Slime True Immortal

The day Chen Yu had set for the Empire's expansion was drawing near.

However, exploring the Astral Realm was no trivial matter. It involved the screening and mobilization of personnel from different races and professions across the entire Empire. The registration list alone was thick enough to stack a pile of paper.

The slime scholars on the decision council barely managed a full night's sleep during that period.

To prevent ill-intentioned individuals from infiltrating the expedition team, the early recruitment efforts maintained a certain level of secrecy. Every application had to pass at least three rounds of review.

What the Empire needed were explorers genuinely willing to contribute to the cause of expansion—not fugitives trying to escape the Empire's jurisdiction, or speculators hoping to strike it rich in the Astral Realm.

Although Slime City had the capacity to handle the population flow for Astral Realm exploration, having a large number of adventurers and mercenaries gathered in the imperial capital for an extended period would inevitably cause various public order issues.

Moreover, for citizens in certain remote regions, Slime City was too far away. Just the journey would take nearly half a month.

To facilitate future expansion operations and gradually open Astral Realm exploration to all Empire citizens, Chen Yu decided to build a new city on the Oak Territory—the very land where he had first risen to power.

The city was named Triumph City, symbolizing the triumphant return of explorers.

The remaining oak trees within the city planning area were fully preserved. Slime artisans used local materials, building a batch of highly swamp-characteristic oak houses from the centuries-old oaks. Oak branches and vines naturally entwined around the walls, while the roofs were dense clusters of tree crowns shaped by magic.

Since winter had just passed and the oaks hadn't sprouted yet, from a distance they looked like nests woven from withered branches. But one could imagine that when summer arrived, the lush canopy would cover the entire city in a cool, green shade.

This was the principle Chen Yu had been emphasizing: adapting to local conditions.

Winterhold was a city of solid ice standing in the bitter cold. Darkness City was a city of mushrooms in the dark world. And Triumph City should have its unique appearance, woven from oaks and brick-and-stone.

To guard against malicious infiltrators attempting to sabotage, the city's defenses were laid out quite tightly.

Almost every block had a Poison-stinger Wasp hive stationed on the rooftops. The wasp swarms and the ground-patrolling Slime guards took alternating shifts.

Lizardfolk Dragon Cavalry were also permanently stationed above this ancestral land, ensuring that any airborne objects approaching from the sky would be intercepted before entering the city.

This gave Triumph City a strong military character from the moment of its founding.

The two-week construction period was indeed tight.

Aside from the few main buildings and main roads in the city center, large areas were still in a construction site state.

However, the adventurers and mercenaries who had received the exploration decree early on had already gathered from all over the Empire. Some had even arrived several days in advance.

They witnessed firsthand the process of this city rising from a barren swamp.

Afterward, they would boast to anyone in the taverns, just like country bumpkins seeing a big city for the first time, bragging about how they'd seen the Slime artisans build an oak house from foundation to rooftop capping in a single day.

...

On the day of expansion, Triumph City's Triumphal Arch Plaza was packed to capacity.

The plaza was designed to accommodate gatherings of ten thousand people. Standing in the front rows, it was naturally hard to see the massive arched gate at the back.

The plaza was filled with travelers who had come from all over the Empire. There were human mercenaries in thick winter coats, dwarf miners wrapped in fur cloaks, and elven mages mingling calmly in the crowd...

Because there were so many people, the white vapor from their breath coalesced into a misty cloud in the cold morning air.

They were the first batch of pioneers to obtain Astral Realm exploration qualifications. Every face carried anticipation, but no one could say what kind of scenery lay beyond that gate.

They rubbed their hands and stamped their feet, chatted to pass the time, and occasionally glanced at the massive stone gate shrouded in morning mist at the far end of the plaza, waiting for the legendary His Majesty to appear.

Natalis was also among the crowd.

She stood on the left side of the middle section of the plaza, followed by two young half-elves, one male and one female, both of whom had come with her from the southern Leaf of No Distinction collective.

The boy was named Cole, just turned seventeen this year, tall and lean, dressed in leather armor.

The girl was named Millie, three years younger than Cole. Her face was red from the cold, and her eyes darted around, full of curiosity about everything around her.

The two young people hadn't closed their mouths since setting foot on Triumph City's soil.

A squad of Slime guards hopped past them.

These little soldiers were wearing custom light armor, lined up in formation, patrolling back and forth across the plaza to maintain order.

At the end of the line, one little slime fell behind because its steps were too small. It accelerated, slapping and squelching to catch up with its companions ahead.

Natalis couldn't help but reach out and gently flick its head as it passed by.

The little slime stumbled half a step forward, looked back at her with bewildered panic in its small eyes, then quickly turned around and continued slapping and squelching after its squad.

Natalis laughed at its reaction. She was about to say something to Millie behind her when she felt her sleeve lightly tugged.

Millie stood on tiptoe, leaning close to her ear: "Sister Natalis, there are elves over there. Several of them."

Natalis followed her gaze and indeed saw a few figures in silver-gray robes at the front of the crowd.

They stood near the center of the plaza, talking in low voices. The collars of their robes bore the oak leaf crest of the White Horse Kingdom—completely different from the ornate, flowery script crest of the Ancient Tree Council.

She patted Millie's head: "Don't worry. Everyone standing here is an Empire elf. They're not the same as those bad folks from the Ancient Tree Council."

"Besides, His Majesty personally invited us this time. Even if those elves have any thoughts, they wouldn't dare cause trouble on His Majesty's turf."

She wasn't speaking without reason.

After Leaf of No Distinction submitted its exploration application to the Empire, the approval news quickly spread back to the south through the Gel Network.

That night, Orion and Salemir celebrated for her for the first time.

Unfortunately, they were both too busy. Leaf of No Distinction's affairs in the south were expanding too fast for either of them to accompany her north.

In the end, she had to set off on her own, bringing along two young half-elves she'd recently recruited from the south.

She suddenly became the oldest in this three-person team, saddled with the responsibility of looking after two kids. Just thinking about it gave her a headache.

She picked up the gel communicator hanging around her neck, activated the communication function, and called out to the other end.

"Hey, hey, Orion, Salemir, can you see this?"

"It's incredibly lively here. The plaza is packed with people, all sorts of races. There are even a few with horns on their heads—no idea which tribe those ox-heads are from."

"I also spotted an orc earlier, but that guy was hiding in the back of the crowd. He probably knows he's not exactly welcome."

"And there's a sneaky-looking thief over there. Usually, those types in the Shadow Mountains make a living digging up graves, yet here he is in the exploration team. Looks like His Majesty's vetting standards are pretty loose."

She chattered on for a while longer before happily cutting off the communication.

Not long after, a message came back.

It was Orion.

"Stay safe."

"Although the Grand Sage confirmed the safety of that starfield, exploring the Astral Realm has never been an easy task."

"No one knows what they'll encounter in that mysterious place. If something doesn't feel right, don't push yourself. Report it through the communicator immediately."

"Roger that. Salute to the Great Leader." Natalis chuckled into the communicator.

Millie tugged her sleeve again, her voice tinged with excitement: "Sister Natalis, something seems to be floating over there."

"Where?"

Natalis looked in the direction she pointed.

There was no snowfall today, which was rare good weather for Winter Year. But the sky was still gray and overcast, with low-hanging clouds pressing down over Triumph City like a thick, heavy quilt.

She squinted, trying to make out the shadow on the horizon that was growing larger.

Soon, other adventurers in the plaza noticed too.

First, a few people looked up. Then more raised their chins. Finally, the entire plaza fell silent, all eyes converging in one direction.

A metallic shadow tore through the winter fog, slowly sailing in from the western sky above Triumph City.

Its silhouette first appeared in the morning mist. The silver-white metal shell cut sharp lines, reflecting the gray daylight.

When the entire floating fortress burst through the fog layer, gasps rose from the plaza like a tidal wave.

"Oh, my god! What kind of monster is that thing!"

An old man in a faded mage's robe stammered with emotion: "Unparalleled... This is a perfect alchemical creation."

The floating fortress slowly descended, its silver shell forming a thin layer of frost in the cold air.

It hovered above Triumph City, casting its shadow over the entire plaza.

Its cannon barrels were neatly retracted on both sides of the hull. The Arcane rune arrays on the underside slowly circulated, like countless glowing rivers flowing across the metal surface.

Natalis quickly pieced together the origin of this behemoth from the discussions around her.

It was called the Sky Oath. It was a flying slime fortress, said to have participated in that war to wipe out the demons. One shot from its cannons had collapsed half a city gate.

And, just like them, it was about to enter the Astral Realm, serving as the exploration team's aerial fortress and mobile supply point.

She looked up at the metal giant that blotted out half the sky, mentally calculating.

If a fortress was going into the Astral Realm too, just how massive a fissure would need to be created?

As she was thinking, the cheers around her grew louder.

"His Majesty! It's His Majesty! Right there on the fortress!"

Natalis quickly stood on tiptoe, straining to see the fortress's deck.

Behind that silver railing, she saw a pale green figure wearing a golden crown, quietly overlooking the crowd below.

The figure was tiny, almost like an emerald gem adorning the crown against the backdrop of the massive fortress.

But Natalis felt that His Majesty seemed somewhat different compared to a month ago.

He seemed greener and juicier... Pfft, no, I mean, like he was sparkling or something.

But seriously, that gel really did look like gel.

Chen Yu gazed at the bustling crowd in the plaza.

His eyes swept over the upturned faces one by one under the sky.

Dwarves, humans, elves, demi-humans, orcs, half-elves, slimes... Every face held the same anticipation.

This was the first time in the Empire's history that a fully organized pioneer team was being sent to the Astral Realm. They were also the fourth civilization in Zeyarila to take this step.

Before them, only the earliest ancient elven pioneers, the silver dragon mages, and the Dawn mages had done the same.

Little Flower crouched on the railing beside him. A recording gel floated in front of her. After confirming it was ready, she nodded at him.

Chen Yu began to speak.

His voice was not loud, but under the conduction of Divine Sense, it clearly reached the minds of everyone in the plaza.

"Welcome, pioneers gathered from all corners of the Empire."

He paused. There was no deliberate hype in his voice, just a calm and sincere statement of facts.

"Among you, some come from Winterhold in the west, some from the Golden Tassel Plain of the White Horse Kingdom, some from the ports of the Merchant Alliance, some from the Mushroom City in the Dark Realm..."

"The paths you have traveled are different. You speak different languages and worship different deities."

"Not long ago, you belonged to different kingdoms, different lords, different banners. But now, the land beneath your feet and the sky above your heads belong to the same Empire. You all share the identity of Empire citizens."

"Welcome to your arrival, and thank you for everything you have done to explore the Astral Realm for the Empire. The Empire is proud of you."

The plaza was silent for a moment.

Then the crowd erupted.

A hoarse shout rang out from the crowd.

"Long live the Empire!"

Then came a second shout, a third, merging into a wave of sound surging toward every direction of the city.

Chen Yu did not make them wait long.

His Divine Sense gently swept across the entire plaza. Everyone felt a gentle touch brush through their consciousness.

A moment later, the surging wave of sound slowly subsided. All eyes returned to His Majesty.

Chen Yu's voice sounded again: "From today onward, this time every year will be designated as the Empire's Expansion Day. Each one of you is the reason this festival exists."

"You pioneers, the Triumphal Gate is opened for you."

With that, he transformed into a green light, instantly vanishing from the fortress's deck.

At the center of the plaza, that green light suddenly unfolded, expanding into a pitch-black giant dragon. When its dragon wings spread, the wind pressure knocked the hats off a few dwarves in the front row.

The dragon raised its scale-covered claw and fiercely plunged it into the empty air before it.

The claw embedded into the air, tearing forcefully to both sides. Cracks appeared in the air. The fissure rapidly expanded under the pure crushing force, quickly becoming a massive portal.

His power continued to swell. The fissure expanded along with it, finally stabilizing at a scale of several hundred meters long and tens of meters wide, like a wound in the world torn open by brute force.

The crowd retreated, clearing the open space at the center of the plaza, which was now filled with magical light.

Slime mages quickly gathered around, setting up temporary maintenance magic formations beside the fissure. Silver formation lines lit up on the ground, reinforcing the trembling edges of the fissure layer by layer.

Someone murmured, "Tearing open a fissure with bare hands... What terrifying power."

"Is this Legendary?"

Natalis, too, had her mouth wide open in the crowd.

Only now did she truly realize that when she had encountered His Majesty in the Shadow Mountains before, for him, it must have been no different from a casual trip.

Chen Yu hovered in front of the fissure, his voice spreading across the plaza: "Depart now. Beyond the fissure lies the Astral Realm."

With that, he was the first to enter the fissure. The massive floating fortress followed close behind.

Under the arrangement of the Slime guards, the crowd began to line up to pass through the fissure.

Natalis brought the two half-elf kids and stood in the middle of the line. As she slowly moved forward with the line, she looked around.

The line moved much faster than expected.

Soon, they were standing right in front of the fissure.

"Let's go."

Natalis took a deep breath, grabbed Millie's and Cole's wrists, and stepped into the layer of silver-gray mist.

Her vision first went dark, as if sinking into the deep sea. Surrounding her were flowing silver-gray mists. No sound, no sensation of temperature.

Then the mist suddenly dispersed.

Sunlight shone on her face again.

She opened her eyes and found herself standing on a vast grassland.

Green grass brushed past her ankles, gently swaying in the breeze. In the distance, at the horizon, stood a massive tree. Its canopy blotted out the sky and covered the sun, like a giant green umbrella unfurled.

Strangely, when she saw that giant tree, her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

An indescribable feeling surged up from her chest, as if something had instantly resonated with her bloodline.

Before she could think further, Chen Yu's voice came down from the sky: "This is Farvoyage Port, your first home in the Astral Realm. From here, if you go further out and leave the dream, you'll reach the true starry sky."

Farvoyage Port?

Natalis looked around. Aside from the grassland and that giant tree, she saw no outline of any port building.

Similar confused murmurs arose from the crowd around her.

"But Your Majesty, where's the port?"

Chen Yu didn't answer. He turned around, facing the sky.

His gel body steamed with dazzling golden light. The light gathered before him, condensing into a giant sword that stretched across the sky.

He swung the sword and slashed sideways. Amid a thunderous roar, the sky was torn open with a massive rift.

Under the effect of the Dao resonance of the Primordial Origin Sword Dao, a window was permanently cut through the barrier of the dream.

Outside the window, the silver void stretched quietly—that was the true Astral Realm. Countless stars twinkled in the void, so close it seemed you could pluck them with a hand.

Chen Yu waved his little gel hand, manipulating the dream.

The ground began to tremble.

Beside the Astral Realm window, the earth split open. City walls rose from the ground with a roar. Towers grew taller and taller on the walls. Streets simultaneously generated lines of water features and squares within the walls, extending along predetermined trajectories like branches growing.

In a matter of seconds, the entire city solidified from a mere conceptual vision into a solid entity.

Everyone stared at this miracle-like scene, unable to snap out of it for a long time.

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