Longevity begins with alchemy master

Chapter 1140 The Annihilation of the Era
In the secret room.

Luo Chen flipped his wrists, clasped his hands together, sat cross-legged, and his whole body emanated heat.

He appeared thin, but his exposed body was full of bulging muscles, and just sitting there, he looked like a towering mountain.

Deep in the mountains, there was an extremely oppressive atmosphere, as if it could burst forth at any moment.

He looked like a volcano about to erupt!
Inside the body, beneath the tightly closed Purple Palace, a large number of bright red blood beads had accumulated at some unknown time.

These blood droplets, though seemingly fresh blood, are actually, upon closer inspection, countless strands of energy intertwined and fused together, their power compressed to the extreme.

If an ordinary martial artist were to witness this scene, they would surely be speechless with astonishment.

This is because each blood bead is formed from a large amount of pure dan energy, which can be used independently to form a qi and transform into a furnace for the body!

At this moment, Luo Chen already had thirty-six blood beads inside his body, yet he still did not choose to take that step.

If he were to use this as a foundation to take the third step in body refinement, its terrifying potential would be unimaginable.

However, Luo Chen was still not satisfied!

The number of thirty-six cycles of the heavens was not Luo Chen's limit.

He still has a large amount of untransformed source blood.

Having decided to switch to cultivating Qi and Blood, he must lay the most perfect foundation.

"Transforming thirty-six pill seeds in half a year is a commendable progress. However, the thirty-six pill seeds already form a system of their own. If I were to condense new pill seeds, it might disrupt the existing system. My physical body is strong enough, but if the circulation of pill seeds within my body is broken, there will inevitably be some backlash."

"We need to think of a better way to resolve this hidden danger."

As the thought arose, Luo Chen had already awakened from his cultivation state.

He blinked, then calmly got up and left the cultivation room.

Upon entering the inner room, Jing Lan had already prepared a medicinal bath, and Luo Chen immediately soaked in it.

The hot water contained a large amount of boiled medicinal liquid, which was now seeping into Luo Chen's body through his skin pores, repairing the many hidden injuries he had sustained while drifting here.

After a while, when the water in the wooden tub had become clear, Luo Chen finally ended his medicinal bath.

The servants would handle the rest. Luo Chen casually put on a loose coat and went into the study.

Pushing open the window, the snow-covered landscape outside came into view, a sight that was truly breathtaking.

Luo Chen exhaled a breath of stale air and casually opened a book.

He had already read most of the books he borrowed from the city lord's mansion, and he had memorized the information about the three major natural disasters that he wanted to know.

The so-called Three Great Calamities are peculiar natural phenomena summarized by powerful martial artists in this world.

While the heavenly wind may seem to affect only mortals, it is actually just as dangerous for martial artists, though the danger hangs over their heads.

Whenever the winds blow, incredibly violent gales sweep across the high heavens. These gales can even tear space apart, creating terrifying spatial rifts that even a fourth-stage Body Refinement expert with an impenetrable golden body cannot withstand!
Luo Chen was already aware of the dangers of Ghost Rain.

The bitter cold was secondary; the most dangerous thing was the ghostly nightmares that accompanied the rain of ghosts.

Even the most resolute and powerful martial artists can lose their way under the influence of the Nightmare.

As for the final fog of destruction?

The records in the ancient books were not very detailed, but those few words sent chills down Luo Chen's spine.

A thick fog blankets the land, obliterating everything!

The Mist of Destruction occurs once every ten thousand years, and each time it is accompanied by the appearance of a large number of Chaos Beasts, which devour all living beings in their path, and the duration is uncertain.

Every twelve times, or about one epoch, a larger-scale annihilation fog will appear, which is capable of destroying everything!

Every time an era changes, the Great Cataclysm will arrive.

The name of this world, the Great Destruction Realm, is derived from this.

When Luo Chen learned of this news, even his usually calm and unwavering Dao heart trembled slightly.

He didn't know the full extent of the devastating fog's power, but whether it was the chaotic beast described in the ancient texts that could devour all living beings, or the Great Cataclysm that destroyed the world, it was enough to make people aware of the terror of such natural disasters.

Luo Chen wanted to know more information, but unfortunately there was very little information available about this.

This may be related to the fact that people in this world have such short lifespans!

From another book, Luo Chen roughly learned about the lifespan of body-refining cultivators in this world.

Although the body-refining methods in this world are quite well preserved, and it is even possible to cultivate to the fifth or sixth level of body refinement, the lifespan increase is far less than in the Mountain and Sea Realm.

At the first or second stage of body refinement, lifespan will hardly increase significantly.

Only when one reaches the third stage of body refinement, the furnace stage, will one's lifespan be increased to a mere three hundred years, which is far less than the five hundred-year upper limit of the Mountain and Sea Realm.

Legend has it that even those at the Perfected Realm only live to be eight hundred years old!
Moreover, very few people can live to be eight hundred years old, because the path of body refinement, whether in cultivation or combat, focuses on the physical body. A single misstep can damage the body's essence, leading to a shortened lifespan. This is completely different from Qi refinement cultivation. While Qi refinement cultivation also relies on the physical body, at higher levels, its essence focuses on magical power and spiritual energy. Even if the physical body is injured, it won't significantly affect the lifespan limit.

From this perspective, the scarcity of records about the devastating fog can also be explained.

The strong live too short a time, and there is a great era of destruction that wipes everything out, which naturally leads to a break in history.

Luo Chen even privately believed that the information he had gathered was likely a mixture of truth and falsehood, with many omissions.

At least, when was the last time the Fog of Destruction appeared?
Which of the twelve natural disasters within a single era does it belong to?
Luo Chen had not found any of this information.

Of course, Luo Chen quickly regained his composure after the initial fluctuations in his Dao heart.

He is good at planning ahead, but worrying unnecessarily is definitely not in his nature.

Even if he were to encounter a once-in-a-century cataclysmic era, he would definitely do everything in his power to survive!
Strength is the bargaining chip to deal with everything!

Luo Chen calmly opened "The Lost Immortal's Notes," initially just an attempt to pass the time, but as he read on, his attention became increasingly drawn in.

"They're kindred spirits?!"

Luo Chen's eyes gleamed with a strange light, his attention highly focused.

This copied copy of "The Lost Immortal's Notes" contains a record of the life of a person named "Xiao Lan".

This person, like Luo Chen, is a cultivator!
He came from an ancient cultivation world called [Tianhe], and his cultivation level in his previous life reached the unimaginable Refinement stage.

That's the Void Refining stage, where one condenses the Dharma Image and refines the spirit to return to emptiness!
Unexpectedly, such a powerful being would also be stranded in this world due to a battle.

What surprised Luo Chen the most was that even someone as strong as Xiao Lan, after recovering from his injuries and returning to the Void Refinement stage, was unable to leave the Great Destruction Realm.

At the very top of the Nine Heavens, terrifying gales and exploding lightning filled the air, enough to tear apart any physical body and destroy any soul. There were even chaotic and broken laws of the Great Dao within. Even when Xiao Lan unleashed his Dharma form and used his divine powers, he only ended up being severely injured and falling again.

Later, Xiao Lan tried several more times until she failed completely and was forced to give up.

He began to settle down in this Great Destruction Realm, established the Immortal Remnant City, and propagated his bloodline... Until his lifespan was nearing its end, Xiao Lan, still unwilling to give up, chose to abandon everything and quietly leave, just to find a glimmer of hope to leave the Great Destruction Realm.

This "Remnant Immortal's Notes" also includes some cultivation insights from those at the advanced Qi Refining stage, seemingly reflecting the author's past conjectures in times of distress, including the point on how to condense a Dharma Image.

Unfortunately, these cultivation insights, which would be invaluable in the cultivation world, were worthless in this Great Destruction Realm devoid of spiritual energy, so much so that they were placed on the most inconspicuous first floor of the library by the descendants of the Xiao family.

"A thousand years have passed, I wonder if this senior has found a way out?"

If they manage to get out, that would be fine. As long as they can return to the Void Refinement stage and have a lifespan of up to five thousand years, they can try to advance even further.

If it fails, then it's probably all gone by now!
As Luo Chen meticulously recorded these cultivation insights, he also contemplated the fate of Senior Xiao Lan, his heart filled with sympathy and compassion for those who shared a similar fate.

As for these cultivation insights, they are currently of little use to Luo Chen, being utterly useless.

But he always harbored a hope of leaving this world. If he really did leave, these cultivation insights would come in handy.

As Luo Chen recorded the events, he couldn't help but think that there must be many more cultivators like Xiao Lan and himself in the Great Destruction Realm. Among them were undoubtedly disheartened individuals. Perhaps, if he had the chance, he could obtain some profound cultivation methods from them?

But then, Luo Chen couldn't help but laugh at himself.

Whether or not we can leave is another matter; what's the point of going through all that trouble to collect these things?

The Nine Heavens Gale, Soul-Shattering Thunder Sound, and the Profound and Mysterious Great Dao of Fractured Laws recorded by Xiao Lan are definitely not something he can face directly now.

Luo Chen even doubted whether, even if he relied on the path of body refinement to cultivate to the Divine Realm, which was capable of breaking through the void, he could still break free from the constraints of this world.

After all, this world lacks spiritual energy and spiritual power; even the world consciousness and the laws of heaven are incomplete!

Hurried footsteps sounded outside the study.

A short while later, there was a knock on the door.

"Brother Luo, the young city lord has come to pay his respects!"

Luo Chen stopped writing, his brows furrowing slightly, but as if he had thought of something, they quickly relaxed.

"Please invite him over!"

Jing Lan left in a hurry, and soon after, two more footsteps could be heard outside the door.

The wooden door was pushed open, and Xiao Feng's figure, tightly gripping a folding fan, appeared before Luo Chen.

Before the other party could speak, Luo Chen took the initiative to ask, "Is it about the martial arts tournament?"

Xiao Feng was taken aback. "How did you know about this, Senior?"

Luo Chen stood up, looked at the snow-covered landscape outside the window, and said calmly, "Spring is just around the corner, and at this crucial moment, this is the only reason you've come to me."

Xiao Feng took a deep breath, cupped his hands in a bow to Luo Chen's back, and said, "Please lend me a hand, senior!"

(End of this chapter)