I Shall Be Everlasting In the World of Immortals 391

## Chapter 387: Demon Chaos, Fourth-Order Transformation

Lu Changan, who was in seclusion, sensed Xuan Shui Gui’s (玄水龟) advancement, which was within his expectations.

Back then, Xuan Shui Gui absorbed a large amount of innate turbid energy from the withered Xuan Tian relic, causing its bloodline to transform, reaching at least the Heavenly Grade. Although it was a third-order Xuan Gui, its lifespan was not much lower than Lu Changan’s.

Ordinary monster species have similar lifespans to humans. However, those legendary species, such as True Spirit Dragons and Phoenixes, Kirin and Xuan Gui, have incredibly long lifespans. Correspondingly, descendants of True Spirit bloodlines, those above the Earth Grade, also have lifespans far exceeding ordinary monsters.

“This fourth-order Blood Dragon Fruit is a rare Body Refinement Holy Fruit in the Cultivation World. Even if it can’t make me advance to the fourth-order Body Refinement, it can still increase my physical strength.”

Lu Changan took out a jade box and unsealed a dragon-scale blood-colored fruit inside, its value close to that of a Heavenly Infant Fruit.

Vast Heavenly Blood Essence energy surged in the secret chamber.

Three years ago, during the Nascent Soul Heavenly Thunder Tribulation, Lu Changan’s Body Refinement physique had been tempered by the Heavenly Thunder.

At that time, his Body Refinement bottleneck had loosened slightly. After the tribulation, this feeling disappeared.

This fourth-order Blood Dragon Fruit was a compensation dividend given by Jing Wu Feng after he emerged from the Ancient幽殿.

Lu Changan initially planned to collect more precious Body Refinement materials in the future to refine breakthrough-type Body Refinement Holy Pills.

However, the current era in the Cultivation World is not suitable for Body Refinement cultivators, and fourth-order and above Body Refinement materials are almost extinct. It would be a long time before he could gather enough.

Even if he successfully refined a breakthrough-type fourth-order Body Refinement Holy Pill, it wouldn’t guarantee his advancement to the fourth-order.

Besides aptitude and opportunities, there are also restrictions from the Heavenly environment.

Since ancient times, there has never been any mention of fifth-order Body Refinement. Fourth-order Body Refinement might be the limit of the human world. Therefore, the difficulty of advancement far exceeds that of forming the Nascent Soul.

Lu Changan decided to consume it directly. Even if the chance of advancement was low, it could still enhance his Body Refinement strength.

Several days later.

Lu Changan’s Body Refinement advancement to the fourth-order failed.

However, his physical strength and blood essence increased by several folds, and the bottleneck loosened, making him a quasi-fourth-order Body Refinement cultivator.

Striving for Body Refinement was just a minor incident during Lu Changan’s seclusion.

He devoted most of his energy to improving his supernatural powers and secret techniques.

With the Nascent Soul insights from his fourth life and the memories and experiences of multiple Nascent Soul, Lu Changan’s practice of similar supernatural powers and secret techniques was like a fish in water, achieving effortless success.

For example, “Illusory Wood Clone”, which was very compatible with the Long Qing Gong (长青功) attribute. The memories of three Nascent Soul had all practiced similar body technique supernatural powers.

Lu Changan’s practice of “Illusory Wood Clone” in this life easily reached a minor level of mastery.

Essentially, apart from maintaining his original nature, Lu Changan was equivalent to a Nascent Soul old monster reincarnated and cultivating again, not a half-baked reincarnation like Hu Ang, whose residual soul fused with him.

…

Another three years passed during his seclusion.

On this day, Yun Xia Zong (云霞宗) gave birth to a late-stage Jie Dan cultivator named Cai Yue Zhen Ren (彩月真人).

Compared to when Lu Changan first arrived at Yun Xia Zong, the sect’s fortune had become much stronger, presenting a thriving scene.

The sect underwent a generational change, with talented individuals emerging, both from the top and bottom, clearly surpassing the era when Yun Lan Zhen Ren (云岚真人) was in charge.

Some sect cultivators privately discussed that Zi Xia Zhen Ren (紫霞真人) was better at managing the sect than her senior brother Yun Lan.

The newly promoted Cai Yue Zhen Ren held a small celebration.

Xiao Qing Shan delivered a congratulatory gift on behalf of Lu Changan, since Cai Yue Zhen Ren had given a generous gift during Lu Changan’s Nascent Soul Grand Ceremony.

“In the past six months, the General Affairs Hall has added two new tasks to eliminate demons, which is quite strange.”

“Not only our Yun Xia Zong, but major forces across Da Yu Guo (大宇国) have also encountered sporadic demonic monsters. Thankfully, most of them are below the third-order, so the danger is not significant.”

“Is it possible that the Demon Chaos Calamity is about to engulf the Middle Domain again, given these unusual signs?”

At the small celebration gathering, sect cultivators discussed various topics, with the resurgence of demons being a hot topic.

For Xiao Qing Shan, the Demon Chaos was unfamiliar. When the last Demon Chaos Calamity occurred, his mother hadn’t even been born.

Several of the sect’s high-ranking officials present had been paying close attention to this matter.

However, the current small number of low-level demons was not enough to warrant their personal intervention.

The Xue Feng Zong (雪峰宗) leader whispered, “The signs of this Demon Resurgence are much earlier than usual. According to the divination master’s calculations, the Demon Chaos will erupt on a large scale at the latest within ten years. The Middle Domain will be the first to suffer.”

Cai Yue Zhen Ren sighed softly, “The Demon Chaos Calamity doesn’t significantly affect the upper echelons of the Cultivation World, but I wonder how many ordinary cultivators will perish.”

…

After the small celebration, Xiao Qing Shan returned to Yun Lan Feng (云岚峰), organizing and recording the recent external information on a jade slip for Xiang Zhen Ren (项真人) to examine upon his return.

The signs of the Demon Chaos Calamity didn’t affect Di Yan Jun (地岩君).

Since Xuan Shui Gui advanced to the late third-order, it had also been diligently cultivating in recent years.

It also kept a watchful eye on Hu Ang’s every move.

Recently, green-armored puppets with similar tasks were sitting cross-legged in the underground palace, entering a state of quasi-meditation, completely oblivious to the outside world.

Both the master and the green-armored puppets were in seclusion, so Di Yan Jun had to shoulder the responsibility.

Lu Changan wasn’t in a state of closed death cultivation; his divine consciousness occasionally checked the external situation.

“If the Demon Chaos erupts within ten years, it’s a good opportunity.”

Lu Changan muttered.

He recalled the demonic creatures he encountered during his travels, which were controlled by ghost cultivators, which couldn’t be accidental.

In every Demon Chaos Calamity, some remaining demonic creatures or demonic powers are scattered throughout the various corners of the Da Yuan Middle Domain.

The Demon Chaos Calamity in the Middle Domain is said to have some connection to the Ancient幽殿.

Normally, the Demon Chaos Calamity occurs about sixty years after the Ancient幽殿.

However, the last Ancient幽殿 was extraordinary, with a large number of participants and treasures beyond those in previous events.

…

Five years later.

The number of demons in the Da Yuan Middle Domain significantly increased, with third-order Great Demons appearing from time to time, causing destruction across the Cultivation World.

Within the Middle Domain’s forbidden area, demonic energy surged, and many demonic creatures with confused spiritual intelligence prematurely charged out.

One-third of Yun Xia Zong’s sect tasks were related to eliminating demons.

This year, Lu Changan finally ended his ten years of seclusion.

After ten years of hard work, Lu Changan’s spiritual power increased slightly, but his supernatural powers significantly improved.

With limited time, Lu Changan mainly cultivated the powerful “枯灭神光” and a few other easy-to-learn supernatural powers and secret techniques as supplementary.

He primarily cultivated “枯灭神光” because it was compatible with his Wood attribute cultivation techniques, especially the Long Qing Gong, and it was highly effective against living creatures.

The characteristic of “枯灭神光” is to extinguish life force, causing significant harm to blood and flesh creatures, plants, and animals.

It is said that land struck by “枯灭神光” will be barren for a hundred years.

If it strikes a cultivator, it can significantly wither their life essence.

Taking Lu Changan’s Nascent Soul stage cultivation of “枯灭神光” to a minor level of mastery as an example, a normal Jie Dan cultivator hit directly would instantly turn into a pile of bones.

Even a Nascent Soul cultivator touched by it would lose blood essence and vitality, weakening their temporary fighting ability.

If “枯灭神光” reaches its peak, which usually requires the Nascent Soul middle stage or later, its power will be even more formidable. If a cultivator is merely brushed by it, it can shorten their lifespan.

Cultivating this supernatural power, Lu Changan consumed a large amount of blood essence and vitality. To accelerate his progress, he also sacrificed three years of lifespan.

This was only because he had refined his Body Refinement to the quasi-fourth-order, resulting in high-quality blood essence and vitality. For a regular early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, it would probably have cost them ten years of lifespan.

In combat, if one is willing to consume blood essence and lifespan, the power of “枯灭神光” can be enhanced to another level, posing a significant threat to cultivators below the Nascent Soul middle stage.

With this supernatural power, Lu Changan’s offensive capabilities have received a significant boost.

Of course, no supernatural power is perfect.

“枯灭神光” also has its limitations.

Firstly, while this supernatural power can penetrate protective auras, it is easily blocked by defensive artifacts, especially heavy artifacts and Gold attribute artifacts.

After all, “枯灭神光” is a Wood attribute supernatural power and is subject to elemental weaknesses.

Secondly, it has weak lethality against non-living beings, such as puppets and inanimate objects.

For example, puppets and zombies, which are not living things, are not as afraid of “枯灭神光”.

However, Lu Changan, as a master puppeteer with numerous puppets, is not afraid of being countered by such means.

Aside from these two limitations, it shares the commonality of most supernatural powers and techniques.

No matter how powerful the supernatural power is, it needs to hit the target to be effective.

If the target is extremely fast or possesses a higher realm, enabling them to block and deflect it, “枯灭神光” won’t be able to touch the enemy’s body. No matter how extraordinary the effect is, it would be in vain.

Lu Changan is not worried about this, as he has many means to assist him, including puppets, spirit pets, magic talismans, and artifacts, which can restrain and suppress the enemy. Utilizing “枯灭神光” on top of this would make him unstoppable!

…

Apart from supernatural powers and secret techniques, Lu Changan also took time to refine and improve the quality of his main artifacts, melting down precious materials.

The “Dragon Wood Staff” was refined with dragon bones and refined dragon blood, enhancing its power and quality.

The “Nail-Headed Arrow” was also infused with precious materials he had previously stored, such as the fourth-order mid-grade “Purple幽矿”, which was also part of the dividends from the Ancient幽殿.

This ore is an extremely rare Soul Dao material that can increase the quality and soul damage of the “Nail-Headed Arrow”.

Back when he crafted the 異灵孔雀, he didn’t dare use “Purple幽矿” and only used two other fourth-order mid-grade materials instead.

The main material of the “Nail-Headed Arrow” shaft was “Soul-Nurturing Wood”, a precious spiritual wood in the Cultivation World. After a hundred years of cultivation by Lu Changan, its spiritual quality surpassed ordinary fourth-order mid-grade spiritual wood.

This precious spiritual wood in the Cultivation World can theoretically grow infinitely to the fifth, sixth, and even higher orders if the Heavenly environment allows.

Like a cultivator’s natal artifact, as long as their cultivation continuously improves, by melting materials and refining and nurturing it, it can theoretically be infinitely upgraded, forging a treasure of the immortals.

…

“Ten years of seclusion. I am now 391 years old. Ten years remain before the demon sealing agreement with Jing Wu Feng.”

Lu Changan calculated the time.

He had made a promise to Jing Wu Feng that he would help him seal a dangerous location where demonic energy was leaking from the Middle Domain’s forbidden area within sixty years.

Without Jing Wu Feng’s help, Lu Changan wouldn’t have been able to kill Shi Xin Long, and Di Yan Jun wouldn’t have been able to advance to the fourth-order demon king.

Now, demonic energy is gushing out of the Middle Domain’s forbidden area. I wonder if it has any impact on the agreement we made back then.

Not long after leaving seclusion, Zi Xia Xian Zi (紫霞仙子) personally visited Yun Lan Feng to discuss the events that had happened over the past ten years.

Among them was news of Jing Wu Feng.

Jiang Zi Yan said, “Three years ago, Jing Tian Zhen Ren appeared in the Middle Domain, attracting the attention of many Nascent Soul old monsters.”

“Two years ago, in a battle, Jing Tian Zhen Ren fought against a Nascent Soul mid-stage giant and remained undefeated, and he took the opportunity to kill a Nascent Soul early-stage cultivator, whose Nascent Soul spiritual body didn’t even manage to escape…”

Mentioning this, a hint of fear flashed in Jiang Zi Yan’s starry eyes.

Jing Tian Zhen Ren’s spiritual power and supernatural powers shattered the common rule that ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators couldn’t be killed.

Lu Changan was also envious when he heard this.

Jing Wu Feng possesses a special spatial supernatural power, which probably can restrict the escape of Nascent Soul spiritual bodies.

Lu Changan lacks such supernatural powers or special artifacts.

To kill a Nascent Soul early-stage cultivator, he must devise a plan and use overwhelming force, first injuring the target’s Nascent Soul to prevent its successful escape.

“Da Long thinks, has Jing Tian Zhen Ren really mastered a Pseudo-Spiritual Treasure? Otherwise, why would he cause such a commotion?”

Zi Xia Xian Zi intentionally probed, testing Lu Changan.

Although Jing Tian Zhen Ren had only visited Yun Xia Zong once, she always felt that he had a special relationship with Xiang Da Long.

“It’s hard to say.”

Lu Changan shook his head, not revealing his true thoughts.

He felt that “Ming Shui Zhen Ren” was behind the scenes, stirring up trouble.

The other Nascent Soul old monsters targeting Jing Wu Feng either had grudges from the Ancient幽殿 or were greedy for opportunities like Pseudo-Spiritual Treasures.

Ming Shui Zhen Ren has some misunderstanding about Jing Wu Feng and covets the enormous benefits related to Ting Hai Ge (听海阁).

“This Jing Tian Zhen Ren must be someone with great fortune, becoming the focus of the Middle Domain as soon as he appeared.”

“Yes, with Jing Dao You (景道友) drawing attention, I can develop comfortably.”

Lu Changan silently gave a thumbs up.

…

Two days later, Zi Xia Xian Zi left Yun Lan Feng.

Lu Changan suddenly thought of a possibility and checked the letters he had received over the past ten years.

As the demon sealing agreement approached, Jing Wu Feng had returned to the Middle Domain and should have contacted him actively.

After a short while, Lu Changan’s divine consciousness found a special third-order jade conch among numerous letters. It appeared to be a congratulatory gift, but it had a Tian Fu (天符) prohibition that Lu Changan was familiar with.

Lu Changan used the method they had previously agreed upon to break the jade conch’s prohibition.

Buzz!

A blue water screen rippled on the surface of the jade conch, displaying the carefree and unrestrained figure of Jing Tian Zhen Ren.

“Congratulations, Xiang Dao You, for reaching the Nascent Soul realm. Your grasp in the future demon sealing mission will surely improve.”

Jing Tian Zhen Ren stood with his hands behind his back, talking to himself.

“The upcoming Demon Chaos in the Middle Domain is not a bad thing for our agreed plan. It will help us find the key point of demonic energy leakage, making it easier to repair the seal.”

“Jing has returned to the Da Yuan Middle Domain, and I was planning to contact Xiang Dao You as soon as possible. However, I was targeted by a group of troublesome individuals. Besides Jin Kun Lao Gui, there’s that inexplicable woman, Ming Shui Zhen Ren…”

Jing Wu Feng explained the objective conditions that prevented him from meeting, avoiding involving Lu Changan and Yun Xia Zong.

Hearing this, Lu Changan had a certain degree of respect for Jing Wu Feng’s character. Perhaps, like Lao Zhang, he could become a trusted friend in the future.

“Jing will go to the Middle Domain’s forbidden area first to search for the crucial leak point of the demonic energy. That chaotic area with rampant demonic energy will help me get rid of those troubles.”

“After the Demon Chaos subsides, Xiang Dao You can join Jing in the Middle Domain’s forbidden area to fulfill the demon sealing agreement we made back then.”

Speaking of this, Jing Wu Feng’s figure faded, and as he was about to disappear, he added one last sentence:

“By the way, there’s a fourth-order Void Whale with a thin True Spirit bloodline near the East Domain’s coastline. This whale possesses spatial supernatural powers and is said to possess a vast amount of spatial treasure ore, which Jing alone can’t handle. If Xiang Zhen Ren is interested, we can cooperate to hunt it in the future, making a trip to the sea.”

Hearing this casual news, Lu Changan’s heart skipped a beat.

He remembered that Jing Wu Feng was proficient in spatial formations and had set up a fourth-order Illusionary Empty Formation to hunt down the demonized Shi Xin Long. He was at least a quasi-fourth-order formation master.

Lu Changan also lacked spatial materials to repair the remaining spatial teleportation array in Ting Hai Ge.

Sha Hai Zhen Ren (刹海真人) was a fourth-order formation master, but unfortunately, after devouring his Nascent Soul, Lu Changan only lit up one-tenth of his fifth life, insufficient to transform into a full lifetime experience.

Otherwise, Lu Changan would have directly become a fourth-order formation master instead of a third-order formation master.

Fortunately, Sha Hai Zhen Ren had a general repair plan, mainly lacking spatial materials.

In the future, if he obtains spatial materials, he might be able to repair the remaining spatial formation in Ting Hai Ge more smoothly by consulting with Jing Wu Feng.

…

After leaving seclusion, the first place Lu Changan visited was the underground palace training grounds.

He didn’t go to see Di Yan Jun or the third-order late-stage Xuan Shui Gui.

Lu Changan entered the bottom of the underground palace and went into a chamber isolated by prohibitions.

“Lu Dao You, you’ve arrived.”

The green-armored puppet, which had been sitting in quiet contemplation for years, slowly opened its eyes. The green幽焰 in its eye sockets had lost some of its ghostly gloom and gained a hint of wisdom.

Lu Changan met the puppet’s gaze. His Nascent Soul Zhen Ren’s spiritual pressure emanated, but the puppet responded with a similar spiritual pressure, not yielding in the slightest.

Lu Changan was overjoyed. His figure blurred, and he disappeared from his spot.

Wham!

Instantly, the quasi-fourth-order physical strength and giant force empowered his expanding golden giant palm, striking the green-armored puppet with the speed of lightning.

The green-armored puppet casually raised its cyan iron palm, blocking and dissipating the force that could shatter mountains.

Its body remained seated, without the slightest tremor.

There was even a gentle force that pushed Lu Changan away, preventing him from being affected by the powerful recoil.

“Not bad! This level of control, it truly deserves to be a true fourth-order puppet.”

Lu Changan looked the green-armored puppet up and down. He noticed that its body hadn’t changed. It was already a complete fourth-order puppet in terms of quality.

The real change was in the puppet spirit.

The current green-armored puppet’s puppet spirit emanated a divine consciousness power similar to a Nascent Soul cultivator. It possessed a much greater control over the body’s strength than before, allowing it to independently handle complex and high-speed battles.

However, this puppet was not a true living creature.

The puppet spirit had a similar existence to a soul, but it was not the same as a soul or a Nascent Soul.

Lu Changan couldn’t help but think of artificial intelligence in his previous life. The puppet spirit was like a higher-order alternative existence.

And the exclusive puppet clone feature in his previous life’s soul-infusion was even more advantageous, allowing him to avoid consuming his divine consciousness and independently carry out missions or act separately.

“Lao Wei’s current strength, can it independently withstand a Nascent Soul cultivator?”

“If it’s Yun Xia Zong’s female Nascent Soul, Wei can handle it with a high degree of confidence.”

Wei Kui Shi (魏傀师) said calmly.

“If Lu Dao You can provide more fourth-order materials to strengthen the puppet’s weapons and armor, it wouldn’t be difficult for Wei to withstand a seasoned early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.”

Wei Kui Shi didn’t know that Zi Xia Xian Zi had obtained the top-grade artifact “Wind and Cloud Fan”, and coupled with her peak early-stage Nascent Soul cultivation, her strength had significantly improved.

“Good, good! It’s truly the right time and place! I can rest assured about my clear accounts plan.”

Lu Changan chuckled, a fierce glint in his eyes.

(End of Chapter)

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