The Undying Immortal System

Chapter 489 – Life 120, Age 106, Martial Sovereign 1

Having ascended to Martial Sovereign, I needed to begin work on a Rank 7 body cultivation technique that I could hand over to the continent's major forces.

Of course, I already had the Rank 7 technique from my time on the Nine Rivers Continent, but handing that one over directly was out of the question. I needed to make a proper show of developing a technique entirely from scratch. Doing so would ensure I was properly compensated while also setting expectations for the future. After all, once I advanced to Martial Spirit, I would have to develop new techniques in truth.

To this end, I sent a message to both Mei and the Sect Affairs Bureau, listing what I would need from them. Namely, I needed to observe Demon Beasts as they ascended from Rank 6 to Rank 7.

Given the Heroes Domain’s enduring enmity with the Isle of Beasts, fulfilling such a demand would not be easy. However, our sect had originated in the Heroes Domain, so I had to at least give them a chance. What I didn't expect was that the Nine Rivers Domain was able to meet it almost immediately.

Less than a week after I sent my message, I received word from Mei that my request had been approved. However, this agreement came with two stipulations—one from the Nine Rivers Domain and one from the Isle of Beasts.

The requirement from the Nine Rivers Domain was rather straightforward. Within ten years, I would need to provide them a working Rank 7 technique for cultivating a wind body.

I had a sneaking suspicion the technique was intended for Emperor Li, but I wasn’t sure why the Nine Rivers Saint would focus on him specifically. While Li’s blessing had obvious benefits, its greatest benefit lay in finding a path to immortality. Once such a path was found, there was no reason to place his needs above anyone else’s.

Still, this requirement was easy enough to accommodate. The one from the Isle of Beasts was far more troublesome.

They wanted me to develop comprehensive cultivation techniques for spirit beasts. While I had helped develop pills for spirit fish during my time in the Palace of the Herb Sovereign, I had never spent much time studying their cultivation techniques. I had no idea if any of my existing knowledge would even apply. Since doing so would also allow me to study spirit beasts in greater detail, I agreed without much hesitation.

Thus began a period of secluded cultivation. Officially, I was researching new, more powerful techniques for body cultivation. Unofficially, I spent nearly every waking moment pouring spirit stone energy into my soul and burning it to expand my inner world as rapidly as possible.

Our sect was not particularly skilled at accumulating wealth, and the supply of spirit stones I had acquired during my time in the Palace of the Herb Sovereign was finite. My reserves were more than enough to support a breakthrough to Rank 6 Small World, but that was all. If I couldn't find a legitimate way to start earning more stones, I would need to start looking into upgrading the Qi Gathering Formation in my soul.

Considering how antagonistic they had been in my previous life, the Isle of Beasts showed surprising sincerity in its desire to cooperate with me. Perhaps this was because, in this life, I hadn’t introduced a new branch of alchemy that incentivized the frenzied slaughter of their kin.

Each domain typically possessed somewhere between 120 and 130 Sovereign territories. Even accounting for older Sovereigns who had already relinquished their leadership responsibilities, it was unlikely for the total number of Sovereigns in any given domain to exceed 500. As each of these Sovereigns had a lifespan of 700 years, it was rare for more than one new Sovereign to appear in any given year.

Despite this fact, after reaching an agreement with the Isle of Beasts, I was transported via portal to witness the ascension of a new Sovereign beast nearly every other month. Clearly, the domain was deliberately accelerating these ascensions, compressing what should have been decades of advancements into only a few short years, burning through its foundations in the process. This made me wonder just how important the development of spirit beast body cultivation techniques truly was.

Speaking of spirit beasts, shortly after I witnessed the ascension of the first demon beast, a group of more than forty white tigers arrived in Black Eagle City. There were at least two beasts for every age between one and twenty, allowing me to study their physical development in excruciating detail. This allowed me to observe both the awakening process and all the biological changes that preceded it.

Even with all of this, it still took me an embarrassingly long time to realize a crucial fact: spirit beasts didn’t have energy bodies. They infused qi directly into their physical forms in exactly the same way that demon beasts infused their bodies with wu.

The more I studied the process, the stranger it seemed. Spirit beasts didn’t use anything resembling qi filters. Their cultivation was entirely biological. They consumed food, and that food was naturally converted into energy—qi for spirit beasts and wu for demon beasts. This energy was then circulated through their body, strengthening demon beasts while enabling spirit beasts to awaken specialized abilities.

These creatures did not need to learn cultivation techniques. Their bodies performed the process instinctively. However, as intelligent beings, they were still capable of learning such techniques. The problem was just that doing so inevitably produced severe backlash. Whenever a spirit beast attempted to cultivate wu, or whenever a demon beast attempted to cultivate qi, the foreign energy interfered with the natural flows that already existed within their bodies, causing violent instability.

If I wanted to develop a body cultivation technique for spirit beasts, solving this issue was the first step. Somehow, I needed to find a method that would allow their physical bodies to safely contain both qi and wu at the same time.

In a way, I had already accomplished something similar in my previous life when working with the spirit fish. By feeding them body-strengthening pills, I had successfully enhanced their physical forms without causing any serious complications. The key was that the pills injected wu into the body in a single burst, then settled down and crystallized. While this did disrupt their qi flows, the process wasn’t continuous, so their bodies were able to adapt and establish a new equilibrium.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

I had no intention of introducing beast alchemy in this life, though, so I could only attempt to create a cultivation technique that would replicate this effect.

Ultimately, however, I discovered that while this idea might not be impossible, it was impractical. Using a wu cultivation technique to lock qi in place put such a strain on the spirit beasts that not even those with three-star affinities could make it work.

Fortunately, this research led me to an entirely different solution: stasis pills. These were a type of poison pill commonly used within the Devil Domain to forcibly suppress the qi inside a cultivator’s body, rendering them helpless. When a spirit beast consumed one of these pills, the frozen qi would no longer interfere with the circulation of wu, allowing them to safely practice body cultivation for short periods of time. As long as they solidified their gains before the effects wore off, their bodies would remain stable.

Even after this discovery, developing a working cultivation technique proved far from simple. Spirit beasts couldn’t simply imitate demon beasts because the pathways demon beasts used for wu were already filled with qi. This forced us to proceed one step at a time, carefully mapping out where to infuse wu for the greatest effect.

Still, this gave us a path forward, and given enough time, we could gradually improve upon it.

Nine years after agreeing to develop a Rank 7 wind body cultivation technique, I invited Mei to Black Eagle City and handed her the completed scroll. When she accepted it, there was no excitement in her eyes, only a solemn sense of determination.

Ten years later, she returned to Black Eagle City with grim news.

“My master, Li GuiYang, petitioned the Li Clan for a portion of Ancestor-level karmic energy, hoping to ascend and extend his lifespan. This request was denied.” There was no anger in Mei’s voice, only resignation. “This was not particularly surprising, since the Nine Rivers Saint limits each clan to a single Martial Ancestor at any given time. Exceptions to this rule are extremely rare.”

She fell silent for a moment before speaking again. “However, they did agree to provide him with enough Spirit-level energy to force a breakthrough. In exchange, he must attempt his ascension to the Immortal World exactly one year after this breakthrough is complete.”

I stared at her in shock. “Is that even possible? Doesn’t that require being a Peak Ancestor?"

“Any Martial Ancestor can attempt to open a gateway to the realm of immortals. It's just a matter of whether they can survive the process,” said Mei, grimacing. “Most Spirits who forcibly ascend to Martial Ancestor die immediately, failing to leave behind even the weakest of spirit fires. As for what will happen to Elder Li... I'm not sure. He’s done his best to push his body cultivation to the limit, but he’s still just a Demon Sovereign. Whether this will be enough…”

I understood what was happening immediately. The Saints and Ancestors wanted to see how much body cultivation could improve one’s chances of surviving their tribulation. Emperor Li was being pushed forward to act as a test subject.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much I could do about this.

"His ascension is scheduled to take place in approximately two years," said Mei. "You will be expected to attend. If you can think of anything that might improve his chances of survival... I would appreciate it."

My first thought was to provide Emperor Li with body-strengthening pills. However, this would mean introducing beast alchemy and drawing the ire of the Saint of Tooth and Claw. As much as I wanted Emperor Li to survive, I couldn’t justify destroying the fragile trust I had built with the Isle of Beasts.

After a long silence, I slowly shook my head. “I’ll think about it, but I can’t promise anything.”

Mei gave a small nod, then bowed her head politely before departing.

Emperor Li’s ascension to immortality lacked the overwhelming grandeur of the Saint of Myriad Herbs’ ascension. Although dozens of Spirits and Ancestors were in attendance, most remained hidden from sight, as few of them were members of the Nine Rivers Domain. Instead, the gathering was dominated by representatives from the other eight domains, cultivators who had come to witness how effective body cultivation would be against a heavenly tribulation.

Emperor Li himself seemed completely unconcerned by this.

He stood tall atop the barren stone platform, his light-blue robes whipping violently in the growing storm. The clouds above twisted into a massive vortex, as layer upon layer of golden lightning flickered within their depths.

Emperor Li gazed upon this scene with absolute calm. His eyes held neither doubt nor fear.

To others, this might have signaled that Li felt confident he could survive whatever the Heavens would throw at him. I, however, knew better. He simply understood that his success or failure had no real significance.

Emperor Li looked down to gaze upon his disciple one final time. Then, the tribulation descended.

Yellow lightning tore across the heavens and crashed downward with enough force to split mountains. Emperor Li responded by calmly raising his hand, directing a surge of wind qi upward to form a seemingly impenetrable barrier.

The Saint of Myriad Herbs had been able to contend against the tribulation, if only briefly. Emperor Li’s defenses, by contrast, shattered almost instantly. The very first bolt of yellow lightning punched through his qi like paper and struck him directly.

One advantage of Emperor Li being only a Martial Ancestor was that his energy body remained fully visible.

The lightning did not strike randomly. It targeted Li’s acupoints with terrifying precision. The yellow lightning tore through Li’s body, attacking flesh, qi, and soul at the same time.

Emperor Li’s soul held firm, his will terrifyingly stable. However, both his physical body and his energy body suffered catastrophic damage from that very first strike. Flesh burst apart, and meridians ruptured, causing his energy body to begin collapsing under the strain.

And yet, Emperor Li remained standing.

The second bolt descended.

Emperor Li did not retreat. He stood tall beneath the Heavens, meeting the lightning head-on, blood pouring from his body as golden destruction engulfed him. Large portions of his flesh blackened and fell away, while his energy body fractured like shattered glass.

Still, Emperor Li survived.

Then came the third strike.

A final spear of yellow lightning lanced down from the heavens, with enough force to make the entire mountain tremble. Emperor Li’s energy body collapsed first, disintegrating only a fraction of a second before his physical body. The destruction then rippled through his soul, stripping away his final protections.

When the lightning finally faded, Emperor Li was gone. In his place, a dim green Spirit Fire flickered quietly atop the shattered stone.

Mei lowered her head slightly, her expression solemn but unsurprised. She had come here prepared for this outcome.

The rest of the audience showed little sorrow. Instead, most stared at the spirit fire with visible hope in their eyes. Emperor Li had failed, but he had endured three full strikes of heavenly lightning. For a newly risen Martial Ancestor, this was almost unthinkable.

How long would it be until a true Martial Ancestor endured all nine?