Chapter 1245 - Seventh-Level Transcendent Realm

Everyone longed for the Immortal Path, dreaming of setting foot in the celestial realm. Yet the path was harder than climbing to the heavens. The celestial realm itself opened the Immortal Path, a chance so rare that countless cultivators went mad to seize it.

Whether mortal or lofty powerhouse, everyone cultivated with the same ultimate aim: to step into the celestial realm and become immortal. The Heavenly Dragon Sect could not resist so many forces at once; its spiritual array only provided local protection. Even with that safeguard, the rival sects seized the chance to strike a fatal blow. The attack devastated the sect, destroying half of the Book Collection Pavilion and consuming countless precious tomes.

The Ling Qiong Clan did not help; instead, they used the chaos to send their elites into the Celestial Realm. If even one of those elites survived through the ages, that elite could now dominate among immortals.

In his memories, however, Liu Wuxie found no trace of the Ling Qiong Clan. If they ascended, they had to have changed their names and rebuilt their legacy in secret.

That war nearly destroyed the Heavenly Dragon Sect and forced Long Xiao—in deep seclusion in the cosmos—to return at once. Though Long Xiao had stabilized the sect, the dragon clan paid a devastating price.

The sky split, the sun and moon went dark, the mountains and rivers collapsed, and an entire mountain range vanished.

Liu Wuxie heard fury simmer in Elder Long's voice. His heart grew heavy as he asked, "Elder Long, how did Senior Long Xiao fall?"

That war claimed more than a million lives; only a fraction of cultivators entered the Celestial Realm. Of those, half came from the Ling Qiong Clan, and they seized the greatest benefits. Liu Wuxie could not fathom how Long Xiao, already an Immortal of the dragon clan, could have perished.

"He died at the hands of Venerable Great Unity and Venerable Great Clarity," Elder Long said coldly, murderous intent in his eyes.

"The Grand Unity Sect!" Liu Wuxie exclaimed.

"That's right," Elder Long said grimly. "Venerable Great Unity founded the Grand Unity Sect. In his youth, he bore grievances with my ancestor. My ancestor created the Heavenly Dragon Sect in opposition to the Grand Unity Sect's growing dominance. Time erased the details of their feud."

"Why didn't Ling Qiong Tian appear?" Liu Wuxie asked, baffled. By all logic, both Ling Qiong Tian and Long Xiao should have stood with the sect.

"Ling Qiong Tian has long ascended to the Celestial Realm. Ling Qiong Tian sent their elites to the Celestial Realm to look for their ancestor," Elder Long replied. Ling Qiong Tian was no longer in the Heavenly Dragon Sect at that time. At the time of the ancient war, he had already ascended to the celestial realm hundreds of thousands of years ago.

The two founders had made a pact: Ling Qiong Tian would ascend first to claim territory in the celestial realm while Long Xiao stayed behind to guard the Heavenly Dragon Sect. Without an immortal present, rival powers could easily have devoured the sect.

"If that's the case, why do I see no traces of the Ling Qiong Clan now?" Liu Wuxie asked. He had asked Elder Ding before, but even Ding knew little. The only certainty was that the Ling Qiong Clan had once existed; no one could say where they went.

"Back then, my ancestor risked his life to repel the Grand Unity Sect and other experts. What the Ling Qiong Clan had done enraged him; he decreed they must withdraw from sect affairs and hide only in the shadows. A year after the ancient war, my ancestor succumbed to his wounds," Elder Long explained.

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

The Immortal Path remained open for three days and nights, and the war raged without pause; corpses piled across the Dragon Expanse Mountain Range.

After Long Xiao passed, they placed his body in this palace to nourish the Heavenly Dragon Sect. His remains formed the dragon vein beneath the sect, and the dragon aura that Liu Wuxie had absorbed came from him.

The dragon clan forged treasures, the Heavenly Dragon Seal and the Dragon Clan Scepter, but the ancient war swallowed them along with the True Martial Continent.

With this, Liu Wuxie finally understood—the Ling Qiong Clan had not vanished but retreated into the shadows, no longer interfering in sect affairs. Now, after so many years, they showed signs of stirring again. With Long Xiao gone and the dragon clan weakened, they naturally sought to reclaim power.

"Wuxie, you now belong to the dragon clan's faction. I will pass to you the cultivation method of the True Dragon Physique and the dragon clan's secret art, the Dragon-Grasping Hand," Elder Long said. He knew only these two techniques well.

"Elder Long, that feels inappropriate," Liu Wuxie replied. He yearned for the True Dragon Physique's method but did not want to accept it under these circumstances.

"Do not feel burdened. Since my ancestor had chosen you, he must have had his reasons for doing so. Open your mind and allow me to imprint the techniques into your soul sea," Elder Long said, not allowing Liu Wuxie to refuse. This was why he had given Liu Wuxie the dragon's blood.

Previously, Elder Long hesitated because Liu Wuxie was an outsider. Now that the ancestor had acknowledged him, Elder Long no longer held back; he eagerly pushed Liu Wuxie to master these two techniques and let them shine again in the Astral Domain.

Liu Wuxie opened his mind. Elder Long formed seals and imprinted the techniques directly into the youth's soul sea.

When the golden imprint dissolved within him, it became the complete cultivation method for the True Dragon Physique and the Dragon-Grasping Hand. Both techniques radiated profound power and rivaled the Nine Heavenly Dragon Forms.

"Stay here and cultivate for a few days. With the token, you can enter freely. I will go to the sect master to ask about the Dragon Origin Herb and to report the matter of the True Martial Continent," Elder Long said, then turned toward the palace gate.

This place lay close to the dragon vein, the perfect environment for Liu Wuxie to cultivate the True Dragon Physique.

"Many thanks, Elder Long!" Liu Wuxie bowed deeply. With Elder Long's support, he finally had a chance to reach the sect's upper echelons.

"Cultivate diligently. In the end, you must rely on yourself," Elder Long reminded him. The War Dragon Institute suffered public humiliation—Elder Yu Zhengyang knelt and called Liu Wuxie "grandfather." That incident sent shockwaves through the institute.

Elder Long naturally meant well in advising Liu Wuxie not to leave for the time being. Within the palace, no one could intrude on his focus; he could cultivate undisturbed and depart only after raising his strength.

"Thank you for the warning," Liu Wuxie said as he saw Elder Long off. Anxiety still tugged at him. If he returned now, trouble would follow: thieves for his dragon's blood and Wisdom Stones, and prying eyes eager to uncover his secret of reading over one hundred thousand books in three days. Any of those would provoke greed.

As the gate closed, silence settled over the hall; Liu Wuxie stood alone.

"Let's aim for the eighth-level Transcendent Realm," he murmured. The pinnacle of the Transcendent Realm might be out of reach for now, but the eighth level was attainable. He lacked nothing; he still had millions of astral stones from the auction.

First, he would cultivate the True Dragon Physique, using dragon aura to push toward the seventh-level Transcendent Realm. Then he would absorb dragon's blood to break into the eighth.

He sat cross-legged and began cultivating the True Dragon Physique. At once, his body awoke and ravenously drew in the surrounding dragon aura. The influx made his bones crackle, like hammers striking steel to temper it.

His tendons stretched taut; the brutal method was as effective as it was immediate. He felt his physique strengthen at a breathtaking pace; the density of his tendons doubled, and this was only the beginning.

As he continued, his meridians shifted toward those of a dragon. He sensed that once the True Dragon Physique reached a certain height, he could truly transform into a dragon. The dragon form he had conjured before had been only a manifestation of true essence; his body had not yet attained draconic greatness.

With this technique, he believed he would one day transform fully and soar across the skies.

After leaving the palace, Elder Long headed for the lesser realm. About fifteen minutes later, the realm opened, and he vanished inside.

Time slipped by. For two days, Liu Wuxie cultivated; crackling sounds rolled from deep within as the True Dragon Physique bore fruit and power fed back into him.

He murmured, "I can now try to make a breakthrough!"

With sufficient accumulation, he could attempt the seventh-level Transcendent Realm.

He circulated the Desolate Devouring Art, and the very air grew restless. The dragon vein deep underground released torrents of dragon aura into the hall; his momentum climbed until he pressed against a limit.

A massive vortex spun above his head as the art roared, collapsing space around him.

"Break!" Liu Wuxie shouted. Had he attempted this in his courtyard, the upheaval would have alarmed countless people; Yu Zhengyang's men would never have let him cultivate in peace. Without contribution points, he could not reach cultivation chambers, and peaceful cultivation became nearly impossible.

The gateway to the seventh-level Transcendent Realm shattered; a powerful current burst forth and coursed through his limbs.

He realized his physique had undergone a drastic transformation under the True Dragon Physique; he was no longer simply human but something more, like a miniature cosmos.

The Panwu Divine Art's excavation of his potential expanded his inner world. One million astral stones burned away in an instant, liquefying into spiritual energy that poured into his inner desolate world and surged outward in a torrent. The old sensation returned—the feeling of power resting firmly in his grasp.