novelraw Chapter 730 229: Holy Master... Why hasn't Dongfang Mu come to kneel before you yet?
Chapter 730 229: Holy Master... Why hasn't Dongfang Mu come to kneel before you yet?
He stepped out of Bi You Palace. Warm sunlight fell, and Wang Mu instinctively shielded his eyes with his hand. It felt unexpectedly piercing.
「Outside.」
Ao Qing, who was coiling in mid-air, was taking a rest. As the doors opened, she immediately opened her dragon eyes and was instantly stunned.
Who is this person?
An aged figure, one she had never seen before, emerged from the Bi You Palace. Yet, looking at the facial contours, there was something familiar about them.
"Wang Mu has come out!" the Little Merfolk sitting on the Immortal Cloud Kun pointed at the figure.
"Wang Mu?" Ao Qing was startled. "Little Xi, how did you recognize him? No, how could this be him? He's a Nascent Soul Cultivator. How did he suddenly become so aged? Could it be some Illusion Technique?"
Truth be told, she had not recognized him at first glance. Yet, she hadn't expected this Little Merfolk to spot him immediately.
"Strange..." Ao Qing shook her head, her snow-white dragon whiskers gently swaying, her eyes filled with confusion. "His life force feels... very weak..."
Little Jiao Huo asked, "Very weak?"
"Nascent Soul Cultivators have Life Spans reaching over a thousand years, even several thousand," Ao Qing said. "Unless subjected to major injuries, their life force is extremely strong... This person now seems like... he doesn't have many days left to live..."
"Ah?" Little Jiao Huo was stunned. "How could the Great Immortal have drained Wang Mu completely?"
Ao Qing was speechless.
You little girl, speaking complete nonsense. How could the Great Immortal possibly...
"It's only been three days..." Little Jiao Huo counted on her fingers.
"Time for fish," the Immortal Cloud Kun huffed, flapping its wings a few times. "He can still live for a while. I hope it's enough to satisfy me..."
Little Jiao Huo and Ao Qing descended.
"Wang Mu, Wang Mu, how did you end up like this?" Little Jiao Huo walked up to Wang Mu. "You look like Grandma now."
Wang Mu touched his somewhat rough face. My current appearance should be that of someone in their early sixties, not that aged. So this is what it's like when one's Life Span is dwindling. Of course, my Cultivation hadn't declined, but once my Life Span was exhausted, everything from my Primordial Spirit to my physical body would gradually wither and decay. And... I found that in this state, many Cultivation Techniques could no longer be practiced with Action Points. My Cultivation level still remained, but everything else seemed to have reached its limit. I could perform Artifact Refining, practice Alchemy, cast Magic, and use Sword Techniques, but I couldn't absorb any new power. That meant... several Cultivation Techniques, as well as my own Realm, are almost impossible to improve now...
Wang Mu shook his head.
How subtle indeed. From the perspective of Cultivation, with my Life Span coming to an end, both my Primordial Spirit and my physical body were on the decline. Many techniques required a certain level of Primordial Spirit and physical constitution, naturally making further Cultivation impossible. From a game-like perspective, my Life Span running out would cause most Attributes to deteriorate, failing to meet the requirements to practice those techniques. Thus, Cultivation using Action Points was no longer possible.
"It's okay." Wang Mu extended his palm, wanting to pat Little Jiao Huo's head. But noticing the many wrinkles on his hand, he hesitated and withdrew it. "I must leave now. The Great Immortal... she'll probably be able to attempt her Crossing Tribulation soon."
"You all stay close by her side."
"But you..." Little Jiao Huo clutched Wang Mu's hands. "How have you become like this in just three days..."
"Three days?" Wang Mu was taken aback.
Over thirty thousand years of Life Span, gone in just three days.
He looked at his now snow-white hair.
Wang Mu sighed.
Youth turns to white hair in but a fleeting moment.
"Where are you going?" Ao Qing asked. "With your current appearance... how could your Life Span be like this?"
Wang Mu remained silent.
"Won't you wait?" Ao Qing thought for a moment. "Although I don't know what exactly happened to you in the Bi You Palace... Sealing God Mountain still has some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures that can increase Life Span... Erm... My Dragon Palace has some too. I'll send a message to my father to send some over."
"No need." Wang Mu shook his head. "It's meaningless."
"How can it be meaningless?" Ao Qing, who had transformed into her half-human form, frowned. "A Cultivator nearing the end of his Life Span will find it incredibly difficult to continue their Cultivation, especially in your current state... Hoping for a breakthrough to gain more Life Span becomes nearly impossible."
Most of the ordinary Jiuzhou Cultivators actually die because their Life Spans end. Their lives simply come to an end.
Moreover, as one's Life Span runs out, various phenomena will appear. The Cultivation World commonly speaks of the Heavenly Person's Five Decays, which will then manifest. For Cultivators, it's a devastating blow.
The Five Decays: bodily decay, spiritual exhaustion, scattering vitality, weakening consciousness, and returning to heaven.
Bodily decay means the body's strength and functions will greatly diminish; skin ages and pales, blood becomes deficient, and bones loosen.
Spiritual exhaustion is when the Primordial Spirit begins to wither, making it difficult for new spiritual wellsprings to emerge; this is accompanied by the weakening of the soul and the emergence of Heart Demons.
Scattering vitality is when one's essential energy begins to disperse, affecting their Cultivation base, which then starts to decline.
Weakening consciousness means cognitive impairment arises, making it impossible to learn or practice many things further.
Returning to heaven means death.
Wang Mu smiled without responding.
Indeed, there are Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures that can prolong life. But for me now, their effect is very weak. The reason is simple. I had used a special method to forcibly advance the Primordial Wood Longevity Skill to the Sixth Layer, achieving a Life Span of 36,000 years. But that was temporary. All those thirty-thousand-plus years of Life Span were utterly exhausted in an instant. Now, as the Immortal Infant dispersed the Five Elements Power, the Primordial Wood Longevity Skill also returned to the Fifth Layer... In other words... I was now in deficit by more than ten thousand years of Life Span. The situation just now was akin to borrowing on credit. The fact that I hadn't died yet was purely because the regression of this Cultivation Technique had a certain buffer, not yet enough to drive me into qi deviation or demonic madness...