The Longevity Family: Starting from the Foundation Establishment Ancestor

The black-robed elder raised his hand to seal off the space, the chaotic energy solidifying like iron, trapping Han Mu and his companions within a radius of a hundred feet. The pressure of a mid-stage Grand Luo Golden Immortal was undisguised, making it difficult for Liu Ruyan and the other six to breathe, and even raising their hands was difficult.

"You killed my Heavenly Court's divine general and seized the Heart of Time and Space, Han Mu, you deserve to die a thousand deaths." The black-robed elder's voice was icy. His gaze swept over the Blade of Time in Han Mu's hand, and a glint of greed flashed in his eyes. "The supreme treasure of the laws of time... Hand it over, and I may spare your corpse."

The other two divine generals blocked Han Mu's retreat from the left and right, one wielding a saber and the other a sword, their auras locking onto him. All three were Great Luo Golden Immortals, and their perfect coordination showed they were seasoned veterans who frequently fought together.

Han Mu took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his surging blood and qi. The killing of the golden-armored general had consumed too much energy, and the Dao Seed's essence had also been used up for twelve hours. His combat strength was now only 60% of his peak. He could barely fight one black-robed old man, let alone three.

"Senior Han, what should we do?" Luo Feng gritted his teeth and pulled out a handful of talismans, but this time the quality was obviously not as good as the previous golden boundary-breaking talisman, and it could at most withstand a single attack from a Great Yi Jade Immortal.

Liu Ruyan gripped her longsword tightly and whispered, "We'll hold off the other two. Senior Han, you should find a chance to break through."

"Hold me back?" The sword-wielding general sneered. "A few Great Jade Immortals think they can hold me back? They're courting death."

"Then let's give it a try." Bai Ling drew her sword, and her sword intent soared into the sky, showing faint signs of breaking through to the Great Luo realm. She had gained some insights from the battle just now, and her sword dao realm had advanced another step.

Zhou Meng also unleashed his magic weapon, cursing, "You lackeys of the Heavenly Court, so much nonsense! If you want to fight, then fight!"

The old man in black robes' eyes turned cold: "Stubborn to the end, then all of you may die."

He raised his hand and struck out with a palm, the black palm print expanding in the wind, transforming into a hundred-foot-long giant palm that slammed down. Wherever the palm print passed, the chaotic energy shattered, and space cracked inch by inch. If this palm strike landed, even an early-stage Grand Luo Golden Immortal would be severely injured.

Han Mu dared not take the blow head-on. He unleashed a silver blade of light from his Blade of Time, colliding with the black palm print. With a deafening roar, the silver blade shattered, and the black palm print shrank by half, continuing its downward press.

"Time, slow down!"

Han Mu used the Law of Time again, drastically reducing the speed of the palm print and giving everyone a chance to catch their breath. He seized the opportunity to unleash a second strike, finally shattering the palm print. However, the recoil forced him back three steps, a sweet taste rising in his throat, and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Senior Han!" Li Qingzhu exclaimed, about to cast a healing spell.

"Leave me alone!" Han Mu wiped away the blood and stared intently at the black-robed elder. The gap was too great; a mid-stage Great Luo Golden Immortal was far stronger than an early-stage one. Even with the Time Law, he couldn't bridge the gap in cultivation levels.

"Not bad, you can withstand one of my palm strikes." A hint of surprise flashed in the black-robed elder's eyes, but his killing intent intensified. "With such talent, you cannot be allowed to live. Attack together, and finish this quickly!"

The generals wielding swords and sabers attacked simultaneously. Blade light cascaded like a waterfall, sword shadows filled the air, sealing off all of Han Mu's escape routes. The black-robed elder also attacked again, this time with three black chains, wrapping around Han Mu from three directions.

Han Mu gritted his teeth, preparing to deplete his Dao Seed's essence in a desperate attempt, when the communication jade slip in his robes suddenly vibrated. It was a message from Han Li, containing only one short sentence: "Three thousand miles northeast of the Chaos Sea, there is a spacetime turbulence. Come immediately!"

Spacetime turbulence?

Han Mu's eyes lit up. The spacetime turbulence was a dangerous place in the Chaos Sea, where space and time were extremely chaotic, and even a Great Luo Golden Immortal could get lost inside. But precisely because of this, it might be a place of life—the people of the Heavenly Court dared not venture in easily, and the spacetime turbulence could interfere with tracking.

"Follow me!" Han Mu shouted, unleashing the Blade of Time with all his might. The silver blade light transformed into a barrier, temporarily blocking the three attacks. He turned and charged towards the northeast, simultaneously activating the Law of Time. Silver light enveloped Liu Ruyan and the other six, carrying them along with him.

"Trying to escape?" The old man in black robes sneered, his black chains following him like a shadow, moving even faster than Han Mu, and instantly wrapping around Han Mu's left leg.

The chains tightened, and Han Mu felt a sharp pain in his left leg, the bones creaking. He swung his sword backhand at the chains, but only left a white mark. These chains were the black-robed elder's natal magic weapon, incredibly tough.

"Senior Han!" Luo Feng exclaimed anxiously, pulling out a purple talisman to stick on the chain.

"Don't use it!" Han Mu shouted. "That's a boundary-breaking talisman; save it to save your life!"

"But you..."

"I have a way." Han Mu took a deep breath, his eyes gleaming with silver light. He no longer suppressed his Dao Seed, allowing the laws of time to operate at full power. Silver light surged from his body, condensing into a phantom image of a long, illusory river behind him.

A fleeting image in the river of time!

The black-robed elder's expression changed drastically: "A projection of the River of Time? Impossible! You're only at the early stage of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm, how could you possibly summon a projection of the River of Time?!"

The River of Time is the ultimate manifestation of the Law of Time. Only by cultivating the Law of Time to perfection can one summon a projection. Han Mu is only at the early stage of the Great Luo Realm, and his Law of Time is only at the Great Completion stage, so theoretically it should be impossible for him to summon one.

But Han Mu did indeed accomplish it. It wasn't that he summoned it himself; it was the Time Dao Seed that automatically protected its master when threatened. The Time Dao Ancestor's will remaining within the Dao Seed was activated at the critical moment of life and death, manifesting as a projection of the River of Time.

Although it was just a phantom, its power was less than one ten-thousandth of the true river of time, but it was enough.

The illusory flow of the river of time caused the black chains binding Han Mu's legs to shatter inch by inch. The old man in black robes groaned; his natal magic weapon was destroyed, and he suffered a backlash, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Go!" Han Mu seized the opportunity to rush out, leading everyone to speed towards the northeast. His face was as pale as paper. Summoning the illusory image of the River of Time had consumed a great deal of energy, and the Dao Seed's essence had lost another twenty-four hours. Now, the Dao Seed only had thirty-five hours left to refine. If it continued to be consumed, the Dao Seed might collapse.

"Chase him! He can't hold out much longer!" The black-robed elder wiped away the blood, his eyes blazing with killing intent. The illusory image of the River of Time was indeed terrifying, but with Han Mu's cultivation level, it was absolutely impossible for him to summon it a second time. As long as they caught up, Han Mu would surely die.

The three divine generals were in hot pursuit. Although the black-robed elder was injured, his speed as a mid-stage Great Luo Golden Immortal was still faster than Han Mu's, and the distance between them was constantly closing.

"Senior Han, they're catching up quickly!" Lin Xue glanced back and saw that the three divine generals were less than ten miles away.

Han Mu gritted his teeth and once again activated the Law of Time to accelerate everyone's progress. However, this consumed even more energy, and blood kept spilling from the corner of his mouth as his breath grew weaker and weaker.

"Senior Han, use this!" Luo Feng suddenly pulled out a golden pill and stuffed it into Han Mu's mouth. "This is my ancestral 'Rejuvenation Pill,' which can quickly restore immortal power!"

The pill entered his stomach, transforming into a warm current that flowed throughout his body. Han Mu's depleted immortal energy quickly recovered, and his injuries stabilized somewhat. He glanced at Luo Feng in surprise. Just who was this simpleton? With heaven-rank talismans and immortal pills, his family background was far too rich.

"Thanks," Han Mu said, then quickened his pace even further.

But the old man in black robes was faster, closing the distance to five miles. He raised his hand and struck again, a black palm print coming down, forcing Han Mu to turn and defend. This delay reduced the distance to three miles.

"We can't escape like this," Liu Ruyan said urgently. "Senior Han, you go first, we'll cover your retreat!"

"Stop talking nonsense!" Zhou Meng cursed. "With our cultivation level, we're not even enough to fill their teeth! Senior Han, do you have any more trump cards? Use them already!"

Han Mu smiled bitterly. He had a trump card, but the cost of using it was too great. He couldn't afford to deplete the essence of his Dao Seed, otherwise, if the Dao Seed collapsed, he would be severely injured. He couldn't summon the illusory image of the River of Time a second time either, because the Dao Seed was protecting its master autonomously and was beyond his control.

Do we really have to risk our lives?

Just then, the scene ahead abruptly changed. The previously calm chaotic airflow began to swirl wildly, forming a massive vortex. At the center of the vortex, spacetime was distorted, and bizarre and fantastical phenomena were visible—this was the turbulent flow of spacetime.

"We've arrived!" Han Mu's spirits lifted, and he rushed into the spatial turbulence.

"Stop him!" The black-robed elder's expression changed. The spatial turbulence was fraught with danger, and even he dared not venture deep into it lightly. If Han Mu escaped inside, finding him again would be difficult.

The three divine generals attacked simultaneously, unleashing a barrage of sword strikes and palm prints, sealing off all of Han Mu's escape routes. Han Mu gritted his teeth, preparing to withstand the three blows and charge into the spatial turbulence. However, in his current state, enduring these three attacks would leave him either dead or severely injured.

At this critical moment, a streak of azure sword light slashed out from the spatial turbulence, shattering the sword light, shadows, and palm prints. The sword light, its momentum undiminished, aimed directly at the black-robed elder.

The old man in black robes paled and hurriedly tried to defend himself. With a loud bang, he was sent flying hundreds of feet, a deep sword wound appearing on his chest, revealing the bone.

"Who?!" The old man in black robes was both shocked and furious. The power of this sword strike was no less than his own!

Amidst the turbulent flow of time and space, a figure in a green robe stepped out, wielding a long sword, his aura sharp as a blade. It was Han Li.

"Han Li?" Han Mu was taken aback. He hadn't expected Han Li to be here, and he certainly hadn't expected Han Li to be at the peak of the Golden Immortal realm, and that the power of that sword strike just now was comparable to the early stage of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm.

"Fellow Daoist Han, it's been a long time." Han Li nodded to Han Mu, his gaze sweeping over the three divine generals, his brows furrowing slightly. "Three Grand Luo Immortals, this is a bit troublesome."

"Han Li, what are you doing here?" Han Mu asked.

"It's a long story," Han Li said. "Let's deal with the immediate problem first. There's a safe zone deep within the spacetime turbulence. Follow me."

He turned and rushed into the spatial turbulence. Han Mu followed without hesitation, leading the others. The black-robed elder wanted to give chase, but seeing the distorted spacetime within the turbulence, he hesitated. The spatial turbulence was too dangerous; even a Great Luo Golden Immortal might get lost inside, and Han Li's sword strike earlier had made him wary.

"My lord, shall we pursue them or not?" the sword-wielding general asked.

The old man in black robes had a grim expression. He stared at the spacetime turbulence for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Chase! But be careful, the three of you don't get separated. Spacetime is distorted in the turbulence; if you get separated, it'll be troublesome."

The three rushed into the temporal turbulence. As soon as they entered, they felt dizzy and disoriented, with time and space becoming chaotic. One second it was daytime, the next it was night; one moment they were in the same place, the next they were thousands of miles away.

"Damn it, we've lost them." The old man in black robes looked grim. In the turbulent flow of time and space, divine sense was almost useless, and eyesight was also poor; he could only rely on his senses. But intuition was the most unreliable thing in this godforsaken place.

Meanwhile, Han Mu and the others followed Han Li, winding their way through the spatial turbulence until they arrived at a relatively calm area. This area was free of spatial turbulence, like a safe island, roughly a hundred miles in diameter.

"We're safe for now." Han Li stopped, turned to look at Han Mu, and said, "Fellow Daoist Han, it's been three years, and you've already broken through to the Great Luo realm. I admire you."

"You're almost there too." Han Mu could sense that Han Li was only one step away from becoming a Great Luo Immortal, and his combat strength was no weaker than that of an early-stage Great Luo Immortal. That sword strike just now was proof of that.

"Just luck." Han Li waved his hand and looked at Liu Ruyan and the other six. "Who are these people?"

"My teammate," Han Mu introduced briefly, then asked, "How did you end up in this time-space turbulence? And how did you manage to save us?"

"It wasn't just by chance, I've been waiting for you all along," Han Li said. "I found a spacetime beacon in the Netherworld Abyss, pointing to the spacetime turbulence deep within the Chaos Sea. I followed the beacon and discovered the relics left by the Spacetime Dao Ancestor here. The relics record that the Chaos Dao Venerable will awaken in three years, and the key to stopping him lies deep within the spacetime turbulence."

"So you came here to explore?" Han Mu asked.

"Yes." Han Li nodded, "But my strength is insufficient to go deeper. The records of the ruins state that only a Great Luo Golden Immortal who is proficient in the laws of time can enter the depths. I originally wanted to wait until I broke through to the Great Luo level before coming here, but the Heavenly Court attacked and breached the Netherworld Abyss, so I had to escape here ahead of time."

"Wait a minute." Han Mu frowned. "How did you know I would come to the Chaos Sea?"

Han Li smiled: "I didn't know you would come to the Chaos Sea, but I knew you obtained the Heart of Time and Space. The Heart of Time and Space is the Time Dao Ancestor's natal treasure. Since you obtained it, you would come to the Chaos Sea sooner or later. That's why I set up a sensing array outside the spacetime turbulence. As long as you get close, I can sense it."

Han Mu suddenly realized. So Han Li had been waiting for him all along.

"Then where is the remnant of the Time-Space Dao Ancestor that you mentioned?" Han Mu asked.

"It's right below this safe island," Han Li pointed to his feet, "but the entrance is sealed by a spacetime restriction, requiring the laws of time to open. I sensed you were coming, so I went out to meet you, but I didn't expect to catch you being chased."

Han Mu looked down at his feet. The ground was gray rock, seemingly unremarkable. But by activating the laws of time, he could indeed sense faint spatial fluctuations underground.

"Fellow Daoist Han, time is of the essence," Han Li said solemnly. "The Heavenly Court's people are still outside and could find this place at any moment. We must enter the ruins as soon as possible and find a way to stop the Chaos Dao Venerable from awakening."

Han Mu nodded. He brought up the system panel to check the current status.

Name: Han Mu

True Realm: Early Stage of Great Luo Golden Immortal

Surface Realm: Mid-stage True Immortal

The Law of Time: 15% Success

Spatial Laws: Introduction 12%

Celestial Aura: 20200 points

Fusion degree of Chaotic Spacetime Dao Patterns: 45%

Spacetime beacon control level: 35%

Special Status: Refining the Time Dao Seed (35 hours remaining)

System mission: Proceed to the depths of the Chaos Sea and annihilate the Chaos Daoist (Remaining: 99 years and 363 days)

[Entrance to the Relics of the Time-Space Dao Ancestor has been detected]

[Recommendation: Consume 10000 Celestial Spirit Energy to exchange for temporary access to the "Key of Time and Space"]

[Key to Time and Space: Can open time and space restrictions; duration: one hour]

"Exchange," Han Mu silently murmured to himself.

[Consumes 10000 Immortal Spirit Energy]

[Obtained: Key to Time and Space (Temporary)]

[Remaining Celestial Energy: 10200 points]

A silver key appeared in Han Mu's hand. The key was neither gold nor jade; silver runes flowed on its surface, emanating the aura of the laws of time.

"This is..." Han Li's eyes lit up.

"The Key to Time and Space can open the entrance." Han Mu inserted the key into the ground. The moment the key touched the ground, a bright silver light shone, and a crack appeared in the ground, revealing a downward staircase.

The staircase was bottomless, with silver light shining through its depths.

"Let's go." Han Mu took the lead and walked down the steps. Han Li followed closely behind, and Liu Ruyan and the other six exchanged glances before following as well.

Shortly after they entered, the three old men in black robes found the safe island.

"There's an entrance here!" the sword-wielding general exclaimed.

The old man in black robes walked to the crevice, sensing the aura of the laws of time emanating from it. A fervent glint flashed in his eyes: "The relics of the Time-Space Dao Ancestor... are indeed here. Han Mu went in, so we'll go in too. As long as we obtain the Time-Space Dao Ancestor's inheritance, the Dao Venerable will surely reward us handsomely!"

The three of them also entered the rift. The rift slowly closed, returning to its original state.

On the safety island, only the howling turbulent currents of time and space remain.

But no one noticed that behind a rock at the edge of the safety island, a blurry figure slowly emerged. The figure was shrouded in gray mist, its face obscured, only its eyes coldly fixed on the direction where the crack disappeared.

"The successor of the Time Dao Ancestor... has finally arrived." The gray figure murmured to himself, his figure slowly dissipating as if he had never appeared.