Void Immortal

Little White’s dragon body, which had only just calmed down, suddenly went rigid—far more violently than when it had been in the midst of chaos!

Its enormous head whipped around, and its massive dragon eyes widened as it stared at Gu Changge standing atop it in disbelief.

They were filled with utter shock and confusion!

The… Immortal Realm?!

How could it not know about that place?

It was precisely this so-called Immortal Realm that had been stealing the Xuanhuang Realm’s origin for countless millennia, making it the chief culprit behind the realm’s decline!

It could never forget that its Master had once slain an Immortal of the Immortal Realm beyond the boundaries of the world!

But to charge straight to their doorstep?!

The Master was indeed overwhelmingly powerful—he could kill a True Immortal in an instant—but that was the Immortal Realm!

Who knew how many ancient monsters were hiding inside? Perhaps True Immortals were merely gatekeepers there!

It had only just become an Emperor. Its dragon life had not even reached its peak, and now it was going to follow its Master to kick down the gates of the Immortal Realm?!

A chill shot from the tip of its tail straight to the crown of its head. Its enormous dragon claws even dug instinctively at the void.

But in the next moment, its eyes met Gu Changge’s calm, unruffled gaze. A complicated mix of emotions surged through it: The Master must have a profound reason for this; I can’t show weakness; at worst, I’ll just fight to the death!

Enough, enough! When a dragon dies, it faces the sky with its eggs exposed!

The Master has treated me with great kindness and helped me become an Emperor. Now that he’s going to trample his enemy, how can I, Little White, show fear?

Even if the road ahead is a mountain of blades and a sea of flames, I have to accompany the Master on this journey!

It was just a pity that it had not yet had the chance to properly show off its newly refined scales to that foolish Little Black…

With that thought, it forcibly suppressed the turmoil in its heart. Its enormous head rose as it desperately tried to put on a solemn and resolute expression, one that seemed to say, “The wind whispers mournfully by the Yi River; a warrior departs, never to return.”

From deep within its throat came a low growl that trembled slightly, though it tried its best to sound composed—as if it were saying, “Master, I’m ready! Whether it’s a mountain of blades or a sea of flames, Little White will brave it with you!”

Gu Changge took in Little White’s remarkable transformation from panic to forced composure.

Especially the way it was clearly a little cowardly yet insisted on pretending to be ready to die heroically. A faint, almost imperceptible smile flashed through his eyes.

He gently patted Little White’s dragon scales. His tone remained calm, carrying the detached air of someone who saw through everything.

“Put away those thoughts of yours. The Immortal Domain has long since shattered. It isn’t as terrifying as you imagine.

“The place we’re heading to is merely a fragment clinging to existence within the chaos. True Immortals are considered a core fighting force there.”

Little White: “…Huh?”

Its tragic, heroic expression instantly froze on its enormous dragon face.

Gu Changge turned his gaze toward the depths of the chaos, as though organizing the harsh truths about the Immortal Realm that he had learned from the memories of those True Immortals.

“As far as I know, the complete Immortal Realm shattered long ago.

“The place we’re going is merely a relatively large fragment drifting through the chaos. It is known as Chengyun Continent.”

“When the Immortal Domain was still whole, spiritual energy transformed into immortal energy, and its laws were complete. Living beings could cultivate with twice the results for half the effort.

“When cultivators from the great worlds reached the peak of the Saint Realm—the Great Saint Realm—they could receive the summons of ascension and enter the Immortal Domain.

“They would shed their mortal power and initially transform it into immortal energy. This realm was known in the Immortal Domain as the Void Immortal Realm.”

Little White listened intently.

Gu Changge continued, “The so-called Emperor Realm of the Xuanhuang Realm is, in essence, a combat realm created independently above the Saint Realm under desperate circumstances—when ascension was impossible and there was no immortal energy to nourish one’s cultivation.

“Its strength is comparable to, or even slightly greater than, that of a Void Immortal in the Immortal Domain.

“However, because it lacks immortal energy to transform into immortal power, it ultimately falls short at the crucial final step.”

“The true starting point of the Immortal Dao is the True Immortal Realm, in which all the power within one’s body has been completely transformed into immortal power.

“After that come the Earth Immortal Realm, the Heavenly Immortal Realm, the Immortal Lord Realm, and other higher realms.”

Little White nodded its enormous dragon head, understanding only some of it.

“However,” Gu Changge said, changing the subject, “after the Immortal Domain shattered, its environment underwent drastic changes. Resources dried up, and the laws became incomplete. The glorious age when True Immortals could be found everywhere vanished long ago.

“Now, on the fragment of Chengyun Continent, the vast majority of living beings remain trapped in the mortal realms for their entire lives.

“Anyone capable of cultivating to the Void Immortal Realm—which is equivalent to the Emperor Realm—is already considered a great expert in one region.

“As for the True Immortal Realm, its practitioners are already the pillars of this world, with lofty status.”

He looked at Little White. “The strongest figure known to exist here is merely the master of the Immortal Palace, an early-stage Heavenly Immortal, supported by several Earth Immortals.

“As for everyone else, a ninth-level True Immortal is already at the pinnacle of combat power.

“With your current cultivation at the Emperor Realm, you belong to the Void Immortal level in this world. You simply haven’t yet transformed the power within your body into immortal power.”

Little White: “!!!”

The massive amount of information completely shattered its earlier tragic imaginings.

So the Immortal Realm had already declined to this state?

It remained stunned for a moment, digesting this earth-shattering information. The muscles that had been tightly coiled gradually relaxed, and the light returned to its enormous dragon eyes. There was even a hint of eagerness in them.

True Immortals were merely a core fighting force?

Then, with its Emperor Realm cultivation and the Master by its side, it could perhaps, maybe, more or less, swagger through the place!

At the very least, it probably wouldn’t be used as cannon fodder, right?

Gu Changge said no more. He turned his gaze toward the distance, in the direction of Chengyun Immortal Palace. His thoughts stirred slightly.

According to the memories of those two men, Chengyun Immortal Domain had long since been exposed within the chaos. Following this direction would lead them to the lair of Chengyun Immortal Palace.

A cold glint flashed through Gu Changge’s eyes.

“Let’s go!”

At his words, Little White let out a dragon roar with considerably more confidence than before. Its massive tail swept through the air, tearing open the chaos as it carried Gu Changge rapidly toward their destination!

The ten-thousand-zhang black dragon tore through the chaos, carrying Gu Changge toward Chengyun Immortal Palace.

After an unknown amount of time, Gu Changge’s heart stirred faintly.

A fragmentary image flashed through his mind. It was a broken scene he had caught at the edge of the memories of the two True Immortals while searching their souls.

On their way to the Xuanhuang Realm, they had encountered an unexplained attack!

At the time, their memories had been too fragmented, and the incident had nothing to do with the affairs of the Xuanhuang Realm, so he had not investigated it further.

But now, following a vague, mysterious sense, he detected a trace of an unusual fluctuation lingering in the nearby void.

“Stop for a moment.”

Gu Changge spoke calmly.

Little White, which had been flying with great enthusiasm, immediately steadied its dragon body and obediently came to a halt in the chaos. Its enormous dragon eyes looked curiously at Gu Changge.

Gu Changge swept his gaze across a stretch of void that appeared no different from its surroundings, with only chaotic currents slowly circling through it.

But beneath his Heaven-Severing Eyes, faint traces of distortion left behind by annihilated energy could be seen there, along with a trace of bloodlust that had almost been completely assimilated by the chaos.

With a single step, he appeared at the center of that stretch of void.

Little White hurriedly shrank its dragon body, transforming into a dragon several dozen feet long before following closely behind.

The void was permeated by the faint remnants of an array’s power. It possessed an extremely powerful concealment effect and killing ability, and the techniques used to arrange it had been exceptionally sophisticated.

In addition, there were nearly imperceptible traces of dark-golden blood. They had already dried completely, nearly blending into the chaos.

“Hmm?” Gu Changge’s gaze sharpened slightly.

Aside from the blood and the remnants of the array, he also sensed another aura—extremely faint and almost on the verge of vanishing.

This aura did not belong to the Immortal Dao. Instead, it was closer to the spiritual-energy cultivation system of the great worlds. However, its level of condensation and quality far surpassed that of a Great Saint, while remaining clearly inferior to that of a True Immortal. It occupied a subtle transitional stage.

“A Void Immortal? Or perhaps an Emperor with exceptionally powerful combat strength who has already begun touching upon the transformation into immortal power?”

Gu Changge made his assessment inwardly.

The owner of this aura had clearly experienced a brutal battle here as well. The aura carried an air of grim resolve and destruction.

The clues left at the scene ended there. Every valuable item and lead had either been cleared away or completely obliterated.

“Thoroughly done,” Gu Changge murmured.

A great battle had taken place in the chaos, with at least two True Immortals involved. There might also have been several Immortal-level beings of unknown origin, seemingly top-tier Emperors from the lower realm.

Who were those beings whose auras resembled those of Immortals?