Mortal: The Path to Immortality

Deep within the crevice, the battle was drawing to a close.

With a scream, the colossal "Centipede Dragon" met its end as it was strangled by four hundred-refined corpses and a Core Formation cultivator.

However, its frantic last-ditch attack slammed heavily into a refining corpse, smashing the stone tablet next to it to pieces.

As the stone tablet crumbled, the protective light shield covering the ruins also suddenly collapsed.

Just then, the third leader subconsciously looked up and his pupils suddenly contracted.

Above the crevice, where Luo Jin stood, a burst of crimson light suddenly shone, reflecting against the black night sky like a dark red star.

The raging spiritual energy around him poured into his body like rivers flowing into the sea, and the pressure of that spiritual energy surged higher and higher—mid-stage Core Formation... peak mid-stage Core Formation...

To the astonishment of the third leader, Luo Jin broke through the barrier without any hindrance and leaped into the late stage of Core Formation.

"Late stage of Core Formation!?" The third leader was stunned at first, then his face lit up with joy.

In his view, if the Fu family could recruit a late-stage Core Formation cultivator, they would gain considerable influence in the Yuanwu Kingdom.

Lu Nanzhu, hiding in the shadows, felt a chill in his heart. As Luo Jin's cultivation level above gradually increased, his chances of survival were also decreasing.

He instinctively placed his hand on his storage bag, where his trump card was located; he had to prepare for the worst.

Luo Jin slowly descended from mid-air and landed on the altar, holding a freshly refined crimson corpse pill in his hand.

The third leader hurriedly went to greet him, his tone full of obsequiousness:

"Fellow Daoist Cheng, you've kept this from me for so long! It turns out you possess such a secret technique and have already reached the late stage of Core Formation. It seems that forming the Nascent Soul and living for a thousand years is just around the corner."

He glanced at the ancient teleportation array ruins behind Luo Jin. "Now that the trouble here has been resolved, fellow Daoist, shouldn't we quickly activate the array so we can go together to seek that great opportunity?"

As he spoke, the third leader habitually used his divine sense to scan the area where Lu Nanzhu and the other man had previously hidden, only to be surprised to find that the two had long since disappeared from that place.

Before he could even react, Luo Jin's cold, deep voice rang out beside him:

"An ancient teleportation array? An opportunity?"

"Yes, yes. Fellow Daoist Cheng, we had an agreement beforehand..." The Third Master nodded repeatedly.

"Fellow Daoist Fu, I believe... you are my greatest opportunity." Luo Jin turned his head, a sinister and playful smile playing on his lips.

"How about you bestow your cultivation upon me... to help me advance further?"

The third leader's smile froze on his face, and a chill ran down his spine.

He stopped abruptly, created a distance, and shouted sharply:

"Fellow Daoist, what do you mean by this! As an elder of the Fu family, do you wish to be an enemy of the Fu family?"

"My Fu family has the backing of the Demon Flame Sect. Even if you are at the late Core Formation stage, you are no match for us!"

Luo Jin seemed to have heard a joke and let out a cold laugh.

"The Demon Flame Sect?" He examined the bright red corpse pill before him, then popped it into his mouth and swallowed it.

"I don't even consider the demonic path of Tiannan a threat."

"You...you're not a cultivator from Tiannan!? Who exactly are you?" The third leader asked, while secretly gathering magical power in his sleeve.

After a moment of silence, Luo Jin waved his hand, and dozens of threads made of spiritual energy shot out.

The third leader was waiting for the other party's reply and also looking for an opportunity to escape, but unexpectedly, the other party launched the first attack.

He flung out his golden sword and dozens of valuable mid-level talismans, then turned and transformed into a streak of light to escape.

However, before he could escape very far, he was pierced by dozens of extremely fast spiritual threads, which pierced into the acupoints on his back.

The three refined corpses seemed to have received an order and also rushed to the Third Master's side.

Although these corpse-refining cultivators only had the cultivation level of the late Foundation Establishment stage, they managed to entangle the Third Master with the help of the spiritual energy threads that had already pierced the enemy's acupoints.

Just as he was about to cast a spell to deal with these corpse puppets, he felt that the spiritual energy circulating in his meridians seemed to gradually dissipate, and the power of his moves was greatly reduced.

Meanwhile, the corpse puppets that manipulate the threads of spiritual energy are absorbing this dissipated spiritual power.

Just as he was about to continue his counterattack, a purplish-black spiritual needle pierced directly through his Niwan Palace.

Suddenly, the third leader's vision went black, and he slowly knelt down, his soul dissipating.

At this moment, his eyes widened, seemingly filled with resentment. Luo Jin flew to his side, closed his eyes with his hands, and said with a smile:

"I lost a Hundred-Refined Corpse today, so why don't you let Fellow Daoist Fu repay me?"

He then made a hand seal, using a purplish-black mist to surround the third leader's corpse.

Then, he did some calculations with his fingers and looked up at the crack in the ground:

"You can't escape."

......

Above the crevice, Lu Nanzhu was fully activating his escape technique, propelling Xin Ruyin at breakneck speed.

"Judging from the commotion down below, those two are fighting. Hopefully, the third son of the Fu family can hold out for a while," Lu Nanzhu thought to himself.

Seeing Lu Nanzhu struggling, Xin Ruyin, who was clinging to his back, said:

"Senior De, please put Ruyin down quickly. Otherwise, neither of us will be able to escape!"

"I promised Brother Yunxiao that I would bring you back, and I cannot go back on my word. Don't worry, I have my own plans," Lu Nanzhu replied calmly.

Just then, the runes on Lu Nanzhu's forehead began to light up, and he immediately felt dizzy and fell from the air.

Fortunately, the two had escaped the crevice and landed in an open area of ​​ruins.

As if sensing something, Lu Nanzhu looked up and saw a bright red streak of light flying rapidly toward him in the night sky.

He immediately sensed something was wrong and wanted to escape.

However, the light seemed to have eyes, relentlessly pursuing Lu Nanzhu, and no matter how he tried to dodge, it was to no avail.

Left with no other choice, he hurriedly took out the pseudo-talisman "Panlong Armor" and affixed it to the Azure Scale Armor he was wearing. Then he activated the "Water and Wood Spirit Armor" and barely managed to withstand the attack.

Luo Jin landed in front of Lu Nanzhu, followed by four corpse puppets.

He looked at Lu Nanzhu with some curiosity and said:

"He actually withstood my 'Godslayer's Thorn'? Interesting."

Lu Nanzhu clutched his chest; Xin Ruyin behind him had fainted from exhaustion. A wave of helplessness washed over him, and he felt a sense of despair.

"We definitely can't win in a fight, so we can only stall and wait for things to change!"

Having made up his mind, Lu Nanzhu began to speak:

"I know I cannot escape from your grasp, senior. Before I die, I still have some questions. I hope you can answer them. Surely you wouldn't hold a grudge against a 'dead man'?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Luo Jin reached out and Lu Nanzhu was immediately drawn into his hand.

He grabbed Lu Nanzhu by the neck and said viciously:

"Don't try to play tricks on me! You're not in a position to negotiate with me."

However, if you just tell me where the owner of that "tethering rope" is now, perhaps I might take pity on you and reduce your doubts before you die.

He threw the Lucanna candle on the ground and continued:

"When I entered the crevice earlier, I had already scanned it with my divine sense, but I did not find what I was looking for."

Either the place you mentioned doesn't have what I need, or you're just trying to fool me!

After saying that, Luo Jin prepared to give Lu Nanzhu a soul-searching spell.

"Senior, wait! That 'Tethering Rope' was a gift from Senior Xiao of Spirit Beast Mountain." Lu Nanzhu quickly raised his hand to stop him, his survival instincts kicking in, and he had no choice but to tell the truth.

"If you would spare my life, senior, I am willing to lure Elder Xiao to your side and help you achieve your wish."

"Oh? You know what I want?" Luo Jin suddenly became interested.

"This junior did not know that you care so much about the owner of this 'Tethering Rope,' so this person must be very important to you. It must be either someone who has done you a favor or someone who has a grudge against you."

If a senior wishes to repay a debt of gratitude, they only need to use the Fu family's resources to spread the word about the cultivator who has been kind to them.

The senior is searching for this person so secretly, most likely for revenge.

Lu Nanzhu lowered his head and cupped his hands in greeting.

"You're quite clever." Luo Jin nodded thoughtfully.

Lu Nanzhu's forehead was covered in sweat, and he thought to himself:

"You can't say that your cultivation methods and character are completely different from Senior Xiao's, can you? I hope Senior Xiao won't blame me."

"But... how can I trust you? You've repeatedly opposed me and deceived me time and again," Luo Jin retorted.

"Why don't you abandon the darkness and embrace the light, become my disciple, and enter my 'Corpse Netherworld Palace'? I will then place a restriction on your soul."

Lu Nanzhu was startled and lowered his head to hide his sorrowful expression.

"What? You're unwilling?" Luo Jin said somewhat displeased. "In that case, I'll have no choice but to do it myself."

As he spoke, he prepared to use the Soul Searching Technique.

Just at this critical moment, a gentle breeze swept between the two, carrying a faint fragrance.

"bite--"

A clear, ethereal sound, like the tinkling of a jade chime, descended from the horizon.

Looking into the distance, Lu Nanzhu saw tiny, shimmering white lights appear out of nowhere in the night sky.

Those were not stars, but vast expanses of crystal-clear, shimmering white lotus petals.

The petals drifted down, swirling and dancing, gathering Lu Nanzhu and Xin Ruyin together.

Luo Jin looked into the distance and saw a graceful figure slowly falling with the petals. With each step she took, a small white lotus bloomed and vanished at her feet.

The woman was dressed in a moon-white gown, her long hair casually tied up with a single jade hairpin, a few strands of hair fluttering in the wind, making her face appear as if meticulously painted or sculpted from jade.

Luo Jin recognized the man and said with a smile:

"You've finally arrived."