Everlasting

 

“Finally out. The boredom of getting stuck inside the tower nearly killed me!” Lu Ta shouted loudly as he breathed in the fresh air.

“I didn’t think we’d be able to live through it all,” Big Pot Bro said emotionally.

“Are your wounds healed?” Chen Feng asked.

“They are almost healed. Young Master, where should we go to next? Do you want to come to our Pot Mountain and check things out? You may come across immortal serendipity there,” Big Pot Bro said respectfully.

“He he, could such a good thing happen? You fellows have been staying there for so many years now, but you never did encounter any immortal serendipity. It will just be the same for me. Besides, I am planning to go to Extreme Celestial Sect next,” Chen Feng said with a smile.

“Extreme Celestial Sect. Brother Chen, it seems you have made up your mind. Fine, we brothers will have to split up for now. When I have the time, I will go to Extreme Celestial Sect and visit you,” Ye Ziming, who stood beside Chen Feng, said with a smile.

“What are your plans, Brother Ye?” asked Chen Feng.

“There are some matters I have to deal with. I might also go travel and check out some other places,” answered Ye Ziming, the same smile on his face.

“Surely, you are not going to the Central Plains?” Chen Feng asked.

“When I am stronger, I will return.” The smile on Ye Ziming’s face slowly faded.

“How strong is that?” Chen Feng asked again.

“When I am strong enough,” Ye Ziming replied with a hushed tone.

“Brother Ye, if you need any help, you must inform us,” Chen Feng said with a solemn tone.

“Yeah, there is no need to hold anything back between us.” Lu Ta stepped forward, patted Ye Ziming’s shoulder and laughed out.

“He he, you can rest easy. If there is anything, I will surely inform you two.” Ye Ziming was somewhat touched. He then waved goodbye. Step by step, he disappeared from their view.

“Young Master, you are going to Extreme Celestial Sect?” Big Pot Bro asked.

“Yes, a friend of mine wrote me a recommendation letter, recommending me into Extreme Celestial Sect,” said Chen Feng, who nodded his head.

“Let us follow Young Master then. We can help Young Master deal with some matters,” Big Pot Bro said.

“The future is hard to predict. I do not know what will happen in my attempts to enter Extreme Celestial Sect. You fellows should return to Pot Mountain first. When I have settled down in Extreme Celestial Sect, I will go find you all,” said Chen Feng after a moment’s consideration.

“Very well, we brothers will wait for Young Master in Pot Mountain.” Big Pot Bro nodded.

“Here are 100,000 Magic crystals. Take them and use it for your cultivation efforts. Hopefully, the next time we meet, you fellows can break through.” Chen Feng waved his hand and a small mountain of Magic crystals appeared.

“Young Master, we-” Big Pot Bro had only just spoken up when Chen Feng interrupted him.

“In cultivation, the most important thing to have is resources. I have a lot of Magic crystals on me, so these are nothing. If I tell you to take it, just take it,” Chen Feng said coolly.

One hundred thousand Magic crystals were the equivalent of ten million Basic Yang Pills. For the average Concealed stage cultivators, this was an astronomical amount of wealth. However, for Chen Feng, who had dug up a Magic crystal mine before, this number was nothing much.

Seeing the determined attitude from Chen Feng, The Five Heroes of Pot Mountain brought out their spatial pouches to keep the Magic crystals. Finally, they bowed respectfully towards Chen Feng before leaving.

Chen Feng and Lu Ta were the only ones left.

“I also want to enter Extreme Celestial Sect.” Lu Ta did not bother waiting for Chen Feng to ask before speaking.

“In that case, we will be sect brothers in the future,” Chen Feng said with a smile.

“However, I have heard that the threshold of acceptance for the Ten Immortal Dao Sects is very high. I wonder if they will accept me.” Lu Ta was feeling somewhat concerned.

“There is no need to worry. We’ll know after we go check it out. Could it be you have no confidence at all?” Chen Feng patted Lu Ta’s shoulder. 

Lu Ta was presently at level 3 of the Concealed stage. In most small cities, he could become something of an overlord, a figure that some small and medium-sized sects would want to recruit. Even after entering one of the Ten Great Immortal Dao Sects, he would still possess a certain standing. Of course, that was under the assumption that he could first become a disciple of one of the Ten Great Immortal Dao Sects.

There was a strange phenomenon within the cultivation world. Loose cultivators with high cultivation bases felt contemptuous towards the idea of joining an immortal dao sect. On the other hand, the immortal dao sects would not casually recruit cultivators with low cultivation bases or no potential for development.

Take for example a youngster who had yet to cultivate up to the Concealed stage, but with a high level of talent and potential. The immortal dao sects would compete to recruit that youngster.

On the other hand, a cultivator at level 5 of the Concealed stage or higher who was already nearing the end of his or her lifespan would only join the immortal dao sects in order to extend their life by a few more days. However, very few big-sized immortal dao sects would accept such characters into their sect.

Extreme Celestial Sect was one of the Northern Plains’ Ten Great Immortal Dao Sect and its recruitment of disciples was stricter. However, Chen Feng was not feeling too concerned. Firstly, he was still young and he possessed a sufficiently high cultivation base. Talent wise, he had already passed. Secondly, he also possessed the recommendation letter that Bai Ziyan made for him. The only way they would not accept Chen Feng was if the ones in charge of the recruitment had gone blind.

However, things were different for Lu Ta. Although his cultivation base was higher than Chen Feng, his talent could only be considered average. Additionally, he was nearly 20 years older compared to Chen Feng. Possessing his level of cultivation base at that age can already be considered a decent accomplishment. However, it will still be somewhat challenging for him to enter one of the Northern Plains’ Ten Great Immortal Dao Sect.

There was a distance of hundreds of thousands of li between them and Extreme Celestial Sect. Even if they were to ride their flying swords through day and night, it would still take them some time before they make it there.

Chen Feng and Lu Ta were in no hurry. They instead leisurely moved in the direction of Extreme Celestial Sect, as though they were on a trip. On their way, they found that the most popular topic going around was the one regarding Driftcloud Immortal Mountain. However, although plenty of cultivators from every corner of the world would go there every day, only a small handful of them could enter.

A small handful. In other words, someone did successfully enter.

“Brother, you mentioned earlier that someone entered the immortal mountain?”

Chen Feng and Lu Ta were taking a break in a wine shop when they heard some people discussing the Driftcloud Immortal Mountain. Thus, he had chosen to step forward and inquire the matter.

“That is right. It’s been a while since Driftcloud Immortal Mountain’s emergence and the Ten Great Immortal Dao Sects have finally lost their patience. Last month, the Northern Plains’ Ten Great Immortal Dao Sects joined hands and utilized a high number of magic treasures and magic arrays to force open a dot. Tens of cultivators managed to enter thanks to that,” said a gaunt-looking cultivator in a lively manner. It appeared as though he had witnessed the whole thing.

“Did they come out?” Lu Ta asked.

“How is that possible? That is an immortal mountain that has existed for who knows how many years. I hear that even Immortal Humans can get stuck inside. At any rate, not a single one of the cultivators could come out.”

“That is right. From what I’ve heard, those from the immortal dao sects are not the only ones who managed to enter. A number of loose cultivators also managed to enter the immortal mountain.”

“Eh? Even loose cultivators can enter? Are they highly powerful loose cultivators?” Chen Feng could not stop himself from asking.

“No. Honestly, many of the loose cultivators who entered have cultivation bases inferior to mine. Heh! Even Sky Human stage cultivators would die when they enter. What were they thinking? Did they really think they could be blessed with immortal serendipity? Crazy daydreamers,” a muscular middle-aged man said.

Chen Feng looked at him. The muscular middle-aged cultivator was only at level 2 of the Concealed stage. Additionally, the primary energy he cultivated was very eclectic. He was a very ordinary Concealed stage cultivator.

“Strange, how can those loose cultivators enter?” muttered Chen Feng, who felt puzzled about it.

“I know about that. Maybe it is due to the daily bombardment from the immortal dao sects, but something about the Driftcloud Immortal Mountain has changed recently,” a man with a loud voice spoke up.

“What change? What change?” Those beside him hastily asked.

Hearing them ask, the loud-voiced man felt pleased with himself. He finished the bowl of wine in his hand in one gulp before continuing, “Driftcloud Immortal Mountain is protected by the Driftcloud Immortal Light. You all know that, right?”

“Nonsense! Of course we know. Hurry up and tell us, what kind of change is it?” someone shouted loudly.

“Around ten plus days ago, a gap would appear upon the Driftcloud Immortal Light protecting the immortal mountain every day. When that happens, the attacking cultivators would grab the opportunity to jump in. Truth be told, this is a discovery by the loose cultivators,” the loud-voiced man said.

“A gap. It would appear every day?” someone quickly asked.

“Of course. It’s been over 10 days now. Some cultivators would enter every day,” the loud-voiced man said in a prideful tone.

“Why didn’t you enter?” another person asked.

“I haven’t had enough of life. So many of them have entered, but how many managed to make it out alive? Even if there are immortal serendipities inside, I am still unwilling to go die.” After saying that, the loud-voiced man returned to drinking his wine.

“Maybe the interior is connected to the Immortal Plane?”

“I did not think that it is now possible to enter the immortal mountain. Fellow brothers, let’s move. Let us gamble on the possibility of encountering immortal serendipity.”

“Hey, could it be as simple as that? If you enter, you will surely die. However, if you just want to join in the liveliness, then sure. Maybe you can even get something good from that.”

“Sigh! My lifespan will be over in 10 more years. I will just make a bet by entering the immortal mountain. Dying here or dying in there is the same.” An elderly cultivator sighed and walked away.

Chen Feng could see that the elderly cultivator was at level 4 of the Concealed stage. However, the life force within his body was already declining, giving off an aged and heavy atmosphere. It may not even take 10 years for his life force to go out, unless he could condense out his Soulflame within these 10 years to re-ignite his life force. Even so, that could only extend his lifespan by around another 10 years. After that, even his Soulflame would slowly fade away. However, the chances of the elderly cultivator condensing out his Soulflame in just 10 years was practically zero. Unless he could take a Heaven-defying medicinal pill or encounter an amazing immortal serendipity, there was no other way for him to live on. He could only wait for his lifespan to run its course and be reduced to ashes. 

“Sigh! Even though we cultivators are much stronger than ordinary humans, as long as we cannot become immortals, we cannot ascend and be truly free,” Chen Feng lamented. 

“Ha ha ha! Little brother, your words are quite interesting. After reaching the immortal stage, can one really ascend and be truly free?” A hearty voice suddenly rang out from the table beside them.

The person who spoke up appeared to be in his thirties. He wore cyan-coloured robes and appeared slightly thin, with a somewhat pale complexion. The most noticeable aspect was his eyebrows, which were longer than others by a notch. They hung evenly down the corners of his eyes. It was that pair of long eyebrows which gave others a peculiar feeling.

The man appeared drunk. There was a jug of wine and a wine bowl on his table. There was even a gourd of wine in his hand. Sensing Chen Feng regarding him, he quickly turned to smile at Chen Feng. Next, he raised up the gourd in his hand to his mouth and began gulping at a maddening rate. An aromatic scent of wine quickly filled the entire wine shop. Even Chen Feng had involuntarily taken a deep breath of it.

“Damn it! Boss, why didn’t you bring out the good wine?” someone suddenly slapped the table in dissatisfaction.

“That is right. Why didn’t you sell us such good wine? Do we not have enough money for it?”

“Ha ha, fellow customers, please calm down. This gentleman is the one who brought in that wine. Our little wine shop couldn’t possibly make such good wine,” the owner of the shop came out and said with a smile.

“Mister, how do you know that one cannot be free after becoming an immortal?” Chen Feng asked with a smile.

“Then how do you know you can be free after becoming an immortal?” The cyan-robed man laughed loudly as he popped open the wine jug on the table. His mouth made a sucking motion and a stream of bluish-green wine flowed out from the jug. Not a single drop of wine fell out and the stream of wine entered the cyan-robed man’s mouth.

The scent of wine within the wine shop grew even thicker. Some of the customers who were seated close by even felt slightly dizzy from the scent.

“What a strong wine!” A cultivator with a lesser cultivation base fell down the ground after taking a few breaths of the aroma. The scent of the wine alone had managed to knock him out!