The Loose Immortal Who Was in a Coma for Three Years

"Big Brother!"

"Big Brother!!"

"Big Brother!!!"

"."

A crisp voice rang out in Ju Hua's ears repeatedly. Ju Hua fought through the deep discomfort emanating from his soul and forced his eyes open.

What met his gaze was a young girl dressed in magnificent silk robes.

Seeing Ju Hua wake up, the sorrow that had filled the young girl's face instantly vanished, replaced by a flash of surprise and joy.

"Big Brother, you're awake?" the girl asked happily.

"Little Sister, how long have I been unconscious?" Ju Hua asked, rubbing his brow.

"Hmm," the girl tilted her head to think, then added, "Big Brother, you've been unconscious for three years!"

"Three years?"

"Yes!" The girl nodded vigorously, beaming. "I knew I hadn't seen it wrong just now—your hand moved!"

"Big Brother, you have no idea! A Celestial Immortal ancestor said you might never wake up. You scared me to death!"

"Aren't I awake now?" Ju Hua reached out to pat the girl's head, then sat up from the bed.

"Be careful!" The girl hurried to support him.

"Little Sister, have you forgotten? I am an Immortal; I don't need support!" Ju Hua smiled.

"Big Brother is only a Loose Immortal now!" the girl said, looking a bit dejected. "Ever since you failed your tribulation, the attitudes of many in the clan have changed. Especially after you fell into this coma, so many people have been whispering nasty things!"

"Mere petty fools. I'll help you settle the score later, Little Sister!" Ju Hua chuckled, then added, "I've just woken up, and I'm missing your cooking."

"I'll go make it right now!"

The girl bounced off the edge of the bed and, leaving those words behind, hurried out.

Not long after the girl left, the smile on Ju Hua's face gradually faded. He waved his hand, and with a surge of vigorous mana, invisible restrictions instantly filled the room.

"So, I really did fail? My Earth Immortal Golden Lotus is damaged, and my mana purity is only about eighty percent of what it used to be," Ju Hua muttered to himself. However, he immediately shook his head.

Earth Immortal, Celestial Immortal—a single word apart, yet worlds of difference!

An Earth Immortal must endure endless Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, facing the constant risk of death and soul dissipation. A Celestial Immortal, however, has transcended the Three Realms and is no longer bound by the Five Elements, enjoying eternal life!

When an Earth Immortal undergoes the tribulation, success means becoming a Celestial Immortal, the envy of billions of lives. Failure, at worst, leads to immediate annihilation; at best, one becomes a Loose Immortal, forever losing the chance to ascend.

For any Earth Immortal, failing the tribulation is an absolutely unacceptable outcome. Those with insufficient Dao hearts might even die on the spot from the shock.

But now, having learned this truth, Ju Hua felt no great turbulence in his heart. Because there was something else weighing on him, something far more disorienting than his failed tribulation.

According to his little sister, he had been unconscious for three full years after his failure. But in reality, those three years were not so simple.

During that time, he had entered a place called "Earth," becoming another person, and lived a carefree life as an ordinary human in that world for thirty years.

That person was just an ordinary man, his life from birth to death completely unremarkable. Normally, with Ju Hua's Dao heart, an extra set of memories would be of no consequence. Thirty years was not short, but compared to Ju Hua's lifespan of over three hundred years, it was a mere blink of an eye!

During those thirty years of mundane life, Ju Hua had been particularly fond of reading web novels. Among the vast sea of stories, there was one divine book titled Desolate Era that he couldn't put down. While living in that world, Ju Hua hadn't understood why he liked that book so much or why he read it over and over again. Now, he seemed to understand!

Desolate Era mentioned that Immortal Ju Hua was active during the era of gods and demons in the Three Realms. After failing his tribulation, he lived for several more million years. Immortal Ju Hua was the third master of the Water Mansion left behind by the Sanshou Daoist, while the protagonist of that divine book, Desolate Era, was the fifth master.

"I am Ju Hua. The Great Xia World is indeed filled with innate gods and demons; calling it the era of gods and demons is not wrong. My tribulation did indeed fail, and most importantly, I am indeed the third master of that so-called Water Mansion!" Ju Hua muttered word by word, his expression growing increasingly strange.

Whoosh!

Ju Hua waved his hand, and a palm-sized immortal mansion appeared in his palm.

This was the "Water Mansion"!

Ever since he became a Primordial Spirit Daoist, he had initially refined this mansion and kept it with him at all times. It was his greatest secret and the reason he was able to cultivate into an Earth Immortal and undergo the tribulation in such a short time.

Ju Hua had never told anyone this secret, not even his closest little sister!

"If everything in the book is true, what does that mean?" Ju Hua recalled some of the book's contents, his face twisting slightly.

His greatest pursuit all along—to become a Celestial Immortal, transcending the Three Realms and the Five Elements—was actually just the starting point. Compared to the infinitely vast Chaos Universe, a tiny Celestial Immortal wasn't even an ant.

The Chaos Universe contained endless chaotic worlds. In even the most ordinary chaotic world, the number of Celestial Immortals was counted in the millions, or even hundreds of millions or billions.

"No, no, I cannot determine what this book actually is! The truth of its contents remains unverified!" Ju Hua shook his head. He stepped off the bed and bowed slightly toward the void.

"I do not know which senior is playing a joke on this junior? Please, show yourself!" Ju Hua called out three times, but no one appeared.

"Since the senior refuses to appear, then this junior will respectfully comply and proceed according to your guidance!" Ju Hua said respectfully, then straightened his posture.

The contents of Desolate Era were hard to verify, but if they were true, there were only two possibilities: either this was truly a stroke of fate, or some high-level expert was manipulating everything.

If it were a stroke of fate, then by making good use of everything recorded in Desolate Era, he might be able to reach a level he currently looked up to. Even if he failed halfway, he would have no regrets regarding this great opportunity!

If a high-level expert was manipulating things, he would simply proceed according to their intent. After all, he had already failed his tribulation and his future was bleak; the outcome couldn't possibly be any worse!

Ju Hua knew very well that, barring any accidents, his best-case scenario was to live on for a few million years as described in Desolate Era, only to eventually be annihilated!

PS: The Chaos Universe refers to the Desolate Universe, the Sith Universe, etc., while chaotic worlds refer to the Pangu Great World, the Wujian Great World, etc. They are not the same concept, so don't get them mixed up!