Chapter 769: Supernatural Immortality, Earth Transcendence

“Times are changing rapidly.”

As Xu Zhi walked down the street, taking in the exotic sights of this planet’s civilization, he moved so fast that the surrounding streets blurred into afterimages. A kaleidoscope of bustling activity flooded his mind, and for the first time, he felt an unprecedented sense of reality. These were flesh-and-blood beings, tangible to the touch, humans of a size identical to his own.

Schools, streets, companies – life here seemed no different from life on Earth. In fact, their technological civilization was booming and even more advanced, thanks to the fundamental Ishdar technological theories Xu Zhi had provided.

“What a beautiful galactic civilization,” Xu Zhi murmured, disappearing from where he stood. “Though it had only developed for a few hundred years, undergoing two planetary environmental transformations, it was already like another Earth, complete with its own atmosphere and liquid water.”

However, while most of the air was common nitrogen, the oxygen content was a mere 8%, making it an almost oxygen-free death zone for humans – akin to a super-high altitude plateau combined with a high-radiation area. But it was no longer a vacuum, so it wouldn't tear the body apart. Ordinary Earthlings, equipped with auxiliary oxygen masks and radiation suits, could now live on this planet for extended periods.

“Could Earthlings, theoretically, also live on this planet?” Xu Zhi looked up at the sky, his eyes flickering with an unknown thought.

“You should go back and tidy the room, continue with the housework. You don’t need to follow me,” Xu Zhi told the young housekeeper.

“Understood!” She returned via a teleportation array. After all, Xu Zhi was going to visit the sun next, and her cultivation level was far too low to accompany him.

Xu Zhi soared into the dark expanse of space. Undoubtedly, this galaxy held all of Xu Zhi’s aspirations for his material sandbox, serving as his primary energy source. This was why there were so many large creatures.

“If Medusa’s crystal wall universe, which I previously observed in my study, represented my grand expectations for the spiritual universe, then this realm before me embodies my expectations for the material universe.”

Xu Zhi took a deep breath. “Medusa was developing in the spiritual universe on the other side. Perhaps Phoenix should be placed within this material universe to maintain balance, especially since all the major elemental life forms were descendants born from her four-element plane…” Xu Zhi mused, then reached behind him, pulling out a desk lamp, and gazed toward the distant sun.

“Perhaps the sun would be the ideal place for Phoenix.” This was the conclusion of Xu Zhi’s deliberations. Unlike Medusa, who enthusiastically guided wars and influenced developments within her “bottle” universe, Phoenix preferred not to stir up trouble. The depths of the sun, with its immense energy, perfectly suited her inherent elemental nature, making it the ideal location for secluded cultivation.

“Having reached the end of her previous life and now reincarnating for her second cultivation, she would naturally require enormous energy to break through to the ninth order.” Xu Zhi’s expression was serene. “Phoenix’s path to the Ninth Order wasn’t a shortcut to enlightenment. While others sped past on bicycles, airplanes, or motorcycles, she chose the most primitive method: a slow, painstaking journey on foot.” She chose to integrate cells one by one, slowly.

“This path was the most fundamental and time-consuming, yet it was also likely the strongest route to Ninth Order enlightenment, a method that could be described as: ‘breaking through with sheer power!’ But this was not a path just anyone could undertake. Only an immortal bloodline possessed the vast amount of time required to achieve this without relying on any flashy techniques.”

“Let her gradually refine herself,” Xu Zhi mused. “A straightforward, brute-force approach was the advantage of immortal life, and it should also be the strongest, albeit most arduous, method for Ninth Order enlightenment. Perhaps, in the future, I too would follow her example, eschewing methods like demon cores or nuclear fission, and instead slowly accumulate essence to forcefully break through. After all, my Eighth Order foundation was already consummate, and naturally, my Ninth Order foundation should also reach perfection…”

“It would be excellent to let her try this path!”

With a whoosh, Xu Zhi leaped up, hurtling towards the sun. The most powerful ancient Sun God had already departed, leaving behind a few nascent sun deities, who orbited the sun like Dyson spheres or satellites. From afar, they resembled sunspots.

Thousands of degrees of flames billowed from the sun’s surface. Yet, this wasn’t the most terrifying aspect. What was truly formidable was the endless source of radiation, converging and evolving into a deadly zone for all life.

Xu Zhi gently stepped into the sun’s corona. Golden flames danced around him, as if he were in a golden inferno. The sight was utterly stunning; even Xu Zhi found himself dumbfounded by the raw, majestic power of this natural star. Terrifying solar winds swept through, creating golden flames that tilted and rippled like waves in a field of wheat, a boundless and magnificent spectacle.

“Even someone as powerful as I, an Eighth Order deity with immense combat prowess, might not be able to endure the terrifying heat and radiation deep within the sun! Indeed, no supernatural being governed by existing cosmic physical laws could withstand this…” He looked up. “Life has its limits. Beings that exist under cosmic laws have an upper limit to the heat they can endure, just as their speed of flight cannot exceed the speed of light. This is the universe. These are the rules.”

Xu Zhi stepped into the golden fire clouds, divine flames billowing around him, each strand of his hair burning golden, and a golden light ignited in his eyes. “Perhaps, only a Ninth Order being, capable of bending fundamental laws, could disregard such terrifying cosmic power, twist the speed of light’s inherent limit on themselves, and defy the sun’s temperature. Some truly heaven-defying Ninth Order beings might even be able to ignore black holes, supernova explosions, and other death zones defined by cosmic rules, as laws would no longer apply to them.”

Xu Zhi gazed up at the universe, his face filled with admiration, yet he felt truly humble and pitiably small. “So-called deities, so-called transcendent beings from the First to Eighth Order—all are merely slightly more powerful creatures subject to cosmic laws.” With a soft rumble, Xu Zhi gently tossed something. “To obey the rules is to have limits! Eighth Order deities are the strongest beings constrained by the rules of the cosmic world, whereas the Ninth Order represents great enlightened beings who transcend cosmic laws!”

The reinforced, finely crafted white ceramic desk lamp plunged into the fiery layers. The surrounding flames seemed to transform into an ocean of golden magma, as countless solar particles swept by. It bobbed safely on the surface solar waves, not sinking into the treacherous depths.

“Go forth, on the Ninth Order’s most fundamental path, unyielding and straightforward.” Xu Zhi turned leisurely, then smiled. “Now that these matters are settled, it’s time to work on the bloodline system and unique characteristics of this galactic civilization!”

Indeed. In Xu Zhi’s view, this entire transcendent civilization in the solar system was merely a half-finished product. After all, True Qi and radiation were merely the two essential bloodlines for vacuum-dwelling cosmic beings to survive in the universe. However, they lacked distinctive civilizational traits. At present, their civilization seemed to be a mere copy of those in the Mini-Universe and Reincarnation World – a weakened version, even! Those two vacuum civilizations, based on the two primary bloodlines, each had their unique characteristics: the Mini-Universe featured an entire race whose cells had no threshold for the Ninth Order path, while the Reincarnation World boasted an innate ability for reincarnation…

Because this time, and this time alone, Xu Zhi had not, from the very beginning, evolved any unique transcendent bloodlines into the beings of this universe. “Yes, it was for this very moment that I waited. Now, the true beginning can unfold.”

A serene smile played on his lips as he looked down at the boundless sun, continuously rising. “Humans have limits, but eternal life knows no bounds.” The reason he hadn't immediately created a unique bloodline for them was because the singular bloodline he intended for them was—eternal life. The greatest marvel of life was arguably immortality.

With a whoosh, “While they rush to the moon, I also have my own affairs to attend to.”

With a knowing smile, Xu Zhi tore open space and returned to Earth, finding himself walking down a familiar street, in front of the Capital Cancer Hospital.

“I wonder how many rounds of chemotherapy they’ll endure…”“Our family’s savings…”“It’s alright, my lesions are already very mild.”

Around him, the bustling crowd was a mix of joy and sorrow. All were patients and their families.

“It’s been a long time since I was back here. I received cancer treatment in this very place. By my calculations, only three months have passed, yet it feels like ten thousand years.” Xu Zhi slowly entered the hospital.

“The immortal bloodline will be the inherent talent of Earthlings…” He quietly walked down the hospital corridor, observing the bustling crowd. He mused thoughtfully, “I’ve already made many considerations; their physical size is equivalent, their appearances similar… It’s time for a transmigration.”

What sparks would a young man from 21st-century Earth, possessing an immortal bloodline, bring to that planet? This was precisely what Xu Zhi desired.