"Senior Brother!"
Li Yang's transformation startled Lan Ling'e, and even Li Changshou couldn't help turning his gaze toward him.
"The spiritual essence is gone!"
Li Changshou rushed forward and picked up the Golden Pill. He found that all its spiritual essence had vanished, and it had completely turned into a broken magical artifact.
He looked toward Master, then lowered his gaze to the Golden Pill in his hand.
Junior Brother only changed like this after that final thunderbolt. Could something have gone wrong? Or did he interfere with Master's tribulation transcendence?
Li Changshou furrowed his brows. No matter how much knowledge he had accumulated, this situation touched on a blind spot.
"Senior Disciple Brother, I sent Senior Brother a telepathic message. His condition is dire. It seems he's been seriously injured."
As Li Changshou wondered what had happened, Lan Ling'e's tearful voice sounded in his ear.
"What happened? Take your time... Never mind, I'll ask him myself."
Soon, Li Changshou also contacted Li Yang.
"Junior Brother, are you all right? Junior Sister said you were injured. Was it related to Master's final Thunder Tribulation? Is it serious? I have some Spiritual Medicine for treating injuries."
"I'm fine. It's just a minor injury. I don't need the medicine; I'll be all right after resting and regulating my breathing for a while. For now, Senior Brother, keep a close eye on Master. We can talk about the rest later."
Hearing Li Yang's words, Li Changshou's heart tightened.
That doesn't sound like a minor injury. Besides, he's already an immortal. A minor injury wouldn't leave him like this.
And Junior Brother didn't answer my question directly. That means his injury is related to Master's Thunder Tribulation.
No... that's not right. It's not just the Thunder Tribulation.
Li Changshou formed a suspicion. His expression darkened as he looked up at the sky, then lowered his head again.
That Golden Pill—the one that completed Master's Dao Foundation and let him face a Heavenly Tribulation with nine layers of thunder—there's something wrong with it.
So Master was supposed to die, or become a Turbid Immortal.
Junior Brother somehow obtained a pill like that and reversed Master's fate. So...
Li Changshou forcefully suppressed his fear until his expression returned to normal, then looked back at Master, who was still undergoing the tribulation.
If Master succeeded in crossing the tribulation, he would be able to confirm it.
But if his suspicion was true, Junior Brother's injuries were probably far worse than he imagined. He might even be in danger of falling.
Meanwhile, inside the Shelter Grotto-Heaven,
Li Yang, who had once possessed the physique of an immortal and a transcendent bearing, was now covered in torn flesh. Terrifying wounds split his Immortal Body, and his wondrous immortal power flowed everywhere, yet the injuries still refused to heal.
His golden-jade immortal bones flickered with purple lightning, bringing Li Yang waves of unbearable pain.
A crack had opened between his brows. For some unknown reason, it resembled a pitch-black abyss, ceaselessly devouring Li Yang's life force.
Even the Shelter Grotto-Heaven was now in ruins.
Most of the Circulating Stars had fallen, and the Great Formation was nearly broken. Spatial fissures were everywhere, Space Turbulence surged in all directions, and even the Chaos Qi was stirring restlessly.
The core of the star, more than a thousand kilometers in diameter—the Pill Cauldron that served as the core of the Grotto-Heaven Star Dou Great Array—was also covered in cracks, as though it might explode at any moment.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Li Yang coughed up Immortal Blood flecked with purple lightning. Enduring the agony of the terrifying electricity, he forced out a series of hand seals to stabilize the remaining Circulating Stars.
"That Heavenly Punishment was too powerful. The Purple Firmament Divine Thunder nearly struck me dead, and the Grotto-Heaven almost got destroyed.
"Fortunately, I cultivated the Three-Revolution Immortal Body, and when I designed the Circulating Star Dou Great Formation for the Grotto-Heaven, I left enough redundancy. Otherwise, even if I hadn't fallen, this Shelter Grotto-Heaven would have been wrecked."
Watching the restored Star Dou Great Array hold back the Chaos Qi and gradually turn it into spiritual energy, while the Pill Cauldron that had nearly shattered slowly repaired itself, Li Yang felt immensely fortunate.
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Li Yang coughed up more Immortal Blood, then took out a jade bottle and collected it.
"Although I'm injured, it's still valuable stuff. I can't let it go to waste!"
The Grotto-Heaven was now in ruins, and the Grotto-Heaven Origin he had accumulated over several years had been completely depleted this time.
Of the more than one hundred thousand Origin Immortal Stage "Golden Pill" avatars, over seventy thousand had fallen. Of the Origin Immortal Stage "Golden Pill" avatars fused with Star Stone, only a little over ten thousand remained. As for those below the Immortal Realm, every last one had fallen.
"The losses are truly enormous. Still, at least only their spiritual essence and my Immortal Sense were erased. Their physical forms are intact, so I can still use them for Array Formation."
That was a small blessing amid misfortune.
Not only that, but perhaps because these "Golden Pill" avatars had lost their spiritual essence and his Immortal Sense, they had instead undergone an even more extraordinary change.
They could now grow continuously by absorbing spiritual energy and Turbid Qi, as though they were turning into real stars.
For example, the Star Stone stars were now each more than ten zhang in diameter, while the stars formed from fallen Origin Immortals were several zhang across. Even the smallest ones, formed from those below the Immortal Realm, were about the size of a basketball.
"The Great Formation doesn't make full use of them as it stands. Once my injuries have stabilized, I can adjust it so these stars receive more Turbid Qi and spiritual energy, speeding up their growth.
"Although I've been badly injured this time and the Grotto-Heaven has suffered severe damage, it seems I've gained something from this disaster."
His control over the Grotto-Heaven now surpassed anything he could have imagined.
How could he put it?
He had been able to control the Grotto-Heaven completely before, but back then, it had only been a tool.
Now, it felt as though the Grotto-Heaven were a part of his body.
It was a strange feeling.
And because of that, he had been able to notice the problem with the fallen stars, as well as realize why he could control the Grotto-Heaven so completely.
Simply put, when he had been refining Golden Pills before, his cauldron had exploded. A great deal of Immortal Blood, mixed with spiritual energy and the properties of various medicines, had scattered throughout the Grotto-Heaven. At the same time, quite a few first- and second-revolution Golden Pills had succeeded in forming but had never undergone tribulation.
This Heavenly Punishment had not killed him. Instead, it had activated the Immortal Blood and Golden Pills he had left in the Grotto-Heaven, causing them to become completely integrated with it.
His complete control over the Grotto-Heaven was merely the most superficial benefit Li Yang had gained. His true reward was a benefit he wasn't even sure counted as one.
[Name]: Li Yang [Place of Birth]: Primordial Wilderness [Inheritance]: Immortal Crossing Sect [Cultivation]: Mid Origin Immortal [Realm]: Peak Heavenly Immortal Realm [Entry 1]: Work-Life Balance (The longer the rest period, the better the cultivation results. Current rest period: 81 days, 5 hours, 3 quarters) [Entry 2]: Late Bloomer (The older you are, the higher your comprehension and the better your cultivation results. Current age: 118 years) [Entry 3]: Locked (Unlocks at the Golden Immortal Stage)
His normal lifespan was only twenty-two years, but the age listed for Entry 2 was now 118.
At the same time, his age was increasing at a rate of one year per hour.
What did that mean?
It meant the wound between his brows wasn't simply devouring his life force. It was forcibly consuming his lifespan.
"Before, when I used spells that consumed my lifespan, my age didn't increase. But now it's skyrocketing. So what does that mean?
"Perhaps my Dao Injury has touched upon the Time Dao.
"True Immortals live for no more than one 'meeting,' and Celestial Immortals live for one 'era.' Only Golden Immortals can escape the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death, and enjoy Heaven-Earth Longevity.
"Although my cultivation is at the Origin Immortal level, my Three-Revolution Immortal Body is comparable to a Celestial Immortal's, so my lifespan has reached its limit: one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred years.
"At this rate, I can hold on for another twenty-nine and a half years. If I can't heal my Dao Injury or break through to become a Golden Immortal in that time, then this day thirty years from now will be my death anniversary.
"For anyone else, this would be nearly impossible—even certain death.
"But...
"My Entry is Late Bloomer!
"I may yet seize this glimmer of hope!!!"
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