Chapter 36: A Unique Immortality

The Yin-Yang Secret Realm vanished instantly before Qin Changsheng’s eyes, leaving the two individuals who had been inside to drop back onto the solid ground.

Nangong Ruoxi stared at Qin Changsheng with a look of deep suspicion. "I am seriously beginning to suspect that this secret realm belonged to your family, not mine. Otherwise, why could I only absorb a tiny fraction of its power, while the entire realm retreated into your body as if it had acknowledged you as its master?"

Qin Changsheng, looking equally bewildered, raised his hands. "The logic holds, but why am I still at the Qi Refining stage? I’ve reached the 9,999th level, and yet, I still haven't broken through to Foundation Establishment?"

His composure was beginning to fracture. He could manifest a Yin-Yang diagram from the Taiji, yet he remained unable to form a Foundation. Most frustratingly, despite the massive influx of power and the abundance of laws, the vast majority remained locked away within him, inaccessible. A mysterious force seemed to suppress his breakthrough; even the most potent laws of Extreme Yin and Extreme Yang could not serve as the foundation for his elevation. This was the source of his profound helplessness.

Evidently, he found no empathy for this despair, as Nangong Ruoxi was too stunned by his earlier admission. "Did you say you’ve reached the 9,999th level?" Everything else he had said had been filtered out by her mind. The implications of that number were staggering.

"Yes, but it's a pity I still haven't succeeded in establishing my foundation." Qin Changsheng seemed oblivious to how absurd his situation was.

Nangong Ruoxi struggled to grasp how someone could reach such an outrageous level and still feel disappointed. Taking a deep breath, she asked, "The Yin-Yang Secret Realm has entered your body. Have you noticed any changes? Even tens of thousands of years ago, this realm was vast and mysterious, coveted even by Immortal Kings. Now that it has chosen you as its master and resides within you, your body should have undergone significant transformations."

"Let me check." Qin Changsheng set aside his disappointment and turned his focus inward. He discovered that his Dantian now contained a vast world, an ocean of Yin and Yang, and the gateway to this world was his own eyes.

His left eye represented Yin, his right eye represented Yang. Qin Changsheng realized he could easily draw anything into this world through his gaze. Subconsciously, he looked at a rock nearby. A beam of immortal light shot from his eyes, enveloping the stone, and in an instant, the entire object was drawn by a powerful force of teleportation into the world within his Dantian.

Qin Changsheng’s eyes widened. "I feel like I’m about to get rich. If I pick up some transport business, with eyes as capable of storage as these, I could certainly earn a fortune."

Nangong Ruoxi listened, utterly speechless. "You are indeed 'capable of storage,' but it’s not your eyes—it’s you. You’re full of it. You have no idea how much envy you’re inciting in others right now, do you?" She gripped her sword, struggling to refrain from swinging it at him. Was this even human speech? "A place of such immense fortune, the ancestral Blood Realm of my Nangong lineage, and all you can think about after obtaining it is hauling cargo?"

"Do you know what you remind me of?" she added.

"What?" Qin Changsheng asked, scratching his head in embarrassment.

"A wild boar that doesn't know the taste of fine grain."

"Don't forget you still owe me three favors," Qin Changsheng said, glaring at her, though the look lacked any real menace.

"You’ve already had your way with me, and you still want favors? What are you thinking, Qin Changsheng? Have you lost your mind?" Although Nangong Ruoxi had also gained much and achieved a massive breakthrough—standing only a step away from the God Transformation stage—the sheer scale of Qin Changsheng’s growth made her own accomplishments feel lackluster.

"I knew it would be like this," Qin Changsheng sighed bitterly. He understood that ninety-nine percent of the secret realm’s fortune had ended up with him. Their initial agreement had been to split the gains equally, but the fortune belonging to the Nangong family was not something that could be divided; for instance, he had no right to absorb the Yin-Yang ocean without her consent. Yet, the outcome was that he had taken nearly everything, leaving the heir of the Nangong family with only a pittance.

"What do you plan to do now?" Nangong Ruoxi stopped dwelling on the frustrating details. "After absorbing all that power, you have a brilliant future ahead of you. Why not join me in seeking apprenticeship with the First Sword Immortal?"

She exhaled, deciding it was pointless to dwell on the matter. She understood that some things were simply fate; even without Qin Changsheng, she could never have claimed the entire realm for herself. She would have only ever obtained what she had already secured. Harboring jealousy was futile. With her current progress, she was certain to be accepted by the First Sword Immortal, and if Qin Changsheng joined her, they could continue their journey together as fellow disciples.

"That is exactly what’s driving me mad," Qin Changsheng replied with a bitter smile. "Even after obtaining the secret realm, so much primordial essence, and storing the Yin-Yang laws in my Dantian, I haven't broken through. My lifespan hasn't increased by even a single day. So, I still have to go into hibernation."

"Are you teasing me?" Nangong Ruoxi looked at him with an expression of absurdity. "With all that power, your depleted vitality should have been restored long ago. Even if you couldn't break through, the lifespan you burned previously should have returned. A hundred years more would be trivial!" Her first instinct was that he was being falsely modest. He had absorbed such immense power that someone else might have ascended to godhood; a hundred years of life, or even ten thousand, would have been within reach. And yet, he claimed his time was running out and he needed to hibernate?

Was this not pure nonsense? If he were going to lie, couldn't he at least make it believable?

"I am... a bit unique," Qin Changsheng said, smiling sadly. "The lifespan allotted to each of my realms is my ultimate limit. I can burn it, but it is nearly impossible to replenish, unless I stop using techniques that sacrifice longevity and find other sources of fuel."

When he was first reborn, he possessed the Longevity Stele and practiced the Longevity Art. Back then, he had tried every method to absorb the vitality of his surroundings to extend his life, yet he still perished in his twenties. At the time, Qinghe had even promised to have his children, but he hadn't had the chance. He hadn't realized the truth back then, but now, he understood: his longevity could not be extended by external means unless he constantly broke through his cultivation limits or entered states of deep hibernation.

Since he had failed to break through, he had no choice but to fall into a deep slumber immediately. Even with such a beautiful fairy standing before him, ready to be plucked, he had no way to continue.