Sovereign who cultivated the Dual Primordial Unity Foundation has been replaced by Heaven Sorrow Human Sovereign, who follows the Single Primordial Unity Foundation."

"Our expected support has diminished somewhat, but we have still managed to forge an accord with this realm's Human Race. We can now proceed with our plans."

Eldrin Chen gave a slight nod. "By my reckoning," he said, "the forces from the Immortal Domain should be arriving soon."

"We can take the initiative and enter the Solar Realm Small Universe first to gather Myriad Stellar [the countless stars and celestial bodies] for refining the Galaxy Star Sand Pill."

Violet Mystery Path Master voiced a concern, "If we enter prematurely, might we draw the attention of the Demon Race and the Divine Clan Great Emperor?"

Eldrin Chen pondered for a moment before replying, "It should be fine. The Heavenly Path [the natural order of the cosmos] within the Small Universe is unstable, its rules fading into silence. Within that Small Universe, countless Stellar [stars and celestial bodies] are undergoing Oblivion [annihilation and return to nothingness] every moment."

"If we conceal our auras and merely collect some Stellar without disturbing those eighth-rank Ancient Star, the risk of exposure should be minimal."

Hearing this, the others nodded in agreement.

Glazed Divine Lord [a title for a powerful cultivator who has attained a high level of enlightenment] pondered briefly before speaking. "Currently, the Small Universe [a miniature, self-contained cosmos] is in constant turmoil. Under the threat of the world-ending crisis, every race is preoccupied with its own survival and will not pay attention to us for the time being."

"Furthermore, three hundred years from now, when the rift in the Solar Realm Small Universe [a specific miniature cosmos dominated by solar energies] is torn open by the great powers of the Immortal Domain [the higher realm where true immortals reside], they will have even less capacity to concern themselves with us."

Seeing this, Heaven Abyss Path Master spoke up. "Then we must conceal our auras and forms. Remember, do not reveal our identities."

With those words, the group left Ancient Ruins Nether Lord behind to hold the fort, while the rest proceeded into the Solar Realm Small Universe.

Upon entering the Small Universe once more, Eldrin Chen began to continuously draw upon the boundless Stellar [the essence and power of stars].

Within this Small Universe, other things might be scarce, but stars were nearly infinite in number, so numerous that describing them in terms of billions or trillions would not be an exaggeration.

Eldrin Chen ceaselessly drew in stars and their Stellar, channeling vast quantities of stars and those containing traces of the Human Race into the Returning Abyss Realm [a realm under his control]. He fused them into the Returning Abyss Realm, transforming them into celestial Stellar within its outer firmament.

He journeyed on, drawing them in without pause. Unconsciously, over two hundred years passed, during which he absorbed more than thirty million stars. Only then did he halt the process of integrating them into the Returning Abyss Realm.

"It has reached its limit."

Eldrin Chen murmured inwardly. The Outer Starry Sky [the celestial expanse surrounding a realm] of the Returning Abyss Realm had finite capacity. Absorbing over thirty million Stellar in one go had already pushed it to its absolute limit.

According to Eldrin Chen's estimation, if he were to break through to the Earth Immortal Great Perfection realm, the absolute limit of spiritual energy he could refine would exceed three hundred million Stellar [a unit of measurement for vast quantities of spiritual energy].

The cultivation path of the Earth Immortal Realm is broadly divided into four stages: World-Opening [the initial act of creating one's inner world], activating the world's magnetic polarity field, evolving the celestial starry sky, and nurturing the Heaven Earth Profound Yellow [the foundational, primordial energy of heaven and earth].

The key to breaking through to the Early-stage Earth Immortal realm lies precisely in the World-Opening event.

To advance to the Middle Stage Earth Immortal realm, one must activate the world's Polarity [the fundamental opposing forces of yin and yang] magnetic field, causing the foundational energy to undergo an ultimate transformation.

Once the world's magnetic field is activated, progressing further to open up an Outer Starry Sky [a boundless celestial expanse beyond the inner world] allows one to break through to the Late Stage Earth Immortal realm.

Generally, only those in the Late Stage Earth Immortal realm, having cultivated their Four Extremities Celestial Pillars [the four foundational spiritual pillars representing the cardinal directions] to their utmost limit and having them pierce through the endless Heavenly Vault [the dome of the sky], are capable of opening such an Outer Starry Sky.

Once the Outer Starry Sky is opened, it can evolve infinite Cosmic Stellar [stars and celestial bodies]. With the empowerment of this Myriad Stellar [countless stars] force, the power of the cultivator's inner world surges by more than thirty percent.

Furthermore, after breaking through to Late Stage Earth Immortal, the Earth Immortal World [the cultivator's personal inner realm] itself expands by over fifty percent. Consequently, the spiritual power of a Late Stage Earth Immortal is at least eighty to ninety percent greater than that of a Sixth Level Earth Immortal.

Therefore, it typically requires at least three Sixth Level Earth Immortal experts joining forces to have a chance of contending with a single Seventh Level Earth Immortal powerhouse.

Only the rarest of existences, those who have opened an Eighth Heaven [a realm representing the eighth layer of heaven] or higher, can bridge such a vast gap and stand against a Late Stage Earth Immortal.

Eldrin Chen was able to open up the Universe Starry Sky while still at the Middle Stage Earth Immortal realm, primarily because the Primordial One Indestructibility Rule was overwhelmingly potent. Coupled with the nourishment from five top-grade Innate World-Opening Treasure, he managed to achieve this feat ahead of schedule.

Even so, due to the limitations of his cultivation realm, the Universe Starry Sky he had opened was still only a very small part of the Outer Starry Sky.

Eldrin Chen estimated that if he could break through to the Seventh Level Earth Immortal realm, the Universe Starry Sky he could open would be vast enough to contain at least one hundred million Stellar [celestial bodies that serve as the foundation of a cultivator's inner cosmos].

Theoretically, the limit of Stellar that the starry sky within an Earth Immortal World [the inner cosmos of an Earth Immortal cultivator] could accommodate for a Sixfold Heaven Earth Immortal Great Perfection powerhouse was roughly on that scale.

Now, with the successful fusion of these thirty million plus Stellar, Eldrin Chen immediately felt the spiritual energy [the vital power cultivated by immortals] within his body surge by twenty percent.

Prior to this, Eldrin Chen's ability to rival Earth Immortal Great Perfection combatants had relied chiefly on his mastery of laws, his Path Fruit [the condensed essence of a cultivator's chosen Dao Path], his physical body, his Divine Ability [supernatural techniques powered by divine power], and his Immortal Treasure. His reservoir of spiritual energy had always been a significant weakness.

However, with the refinement of his Universe Starry Sky, the depth and potency of Eldrin Chen's own spiritual energy increased severalfold, now sufficient to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with a true Earth Immortal Great Perfection expert.

"Within the Outer Starry Sky of the Returning Abyss Realm, the sudden addition of thirty million Stellar has accelerated the accumulation rate of Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy [the primordial, foundational energy of creation] by more than fifty percent," he mused.

"It seems that within twenty or thirty thousand years, I will reach the peak of the Sixth Level Earth Immortal realm."

Eldrin Chen silently contemplated this before turning his gaze to Exquisite Jiang and the others beside him. "How are your progressions?" he inquired.

"I have refined nearly thirty million Stellar [the fundamental energy units of the cosmos], but I am nearing my limit."

Exquisite Jiang murmured softly, a faint smile gracing her lips.

Aside from the two Half-Step Celestial Immortal [cultivators on the verge of ascending to the Celestial Immortal realm], almost every Earth Immortal [an immortal whose power is anchored to a terrestrial realm] who participated in this battle had opened a Ninefold Heaven [the highest tier of a cultivator's internal world].

Their cultivation bases were all at the Sixth Level Earth Immortal [the sixth major stage of the Earth Immortal realm], yet their combat prowess rivaled that of Eighth Level Earth Immortal [the eighth major stage of the Earth Immortal realm]. Naturally, they were also capable of opening portions of the Outer Starry Sky [the cosmic expanse beyond a cultivator's primary internal world].

Now, having refined over twenty million Cosmic Stellar [stellar energy units drawn from the cosmos], their spiritual power had surged significantly.

Most crucially, after refining such a vast quantity of Cosmic Stellar, their reserves of Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy [the foundational, world-creating energy within a cultivator's internal realm] had grown immensely, saving them over a hundred thousand years of cultivation time in one fell swoop.

Heaven Abyss Path Master, who had broken through to Earth Immortal earlier than most, could not contain himself. "The Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy within my Heaven Abyss Realm [the name of his personal internal cultivation world] was already more than half full," he said.

"Having refined so many Stellar now, my Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy is brimming. It seems with just a bit of refinement, I can attempt a breakthrough to the Late Stage Earth Immortal [the final phase of the Earth Immortal realm]."

Eldrin Chen nodded upon hearing this and inquired, "When do you plan to make your attempt, Fellow Daoist?"

Heaven Abyss Path Master offered a slight smile. "In recent years, I expended considerable resources to procure a cauldron of Four Extremities Heavenly Pill [a supreme elixir that stabilizes the four cardinal directions of one's internal world]. Now that my Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy is sufficient, it is best to attempt the breakthrough sooner rather than later."

Speaking of this, Heaven Abyss Path Master cupped his hands and said, "To avoid complications, I plan to return to the Netherworld Small Universe and first achieve a breakthrough to the Late Stage Earth Immortal realm."

"That is wise."

Eldrin Chen nodded in agreement, then spoke, "When you return, Fellow Daoist, perhaps you could bring some Stellar [the refined essence of stars, used in high-level cultivation] back for Fellow Daoist Ancient Ruins."

Upon hearing this, Heaven Abyss Path Master nodded slightly but replied, "However, with my imminent breakthrough, I'm afraid I won't have time to gather more Stellar now."