Chapter 1966 : Secrets of the Ethereal Grotto

Eldrin Chen gave a slight nod. After Lyra Jiang's breakthrough into the Mid-Great Immortal Realm, her strength had seen a significant increase.

Once her cultivation advanced to the Fifth Layer Great Luo Golden Immortal realm, and with the power of the Exquisite Immortal Pagoda, a True Spirit Treasure [a treasure containing the true spirit of a powerful being], she would likely possess the strength to at least contend with a Grand Luo Golden Immortal of the ninth layer, albeit with great difficulty.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen spoke, "You must focus on your cultivation first. In this Chaos [the primordial, formless state from which all things emerged], cultivation base remains the fundamental foundation of all power."

Lyra Jiang and the others nodded in understanding, offering no further words.

After the three had departed, Eldrin Chen pondered for a long while. Ultimately, he made his way deep into the Abyssal Immortal Domain, to an intangible Grotto-Heaven [a blessed, self-contained paradise realm often used for secluded cultivation] hidden within.

The Ethereal Void Grotto-Heaven was one of the ten great Grotto-Heaven of the Abyssal Immortal Domain.

This Grotto-Heaven was renowned far and wide, its reputation illustrious. It even shared an exceptionally close bond with Eldrin, the Immortal Lord, making it one of the most coveted sacred lands countless Immortal [a cultivator who has achieved immortality] dreamed of.

Upon arriving at the Ethereal Void Grotto-Heaven, Eldrin Chen was immediately greeted by Ethereal Void Sword Lord and the others.

"We pay our respects to the Immortal Lord [a title for a powerful immortal]."

The various Celestial Immortal [a higher rank of immortal] from the Ethereal Void Grotto-Heaven all bowed respectfully as they spoke.

Eldrin Chen gave a slight nod and said with a smile, "Your cultivation progress is not slow, esteemed ones. Your future potential is bound to be limitless."

After exchanging greetings, Eldrin Chen proceeded to the cave abode of Daoxu Jiang, where he found him in secluded cultivation, making preparations.

Many years had passed since their last meeting, yet Daoxu Jiang's cultivation realm had not advanced significantly. All these years, his focus had been on preparing to cultivate the Heavenly Emperor's Artifact Fusion Chapter [a legendary cultivation art focused on fusing artifacts into one's very being], prioritizing the enhancement of his foundational potential above all else.

Outside the cave abode, the two sat facing each other. Eldrin Chen then asked, "How are the preparations going, Grandfather?"

Daoxu Jiang spoke slowly, a glint of barely contained excitement finally appearing in his eyes. "Only the final Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light [a primordial and unbreakable strand of spiritual radiance, a foundational material for supreme artifacts] remains."

Eldrin Chen nodded in understanding. For Daoxu Jiang to walk the path of the Heavenly Emperor's Artifact Fusion Chapter and forge a True Spirit Treasure [a sentient artifact of the highest order, bound to the cultivator's soul], he needed to cultivate one hundred and eight Innate Great Luo Golden Bamboo Sword [primordial swords forged from the essence of golden bamboo, a legendary material]. This required one hundred and eight strands of the Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light.

Having cultivated for more than six Kalpa Tribulation [cosmic cycles of immense duration, often involving great cataclysms and rebirth], Daoxu Jiang had already gathered one hundred and seven strands. The final one was nearly fully formed and ready.

Eldrin Chen's visit, in truth, was also for the matter of Daoxu Jiang's cultivation journey.

Thinking of this, Eldrin Chen spoke, "Grandfather, you must have heard of the recent matters concerning the Dao Tribulation [a heavenly trial or calamity one faces on the path of cultivation, testing one's comprehension of the Dao]."

"I am aware," he replied.

Daoxu Jiang [Jiang Daoxu, a powerful cultivator] nodded slightly, then inquired, "You wish for me to switch to cultivating the Path of Self-Sacrifice [a profound cultivation method centered on sacrifice and rebirth]?"

Eldrin Chen [Eldrin Chen, the protagonist] nodded in return and spoke, "The Path of Self-Sacrifice has been gradually perfected and can lead one to the Great Luo Golden Immortal Great Perfection [the pinnacle of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm]. Moreover, since you, Ancient Ancestor, intend to cultivate a True Spirit Treasure [a supreme-grade magical treasure born from one's own true spirit], why not seize this opportunity for Foundation Reforging [a divine ability to completely rebuild one's cultivation foundation]?"

Upon hearing this, Daoxu Jiang nodded once more; in truth, he had already been considering this very course of action.

A cultivator's Lifebound Immortal Treasure [an immortal treasure intrinsically linked to a cultivator's life and cultivation] is an object of Life-Bound Cultivation [a cultivation method where one's life force is bound to a specific treasure or path]. Previously, he had cultivated the Innate Dao Ruins Sword [a sword technique born from his comprehension of the Dao's remnants]. However, the Innate Dao Ruins Sword was, after all, a sword path he had explored on his own; the grand Dao principles within it were not necessarily of the highest order.

Upon reaching the Grand Luo [the Grand Luo realm, a supreme stage of cultivation], relying solely on the Innate Dao Ruins Sword would likely place his Innate Spiritual Treasure [a spiritual treasure born from one's innate nature] among the lower ranks.

The foundation cultivated through such a Lifebound Immortal Treasure would undoubtedly be inferior to one built upon a True Spirit Treasure.

Considering this, Daoxu Jiang asked, "Yet, Foundation Reforging likely carries significant difficulty."

Eldrin Chen merely smiled and replied, "I once said I would lend you my aid in this matter. Leave it to me." …

"Once you successfully cultivate the True Spirit Treasure, and then utilize the True Spirit Supreme Treasure [the ultimate form of a True Spirit Treasure] for Foundation Reforging, your latent potential and foundational depth will become truly extraordinary."

Daoxu Jiang gave a firm nod. "Approximately two hundred thousand years from now, the final strand of Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light [an indestructible spiritual radiance of innate origin] will be fully cultivated. I shall trouble you for your assistance then."

"Between you and me, is there any need for such formality?"

Eldrin Chen offered a faint smile and said no more.

Two million years—for a world, that is the span of an entire Jiyuan-time [a grand cosmological Era, often spanning tens of thousands of years].

Even for many lofty Immortal [beings who have ascended to a higher state of existence], such an immense stretch of time is considered profoundly ancient.

Yet, in the eyes of the present Eldrin Chen, this period did not feel particularly long. He had merely immersed himself in secluded cultivation for a time, and the two million years slipped away in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Daoxu Jiang finally gathered the full one hundred and eight strands of Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light [a primal and unbreakable radiance of pure spiritual essence] and came to Abyssal Heaven to seek out Eldrin Chen.

Eldrin Chen wasted no words, directly leading him into the depths of the Chaos Celestial Domain [a primordial realm of swirling, unformed energies], to the very heart of the Chaos Golden Bull Nest.

There, rooted upon the Adamantine Ore Vein [a vein of mythical, unbreakable metal] within the nest, stood one hundred and eight dazzling stalks of Great Luo Golden Bamboo [a legendary bamboo of the highest cosmic order, radiating immense spiritual power].

"This is..."

Daoxu Jiang began, his voice brimming with astonished delight.

Eldrin Chen nodded and then spoke, "This batch of golden bamboo has taken root upon an Adamantine Ore Vein [a mineral vein containing the legendary metal Adamantine], drawing upon the Adamantine [a legendary metal known for its supreme durability]'s ten-thousand-kalpa Imperishable [a divine property of being unyielding and eternal] characteristic. This grants it exceptionally high strength and sturdiness, compensating for its previous lack of sufficient firmness."

Daoxu Jiang gave a nod of understanding upon hearing this. Great Luo Golden Bamboo [a supreme spiritual bamboo that grows by absorbing metallic and mineral energies], nurtured by absorbing metallic ore veins, is inherently quite sturdy.

However, being a spiritual root of the wood element, no matter how sturdy it becomes, it can rarely match a peerless immortal sword forged from immortal-grade metal of the same rank. Therefore, once a Golden Bamboo Sword [an immortal sword forged from Great Luo Golden Bamboo] faces a higher-grade immortal sword that surpasses its own level, the risk of it being damaged or shattered is considerably high.

But golden bamboo rooted in an Adamantine Ore Vein is different. Adamantine is renowned for being Indestructible [utterly unbreakable] and Imperishable, boasting physical resistance hailed as the foremost under heaven among all immortal metals.

These stalks of Great Luo Golden Bamboo, having grown by absorbing Indestructible Adamantine [the supreme, unbreakable variant of Adamantine metal], naturally inherit its properties. Their sturdiness is elevated by at least one full tier, rivaling immortal swords forged from peer-grade immortal metal.

Furthermore, as a spiritual root of wood, Great Luo Golden Bamboo Swords [immortal swords forged from this special bamboo] possess exceptional resilience, far surpassing that of immortal swords forged from metal of the same rank.

Combining these two attributes, the formidable strength of these Great Luo Golden Bamboo Swords can well be imagined.

According to Eldrin Chen's estimation, once these Great Luo Golden Bamboo Swords are fully formed, they would face no risk of shattering even when clashing against immortal swords two full grades higher.

And if one were to complete the Heavenly Emperor's Artifact Fusion Chapter [a supreme cultivation art for fusing multiple artifacts into one], merging one hundred and eight immortal swords into a single True Spirit Immortal Sword [an immortal sword embodying a true spiritual essence], its sturdiness, resilience, and sharpness would transcend all limits, granting it an unstoppable Slaughter [a divine ability focused on absolute destruction] capability.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen spoke, "Grandfather, act swiftly. I will assist you in refining and assimilating it first."

Daoxu Jiang [the Daoist Jiang of the Void] nodded and immediately began refining these Great Luo Golden Bamboo [a legendary type of bamboo imbued with the essence of the Great Luo Heaven].

With the assistance of Eldrin Chen, Daoxu Jiang swiftly refined the entire batch of Great Luo Golden Bamboo, ultimately transforming them into a Great Luo Golden Bamboo Sword Formation [a formidable sword array composed of Great Luo Golden Bamboo swords].

Witnessing this, Eldrin Chen offered no further comment.

He directly led Daoxu Jiang into the depths of the Abyssal Forbidden Land [a perilous and secluded realm of profound mysteries]. There, he produced the Creation Cauldron [a legendary cauldron capable of reforging one's very foundation] and declared, "Grandfather, this artifact can assist you in your Foundation Reforging [the supreme process of reforging one's cultivation foundation]."

"This is..."

The moment his eyes fell upon the Creation Cauldron, Daoxu Jiang's expression shifted dramatically.

In that instant, he finally grasped the immense value of the Opportunity [a rare chance for profound advancement] that Eldrin Chen had bestowed upon him.

Contemplating this, Daoxu Jiang could not help but sigh, "This debt of gratitude... I fear it cannot be repaid with merely a few hundred strands of Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light [a primordial and unbreakable essence of spiritual energy]."

Eldrin Chen offered a faint smile and replied with calm assurance, "Even without the bond through Lyra, you and I have fought side by side for many years. You are worthy of this Opportunity."

Daoxu Jiang gave a solemn nod. Without another word, he stepped into the Creation Cauldron.

As Daoxu Jiang stepped into the Creation Cauldron, the cauldron erupted with torrents of Celestial Immortal light. Countless strands of Creation Qi [the primordial energy of creation] fused with the one hundred and eight stalks of Great Luo Golden Bamboo, causing them to undergo a continuous metamorphosis, transforming into one after another Great Luo Golden Bamboo Sword Embryo.

"Almost there."

Seeing the sword embryos on the verge of finalizing their forms, Daoxu Jiang immediately fused the one hundred and eight strands of Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light [a fundamental, unbreakable spiritual radiance] into them.

After completing this step, Daoxu Jiang pondered for a moment, then decisively imprinted the ancient characters from the Primordial Beginning Qi Scripture [the scripture of the primordial beginning energy] onto them.

The Primordial Beginning Qi Scripture contained one hundred and eight ancient characters in total. Each character was profoundly arcane, brimming with boundless mysteries. It seemed as if all the knowledge within the entire Cosmos could not compare to the profundity of a single one of these characters.

Now, each of the one hundred and eight immortal swords received one character, branded with a supreme Innate Dao Patterns [a natural pattern of the Great Dao].

"*Hummm—*"

The Creation Cauldron trembled violently, its voice filled with awe as it proclaimed, "This scripture is a supreme Dao tome, even more precious than the Celestial Emperor's Ancient Scripture."

"No... it represents the original Primordial Great Dao [the primordial Great Way], something almost beyond description."

Eldrin Chen's eyes flickered slightly, having anticipated this outcome.

A Primordial Scripture [a profound and esoteric text containing cultivation principles and cosmic truths] derived from two Ancient Characters [primordial symbols containing fundamental truths of the cosmos]—how could it possibly be comparable to ordinary Heavenly Emperor [a supreme ruler of a celestial realm] ancient texts?

As the saying goes, the Primordial Chaos [the state of undifferentiated, formless potential before all existence] existed first, followed by the Chaos [the turbulent, formless state from which the cosmos emerged]. After the Chaos was cleaved asunder, it was possible for an Origin Domain [the primordial source realm from which all things originate] to be born within the Desolate Sea [a vast, primordial expanse of chaotic energies].

The Innate Primordial Qi [the primordial, innate energy that existed at the very beginning of creation] is the inception of all innate things, the most primal breath of the Origin Domain at the moment of its initial opening. Its rank and nature are of unparalleled and supreme nobility.

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen pondered for a moment before turning his gaze to the Creation Cauldron [a legendary cauldron capable of forging creation itself] and said, "I beseech you, Fellow Daoist, to bestow upon him a wisp of Creation Beginning Qi [the foundational energy present at the dawn of creation], to aid him in forging a supreme foundation."

The Creation Cauldron gave a slight nod, offering no further words.

Meanwhile, Daoxu Jiang had completed the refinement of one hundred and eight Supreme Unity Golden Bamboo Sword [swords forged from golden bamboo, embodying the principle of supreme unity].

Perhaps because they had fused with the Ancient Characters from the Primordial Beginning Qi Scripture [a scripture detailing the primordial energy of beginnings], this set of Great Luo Golden Bamboo Swords [a legendary set of golden bamboo swords] seemed to have undergone an inexplicable transformation.

The Dao Patterns [intricate formations of spiritual energy and cosmic law] within them evolved into myriads of forms, ultimately coalescing into a set of Innate Single Primordial Qi Dao Pattern [Dao Patterns formed from the innate, singular primordial energy]. Perhaps it would be more fitting to call it the Innate Single Primordial Qi Sword Formation [a sword formation born from the innate, singular primordial energy].

Seeing the Immortal Swords [transcendent blades of immense power] take form, Daoxu Jiang immediately began to execute the Heavenly Emperor's Artifact Fusion Chapter [a supreme technique for fusing and elevating artifacts], to complete this final step of metamorphosis.

The requirements for executing the Heavenly Emperor's Artifact Fusion Chapter were exceedingly high, but this Innate Single Primordial Qi Sword Formation happened to perfectly meet the exacting demands of the Heavenly Emperor's Artifact Fusion Chapter.

As Daoxu Jiang continued his ritualistic refinement, the Innate Single Primordial Qi Sword Formation [a supreme formation born of the primordial chaos] fused and coalesced, transforming into a radiant white immortal sword wreathed in an aura of profound and dense energy.

"Hmmmm—"

In that instant, Chaos [the primordial, formless state before creation] trembled violently. From the seat of the supreme Eternal True Spirit [the eternal and unchanging source of all spiritual essence], an endless rain of True Spirit Imprint [fragments of the Eternal True Spirit's essence, containing fundamental laws of existence] descended upon Ronan, only to be wholly absorbed by this dazzling immortal sword.

When the process concluded, a single immortal sword, etched with one hundred and eight ancient seal characters, had slowly taken form....

"A True Spirit Treasure [a treasure of the highest order, forged from and embodying the essence of the Eternal True Spirit]—the Primordial Beginning Qi Sword."

Eldrin Chen spoke slowly, a faint smile touching the corners of his eyes.

The potential of this Primordial Beginning Qi Sword was boundless. In the future, its Ascension [the process of a treasure or cultivator breaking through to a higher realm of power and existence] into an Innate Supreme Treasure [a treasure born of the primordial chaos, possessing supreme innate power] would face no bottlenecks whatsoever.

Eldrin Chen even had an intuition: if he could obtain Chaos Primordial Qi [the most fundamental and potent energy of the primordial chaos], this treasure's future Ascension into a Chaos Spiritual Treasure [a treasure that embodies and commands the very laws of chaos] would have an exceedingly high chance of success.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen lifted his gaze. Through a fissure in Chaos, he looked toward the seat of the eternal True Spirit [the spiritual essence that is the foundation of all things].

Yet he discovered that even after showering down countless billions upon billions of True Spirit Imprint, the radiance of that Eternal True Spirit remained constant—neither increasing nor diminishing by the slightest degree.

Withdrawing his thoughts, Eldrin Chen then turned his gaze to Daoxu Jiang and said, "Grandfather, it is time to seize this opportunity for Foundation Reforging [a profound process of reforging one's foundational cultivation to achieve a higher state of being]."

Daoxu Jiang gave a slight nod. He immediately activated the Primordial Beginning Qi Sword [a legendary sword embodying the primordial energy of creation], drawing upon the power of the True Spirit Treasure [a supreme-grade enchanted artifact of immense spiritual power] to Foundation Reforging and consolidate his foundational essence.

The Creation Cauldron [a divine cauldron capable of refining the essence of creation itself] also instantly manifested a stream of Creation Origin [the pure, primordial essence from which all things are born], guiding it to merge seamlessly with Daoxu Jiang.

Seizing this pivotal moment, Eldrin Chen also expended a portion of his own Primordial Indestructible Spiritual Light [an immortal, unbreakable radiance born from the highest levels of spiritual cultivation], directing it to fuse into Daoxu Jiang's body.

Daoxu Jiang first assimilated the Creation Origin into his Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core and true self of a cultivator]. Then, leveraging the nourishing feedback from the True Spirit Treasure, he launched an assault on the bottleneck of the Twelve-Limit True Spirit Primordial Spirit [the pinnacle realm of spiritual cultivation, representing the ultimate limit of twelve layers].

"Boom—!"

In that instant, the Primordial Spirit that Daoxu Jiang had painstakingly accumulated over six Kalpa Tribulation [cosmic cycles of immense duration, often associated with heavenly tribulations] finally shattered its limits. It erupted with overwhelming force, piercing through the Vast Chaotic Void [the boundless, formless expanse of primordial chaos] and attracting an endless tide of True Spirit Imprint [the fundamental spiritual patterns and laws of the universe] to descend upon him.

In mere moments, Daoxu Jiang's Primordial Spirit underwent a complete and utter metamorphosis. It transformed into an eternally Imperishable [possessing the quality of being indestructible and everlasting] True Spirit Primordial Spirit [the perfected and ultimate form of a cultivator's spiritual essence].

"Success."

"Just in time…"

It was at this very moment that Daoxu Jiang acted with decisive and unparalleled resolve, beginning to sacrifice the entirety of his foundational cultivation, transforming all of it into the raw materials for his nascent physical form.

This caused Eldrin Chen's expression to shift slightly. He had originally intended for Daoxu Jiang to complete his metamorphosis first, then sever his foundations and begin cultivating the Path of Self-Sacrifice anew from the Ascension Immortal Realm.

While that approach would have been slower, the gradual cultivation would have been far gentler. He never imagined Daoxu Jiang would choose such a violently direct method to initiate the Self-Sacrifice [the perilous process of sacrificing one's cultivation base to forge a new, purer foundation].

Undertaking Self-Sacrifice with the cultivation level of an Ancient Immortal Great Power was no trivial matter. A single misstep could cause even an Indestructible Primordial Spirit [a spiritual core renowned for its near-unbreakable resilience] to turn to dust, and it was a trial that a True Spirit Primordial Spirit [the highest attainable state of spiritual essence, where one's spirit becomes a true, independent entity] might not necessarily withstand.

Fortunately, Daoxu Jiang had already achieved a True Spirit Primordial Spirit, meaning he could not be utterly extinguished. This allowed Eldrin Chen to release a slight sigh of relief.

Taking a deep breath, Eldrin immediately retrieved various rare treasures to assist Daoxu Jiang in completing his cultivation of the Path of Self-Sacrifice.

Behold, Daoxu Jiang's physical body, his spiritual energy, his Dao Fruit [the crystallized essence of one's comprehension of the Dao, the fundamental law of existence], and all other foundational elements began to disintegrate under the power of the Primordial Beginning Qi Sword. They transformed into boundless power, intertwining with the Dao patterns of the sword itself before surging entirely into Daoxu Jiang's Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core and seat of consciousness for a cultivator].

Thereupon, Daoxu Jiang's Primordial Spirit began its metamorphosis, gradually reshaping itself into a newly formed Body of Self-Sacrifice [a physical form forged through the ultimate sacrifice of one's previous cultivation, possessing unparalleled purity and potential].

An immeasurable length of time seemed to pass. When all finally settled into stillness, Daoxu Jiang had at last completed his cultivation of the Path of Self-Sacrifice.

Witnessing the entire process, Eldrin Chen recorded his observations into the cultivation lore of the Path of Self-Sacrifice. Finally, with a look of dawning comprehension, he spoke, "Even for an Ancient Immortal Great Power, achieving a True Spirit Primordial Spirit can increase the certainty of successfully completing the Self-Sacrifice by thirty percent."

"Furthermore, for those who have cultivated foundations such as the True Spirit Physique and True Spirit Magical Power, the difficulty of achieving Self-Sacrifice [a critical cultivation breakthrough where one's foundational energies are fused into the Primordial Spirit] increases dramatically."

Having grasped the key obstacles of cultivating the Path of Self-Sacrifice, Eldrin Chen could not help but wear a grave expression. …

In essence, the Path of Self-Sacrifice uses the Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core and true self of a cultivator] as its foundation, treating all other aspects of one's cultivation base as mere fuel for its refinement.

In such a process, a powerful and Imperishable [possessing the quality of being indestructible or eternal] Primordial Spirit increases the likelihood of successfully completing Self-Sacrifice.

However, if the Primordial Spirit is weak, yet one has cultivated foundations like the True Spirit Physique [a body refined to its truest, most potent spiritual form] and True Spirit Magical Power [magical power refined to its truest, most potent spiritual form], then it becomes a case of a weak sovereign overwhelmed by powerful vassals. Achieving Self-Sacrifice under such circumstances becomes virtually impossible.

This presented a significant dilemma for Eldrin Chen. His foundational cultivation was overwhelmingly potent, having achieved the Sevenfold True Spirit Foundation [a legendary cultivation foundation where seven core aspects are refined to their True Spirit state]. The prospect of fusing such immense power into his Primordial Spirit to complete the metamorphosis seemed a task as daunting as scaling the heavens themselves.

"Perhaps... there is still a solution,"

Eldrin Chen murmured to himself, his thoughts suddenly turning to his ninth Innate Acupoints [naturally occurring energy nodes within a cultivator's body, crucial for channeling power and integrating divine abilities].

All these years, his ninth Innate Acupoints had remained unfused with any divine ability. Now, it seemed a potential path forward had revealed itself.

"The sea embraces all rivers; it devours the myriad things of creation."

"Only a divine ability derived from the Abyssal Great Dao [the supreme principle representing the end of all things], which is hailed as the Chaos The End, could possibly bear the weight of my supreme Sevenfold True Spirit Foundation [a foundation formed by merging seven distinct spiritual essences], could it not?"

Eldrin Chen spoke slowly, then finally withdrew his thoughts.

The Abyssal Great Dao [the supreme principle representing the end of all things] was profoundly arcane, being the Dao of Chaos End [the ultimate law governing the cessation of chaos], far beyond his current ability to comprehend.

Even if he could comprehend it, he would not immediately complete the Self-Sacrifice [a critical cultivation breakthrough where one sacrifices their current self to forge a new, more powerful one]. The greatest advantage of the Path of Self-Sacrifice [a cultivation method centered on self-annihilation and rebirth] lay in the fact that the more formidable one's foundation, the more powerful the newly forged self would ultimately become.

If Eldrin Chen ever reached a point where further advancement was truly impossible, only then would he consider completing the breakthrough of the Path of Self-Sacrifice [a cultivation method centered on self-annihilation and rebirth].

According to Eldrin Chen's estimation, if he cultivated all seven of his foundational pillars to the Chaos Realm [a legendary state of cultivation representing primordial chaos] and then completed the Path of Self-Sacrifice [a cultivation method centered on self-annihilation and rebirth] breakthrough, his potential would surpass that of every being throughout all of history.

At that point, his potential might even be sufficient to step into a realm higher than the Third Chaos Realm [the third and most profound stage of the legendary Chaos Realm].

Returning to the main thread, after Daoxu Jiang completed his Self-Sacrifice [a critical cultivation breakthrough where one sacrifices their current self to forge a new, more powerful one], he immediately began to open his Ten Great Divine Treasuries [ten mystical repositories within a cultivator's body that store immense power].

Given his current realm, opening the Ten Great Divine Treasuries [ten mystical repositories within a cultivator's body that store immense power] was as easy as breathing. In the space of a single Eldrin [a conventional unit of time, roughly equivalent to a breath], all ten treasuries were fully opened.

After completing his cultivation of the Ten Great Divine Treasuries [ten mystical repositories within a cultivator's body that store immense power], Daoxu Jiang began to open his Inner World [a miniature universe cultivated within a high-level cultivator's body]. In the blink of an eye, a vast internal cosmos began to unfold within him.

With the aid of Creation Beginning Qi [the primordial energy from which all things are born], he continued to break through without cease. His Inner World [a cultivator's personal, self-contained reality] transformed into a Three Realms [the three fundamental planes of existence: Heaven, Earth, and the Underworld], and then into a vast Cosmos [the entirety of the universe, all of creation].

Only after completing his cultivation within the Cosmos Realm [the stage where one's inner world becomes a complete, self-sustaining universe] did Daoxu Jiang finally pause his relentless ascent.

He had cultivated in bitter seclusion for several Kalpa Tribulation [immense cosmic cycles of destruction and rebirth, each spanning billions of years]. Over these eons, he had delved deeply into the Time-Space Great Dao [the supreme principle governing the fabric of time and space] required for the Path of Self-Sacrifice [a profound cultivation method that involves sacrificing one's own essence to achieve ultimate power], and indeed into the entire theoretical framework of the art itself. His understanding was now profound enough to guide his cultivation all the way to the realm Between Immortal Treasuries [a transcendent state existing between the ten legendary immortal vaults of power].

However, to fully complete the cultivation of the Ten Great Immortal Treasuries [the ten ultimate repositories of immortal power and law], a significant amount of time would still be required.

According to Daoxu Jiang's own estimation, he would need to cultivate for roughly one more Kalpa Tribulation. This would be sufficient time to thoroughly complete and consolidate his mastery of the Path of Self-Sacrifice before the arrival of the next great cosmic cycle, bringing him to the very bottleneck of impacting the Grand Luo Golden Immortal [the supreme, peerless realm of the Golden Immortal, the apex of cultivation].