My Journey to Immortality Begins with Hunting-Chapter 604 - Gate of Ghosts - Part 1

A single red lotus petal drifted away on the celestial wind.

And with it, the minds of the immortals from the Eastern Sea's Immortal Domain were carried far, far away.

Spirit town lords, the Fire and Earth Hall Masters, and many silent onlookers all had their eyes locked on that crimson petal.

They had seen it form, absorb every ounce of their power, and then float gently to the ground, where it slowly disintegrated, like snow falling onto warm earth, vanishing without a sound.

There were no words for what they were feeling.

They had always looked down on the Central Plains with an inborn arrogance. To them, the people of the mortal realm were nothing but ants to toy with. They believed themselves gods.

The Central Plains? What did that backwater have? It was nothing but a spiritually barren wasteland, devoid of spiritual energy, a place where no true cultivation could ever flourish.

And yet in this moment, their pride and assumptions shattered into dust.

In their place surged an overwhelming wave of fear, followed closely by hatred. It swallowed them whole.

If this terrifying figure, Li Yuan, had been born among the Eastern Sea's own ranks, perhaps they could’ve accepted it. Perhaps they would have even begun to revere him.

But he wasn’t from the Eastern Sea. He was from the Central Plains.

Among the younger cultivators, those barely past a hundred, thoughts churned in disbelief. How could a nobody from such a barren place crush them so easily? How did someone from that spiritual desert gain such power?

Meanwhile, the older ones, those like the Fire and Earth Hall Masters, were remembering the day Wei Huosheng and Mister Mountain were obliterated.

At the time, they’d assumed it was the work of some ancient monster awakened from the Deathless Tomb.

But when the truth came to light a few months ago, that it wasn’t some ancient being but a man named Li Yuan, they began to suspect he might be a rare, once-in-five-millennia prodigy secretly nurtured by the Central Plains.

A third rank monster, perhaps. But no more than that.

After all, weren’t they all monstrous talents in their own right?

That was why they dared to scheme.

They laid trap after trap, hoping to probe and maybe even manipulate Li Yuan.

They never imagined the outcome would be so catastrophic.

Their careful plans were like spiderwebs, spun delicately to ensnare insects. But what came walking into them wasn’t a bug. It was a giant. And with the slightest movement of his leg, that giant tore their web to shreds.

“Did you understand what just happened?” the Earth Hall Master asked, his voice low, addressing the man in red beside him.

The Fire Hall Master answered bitterly, “That incredible power was compressed to its very limits, forming a petal that spun in cycles of void-flow. The method of how it coiled around the petal...we can’t even begin to comprehend it.

“Inside the petal, there was an incredibly concentrated Yang energy, pure and untainted. And the power of a Human Soul domain. But here’s the difference... We expand our domains, populating them with fake lives to amplify our force. So when we strike, it’s as if hundreds or thousands of us move together, through the constructs within our domain. But he... he doesn’t need any of that.”

“He compressed the power of an entire domain into a single petal,” the Fire Hall Master said quietly, his voice tinged with disbelief. “It’s like he merged hundreds, thousands of versions of himself into one, reaching a level we can't even begin to fathom.”

The Earth Hall Master let out a bitter laugh. “But how is that even possible? How could anyone do such a thing? A flower holding a world, blooming and fading between the turn of a finger...it's beyond comprehension.”

The Fire Hall Master cut in, impatience creeping into his tone. “So what now?”

The Earth Hall Master’s voice grew heavy. “Right now, there’s no one in the world who can match him. He stands shoulder to shoulder with the Human Emperor, with that Khagan who led the 10,000 elite wolf riders, or even a weakened Starkin. In this era where the end of days looms, he is the last true invincible.”

“...” The Fire Hall Master fell silent. He could see it too.

Li Yuan had broken free from every known limitation of power.

And though such people were incredibly rare, freaks of nature born perhaps once in ten thousand years, history had still produced a few. They came from chaos, from catastrophe, from secrets buried under time. But they had all faded. Their eras had ended.

Now, it was Li Yuan’s turn. He had stepped out from behind the curtain, and wasted no time coming to the Eastern Sea.

“He’s after the secrets of the ancient halls,” the Earth Hall Master said suddenly. “That much is clear. He held back just now, didn’t kill us. That means he doesn’t want to make enemies unless he has to. Having someone like him probing the ancient halls might not be a bad thing for us. After all, we all want the same thing, breaking through to second rank.”

The Fire Hall Master was tempted. But then a new worry surfaced. “And what do you think the others will do once they find out what happened here?” 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

The Earth Hall Master swept his eyes over the nearby crowd, those shaken little people who could barely mask their fear and hatred. He could feel it radiating off them.

“If this had happened a few thousand years ago, the higher-ups would’ve vanished the moment they sensed danger, found some hidden hole to crawl into and quietly grow, never daring to appear before someone like Li Yuan.

“A thousand years ago? They would’ve banded together to kill him. Li Yuan may be strong, but it’s not as if there’s absolutely no way to take him down.”

The two exchanged a glance. They both knew exactly what that method was.

When a single fighter isn't enough, bring out the great formations. Use the power of many.

But the Fire Hall Master shook his head. “Even if we pulled it off, we’d be drained to the bone. We’d have nothing left to explore the ancient halls. And honestly.. I don’t have a personal grudge with the man. I’m not going to gamble my life for a dead disciple.”

The Earth Hall Master nodded. “My brother’s gone, and that’s that. On the path to power, who doesn’t leave corpses behind?”

He let out a soft sigh. “This isn’t the world of a few thousand years ago. It’s not even the world of a thousand years ago. We’ve got 20 years before Heaven and Earth change forever. At a time like this, any powerhouse worth the title will want to meet Li Yuan face to face. The younger ones may still be fumbling in the dark, but we...we can weigh the pros and cons. So can the other hall masters.”

The Fire Hall Master said, almost casually, “Should we go find him now?”

The Earth Hall Master shook his head. “Not yet. Let’s wait. See what comes next.”

Then something seemed to occur to him. “What about Cui Huayin?”

The Fire Hall Master replied in a low voice, “I had one of my core disciples disguise herself as a demonic beast and used an illusion array to mimic the Toad King’s mist. We’ve trapped them in the spirit domain of Mount Sunshade. Just trapped, not harmed.”

The Earth Hall Master said calmly, “Go release them. Clean up the retreat properly, no traces left behind. We can’t let anyone catch wind of this.”

The two continued speaking in hushed tones.

Behind them, a young male cultivator seemed to have shaken off his daze. A vicious gleam flickered in his eyes as he stepped forward and bowed respectfully to the Fire Hall Master. “Master, that man is powerful, yes...but he’s not without weaknesses. Should we perhaps—”

“What?” the Fire Hall Master snapped, brows furrowing.

The disciple lowered his voice. “Should we capture Li Yuan’s family—”

Before the words had even fully left his mouth, the Fire Hall Master let out a cold snort. “Insolence! Elder Ping’an is a revered member of our Arcane Supreme Sect. Senior Li is his father. That makes him your elder, too. You dare speak like this?”

“What... ?”The disciple froze, stunned.

“Get back to your quarters! Lock yourself in and cultivate until you’ve grown a brain!” the Fire Hall Master barked.

With that, he turned and soared off into the sky, landing atop a remote and barren mountain. From his sleeve, he drew out a jade talisman shaped like a pair of cranes.

This was a communication artifact, known as the Twin Cranes Jade.

Ordinarily, the two cranes faced one another, necks arched over water, calling in harmony. But when separated, one could infuse it with blood essence and speak through it to the holder of the other half.

He channeled a thread of blood energy into the jade, sending an urgent message to his trusted disciple on the other end.

“Order them to retreat immediately, and destroy every trace of the illusion array.”

Then he waited. And waited. But no response came.