The words "Primordial Violet Qi" left Chen Changsheng's mind blank for an instant under their tremendous impact.
The foundation for becoming a Sage.
It was a supreme treasure that even Sages could only dream of obtaining.
Yet the system had actually made it the final reward for the main quest.
This was no longer an opportunity. It was a Sword of Damocles hanging over his head.
Win, and he would ascend in a single step, living as long as heaven and earth.
Lose, and he would turn to ashes alongside the entire Interception Sect, body and soul destroyed, without even a chance at reincarnation.
"Accept."
Without the slightest hesitation, Chen Changsheng silently uttered the words in his heart.
He had no choice.
From the moment he had set foot on Golden Ao Island, his fate had been tied to the Interception Sect, this colossal ship that was about to sink.
If he wanted to survive, he had to keep this ship from going under.
[Ding! Main quest accepted! Heavenly Dao-level reward distribution commencing!]
Rumble!
A torrent of mana a hundred times vaster and more magnificent than the previous two combined poured into him like the Milky Way cascading down from the Ninth Heaven, instantly flooding his limbs, bones, and Purple Mansion Primordial Spirit.
The bottleneck at the peak of late-stage Heavenly Immortal was as thin as a cicada's wing before this power.
Without the slightest resistance, it shattered at the first impact.
Golden Immortal!
An indescribably profound understanding of the Great Dao surged into his heart.
If Heavenly Immortals had only begun to grasp the laws of heaven and earth, then Golden Immortals branded a trace of themselves upon the river of laws. From then on, they would remain unscathed through countless tribulations and possess endless lifespans.
This was a qualitative leap on the immortal path.
The violent mana continued pouring in, driving his cultivation onward from early-stage Golden Immortal all the way to the peak of middle-stage Golden Immortal before it gradually came to a halt.
The explosive increase in power caused even the space within the cave abode to distort slightly.
Threads of golden Dao Charm seeped from the stone walls, while the spiritual energy above the cave abode churned into a visible miniature vortex.
Not good!
Chen Changsheng's heart skipped a beat.
Golden Ao Island was home to countless great powers. There were hundreds of Golden Immortals among the Inner Sect Disciples alone, not to mention Grand Unity Golden Immortals and even Grand Unity Golden Immortals overseeing the island.
The commotion from his breakthrough was not large, but if anyone noticed that an Outer Sect Disciple had soared from Earth Immortal to Golden Immortal in barely half a month, how could he explain that?
That did not conform to the Dao of Survival!
Without wasting a moment, he moved his thoughts.
"Turtle Breath Formation Disk, activate!"
The ancient formation disk instantly flew out, turning into a streak of light that merged into the four walls of the cave abode.
An invisible barrier immediately enveloped the entire cave abode, completely sealing away every leaking ripple of mana and Dao Charm.
Outside the cave abode, two passing Outer Sect Disciples were pointing toward Chen Changsheng's residence.
"Did you feel that just now? There seemed to be a fluctuation of spiritual energy from Senior Brother Chen's cave abode."
"Probably an illusion. Senior Brother Gongming has already acknowledged him as an expert. How could his cave abode be something people like us could peer into? He must have restrained everything to the utmost. Our cultivation is too shallow to see through it."
The two shook their heads and left, filled with reverence.
Only then did Chen Changsheng let out a breath of relief.
He immediately sank his consciousness into his mind and examined the supreme Divine Ability called the Great Freedom Head-Shrinking Technique.
A boundlessly profound stream of information flowed past him.
This was neither an offensive nor a defensive spell.
It was the ultimate Great Dao of survival.
This technique had three realms.
First realm, [Turtle Breath]. It could condense all of one's aura, mana, and soul fluctuations into a single point, hiding them in the deepest recesses of the body. Unless a Sage personally performed a divination, no one could detect it. It was countless levels more profound than his previous Innate Stealth Technique.
Second realm, [Sever Causality]. It could actively sever one's karmic ties with the outside world. If one did not move, causality did not move. If tribulation did not arrive, killing intent would not arise. Even if someone recited his true name before him and tried to curse him to death, the heavenly secrets would automatically obscure him, leaving the other party unable to find their target.
Third realm, [Head-Shrinking]. This was the highest realm. Once mastered, it allowed one to temporarily "shrink" one's very "existence" to the utmost limit within the river of fate. When a great tribulation descended, all things would be caught within the net, but he alone could become a "knot" on that net rather than a "fish" within it. The Heavenly Dao could not see him, and the Killing Tribulation could not harm him. As long as he did not jump out and stir up the winds and clouds himself, he could remain undying through all tribulations, eternally unfettered.
"This..."
Chen Changsheng was completely stunned by the sheer dominance of this Divine Ability.
How was this some Head-Shrinking Technique?
This was clearly an "invincibility" technique!
As long as I can lie low, no one can kill me!
Suppressing the wild joy in his heart, he immediately sat cross-legged and began comprehending this supreme Divine Ability.
With his current middle-stage Golden Immortal cultivation, along with the Great Dao insights bestowed by the system, comprehending the first realm, [Turtle Breath], came as naturally as water flowing into a channel.
His mana circulated, and his soul withdrew inward.
Chen Changsheng's aura began declining at a terrifying rate.
Middle-stage Golden Immortal.
Early-stage Golden Immortal.
Heavenly Immortal.
Earth Immortal.
In the end, his aura became even weaker than that of an ordinary mortal who had just begun cultivation, faint and intermittent, as though it could extinguish at any moment.
Success!
Chen Changsheng opened his eyes, utterly satisfied with his current state.
He rose to his feet, walked to the entrance of the cave abode, and withdrew the Turtle Breath Formation Disk.
He wanted to see whether his disguise could fool everyone.
The stone door opened.
Several disciples were still lingering in the distance outside, seemingly wishing to admire the cave abode of this "expert," yet not daring to approach.
When they saw the stone door open, they were all stunned.
When they saw Chen Changsheng's "pale" face and sensed the "unsteady" aura around him, even weaker than an Earth Immortal's, everyone revealed expressions of sudden realization.
So that was it!
Senior Brother Chen had used all his earth-shaking cultivation to heal his injuries!
No wonder he could foresee danger. He must have used some secret technique that consumed an enormous amount of vitality to gain a sliver of survival.
Senior Brother Gongming had stayed inside for so long earlier; he must have been stabilizing Senior Brother Chen's injuries as well!
For a moment, the gazes everyone directed at Chen Changsheng were filled with sympathy and even deeper admiration.
To avoid a deadly tribulation, he had not hesitated to leave himself in such a half-dead state.
Was it wisdom, decisiveness, or simply the will to survive?
As expected, the actions of an expert could not be judged by ordinary logic.
Chen Changsheng took in everyone's expressions, and his heart settled.
He gave them a weak nod, then slowly closed the stone door again, shutting all discussion outside.
Back in the cave abode, the expression of "severely depleted vitality" vanished from his face at once, replaced by calm contemplation.
He had strength now, and he had Divine Abilities to preserve his life as well.
Next came that main quest which seemed impossible to complete.
[Ensure that the survival rate of the Interception Sect's core disciples exceeds 80%.]
This was far too difficult.
The disciples of the Interception Sect, every last one of them, were mostly people of temperament. They valued loyalty and brotherhood, and they had explosive tempers.
Getting them to become head-shrinking turtles when enemies came knocking would be harder than killing them.
If he wanted to change them, relying solely on his own words to persuade them was absolutely impossible.
He had to gradually reshape them at the root of their thinking.
He had to make them realize from the bottom of their hearts that lying low was the only way out.
"A thought imprint has to start with the young..."
Chen Changsheng muttered to himself.
The core disciples held positions too high for him to reach for now, and they would not be easy to influence.
Then he would start from the bottom.
He would start with the Outer Sect Disciples like himself, the unnoticed ones within the sect who could be treated as cannon fodder at any moment.
A single spark could start a prairie fire.
As long as the philosophy of lying low became widespread among the Outer Sect Disciples and formed a force none could ignore, it would surely influence those lofty Inner Sect uncles and senior uncles in turn.
A sharp glint flashed through Chen Changsheng's eyes at the thought.
With a flip of his hand, he took out a blank Jade Slip.
His divine sense entered it, and he began engraving the first line.
<Golden Ao Island Safety Conduct Code and Interception Sect Disciple Anti-Fraud Guide (First Edition)>.
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