Modern World's Martial Dao Human Immortal

"Hoo!"

It took Alkaid a full three days to digest all the information about the hierarchies of the Immortal Realm.

Looking at the progress, which was as high as 81/10000, there was not a hint of relief in his expression.

"Not far from one percent, and one percent is equivalent to stepping into the Immortal Venerable domain…"

Inevitably, these pieces of information touched upon records concerning the Immortal Realm.

Therefore, by piecing together this information and using the Mysterious Origin Creation Technique from the Creation Group, he understood that beings of the Immortal Realm almost always had Foundation Establishment cultivation at birth, and usually reached Core Formation by adulthood. Those with sturdy bodies could ignite their Heart Fire and enter the Heavenly Fire Realm.

Above that were the Golden Core Realm and the Void Refinement Realm.

Dao Lord was the lifelong pursuit of everyone.

As for Immortals, they were considered greater beings in the eyes of the creatures of the Immortal Realm, capable of deciding the fate of billions of lives within a domain.

Ordinary beings in the Immortal Realm might never encounter a real Immortal in their lifetimes.

As for Immortal Venerables…

They were beyond the comprehension of ordinary Immortal Realm beings.

Now, Alkaid had reached a stage near the Immortal Venerable Level in his realm's progress, and theoretically, it should be easy for him to attempt a minor Integrate Dao.

But it turns out…

"Integrate Dao… depends on ranking."

Alkaid was speechless.

As long as there is no "vacancy" in the Great Dao Principles of the Void, no matter what level your realm has reached, you might not succeed.

Cultivators "Integrate Dao" by looking for a "vacancy" in the Great Void Path to insert themselves into.

If there are absolutely no "vacancies," a cultivator could only continue to be lost within the Great Void Path, until they are completely Dao Transformed.

This process cannot be reversed, no matter how well you understand the Great Void Path beforehand.

"Immortal Realm!"

Alkaid murmured these two words.

With some dissatisfaction, he issued an order, "Have Yue Kuhai, the Peak Master, bring me all the Dao Lord's ascension data."

"Yes."

Tang Fenghua, who was waiting outside Abandoned Heaven Valley, responded.

Soon after, this former Vein Master appeared outside Abandoned Heaven Valley.

"Sect Leader."

Seeing Alkaid waiting for him in the visitor area at the mouth of the valley, Yue Kuhai hurriedly bowed, his expression cautious.

After all, he had been appointed by Zong Wenxian as a previous Vein Master.

Being an elder during the previous Sect Leader's term, he was naturally nervous in front of Alkaid, the new Sect Leader.

"Did you bring the data?"

Alkaid asked.

"I did."

Yue Kuhai quickly produced dozens of jade talismans, "Our Heavenly Dao Sect was founded by the Hongmeng Dao Venerable and is one of the oldest legacies on Northern Sea Star, and our heritage has never been interrupted. We've collected very detailed data over the years. We have compiled one thousand and ninety-six sets of information on Dao Lords' ascensions, all cataloged according to the cycle of the opening of the Gate of the Immortal Realm."

Alkaid took the jade talismans and began examining them one by one.

The more he looked, the closer he was to confirming a suspicion.

And his expression…

grew increasingly grim.

This scene made Yue Kuhai next to him tremble with fear, worried that the new Sect Leader might use this as an excuse to send him to the front lines to fight the Yin Moon Sect, effectively getting rid of him.

This agony lasted for a full day.

Finally…

Alkaid put down the last jade talisman.

He glanced at the anxious Yue Kuhai and waved his hand.

"You may go."

"I shall take my leave."

Yue Kuhai breathed a sigh of relief.

He left quickly.

Once he had gone, Alkaid's gaze returned to the jade talismans.

"Heavenly Dao Sect's heritage till now—thousands of ascension records… and out of these one thousand and ninety-six ascension records, it turns out over seventy percent of the Dao Lords achieved their status soon after the end of a Dao conflict… or even during it."

Alkaid murmured to himself.

At this moment, he finally understood why, when a Dao conflict approached and knowing that Northern Sea Star would turn into a terrifying battlefield, those Shattered Voids who stood at the peak of Northern Sea wouldn't choose to hide in the starry skies and remain hidden for hundreds or thousands of years to avoid the confrontation.

For many Shattered Voids, the Dao conflicts were not only perilous but also opportunities.

However, their notion of opportunity differed from his understanding.

For Shattered Voids, during the period of the Dao conflict, they had more opportunities to witness Dao Lords firsthand and comprehend the Dao's essence radiating from them.

They also had a greater chance of observing life-and-death battles between Dao Lords, thus touching more deeply on the domain of Dao Lords.

Moreover, that extremely perilous sometimes deadly environment, could also stimulate their minds, making their thinking more active.

Not to mention that sometimes when a Dao Lord fell, he would leave behind a trove of treasures and legacies, which were the foundations for their future rise.

Fortune favors the bold!

This was the philosophy of these Shattered Voids.

Moreover, the Shattered Voids that truly dared to stay during the period of the Dao conflict were generally those individuals with determination and conviction.

They were, by nature, far more likely to advance than those who couldn't handle the pressure and left Northern Sea Star.

In this situation, a surge in the ascension of Shattered Voids to Integrate Dao occurred after every Dao conflict, or even during, completing a new cycle of power reshuffling on Northern Sea Star in just a few thousand years.

Everything… made perfect sense.

No one would suspect that it was because too many Integrate Daos fell during the period of the Dao conflict, creating many vacancies, making it easier for the Shattered Voids to break through during this time.

"Positions!"

Alkaid spoke, and at the same time, he couldn't help but think of the recently fallen Abyssal Ruins Dao Lord.

"The fall of the Abyssal Ruins Dao Lord... a position for a Dao Lord in the Great Void Path should now be vacant... but..."

Alkaid pondered for a moment and ultimately decided to follow his own original path.

He closed his eyes.

With a high comprehension level of 81/10000 in the Great Void Path flowing in his mind.

The near Immortal Venerable level of realm comprehension allowed the myriad changes of the Great Void Path to manifest clearly in his mind, not only comparable to a Dao Lord, but he could also far outstrip most of the immortals.

With these comprehensions, even with just the peak Dao artifacts leveraging the power of the Great Dao phantoms, he could achieve significant effects with minimal effort.

Moreover...

He walked the path of the Human Immortal, and the peak Dao artifacts he refined were made with Immortal Artifact materials; on his own, he might well be able to contend with a Dao Lord.

Of course, the gap between a Dao Lord and the Shattered Void was huge, like a chasm between heaven and earth; even so, he still could not confront a true Dao Lord.

But if he were to complement it with a fifteenth-level formation...

Alkaid's eyes suddenly opened, a fierce light mixed with a trace of determination flashed by.

"I'll stick to my original plan!"

Alkaid said solemnly, "In integrating Dao, there will be those who rob, if I integrate Dao, there will surely be a Dao Lord from the Great Void Path who comes to obstruct, and then...I will kill him, and use the 'vacancy' that emerges to break through all in one go, stepping into the realm of Integrating Dao!"

Immediately, Alkaid settled his heart.

In fact, the high progress level of 81/10000 also involved some unorthodox and secondary methods of attaining Dao.

However, these methods for attaining Dao required a "skill close to the Dao" and were extremely biased.

Cultivators are equivalent to dedicating all their heart, mind, and energy to the "Dao" they study.

For such people, everything in the human world, including their own lives, is less significant than one ten-thousandth of the "path" they pursue.

If possible, they would die willingly for the "Dao" envisioned in their hearts, not only without feeling sadness or fear, but instead feeling great joy and delight.

Adhering to this belief, they ultimately break through their limits in an impossible-to-possible manner, elevating themselves.

And Alkaid...

While his formation, Artifact Refining, and Alchemy had all reached the 0% progress level of the sixteenth level, to say he could invest all his energy and even life into these "paths" was obviously false.

After all, his initial purpose in cultivating was to make his life better and more secure.

How could he truly risk life and death for the so-called "Dao"?

Unable to invest all including life, he naturally couldn't transcend his limits at the moment of making the impossible possible and elevate himself by successfully attaining Dao through an unorthodox method of "skill virtually becoming Dao."

"A person is valuable in self-awareness, recognizing what one can do based on one's abilities. I don't have that kind of openness and belief, so I'll proceed step by step, according to the plan I've made."

Alkaid's thoughts were clear.

He acknowledged his own shortcomings.

Then he shifted his focus to the Human Emperor Sword and the Endless Tower, becoming busy once again.

He resumed refining these Dao artifacts for several days, soon receiving a message.

As he controlled the Twelve Divine Demons Heavenly Sealing Formation, soon, the figure of the Penglai Dao Lord appeared in the Abandoned Heaven Valley.

"Did you ascend with this fifteenth-level formation?"

The Penglai Dao Lord asked.

"Yes."

"Quite impressive. With this formation guarding, even I can't sneak into the Heavenly Dao Sect unnoticed; I still need to notify you."

The Penglai Dao Lord said with a smile.

"The Dao Lord is too kind."

Alkaid then asked, "Hei Yue Demon Venerable and Jade Kirin Demon Saint..."

"Escaped."

The Penglai Dao Lord said, huffing lightly, "One day, I will enter the Nine Veins of Demon Immortals and in front of several other Demon race Integrating Dao, slay this Demon Saint."

Having said this, she then turned her attention to the two peak Dao artifacts Alkaid was refining.

Upon seeing the Human Emperor Sword already taking shape, she couldn't help but express some surprise, "So soon?"

"I was just about to inform you that I need your help to complete the final refining,"

Alkaid nodded.

"I underestimated your artifact refining skills."

The Penglai Dao Lord observed the simultaneously refined Endless Tower, "The foremost Artifact Sage of the Northern Sea Star is none other than you."

"You flatter me."

Alkaid spoke and without further delay said, "Let's not delay, let's begin."

"Alright."

…

As Alkaid and the Penglai Dao Lord joined forces to refine the two great peak Dao artifacts, the news of the Abyssal Ruins Dao Lord's fall at the Heavenly Dao Sect spread like a storm in all directions.

With the spreading of the news, many gradually understood the causes and consequences of this great battle.

The clash between Dao Lords made too much noise.

The Northern Sea Star couldn't keep it hidden even if they wanted to.

This battle, through the fall of a Dao Lord, made the Penglai Dao Lord personally step forward to announce to the world that she was now Alkaid's new Protector.

However, few were surprised by this.

Since attaining the Hollow Void Realm, Alkaid's relationship with the Penglai Immortal Sect had been somewhat ambiguous.

Decades ago, his mysterious behind-the-scenes Artifact Sage was rumored to have tried assisting the Penglai Dao Lord in refining top-tier Dao artifacts.

This Dao Lord stepping forward as the protector of Alkaid, the genius of the Great Void Path...

Made sense.

What surprised people was only the fall of the Abyssal Ruins Dao Lord.

His fall undeniably signaled a message.

The once millennial Dao conflict of the Northern Sea Star...

Was about to begin.