Chapter 208: Constructing the True Immortal Past

Xiao Heng rubbed his eyes, groggily looking around. The chilling aura emanating from his surroundings made him instinctively uncomfortable.

In the distance, five remarkably prominent and strange white pillars stood crookedly, piercing the sky. Xiao Heng looked down and saw that the ground was also made of the same white material.

"Where is this...?" Xiao Heng felt a bit confused. He remembered being on some uninhabited island. Could it be a dream? Xiao Heng instinctively pinched himself hard.

"Ow!" The sharp pain immediately brought Xiao Heng to full awareness.

"It's not a dream?" Xiao Heng immediately grew frightened. He shivered and looked around.

Beyond lay a dark, endless void, filled with an ancient, desolate aura. The ground beneath his feet and the five white pillars in the distance formed a single entity, floating alone in this space.

Suddenly, Xiao Heng felt that this place looked familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before. After observing carefully for a moment, a scene suddenly flashed through his mind. The more he looked, the more the details matched. Xiao Heng was instantly so shocked that he fell to the ground, trembling all over.

"This is... that white jade skeletal hand?" Such a bizarre event was beyond Xiao Heng's comprehension. Fear instantly seized his mind, making him instinctively curl into a ball, like an ostrich, burying his head in his arms.

Yet, as is common with the young, curiosity soon outweighed fear. After a long time, seeing that there was no other movement in the space, Xiao Heng's curiosity gradually overcame his fear. He got up and cautiously began to explore the space.

The metacarpal region where he currently stood was relatively open, so there was no fear of accidentally falling into the endless void. Most of the area consisted of ruins and crumbling walls, suggesting a fierce battle had once taken place, destroying all the structures.

As he walked through the ruins, after a moment, something caught Xiao Heng's attention. A broken longsword was plunged straight into the ground. The blade was covered in dark red bloodstains. Only when Xiao Heng approached did he realize that the longsword had first pierced through a skull before being impaled in the ground.

"Who knows how long this place has existed. This sword has been preserved for so long with barely any damage. It must be an extraordinary treasure, right?" Xiao Heng thought, slowly stepping forward. He gripped the hilt with both hands and pulled with all his might, pulling the sword out.

However, before the elated Xiao Heng could examine his newly acquired treasure, the ground beneath him suddenly shook violently.

"Despicable Myriad Immortals Alliance!" The skull that had been pierced by the longsword suddenly let out a roar and shot into the sky. Xiao Heng was instantly startled again by this sight and fell to the ground. The longsword in his hand clattered to the ground.

It seemed the sound attracted the skull's attention, as a dark beam of light shot out from its hollow eye sockets, striking the sword. "Bang!" The longsword disintegrated into dust in an explosion. At the moment the light beam shot out, Xiao Heng instinctively leaped, narrowly avoiding the blast. Nevertheless, he broke out in a cold sweat.

"Senior, please spare my life! Senior, please spare my life!" Xiao Heng immediately knelt down and kowtowed. He shouted while kowtowing, his eyes fixed on the skull, ready to flee if things took a turn for the worse.

It seemed Xiao Heng's pleas had an effect. The skull's voice turned slightly puzzled: "Hmm? Not the Myriad Immortals Alliance? Where did this little brat come from?"

The skull then flew high into the air and circled around. After a while, it returned to its original spot, saying wistfully, "So much time has passed..."

Seeing that the skull seemed to have no hostile intentions, Xiao Heng breathed a sigh of relief. He tentatively asked, "Senior, where is this place? Can you send me back?"

The skull scoffed, "You're a strange little brat. Since you were able to enter this place, yet you don't know where it is? And you dare ask me?"

Xiao Heng looked innocent. "Senior, I'm not lying. I truly don't know where this is!"

"Hmph!" The skull, full of disbelief, quickly flew closer, circling him many times. It scrutinized him with its dark, hollow eye sockets.

"Hmm? There are no traces of a ritual. How did you get in here?" After a long time, as if discovering something, the skull said with surprise and uncertainty.

"Huh?" Xiao Heng was puzzled by the question. But soon, he reacted, "A hand bone! I have a hand bone that looks exactly like this place!"

"Senior, is this place inside that hand bone?"

"A hand bone?" The skull suddenly understood. "So that's how it is."

"Little brat, you're not from the Xuanhuang Realm, are you?" the skull asked.

"The Xuanhuang Realm? What's that?" Xiao Heng was a little confused.

"Heh heh, it's what's commonly called the Immortal Cultivation World. Little brat, are there any legends of immortal cultivators in the world you came from?"

Xiao Heng's expression was strange. After thinking for a moment, he honestly replied, "To be frank, Senior, the place I originally came from is called the Dali Dynasty. Not long ago, I, along with a few others from my hometown, were brought into the Immortal Cultivation World by a senior immortal cultivator."

"What?" The skull seemed shocked and immediately asked eagerly, "Your main body is currently in the Immortal Cultivation World? Are there any immortal cultivators from the Myriad Immortals Alliance around you?"

Xiao Heng shook his head. "The immortal cultivator who brought us from Dali seemed to have encountered a cultivator from the Myriad Immortals Alliance. He was accused of some 'treason against the realm' crime, and then both sides started fighting. We took the opportunity to escape to a deserted island."

"Although that senior immortal cultivator later found us, he unfortunately perished."

"Hmph, the Myriad Immortals Alliance truly commits countless evils. Merely helping mortals return to the Immortal Cultivation World, and they label it as 'treason against the realm'! It's a case of fabricating charges to incriminate someone!" The skull said with extreme anger and disdain.

"Little brat, remember this: never let any cultivator from the Myriad Immortals Alliance discover that white jade hand bone on you."

"Otherwise, your life will be in grave danger!" the skull warned.

"How could that be?" Xiao Heng's eyes widened.

"This involves a great being and the feud with the Myriad Immortals Alliance," the skull sighed, then recounted a past event to Xiao Heng.

A very long time ago, a True Immortal descended upon the Xuanhuang Realm. He was benevolent and virtuous, caring deeply for all living beings in the world. Knowing the difficulty of cultivation and the hardships of immortal cultivation, he tirelessly taught the principles of cultivation to immortal cultivators across the land. Many cultivators benefited from his grace, and their strength advanced by leaps and bounds. The Immortal Cultivation World consequently experienced a period of extreme prosperity and flourishing.

However, when the True Immortal's time in the lower realm reached its limit and he was about to return to the Immortal Realm, he was jointly attacked by a group of cultivators. This group had profound cultivation and feared no death. They even shattered the passage connecting the Immortal Realm and the Xuanhuang Realm, leaving the True Immortal nowhere to escape. Under relentless, successive attrition, the True Immortal's injuries grew increasingly severe. Ultimately, he perished in the Xuanhuang Realm.

Although the True Immortal died, his obsession remained. Before perishing, he took one last look at the Xuanhuang Realm. He remembered every scene and object in the world. Subsequently, the True Immortal's persistent obsession lingered for a thousand years, evolving into a vast world of consciousness: the Immortal Ruins Realm. And the group of cultivators who attacked the True Immortal back then was the original Myriad Immortals Alliance.

The story contained too much information, and it took Xiao Heng a long time to digest it.

"Senior, why did the Myriad Immortals Alliance attack the True Immortal?" Xiao Heng asked.

"Why? Naturally, for the sake of 'profit'! The True Immortal came from the Upper Realm, possessing countless immortal techniques and artifacts."

"Even acquiring just one of them would be a great fortune."

"For instance, the Heavenly Profound Mirror, which is now the foundation of the Myriad Immortals Alliance, was one of the immortal artifacts the True Immortal carried with him back then."

"It possesses boundless wondrous uses," the skull explained, its tone filled with resentment towards the Myriad Immortals Alliance. Afterward, it proceeded to describe the profound mysteries of the Heavenly Profound Mirror to Xiao Heng. Xiao Heng, who had never witnessed such a treasure, his eyes shone. He then couldn't help but say indignantly, "The Myriad Immortals Alliance is truly too despicable!"

After a while, Xiao Heng asked again, "Then who are you, Senior? And how did you end up like this?"

The skull remained silent for a long time, seemingly lost in memories. Only then did it slowly say, "Not all immortal cultivators were as deranged as the Myriad Immortals Alliance back then."

"There were also many other cultivators who had received the True Immortal's favor and held immense gratitude and reverence for him."

"Upon hearing the news that the True Immortal was ambushed by the Myriad Immortals Alliance, they were heartbroken and swore to avenge him."

"They spontaneously formed the 'Immortal Restoration Organization' to resist the Myriad Immortals Alliance."

"Unfortunately, the Myriad Immortals Alliance was too powerful, and the Immortal Restoration Organization was far from being able to match them."

"After thousands of years of suppression, the number of Immortal Restoration members dwindled. Now, only I remain barely alive in this world."

The skull's words contained an endless sense of tragedy and heroism. Xiao Heng, with his strong sense of justice, was involuntarily moved, his eyes growing red-rimmed.

"Senior..." He wanted to offer some words of comfort but was cut off by the skull.

"Haha, this old man doesn't need pity from a little brat like you!"

"Before, this old man was merely a wisp of consciousness, barely surviving in this Immortal Ruins Realm fissure, with no successors left for Immortal Restoration."

"Unexpectedly, Heaven did not forsake Immortal Restoration, sending you before this old man!" A faint light shot out from the skull's eye sockets, enveloping Xiao Heng.

"You, child, are a rare cultivation prodigy seen only once in a millennium. Joining our Immortal Restoration and taking up the banner against the Myriad Immortals Alliance would be perfect!"

As it spoke, Xiao Heng noticed a storage ring appearing on his hand. At the same time, a flood of information instantly appeared in his mind. Most of it was common knowledge required for cultivation, and it even included a cultivation technique called the "Sea-Stabilizing Divine Sword."

The skull retracted the faint light and slowly said, "I have imparted all the knowledge for early-stage cultivation to you, enough for you to safely cultivate up to the Golden Core stage."

"However, remember this: you must carefully conceal yourself and not expose your identity. The Longevity Celestial Venerable of the Myriad Immortals Alliance has unfathomable cultivation. After thousands of years, his strength is probably no less than that of the True Immortal back then."

Xiao Heng's expression became solemn. But then he awkwardly asked, "Senior, I'm so young and alone. Asking me to go against the Myriad Immortals Alliance... isn't that a bit..."

The skull angrily rebuked, "Foolish! You can recruit people! If you encounter talented companions, you can bring them to join our Immortal Restoration. Our Immortal Restoration has been dormant for thousands of years; now is precisely the time we need fresh blood."

"Just be sure to confirm that they are trustworthy individuals; no spies from the Myriad Immortals Alliance must be allowed to infiltrate."

Xiao Heng was pleasantly surprised upon hearing this. "That's wonderful!"

The skull continued, "I've expended too much energy imparting this knowledge to you. I am about to fall into a deep slumber."

"For a while, the affairs of Immortal Restoration will be left to you."

"If there are new members, you can bring them to the middle finger bone area."

"There, you'll find an altar, an extraordinary treasure of our Immortal Restoration. Through prayer, you can acquire cultivation techniques and items."

"However, the altar possesses sentience and will only respond to reasonable requests. You'll understand the specifics when you use it."

The skull's voice grew weaker and weaker, yet it continued to give instructions and warnings.

"Senior, how long will you sleep before waking?" Xiao Heng asked with concern.

"Heh heh, that's hard to say. I was already dead; I merely survived thanks to a wisp of obsession."

"I might wake up in a year or two, or I might never wake again."

"However, if you're willing, once you gain the ability, you can help me collect Foundation Establishment wonders that precipitate after cultivators die. These items have lost their heavenly and earthly essence, rendering them useless to others, but they would aid my recovery," the skull said slowly.

Xiao Heng nodded repeatedly, committing it to memory.

"Remember one more thing. If you sense that my aura has completely vanished, it means this place has likely been exposed. Immediately destroy the hand bone and never enter here again." The skull cautioned again.

"Alright, that's all." The skull seemed to have grown extremely weak, unable to sustain itself any longer.

"Senior!" Just as the skull was about to fall into a deep slumber, Xiao Heng hesitated for a moment but still asked the question on his mind. "You haven't told me your name yet?"

"...You are not worthy to know my name yet. Once you truly bear the heavy responsibility of Immortal Restoration, you will know."

After saying this, the skull flickered indistinctly and vanished into the darkness.

"Senior? Senior?" Xiao Heng called out a few times, but there was no reply. Sighing regretfully, Xiao Heng looked at the empty area around him, then took out a silver necklace from the storage ring. Following the method taught by the senior, he focused his mind to sense it, and the silver necklace emitted a flash of light.

Then, Xiao Heng's vision went black, and moments later, he was back inside the flying boat on the deserted island. His companions around him were still sound asleep; everything that had just happened felt like a dream. However, the extra ring in his hand and the necklace hanging around his neck reminded Xiao Heng that it was not a dream.

Young Xiao Heng had taken on a heavy burden that was too much for his tender age. Mentally and physically exhausted, he soon fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, he woke up earlier than everyone else. He went alone to the seaside, recalled the cultivation technique taught by the senior skull, closed his eyes to sense the surrounding spiritual energy, and quietly began to cultivate.

After half a day, Ye Feipeng, who had woken up and couldn't find Xiao Heng, noticed the spiritual energy fluctuations by the sea and walked over. He looked at Xiao Heng, who was meditating with his eyes closed, and at first didn't notice anything unusual. As he drew closer, Xiao Heng suddenly opened his eyes, and a faint blue, faintly formed water sword suddenly appeared. It hovered protectively in front of Xiao Heng, its blade pointed directly at Ye Feipeng, poised to launch a fatal attack.

Ye Feipeng immediately looked as if he had seen a ghost, stumbling and falling to the ground. He pointed at Xiao Heng, his body trembling, unable to utter a word for a long time.