I am a late bloomer in the world of cultivating immortals

Although he decided to take the risk, Wei Tu dared not do anything dangerous when it came to the specific preparations.

He spent a great deal of time preparing defensive formations, talismans to ward off calamities, and so on.

Until twenty years later.

Seeing that the life essence within the 'True Spirit Immortal Bone' was almost overflowing, Wei Tu breathed a sigh of relief and officially began his tribulation.

This 'Ten Thousand Armor Life Calamity' will claim a lifespan of six hundred thousand years with a single fatal blow...

Even a seventh-level body refiner like Wei Tu would find it difficult to withstand such a lifespan.

After the 'life-threatening aura' descends.

Apart from the gleaming 'True Spirit Immortal Bone' on his chest, his entire physical body lost its life force in that instant, becoming withered and listless, resembling a dead corpse.

It seemed as if the slightest touch would shatter it into pieces.

But soon, amidst the rapid thumping of his heart, streams of life essence, like fresh blood, poured out from his True Spirit Immortal Bone, flowing through his meridians and into his limbs and bones.

However... a strange scene then unfolded.

Nourished by this life essence that resembles 'sweet rain', Wei Tu's physical body recovers at an extremely fast speed the moment it comes into contact with the body, just like when it encounters a thousand-armor calamity... but this time is often difficult to last for too long.

Almost instantly, the body that had been restored to its original state turned into a 'withered corpse' once again.

"Losing ten thousand years of lifespan in one go is even more terrifying than I imagined..." Wei Tu clicked his tongue in amazement, finally gaining a clear understanding of this enormous life essence.

At that moment, the heavenly tribulation of the 'Ten Thousand Armor Life Tribulation' that he had triggered also descended, striking his cave dwelling fiercely.

Fortunately, with the help of the cave's formation and the tribulation-avoiding talisman, these tribulation lightning bolts, comparable to attacks from the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm and possessing considerable power, were firmly blocked outside the cave and could not enter immediately.

However, successfully surviving this "Ten Thousand Armor Tribulation" at this moment is not Wei Tu's goal.

His goal was to use the power of this tribulation lightning to break through the physical limitations of his realm and break through to the mid-stage of the seventh level of body refinement!
However... due to the damage to his physical body, he dared not easily withstand the power of the tribulation lightning from the outside world.

"I must quickly restore my physical body..." Wei Tu bit his tongue, and with his divine sense, he guided the storage bag at his waist, swallowing one healing pill and one high-grade spirit crystal after another that he had prepared in advance, and frantically absorbed the medicinal power and spiritual energy within them.

At the same time, his 'True Spirit Immortal Bone' was also desperately outputting 'life essence' to offset the physical depletion caused by this 'Ten Thousand Armor Life Tribulation'.

Rustle! Rustle!
Like a whale gulping down water, the mountains of pills and spirit crystals piled up inside the cave were completely devoured by Wei Tu's body in just a few breaths.

However, Wei Tu, who possesses the 'legacy' of the Seven Treasures Demon Ancestor, will not be too concerned about this loss.

With a thought, he poured out several storage bags from his waist, revealing the pills and spirit crystals he had prepared.

Again and again, over and over.

It wasn't until 15 minutes later that this crazy behavior gradually subsided.

At this moment, Wei Tu's tense face finally relaxed a little, and a smile appeared on his face.

The reason is simple: this time, he didn't use the 'Nine Fragrance Pill' that he had prepared beforehand, but recovered almost completely with just other ordinary healing pills.

The miraculous healing medicine 'Nine Fragrance Pill' was narrowly saved thanks to his desperate efforts to 'save' it!
Of course, we should also be thankful that the calamity of death was not caused by an attack from someone else, but simply by shortening one's lifespan and consuming the cultivator's 'life essence'...

Otherwise, with this method alone, he would have no chance of alleviating the injury.

"Next, I will rely on the heavenly tribulation triggered by this 'Ten Thousand Armor Life Tribulation' to temper my physical body and break through to the mid-stage of the seventh level of body refinement in one fell swoop..." Wei Tu took a deep breath, and immediately flew out of the cave with his eyes shining with strange light, directly meeting the dark purple tribulation lightning dancing in the void.

……

"Mid-stage of the seventh level of Body Refinement..."

Half a month later, inside the cave, looking at the realm he had finally broken through to, Wei Tu clenched his palm, feeling the immense power within it, and slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air.

The early and middle stages of the Fusion Realm are considered merely ordinary strength within the Fusion Realm...

However, the mid-stage of the seventh level of body refinement is different; it is comparable to a late-stage Fusion Realm expert to a certain extent!
Moreover, his spiritual cultivation has also reached the 'Great Success' stage in the mid-stage of the Integration Realm. With these two combined, even ordinary late-stage Integration Realm cultivators are no match for him.

And this is only his raw strength without relying on 'external aids'...

"With this strength, plus the 'Owl Demon Yin Ghost,' the 'Divine Phoenix Pill' and the 'Ancient Serpent Remains' may not be in our grasp, but they are not far off..." Wei Tu's eyes gleamed, full of confidence as he faced Chief Chai and the Serpent Scale Old Woman.

Previously, he had also planned to search for the spiritual materials needed to refine the 'Eternal Flame Ointment', so that the [Longevity Immortal Lamp] could once again display its divine power and thus deal with Chief Chai and others.

But now, this plan can be completely shelved.

However, he did not rush back to the Heavenly Demon Palace to wait for Chief Chai to descend to the mortal realm. Instead, he continued to cultivate diligently in the 'Lost Forest'.

Breaking through to the 'mid-stage of the seventh rank' in body refinement was merely a short-term goal for him during his seclusion here and even his cultivation in the Heavenly Demon Realm.

There is only one true long-term goal.

That is to cultivate as much as possible, reach the 'peak of the Integration Stage' in the shortest time, and then seek the 'opportunity' to break through to the Mahayana Realm.

Only when he reaches the Mahayana realm will his strength truly undergo a 'transformation,' making him a figure that Lady Wanmiao and even the 'Qihuo Divine Clan' behind her can be wary of.

Right now, I certainly won't waste this time that can be used for arduous practice.

Secondly, Chief Chai and the Snake-Scaled Old Woman wouldn't act so quickly either. It would take at least two or three hundred years to cultivate Ruan Shui'er into a 'reincarnated body' suitable for fusion and possession.

Now, only thirty or forty years have passed since he left the Heavenly Demon Palace and went on his travels.

……

Cultivation takes no time.

In the blink of an eye, a century has passed.

Just as Wei Tu was in seclusion, the old woman with snake scales, who was in contact with Chief Chai, was also methodically carrying out her reincarnation plan.

“Ancient snake molt, this is absolutely impossible. This was the key treasure that helped me take that step, and you know how much it benefits our snake bloodline… Clan sister, you know that too.”

Deep within the back mountains of a certain powerful clan in the Heavenly Demon Realm, Yu Linzi, inside his cave dwelling, shook his head helplessly and sighed as he looked at the old woman with snake scales who had been waiting for him outside the door for a long time.

“But cousin, you know perfectly well that if I were to simply wait here and give up on reincarnation, the ‘life-ending tribulation’ thousands of years later would surely take my life…”

"Are you really willing to just sit and watch me die?"

The old woman with snake scales, leaning on her cane, pounded the ground a few times and said in a heavy tone.

"This..." Yu Linzi, inside the cave, fell silent, unable to reply.

It is true that after breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage, cultivators no longer have to worry about their lifespan, but... this is only a theoretical 'lifespan'. Every 'lifespan-ending tribulation' after reaching the Ten Thousand Years of Life is a nightmare that countless high-level cultivators in the cultivation world cannot shake off.

Given the old woman's qualifications and foundation, if she were to give up on 'reincarnation' and face the increasingly powerful 'life-ending tribulation' in the future, all that would be left for her is death.

Therefore, he was quite certain that the old woman with snake scales was not lying in this matter.

“Life and death are predestined, you can’t blame others. Clan sister, your talent is limited, and it will be difficult for you to achieve the Great Dao. Even if you succeed in this reincarnation, it will be difficult for you to enter the Mahayana realm... At most, you will only extend your lifespan by another ten thousand years…” But a moment later, Yu Linzi, who was in the cave and had not personally met the old woman with snake scales, still uttered these cold words.

To sacrifice one's own chance of ascending to immortality for the sake of others is a request that most people in the cultivation world would never agree to.

And he, of course, would be no exception.

However, upon hearing this, the old woman with snake scales sneered. She slightly moved her lips and made a hand seal.

In an instant, her face, covered in snake scales and aged, transformed into that of a young woman in her late teens, youthful, beautiful, and ethereal.

At this moment, the old woman with snake scales truly deserved the title of "Fairy Willow" bestowed upon her by Chief Chai.

"Back then, we embarked on the path of immortality together, rising from humble beginnings, supporting each other... I still remember that it was I who gave you the Nascent Soul Pill, my cousin... And back then, when you were seriously injured and on the verge of death, it was I who took care of you tirelessly, which helped you through that most dangerous period of weakness..."

"Your foundation is weak at the Nascent Soul stage, and it was only because I sacrificed my own Yin essence that you were able to achieve it."

“We are cousins ​​in name, but in reality we are husband and wife. Now… my cousin has entered this Heavenly Demon Realm and become a Grand Master of the Fusion Stage with the potential to reach the Immortal Realm… are you going to disregard the bond we have built up over the past ten thousand years?” The old woman with snake scales had a frosty face and questioned her repeatedly in a clear voice like that of a nightingale.

The words fell.

Yu Linzi remained silent inside the cave.

He had been questioned in this way several times since his 'divorce' from the snake-scaled old woman.

He was well aware that whether or not to help his cousin, the old woman with snake scales, did not depend on her questioning, but on whether he had let go of this 'feeling'.

“It’s absolutely impossible for it to be an ancient snake’s remains, sister. You don’t need to test your brother anymore… You know how cold-blooded and ruthless I am…” But in an instant, Yu Linzi’s face turned cold. He snorted and refused directly.

As soon as the words fell, a powerful force of magic emerged along with the voice, landing on the old woman with snake scales, seemingly intending to send her out of the area behind the cave.

However, the old woman with snake scales seemed to have expected this, and she coldly smiled and said, "You are unwilling to give up that ancient snake remains, but you can at least help your little sister, right?"

“That man surnamed Chai possesses the ‘Divine Phoenix Pill.’ If you help me stabilize this cultivator and allow him to aid my reincarnation, you should have a good chance of seizing the ‘Divine Phoenix Pill’ from him, given your strength…”

"What, the Divine Phoenix Pill?"

"That man surnamed Chai actually possesses such a treasure?"

Upon hearing this, Yu Linzi was slightly startled. He immediately reached out and grabbed the snake-scaled old woman, who had already flown away from his cave, and pulled her back.

At the same moment, the cave gate burst open, and his figure emerged from it.

“Not a single thing has changed…” The old woman with snake scales, who was being held by the magical hand, looked nostalgic as she glanced at the blue-robed Taoist standing at the entrance of the cave, who looked like a young man and had an extraordinary temperament.

The appearance of a monk is not static throughout history.

However, for a powerful being like her, appearance is often just a facade; whether it is maintained depends on whether she is willing to invest more of her life essence into it.

Yu Linzi was almost the same age as her.

Today, she has not aged like her; on the contrary, she has maintained her youthful appearance, which shows how powerful she is.

"The Divine Phoenix Pill, is what you say true? Does that man surnamed Chai really possess the Divine Phoenix Pill?" Yu Linzi's expression turned slightly cold as he coldly stared at the old woman with snake scales in front of him and pressed her for an answer.

But the next moment, he seemed to realize something, his brows furrowed slightly, he released his magical hand that was holding the snake-scaled old woman, and took a step back.

However, he had no intention of explaining anything. After letting out a cold snort, he glanced at the old woman with snake scales.

"That's natural. That man surnamed Chai used the 'Divine Phoenix Pill' as bait to get my younger sister to get the 'Ancient Serpent's Remains' from my cousin as a bargaining chip..."

"Without seeing the ancient snake's remains, this cultivator will absolutely not help my little sister reincarnate. Therefore, naturally, the 'Divine Phoenix Pill' in this cultivator's possession cannot be fake."

"Whether it's true or not, you'll know once you accompany your younger sister to the 'Black Cloud Minor Realm'," the snake-scaled old woman said, her expression unchanged, uttering the words she had prepared beforehand.

Upon hearing this, Yu Linzi's face clearly showed hesitation.

He was unsure of Chief Chai's strength.

However, he was well aware that Chief Chai, who had managed to escape from the spirit world and evade the pursuit of the 'Ghost Phoenix Clan,' was by no means an ordinary person.

Moreover, he is now at the same level as him, having reached the 'Great Cultivation of Integration' stage.

In terms of foundation, it is somewhat inferior to him, a veteran 'fusion master'.

Snatching food from their mouths and abandoning the deal is probably not a safe bet...

“That man surnamed Chai didn’t ask his cousin for a complete ‘Ancient Serpent Remains’; he only wanted half a set to trade for that ‘Divine Phoenix Pill’…” the old woman with snake scales pressed on.

"Half a set?" Upon hearing this, Yu Linzi's heart stirred slightly.

But soon, just as this thought arose, he instantly snapped back to reality, having been tempted by the treasure.

He narrowed his eyes and carefully examined the snake-scaled old woman, immediately realizing that she was using words to gradually coax him into agreeing.

"Emotional blackmail" is merely a pretext; the real weapon to entice him to agree is this kind of exchange of benefits.

“However, if the ‘Divine Phoenix Pill’ is genuine, this deal is indeed feasible…” Yu Linzi thought to himself.

"I wonder if that man surnamed Chai is truly interested in making a deal, or if he's plotting to steal the treasure..." Subconsciously, Yu Linzi also felt a sense of wariness towards Chief Chai, such a dangerous figure. (End of Chapter)