Chapter 1151: Life Ascending |
For ordinary folk, the change wasn't very noticeable. They only felt that being in the Ancestral Court felt better and more comfortable each day, and cultivating here seemed to yield better results with less effort. This effect was particularly pronounced for nymphs.
The Emperors, with their immense divine consciousness, saw things a lot more clearly. They could sense every shift in the energy within the Ancestral Court at all times.
Since the Tower of Life was completed, life energy within the Ancestral Court had grown increasingly dense. But that was to be expected; what came as a surprise was that the natural elemental energies were also gradually purified under its nourishment. They became denser, yet at the same time, they were also gentler and easier to absorb. In other words, this tower was no longer just something that helped prolong people's lives. It was a direct aid to cultivation!
For those already at the peak, like the Sunborne Nymph Emperor or the Undying Demon Emperor, the benefit wasn't as dramatic. But for the weaker ones, such as the Crystal Phoenix Demon Emperor, the change was profound.
Moreover, as days passed with Tang San and Mei Gongzi in seclusion, the Emperors discovered that the life energy released by the tower increased not only in quantity but also in quality.
This revelation shook them. It meant that Jin Miaolin truly was improving during his retreat, and more importantly, that his life energy would continue to increase their lifespan. They were already used to normal life energy and even Blue Gold Fruits no longer did much for them, but this life energy kept evolving just as they built up tolerance!
With that being said, it was no wonder that most Emperors were practically ready to fight their peers for a turn to guard the Blue Gold Palace—the closer they were, the greater the benefits. Nobody was stupid enough to actually attack the palace, so this so-called "guard duty" really only benefited the guardians themselves.
To help them absorb this high-grade life energy, the Council conveniently decreed that no one was allowed to approach within ten kilometers of the Blue Gold Palace.
For all their heightened senses and millennia of experience, however, the Emperors had no way of knowing the reason the life energy continued to rise. The reason Tang San's Blue Gold Transformation imprint evolved, and the Tower of Life resonated with it, was that the chaos energy within his body was growing stronger and stronger.
Bathed in this pool of energy, Mei Gongzi calmly cultivated, and a faint rainbow glow radiated from her skin.
The Emperors' anticipation grew ever keener. If Jin Miaolin could already bring them such benefits, what would he bring once he crossed his tribulation?
The prospect was unimaginable.
***
As the world happily enjoyed this bountiful peace, half a year passed.
The palace remained tranquil, but the steadily intensifying life energy made it clear that the Crown Prince couple was still there, still cultivating, and doing extremely fine.
By now, the Emperors were puzzled. By their estimation, such intensity should have only been possible after Jin Miaolin became Emperor. Yet even though his tribulation had yet to appear, the energy of the Tower of Life had already reached an astounding level. In just this short half a year, nearly every Emperor's lifespan had been extended by a century. A full hundred years! For the younger ones, this was excellent news. For those long-aged, like the Sunborne Nymph Emperor and the Undying Demon Emperor, this was nothing short of a life-saving divine miracle! A hundred more years meant a hundred more chances!
And Jin Miaolin had not ascended.
The Sunborne Nymph Emperor was the most elated. Jin Miaolin had once promised her the very first Blue Gold Fruit nurtured after his ascension. At the time, she had been rather pleased, feeling that it was a worthwhile investment. Now? With the tower's aura so intense, she longed for this fruit with a fervor she hadn't felt in a millennium! Would that fruit add a thousand years to her life? Or maybe five hundred, at least? If so, she might truly reach the level of the Crystal Demon Emperor, and perhaps even surpass her! Nothing could be more enticing!
Yet one day, as the Emperors kept their gaze fixed on the tower, the life energy suddenly stopped rising.
At once, the Emperors gathered around the palace, carefully observing the energy fluctuations. They soon confirmed there was no danger. The palace and tower were both intact, and the energy flow was perfectly controlled. It seemed that there had been no accident; rather, Jin Miaolin had hit a bottleneck. The energy no longer grew because he was nearing his tribulation and he was simply making sure he was in the best state to welcome it.
They were correct.
Inside the Blue Gold Palace, Tang San had indeed refined his chaos energy to its limit. Compressed and refilled again and again, it now filled the Chaos Blue Silver Emperor to the brim, pushing Tang San's cultivation to the absolute peak of the eleventh order.
Mei Gongzi, too, had reached her peak. She dared not cultivate further for fear of triggering her Emperor Tribulation too soon. She remained awake, carefully controlling her breath, guarding Tang San in silence.
At last, Tang San exhaled deeply and opened his eyes.
Sensing him awaken, Mei Gongzi immediately came forward. "How is it?"
Tang San swept his divine consciousness over her and understood her state. "The foundation is complete. Next, I must adjust my bloodline imprints. Go to the thirteenth floor of the tower, so my aura won't trigger your tribulation. Be ready. I won't be long, and when I finish, it will be time for us to cross this one together."
"Alright." She nodded firmly; her eyes were full of concern, but she held back from expressing it to avoid disturbing him.
Only after sensing she was away did Tang San close his eyes once more and turned his gaze toward the inside. His chaos energy had become a whirling gray-white vortex spinning around the Chaos Blue Silver Emperor, the only bloodline imprint that could hold it securely.
He steadied himself.
His divine consciousness, nourished by chaos, life, and immortal energy, had grown vast. His Sea God divine seat was as immovable as a mountain.
Behind him, a faint blue-golden figure took shape—a manifestation identical to himself, but gripping the Sea God's Trident.
In that instant, Tang San's aura was completely masked by the Sea God's divinity. This was the exact point when, from the outside, the Emperors sensed the Tower of Life's aura leveling out.
The Sea God was a high-level divinity from a true divine realm, and its personhood far transcended the level of Planet Falan. Tang San now used its divine aura to conceal what he was doing, preventing the plane from sensing him prematurely.