In the depths of the back mountain behind the great hall of the Myriad Heaven Palace, there had always been a stretch of cave dwellings for those seniors to cultivate in seclusion. Those cave dwellings had seen no one enter or leave for many years, and were long since covered in moss and vines. The moss and vines covered the entrances, making it impossible to tell whether anyone was cultivating inside.

And behind that stretch of cave dwellings, there was an even larger and more secluded cave dwelling.

Within that cave dwelling, the one cultivating in seclusion had always been an old daoist of the Myriad Heaven Palace.

That old daoist had extremely high seniority. Even if Daoist Wuyang were still alive, within the daoist sect, upon meeting this old daoist, he would likely have to respectfully address him as Grand Martial Uncle.

This old daoist was the Martial Uncle of Daoist Sage Fateless, the previous Palace Lord of the Myriad Heaven Palace. Zhu Xia’s master, that deceased old daoist sage, was also a junior of this old daoist.

At present, that old monk of Deercry Monastery was widely regarded as the longest-living cultivator in the world, but if nothing unexpected had happened, then this old daoist was likely the longest-living cultivator within the daoist lineage.

His daoist title was Renewed Peace. After cultivating in seclusion for many years, he had long since ceased to concern himself with worldly affairs. Over these years, whether it was major events in the world or various matters within Myriad Heaven Palace, no one had ever been able to invite him out.

But now, Zhu Xia was inside his cave dwelling.

The cave dwelling was simply arranged. Aside from a large cauldron, there was only a meditation cushion and an old bookshelf. On the shelf were many yellowed books, all rare daoist texts seldom found in the world. It seemed they were frequently read by this old daoist.

At this moment, Zhu Xia was suspended above the large cauldron, her eyes tightly closed. Her wrist had long since been cut open, and blood dripped from her fingertips into the cauldron.

But the dripping was very slow. It took nearly two hours for a single drop to fall.

And the color was not the usual bright red, but rather a kind of crystal-clear liquid.

Like some kind of juice.

At this moment, Zhu Xia also emitted an indescribable fragrance, like medicinal aroma, but seemingly much richer than that of many ordinary herbs.

The Old Daoist Renewed Peace, already old beyond recognition, looked at Zhu Xia suspended in midair. In his eyes, filled with the vicissitudes of life, there was undisguised fervor.

But at the same time, there was also some regret.

The fact that Zhu Xia was a transformed immortal medicine was beyond doubt and needed no further mention. But Zhu Xia had already been in human form for a long time and was actually only one step away from becoming a divine medicine. If he could have lived a few more years, he could have patiently waited until this fruit fully matured. Unfortunately, he was already in decrepit old age, his vitality dried up, and he could see that he had only a few years left to live. That was why he had no choice but to harvest her in advance.

However, even though he was harvesting this fruit early, the old daoist had no intention of devouring her like a common person greedily eating delicacies for the first time. If he truly did that, it would be a complete waste.

So he intended to make use of everything Zhu Xia had, not wasting even the slightest bit. Only in this way could it be considered the greatest respect for a fruit that was about to become a divine medicine.

Only in this way could Zhu Xia’s greatest effect be brought out.

But at this moment, the old daoist who was fully focused on the cauldron also heard the sounds coming from outside. He frowned slightly, thought of something, and said indifferently, “Didn’t expect they still managed to spread the news.”

Although he knew the news had leaked, the old daoist did not feel anger at all, as if it were only a trivial matter.

“For all these years, Mount Xi has been too low-key. It’s made others think that Mount Xi can truly be bullied at will. A mere martial artist, overestimating himself and daring to come up the mountain, truly laughable.”

The old daoist spoke as he leaned forward to look into the large cauldron. Inside, the liquid continued to swirl, emitting a fragrance that one could not refuse.

“Luomin that fellow, really don’t know what he was thinking. He should have been the first to know your identity, yet he forcibly endured it. Even when he was on the verge of death from old age, he never had the slightest intention of touching you.”

Zhu Xia’s master, the late old daoist sage of Myriad Heaven Palace, had the daoist title Luomin. As Zhu Xia’s master, he had actually known her true identity long ago. Yet even so, he never did anything. He simply treated Zhu Xia like his own daughter and taught her. Until the very end, when he was already aged and his blood and qi exhausted, forced to face death, he merely looked at Zhu Xia with affection, without making any move at all.

Logically speaking, even if Zhu Xia had not yet matured to her current state, if the old daoist sage had consumed her, he could at least have lived another ten-plus years.

Ten-plus years of time was not much for cultivators, but for an old man whose life was about to end, let alone ten-plus years, even one or two years right before his eyes, there would likely be no one who could ignore it.

Old Daoist Renewed Peace spoke to himself here, and Zhu Xia, suspended in midair, also slowly awakened. At this moment, Zhu Xia was extremely weak. Although her vitality was draining slowly, at this rate, death was only a matter of time.

She seemed to have no other path left.

Old Daoist Renewed Peace raised his head and looked at Zhu Xia, smiling as he spoke, “It won’t hurt, and it won’t take long either.”

Zhu Xia opened her mouth, wanting to curse him a few times, but at this point, she no longer even had the strength or mood to do so. She only looked at the blood flowing from her wrist, somewhat dazed. No one had ever told her that she was not human, but a fruit.

To be precise, an immortal medicine.

If she had known earlier that she was an immortal medicine, then when her master was about to die, she would have let him eat her. That way, her master could have lived on, and she would not have suffered so much or experienced so many things.

But why had she not known earlier?

Why did it have to be like this?

Zhu Xia could not understand.

Old Daoist Renewed Peace said indifferently, “About another hour more should be enough. Girl, do you have any last words? You have assisted this penniless daoist quite a bit on my path of cultivation. If you have anything you want to say or do, you can tell this penniless daoist. It can also be considered the settling of this karma.”

Zhu Xia looked at the old daoist weakly and asked with a mocking tone, “Really... can it be settled?”

Old Daoist Renewed Peace raised his head and glanced at her, saying calmly, “Although you are a disciple of Mount Xi, in essence you are only a medicinal herb. Since you are not human, there is no karma upon you. Taking medicine and consuming medicine is only natural. There will be no problems.”

Zhu Xia no longer had the strength to argue with him, and only softly said, “If one day he comes, tell him I wanted to eat honey dates from the Divine Capital. But I’ve already eaten them, and I don’t feel any regret.”

Old Daoist Renewed Peace frowned slightly, not quite understanding the meaning of this final message. These young people nowadays, did they all think this way?

But soon he shook his head and said, “The ‘he’ you speak of, is that Lord Warden Commander of Great Liang?”

“He has already come up the mountain. If he can survive afterward, this penniless daoist can let you meet once, to fulfill your wish. However, that young man seems determined not to stop until death. You two might even be able to keep each other company below.”

Hearing the old daoist’s words, Zhu Xia widened her eyes, unable to speak.

Subconsciously, she tried to beg the old daoist not to kill him, but the words reached her lips and still could not come out, because she knew what kind of person he was. He did not need anyone to plead for him. What he decided to do, he would do no matter what, and he would not retreat simply because it could not be done.

Old Daoist Renewed Peace looked at her reaction and grew somewhat curious, “What, you think he can still save you?”

Zhu Xia ignored him, only struggling to lift her head and look outside. If he had appeared, then she could see him first.

“This penniless daoist heard that you like that martial artist, but that martial artist already has someone he likes. If that is the case, why still cling to it?”

Old Daoist Renewed Peace did not understand the meaning. After cultivating for many years, he had long since abandoned desires and purified his mind. Matters of this kind had never been taken to heart.

Zhu Xia did not speak. She simply looked outside the cave dwelling, hoping that before she could no longer hold on, she would see that young figure appear.

......

......

On the mountain path, the battle could no longer be described as intense, it was simply tragic.

Chen Chao’s killing intent surged forth. His dharma idol and those daoist phantoms had long been fighting in utter chaos. At this moment, although he was being besieged by several people, Chen Chao’s momentum was overwhelmingly fierce. An unparalleled martial artist's breadth of spirit was fully revealed here without any doubt.

At the beginning, these daoists believed that within a short period of time, they could kill Chen Chao here. After all, although he was at the end of Nepenthe, facing the joint siege of so many people, he should not have been able to hold on for long.

But very quickly they discovered they were gravely mistaken. Chen Chao’s strength far exceeded their expectations.

Not only had he never fallen into a disadvantage, from the very beginning he had seemed like a god of slaughter, suppressing them as he fought.

These old daoists, though already aged and their blood vitality declining, were still genuine great daoist sages at the end of Nepenthe.

Yet such great daoist sages, in front of Chen Chao, seemed no different from ordinary cultivators.

That young martial artist’s blood vitality surged, reflecting the sky, like an insurmountable mountain, causing all of them to feel fear.

In truth, there was another extremely important reason for this situation, which was that none of these people were willing to expend their full strength or place themselves in the most dangerous position at the front.

They had already lived many years and still wanted to live more. No one was willing to hand over their life here.

Thus, the situation became so difficult.

What they wanted to do was actually very simple: if they could not quickly kill the young martial artist before them, then they would drag him down. No matter how overbearing he was, he was still alone.

As long as time was sufficient, he would eventually exhaust himself to death.

There was no problem with that.

The only question was how long this young martial artist could still hold on.

......

......

Footsteps suddenly sounded within that cluster of stone houses.

The Myriad Heaven Palace Lord and Li Yu exchanged a glance, both becoming somewhat grave.

The commotion from outside had already reached them. They knew Chen Chao had already climbed up the mountain, and someone coming into the prison at this moment was not necessarily a good sign for them.

However, as the footsteps drew closer, their concern gradually faded.

Because the person who appeared before them was a young daoist.

He wore a dark red daoist robe, his bearing refined and otherworldly.