Perfect World: Dream of the Immortal Era

He was eager to become stronger, but it wasn’t just about pursuing speed.

Speed without power would be meaningless.

Typically, the stronger the being, the greater their ability and likelihood to transcend their limits.

To prove himself as the Immortal King, he needed to take each step earnestly.

In the Qi Consumption Stage, he devoured divine sources, filling every particle and reservoir within him to the brim. In the Blood Boiling Stage, he activated the supreme potential within the Immortal King’s bloodline, utilizing the powers of the True Dragon and True Phoenix Immortal King blood, branding it into a heavenly map on his back.

During the Sunrise Swallowing Stage, he consumed a perfect strand of innate sunrise light from the Sunrise Abyss—the Swallowing Light, refining it completely into his flesh with exceptional terrain and the source of immortality, reaching the state of perfection.

He had advanced very steadily and even perfectly through the initial stages.

Heng Jin now felt his own strength, having easily subdued the young heir of the Heaven Devouring Empire.

For the upcoming organ refining, and even spirit solidifying stages, he hoped to leave no flaws.

Only then could he gain the admiration of powerful beings from different realms and step by step reach his ultimate goal.

The rapid rise of champions from other realms was largely due to their discovery of the Source of Immortality from various ancient secret lands, but even that wasn’t the fastest.

By comparison, thick dark matter would lead to even more rapid ascension than the Source of Immortality.

Heng Jin's body had suffered from the ancient Origin Curse, leaving dark marks no Immortal King could remove.

In conventional cultivation, this would be detrimental, potentially costing Heng Jin the chance to prove himself as an Immortal King.

However, if he embraced the darkness, these dark marks and his experiences would become his greatest advantages.

Once chosen as a dark seed and gaining the dark true blood, or even becoming the Heaven’s chosen seed, he could evolve indefinitely, advancing towards becoming a leader among dark beings.

This path would significantly shorten the evolution timeline.

Following the conventional path, even with the aid of the Source of Immortality, would still require lengthy years to reach supremacy and become an immortal; proving himself as an Immortal King would be even more challenging, taking at least eons.

By the time he slowly proved himself, his father, Wang Gen, might have already perished in battle, and the foreign armies would have breached the ancient primal realm, laying waste to everything, leaving nothing but ruin.

"Heng Jin, what are you thinking?" Gu Mo's voice pulled Heng Jin back from his wandering thoughts.

"Sir Gu Mo," the young one spoke, "I wonder, once this journey concludes and we return to the War God Academy, will there be an opportunity to meet someone from the Luo Clan?"

"Haha, it is bound to happen. You defeated Qing Wu of the Swallowing Sky Emperor Clan in just a hundred moves above the Cloud Abyss. Such a feat will quickly spread across the ancient realms, causing a great sensation among all clans."

"You must understand, to ordinary beings, the Emperor Clans are unmatched. Once an heir appears, no matter how illustrious this era's prodigies are, they are destined to be swept aside. This has always been the case throughout history, deeply rooted in people's hearts."

"Now, as a human, you've emerged to suppress an emperor-level prodigy of the same rank. This naturally causes a stir. Even the reclusive Luo Clan will notice you, and may invite you to their ancestral lands to practice with them, treating you on par with the emperor-level prodigies."

"At that point, the War God Academy will no longer be able to accommodate you. You will need a broader and grander stage." Gu Mo sighed as he concluded.

"Heng Jin is the supreme prodigy we discovered and nurtured at the War God Academy, but eventually, we must send him to the Luo Clan."

"There's no choice; the temple is too small to contain such a character. To be his guardian and to experience such an extraordinary journey with him is already a fortune."

"No matter where I go or how much I achieve, I will never forget your assistance and guidance, Lord Gu Mo," Heng Jin responded, understanding the undertone in Gu Mo's words.

"Haha, as long as you remember that, it's enough. Perhaps one day our roles will reverse," Gu Mo smiled in reply.

They then set forth, traversing vast territories towards where the Five Elements Dao Furnace was located.

"Speaking of which, the condition to use the Five Elements Dao Furnace should be trivial for you. All you need to do is defeat the Dao Embodiment set by the Immortal King, or withstand its attack for fifteen minutes," Gu Mo whispered, believing such a feat should be within Heng Jin's power.

"Sir Gu Mo, could this Dao Embodiment be related to the Immortal King?" Heng Jin asked cautiously.

"Indeed, you guessed right. That Dao Embodiment is forged from Five-Colored Dao Gold, with power that can vary based on the challenger’s prowess."

"According to those who have challenged it, the fighting prowess of this Dao Embodiment surpasses even the emperor-level prodigies of the same rank. Many young emperor-tier prodigies only managed to succeed by enduring for fifteen minutes. No one has ever defeated the Dao Embodiment to pass the trial."

"After all, the Dao body is incredibly tough, with a Dao Gold body that's practically undefeatable."

Hearing Gu Mo's description, Heng Jin felt reassured, confident in his own abilities.

It's important to know that his greatest strength was not in his Dao power, but in his physical body. He had survived the Origin Blood Curse and had his body tempered by the blood of an Immortal King multiple times, leaving it indestructible and unwavering."

This journey to the Five Elements Dao Furnace was a perfect opportunity to test whether this body's fortitude could rival that of the Five-Colored Dao Gold.

The so-called Five-Colored Dao Gold is essentially the Five Elements Immortal Gold, merely differently named due to the fact that "immortal" is not valued on this side of the realm, but rather seen as a heresy. Hence, what the Immortal and Primal Ancient Realms call Five Elements Immortal Gold, is referred to as Five-Colored Dao Gold here.

Gu Mo's escape speed was formidable. Although it wasn't as magical as the Immortal King, who could traverse worlds with a single step, it was beyond the imagination of ordinary mortals.

The endless mountains and rivers vanished into the distance, light rains streaming past like time flowing in reverse.

It didn't take long before the two arrived at their destination.

This was a vast and desolate land, with towering peaks, sprawling deserts, expansive wetlands, and ancient towering trees...

From afar, various terrains were discernable.

"The Five Elements Path is thick here, with metal, wood, water, fire, and earth each manifesting distinct landscapes. The Five Elements Dao Furnace lies in the depths of these terrains. We've reached the dwelling place of the Immortal King, so we must walk from here to show our respect," Gu Mo reminded, cautioning Heng Jin not to offend the owner of this land.

To anger an Immortal King would render even their connection to the War God Academy and the eminent Luo family useless. The Immortal King could obliterate them with a mere thought.

"Understood," Heng Jin acknowledged.

Hearing this, Gu Mo nodded, leading the way with Heng Jin closely following.

According to Gu Mo, forbidden areas were abundant in this region governed by the Immortal King. A single misstep into one could result in even the Immortal King being unable to save them.

Thus, Heng Jin stayed very close, stepping only where Gu Mo had marked the path, fearing an incorrect step.

He was aware that this was due to the watchful gaze of the Immortal King falling upon him.

"Junior Gu Mo from the War God Academy, greeting the Ancient Patriarch of the Five Elements. I wish to bring the academy disciple, Heng Jin, to borrow the Five Elements Dao Furnace for body refining and purification," Gu Mo respectfully bowed towards the depths.

"A human?"

A voice echoed from the deeper realms of the Immortal King's abode, ancient and weathered, carrying with it the weight of a long history.

Despite its timelessness, the voice bore endless indifference, devoid of emotion.

"Indeed, I am human," Heng Jin's presence did not falter despite the tone from the Patriarch of the Five Elements.

Gu Mo felt a pang of anxiety.

Never before had a heroic human ventured here. Could there be some hidden prejudice from the Ancient Patriarch towards humans?

Heng Jin, behind him, found it hard to maintain his composure, realizing the gravity of being a legitimate bloodline of Wang Gen.

Although Wang Gen had repeatedly refined and concealed it, he had warned that if an Immortal King sought answers, compressing his bloodline could expose his hidden heritage, leading to his doom.

Since arriving in this foreign realm, Heng Jin had never once met the Immortal King face to face. The strongest beings he had encountered so far were merely immortals. His tricks could easily fool them, but when it came to the Immortal King, that was an entirely different story.

Nevertheless, now that he was here, he might as well find peace in the situation. Heng Jin quickly calmed the disturbances in his heart, regaining his tranquil composure.

From the day he arrived in the otherworld, he had prepared himself for the possibility of being discovered at any moment, leaving him with no final resting place. There was nothing to fear.

As for the immortal Gu Mo, he was not so composed, a hint of anxiety plaguing his heart.

Heng Jin was the hope for the rise of the War God Academy. With him around, dominating other academies would not be a problem. Even if he were to join the Luo clan in the future, he would still bear the radiant glory of the War God Academy, indelibly marked by its valor. Such a prodigy must not fall due to some arbitrary taboo of the Ancient Patriarch of the Five Elements. He could never explain that to the War God Academy or the Luo clan.

“Ancient Patriarch...” Gu Mo was about to speak when the cold voice from the depths interrupted him.

“It has been a long time since I last saw a human. The last encounter was three epochs ago, during a conflict between our world and the Immortal Domain. I personally subdued an Immortal King from the human race.” The Immortal King's voice was languid, as if reminiscing about the era of unending conflict.

Gu Mo felt a twinge in his heart. Subduing a human Immortal King was ancient history, but the fact that he brought it up now suggested there might be deeper meaning.

“Heh, little one, there's no need to be nervous, I mean no harm.”

Sensing Gu Mo's tension, the Five Elements Immortal King chuckled lightly, easing the slightly stiff atmosphere.

“Humans truly are a peculiar and unique race, innately possessing bodies that are close to the form of the Great Dao. Initially, they are weak, but their potential for growth is extraordinary. In vast domains like the Primal Ancient Realm and the Immortal Domain, there is no shortage of human Immortal Kings.

I have never seen a race quite like them.” He sighed.

Then, his gaze turned toward Heng Jin, and he uttered a sentence that left Gu Mo utterly stunned.

“Heng Jin, is it?”

“Senior Heng Jin greets the Immortal King.”

“Hmm, would you be willing to become my disciple?”

With these words, both Gu Mo and Heng Jin froze, for the Immortal King's words were too abrupt. A Dao-gold attuned Immortal King, with no family, no descendants, and never having taken a disciple, was unexpectedly expressing the intent to accept Heng Jin as a disciple.

Under normal circumstances, a small cultivator in the Swallowed Mist Realm would eagerly accept such an offer from an Immortal King. However, Heng Jin was at a loss for words, as he was currently under the tutelage of the War God Academy.

The higher-ups at the academy had been generous to him. To directly switch allegiance to the Five Elements Immortal King seemed slightly inappropriate.

To the side, Gu Mo felt a chill run down his spine, cold sweat trickling down his back.

An Immortal King desires to take Heng Jin as a disciple. How should he subtly inform him that Heng Jin is favored by the Supreme Luo family?

Before leaving on this journey, there had been no response from the Luo family to the news about Heng Jin. However, after the famed battle at Xiayuan, Heng Jin's legendary reputation was certain to spread throughout the ancient realm, and the Luo family inevitably would value him. Perhaps, Lord Luo Mo might already have intentions of taking him as a disciple.

If the Five Elements Ancient Patriarch were to intercept halfway, the Luo family would definitely blame him.

Yet, he also couldn't speak rashly and offend an Immortal King.

In this moment, Gu Mo felt as if he was caught between a rock and a hard place, enduring great turmoil.

“What? Are you unwilling for me to take a disciple?” The voice of the Five Elements Immortal King turned icy.

If it hadn't been for a sudden impulse upon seeing Heng Jin's extraordinary talent and qualifications to prove himself as an Immortal King, he wouldn't have considered taking a disciple, yearning to create an epic tale of master and disciple both achieving immortality.

“Senior, it's not that Heng Jin is unwilling, but he cannot. The Ancient Patriarch Luo Mo has long set his heart on him.”

After speaking, Gu Mo made a gesture, causing the unparalleled heroic aura within Heng Jin to radiate outward.

“Luo Mo!”

A cold voice arose as the Five Elements Immortal King recognized the source of this brilliance—it was the revered gift from the supreme Immortal King Luo Mo.

“What does a mere glow prove? It was just acquired from passing through the Tower of the War God.

A mere Immortal dares to use clever words to deceive an Immortal King?”

The terrifying aura of the Immortal King surged, making Gu Mo feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave, trembling all over.

For an Immortal King to wish to annihilate someone like him, just a thought would suffice.

“Please, calm your anger, Ancient Patriarch of the Five Elements.”

Gu Mo quickly spoke up, bowing deeply towards the depths of the land.

“Hmph.”

A cold snort reverberated, making Gu Mo unable to breathe, as if his very soul was about to break free from this world.

"Fellow Daoist, is there truly a need for this?"

At that moment, a stranger's voice reached him, and in the next instant, Gu Mo felt an overwhelming relief wash over him, as the crushing pressure he was under collapsed suddenly.