Longevity Strange Immortal
Chapter 180 - 40 Ash Golden Core [End-of-the-World Dao Seed]

Chapter 180: Chapter 40 Ash Golden Core [End-of-the-World Dao Seed]

After Li Mo formed his core, he returned to the monotonous daily routine of closed-door cultivation.

The news of the Flawless Golden Core quickly spread among the various Taoist inheritances of the Sub-Device Sect, even attracting members of other sects to the port.

Due to Li Mo’s connection, the Golden Cauldron Sect has garnered increasing attention.

The butterfly effect continues to ferment.

Some Nascent Soul Great Powers roughly estimate that the number of Core Formation Artifact Refiners participating in the next event of the Golden Cauldron Sect will be more than double that of a century ago.

Although Li Mo is not the most promising candidate for Inner Sect promotion, he is undoubtedly the most renowned, and Artifact Refiners cannot help but anticipate his performance.

The two shops at the port have once again become overcrowded.

If Li Mo wanted to, he could sell Beast Head Meat Limbs during this period riding the tide and earn a tidy fortune, but with the looming Weak Crown Death Disease, he cannot afford any slack.

The Weak Crown Death Disease erupts at fifty years old, lasts until a hundred,

causing the cultivator’s body to gradually decay. If transformed into an Unnameable Deceitful Object as a result, they can only be permanently sealed within the sect’s mountain gate.

Li Mo, having achieved Dual Golden Cores, is reasonably confident about overcoming the Weak Crown Death Disease.

Yet the fact that it is not an absolute guarantee signifies risk remains—he will not allow negligence to compromise his foundation.

"Ah..."

"The Sub-Device Sect’s method of handling Deceitful Objects truly invites endless consequences."

Rong Town opts to burn bodies; when the cultivator’s flesh fully ceases to exist, transformation into a Deceitful Object naturally becomes impossible.

Using the corrosive nature of the Deceit Furnace, the Sub-Device Sect builds Blessed Lands, only aggravating the troubles further.

Suppressing the backlash of Deceitful Objects through sealing mechanisms may, if successful, create a virtuous cycle that benefits the sect immensely.

But if they fail, the tower piled high collapses like a snowball rolling downhill.

"Perhaps I’m worrying needlessly. Given the foundations of the Sub-Device Sect, even if the sect’s seals encounter issues, they’ll handle it promptly."

Li Mo glanced at his inner Double Dantians, a hint of curiosity rising in his heart.

Beast Cultivators, when corrupted by the Death Disease and losing control, transform into "Deceit Beasts," neither fully human nor beast. Artifact Cultivators, when corrupted, become phosphorescent meat clumps, "Deceit Furnaces."

As a dual-cultivator of Beast and Artifact paths, what form of appalling monstrosity would Li Mo turn into?

Would the Death Disease become more tenacious due to dual cultivation systems?

Yet with the Creation Book imprinted in his organs and his Dantians no longer restricted, it’s inevitable he will attempt different cultivation systems for the path of immortality.

Should he lose control to the Death Disease after ten thousand years, would he annihilate the entire Cultivation World?

Li Mo shivered and then closed his eyes, operating his Circulation Cycle.

No matter how solid his Tao Heart was, the dread of the unknown still nagged at him. Only after a long while did his heart palpitation subside.

Li Mo opened the Creation Book in his mind, where the blank page revealed the faint shadow of the Ash Golden Core. The lingering worries eased slightly.

His mastery over the Ash Golden Core deepened, only awaiting the awakening of its Divine Skills.

In his leisure time, Li Mo simply devoted his energy to planning Corpse Mountain, focusing primarily on using Gu Worms to continue enhancing spiritual material production.

Although the Sub-Device Sect remains relatively safe for the time being, he must prepare for the long term, striving to achieve self-sufficiency in cultivation resources as quickly as possible.

And also study Gu Worms and Corpse Wine that could aid in overcoming the Death Disease.

The imprinting of the Ash Golden Core persisted for a full ten days and more, until the shadow on the page materialized into reality, and its corresponding Divine Skills awakened shortly thereafter.

[End-of-the-World Dao Seed]

Li Mo’s brows twitched in surprise; little had he foreseen that the Ash Golden Core’s Divine Skill would also be a Dao Seed, hinting at a connection between his two cores.

After examining the role of the End-of-the-World Dao Seed, Li Mo’s face lit up with joy.

"The Furnace is the stove, the Golden Core the lead."

Li Mo retrieved a simple Detoxification Pill from his Storage Bag; upon activating the Divine Skill of the End-of-the-World Dao Seed, the pill was drawn into the Furnace.

With the Ash Golden Core spinning rapidly, the temperature of the Furnace surged to four to five hundred degrees.

The Detoxification Pill instantly disintegrated into ash.

Li Mo gained unfamiliar memories—the refining method of the Detoxification Pill. Evidently, the End-of-the-World Dao Seed forcibly dismantles creations and analyzes the refining methods within them.

The analysable targets of the End-of-the-World Dao Seed are identical to those of the Primordial Dao Seed:

from corpses, obtaining Magic; from pills, obtaining Alchemy; from artifacts, obtaining Artifact Refining Technique; from Gu Worms, obtaining Gu Refining Technique; from ghost servants, obtaining Feeding Ghost Skill.

Of course, the End-of-the-World Dao Seed has its limitations.

For instance, with the Primordial Dao Seed only capable of nurturing top-grade Magic Artifact Catalogs, the End-of-the-World Dao Seed similarly can only parse High Grade Magical Artifacts.

Anything surpassing High Grade inevitably yields fragmented information within the analysis.

While Li Mo was pondering, the Primordial Dao Seed had already digested the refining method of the Detoxification Pill, slightly healing the cracks on the Mist Fog Golden Core.

Creation and analysis—a complementary pair.

Li Mo’s face grew animated; he promptly used a Spirit Talisman to send a message to Qingqiu Taoist.

He asked Qingqiu Taoist to collect assorted pills and obscure artifacts at the port and requested Three Mountains to send over the Chaotic Burial Furnace as soon as possible.

With the synergy between the two Dao Seed Divine Skills, he aspired to tread the path of "Omniscience and Omnipotence."

Li Mo grew ever more resolved in his choice; even if he speculated that the differing systems of the Double Dantians might impact the outbreak of the Death Disease.

He would not easily abandon the shortcut to immortality.

Thus, he immersed himself in cultivation.

Three Mountains delivered resources every half a month, while also taking away artifacts and Corpse Wine.

Due to the need to procure resources, the two shops barely enabled Li Mo to maintain a balance of income and expenses.

Yet as the Weak Crown Death Disease grew near, his artifact production dwindled further, relying almost entirely on the two apprentices in the shop to sustain operations—though they only managed to supply some Low Grade Beast Head Meat Limbs.

The public speculated about Li Mo’s actions, assuming he was preparing for the Golden Cauldron Sect competition and thus neglecting the shop.

Little did they expect he was overcoming the Death Disease.

Among those artifact people born from the same Mother Furnace, many were still struggling in the Weak Crown period, their ages about twenty years away from the onset of the Weak Crown Death Disease.

Li Mo intended to leverage the ten-plus years before the Golden Cauldron Sect competition to first surmount this daunting challenge.

The Old Earth True Monarch likewise refrained from disturbing Li Mo, and the once bustling Chaotic Burial Furnace grew eerily quiet after he formed his Flawless Golden Core, with only sparse surveillance.

Li Mo’s Taoist Body could slow the progression of the Death Disease, yet he couldn’t precisely determine when it would erupt, so he silently counted the passing years.

Fifty-five.

His joints began to stiffen, though his vitality remained robust.

Fifty-eight.

His physical strength began to wane, skin forming deep grooves.

Sixty-three.

Li Mo’s instinctive breaths revealed reduced intake of air, signaling that his muscles had succumbed to the Death Disease’s corrosion.

Half a month later, the Weak Crown Death Disease surged forth like a tsunami.

In the Practice Hall, Li Mo remained motionless.

His stomach had just swallowed a "Meat Worm" that enhances flesh regeneration; his unclothed body soaked in "Blood Soaking Wine" with similar regenerative effects.

Even so, he lacked even the strength to blink.

Li Mo watched helplessly as his flesh shriveled, his exterior taking on the semblance of a corpse buried for a hundred years.

Next, his blood and flesh began exhibiting signs of metalization.

Li Mo inhaled sharply.

The metalization of flesh and blood was a hallmark of Artifact Cultivators enduring the Weak Crown Death Disease, proving that his affliction was indeed more fearsome than ordinary cultivators’.

The pungent smell of decay filled the air.

Soon, even his sensation of his Taoist Body entirely vanished, leaving only his stubbornly beating heart, pumping pus-like blood throughout his organs.

The heart retained vitality only because it relied on Da Ai Mi Tian.

Regrettably, at merely Twenty-Eight Refinements, Da Ai Mi Tian could protect the parasitic heart but not withstand the Weak Crown Death Disease by itself.

Li Mo closed his eyes tightly, calming himself to sense the existence of his Dual Golden Cores.

He refused to believe he would fall to the Weak Crown Death Disease. His formidable conviction quickened his heartbeat, and wisps of white smoke emanated from his pores.

While Li Mo was confronting the Death Disease, the Old Earth True Monarch’s Divine Sense observed the happenings within the Practice Hall.

Li Mo didn’t attempt to conceal his battle against the Death Disease from the Old Earth True Monarch—it was impossible to hide it anyway. Besides, facing the Death Disease mere years earlier as an Artifact Cultivator wouldn’t spark suspicion from the monarch.

What struck the Old Earth True Monarch with astonishment was the unprecedented severity of Li Mo’s Death Disease.

For other Artifact Cultivators facing such a harrowing Death Disease, survival would be utterly hopeless. For Li Mo, however, there was still the faintest glimmer of hope.

The Old Earth True Monarch couldn’t assist Li Mo in overcoming the Weak Crown Death Disease; all he could do was increase the density of Spiritual Energy within the Practice Hall.

Avoiding any accompanying anomalies was essential; otherwise, significant powers would flock to investigate.

As an exceptional talent of the Sub-Device Sect, Li Mo’s every move could cause intense ripples—some now considered him the foremost among Outer Disciples.

Of course, being recognized as the foremost among Outer Disciples was a reference to talent; his strength was not universally acknowledged as supreme.

Each breath felt unbearably prolonged for Li Mo; his flesh had completely withered, leaving only a thin metallic human skin draped over his bones.

The Double Dantians in his chest emitted a faint glow, particularly the Furnace.

Crack... crack... crack...

Li Mo’s eyes widened; the moment he sensed the Furnace, he immediately triggered the End-of-the-World Dao Seed on his right arm, reducing his hand to ashes.

The pain jolted his brain, temporarily restoring his awareness. He promptly digested the Meat Worm, circulating a surge of warm vitality within his body.

The Blood Soaking Wine’s level slowly decreased.

Li Mo entered a virtuous cycle, his body starting to actively resist the Weak Crown Death Disease.

The Old Earth True Monarch noticed that Li Mo had crossed the threshold of the Death Disease, and it had taken less than a month. Yet his expression didn’t display joy but grew increasingly somber.

Should there come a day when Li Mo, driven by fear of the Death Disease, chooses to transform into the Great Mother, the situation within the Sub-Device Sect would undergo a seismic upheaval.

"Cough, cough..."

Li Mo gasped heavily. It was akin to surviving the Childhood Death Disease just in time.

However, he wasn’t entirely unscathed—without external assistance, his recovery slowed, and his body emitted a faint metallic rust smell.

"The world may have Flawless Golden Cores, but it absolutely does not have flawless bodies."

Li Mo closed his eyes to rejuvenate, and the Old Earth True Monarch departed the Practice Hall, his face haunted by lingering concerns.

No exact date was set for the Golden Cauldron Sect competition, but estimates placed it within five years.

The rules would be entirely dictated by the Mother Furnace, yet even Nascent Soul Great Powers were unclear on the exact mechanisms.

It’s said the competition might also involve the Great Mother.

The Chaotic Burial Furnace grew busier; fields once planted with spiritual materials now lay barren, while buildings underwent emergency reinforcement. Weak Crown Artifact Refiners withdrew from the mountain gate, leaving only seventy-odd Core Formation Artifact Refiners behind.

The Chaotic Burial Furnace was first to head toward Zone 9.

Core Formation Artifact Refiners were bound to be drawn into the Golden Cauldron Sect competition, but only upon reaching the destination could one decide whether to vie for Inner Sect spots amidst relentless perils along the way.

Fortunately, Li Mo was overseeing this time.

Yet a group of Condensation Stage cultivators placing their hopes on the Fake Pill Stage Daoist Qingtian highlighted the singularity of Chaotic Burial Furnace amidst the hundreds of Taoist inheritances within the Sub-Device Sect.