Facing the Living Treasure Window's persistent sobbing, Liu Chen felt a wave of helplessness. The Fairy Gu House's sentience was nearly that of a human child, and its fear of being abandoned was tangible. He sighed, offering firm words of comfort and promising to dedicate more time to its upkeep in the future. After some gentle persuasion, the Window's mood finally stabilized, its glass eyes flickering with a relieved light.
Seizing the moment, Liu Chen quickly initiated several trades. Among the materials he requested were another set of components for the Fixed Immortal Travel refinement , the Fairy Wind Gu, the Seven Star Gu, and the Light Of Glory
He had already refined one consumable Gu to cross from the Southern Border to the Northern Plains. To reach the Eastern Sea from here, he would need another. A one time Gu used once was a tool; knowing how to refine it repeatedly was a weapon.
He exchanged his surplus low tier Gu harvested from the various clans and Shang Clan City chests , for the specific materials and gu he needed for his next stage of development. Although a hint of guilt touched his heart as he prepared to return the Window to the system inventory, he pushed the emotion aside. He knew that in the race for eternal life, he couldn't afford to be weighed down by sentimental details. In the five hundred years of memories he had inherited from the fang yuan, countless opportunities were waiting, and every second was a battle against fate.
Before departing, Liu Chen re evaluated his immediate environment. The legends of the Northern Plains were vast, but many of the legendary Gu Immortal legacies were hidden in forbidden danger zones or were under the heavy guard of super tribes. For a Rank 4 Gu Master, such places were currently out of reach.
Furthermore, he understood the cycle of the Northern Plains. The Eighty Eight True Yang Building would not appear for several years, and the mortal inheritances of the region were being systematically claimed by the major clans. Rather than wasting time in a stalemate, Liu Chen made a decisive choice: he would head to the Eastern Sea.
He sat in his subterranean hideout and began the refinement of his second Rank 5 Fixed Immortal Travel Gu.
The process was already familiar to him , his hands moved with the confidence of someone who had walked this road before. Unlike the first refinement, which had demanded three days and three nights of white-knuckled concentration, this iteration flowed with a practiced smoothness. The refinement gestures drawn from the future Heaven Refining Demon Venerable came as naturally as breathing. He mobilized his Yellow Gold Primeval Essence, wrapping it around the shell of another Thousand Beast King level Fixed Wind Turtle. He smelted the Fairy Wind Gu within the essence first, transforming it into a concentrated blue breeze that he bound into the grain of the shell. Then came the Light Of Glory , causing the essence to roll and churn as if in a violent chemical reaction. The process was still agonizingly delicate , a single lapse in focus could detonate the entire fusion but his hands did not waver. Finally, he threw the seven Star Gu into the mixture as anchors.
With a final handprint, the shell shattered. A turquoise butterfly emerged from the light, its wings flickering with the same mysterious spatial aura as the last one. It flew out and landed in his palm.
"Success. Refined Rank 5 Consumable Gu: Fixed Immortal Travel."
Without hesitation, he urged the Gu. After three breaths, his figure became a phantom and vanished into the air, leaving behind only his discarded clothing.
Eastern Sea
Unnamed Island
In the blink of an eye, Liu Chen traveled from the freezing north to the humid, salty air of the Eastern Sea. He landed on a remote, unnamed island surrounded by a turbulent ocean. The waves crashed against the jagged reefs with a deafening roar.
Liu Chen stood naked on the shore , the familiar side effect of the teleportation Gu, which never got any more dignified no matter how many times he experienced it. He quickly retrieved the Coat Gu from his aperture. The insect turned into a ray of light against his skin, and a fitted set of clothing materialized to cover his body.
However, the moment he was dressed, an invisible pressure slammed into him like a mountain crushing an egg.
This pressure did not come from an external attack, but from the world itself. His cultivation had already been suppressed when he arrived in the Northern Plains, but now that he had crossed into the Eastern Sea, the suppression had intensified. Under this double suppression, Liu Chen felt a sharp, stabbing pain in his chest. A mouthful of blood erupted from his throat, and he fell to his knees, a wry smile touching his lips.
"I didn't expect that crossing two regions in a row would cause such a serious backlash," he coughed, wiping the blood from his chin. "I'm probably the only lunatic who would attempt this as a mortal. Truly unique."
He immediately summoned the Thousand Li Earthwolf Spider to stand guard while he recuperated. As a Rank 3 Gu Master under suppression, he was vulnerable to the powerful beast herds of the ocean. As before in the Northern Plains, the spider showed no signs of regional suppression whatsoever , it emerged from his aperture with the same majestic, unhurried power it always carried, as if the Eastern Sea's world pressure did not concern it in the slightest. Liu Chen made a mental note of this with quiet gratitude. A Rank 5 bodyguard immune to regional suppression was the only reason a stunt like crossing two regions consecutively was survivable at all.
He decided to remain on the island until the Eastern Sea's environment stopped actively rejecting his presence.
Time passed, and a month vanished in the blink of an eye. During this period, Liu Chen adapted to the regional suppression and his cultivation finally stabilized back at the Rank 4 Peak Stage.
He discovered that the Eastern Sea was a land of staggering wealth. The material resources were incredibly rich, making it easier for Gu Masters here to progress. However, this prosperity had bred a culture of complacency; the Gu Masters of the Eastern Sea generally disliked conflict, resulting in their combat power being the lowest among the five domains.
But for Liu Chen, the Eastern Sea's greatest appeal was its positional heritage. It was a region filled with hidden legacies that even the Central Continent could not rival.
Although his unnamed island held no treasures, he knew that Eyebrow Island, located two hundred nautical miles to the west, contained a legendary inheritance. This legacy was originally destined to be found three hundred years in the future by a shipwrecked Gu Master named Dugu He, who would use it to dominate the sea. The inheritance itself had been left by Ping Duhe, an expert who had crisscrossed the Eastern Sea centuries ago.
Liu Chen stood on the western shore of his island, his eyes fixed on the looming silhouette of Eyebrow Island. He turned to the Thousand Li Earthwolf Spider beside him. This powerful mount, which could gallop freely through the earth in the Southern Border, found it difficult to move through the deep waters of the Eastern Sea , its domain was soil and stone, not open ocean.
Fortunately, Liu Chen had prepared for this during his month of adaptation. He had not just been recovering; he had been developing a new Killer Move.
He summoned his Flying Sword Gu. The silver blade hovered firmly before him. Then, he activated the Growth Gu, causing a green light to flash. In an instant, the Flying Sword expanded tenfold, growing as large as a ship's deck , an eye catching giant blade suspended in the coastal air.
Liu Chen then urged his Imperial Sword Gu to control the massive weapon. He stepped onto the blade without hesitation, standing as if he were on a high speed flying vessel.
Finally, he activated the Tailwind Gu. A soft breeze enveloped him, doubling the speed of the giant sword. More amazingly, the Tailwind Gu eliminated all air resistance, making Liu Chen feel as if he were one with the sword itself, soaring through the sky without obstruction.
Killer Move: Imperial Sword Flight.
The process was still relatively slow compared to high level immortal movement, but for a Rank 4 Master operating under regional suppression in unfamiliar waters, it was the most practical solution available. He sped toward Eyebrow Island, his mind focused. In the heat of battle, this move would have to be executed like flowing water, with no hesitation. After all, the enemy never left time for preparation.