"Big Brother!"
"Big Brother!!"
"Big Brother!!!"
"."
A crisp voice rang in Ju Hua's ears again and again. He fought through the discomfort deep in his soul and struggled to open his eyes.
The first thing he saw was a young girl dressed in gorgeous silk robes.
The moment she saw Ju Hua wake, the worry that had clouded her face gave way to delight.
"Big Brother, you're awake?" the girl asked happily.
"Little Sister, how long was I unconscious?" Ju Hua asked, rubbing his brow.
"Hmm..." The girl tilted her head and thought for a moment, then said, "You've been unconscious for three years, Big Brother!"
"Three years?"
"Mm!" The girl nodded vigorously and said happily, "I knew I wasn't seeing things! Your hand just moved!"
"Big Brother, you have no idea! A Celestial Immortal patriarch said you might never wake up again. It scared me half to death!"
"But I'm awake now, aren't I?" Ju Hua reached out and rubbed the girl's head. Then he sat up in bed.
"Careful!" The girl hurriedly steadied him.
"Little Sister, have you forgotten? I'm an immortal. I don't need help!" Ju Hua said with a smile.
"You're a Loose Immortal now, Big Brother!" The girl said, somewhat glumly, "Ever since you failed your tribulation, a lot of people in the clan have changed their attitude toward you. And after you fell unconscious, many of them started saying nasty things!"
"They're just a few petty nobodies. I'll help you get even with them in a bit!" Ju Hua smiled, then said, "I just woke up, and I've been missing your cooking, Little Sister!"
"I'll go make something right away!"
The girl sprang up from beside the bed and hurried out after leaving those words behind.
Not long after the girl left, the smile gradually faded from Ju Hua's face. He waved a hand, and with a surge of formidable magic power, invisible wards appeared throughout the room.
"So I really did fail? The Earth Immortal Golden Lotus is damaged, and my magic power is only about eighty percent as pure as before." Ju Hua muttered to himself, then shook his head.
Earth Immortal and Celestial Immortal—the difference was only one word, yet the gulf between them was worlds apart!
Earth Immortals had to endure countless tribulations, and at any moment they could die and have their Dao vanish. Celestial Immortals, however, had leapt beyond the Three Realms and were no longer bound by the Five Elements; they could enjoy eternal life!
When an Earth Immortal underwent a tribulation, success meant becoming a Celestial Immortal, envied by countless lives. Failure meant being reduced to ashes at best, or becoming a Loose Immortal, never again having the chance to become an immortal.
For any Earth Immortal, failing a tribulation was absolutely unbearable. Those whose Dao Hearts were not strong enough might even die and have their souls destroyed on the spot.
Yet after learning the truth, Ju Hua's heart remained remarkably calm. There was something that left him far more at a loss than his failed tribulation.
According to his little sister, he seemed to have been unconscious for three whole years after failing his tribulation. But the truth was that those three years had been anything but simple.
During that time, he had entered a place called "Earth," become someone else, and lived carefree for thirty years in that world as an ordinary person.
That person had been thoroughly unremarkable from birth to death. Under normal circumstances, with Ju Hua's Dao Heart, a little extra memory like that should have been no trouble at all. Thirty years wasn't short, but compared to Ju Hua's lifespan of more than three hundred years, it was far too brief!
During that utterly ordinary life, Ju Hua had especially enjoyed reading web novels. Of the countless novels out there, one masterpiece called Desolate Era had captivated him. 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, it seemed he understood!
Desolate Era mentioned that Immortal Ju Hua had lived during the age of the God-Fiends, in the era when the Three Realms were active. After failing his tribulation, he had lived for several million more years. Immortal Ju Hua was the third owner of the Immortal Abode left behind by Daoist Sanshou, while the protagonist of that masterpiece, Desolate Era, was its fifth owner.
"I'm Ju Hua, and the Great Xia World is indeed filled with primeval God-Fiends. It's not wrong for later generations to call this the God-Fiend Era. I really did fail my tribulation, and, most importantly, I really am the third owner of that so-called Water Mansion!" Ju Hua muttered word by word, his expression growing stranger by the moment.
Whoosh!
Ju Hua waved a hand, and a palm-sized Immortal Abode appeared in it.
This was the "Water Mansion"!
Ever since becoming a Primordial Spirit Daoist, he had begun refining the Immortal Abode. He had kept it with him ever since. It was his greatest secret, and the reason he had been able to cultivate into an Earth Immortal in such a short time and undergo his tribulation.
Ju Hua had never told anyone this secret—not even his beloved little sister!
"If everything in the book is true, what does that mean?" Ju Hua recalled some of its contents, and his expression twisted.
His greatest pursuit had always been to become a Celestial Immortal, to leap beyond the Three Realms and escape the Five Elements. Yet that was only the beginning. Compared to the boundless Chaos Universe, a mere Celestial Immortal wasn't even an ant.
The Chaos Universe contained countless Chaos Worlds. Even in the most ordinary Chaos World, Celestial Immortals numbered in the tens of millions—or even hundreds of millions, billions, and tens of billions.
"No. No, I can't be sure yet what this book even is! The things it describes may or may not be true!" Ju Hua shook his head, climbed down from the bed, and bowed slightly toward the empty air.
"Which senior is toying with this junior? I humbly ask you to show yourself!" Ju Hua called three times in a row, but no one appeared.
"Since Senior won't show yourself, then I'll take the liberty of following your guidance!" Ju Hua said respectfully, then straightened up.
The contents of Desolate Era were difficult to distinguish as true or false. If they were true, there were only two possibilities: either it was a fortunate coincidence, or a senior expert was orchestrating everything.
If it was a fortunate coincidence, then by making good use of everything recorded in Desolate Era, he might reach heights he could only look up to now. Even if he failed along the way, he would still have made the most of this great opportunity!
If a senior expert was orchestrating things, then he might as well go along with their intentions. He had already failed his tribulation, and his path ahead was shrouded in uncertainty. The outcome couldn't get much worse!
Ju Hua understood perfectly well that, barring some unexpected turn, his best possible outcome would be to cling to life for several million years, just as Desolate Era described, and then be reduced to ashes!
P.S. The Chaos Universe refers to universes such as the Desolate Era Universe and the Seamless Universe, while Chaos Worlds refers to places such as the Pangu Great World and the Seamless Great World. They are not the same thing, so don't get them mixed up!