Immortality begin with Alchemy Grandmaster Chapter 2696 - 995: (Part 2)

"But your cultivation time is too short, and your mental state isn't strong enough—how do you plan to condense your Primordial Spirit?"

Right then, Qing Shuang pressed her lips together.

"No worries. Once I refine the Jikong Flower, it will all come together smoothly."

Could it truly succeed?

Youquan felt torn between belief and doubt.

Yet, faced with Qing Shuang's resolute face, she couldn't bring herself to argue further. Maybe Yuan Jun had passed on some hidden techniques before entering seclusion.

She merely directed her sight back toward the horizon.

For some reason, her trust leaned more toward Luo Chen than Qing Shuang.

That young fellow's cultivation speed was simply astonishing!

...

Far up in the skies, a ray of light drifted unhurriedly from east to west.

A silhouette stood steady at the flying boat's prow, his eyes sharp as flames scanning the hazy landscapes beneath.

This vista had once felt so familiar to Luo Chen.

However, ravaged by endless conflicts, rivers shifted paths, peaks crumbled and reformed, and bit by bit, it turned strange to him.

Reflecting on the reports from Youquan and the dire conditions in Zhongzhou they described, a twinge of sorrow struck Luo Chen's heart.

The devastation High Order Cultivators wrought upon this realm was utterly immense!

Toppling cities or whole areas was commonplace.

At the height of clashes, wiping out an entire domain wasn't shocking.

Particularly those Divine Transformation powerhouses—when unleashed wildly, they sank continents and cracked the heavens, a sight of pure horror.

If conflicts like these repeated a few more times, no matter the world's wealth in Spirit Mechanism or its overflowing Spirit Qi, it wouldn't endure such wanton waste and would turn barren for cultivation!

Still, these sighs were mere passing notions.

For the moment, at least, they left Luo Chen untouched.

His eyes locked onto a specific region, and resolve hardened within him.

"Stay here a bit; I'm descending to greet an old friend."

"Understood, Hall Master!"

Two replies echoed from inside the vessel, then the flying boat halted midair, as two layered looks followed Luo Chen's drop below.

...

Hehuan Realm!

Former territory of the Hehuan Sect, among the Six Sects of the Far East.

Back in the early days, a Demon Emperor's assault had left it in ruins.

Yet two centuries flew by, and even the deepest scars began to mend.

Especially since the Nascent Soul Ascendant Sect, Jiuling Sect, settled in—with its experts' care, the realm started pulsing with life once more.

It might not rival the heyday under Hehuan Sect's watch, but a vibrant energy now pulsed through it.

The ruined main peak of Hehuan Sect had been, through Jiuling Yuanjun's mighty arts, reconnected to Earth Vein and Spirit Qi, rising proudly anew as a Jiuling Sect emblem, rechristened Nine Elements Peak.

Mist perpetually cloaked the Nine Elements Peak, yet today it felt oddly altered.

Through the churning clouds, a form steadily approached.

Halfway up, a deep, rumbling query issued from the mountain depths.

"Who goes there?"

Luo Chen, clad in his splendid feather robe, offered a light smile and let his aura flow free.

"Friend, your old companion returns—won't you greet me?"

Within a cavern dwelling on the slope, Jiuling Yuanjun's eyes snapped open, confusion etching his features.

"Luo Chen?"

Luo Chen's mouth hooked into a grin. "None other!"

At his words, the forward cloud sea parted gently, alive with intent, forging a broad passage.

Luo Chen advanced with poise, soon spotting atop the summit a figure braced against the gales, gazing his way from afar.

It was Jiuling Yuanjun, unseen for so many years!

With a single stride to the crest, Luo Chen clasped his fists. "Daoist Jiuling, it's been ages."

Jiuling Yuanjun's gaze brimmed with wonder, his voice measured. "I figured you'd met your end."

Luo Chen burst into laughter. "You see me as someone so fleeting?"

Jiuling Yuanjun shook his head. "True enough—even besieged by the Three Great Demon Emperors, you endured. None match your prowess here, yet rumors said you clashed to the death with Demon Emperor Qing Shuang in the Netherworld Sea and both vanished, so I assumed you were gone."

Hearing this, Jiuling Yuanjun couldn't resist eyeing Luo Chen from head to toe.

The Three Great Demon Emperors held power, but divided, and with him holding back the Bull Demon, they couldn't fully swarm Luo Chen.

But Demon Emperor Qing Shuang ranked as Eastern Wasteland's elite, hailed as unmatched below Divine Transformation.

Luo Chen had battled her desperately and lived.

What's more...

Jiuling Yuanjun dismissed the musings; after all, living proof stood before him.

He gestured welcomingly. "Enter, please!"

Smiling, Luo Chen trailed him into the cave mansion. In their wake, the cloud sea sealed shut, hiding Luo Chen's visit to Nine Elements Peak from all.

...

Meeting an old ally sparked a heartfelt chat over old times.

They swapped tales of yesteryear, then turned to today's affairs.

"After you razed the Five Elements Divine Sect and departed, the Human-Demon War reignited. Though this round burned far less fiercely than before."

"Even milder, our Eastern Wasteland Sects took heavy hits. Tianyuan Daoist Sect nearly sacrificed us as fodder, while Demons boasted juggernauts like the invincible Qing Shuang, spelling defeat after defeat."

"Until Zhongzhou's chaos exploded!"

"Chun Yuan, overseeing Eastern Wasteland then, acted without delay, seizing Qing Shuang and repelling the Demon horde single-handedly."

"The conflict paused at last, granting us respite."

"Later, Tianyuan Daoist Sect's forces in Eastern Wasteland withdrew to Zhongzhou, sparing just a handful of Nascent Soul True Masters. They pulled strings via East Sun Sect, squeezing us for massive tributes yearly."