Enlightenment in Despair, Fortune from Misfortune

The Crimson Flame Fierce Bird's gaze, like two red-hot branding irons, swept over the rock crevice where Chen Beixuan was hiding. In that instant, Xuanwei felt his innate immortal qi origin was about to ignite. Extreme fear seized his entire consciousness, and time seemed to stretch infinitely, each "moment" an agony on the tip of a knife.

He could "hear" the scorching storm stirred by the fierce bird's wingbeats, which sent the ancient trees below swaying and caused the rock surface to crackle as it was scorched. The dense fire malevolence was almost tangible, pressing down on him until his very thoughts threatened to freeze.

[Emergency Evasion Protocol Generating… Analyzing Environment… Calculating Optimal Path…]

The system's prompt was unprecedentedly urgent. Streams of complex data flashed through his consciousness, sketching out a 3D model of the surroundings and the energy radiation range of the Crimson Flame Fierce Bird.

Escape? Escape where? Speed, power, rank… an absolute, all-encompassing crushing difference! Any direct movement, under the perception of such an existence, would be no different from a torch in the night!

Just as the fierce bird's gaze seemed to lock onto the crevice, slightly adjusting its dive angle, the flames coiling around its talons suddenly flared, and it was on the verge of launching a lightning-fast strike—

[Protocol Confirmed! Executing "Mimicry: Deathly Stillness"!]

The system's cold voice carried a tone of desperate finality. The next moment, Xuanwei felt his control over his immortal qi, his very essence, instantly stripped away! No, not stripped away, but forcibly taken over by a more efficient, more precise power.

He "saw" his immortal qi本体 rapidly retract and compress in a way that surpassed his understanding! All spiritual light, all energy fluctuations, even his own faint conscious fluctuations, were forcefully pressed back into the deepest core. The originally milky white, radiant immortal qi instantly turned dim and mottled, like a wisp of ordinary, turbid mountain air about to dissipate, devoid of life.

Not only that, but the system frantically drew upon the energy he had painstakingly accumulated, simulating the "deathly stillness" Dao rhythm of spiritual energy completely annihilated after being scorched by high-temperature flames, covering the surface of his immortal qi core. This Dao rhythm perfectly blended with the chaotic environment, polluted by the Crimson Flame Fierce Bird's aura.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye!

"Caw—!"

The Crimson Flame Fierce Bird let out a sharp cry tinged with a hint of confusion. Its sharp gaze swept over the entrance of the now "deathly still" rock crevice for a moment. In its perception, the fleeting, exceptionally pure spiritual fluctuation had suddenly vanished, replaced by a mass of worthless, "scorched" residual turbid energy from its own aura.

Was it an illusion? Or was that faint spark of spirituality too weak and directly dispersed by its fire malevolence?

To an existence like itself, this insignificant "impurity" wasn't even fit to be a snack to pick its teeth with. Its target was further away, those more powerful monstrous spirits and spiritual vein nodes that had become active due to Dao rhythm.

The fierce bird didn't linger. With a powerful flap of its wings, it stirred up a monstrous heatwave and transformed into a crimson meteor, streaking towards a valley with richer spiritual energy on another part of Kunlun Mountain. The terrifying pressure receded like a tide, leaving behind only scorched earth and the lingering heat fluctuations in the air.

Deep within the rock crevice, Xuanwei maintained the "Deathly Stillness" state, not daring to move.

Only after the fierce bird's aura had completely vanished from his perception, and after a long, long time, did the system slowly relinquish control.

"Pfft—"

An intangible, mental sensation of "vomiting blood" washed over him. Xuanwei felt as if half his consciousness had been drained, leaving him so weak he was on the verge of dissipating. What pained him to the point of breathlessness was the energy level displayed in his vision—

[Energy Level: 0.11%]

It had dropped directly from 0.5% back to 0.11%! To simulate that perfect "Deathly Stillness" state, the system had almost drained him of all his savings!

A sense of post-disaster exhaustion, mixed with the depression of his immense loss, threatened to drown him. He lay on the cold rock like a true, dissipating wisp of turbid air, unable even to muster the thought of absorbing spiritual energy.

It's over, it's all over… So many days of effort, lost in an instant.

"System… is this… the optimal solution?" he asked with difficulty in his consciousness, a hint of unspeakable bitterness in his tone.

[Reply: Yes. Under an absolute power disparity, concealment and deception are the only paths to survival. Energy can be re-accumulated, but the dissipation of spiritual consciousness means the end of everything. The success rate of this protocol was 67.4%, higher than any other option.]

The system's reply was still cold, rational, and devoid of emotion. But the facts it stated were like hammers, shattering Xuanwei's last shred of luck and self-pity.

It was right.

If the system hadn't acted decisively, sacrificing energy to simulate "Deathly Stillness," he would now be nothing more than a wisp of nourishment in the fierce bird's belly. Being alive was already the greatest fortune.

The lost energy could be earned back!

A surge of unyielding grit welled up from the depths of his consciousness. He was someone who had died once, someone who had crawled out of the purgatory of modern society's "wage slaves," and the current predicament, compared to the despair of the ICU and endless overtime, at least… held hope!

He rallied himself and began to circulate the Basic Spiritual Qi Breathing Technique. However, perhaps due to the extreme fright, or perhaps due to the damage to his origin caused by the energy surge, he found his breathing efficiency to be extremely low. The spiritual qi that entered his body was difficult to convert effectively, and his focus was hard to maintain.

No, I can't go on like this.

He forced himself to stop the ineffective breathing and quiet his consciousness. He began to recall, to remember every detail of the system controlling his essence during the "Mimicry" process during that life-or-death moment.

That extreme energy compression, that perfect containment of his own aura, that marvelous transformation of simulating external Dao rhythms… Although he had passively experienced it, the incredibly profound experience was imprinted like a brand on his core consciousness.

"Containment… retraction… Deathly Stillness… not true annihilation, but extreme 'hiding'…"

He seemed to have gained some insight. Before, he was like an uncarved jade, knowing he had to "lie low," but instinctively still emitting spiritual light and attracting attention. After this experience, he felt as if he had touched upon a deeper survival principle – [Seclusion].

Not just hiding his form, but hiding his aura, hiding his spiritual light, and even… hiding his own "sense of presence."

He tried to imitate the system's previous state, no longer pursuing rapid absorption of spiritual energy, but using his intent to guide the remaining meager energy within him, slowly compressing it inward, while simultaneously simulating the form of his immortal qi essence towards something less conspicuous, like rock textures or ordinary water vapor.

This process was extremely difficult, requiring immense control over his intent. He failed again and again, only to start over. His energy level hovered around 0.11%, showing almost no increase.

But Xuanwei didn't give up. He vaguely felt that if he could master this technique of "seclusion," it would be one of the cornerstones for his future standing in the Primordial World.

Just as he was fully focused on imitating the Dao of "Seclusion," an unexpected joy occurred.

Perhaps it was because his intent was highly concentrated, making his connection with his own origin unprecedentedly close; perhaps it was because he abandoned the pursuit of quick gains in breathing and his mindset returned to tranquility; or perhaps the accumulation from listening to the Dao rhythm of the Three Pure Ones earlier was ignited at this moment…

He entered a state of profound mystery.

Instead of frantically plundering spiritual energy from the outside world, he focused his attention entirely on the faint wisp of origin immortal qi within his body. He "watched" it flow slowly, felt the subtlest structural changes within it, and experienced the most fundamental "life" profoundness belonging to "Innate Immortal Qi."

Unknowingly, what he was circulating was no longer the rigid Basic Spiritual Qi Breathing Technique taught by the system, but a brand-new, more suitable circulation route that formed spontaneously, based on his own innate characteristics, combined with his insights into "Seclusion" and the enlightenment from the Three Pure Ones' Dao rhythm!

This route was more reclusive, more efficient, and refined the energy more purely!

[Detecting Host's Enlightenment Behavior… Analyzing…]

[Analysis Complete! Host has comprehended exclusive passive state: "Deep Immortal Seclusion" (Novice). Effect: Greatly reduces own presence and energy fluctuations; difficult for those not a major realm higher to detect. While in Seclusion state, natural energy recovery speed increases by 50%.]

[Analysis complete! Host optimizing cultivation method operating route... Deriving...]

[Derivation complete! Basic Spiritual Qi Breathing Technique advanced to Innate Immortal Qi Origin Method (Beginner)! Energy conversion efficiency increased by 300%, spiritual qi refinement purity increased by 200%!]

The system's prompts sounded one after another, carrying a barely perceptible hint of... approval?

Xuanwei suddenly jolted awake from his state of enlightenment. Feeling the changes within himself, immense joy surged in his heart!

A blessing in disguise! It was truly a blessing in disguise!

Although his energy level hadn't recovered yet, he had mastered the crucial life-saving divine skill, [Deep Immortal Seclusion], and had even optimized his basic cultivation method into the most suitable one for him, the Innate Immortal Qi Origin Method!

He immediately attempted to circulate the new cultivation method while entering the "seclusion" state.

In an instant, he felt as if he had merged with the Kunlun Mountain rocks beneath his feet and the faint water vapor flowing beside him. Even if something similar to a Malevolent Spirit were to pass by now, it would likely mistake him for a rock with a bit of spiritual energy and ignore him.

What surprised him even more was that under the boost of the new cultivation method, the surrounding spiritual qi, which had previously been "calm," once again became "friendly." It flowed into his origin in a way that was far more efficient and pure than before. The numerical value of his energy level began to climb steadily and clearly!

0.12%... 0.13%... 0.15%...

At this rate, recovering to 0.5% or even surpassing it was within reach!

However, just as he was immersed in the joy of his strength steadily recovering, a different kind of fluctuation, more hidden and grand than anything he had felt before, rippled into his perception like a tiny stone dropped into a deep, ancient well.

This Daoist rhyme did not originate from the Three Pure Ones atop Kunlun Mountain, but from... the depths of the earth vein where he was hiding!

It was more ancient, more obscure, carrying an aura of the primordial, heavy, and all-encompassing. Unlike the pure and transcendent aura of the Three Pure Ones, this Daoist rhyme was closer to "earth" itself.

At the same time, the system's cold prompt sounded again, carrying an unprecedented solemnity:

[Warning! Detected high-concentration, high-purity Innate Earth Element Origin fluctuation! Source: Depths of earth vein (suspected Innate Wutu Essence Qi dissipation).]

[Warning! This fluctuation is accompanied by strong Malevolent Qi and Calamity Qi residue (suspected site of a Kirin Tribe great power's demise during the Dragon-Han Primordial Calamity).]

[Risk Level: Extremely High! Opportunity Level: Extremely High!]

Xuanwei's heart skipped a beat.

Innate Wutu Essence Qi? A place where a Kirin Tribe member perished?

His "gaze" involuntarily cast towards the direction below the rock crevice, into the dark, unfathomable depths.