Daoist Wuzhen cradled the dark gold pill, his withered hands trembling slightly.
The second tribulation immortal stage.
To him, those words represented a dream that was impossibly distant, yet within arm's reach.
He had been trapped at the first tribulation immortal stage for over three thousand years. He could not predict when his next heavenly tribulation would descend, much less claim any confidence in surviving it.
And now, a grand road to the heavens lay before him, free of risk and heavenly tribulation.
The atmosphere inside the grotto heaven grew somewhat delicate.
Daoist Chen Yuan lowered his eyes and stared at the cracked stone slabs beneath his feet, as though a flower had bloomed upon them.
He dared not look at his master's expression.
He feared seeing that struggle, and he feared seeing that resolve.
Chen Changqing was silent as well. He merely watched Daoist Wuzhen calmly, waiting for the old man's decision.
He had offered this pill with genuine sincerity.
But the human heart was hard to fathom. Faced with such an enormous temptation, any choice would have been understandable.
A long time passed.
Daoist Wuzhen suddenly began to laugh.
His laughter was dry at first, then grew louder and louder, until it became a hearty, unrestrained roar that made the entire grotto heaven hum.
"Hahahaha! Excellent! What a Chen Changqing you are!"
When his laughter subsided, Daoist Wuzhen let out a long breath. All the struggle and longing in his clouded old eyes had given way to clarity and approval.
He carefully placed the Tribulation Immortal Pill inside a Jade Box, then applied nine successive seals to it.
"You brat, you've certainly given this old man a difficult choice."
Daoist Wuzhen settled back onto his meditation cushion and picked up a cup of tea that Daoist Chen Yuan