Eternal Life: I Can Sell Everything

The voice seemed to echo from the void, yet also faintly from the other side of the long river of time and space.

Though fragmented and indistinct, a few key words within it were nevertheless so clear, so utterly soul-shaking.

"Old fiend... The Human Race... will not kneel!"

A long laugh followed, piercing the clouds before instantly fading away, carrying an indescribable mix of carefree abandon and desolate sorrow.

And then, a sound was heard:

AAAAAAH—

A piercing, yet incorporeal, screech rang out.

Song Ciwan’s eardrums throbbed. The Divine Soul in her Sea of Consciousness trembled. She had clearly just achieved Enlightenment, yet at this moment, all the rhythms of the Dao within her were thrown into chaos.

Her body swayed, and amidst the excruciating pain, the Heaven and Earth Scale was triggered.

The Heaven and Earth Scale had been floating beside her all along. The moment she successfully ascended the ninety-nine steps, the surrounding Qi went into a frenzy, boiling and surging madly toward her.

[Human desires: a mortal’s astonishment, fear, and despair. Five jin, six taels. Accepted for trade.]

[Human desires: a Foundation Establishment Stage Immortal Seeker’s shock, terror, and bewilderment. Three jin, nine taels. Accepted for trade.]

[Human desires: a Golden Core Stage Immortal Seeker’s shock, ecstasy, and bewilderment. Five jin, one tael. Accepted for trade.]

[Human desires: a Foundation Establishment Stage Immortal Seeker’s horror, fear, and rage. Three jin, six taels. Accepted for trade.]

[Human desires: a Golden Core Stage Immortal Seeker’s shock, horror, and bewilderment. Two jin, three taels. Accepted for trade.]

...

The notifications were endless, too numerous to describe.

Among them were two masses of Qi that weighed more than five jin.

Combined with the mass Old Jin had contributed earlier, Song Ciwan had received a total of three masses of Qi weighing over five jin this time.

In total, Old Jin had provided two of them.

But he was only a mortal. Of the masses of Qi weighing over five jin, one had come from a Golden Core Stage cultivator.

Song Ciwan would later determine that this mass of Qi had come from the fisherman.

Of course, this was all a later realization. Right now, Song Ciwan certainly had no time to bother with any of it.

Her entire being was consumed by that piercing screech, her head threatening to split from the pain.

An invisible soundwave, originating from an unknown place, slammed into her Heart Soul as if it were a physical force.

AAAAAAH—

The screeching continued its frantic assault, a dizzying, maddening force that felt as if her very Divine Soul was about to shatter.

The Heaven and Earth Scale stirred. Song Ciwan poured her own Essence Qi and Lifespan into it, just as she had back in the Qi Transformation Stage when she used it to intercept the probing of a Divinity Transformation Expert. Now, she intended to use the Heaven and Earth Scale to intercept that invisible soundwave.

But once again, the unexpected happened.

This time, however, it was a pleasant surprise.

Just as Song Ciwan’s Lifespan was rapidly draining away, as the Heaven and Earth Scale’s power surged to confront the invisible soundwave head-on—

The desolate voice from before rang out once more. "You thieving fiend... How dare you... break the pact!"

From within the void, a power intercepted the soundwave.

The two forces collided.

VMMMM—!

A tremor from an unknown source erupted from the endless river of time, from some vast, hazy distance.

In that instant, the world fell silent.

Song Ciwan peered through the void. The Cyan Wood Eye in her left socket spun of its own accord, as if trying to see something, but she could see nothing at all.

Then, a CRACK echoed from within her left eyeball.

The Cyan Wood Eye felt like it was about to shatter!

Startled, Song Ciwan immediately fought to control the Cyan Wood Eye, which felt as if it might leap from its socket.

She clutched her left eye, her heart pounding in her chest.

Just then, the Heaven and Earth Scale flew back to her. On its Balance Plate rested a minuscule, almost nonexistent wisp of Qi: [Devouring from a mysterious existence in the river of time and space. One fen. Accepted for trade.]

’River of time and space, mysterious existence, Devouring?’

It was only one fen, she realized, because the vast majority of the entity’s power had been intercepted by that other great expert of the Human Race.

As for why she was certain the other was a great expert of the Human Race? It was simple. They had declared, "The Human Race will not kneel." They had to be one of her own.

In other words, in that single moment, Song Ciwan had had a very real brush with death!

If that great expert of the Human Race hadn’t blocked the mysterious existence, it was hard to say what kind of fate would have befallen her.

Even with the Heaven and Earth Scale, it was still too taxing for her at her current level to use it to absorb an external Attack. That single attempt had already consumed a thousand years of her Lifespan.

She had only started with a little over three thousand years of Lifespan in total. Now, she was down to just over two thousand. ’What can I even do with that?’

The secrets hidden within this Secret Realm ran far too deep, and ascending the Seeking Immortal Tower was by no means the end of her journey.

Fortunately, she was not fighting alone.

Song Ciwan would never forget that voice, the voice that declared: The Human Race will not kneel!

This thought sparked a new wellspring of strength within Song Ciwan, dispelling her terror and confusion despite her injuries. She straightened her spine, her gaze falling to Old Jin below, still scrambling and crawling his way up on his knees, and then to the Immortal Seekers on the long street in the distance.

Suddenly, the world became clear and calm again.

The trembling of the Seeking Immortal Tower ceased. The piercing, furious screeches vanished. Naturally, the voice that had declared "The Human Race will not kneel" was also gone.

It was as if none of it had ever happened. Only Song Ciwan remained, standing atop the high platform. She suppressed the tempest in her heart and, without rush or delay, cast the Ganlin Spell to heal her injuries.

On the long street in the distance, people were still struggling to process what had happened. Someone whispered to Master He, "What... what was that?"

"Did something happen? Wasn’t it just... that woman really did ascend the Seeking Immortal Tower while standing?"

"She didn’t kneel... So you really can ascend the platform without kneeling?"

"Since she made it up, that proves it. You really don’t have to kneel."

"But... but she wasn’t reverent!"

...

A white cloud drifted past the spire of the Seeking Immortal Tower. Down below in the circular plaza, the fisherman burst out laughing as if waking from a dream.

"Young friend, you’ve ascended the tower! Quick, quick, go see what your Foundation Establishment task is! Go get your Foundation Establishment Pill!"

Song Ciwan hadn’t yet responded, but Old Jin had already quickened his pace.

Using his knees as feet, he scrambled up the remaining dozen or so steps, finally reaching the high platform at the base of the Seeking Immortal Tower.

Propping himself up on his hands, Old Jin struggled to his feet. He wiped the snot from his face, laughing and crying at the same time. "I made it! Hahaha! I finally made it!"

Song Ciwan said nothing. Instead, she took out a Dust-removal Talisman and cleansed her body of all the blood and grime.

Old Jin stood tall, his head held high and his chest puffed out.

He turned to look at Song Ciwan, his gaze wary and cautious, though his face was all smiles. He gave her a cupped-fist salute. "Fellow Daoist, since you’re not in a hurry, I’ll go on ahead!"

Song Ciwan smiled faintly and nodded. "Be my guest."

Old Jin immediately squared his shoulders and strode toward the open main doors of the Seeking Immortal Tower.

It was hard to say just how tall the Seeking Immortal Tower was. The ninety-nine steps they had just climbed only brought them across the high pedestal to the First Layer.

At this moment, all traces of his earlier sorry state had vanished. He strode forward and walked straight through the enormous, open doors.

Song Ciwan followed behind Old Jin, also entering at a leisurely pace.

The great doors did not react, and there were no further obstacles ahead.

One after the other, they both entered smoothly.

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