Chapter 61: Immortality Is Hard to Obtain

Cultivation residences within Chaos City all possess private meditation chambers, yet to constantly observe the externalized laws of cosmic operation in the Primordial Universe, the vast majority of cultivators in Chaos City usually sit in meditation on the rooftops of their residences to contemplate.

After sending an email to Lu Hongwen and others containing the number of his cultivation residence, Lu Qingshan also quickly ascended the stairs of the residence to reach the rooftop.

The rooftop measures roughly a hundred meters in length and width, and the walls surrounding it are casually carved with patterns of various styles, obviously left behind by previous cultivators who resided in this dwelling.

Because Lu Qingshan specifically chose this residence, which is frequently inhabited by cultivators of the Heavenly Thunder lineage, many of these patterns contain mysteries from the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele.

Most are relatively shallow, and Lu Qingshan can see through them at a glance; only a very few patterns, even with Lu Qingshan's current realm, cannot be seen through, and should have been left behind by some Sealed Marquis Immortals or even Sealed King Immortals!

Lu Qingshan quickly sat cross-legged and looked up at the sky.

In the sky, there are spatial rifts spanning the vast expanse, with complex secret threads constantly flowing within them; everywhere around are externalized laws of cosmic operation, revealing the endless mysteries of cosmic movement.

"I will have to cultivate here for a while again!"

After observing the surrounding environment, Lu Qingshan quickly returned to the main hall on the first floor of the residence.

After ordering the residence service intelligence to pour him a glass of fruit wine, Lu Qingshan sat on a soft sofa, sipping the fine wine while contemplating his cultivation direction for the time being.

"Among the many secret techniques recommended by my teacher previously, besides research-type secret techniques, there are also combat-type secret techniques! As for the 'Soul-Slaying' given to me by Ninth Senior Brother, it is purely a combat-type secret technique!"

Lu Qingshan thought silently in his heart: "Although my willpower is relatively strong now, and if I seriously study soul-attack secret techniques, I can easily improve my strength in a short time, but improving my comprehension of laws is the most fundamental!"

"Moreover, my time in Chaos City this time is limited; it is better to improve my comprehension of laws as much as possible first, and there is no rush to study combat-type secret techniques after leaving Chaos City!"

After briefly considering his cultivation plan for the time being, Lu Qingshan quickly left the cultivation residence and then hurried to the residence of his teacher, Lei Huanwang.

Lei Huanwang has been in deep cultivation within Chaos City recently; now that he has entered Chaos City, he naturally must go to pay his respects as soon as possible!

At this moment, the main gate of Lei Huanwang's residence was open, and occasionally a few cultivators would walk in gently.

Lu Qingshan knew that Lei Huanwang was publicly explaining some mysteries of the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele, and any cultivator who had passed the third layer of the Heavenly Thunder Sky-Ascending Bridge could enter to listen.

The last time Lu Qingshan came to cultivate in Chaos City, it was just like this; he attended many classes here with Lei Huanwang, which indeed provided him with great help.

Beep.

After the detection instrument at the main gate of the residence detected that Lu Qingshan had entry permission, there was absolutely no obstruction.

After Lu Qingshan walked into the residence, he quickly arrived at a huge square tens of kilometers in length and width; at this time, more than a thousand cultivators of the Heavenly Thunder lineage had gathered here, all listening seriously to Lei Huanwang's explanation of the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele.

At this moment, Lei Huanwang was explaining the fourth picture of the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele, so Lu Qingshan simply sat directly in a corner and listened quietly.

Lei Huanwang, who was lecturing ahead, naturally noticed Lu Qingshan, who had appeared in the crowd, but he did not say much; he only showed a slight smile on his face and then continued speaking...

Half a day later!

"Enough!"

Lei Huanwang, who was lecturing, finally stopped; he looked down at the crowd of cultivators below and said calmly: "This lecture ends here!"

"Thank you, Teacher!" The many cultivators gathered in the square all stood up and respectfully bowed.

Although they all addressed Lei Huanwang as Teacher, only a few among them were actually his disciples; usually, they could only come to listen as auditors when Lei Huanwang gave public lectures.

Even so, they felt quite grateful to Lei Huanwang in their hearts!

"Lei Huanwang is truly too powerful!"

A Sealed Marquis Immortal of the Ape Race from the Heavenly Thunder lineage could not help but sigh: "I have already begun to comprehend the sixth picture of the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele, yet when listening to Lei Huanwang explain the fourth picture, I actually gained many new insights!"

"That must be because you have not yet fully comprehended the fourth picture!"

The companion of this Sealed Marquis Immortal also said: "I heard that to fully comprehend the fourth picture, one must comprehend the 108 essences of the Time Origin Law on the first three pictures; however, this is truly too difficult, and even among us Sealed Marquis Immortals, very few can achieve it!"

"No matter how difficult it is, one must strive!" The Sealed Marquis Immortal of the Ape Race could not help but sigh: "I once heard the Ancestor say that to comprehend the sixth picture and enter the King Immortal Realm, one must fully comprehend all essences of the Time Origin Law; otherwise, it is impossible to comprehend the sixth picture at all!"

After Lei Huanwang finished his lecture, the many cultivators in the square discussed among themselves and soon left Lei Huanwang's residence one after another.

At this time, Lu Qingshan also quickly stood up and walked towards Lei Huanwang.

"Junior Brother."

"Junior Brother Qingshan, you have also come to Chaos City."

"Junior Brother Qingshan, how long will you stay in Chaos City this time?"

Seeing Lu Qingshan appear, the dozen or so disciples remaining by Lei Huanwang's side warmly greeted Lu Qingshan.

It has been over half a year since Lu Qingshan took Lei Huanwang as his teacher; due to the existence of the Virtual Universe, they naturally received the news long ago.

Lu Qingshan also very warmly greeted each of these senior brothers and senior sisters one by one!

Most of his dozen or so senior brothers and senior sisters were Sealed Marquis Immortals and High Military Lords; like him, they had paid a considerable price to exchange for time to contemplate the Primordial Universe and then followed Lei Huanwang to cultivate!

Only the Thirteenth Senior Sister had entered the King Sealed Realm and obtained a permanent residence quota within Chaos City!

"Qingshan, come with me." Lei Huanwang directly ordered.

"Yes, Teacher!" Lu Qingshan respectfully replied.

"Senior brothers and senior sisters, I will visit you all later!"

After bidding farewell to the senior brothers and senior sisters nearby, Lu Qingshan quickly followed Lei Huanwang to a quiet chamber.

"Sit and speak!" Lei Huanwang casually sat on a chair.

Lu Qingshan also quickly sat beside Lei Huanwang.

"Disciple, it seems you intend to go contemplate the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele this time you come to Chaos City?" Lei Huanwang asked with a smile.

"Yes!"

Lu Qingshan respectfully answered: "Disciple previously passed the eleventh and twelfth layers of the Heavenly Thunder Sky-Ascending Bridge, obtaining two opportunities to contemplate the Chaos Stele; this time coming to Chaos City is mainly to contemplate the Heavenly Thunder Chaos Stele!"

"Hmm!"

Lei Huanwang nodded and said: "Opportunities to contemplate the Chaos Stele are indeed rare; if you can utilize your two opportunities this time properly, your strength should make considerable progress!"

"Disciple will definitely strive!" Lu Qingshan quickly replied respectfully.

"How long do you plan to contemplate in Chaos City this time?" Lei Huanwang asked again.

"Teacher, Disciple has applied for two hundred years of contemplation time!" Lu Qingshan quickly answered.

"What can two hundred years accomplish?" Lei Huanwang said with considerable dissatisfaction: "Didn't you gain quite a few points by passing the seventeenth island of the Illusion Realm Sea? Why are you so stingy?"

Hearing this, Lu Qingshan immediately replied: "Master, my thousand-year leave has already passed some time, so I can only apply for two hundred years of contemplation!"

Upon hearing Lu Qingshan's explanation, Lei Huanwang's expression softened slightly.

After a moment, Lei Huanwang continued: "Enough. Later, directly apply to extend your contemplation time to two thousand years—I'll handle the rest for you."

Hearing this, Lu Qingshan felt a pang of emotion.

This is the difference between having connections and having none!

When he first broke through into an Immortal Spirit, Carista secured a good posting solely because she was a granddisciple of Lord Heifeng;

And he himself got into the Transport Department only because his disciple Huo Gesi smoothed the way!

Yet now, with a single word from Lei Huanwang, his leave was extended from one thousand years in the Original Universe to two thousand years in the Initial Universe!

That's more than a sixfold difference!

"Yes, Master!" Lu Qingshan quickly nodded in reply.

"Alright, go focus on your cultivation!"

Lei Huanwang waved his hand: "If you encounter any doubts, come to me anytime! I hope that when you leave the Chaos City this time, your strength will have broken through!"

"Your disciple will strive!" Lu Qingshan immediately replied.

……

After leaving Lei Huanwang's mansion, Lu Qingshan adjusted his mindset and soon went to the City Lord's residence to contemplate the Thunder Chaos Stele.

Perhaps due to his deep accumulation, shortly after contemplating the Thunder Chaos Stele this time, Lu Qingshan fully mastered its fourth panel.

Fully mastering the fourth panel didn't grant him a major leap in strength, but it did make his techniques more comprehensive.

Immediately after, Lu Qingshan began contemplating the fifth panel of the Thunder Chaos Stele!

The fifth panel corresponds to the thirteenth through fifteenth levels of the Thunder Ascending Bridge—once fully comprehended, one may become an Immortal Spirit who masters the 'Immortal Body'.

The profundity of the fifth panel far surpassed that of the fourth, but fortunately, Lu Qingshan had long since comprehended the essence of the Time Origin Law, making all mysteries traceable; combined with the precious secret techniques recommended by Lei Huanwang and his occasional private guidance, Lu Qingshan's cultivation speed had indeed accelerated greatly compared to before!

Time passed as Lu Qingshan devoted himself entirely to cultivation within the Chaos City.

He listened to his Master's teachings, attended lectures by other Fengwang Sect Masters, and occasionally sparred with senior brothers and sisters…

……

Three hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

In the Chaos City, on the rooftop of Lu Qingshan's cultivation residence, Lu Hongwen and the other four who had entered the Chaos City with him were bidding him farewell.

Lu Qingshan had applied for each of them a three-hundred-year contemplation period; now that the term had expired, they naturally had to depart on schedule.

It must be said that the Five Great Forces of the Human Race impose extremely strict requirements on their core members!

Shortly after entering the Chaos City, Lu Hongwen and the other four experienced nearly the same circumstances as Lu Qingshan had during his first entry.

Yet after their first contemplation of the Chaos Stele, only the fifth disciple, Mo Lisi, succeeded in joining the Virtual Universe Corporation's core tier, thereby gaining access to the Ascending Bridge dimension.

As for the remaining four—Lu Hongwen and the others—they could only cultivate using the externally manifested laws of cosmic operation in the Initial Universe.

Though this opportunity remained exceedingly rare, it paled greatly compared to the chance to contemplate the Chaos Stele.

Thus, over the past three hundred years, Lu Hongwen and the other three had continuously attempted to apply for inclusion in the Five Great Forces' core tier to gain access to the Ascending Bridge dimension—but had never succeeded.

Now, with three hundred years passed, their Initial Universe contemplation time had been entirely exhausted.

"Father (Master), I'm sorry!"

Standing before Lu Qingshan, Lu Hongwen and the others spoke with deep shame: "We've disappointed you!"

Before entering the Initial Universe, each of them had been ecstatic, nearly all convinced the path to Immortality lay right before their feet.

But only after entering the Chaos City did they realize how cruel reality truly was.

Even Mo Lisi, who had joined the Virtual Universe Corporation's core tier and earned nine opportunities to contemplate the Chaos Stele, still failed to master the complete Lightning Origin Law!

Only now did they understand that the Immortal Spirits who had broken through thanks to Initial Universe contemplation did so not only because of the contemplation slots—but also because their original realms were already high.

For those like them, whose original realms were low, even with an Initial Universe contemplation slot, they could at most accelerate their cultivation speed slightly!

Looking at Lu Hongwen and the others before him, Lu Qingshan felt a pang of disappointment.

In his original plan, at least one or two of Lu Hongwen's five had been expected to master a complete Lower Origin Law after cultivating in the Initial Universe.

At the very least, the third disciple, Blackie, and the fifth disciple, Mo Lisi—both already recognized by the Lightning Origin Law—had a higher chance of success!

But he hadn't expected that Blackie hadn't even joined the Virtual Universe Corporation's core tier, and that Mo Lisi, despite joining, still failed to master the complete Lightning Origin Law after multiple contemplations!

Only now did Lu Qingshan recall when Lei Guang Laozu had told him he sent two outstanding family descendants into the Initial Universe, yet neither broke through into Immortality.

And also the Silver Snow Marquis mentioned in the original novel!

As one of the three hundred Marquises under Lord Elder Gan Wu, the Silver Snow Marquis controlled vast territories and possessed strength at the Marquis level himself.

Yet even so, over countless eons, he had cultivated only fifteen Immortal Spirits—and not one of them was a family descendant!

Thinking of this, Lu Qingshan felt somewhat at peace.

After all, the resources available to the Silver Snow Marquis in the original novel must have far exceeded his own—what he couldn't accomplish, Lu Qingshan couldn't force either!

"It's fine!"

Regaining his composure, Lu Qingshan looked at Lu Hongwen and the others, then waved his hand to comfort them: "Though none of you fully comprehended a complete Lower Origin Law, your strength has still improved significantly!"

"So, after leaving the Initial Universe, you must continue cultivating diligently—don't give up easily. Future opportunities may yet arise!"

"Yes, Father (Master)!" Lu Hongwen and the others quickly replied.

"Alright, prepare yourselves—the shuttle to retrieve you is arriving soon!" Lu Qingshan instructed again.

At that moment, the voice of the AI lifeform Deep Blue suddenly echoed in Lu Qingshan's mind…

"Master, your fifth disciple, Mo Lisi, just transferred 76,732 points to you through internal company channels!"

"This…" Lu Qingshan blinked in surprise, then called out to Mo Lisi, who was about to leave.

"Mo Lisi, what are you doing?" Lu Qingshan waved his hand to return the points, then asked sternly.

Mo Lisi knelt reverently on the ground and said: "Master, you rescued me from the slave traders, took me under your wing, taught me diligently, and even granted me the opportunity to contemplate in the Initial Universe!"

"This disciple had originally intended to use this opportunity to break through into the Immortal realm in one fell swoop, and then continue to follow you, wandering the boundless universe through endless years! It's just a pity that this disciple's talent is limited — even after obtaining such a precious opportunity, in the end I still failed to successfully become an Immortal!"

"According to what you said, Teacher, once I leave this time I'll have to follow the Virtual Universe Company's assignments to complete various tasks. I don't know if there will be a chance in the future to see you again, Teacher!"

"These points were all earned by this disciple previously from challenging the Bridge of Heaven plane, the Illusion Sea plane, and the Immortal Altar plane. It's just that I previously spent some of them purchasing secret techniques, and the remainder is all here now. I hope it can help you, Teacher, go farther and farther along the road of the strong!"

Hearing these words, Lu Qingshan could not help but feel a bit moved!

One had to know that his fifth disciple Aina had just transferred him over seventy thousand points — far exceeding the thirty thousand points he had previously spent to exchange for her a spot!

Although it was true that Aina had only been able to obtain so many points because of him, this itself could not be separated from her own efforts.

Just like Lu Hongwen and the others — although they too had entered the Initial Universe, in the end they failed to obtain the chance to join the core layer of the five great powers!

After being moved, Lu Qingshan again found it a bit amusing: "Aina, you've only been cultivating for just over eight million years — how is it that you speak and act even more world-weary than your Third Senior Brother?"

"This time your master brought all five of you to the Initial Universe, and your harvest is the greatest of all! Keep these points yourself, and do your best to raise your own strength. Your master hopes you can become the second Immortal divine spirit under your master's banner!"

"As for the matter of tasks, you needn't worry either — your master has already arranged everything for you with your Sixth Junior Brother!"

"You are currently a member of the End Times Secret Realm, so you still have considerable room to choose tasks. That's why we pulled strings to arrange for you to go to the Grand Beginning Secret Realm, serving as the guard commander for a genius of the Grand Beginning Secret Realm!"

Hearing Lu Qingshan's words, Aina, who was kneeling prostrate on the ground, felt even more moved. She had not expected that Lu Qingshan had long since secretly arranged everything for her.

One had to know that the Grand Beginning Secret Realm was the second-ranked secret realm within the Virtual Universe Company.

Although she was the guard commander, those geniuses of the Grand Beginning Secret Realm mostly acted alone and had no need of her guards at all.

This way, she could not only enjoy the cultivation environment of the Grand Beginning Secret Realm, but also have enough time to cultivate!

Thinking of this, Aina remained kneeling prostrate on the ground for a long time without rising.

(End of this chapter)