Chapter 1741 The Mystery of the Immortal Path

It is common for low-level cultivators to compete for spiritual veins.

Although large-scale conflicts are avoided due to the strict laws within the industry, undercurrents of competition and resentment are quietly brewing.

As the gathered spiritual energy was diverted, the growth rate of high-level spiritual plants in the herb garden began to slow down.

Even some special secret realms that rely on spiritual veins for existence have had their stability affected.

"My lord," Bu Yueling said with a worried expression, "after digesting the spoils of the annihilation of the Abyss of Primordial Demons, the core spiritual veins of the Immortal Gourd Realm have been shrinking due to massive consumption over the past century. If this continues, without the injection of new top-tier spiritual veins or fundamental improvement, the spiritual energy concentration in the core area will drop to a level that may affect the daily cultivation of Mahayana cultivators within three hundred years at most, and the cultivation environment for Integration cultivators will deteriorate even more. The path to advancement for lower-level cultivators will become even more difficult."

Zhang Xuan remained silent for a moment, then turned his gaze to the outside of the Imperial Palace, to the magnificent yet somewhat crowded Immortal Gourd Realm.

This is his foundation, and also the path for countless followers, including the Zhang family.

“It seems that eight hundred years of digestion has brought the potential of the Immortal Gourd Realm to its limit.” Zhang Xuan’s voice was calm, but it carried an undeniable determination. “It’s time to find more abundant cultivation resources for my Immortal Gourd Realm.”

His gaze pierced through the boundary membrane, reaching into the deep, boundless depths of the starry sea.

There, perhaps, are undiscovered ancient ruins, a fragmented world in extinction, and new spiritual veins suitable for integration.

“The main forces of the Three Pure Immortal Realms and the Primordial Demon Abyss will never let this go. The next attack will likely be a thunderous force.” Zhang Xuan was clear-headed. “Fortunately, these spoils of war have laid a solid foundation for our take-off.”

The Immortal Path Compass, still slowly being repaired, appeared in his palm. Its pointer trembled slightly, pointing to an ancient coordinate that had just been marked within the Alliance's territory.

"Perhaps, before the storm truly arrives, we should take the initiative to explore what secrets and opportunities are still hidden in our world."

With a flick of his hand, Zhang Xuan produced a star map.

The star map is not fixed, but rather dynamically evolves around the known star regions centered on the Immortal Gourd Realm.

Several of the specially marked spots of light were flashing with varying degrees of brightness.

Those were several vague coordinates calculated based on the memories of the captured demon cultivators from the Primordial Demon Abyss and the intermittent reactions of the Immortal Path Mystery Compass.

His Great Tree, with its two main trunks and thirteen side branches, has fully solidified.

However, at the very top of this magnificent scene, the third main trunk, which should have been the most robust—the true spirit authority of Emperor Jiang—still appeared to be in an illusory state.

It is not that it does not exist; its outline is even more ancient and grand than the other two main branches. However, it lacks the most core Dao source artifact to be injected, which makes it unable to truly solidify.

It cannot form a perfect tripartite balance and continuous cycle with the other two main branches.

This is the final and most crucial obstacle blocking Zhang Xuan's path to becoming a true immortal.

Dijiang is a primordial, sacred spirit born from chaos, possessing an extremely high status.

To solidify its core authority, what is needed is not an ordinary source of Dao, but a supreme treasure containing the true meaning of the creation of chaos.

Such treasures are rare and hard to come by.

The last time Zhang Xuan subdued the Dijiang cub was already a stroke of luck, but the cub itself still needs to grow, and its origin is in a symbiotic state with Zhang Xuan, so it cannot be directly refined as the main source of the Dao.

"For eight hundred years, I have used the power of the Dragon Coffin's Daoist aura and the Immortal Refining Array to deduce the heavens, collect information from all realms, and even analyze the secret texts of the Primordial Demon Abyss and the Three Pure Immortal Realms, but I have still not been able to find any definite clues." Zhang Xuan sighed inwardly.

Those objects mentioned in ancient texts have either long since disappeared into the annals of history or exist in the most dangerous and perilous places in the myriad realms.

Or they are core resources firmly controlled by behemoths such as the Abyss of the Beginning Demon or the Immortal Realm of the Three Pure Ones.

Resource scarcity, cultivation bottlenecks, and the looming threat of conquest from the two great immortal realms...

The triple pressure, like invisible shackles, bound the Immortal Gourd Realm and also weighed heavily on the heart of Zhang Xuan, the Realm Lord.

"We've reached our limit with closed-door intensive training; expanding outwards is imperative. But where should we expand? How can we quickly acquire the key resources needed to break through this impasse?"

Zhang Xuan's gaze returned to the star map, finally settling on those ancient coordinates that the Immortal Path Tracking Compass had repeatedly sensed faintly, yet could not pinpoint precisely due to the compass's damage.

The mystery of the immortal path... The ancient covenant... The relics of fallen immortals...

The information revealed by the Demon Lord before his death, the direction of the compass, and the fragments pieced together from those forbidden books all vaguely point to a shocking secret that may be buried within the Nine Divine Realms.

This secret may be related to an even more ancient legacy, or even the possibility of breaking through the current predicament.

"It's time to have a thorough talk with You Wuyai and Ancestor Tian Shi."

Three days later, a newly opened Three Immortals Pavilion was located in a void interlayer.

Zhang Xuan arrived first, sat quietly in the pavilion, and brewed tea with her delicate hands. Her movements were fluid and graceful, showing no sign of anxiety.

Before long, the air outside the pavilion rippled slightly, and a figure in a blue robe, whose aura was almost one with the surrounding world, appeared silently. It was You Wuyai.

Compared to eight hundred years ago, his aura was more profound and restrained, and the myriad phenomena of the Dao flowed in his eyes. His cultivation as a late-stage True Immortal was as solid as a rock.

Almost simultaneously, gray-black ripples appeared in the void on the other side, carrying an obscure Daoist charm of decay and decay, and the Heavenly Eclipse Ancestor stepped out.

"The summons from Lord Taishan must be for important business." You Wuyai took a seat with an air of nonchalance, accepted the spiritual tea offered by Zhang Xuan, and took a sip.

"Is it because you're worried about the resources of the Immortal Gourd Realm and the Great Dao Tree?" Ancestor Tian Shi asked in a hoarse voice, directly pointing out the problem.

As a True Immortal of Tribulation Power, he is particularly perceptive of concepts such as scarcity, bottlenecks, and crises.

Zhang Xuan nodded and, without hiding anything, clearly conveyed to the two of them the current scarcity of resources in the Immortal Gourd Realm, the stringent conditions required for the solidification of his own Emperor River main trunk, and the ancient coordinates that could not be accurately located, through the sharing of divine thoughts.

"Does Lord Taishan intend to start with the rumors of the Immortal Path to find a way out of this predicament?" You Wuyai put down his teacup, his gaze sharpening.

“Indeed,” Zhang Xuan said in a deep voice, “The fragments of the Demon Remains Venerable’s memories are quite fixated on this, and the compass I obtained also has a vague indication of it. I wonder what the two of you think about this Immortal Path, the Primordial Covenant, and even the possible remnants of fallen immortals?”

You Wuyai pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "Legend has it that in the ancient times, which were even more distant than the Desolate Ancient Era, there was a relatively stable passage that connected to a supreme realm, known as the Immortal Path. Stepping onto it, one could hope to glimpse the true ultimate Dao, transcend the cycle of life and death, and even avoid the Great Tribulation."