I have Immortality In The Cultivation World

The residents on the third floor heard footsteps, woke up one after another, looked through the peephole, and asked through the intercom, keeping a close watch until Zhou Yi and his companion entered the room before relaxing.

Struggling in the post-apocalyptic world, they had heard too many cases of ferocious beasts wiping out entire households, leaving their nerves perpetually taut!

The layout of the house was two bedrooms and one living room, a mess akin to a dog’s den.

The table held several firearms of varying sizes, while corners of the room were piled with several hundred pounds of rice and flour, various fitness equipment scattered on the floor, and charts of human meridians and martial arts mnemonics were pasted on the walls.

Zhou Yi glanced around and pointed to two bullet holes in the wall, "What happened here?"

"Three years ago, while I was cultivating martial arts at night, a bug-like monster somehow burrowed its way in."

Shen Cheng picked up a shotgun from the table, loaded it with a click, "Bang bang two shots sprayed the bug to death, and I exchanged its corpse for a potent elixir."

Zhou Yi asked doubtfully, "Why didn’t you bring weapons when you went to Yu City?"

Shen Cheng shrugged, "I had some, but before I even reached the territory’s border, I encountered a powerful beast and had no choice but to abandon my gear and run."

Zhou Yi fumbled in his sleeve and took out a stack of Spirit Talismans.

"The Godspeed Talismans I’ve drawn activate with blood in times of danger, and they’re very useful for escaping."

"Are you leaving, Daoist Master?"

Shen Cheng took the Spirit Talismans and bowed, "I don’t know where the master is heading, but if I make progress in my cultivation, I will surely repay this life-saving grace!"

"I’ll go see Xianjing Martial Arts University for now, maybe become a teacher and educate some students."

Zhou Yi glanced at the photo frame on the table, a happy picture of parents, a younger sister, and Shen Cheng, who now was left all alone. He patted his shoulder and said.

"Live well and strive to be admitted to the Martial Arts University!"

"Yes."

Shen Cheng nodded firmly, "Would you like to rest for the night? I could go to my uncle’s place to buy a couple of bottles of wine, brewed by the ancient method, and they taste much better than what’s on the black market."

In the face of beasts surrounding the city and to save food, the human race had long ago issued a prohibition on alcohol.

Zhou Yi shook his head slightly and disappeared in a flash of escape light, leaving only his faint voice echoing.

"I am going to deal with a few youngsters, in the future at the Martial Arts University, I will treat you to a thousand-year brew!"

...

Xianjing.

The heart of the human alliance, gathering the elites of the Nine Continents.

Since the outbreak of the beast tide, the Imperial Court had been continuously increasing its defenses, relying on the city walls refined by Da Qian a thousand years ago, and piling up countless methods from both Immortal Dao and technology.

Back then, the official network of Yi Qi Sect contained the complete skills for cultivation, suitable for usages by those below the Golden Core.

The city walls were protected by Formations and Artifact Refining, coupled with dense, heavy weapons claiming to withstand attacks from Golden Elixir True Monarchs!

"The Final Bastion, this name sounds a bit ominous."

Zhou Yi activated the Supreme Clarity Divine Talisman, his escape light descended into the city, where the original ancient structures had all been dismantled, replaced by fortresses suitable for street fighting.

With the threat of clan extinction at hand, any cultural heritage had to give way to war.

The only exception was the imperial palace, considered the last cultural longing of the human race.

The people on the streets hurried by, most of them with solemn expressions.

Even though the battlefield was still four thousand miles away, small-scale beast attacks occasionally happened in Xianjing, and with the alliance’s frontlines continuously retreating, it was difficult for the citizens not to worry about the future!

Zhou Yi walked on the street and noted that nearly all the shops were state-operated, under military control, and in a state of rationing.

Inside Immortal Capital City, due to Formation protection, it was rare for ferocious beasts to smuggle in and cause chaos; however, fields outside were often destroyed, and food shortages were a constant issue.

The few privately run shops sold a hodgepodge of items, typically selling whatever they could get their hands on that day.

Economic transactions had dwindled to the point of collapse, the paper currency system had long been unable to sustain, the alliance had restored the exchange of Gold Coins and silver coins, but most shops operated on a barter system.

As Zhou Yi walked down the street, he could feel that even the air was filled with various negative emotions.

"Despair, desolation, no sign of hope..."

"Any path of cultivation, including the use of elixirs, requires an unwavering heart of Dao."

"We need to find a way to change this despondent and mournful state. When the people see the undying hope of the human race, it will ignite a spirit a thousand times stronger!"

He made his way to the very center of the city.

Where Ren’an District used to be now stood the Martial Arts University, spanning over several miles. In the highly-valued real estate of Immortal Capital City, this emphasized the alliance’s importance placed on it.

At the gates of the university

Many were queuing up, hitting against the dark iron pillars with their Qi-Blood.

As Shen Cheng had mentioned, the Martial Arts University was always enrolling, and any martial arts genius could join without having to wait for the annual grand examination.

Zhou Yi stood by and watched for a while; dozens of people tested, but not a single one qualified.

The iron pillar is a magic artifact used for testing Qi-Blood; if someone under the age of twenty reaches the Martial Artist standard in Qi-Blood, they can be admitted to the school without taking the exam.

"Breaking the rules of the exams, it requires much higher standards than normal admission."

Zhou Yi’s figure flickered as he tunneled into the earth and appeared directly on the campus. The Formation and Prohibition, reputed to withstand a Golden Elixir True Monarch, exerted no effect on him.

The Immortal Dao legacy used by the human alliance is said to have all stemmed from Zhou Yi, so how could it possibly restrict him?

A moment later.

The principal’s office.

Knock knock knock.

Zhou Yi knocked gently on the door and, after getting permission, entered to meet the founder of the Martial Arts University.

The publicly acknowledged number one powerhouse of the human race, Xiao Hong.

Xiao Hong looked up to see the visitor, whose mana aura had reached the peak of Foundation Establishment. Such a character should be famous throughout the alliance, yet he had no impression of him at all, and said with a hint of puzzlement.

"Where does the Taoist priest hail from?"

"A Loose Cultivator from the Eastern Sea, Tang Xuan."

Zhou Yi cupped his hands and said, "I have just entered the Nine Continents and, having heard of the Martial Arts University, have come to pay a visit."

Upon hearing Zhou Yi’s origins, Xiao Hong’s face lit up with joy. "Is there still a human presence in the Eastern Sea?"

"There shouldn’t be any left."

Zhou Yi, having returned from the Eastern Sea, had passed several large islands on his way with no traces of humanity left.

At that time, it wasn’t just a major beast catastrophe. He thought that in the span of a few hundred years, tsunamis and earthquakes had occurred, and the human races on the islands had perished, which in the Eastern Sea was not an unusual occurrence.

"What a pity, such a pity."

Xiao Hong sighed repeatedly and then changed the subject. "How did the Taoist priest enter the city?"

Zhou Yi made up an excuse on the spot: "I specialize in the legacy of Escape Skills. Although I can’t claim that nothing can elude me, so far in the Nine Continents, I haven’t encountered any domain that could stop me."

Xiao Hong’s eyes flashed with a golden light, confirming that Zhou Yi was a human, as he said with a smile.

"What does the Taoist priest seek at the school?"

"To teach."

Zhou Yi cut straight to the point: "Given the limitations of this world, it’s highly unlikely for me to hope for the Golden Core anymore. To prevent my teachings from being lost, I hope to find several disciples here."

"The shackles of the world?"

Xiao Hong was momentarily taken aback, vaguely understanding, and quickly asked, "What are these world shackles?"

"Everything supernatural in the world stems from Spiritual Energy, regardless of my ancient methods or your newer techniques. The current concentration of Spiritual Energy in this world can at most support the peak of Foundation Establishment and it’s almost impossible to provoke the Heavenly Tribulation for Golden Core formation."

Zhou Yi took out a volume of books from his sleeve. It was the one left by the Pure True Monarch centuries ago, now re-emerging in the world after two thousand years.

Having gone through the period of Cultivation World decline and entering a new era of Spiritual Energy revival, Zhou Yi had long understood why the powerful liked to write books and establish schools of thought. They likely realized that immortality was hard to attain.

As time wore on, even a Heavenly Monarch would die and his teachings would vanish, leaving only the books they had written behind.

And how is this not a form of immortality?

Xiao Hong stood up, bowed, and took the book, quickly flipping through it and learning of the concept of the origin source.

"The origin source, the source of Spiritual Energy in the world... If it were destroyed, would all beasts and monsters revert to ordinary wild beasts?"

"Without Spiritual Energy in the world, those monsters would probably collapse directly."

Zhou Yi had captured several monsters to study them, realizing they were entirely products of demonic power, similar to exorcism or corpse refining techniques, and also integrated with the evolution of monster bloodlines.

With the cessation of Spiritual Energy, the physical bodies of the monsters would collapse outright, not even having the chance to revert to lesser beings.

"Then..."

Xiao Hong said excitedly, "Does the Taoist priest know how to find the origin source?"

"I don’t know."

Zhou Yi shook his head slightly. After the revival of Spiritual Energy, countless Spirit Veins had emerged throughout the Nine Continents, but not a single one was the origin source, or perhaps they all could be.

Xiao Hong let out a sigh and said, "The Taoist priest’s knowledge is profound. You could serve as a teacher at the school. Which ancient technique do you wish to teach?" n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Escape Skills of course."

Zhou Yi said with a smile, "Whether going out to hunt monsters or for self-preservation, Escape Skills are best suited for stealth attacks and survival. If the day comes when Immortal Capital City falls, only Escape Skills can preserve the bloodline of our race!"

"Then we shall have to trouble the Taoist priest."

Xiao Hong’s face showed a hint of resignation. Nowadays, most of humanity shared sentiments like Zhou Yi’s, due to their overall decline.

Were it not for the fact that peaceful negotiations with the beast races were impossible and their goal was the extinction of humanity, there might already be many who surrendered!