Chapter 2016 : The Maiden Aman

Chapter 2017 The Maiden Aman: 5,200 Words Initially, Eldrin was somewhat surprised by this, but he quickly regained his composure.

These Great Wilderness survivors struggled daily for survival, with no mind for petty schemes. Their foes—the desolate men and forsaken tribes—were but mindless wretches devoid of reason.

Many of the Great Wilderness descendants who had dealings with him even wondered whether, if his strength proved sufficient, he could be persuaded to stay and jointly safeguard the Great Wilderness Ancient Realm.

Since he had no particular constraints, Eldrin was content to enjoy his leisure, recuperating in the Great Desolate Ancient Realm while acquainting himself with its intricacies.

Yet the young woman in beast hides named Aman came to find him every couple of days, treating him like a friend and looking after him.

Thus time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, tens of millions of years had passed.

On this day, Eldrin gradually awoke from his healing trance. Sensing the state of his injuries, he gave a slight nod of approval.

"With the aid of the Chaos Divine Liquid, the Great Dao Divine Form has been mostly refined. It seems my injuries are healing faster than anticipated."

A faint smile unconsciously graced Eldrin's (Person Name) lips as he murmured inwardly.

A-Man's bright eyes sparkled as she said with a beaming smile, "Your gratitude is all I need."

With this thought in mind, Eldrin sighed and patted her shoulder, saying, "Don't be sad. Perhaps there's still a chance for things to turn around."

"They say those buried there will be reborn in a world without the Desolate Tribes or war."

The Chaos Godliquid truly lived up to its reputation as a marvel of primordial chaos. Though not particularly adept at healing wounds, it possessed remarkable efficacy in enhancing 1's physical body and spiritual power, while also exhibiting minor properties of expelling foreign energies.

"While I am away, you must protect yourself at all costs."

Eldrin snapped back to reality and finally withdrew the Great Barrens Body Refining Art. "Then I thank you. Please also convey my gratitude to your Elder Shaman."

A'man's talent was extraordinary. He had attained the Great Dao of the Grand Unity after merely 10 million years, establishing himself as 1 of the most exceptional prodigies in the Primordial Wilderness Realm. Yet, not even he could be granted the slightest exception.

Eldrin's thoughts surfaced, yet he swiftly reined them in.

Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art.

"Agreed, it's settled!"

The other people present exchanged bewildered glances upon hearing this.

To think that today, Aman would personally deliver it to him.

Those who have survived to this era possess cultivation levels starting from the Earth Immortal realm at the very least. Even Immortals beyond the Earth Immortal realm must constantly face the onslaught of the Barren Race.

The Elder Shaman was 1 of the 9. Gazing calmly at the assembled crowd, he spoke with unwavering composure, "I concur with A'Man's decision to bestow the Great Wilderness Body Tempering Art upon that outsider."

In this world, there are no commoners, no elderly or children, no women or the weak. Regardless of cultivation level or social status, every individual who takes up arms becomes a warrior.

The young maiden’s voice faltered slightly, her bright eyes dimming as she murmured, "If I die, promise to bury me in the A’lang Mountains."

"You guessed wrong."

"Alas—"

As she spoke, she withdrew her smile and said with a hint of sorrow, "In a few more years, the Desolation Tribulation will arrive. When that time comes, I too must head to the front lines to fight."

Over the years, Eldrin had utilized his artifact forging skills during his spare time to craft numerous celestial treasures and magical artifacts for these descendants of the Great Wilderness.

"It seems my injuries will be healed within 1 kalpa cycle."...

Eldrin smiled faintly and extended his hand to seal the promise with a pinky swear.

"When the time comes, we'll kill those barbarians, then go see the 7 domains of the Southern Abyss you mentioned. Let's find out if they're truly as prosperous as claimed."

He lifted his head, gazing beyond the courtyard, and spoke: "Come in."

Meanwhile, at the very heart of the Primordial Wilderness Realm, within the Great Wilderness Sanctum, 9 elders gathered in a circle.

The denizens of the Great Desolate Ancient Realm excelled in physical cultivation, yet their mastery over alchemy, formations, artifacts, and talismans remained exceedingly crude—so much so that even the Chaos Fiends of the 7 Southern Abyssal Domains surpassed them in these arts.

A'man regained her resolve. Taking Eldrin's hand, she declared with unwavering determination, "I shall continue my cultivation with utmost dedication, advancing all the way to break through to the Primordial Unity Realm and even attain the Chaos Realm."

Eldrin fell silent. The Great Desolate Ancient Realm lay in ruins, its inhabitants living perpetually on the brink of life and death.

"If, and I mean if..."

Eldrin shook his head with a faint smile, letting out a soft sigh as he said, "What marvelous trinket have you brought this time? Let me refine it for you."

This Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art was of extraordinary origin. It was a method for achieving sainthood through physical cultivation, painstakingly developed by the ancient sages of the Great Wilderness Ancient Realm based on their observations of the Primordial Chaos Desolate Sea.

Eldrin was quite intrigued by this technique as well, but the cultivators of the Great Barren Ancient Realm guarded it with utmost secrecy, forcing him to abandon any hope of obtaining it.

A’man giggled and promptly handed a thick stack of books to Eldrin, saying excitedly, “Take a look at what these are?”

Seeing his astonished expression, Aman finally smiled and said, "This Great Wilderness Body Refining Art leads all the way to the Primordial Chaos Realm. I specifically begged Elder Shaman for ages before he agreed to teach it to you."

"Brother Nian, I'm here!"

The gown worn by the young maiden Aman was personally crafted by Eldrin (Person Name) during his spare moments.

Over the years, Eldrin refined a drop of Chaos Divine Liquid. By harnessing its chaotic divinity, he actually managed to eradicate 10 percent of the residual Dao Divine Form.

Hmm!

Eldrin (Person Name) froze momentarily, a flicker of astonishment surfacing in his expression.

A-Man, clad in a cyan dress, rushed in with bubbling excitement, hiding her hands behind her back. With a mischievous glint in her eyes, she chimed, "Care to guess what I've brought for you?"

It was precisely for this reason that the Great Barren Ancient Realm was sparsely populated. A’Man’s father, mother, grandfather, and even his brothers and sisters had all fallen in battles defending against invasions.

A moment later, someone voiced discontent, "After all, he is an outsider from beyond our realm. How could we possibly grant him our cultivation methods?"

"And why not?"

Others voiced their support, speaking decisively, "It's merely a single cultivation technique scroll. Even if obtained, it's of little consequence. Since he isn't 1 of the Barbarians, we must unite."

"But he is, after all, an outsider from beyond our realm. Keeping him here too long carries the risk that he might pose a threat to the Sanctum..."

"Silence!"

At that very moment, among the 9 figures, the leading 1 interrupted the dispute.

High Priest.

Upon hearing this, the expressions of everyone present shifted slightly, and they all bowed in unison.

The elder addressed as the High Priest coughed lightly before speaking, "With the Great Calamity imminent, our paramount objective is to ensure the Primordial Ancient Realm remains unbreached."

"The rest, it matters not."

At this point, the High Priest added, "To unleash the power of 'It', 1 must have achieved the Great Luo Primordial Spirit."

The descendants of the Great Wilderness all practiced the path of physical sanctification through fleshly cultivation, yet none had newly achieved the Great Perfection Primordial Spirit in recent times.

"All these years, we have been pushing ourselves to the brink to activate 'It' against those Desolate Tribes. Now we are nearly drained, like lamps running dry. Once we perish, who will stand against the Desolate Monarchs?"

The 8 individuals present all fell into silence upon hearing this.

The Elder High Priest took a deep breath before finally speaking, “I have observed that this outsider possesses an extraordinary primordial spirit. Perhaps he can channel a portion of ‘His’ power and become the next Great Barren High Priest.”

As the Great Desolation Tribulation loomed, Ah Man left behind the Great Desolation Body Refining Art before hastily departing.

Eldrin watched her depart without another word, quietly returning to the courtyard where he retrieved the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art to examine it.

Yet, with just a single glance, Eldrin (Person Name) furrowed his brow slightly, a trace of astonishment flickering across his expression.

"This Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art is crude and shallow, yet it holds considerable merit."

It turned out that the cultivation method of the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art was exceedingly ingenious, a path less traveled to achieve sainthood through physical perfection.

This lineage's cultivation method did not follow the path of cultivating the 9 great true spirit divine patterns. Instead, it emulated the characteristics of the Primordial Chaos Barbaric Tribe, forming a single Great Barbaric Inner Core within the body.

This Great Wilderness Inner Pill is formed by condensing the essence of a cultivator's entire being, possessing extraordinarily formidable power. In truth, cultivating it is not difficult—it is even remarkably straightforward, requiring no particular aptitude.

However, cultivating the Great Wilderness Inner Elixir required the consumption of vast quantities of flesh and blood—specifically, that of primordial chaos beasts.

It was precisely for this reason that these Great Barrens descendants were able to withstand the scouring of the Primordial Chaos Sea.

Of course, if it merely imitated the ways of the primordial chaos beasts in condensing the inner core, the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art would be nothing out of the ordinary.

After all, no matter how powerful the imitation may be, it can never surpass the strength of the primordial chaos beast itself.

The ingenuity of the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art lies in its ability to carve countless formation patterns within the body, harnessing the power of the formed inner core.

This array pattern was extremely crude, yet overwhelmingly domineering—more akin to the formations found within magical treasures.

Therefore, strictly speaking, the Great Wilderness Body Refining Technique treats the human body as a magic treasure to be forged.

In contrast, the traditional path of physical ascension is more gradual, while the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art forges a physique that is far more domineering—simpler yet overwhelmingly brute in its approach.

However, the likelihood of death on this path is exceedingly high.

Refining artifacts is straightforward—if it fails, you simply start over, crude and brutal but convenient. However, refining a human being as if they were a magic treasure is an entirely different matter. The slightest misstep would lead to annihilation, both physical and spiritual.

According to the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art, even among those with Earth Immortal lineage, only about 1 in a 1000 could master this technique.

Yet now, nearly everyone in the Great Wilderness Ancient Realm cultivates the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art.

In other words, the vast majority of the Great Wilderness Descendants had met their end beneath the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art.

But this was an unavoidable predicament, for without cultivating the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art, 1 simply couldn't survive outdoors in the Great Wilderness Ancient Realm.

For the entire Great Barren Ancient Realm was, in itself, an environment akin to a living hell.

This realm knew neither blue skies nor white clouds. The world's membrane was riddled with fissures, through which the waters of primordial chaos cascaded ceaselessly. The earth below stretched as an endless expanse of molten lava and seas of flame....

Only the most tenacious Chaos Realm Grass can survive within the Great Desolate Ancient Realm.

In the Great Wilderness Ancient Realm, all young children were gathered and raised within the Great Wilderness Sacred Hall—the only sanctuary for living beings in this realm.

These children must remain within the Great Wilderness Sanctuary until they reach adulthood, and can only emerge after mastering the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art.

If 1 fails to master the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art, even achieving the Immortal Ascension Realm would not grant them freedom to leave the Great Wilderness Divine Palace—for a single wisp of primordial chaos miasma from heaven and earth could annihilate them at any moment.

"Born into a desperate situation, they had no other choice."

"Survival of the fittest. Cultivating this Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art may be their only path to survival."

Eldrin let out a soft sigh, a trace of wistful emotion involuntarily surfacing in his expression.

Compared to the Great Desolate Ancient Realm, all living beings in the 7 Domains of the Southern Abyss—even those in the most insignificant minor worlds—could almost be considered as dwelling in a paradise.

Setting aside all distracting thoughts, Eldrin fell into brief contemplation before beginning to deduce the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art.

With his current level of insight, deducing the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art was not particularly difficult. After extensive study, he continuously refined and perfected this scroll of body cultivation technique.

Soon, the foundational method of the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art had been simplified by him.

According to his method, practicing the Great Wilderness Body Refinement Art step by step increased the success rate from approximately 1 in a 1000 to about 1 in a 100.

Of course, this success rate was based on the descendants of Earth Immortals in this realm.

Fortunately, in the Great Barren Ancient Realm, those capable of long-term survival had already cultivated to the Earth Immortal Realm, so this requirement posed no significant issue.

After mastering the basics, Eldrin attempted to integrate the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art with his own cultivation method. Yet despite years of experimentation, he never succeeded.

Eldrin's Path of Self-Refinement was born from multiple Chaos Emperor Scriptures like the 9 Revolutions Heavenly Art, refined through his own foundation. It had nearly reached a state of flawless perfection.

Even with Eldrin's comprehension surpassing that of the Primordial Chaos Heavenly Emperor, he still found it nearly impossible to integrate the Great Wilderness Body Tempering Art with it—at least for now, it remained beyond his grasp.

"This method of inner elixir cultivation clashes with the 5 Viscera Deities."

"The path of body refinement array patterns also conflicts with the 6 Great True Spirit Divine Patterns, making it difficult to integrate them into a unified whole."

"It seems I am still unable to absorb the Great Wilderness Body Refining Art and integrate it into my foundation for the time being."

"However, this Great Wilderness Body Refining Art might be used to perfect the Sacrificial Self Dao."

Eldrin murmured inwardly, a faint glimmer of delight rising within him.

The Sacrificial Body of the Path of Self-Offering was forged by sacrificing 1’s entire foundational cultivation. The peril involved in this self-offering ritual far surpasses even the most brutal body-refining techniques.

Yet after establishing my own path and stepping into immortality, the development of my physical combat prowess remained insufficient.

The realms established by Eldrin (Person Name)—World Genesis, 3 Realms, Cosmic Expanse, and Immortal Vault—were fundamentally oriented toward the cultivation of 1's inner and outer cosmos, rather than the mere refinement of physical strength.

You must understand, the Sacrificial Art’s physical form—fused with 1’s primordial spirit, mana, and all foundational roots—is itself a supreme embryo, possessing immense malleability.

If 1 references artifact forging techniques, treating the sacrificial body as a supreme treasure to be tempered through countless trials and engraved with myriad ultimate formation patterns, it may yield an incredibly heaven-defying physical combat prowess.

As for the Great Wilderness Inner Core, it serves as the power source for the Great Wilderness Body Tempering Art. This can be entirely replaced by the Inner Universe—in fact, the effects are likely to be far more potent....

At this thought, Eldrin felt a faint stirring in his heart and immediately sought to refine the cultivation method of the Sacrificial Path.

But just at that moment, Eldrin's brow furrowed slightly. He immediately rose and emerged from the seclusion chamber.

After exiting the seclusion chamber, Eldrin discovered that the Primordial Ancient Realm was now veiled by towering arrays that blotted out the sky.

Before the primordial membrane of the Great Desolate Ancient Realm, a massive and hideous fissure connected the chaos within and without. At this moment, countless descendants of the Great Desolate stood guard before the rift, weapons in hand, their expressions grave.

Fortunately, a light screen that blotted out the sky and sealed the earth blocked the world's rift at the edge of the fissure.

However, there were as many as several 100 such massive Sky Rifts scattered across the Great Barren Ancient Realm, and the 1 before them was merely among the largest of these.

Boom—

As Eldrin observed, roars echoed from within the chaos.

But within the vast expanse of primordial chaos, countless ancient beasts of chaos came roaring forth. Among them were Chaos Demon Gods large enough to blot out the heavens, alongside some humanoid figures—the Chaos Wastelanders.

"Chaos Desolate Clan, and the Desolate Ones?"

Eldrin murmured, his gaze involuntarily tightening with a faint frown.

These chaotic desolates were mostly Chaos Fiends whose minds had been eroded by the power of desolation, while the desolate humans were largely former compatriots from the Primordial Desolate Realm of antiquity.

From what Eldrin (Person Name) knew, when the Primordial Wilderness Domain was severely damaged in the past, they initially seemed unable to locate the divine jade capable of resisting the erosion of the Chaotic Sea.

At that time, countless abandoned Great Luo Golden Immortals journeyed toward the Chaotic Desolate Sea in search of other primordial realms, all for a sliver of hope.

There were also those who attained the Dao in later times, journeying 1 after another into the Chaotic Primordial Sea.

Some of these individuals vanished, but the vast majority transformed into the Desolate Ones. Driven by primal instinct, they converged around the Primordial Wastelands, frequently launching assaults upon the inhabitants of the Ancient Desolate Realm.

The cataclysms of the Great Barren Realm were essentially wars initiated by instinct—the Barren Tribes and Barrenfolk waging battle in their primal struggle to regain sentience.

Approximately every 10 kalpas, these Desolate Tribes would launch wars against the Great Desolate Ancient Realm.

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

"Among the 7 domains of the Southern Abyss, it appears no Desolate Calamity has ever occurred."

At this point, Eldrin quickly shook his head.

The Southern Abyss's 7 domains boasted over 20 Chaos Heavenly Emperors, with a full 3 1000 Primordial Chaos Emperors. Even if a Primal Calamity were to arise, they could effortlessly eradicate it.

After all, the desolate tribes lacked spiritual intelligence and relied solely on primal instincts, making it utterly impossible for them to mobilize large-scale warfare.

In truth, during each Great Desolation Tribulation in the Primordial Desolate Realm, only about 1-tenth of the surrounding Desolate Tribes would launch attacks.

Otherwise, given the sheer numbers of the Barren Race and its people, if they could truly muster all their forces to attack, the Great Barren Ancient Realm would have been breached long ago.

Slaughter them—

Just as Eldrin’s thoughts wavered, the war in the Great Desolate Ancient Realm erupted.

Tens of millions of primordial chaos beasts swarmed in assault, accompanied by the auras of over a 1000 Golden Immortals of the Grand Luo Realm.

And in that very instant, hundreds of figures soared out from the Primordial Wilderness Realm.

These individuals were all Great Wasteland Survivors at the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm. The vast majority of them had stagnated at the early or middle stages of Great Luo Golden Immortal, and the young maiden Amon was 1 of them.

She cast a glance at Eldrin and transmitted her voice, saying, "Remember our agreement."

Eldrin remained silent, yet a faint frown involuntarily creased his brow.

The Great Desolate Ancient Realm possessed only 300 Great Luo Golden Immortals. Relying solely on this shattered realm protection array and the fractured ancient realm riddled with cracks, even if they could withstand this desolate calamity, they would likely suffer devastating losses.

"If this battle continues, I fear this realm would be completely annihilated within 1 100 kalpas, had I not arrived."

Eldrin’s thoughts flickered rapidly as he watched the Great Wilderness Descendants high above the heavens take action.

At the forefront stood a brawny man at the Great Perfection stage of the Golden Immortal Realm. Raising his spear high, he roared, "Fellow descendants of the Great Wilderness! Our ancestral homeland lies behind us—not a single step back this time!"

"Protect our homeland, not a single step back."

The descendants of the Great Wilderness roared in unison, their faces etched with the grim determination of those who had made peace with death.

Eldrin gazed silently, then turned to behold the ancient realm now shattered by rampant mountain fires and rivers of molten rock. A nameless emotion stirred within his heart.

Even this ancient realm, so shattered and dilapidated, remained their homeland—the sole sanctuary upon which they depended for survival.

In this chaotic and desolate sea, there are no elderly, weak, women, or children—no distinctions of high or low status. All who take up arms become warriors.

For survival, for their homeland, they had no chance to retreat.

"Not a single step back!"

Eldrin (Person Name) suddenly spoke up. Without waiting until the last moment, he drew forth the Chaos Heavenly Halberd (Magic Treasure) and ascended skyward.

He shielded Aman behind him and said with a smile, "I shall lend my aid as well, to guard your ancestral homeland!"

Upon hearing this, a faint smile blossomed in Aman's bright eyes.

Without another word, she gripped her war spear and stepped forward, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Eldrin. "We women of the Great Wilderness descendants," she declared, "never stand behind men."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 1 The wind howled through the jagged peaks of the Azure Mist Mountains, carrying with it the scent of pine and a faint, metallic tang of blood. A lone figure knelt in a secluded clearing, his robes torn and stained. This was Lin Feng, once a promising disciple of the Verdant Cloud Sect, now a fugitive clinging to a sliver of hope. He clutched a faintly glowing spirit stone in his trembling hand—his last 1. "Just a bit more... I must break through to the 7th level of the Qi Refining stage before they find me," he muttered, his voice a raw whisper against the gale. Memories, sharp and painful, flashed before his eyes: the sneering face of his former rival, the cold indifference in the Elder's eyes as he was expelled on false charges, the devastating blow that had nearly shattered his dantian. A fire, fierce and unyielding, burned within his chest, hotter than any flame spell. It was the will to survive, to reclaim everything that was stolen. Closing his eyes, he began to circulate the Profound Sun Mantra. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth, visible as shimmering motes of light to his spiritual sense, slowly converged towards him. He guided this energy, refining it through his damaged meridians in a cycle that was both agonizing and familiar. Each cycle was a battle, a desperate attempt to mend the fractures within and gather enough power for the breakthrough. Hours turned into a day. The spirit stone in his palm crumbled to dust, its energy exhausted. Suddenly, the spiritual energy around him grew turbulent, swirling into a visible vortex centered on his body. A painful yet exhilarating sensation erupted from his core, as if countless tiny needles were pricking him from within while a warm, potent force flooded his veins. He had done it. Lin Feng opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within their depths. The weakness that had plagued him was gone, replaced by a robust power that coursed through his limbs. He was now a 7th level Qi Refining cultivator. He stood up, his movements fluid and sure. Looking towards the distant, mist-shrouded peaks where the Verdant Cloud Sect resided, his expression hardened into 1 of resolve. "They cast me out as trash, believing my path of cultivation was ended. Little do they know..." His hand instinctively went to a simple, unadorned ring on his finger—his only possession from his unknown parents. "This is not the end. It is merely the beginning." A faint, almost imperceptible ripple of energy seemed to emanate from the ring for a fleeting second, so brief he thought it might have been his imagination. Unsheathing the Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss, its blade gleaming with a cold, crimson light, he took his first step into the dense, unforgiving forest. His journey of vengeance and ascension had truly begun.