Comprehension Ability: I Forge a Villainous Longevity Family

Chapter 842: Chapter 583: The Price (Part 2)

"I don’t plan to cultivate the 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations anymore," Yimiao said with a smile as she toyed with the white strands hidden in her hair, addressing Chen Zhixing.

Silence.

Distraction.

For a moment, Yimiao saw a flash of killing intent in Chen Zhixing’s eyes, which quickly extinguished without a trace.

"...Why..." At this moment, Chen Zhixing’s voice turned awkward, perhaps due to having not interacted with others for too long.

"There’s no special reason. Maybe I just don’t want to, or I can’t let go."

Yimiao’s hand, playing with her hair, turned a few circles, then she leaned slightly forward, staring seriously at Chen Zhixing’s eyes: "Or perhaps it’s because I don’t want to become like you are now. There’s too much I can’t let go of; I can’t as easily sever and abandon as you do, nor do I wish to just leave behind my Daluo Taoist Lands for the so-called Penglai Immortal Realm or the ambiguous notion of immortality."

Chen Zhixing closed his eyes and said nothing.

Seeing this, Yimiao let out a soft laugh:

"Well, what can I say, I’m just a woman. Even having become a Daluo Taoist Lord, one of the top masters in this world, I still can’t escape some inherent stinginess from my femininity. You can think of it as me being unwilling to part with the Daluo Taoist Lands I’ve accumulated over thousands of years."

"You... indeed think clearly."

Though Chen Zhixing didn’t open his eyes, his speech gradually returned to normal speed. It had only been twenty years since he last conversed normally with others, not hundreds or thousands, so he corrected himself fairly quickly.

"Well, I don’t want to think clearly either, but I’ve found that I really can’t let go. There’s nothing I can do about it."

As she spoke, Yimiao couldn’t help but stretch, and at that moment, she seemed to grow lazy: "I’ll let you in on a secret; don’t tell anyone else—I actually tried cultivating the 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations, but the results weren’t good, at least not suitable for me."

"I guessed as much," Chen Zhixing nodded.

This answer did not surprise Chen Zhixing, because the so-called 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations merely dulls one’s sensitivity to the sense of time, making one ignore the passage of time, but it doesn’t extend a cultivator’s lifespan.

And Yimiao is now close to seven thousand years old.

If she doesn’t pursue a higher realm to supplement her lifespan, she probably has about thirteen hundred years left to live.

Thirteen hundred years.

It sounds a lot, but even with Chen Zhixing’s current progress in the seventh transformation, thirteen hundred years would feel like merely three to four years to him.

What could be done in three to four years?

Yimiao wasn’t willing to squander her hard-earned lifespan like that. She had no confidence in breaking through the Space Taoist Master’s suppression within the Spirit Realm in those thirteen hundred years either, unless she was willing to follow the residual soul far away from this world, embarking on an uncertain return to the Immortal Realm route. Otherwise, aiming to cultivate the 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations under the Space Taoist Master’s suppression would merely squander the time she has left.

Of course, part of Yimiao’s reason was her own:

She couldn’t let go.

On one hand, she couldn’t part with her lifespan; on the other, she couldn’t abandon her identity as part of the Human Race.

No matter how much she repeated her identity as a Daluo Taoist Lord, or how much she disliked the biased nature of the Celestial Saint, ultimately, the Celestial Saint was still Yimiao’s grandmaster, and some of his concepts were passed down to her.

Such as the Human Race.

Cultivating the 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations changes one’s sense of time to something distinct from regular humans; would one still be considered human then?

Even communicating with normal people would require self-restraint. How could Yimiao even call herself human?

"Chen Zhixing."

"Hmm."

"You’re cold and unfeeling now, like a block of wood."

"Oh."

"I suddenly regret taking you to meet that residual soul. The 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations cost me a friend."

"You’re overthinking it."

Chen Zhixing simply shook his head.

...

Half an hour later, Yimiao left Wuyou Immortal Island.

Chen Zhixing also decisively went back into seclusion.

No one knew what exactly was exchanged between the two, both ranking among the top three in the world. In the following fifty years, the only change noticed by cultivators was the strong rise of the Star Monarch Tao and the rapid increase of cultivators practicing the Star Technique.

From Chen Zhixing proving his path as the Star Monarch to the widespread acceptance of the Star Monarch Tao, not even a hundred years had passed.

Within less than a hundred years, the Star Palace had developed to its peak, rivaling the Holy Lands in everything but name. In fact, to some cultivators, the Star Palace had already become the fourth celestial sanctuary in the Celestial Profound.

The popularity of the Star Monarch Tao among cultivators exceeded even what the Five Elements Tao once did.

On average, out of twelve cultivators, one primarily cultivated in the Star Monarch Tao, while two used it as a secondary path!

This staggering figure, occupying a quarter of the Human Race cultivators, made the world realize the intimidating power and benefits of the Star Monarch Tao.

During this century, a third Star Venerable in the Star Monarch Tao achieved longevity, making a huge impression.

Yet, these developments seemed to have nothing to do with Chen Zhixing, the contemporary Star Monarch Taoist Lord.

In fact, because Chen Zhixing rarely interacted with the mundane world, since the beginning of the current age until now, in ninety years, he infrequently engaged with Celestial Profound Realm cultivators. They had almost turned him into a legendary figure or a statue in the Ancestral Hall, akin to the mythical Li Er or Huayu Immortal Venerable and the Immortal Ascension Sacred Lands.

A symbol representing the Star Palace lineage, a name similar to the Five Elements Taoist Lord’s - the Star Monarch Taoist Lord, a name between the world’s peak Star Venerables, yet no longer the Chen Zhixing of Ziwei Chen Family often prefixed with in conversation.

Chen Zhixing accepted all this indifferently.

His cultivation continued to improve.

Fifty years since his last contact with Yimiao, his progress in the Star Monarch Tao had reached the peak of the Eleventh Order. Even when placed in the Spirit Realm, he was considered a top-tier Tao Master.

Regarding the sense of time cultivation in the 36 Celestial Spirits Transformations, due to the lack of spirit beasts in the Celestial Profound Realm that met his expectations, he had only refined from seven spirit beasts to ten. Accordingly, for Chen Zhixing, if he did not consciously control it, three years in the external world would affect him as merely a day.

This enabled him to stay in the core of Wuyou Immortal Island for fifty years.

Cultivation is addictive.

This was a strange thought that emerged in Chen Zhixing’s mind after once again retrieving the Three Thousand Great Dream Spells and returning to his incarnation.

A thought flashed by.

His mind rapidly absorbed and fused numerous concepts regarding the cultures, cultivation systems, myriad laws, and the changes of heaven and earth from another world within days.

Consequently, Chen Zhixing, who had been stuck at the peak of the Eleventh Order, naturally broke through to the Twelfth Order.

"The fleeting beauty of the Mortal World, the ever-changing heavens and earth, the cycle of decay and prosperity of flora and fauna—these are nothing more than fleeting to you or me."

Chen Zhixing, upon reaching the Twelfth Order, felt the Spiritual Qi, Tao Practice, and Power of Laws from heaven and earth swarm towards him, also feeling the destiny inclining towards him at this moment.

Assimilating with him was seamless, like mixing water and milk, without causing the slightest ripple.

At that moment, Chen Zhixing realized he had surpassed the Celestial Saint in cultivation, truly becoming the top in the Celestial Profound Realm.

Excited?

No.

Happy.

No.

He only felt it as a matter of course, even somewhat boring.

Silently leaving the place of seclusion and wandering around the Star Palace, which had completely taken over Wuyou Immortal Island, Chen Zhixing suddenly gave birth to a wild thought.

"This world shouldn’t be so small; cultivation shouldn’t be this tedious."

Again, he felt the urge to leave the Celestial Profound.

He wanted to find the residual soul of the Penglai Immortal Realm, which was still unknown and see the three Immortal Realms at the center of the Boundless Star Sea.

However, this thought only flashed through his mind briefly.

Because the Ziwei Mountain, which had left the world for ninety-three years, was about to return.

"Seven years left."

Sighing, Chen Zhixing turned around and returned to his place of seclusion.

For him now, this world is truly dull.