Chapter 1749 : Sacrifice to Me

Of course, those who build their foundation through martial arts must refine their essence, blood, and flesh into true essence day and night. Such individuals undoubtedly possess astonishing perseverance, and it stands to reason they would hardly fear these sinister energies.

Regardless, Eldrin's method of using the Dao Foundation to replace the Spiritual Root, allowing mortals without spiritual roots to embark on the path of cultivation, was undoubtedly a breathtakingly ingenious concept.

Even many Great Perfected Golden Immortals in the celestial realm would marvel at his unparalleled genius.

"After the 3 Realms Dao Foundation, how does 1 proceed to the Fourth Realm?"

Eldrin murmured softly, his brow furrowing slightly as he sank into deep contemplation.

Upon attaining the Foundation Establishment realm, cultivators could once again open their Dantian, embarking anew upon the orthodox path of immortal cultivation.

However, this path ultimately does not constitute a spiritual root. Without a spiritual root, relying solely on the primordial spirit’s comprehension of the Dao, it is nearly impossible to master the laws of cultivation.

Moreover, the Dao Foundation was forged from external objects, not the cultivator's spiritual roots. In essence, it resembled the External Elixir Method practiced by Golden Core cultivators.

To attain the Dao through this method is to build upon a flawed foundation. At most, 1 could cultivate up to the Nascent Soul Realm before reaching their limit, with no possibility of advancing further.

This has also been the greatest challenge encountered by virtually all creators of new cultivation methods throughout countless years.

Since the immeasurable kalpas, numerous Great Luo Golden Immortals have taken action, with many pushing the mortal cultivation methods to the Nascent Soul realm, only to find they still could not break the curse that mortals can never achieve immortality.

Without a spiritual root, 1's foundation is inherently flawed. Unless 1 abandons the physical body to reincarnate and cultivate anew, it is ultimately impossible to ascend to the Great Path.

With the means of an immortal, even if those around them lack spiritual roots, they could defy the heavens and alter fate through supreme methods, reshaping another’s foundation to artificially create spiritual roots.

On 1 hand, there was a path that led nowhere near immortality; on the other, the ability to shape a Heavenly Spiritual Root (Spiritual Root) with a mere gesture. As time wore on, no 1 bothered to devise cultivation methods for mortals anymore.

Eldrin's resolve was unshakable at this moment, not a single thought of surrender crossed his mind despite the arduous path ahead.

At this moment, he attained a profound enlightenment: should he succeed in forging another path to immortality, granting countless mortals the hope of ascension, he would become a Dao Ancestor whose brilliance would dazzle the boundless chaos.

When the day comes that countless mortals embark upon the path of cultivation through his teachings, he who founded this path shall ascend as the true Chaos Dao Ancestor.

At that moment, he would become the source of the Great Dao, only then could he possibly become an existence like the Taishi Dao Ancestor.

"The path is arduous."

"To tread the immortal path with a mortal frame is but grasping at moonbeams reflected in water—an illusion destined to vanish."

"It seems I must forge a new path and create my own unique method to attain immortality."

Eldrin spoke calmly, a glimmer of enlightenment already blooming in his heart.

To attain immortality through the martial path, 1 must tread a road entirely distinct from the dao of cultivation.

"Very well. If I can forge a new path to immortality, it may complement the established celestial dao, allowing me to carve out my own road to the heavens."

Eldrin steeled his resolve and immediately began deducing the myriad possibilities of the fourth realm in martial cultivation.

In the blink of an eye, 1 1000 years had passed. Then 1 day, Eldrin (Person Name) opened his eyes, a faint smile gracing his expression.

Martial Path Fourth Realm — Divine Vaults!

Eldrin murmured softly, a ripple of emotion shimmering in his gaze.

For a 1000 years, he had deduced 108,000 methods to reach the fourth realm of martial arts, yet ultimately chose this approach of Divine Vaults.

This Divine Hidden Realm Method was not the most powerful among all cultivation techniques, ranking ninth in combat prowess, yet it possessed the greatest potential of them all.

After reaching the Foundation Establishment, Perfection Stage (Cultivation Realm) in martial arts, 1 can unlock the Divine Vault within their body.

Within the Divine Vault realm, 1 can open at most 10 great divine vaults: Origin, Qi-Blood, Physical Extremity, Primordial Qi, Soul, Dao Heart, Longevity, Heavenly Secrets, Laws, and the ultimate divine vault—the Great Luo.

Each time a divine repository is opened, the cultivator must fuse a wisp of their divine sense into it to nurture it.

The cultivation of the Divine Treasury Realm involves drawing upon the myriad creative substances of heaven and earth to nourish the divine consciousness within the divine treasury, allowing it to transform into the primordial soul.

When the cultivation of the 10 great Divine Realms reaches a state of flawless perfection, 1 can harness the primordial qi of creation and spiritual essence within these realms to directly bypass the step of condensing a Golden Core, instead forging a Dao Embryo within the body.

The Dao Embryo is the fifth realm of cultivation, equivalent to a celestial being's Nascent Soul, yet it fundamentally differs from the Nascent Soul.

The Nascent Soul is forged from the spirit, a manifestation of the purest mental power, while the Dao Embryo contains the immensely potent substance of creation—an aggregate existing between illusion and reality.

Strictly speaking, the Dao Embryo possesses flesh and blood, resembling more a nascent embryo, fundamentally distinct from the Nascent Soul.

According to Eldrin's (Person Name) estimation, cultivating 10 divine sanctums was far too difficult—likely only a once-in-a-million-years prodigy could achieve it. For ordinary individuals, mastering 8 or 9 divine sanctums would already be considered a feat scarcely seen in millennia.

Fortunately, Eldrin had calculated that opening 3 Divine Sanctums would grant him a 10 percent chance of breaking through to the Dao Embryo stage. If he cultivated 5 or 6 Divine Sanctums, the likelihood of achieving Dao Embryo would be virtually assured.

Thus, this path was not a dead end after all. As long as 1 could unlock more than 5 Divine Treasures, the breakthrough would be far easier than forming a Golden Core into a Nascent Soul.

If 1 could open 7 divine repositories, their foundational combat power would be comparable to that of a Heavenly Dao Nascent Soul—and all without relying on external aids like the Heavenly Dao Qi (Spiritual Root).

Chapter 5: The Dao Embryo Realm Cultivation at this stage fundamentally involved nurturing the Dao Embryo while continuously strengthening the primordial essence of the Divine Treasures. Eldrin swiftly deduced and completed this process.

After successfully deducing the fifth realm, Eldrin proceeded to derive the sixth—the Indestructible Realm.

The so-called Sixth Realm of Indestructibility refers to the process of cultivating the Dao Embryo, where 1 employs a supreme technique to forge an indestructible body of martial Dao.

To cultivate at this level, 1 must draw upon the divine repository's origin source and the Dao Embryo's nourishment to refine the physical form. By inhaling the essence of heaven, earth, mountains, and rivers, and absorbing vast quantities of rare celestial treasures, 1 ultimately forges a peerless divine physique.

The Martial Dao Divine Body was indestructible and imperishable, having reached the ultimate pinnacle of the mortal realm—to the extent that even a single drop of blood could regenerate an entire being.

Body Forging, Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Divine Sanctuary, Dao Fetus, Indestructible.

Eldrin murmured softly, his gaze lingering once more upon the 6 realms of martial path he had conceived. A slow, deliberate breath escaped his lips.

A mere mortal, having cultivated from body refinement to this day, had already reached the pinnacle of the mortal realm.

Such an existence would possess the ultimate Dao Embryo, with dantian reserves capable of storing spiritual energy equivalent to up to 10 ordinary cores, coupled with an indestructible and eternal treasure body. Their combat prowess had truly reached the pinnacle beyond which no further advancement was possible.

Eldrin estimated that if 1 could cultivate the 10 great divine atlases and forge the supreme martial divine body, they might possess the power to challenge even immortals.

To defy and slay an immortal without having attained immortality oneself—this was an indescribable pinnacle of power. In ages past, even Eldrin (Person Name) had only barely achieved such a feat before laying the foundation of his immortal cultivation.

Yet even such a stunning existence could advance no further at this stage.

Due to innate deficiencies in his foundation, it was impossible for him to break through to the realm of Immortal Ascension—an insurmountable chasm for mortals.

"But... is this truly insurmountable?"

Eldrin murmured calmly, finally writing a line of large characters on the paper.

Martial Path, Seventh Realm — Sacrifice of Self.