Perfect World: Dream of the Immortal Era

The moment he sat down, the altar reacted. The once dormant patterns and grooves on its surface, untouched for countless ages, began to light up, radiating a mysterious energy.

This energy acted like a medium, isolating the grand cosmos outside and creating an environment beyond the ancient realm, designed to weaken the power of the ancient seeds.

Additionally, indestructible chants swirled in the void, resembling a lullaby that cooled the profound laws of the universe, lulling the ancient seeds into a stupor, almost to the brink of slumber.

Gu Wu Di listened intently; these chants were specifically crafted to target the ancient seeds, having little effect on him.

He could feel that the celestial seed within his lower dantian was affected; even when he called out to it with his mind, there was no response.

This led Gu Wu Di to think of the myriad methods the foreign domain used to sever the connection between hosts and their ancient seeds, significantly reducing the host’s strength.

Yet, this was not exclusive to those from the foreign domain; such spells had been created long ago, during the era of the King of Ten Thousand Tribulations or even earlier epochs, to influence the seeds of the path.

In response, methods to counteract such spells naturally emerged, as is the nature of the world of cultivators—nothing is absolute.

At this moment, with the celestial seed's power minimized, it was the perfect time for Gu Wu Di to subdue it.

He didn't rashly proceed, instead opting to open his storage artifact first—this was given to him by his father Wang Gen, crafted from the bones of an immortal-level void beast.

While not as powerful as the one held by "the Divine," its internal space was still vast, a small chaotic world containing numerous great medicinal herbs and celestial pills.

Previously, during his trials, an inexplicable force prevented him from accessing it, but now that he had completed the trials, he should no longer be restricted.

Indeed, Gu Wu Di managed to open the storage artifact smoothly; it had long since been refined by Wang Gen into a symbol, engraved on his finger bone.

He extended his divine sense into the storage artifact, retrieving several bottles of celestial pills, each capable of reviving the dead and healing the broken body.

Every pill was crafted primarily from the fruits of longevity medicine, possessing otherworldly effects that could ensure a cultivator's survival.

What Gu Wu Di was about to attempt would deplete a tremendous amount of life force, and these celestial pills would undoubtedly be of great use.

Once prepared, he began, enduring excruciating pain as he forcefully extracted the celestial seed from his own lower dantian's flesh and blood.

Since Gu Wu Di had already reached the great perfection stage of the Rooting Realm, the celestial seed had sprouted endless roots, deeply embedded within his flesh, making them troublesome to remove as they clung stubbornly to his tissue and bone.

A terrifying sensation of being torn apart struck him, causing Gu Wu Di to draw a sharp breath, yet he resolutely endured the pain, relentlessly pulling the celestial seed out by the root.

With the sound of tearing reverberating, the celestial seed was finally extracted, its countless tiny roots swaying gently, adorned with axioms of the great path, all while stained with copious amounts of bright red blood and fragments of flesh.

The intense pain made Gu Wu Di's entire body tremble, his complexion turned pale, and his overall aura plummeted significantly, rendering him listless and feeble.

His primordial spirit, too, suffered severe damage, losing its once brilliant radiance, becoming dim and unstable.

It must be noted that for practitioners within the path of seed cultivation, the seed equates to life itself.

Losing or rupturing the seed spells disaster—at best, leaving one crippled, at worst, leading to death.

Now, Gu Wu Di’s violent removal of the deeply rooted celestial seed from within himself was akin to tearing out his own heart and destroying his own path.

The more alarming issue was that the intense turmoil awakened the drowsy celestial seed.

It was not a living creature but an entity formed by the distillation of universal rules, presenting itself as a seed. Influenced by external environments, these perfect ancient seeds had birthed a faint consciousness, selecting hosts by specific rules and excluding other ancient seeds. Yet, this was the extent of their capabilities.

Even the Demonic Fire, which evolved alongside the King of Ten Thousand Tribulations, never developed full consciousness—this was the limitation of such seeds.

Therefore, the celestial seed did not comprehend Gu Wu Di's intentions. Numerous tendrils wriggled, spreading towards its original rooting place, attempting to reunify with its host.

However, Gu Wu Di intercepted this move. With an impassive face, he swung his grand halberd, severing countless tendrils in one strike.

Due to the principles of the seed-path system, almost all offensive tactics involve these seeds. Consequently, after severing from the celestial seed, Gu Wu Di's offensive options became more limited, making the Chaos Great Halberd his mainstay.

The celestial seed buzzed and trembled, hovering in place, its nebulous awareness unable to comprehend why its host would attack something in a symbiotic partnership.

Ignoring this, Gu Wu Di nonchalantly extracted the cork from an antiquated medicine bottle and shook out a mysterious rune-covered elixir.

Severed from the celestial seed, his vitality visibly declined, his life flame wavering, threatening to extinguish at any moment.

Cultivating is akin to building a skyscraper; the seed is the foundation, and cultivation levels are the floors.

Removing the seed equates to stripping away the foundation, leading the entire skyscraper to collapse into debris.

Gu Wu Di was now in such a state, his painstakingly cultivated prowess utterly lost.

His complexion turned ashen, void of any blood, yet without hesitation, he tossed the elixir into his mouth and swallowed it.

The pill took effect instantly.

An immense medicinal force surged through his body, permeating every corner, not only restoring the chaos left by removing the seed but also steadying his flickering life flame and his bleak, potentially vanishing primal spirit.

Feeling rejuvenated, Gu Wu Di regained his composure, developing the confidence to confront the celestial seed directly.

He abruptly opened his eyes, shooting out a piercing gaze, aiming directly at the celestial seed, conveying his intent to subjugate it, compelling it to yield to him.

At this moment, even with its hazy consciousness, the celestial seed expressed a strong defiance.

The symbiotic bond was its threshold; submission to any being was inconceivable.

Thus, history reenacted itself, with the ancient seed growing rebellious and standing opposed to its former symbiotic host.

However, this did not signify a severance of the bond between it and Gu Wu Di. Having once merged and journeyed through the seed and rooting realms, the bond was not something easily severed forcibly.

Gu Wu Di had no choice but to take action against the Celestial Seed.

He stood up, grasping the Chaos Great Halberd with both hands. With his entire being pulsing with energy and vigor, he let out a loud shout and swung down fiercely.

“Clang!”

Sparks flew as the blade met the hard shell of the seed, resembling the collision of two stars.

A tingling sensation spread up his arms, making Gu Wu Di's expression turn serious.

This was indeed the renowned and perfect ancient seed, rivaling the Primal Chaos Seed. Its mere shell alone was as strong as celestial gold.

To think that from such a hard shell, a sprout must break through in the Dao Origin Realm—it was astonishing.

The Celestial Seed shuddered violently under the heavy impact, with many roots severed by the halberd, cut off on the spot. Instinctively, it began to retaliate, releasing wave after wave of Dao ripples.

The void fell silent as a vast and weighty celestial curtain appeared soundlessly, hovering over Gu Wu Di's head, pressing downwards, crushing everything in its path.

The scene was undoubtedly terrifying, as if the sky itself had fallen.

“Crackling sounds!”

Gu Wu Di's footing was forced down, the skin and flesh of his body crackling from the immense pressure.

He couldn't help but let out a low roar, his entire being teeming with vitality, like a mighty river surging forth, granting him limitless strength.

Thinking this, Gu Wu Di wielded the Chaos Great Halberd with abandon, advancing without retreat, delivering a strike of overwhelming momentum.

Sensing its master's intent, the entire halberd became crystalline and resplendent, erupting with terrifying chaotic light.

Gu Wu Di also keenly perceived the transformation of the halberd. In that moment, it felt as if man and weapon had become one, both in spirit and intent, achieving an unprecedented peak.

“Boom!”

The halberd soared across the sky, chaotic light ravaging like an ancient giant wielding it to create and destroy worlds.

The celestial curtain unleashed by the Celestial Seed suffered an unprecedented blow, instantly being torn apart, split in two, its power dissipating like a deflated balloon.

Seizing the advantage, Gu Wu Di pursued relentlessly, striking the Celestial Seed repeatedly, driving it back, leaving it no place to stand.

During this, another celestial manifestation attempted to counterattack but was ruthlessly cleaved open by Gu Wu Di.

In the later stages, the roots sprouting from the seed were all severed, revealing the core. This was an indescribable entity that appeared for just an instant before being shrouded by celestial mechanisms, leaving only a hazy glimpse.

Gu Wu Di fought more bravely with each battle, pushing the Celestial Seed to a point it could no longer withstand. He then suppressed its hazy consciousness with his powerful will, giving it no chance to recover.

This process was arduous because the consciousness of the Celestial Seed was so obscure, closely aligned with the natural laws of the universe, making its submission no easy feat.

Yet, Gu Wu Di had plenty of time.

No one knows how long passed, but under the dual suppression of strength and consciousness, the Celestial Seed gradually calmed down, its resistance no longer as vigorous.

However, this was not true submission, merely the beginning.

Suddenly, a white flame imbued with sanctity and a trace of otherworldliness drifted quietly to Gu Wu Di's side, hovering silently in the void.

Gu Wu Di recognized this flame. It was a flame held by the King of Ten Thousand Tribulations in past scenes depicted by the Demonic Fire, also a perfect fire seed.

This fire seed was originally prepared by an ancient Immortal King for himself, intending to integrate it after successfully separating the Demonic Fire and embarking on the path of becoming a seed himself.

Unfortunately, he died during the stage of separating the fire seed.

Thus, the fire seed was preserved and placed on an altar, left for future cultivators.

"Heavenly Flame," Gu Wu Di whispered, revealing the source of this white flame.

Like the Demonic Fire, it was a perfect fire seed, with vast potential. Once a cultivator merged with it, reaching the realm of immortality would almost be a certainty.

Now, it belonged to Gu Wu Di, floating there quietly, unmoving.

The emergence of the Heavenly Flame was no accident but intentionally guided by the altar.

Gu Wu Di understood this well. He reached out to draw the perfect fire seed towards him, slowly approaching his lower dantian.

The Heavenly Flame remained quiet, having long since been subdued and sealed by an immense force, allowing him to manipulate it freely. Otherwise, given the nature of a perfect ancient flame, it would have sensed that Gu Wu Di was merging with the Celestial Seed and would have moved away voluntarily, impossible to approach.

As the Heavenly Flame drew near, the once calm Celestial Seed began to tremble slightly, releasing the aura of a perfect ancient seed, seemingly to warn the approaching entity.

Observing this, Gu Wu Di immediately suppressed it again, forcing the Celestial Seed back into tranquility.

However, the proximity of an unknown ancient seed to its established domain was something it found hard to endure.

By the time the Heavenly Flame truly entered into his lower dantian, the Celestial Seed finally erupted. This long-suppressed outburst was akin to a volcanic explosion, ferociously intense.

Anticipating this, Gu Wu Di responded with cold indifference, mercilessly suppressing it.

Following an intense battle, the Celestial Seed was defeated, unable to commune with the vast world. It lost the immense natural advantage of a perfect ancient seed, making it no match for Gu Wu Di.

This time, the blurred consciousness within the ancient seed genuinely displayed an intent to submit.

Regardless of the state of the Heavenly Flame, the Celestial Seed remained unresponsive, hovering quietly before Gu Wu Di's chest, falling into a state of dormancy.

Thus, the symbiotic relationship between the human and the ancient seed was truly severed. Gu Wu Di succeeded.

He let out a long breath of relief. Breaking the symbiosis meant he could commence planting the Dao anew.

This time, what he would plant was no external object, but himself, using his own body as the seed.

In his mind, the series of cultivation techniques pioneered by the King of Ten Thousand Tribulations appeared one by one, offering Gu Wu Di a clear direction for cultivation.

He took one great elixir after another from his storage artifact, consuming them all, transforming into wisps of divine radiance, settling within his blood and cells.

This was a preparation necessary before using oneself as the seed. To embark on this path of cultivation required a massive amount of energy, the more the better. Therefore, consuming enough great elixirs, fully accumulating power, was essential to be prepared for any eventuality.

Once the energy stored within the endless particles of his blood and flesh reached a saturated state, Gu Wu Di stopped.

At this moment, his entire body emitted a crystalline luster, and even casually exhaling a breath released a dense essence.

Reaching this degree allowed him to begin the cultivation of using his own body as the seed. However, a special environment and geographical features were still required.

This was beyond Gu Wu Di's ability to accomplish alone. It wasn't long before the altar beneath his feet began to change.

Centered on the curve where he sat cross-legged, streams of lunar and solar energy surged forth on either side, swiftly filling the entire altar space.

"Rumble!"

The lunar and solar energies collided, grinded against each other, and transformed mutually, creating a chaotic environment near the central curve.

Very soon, Gu Wu Di was enveloped by the energy of chaos.