Chapter 1793 : 1 Ascends, All Rise
Now, as Eldrin's cultivation continued to break through, the Abyssal Universe began to expand with increasing grandeur and vastness. In the blink of an eye, it surpassed 400 million light-years, even approaching 450 million light-years before gradually stabilizing.
Legend has it that a universe at the eighth level of Celestial Immortality spans approximately 2 100 million light-years in diameter.
An existence at the Great Perfection stage of Celestial Immortality, where the diameter of the cosmos spans merely 3 100 million to 5 100 million light-years.
"My Void Abyss Realm has already reached a diameter of 450,000,000 light-years, surpassing the cosmic dimensions of many Celestial Immortals at the Great Perfection stage."
Eldrin murmured inwardly, carefully assessing his current combat prowess. Though he wouldn't dare claim he could rival a ninth-level Celestial Immortal, he estimated his strength now stood at the absolute peak among eighth-level Celestial Immortals.
Even if 3 or 4 ordinary Eighth-Level Celestial Immortals were to join forces, Eldrin estimated he would not fear them in the slightest.
At this thought, a blazing light ignited in Eldrin’s eyes. In the end, he turned his gaze toward the Heaven of Returning Abyss, drew a slow, deep breath, and said:
The cosmos could not advance further in a short time, yet he could still seize this breakthrough opportunity to open several more layers of heaven and earth.
With this thought, Eldrin channeled his boundless magic power, pouring it into the 5 innate immortal treasures.
In that fleeting moment, ancient bells thundered, divine mirrors soared through the heavens, and immortal swords resonated across all realms. 1 after another, new worlds emerged from the primordial chaos.
No 1 knew how long it had passed. By the time all returned to tranquility, Chen Nian had once again carved out 4 heavenly realms within the Peaceful Return to Void Heaven.
20-8 Heavens
Eldrin murmured inwardly, dividing the 20-8 celestial tiers into 4 cardinal heavens. Within the newly opened 4 celestial realms, he planted 4 ancient trees, merging the final 4 strands of primordial qi into them.
After completing this step, he used the innate spiritual water from the Qiankun Primordial Qi Vase to accelerate their growth, ultimately cultivating 4 Primordial Ancient Trees.
He expended a considerable amount of Primordial Qi in 1 breath, and only when the 4 Primordial Ancient Trees advanced to become mid-grade Primordial Ancient Trees did Eldrin cease their further ascension.
"I've reached my limit."
Gazing upon the 4 spiritual roots that had advanced to become mid-grade Primordial Ancient Trees, Eldrin slowly spoke before sinking into deep contemplation.
After all, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vessel was merely a 13-line innate ancient treasure, ranking as the most common inferior grade among such artifacts. Its capacity for nurturing mid-grade innate ancient trees had already reached its limit.
To advance further, 1 must elevate the Qiankun Yiqi Vial into a 20-4-pattern supreme Primordial Ancient Treasure.
Fortunately, Eldrin had accumulated enough Primordial Purple Qi over the years, which was indeed sufficient to advance the Heaven and Earth Primordial Vial.
In previous years, he had not upgraded the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Bottle primarily because the previous Return to Ruins Universe was not yet powerful enough to accommodate such a vast quantity—over 3,000—of top-grade Primordial Ancient Trees.
Now that his cultivation had broken through and the universe had expanded by several times, it was time to elevate these 20-8 Primordial Ancient Trees.
With this thought in mind, Eldrin acted decisively. He expelled 6 strands of Primordial Primordial Purple Qi, merging them into the Heaven and Earth Primordial Chaos Vessel.
"Bzzz—"
But with a soft chime, as the 6 strands of Primordial Hongmeng Purple Qi merged, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Chaos Vial shimmered with a faint, trembling radiance.
Then, 1 innate Dao pattern after another continuously emerged, ultimately giving birth to 12 nascent innate Dao patterns. These 12 innate Dao patterns merged and unified with the original 13 innate Dao patterns, transforming into a nearly complete embryonic form of the Great Dao.
20-5 innate Dao patterns.
Gazing at the Cosmic Qi Flask before him, Eldrin felt ecstatic joy surge in his heart, a flicker of astonishment coloring his expression.
As is widely known, innate ancient treasures contain innate Dao patterns, which are broadly categorized into 2 levels: 12 patterns and 20-4 patterns.
Among them, the 12-pattern innate ancient treasures are referred to as common innate ancient treasures, while the 20-4-pattern innate ancient treasures are hailed as supreme innate ancient treasures.
As for the remaining 15-ring, 18-ring, or even 20-3-ring Innate Ancient Treasures, there was no qualitative difference among them. Their power, compared to the 12-ring Innate Ancient Treasures, was at most only 10 to 20 percent greater.
However, innate ancient treasures with more than 20-4 spirit patterns are truly extraordinary.
For once 1 surpasses 20-4 innate Dao patterns, it forms an illusory Great Dao that exists between reality and nothingness.
Hence, treasures with these 20-5 innate Dao patterns are generally referred to as Quasi-Innate Spirit Treasures or Innate Spirit Treasure Embryos. Their wondrous functions undergo a qualitative transformation, making them exceptionally rare in the world.
Generally speaking, any quasi-innate spiritual treasure surpassing 20-5 spirit patterns is almost invariably an embryonic form of an innate spiritual treasure.
It must be either a nascent Numinous Treasure in the process of formation, or 1 that failed to fully mature due to unforeseen circumstances.
Whichever it might be, both were exceedingly rare treasures, so precious that even within the primordial chaos, they remained extraordinary rarities.
The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vessel nurtured by Eldrin (Person Name) unexpectedly possessed 20-5 innate Dao patterns, transforming into a genuine quasi-innate spiritual treasure. Were this news to spread, it would surely drive countless ancient immortals to madness.
"The Primordial Purple Qi actually has such a wondrous effect?"
Eldrin whispered as he attempted once more to merge with the Primordial Violet Qi, only to find that this time, he had failed.
After some calculation, he deduced that it wasn't that the Primordial Purple Qi could no longer enhance the Chaos Origin Vessel, but rather that the vessel's spiritual rank was insufficient and its material composition inadequate to bear any more of the innate Primordial Purple Qi.
"A treasure nurtured within a miniature cosmos has reached its absolute limit by advancing to a Quasi-Innate Spiritual Treasure."
To advance this Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vase further, 1 must seek rare treasures infused with the attributes of Heaven and Earth, then absorb the dual energies of Qian and Kun to enhance its material foundation before any further refinement is possible.
Moreover, the most crucial element for evolving into an innate spiritual treasure was the Primordial Primordium Light, which rivaled the innate indestructible radiance.
Eldrin murmured inwardly, yet a faint frown creased his brow.
An object of Yin and Yang that can bear the Primordial Primordial Chaos Light must be a supreme innate treasure.
Generally speaking, the most suitable rare treasure would be the first strand of Heaven and Earth energy born when the immortal realm first took form.
For instance, when the Eldrin of Violet Immortal (Person Name) attained enlightenment during the Great Descent, he gathered the Primordial Yin-Yang Qi (Cultivation Energy) from the nascent Immortal Realm. This enabled the Scarlet Pearl of the Immortal Shell Clan (Person Name) to consolidate her foundation, ultimately forging her into the Primordial 9-Colored Immortal Shell (Spiritual Entity).
Eldrin (Person Name) sought to elevate the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vase into an Innate Spiritual Treasure, which required similar treasures to enhance its foundational essence. The most suitable for this purpose was none other than the Primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth.
Otherwise, even if 1 were to forcibly advance the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vessel by substituting other treasures, it would drastically diminish the profound efficacy of the Primordial Spirit Water it produces.
"It seems I won't be able to advance the Qiankun Yiqi Vase anytime soon."
Eldrin murmured inwardly, then swiftly dismissed the thought.
He drew the Immortal Origin from his sleeve and once again activated the Qiankun Yiqi Vase to refine it, only to discover that the vessel now consumed even more immortal essence than before.
In the past, a mere 100,000 drops of Xianyuan could be transformed into a single drop of Immortal Spirit Water, but now it required 1,000,000 drops of Xianyuan to produce just 1.
Moreover, aside from the ordinary innate spiritual water, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vase now contained another, even more profound type of spiritual water.
This water is called 'Cosmic Creation Water'. To transform and produce a single drop of it, 1 must draw upon the 2 energies of the 9 Heavens and the Cosmos, then fuse in a total of 100,000,000 Immortal Origins.
Containing the boundless principles of the cosmos, even an ordinary Immortal Ascension Realm cultivator need only consume a single drop to refine their foundation and potential, defying the heavens to forge the flawless Triple Ascension Root.
In other words, a cultivator with a single Immortal Ascension Foundation would only need to consume a single drop of Qiankun Creation Water to defy the heavens, alter their fate, and cultivate 3 Immortal Ascension Foundations.
Defying the Heavens to Alter Fate, Reforging the Foundation.
"This fruit truly lives up to its name as a Fruit of Creation."
Eldrin murmured softly, then shook his head slightly.
A single drop of the Elixir of Creation required 100,000,000 units of celestial essence to transmute—a price nearly equivalent to the entire fortune of a Dual Taiyi Foundation Patriarch.
You must understand, the price of a single low-grade Taiyi Immortal Treasure is around 100,000,000 Immortal Source coins.
Not to mention that converting this water also required inhaling and exhaling the dual energies of the 9 Heavens and the Cosmos, which came at a considerable cost.
Using this water to cultivate the foundation of the 3 Ascensions to Immortality was truly a waste of celestial marvels.
Of course, this Heaven and Earth Creation Water, being so astonishingly potent, was not intended for ordinary Ascension Realm cultivators, but rather served as a supreme treasure for Celestial Immortal powerhouses.
This Cosmic Creation Water possesses the wondrous power of creation, containing even the creative force of the great Cosmic Dao. Merely 9 drops are sufficient to assist an early-stage Celestial Immortal expert in breaking through to the mid-stage Celestial Immortal realm.
If 1 could gather all 80-1 drops, it would even boost a Sixth-Level Celestial Immortal expert’s chances of breaking through to the late Celestial Immortal stage by 30 percent.
Even a Great Perfection Celestial Immortal could increase their chances of breaking through to the Ancient Immortal realm by 20 percent if they obtained 3,000 drops of Heaven and Earth Creation Water.
3 1000 drops of the Heaven and Earth Creation Water would cost approximately 300,000,000,000 immortal sources—a sum any long-established, top-tier blessed paradise could readily produce.
Those supreme experts at the Ninth Heaven Immortal realm possessed wealth that could no longer be measured in Immortal Source.
For them, not to mention producing 300,000,000,000 units of Immortal Origin, even if it required 3,000,000,000,000 units in exchange for a single portion of the Heaven and Earth Creation Water that enables a breakthrough to Ancient Immortal, they would be ecstatic and consider it an opportunity too precious to miss.
For treasures capable of aiding breakthroughs to Ancient Immortality have never been something 1 could acquire with Immortal Origin.
Such treasures have always been acquired through barter. Without a Primordial Ancient Treasure of equivalent grade, 1 could never hope to obtain it.
"3 100 billion immortal sources would yield 3 1000 drops of Creation Water of Heaven and Earth. It's a pity I still fall somewhat short in the immortal sources I possess."
"It seems if an opportunity arises in the future, I should sell some of the Taiyi Golden Bamboo."
Eldrin murmured inwardly, his heart settling with a faint sense of resolve.
With this Primordial Chaos Creation Water, the success rate for our clan members and those close to us to break through to the late-stage Celestial Immortal realm, and even attempt the Ancient Immortal realm, would increase significantly.
However, with insufficient Immortal Origin at present and the clan having no immediate need for this Chaos Creation Water, Eldrin did not proceed with the conversion. For him, the top priority remained advancing the 20-8 Primordial Ancient Trees.
To return to our story, after the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi Vial advanced, aside from the new Heaven and Earth Creation Water, the wonders of the original Primordial Heaven and Earth Qi Water had also grown increasingly astonishing.
The current Primordial Chaos Qi Water now requires 1,000,000 immortal origins to refine. Its effects of accelerating maturation and breaking through bottlenecks have increased tenfold, and most crucially, it can now assist Primordial Ancient Trees in shattering the peak ninth-grade bottleneck.
Eldrin continuously converted primordial spiritual water, expending over 10 billion units of immortal essence. In the blink of an eye, more than 100,000 droplets had been transformed.
Assisting an innate ancient tree in advancing to the ninth-rank superior grade required approximately 1,000 drops. Eldrin (Person Name) expended fewer than 30,000 drops of innate spiritual water to elevate all 20-8 innate ancient trees to the ninth-rank superior grade.
"The advancement of the Primordial Ancient Tree has made my cultivation speed increasingly rapid."
Eldrin murmured softly, a faint smile unconsciously surfacing in his gaze.
20-8 Primordial Trees, after advancing to the rank of superior-grade Primordial Treasures, accelerated their conversion of primordial energy at an increasingly rapid pace.
After Eldrin (Person Name) broke through to the mid-stage Celestial Immortal realm, his inner cosmos expanded into an increasingly vast expanse, requiring astonishing volumes of primal chaos energy to sustain its growth. It would now take approximately 2,000,000 to 3,000,000 years for him to advance just a single layer of cultivation.
As the Primordial Ancient Tree advanced in rank, its speed of converting primordial qi increased severalfold, and Eldrin's cultivation pace grew increasingly rapid.
According to his calculations, if all went smoothly, his next breakthrough to the Fifth Heavenly Immortal Realm should be achievable within 1 million years.
"By that calculation, even without any other fortuitous encounters, I could attempt to break through to the Seventh Heaven of Celestial Immortality within 3,000,000 years."
A glimmer of delight surfaced in Eldrin's eyes as he murmured inwardly.
He slowly turned his gaze toward the Primordial Qi Vessel, storing the remaining Innate Spiritual Water within it. Unbidden, a flicker of profound satisfaction surfaced in the depths of his eyes.
Advancing 20-8 top-grade innate ancient trees had cost no more than 30,000,000,000 units of Immortal Origin in total. This immensely profitable transaction would surely drive any ancient immortal mighty figure to madness were they to learn of it.
With this thought, Eldrin carefully veiled the heavenly secrets before returning to the Abyssal Sanctuary.
After returning to the Abyssal Sanctuary, Eldrin resumed his secluded cultivation. Yet before fully immersing himself in training, he discovered countless immortals across the celestial realm were mobilizing for war.
He made a quick calculation and realized that his return this time was actually not far from the outbreak of the great tribulation.
"1 100 1000 years from now, the Great Cataclysm shall descend."
In the blink of an eye, 3 million years had passed since I attained immortality.
"Alas, truly time flows like a song, fleeting as running water!"
Eldrin sighed inwardly, a complex mix of emotions swirling within him.
At his current level of cultivation, he had long since transcended even the Great Tribulation and the Dao Tribulation. A mere Great Tribulation was no longer worthy of his attention, nor did it stir any interest in him to intervene or scheme.
Leaving the arrangements for outstanding clansmen to enter the tribulation to Old Patriarch Chen Changxuan, Lior (Person Name), and other senior members, Eldrin (Person Name) reclined high above the 9 Heavens Above (Time & Distance), gazing down upon the countless immortals struggling to transcend the great calamity.
It is worth mentioning that during this great tribulation, Eldrin saw many old acquaintances.
Among them were old acquaintances: Varen, Kael’s dao companion Lilith, Mistress of Desire, the Greenjade Palace Mistress from the lower realm, Maris the Sea Steader, the Riverlong Elder’s first disciple Daoist Haoyuan, his second disciple Huantianji, and younger-generation figures like Jiang Taibai, among others.
...along with the Tortoise Immortal Chen Xinghong of the Chen Immortal Clan (Organization) and the fortuitous Chen Bufan.
Eldrin had dealings with no fewer than several dozen old acquaintances from his early years alone.
Their cultivation levels varied greatly; some had barely reached the Ascension Realm, while others had already forged foundations of the 3 Primordial Breaths, qualifying them as protagonists capable of weathering the Heavenly Tribulation.
Eldrin understood that the reason these people could enter the tribulation was because "when a man attains the Dao, even his pets ascend to heaven."
As the saying goes, it is lonely at the top—the longer 1 lives and the deeper 1’s cultivation grows, the harder it becomes to find true friends.
The longer a cultivator lives, provided their Dao heart remains unchanged and they have not become mere puppets on the path of cultivation, the more nostalgic they tend to grow.
Today, the Chen Immortal Clan (Organization) stands as a hegemon in the Vast Azure Immortal Realm. With over a dozen Celestial Immortal Ancestors (Cultivation Rank) among their ranks, the clan has established roots so profound they are considered unshakable across the immortal domain.
Within the Immortal Alliance, affiliated factions such as the Dao Palace, the Lin Clan, and the Starry Sky Palace also witnessed the emergence of several Celestial Immortals. They would often venture into the deepest reaches of the Netherworld to search for their revered masters and departed comrades.
Within the Chen Immortal Clan (Organization), many high-ranking immortals remained deeply nostalgic, naturally extending considerable care to old acquaintances from their early years.
Figures such as Chen Changxuan, Kael (Person Name), Chen Ethan (Person Name), Chen Qiyuan, and even Lyra (Person Name), as well as the Riverflow Emperor within the Return to Ruins Heaven, would frequently inquire about news of their old acquaintances from the Violet Realm.
Within the Netherrealm, the Chen Clan also possessed their own agents and foundations.
Especially with the intervention of 2 Netherworld Celestial Immortals—Elder Qing and the Ancient Ruins Yin Lord—their persistent investigations gradually led to the ascension of many former companions, guiding them to immortality.
By now, aside from those former acquaintances whose cultivation was truly meager and had undergone tens of thousands of reincarnations, the vast majority of Nascent Soul realm and above had returned 1 after another.
In particular, several Nascent Soul True Monarchs and Primordial Spirit Dao Lords who had obtained Eldrin (Person Name)'s legacy of ascension and reincarnated with their memories intact had nearly all cultivated to the Earth Immortal realm. (End of Chapter)