Immortality Begins With Internal Breathing

It was deep into the night. The sky was cloudless, and bright moonlight bathed the courtyard in a silvery glow. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves overhead, causing the trees' shadows to sway softly across the ground. Lin Zheyu stood barefoot beneath one of the towering trees, the cool stone beneath his feet. His eyes remained closed as he pushed his senses to their utmost limit, silently contemplating the profound mysteries of Earth Power.

It had been three days since Lin Zheyu returned to Yanwu City. Having just obtained the Shamanic Clan's complete inheritance, he had begun studying its shamanic arts the moment he returned to the Martial Alliance.

For the past three days, he had not stepped outside even once, devoting himself entirely to comprehending the techniques. It had to be said that the Martial Realm possessed not only far denser spiritual qi than the outside world, but even the primordial energy within the earth itself, Earth Power, was vastly richer than beyond its borders. That naturally made Lin Zheyu curious to investigate what kind of energy Earth Power truly was, and what determined its abundance.

Moonlight flowed across the courtyard like water. As time passed, the dappled shadows of the leaves drifted slowly over Lin Zheyu's body. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and let out a quiet sigh, a trace of helplessness surfacing in them.

"What exactly is wrong with the shamanic arts..." Lin Zheyu murmured softly.

After repeated experiments, he discovered that even with the replenishment provided by Earth Power, his cultivation still made virtually no progress. It was as though this world lacked some crucial Great Dao law, making cultivation for a shamanic cultivator unimaginably difficult. It was nothing short of impossible.

"The Body Fusion realm... I even boldly promised Master Qiong Yun that I'd return before his remnant soul faded away. At this rate... that's probably not happening," Lin Zheyu said with a wry smile.

Now that the secret realm had completely closed, even possessing the bone talisman was no longer enough. Unless he reached the Body Fusion realm, he could not enter again. That meant he had no way to rely on the realm's unique environment to cultivate.

I'll have to keep an eye out for other Shamanic Clan secret realms in the future. If that doesn't work, I'll try cultivating in other secret realms instead. Perhaps they'll be like the one Master Qiong Yun created and prove equally beneficial for shamanic cultivators, Lin Zheyu thought.

For now, that was his only option. Although his strength had risen at an astonishing pace over the past few years, reaching the limits of the Golden Core realm and even brushing against the threshold of the Nascent Soul realm, he was still powerless in the face of the problems facing shamanic cultivation.

Even the mighty Shamanic Clan experts who had once stood at the pinnacle of this world had been helpless, forced to watch their clan decline and eventually fade into obscurity. Someone as insignificant as Lin Zheyu, by comparison, stood even less of a chance.

I've been away for so long. It's been ages since I had the delicious food at the Profound Light Tower. I'll see if Bai Lin and the others are around and invite them out to dinner, Lin Zheyu thought.

The moment he returned, he immediately secluded himself without informing anyone, eager to test the shamanic arts for himself. After three days and three nights of nonstop experimentation, Lin Zheyu had to admit that even with the aid of the mysterious Origin Force, the problem remained beyond his ability to solve.

Fellow Bai, I've returned. Are you in Yanwu City? If so, let's meet at the Profound Light Tower.

Fellow Zong...

Fellow Qiu...

Lin Zheyu sent messages one by one to the fellow cultivators he knew well. Cultivating in seclusion day and night without pause was simply too dull and exhausting. Every now and then, it was important to take a break and unwind.

A hearty voice rang out from outside the courtyard. "Haha, I was just talking about you with Fellow Zong this morning. I didn't expect to receive your message that very night!"

A moment later, Qiu Kun strode briskly into Lin Zheyu's courtyard. After ending his seclusion, Lin Zheyu had deactivated the protective formation and opened the courtyard gates to receive visitors.

"Please, have a seat." Lin Zheyu smiled and cupped his hands. "It's been a while, Fellow Qiu. Your aura has grown even stronger. Congratulations."

"Ah, I can't compare to you." Qiu Kun waved his hand dismissively and said, "Let's just enjoy ourselves today and leave cultivation out of the conversation."

After being thoroughly outclassed by Lin Zheyu time and again, Qiu Kun had long since lost the confidence he once carried. Discussing the Dao with a monster like Lin Zheyu certainly yielded tremendous insights and inspiration, but it was also agonizing. Every exchange left him with countless new ideas, while at the same time dealing a heavy blow to his Dao Heart, leaving it noticeably shaken. The guy was seriously freakish.

"Then we'll leave cultivation aside." Lin Zheyu smiled and said, "I've been away for so long that I've started craving the food at the Profound Light Tower. Come on, today's meal is on me."

He paused before asking, "By the way, where's Fellow Zong? Is she in seclusion?"

Qiu Kun had just mentioned seeing Zong Linjing that morning, yet she still had not replied to Lin Zheyu's message.

Qiu Kun sighed helplessly. "You hit her confidence so hard that she's become a completely different person. She's turned into a cultivation fanatic. She was only back for half a day. As soon as she turned in her mission, she immediately accepted another one and rushed off again."

Zong Linjing had never been like this before. She had always been diligent, but never to the point of obsession. It was all Xiao Yu's fault. Faced with a genius like him, the pressure on the rest of them was simply overwhelming.

Speechless, Lin Zheyu simply shook his head and left the courtyard alongside Qiu Kun.

"What about Fellow Bai? Hasn't he returned yet?" Lin Zheyu asked.

"Sigh..." Qiu Kun let out a long breath and said, "Fellow Bai had it rough. He suffered severe injuries and is currently in seclusion recovering. It'll probably take at least half a year before he's fully healed."

Lin Zheyu frowned and asked, "What happened? Given Fellow Bai's strength, there shouldn't be many who could injure him that badly."

Bai Lin had opened two of the three divine repositories. Aside from the spirit divine repository, he had already unlocked both the essence origin divine repository and the essence and qi divine repository. His blood qi and life essence were exceptionally powerful, yet he had still been wounded so severely that he needed at least half a year of secluded recovery. It was clear just how grave his injuries were.

Qiu Kun's expression turned solemn as he said, "It's because of what's been happening at the demon cave. The invasion from the demon realm has been getting worse and worse. More and more powerful yao are emerging from the largest space-time node deep within the demon cave.

"Over a month ago, an extremely terrifying eight-pattern yao escaped from the depths. That thing was comparable to a Deity Transformation realm cultivator! Fellow Bai just had rotten luck. He was caught in the aftermath of a battle between that eight-pattern yao and a Buddhist Arhat."

That had been a clash between experts in the Deity Transformation realm. The energy unleashed had been nothing short of world-shattering. Qiu Kun had witnessed such a battle once from an immense distance, and the memory still haunted him.

Lin Zheyu exclaimed. "An eight-pattern yao! Fellow Bai is incredibly lucky to still be alive."

At first, Lin Zheyu had thought Bai Lin was simply unfortunate. But after learning that he had been caught in the aftermath of a battle between an eight-pattern yao and a Buddhist Arhat, he immediately changed his mind. Surviving the collateral damage from a clash between two Deity Transformation realm experts was nothing short of miraculous. Bai Lin truly had extraordinary luck.

Qiu Kun sighed. "That's right. I heard a seven-pattern yao happened to get in the way and took most of the impact for Fellow Bai. Otherwise... He probably wouldn't have survived."

As they chatted about the major events of recent days, the two made their way to the Profound Light Tower. Lin Zheyu had been completely absorbed in cultivation lately, shutting out everything beyond his training. Only after listening to Qiu Kun did he realize just how dire the current situation had become.

"Make your preparations. Improve your strength as quickly as you can." Qiu Kun drained his cup of wine in one gulp and sighed. "Before long, this entire world is going to descend into chaos."

The great calamity was approaching, and when it arrived, no living being in this world would remain untouched.

"Is it really that serious?" Lin Zheyu asked with a frown.

Qiu Kun shook his head. "It is. Just look at the demon cave. Even with the Buddhist sect's help, an eight-pattern yao comparable to a Deity Transformation realm cultivator still managed to escape. Without the Buddhist sect's assistance, the demon cave would probably have been completely overrun by yao long ago."

Back then, Great Wei had struck a deal with the Buddhist sect, allowing them to spread their faith throughout Great Wei in exchange for helping suppress the demon cave. To immortal cultivators, the power of faith was a higher form of energy, even more precious than spiritual qi or spirit stones. Without it, there was simply no way to resist the erosion of demonic qi. Great Wei had paid an enormous price for that agreement.

"Sigh, didn't we agree to leave all this alone and just enjoy ourselves?" The handsome young man in white sitting beside Qiu Kun sighed helplessly. "You've completely ruined the mood."

The man was Xia Ziliang, a junior of Xia Ping. It was through Xia Ping's introduction that Lin Zheyu had first met him, and the two had since become acquaintances.

"Come on, I was just getting to the most important secret!" Qiu Kun lowered his voice and glanced around cautiously before continuing, "Have you heard? It seems something has gone wrong with the Wei Family's patriarch's cultivation. There's a chance he doesn't have much longer to live!"

The patriarch he referred to was the strongest member of the Wei Family, the imperial clan of Great Wei.

"What? Are you serious?" Lin Zheyu and Xia Ziliang exchanged glances, both visibly shocked.

According to rumor, Great Wei's patriarch was a terrifying expert at the peak of the Void Cavern realm. Cultivators of that level could live for over ten thousand years. Even by the most generous estimate, the patriarch was only six or seven thousand years old, still in the prime of his life.

Qiu Kun quickly hushed them. "Shh, keep your voices down! I only heard it through the grapevine myself."

Talking behind the back of a peak Void Cavern realm expert was extremely dangerous, and Qiu Kun could not help but feel a little guilty.

"No wonder. No wonder the powerful Wei Family was willing to cede the Barbarian Tribes to the Nine Nether Sect. No wonder Great Wei agreed to cooperate with the Buddhist sect and share the power of faith with them," Xia Ziliang murmured.

He exchanged a glance with Lin Zheyu. If that line of reasoning were correct, something might really have happened to Great Wei's patriarch.

"Ahem!" Lin Zheyu gave a couple of dry coughs. A strange sense of foreboding suddenly welled up within him, prompting him to quickly say, "Let's stick to enjoying ourselves. No more talk like this."

Great Wei's patriarch was a peak-Void Cavern-realm expert. Just discussing rumors about someone of that stature had stirred an inexplicable feeling of dread within him. It was truly terrifying.

"Right, right!" Xia Ziliang echoed.