Chapter 521: Chapter 426 Immortal
"Three hundred marks are not enough? Then six hundred marks."
"If six hundred marks are still insufficient, then a thousand marks. It can always be done."
Chen Jichuan was not discouraged.
However, the number of Holy Artifacts he had on hand was running low.
More than three thousand years ago, he made a name for himself in the Immortal Gate Realm, engaging in battles and leveraging threats to acquire a total of ninety-eight Holy Artifacts. During this period, he spent most of his time recuperating in Fierce Bird Mountain, though he occasionally ventured back to the Immortal Gate Realm to manage the operation of the ’Summoning Cottage.’
Over the course of 3,500 years,
many were deterred by the notorious reputation of the ’Tyrant,’ and the Legends tied to the ’Summoning Cottage’ enjoyed significant mobility. In a short period of time, they acquired eleven Holy Artifacts—far surpassing the efficiency of Yu Ming Immortal Venerable.
Adding to the Holy Artifacts already in Chen Jichuan’s possession, he had a total of 112 pieces.
He sold 21 to Yu Ming Immortal Venerable.
He shattered 84 to extract 300 Holy Marks.
Now, only seven Holy Artifacts remained in his possession. If not for the Half-God Artifact ’Holy Angel Wings,’ he might have been deemed the poorest Immortal-Level organization in the entire Immortal Gate Realm.
"Working at this sluggish pace won’t do anymore."
"I have to slightly speed things up."
Chen Jichuan mused as he turned to Wang Yan and asked, "Are you interested in taking a trip with me to the Immortal Gate Realm?"
"The Immortal Gate Realm?"
"Sure."
Wang Yan nodded.
...
The Immortal Gate Realm.
The Summoning Cottage.
The ’Summoning Cottage,’ which once had only a single Mage Tower, began to grow explosively after Chen Jichuan gained fame in the battle outside the Star Cluster Graveyard.
3,500 years have passed.
Today, the ’Summoning Cottage’ boasts 48,000 Mage Towers and 42 Legendary Mage Towers. The entire Valgrion continent has essentially become the domain of the ’Summoning Cottage.’
It is now considered a first-tier Immortal-Level organization within the Immortal Gate Realm.
The only thing it truly lacks is the quantity of Immortals.
3,500 years ago, the ’Silver Alliance’s’ fourth Immortal, the ’Windwalking Magic King,’ rose to the throne within the ’Summoning Cottage,’ attracting numerous Legends to flock to its ranks.
Over the years, Legends have come and gone, lived and died. The ’Summoning Cottage’ has nurtured quite a few Legends.
Some Legends left, some aged, yet a second Immortal has never emerged.
On this day,
within the ancestral grounds of the ’Summoning Cottage,’ at the Benage Mage Tower,
Chen Jichuan brought Wang Yan into his office.
"After more than 3,000 years of development, the ’Summoning Cottage’ now has 282,000 Level 3 Mages and 34 Legendary Mages."
"Compared to its peak 3,000 years ago, it’s actually already on a decline."
"At that time, many Legends were drawn by the allure of becoming Immortal. But in the 3,000-plus years since, no additional Legends successfully ascended, and gradually fewer and fewer were willing to join the ’Summoning Cottage.’"
Chen Jichuan began explaining the ’Summoning Cottage’ to Wang Yan.
The pinnacle of the ’Summoning Cottage’ was during the period when Chen Jichuan rose to prominence after the battle outside the Star Cluster Graveyard, and when the ’Tyrant’ gained his title. Soon after, the ’Windwalking Magic King’ ascended within the ’Summoning Cottage,’ sparking enthusiasm among independent Legendary Mages across the Divine Throne World, who rushed to join.
At that time, Legends queued up for Chen Jichuan to handpick them at his leisure.
But more than 3,000 years have passed since then; the once-glorious scene has gradually grown desolate, dissipating into mediocrity.
Even so, the ’Summoning Cottage’ remains the sole hegemon of Valgrion and is well-known throughout the Divine Throne World.
The Dean, the ’Tyrant,’ has continued to influence successive generations.
A great many mages have chosen to delve into Undead Magic, bringing unprecedented wealth to the Undead Realm.
"The Legends here are of the same rank as Realm Immortals in the Immortal Dao, with similar cultivation difficulty. However, their abilities to preserve their lives and their lifespans are much inferior."
"But even Realm Immortals who enter this place are subject to the suppression of the laws."
Chen Jichuan introduced the ’Summoning Cottage,’ as well as the Immortal Gate Realm, to Wang Yan.
This was Wang Yan’s first time setting foot in the Immortal Gate Realm.
When she first became a Heavenly Venerate, she had heard of the Immortal Gate Realm upon entering the Nine Heavens. However, due to conflicts with the Three Immortal Courts and concerns about potential hidden dangers in the Immortal Gate Realm, she dared not venture in rashly.
Later, when she reunited with Chen Jichuan, his ’Enlightenment’ helped her strength skyrocket. She then dedicated herself to refining the ’Seven Emotions and Six Desires Map,’ leaving her no time for anything else.
So, she had always heard about it from Chen Jichuan but had never set foot into it herself.
Today, she finally fulfilled her wish.
"Suppression..."
Listening to Chen Jichuan’s explanation, Wang Yan also sensed herself and found it quite novel: "Upon entering here, there’s indeed suppression everywhere. Mana is hard to circulate, and Magic Skills are completely unusable."
Having never been to the Immortal Gate Realm, it was hard to imagine how unfriendly it could be to Immortal Cultivators of the Immortal Dao.
Going from an all-powerful Upper Immortal to suddenly falling to the level of an ordinary mortal, unable to use magic or convert mana, unable even to perform basic flight—it was difficult to bear.
The fall of an Upper Immortal to a mortal state is something that most would find hard to adapt to.
"’Yuu Xinghai’ considers this place a training ground for Realm Immortals within their sect’s Four Realms. I’m sure there are other reasons behind this. But Yu Ming Immortal Venerable has studied it for 400,000 years, and I have studied it for many years too, yet aside from Holy Artifacts and Divine Artifacts, nothing of use has been found."
Chen Jichuan shook his head.
In his heart, he suspected that the Divine Throne World was far more intricate—not just a simple source of Divine and Holy Artifacts—but also held other utilities and benefits to uncover.
But with his current abilities, he could not uncover them.
"You’re now at the ninth stage of Heavenly Venerate, with your cultivation at a bottleneck. In the future, you can spare some time to explore the Immortal Gate Realm more. Who knows, you may uncover some hidden opportunities."
Chen Jichuan drew Wang Yan to sit with him. While chatting, he flipped through an assortment of records and files.
"Mm,"
Wang Yan replied as she nestled next to Chen Jichuan, casually browsing through the documents herself.
Some of these records pertained to the personnel changes and major events within the ’Summoning Cottage.’ Others outlined the situation across the Immortal Gate Realm, covering shifts in power, the whereabouts of Holy Artifacts, predictions about who might ascend to Immortal next, and reports on ongoing conflicts between Immortals.