Chapter 2: Survival of the Fittest, the Transcendent Immortal Beneath the Cherry Blossom Tree

"No! Where are you taking A Yin!"

Tang Hao roared below while holding the child, yet he received no response.

Qian Xunji's expression turned ugly; he turned his head to glance at the crippled Tang Hao, let out a cold snort, and left with the personnel of the Spirit Hall.

And on the other side.

A Yin and the youth in white soon walked out from the other end of the bronze gate.

This was a cherry blossom forest where pink petals drifted down like rain, and the air was filled with a faint floral fragrance. However, this beautiful scene faintly exuded an aura of slaughter, as if every petal carried a sharp blade.

A Yin's body trembled slightly; as a Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Beast, her sixth sense had always been strong, and this place clearly... revealed a murderous intent.

She raised her head and looked at the youth in white standing not far away, her eyes full of vigilance and doubt.

"Who are you? Why did you save me?" A Yin's voice was soft, yet carried a trace of firmness.

The youth in white had his back to her, the Jade Flute in his hand turning gently, as if he were admiring the beauty of this cherry blossom forest. He slowly turned around, those deep eyes shimmering with a faint light like stars.

"Me?" He chuckled, his voice like flowing clear springs, carrying a trace of laziness and indifference, "You may call me Transcendent Immortal."

"Transcendent Immortal?" A Yin frowned slightly; she had never heard this name before.

Transcendent Immortal nodded slightly, his gaze landing on A Yin as if he were appraising a precious treasure. There was no greed or malice in his eyes, yet they carried a kind of oppressive force that one could not resist.

"I have been in this world for twelve years," Transcendent Immortal said slowly, his voice calm and distant, "In my past life, I once stepped onto the Immortal Dao and was as famous as Huang. We fought side by side, but in the end, I died and vanished in that great battle, my blood staining the heavens and earth..."

Transcendent Immortal's voice was low and distant, as if he were recalling a long-sealed past. His gaze passed through A Yin, as if he saw that distant past, and a trace of complex emotion flashed in his eyes.

A Yin listened quietly, but her heart was stirred with turbulent waves. Although she did not know who the "Huang" in Transcendent Immortal's words was, she could feel the terror and tragedy of that great battle from his tone.

"Being able to be reborn in this world... perhaps it was his doing..."

Transcendent Immortal's voice gradually calmed down, and his gaze returned to A Yin, "In this life, I am recultivating the Immortal Dao. Relying on the experience of my past life, I have already cultivated an Immortal Qi Embryo. But to truly cultivate the First Immortal Qi, I still need to nourish myself with the essence and blood of all living things."

Upon hearing this, A Yin's heart tightened suddenly. She faintly guessed the reason Transcendent Immortal had saved her, and her face instantly turned pale.

"You... are you doing this for my essence and blood?" A Yin's voice trembled slightly, her eyes full of disbelief.

Transcendent Immortal smiled slightly without denying it. His gaze remained calm, as if he were speaking of the most ordinary matter.

"A Ten-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Grass, with rich life essence and blood, endless and ever-flowing. To me, it is indeed a tempting gift." Transcendent Immortal's voice remained indifferent, as if he were discussing something of no importance.

A Yin's heart sank to the bottom. She had thought Transcendent Immortal saved her out of kindness, but she had not expected that she was merely a "gift" in his eyes. Her body trembled slightly, and a trace of determination flashed in her eyes.

"No, I still have a husband and child; I will not give up just like this!"

A Yin's voice was firm and cold; her body began to emit a faint blue light, and stalks of Blue Silver Grass broke through the soil, winding toward Transcendent Immortal.

However, Transcendent Immortal only shook his head lightly, the Jade Flute in his hand slowly lifting to his lips.

"It is merely natural selection." His voice carried a trace of a faint sigh.

The melodious sound of the flute rang out, and the aura of slaughter in the cherry blossom forest erupted instantly. Countless cherry blossom petals danced like sharp blades, instantly severing A Yin's Blue Silver Grass. A Yin's expression changed abruptly; she felt an irresistible force suppressing her soul power.

"This is... the Immortal Dao?!" A Yin's voice carried a trace of despair.

Transcendent Immortal's figure was shrouded by cherry blossoms, as if he had merged with this world. His flute music became increasingly urgent, and the aura of slaughter in the cherry blossom forest grew more intense. A Yin's body was bound by an invisible force, unable to move a single inch.

"Your life essence and blood will become the key to my cultivation of the First Immortal Qi." Transcendent Immortal's voice echoed in the cherry blossom forest, carrying a trace of faint indifference.

A tear flashed in A Yin's eyes; she knew she was powerless to resist. However, at the very moment she was about to give up, the image of Tang Hao suddenly appeared in her mind, along with their newborn child.

"No... I cannot die!" A strong desire to survive surged in A Yin's heart.

A dazzling blue light erupted from her body, and stalks of Blue Silver Grass broke through the soil once more, attempting to break through the constraints of the Killing Array.

Transcendent Immortal's brows furrowed slightly, seemingly surprised by A Yin's resistance. His flute music changed abruptly, and the aura of slaughter in the cherry blossom forest instantly condensed into a massive sword aura, slashing toward A Yin.

"It is over." Transcendent Immortal's voice was calm and indifferent.

Transcendent Immortal's sword aura descended, and A Yin's body was submerged in the endless aura of slaughter in that instant. Her Blue Silver Grass snapped inch by inch under the sword aura, and her life essence and blood were forcibly extracted, turning into strands of blue light that merged into Transcendent Immortal's body.

A Yin's figure gradually became illusory, finally turning into a weak Blue Silver Grass seedling that lay quietly on the ground. Her aura was extremely weak, as if it could dissipate at any moment, but that trace of tenacious vitality allowed her to barely survive.

Transcendent Immortal looked down at the seedling, a trace of complex expression flashing in his eyes.

He did not strike again, but waved his hand lightly, and the surrounding cherry blossom petals drifted down slowly, gently covering the seedling.

"Since you can still survive, then stay here." Transcendent Immortal's voice remained indifferent, as if all of this had nothing to do with him.

He turned and left, his figure gradually disappearing into the depths of the cherry blossom forest.

In the cherry blossom forest, only the weak Blue Silver Grass seedling remained, swaying gently in the wind.

Transcendent Immortal's figure appeared before an ancient array. In the center of the array, a faint wisp of Immortal Qi swirled, as if waiting for his return.

He sat cross-legged, his hands forming seals, and the Blue Silver Grass essence and blood within his body began to flow slowly, turning into strands of blue light that merged into his meridians. (Not fusion, but absorption as a form of energy)

"The essence and blood of a Ten-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Grass are indeed extraordinary." Transcendent Immortal whispered to himself, a trace of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.

He closed his eyes and began to circulate the Immortal Qi Embryo within his body, refining the Blue Silver Grass essence and blood bit by bit.

Time passed slowly, and Transcendent Immortal's figure was shrouded in a layer of faint blue light. His aura gradually became deep and powerful, as if he had merged with this world.

Six years passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, the array in the cherry blossom forest suddenly erupted with a dazzling light. Transcendent Immortal's figure walked slowly out of the light; his aura was completely different from six years ago, as if he had been reborn.

In his hand, he held a wisp of faint Immortal Qi. That Immortal Qi was like a swimming dragon, winding around his fingertips and emitting endless pressure.

"The First Immortal Energy, finally cultivated." Zhexian's voice carried a trace of faint joy. His gaze passed through the cherry blossom forest, as if he saw a more distant future.

He looked down at the Immortal Qi in his hand, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

"The path of the Immortal Dao has finally taken its first step."

Zhexian's figure slowly disappeared into the cherry blossom forest, leaving only the weak Blue Silver Grass seedling, still swaying gently in the wind.

Over the six years, A Yin's seedling had been growing tenaciously in the cherry blossom forest. Although most of her life essence and blood had been extracted, that trace of tenacious vitality allowed her to gradually recover. Her Blue Silver Grass leaves became a deeper blue, and her roots dug deep into the soil.

She knew she could not fall yet. Her husband Tang Hao, and their child, were still waiting for her.

"Brother Hao, child... I will definitely return to your side." A Yin's voice echoed softly in the cherry blossom forest, carrying a trace of firmness and hope.

Outside the cherry blossom forest, Zhexian's figure had already gone far away.

……

PS: The protagonist Zhexian does not cultivate soul power, only Immortal Energy (he looks down on it).

The setting for Immortal Qi is limited to three strands.

First Immortal Qi: Combat power approaching a Limit Douluo.

Second Immortal Qi: Combat power approaching the God King level.

Third Immortal Qi: Ignite oneself! Extinguish a God King with a single thought!

This book has been written for over a month now, and I have seen many negative reviews, criticisms of the settings, and other such opinions, so I am turning back to explain them in this chapter:

In this book, Zhexian is reincarnated and recultivating; he no longer has his original realm and purely cultivates the three strands of Immortal Energy used to ignite the divine fire as his source of power. Some readers say Immortal Energy is too easy to cultivate, but I want to say that in his past life, he was at least an Immortal King Giant; is his comprehension of Immortal Energy not thorough enough? Furthermore, if one were to cultivate Immortal Energy like in the original work, it would take from Douluo I to Douluo III to cultivate even one strand... There are also readers who say I have nerfed the combat power, but how could I not? You all say Douluo is at the Half-step Blood Moving Realm, so a Douluo fanfiction simply couldn't write Zhexian otherwise.

As for why there are plotlines involving Ning Rongrong, Guyuena, and Qian Renxue in the later chapters, I didn't intend to take any heroines at the start, and what I hinted at writing was a witch; readers left many comments about taking this one or that one, so I tried to lay the groundwork for the plot to push the characters' relationships forward, but given Zhexian's character design, I simply couldn't write much romance, so I ended the conversations hastily.

As for other questions and comment replies, I won't pad the word count.

(End of chapter)