What is an immortal?

"My understanding of him isn't actually profound. The Stealing Heaven Tripod is considered his final creation, and because of this, in my eyes, he is a white-haired elder, and perhaps this is his true form." Kong continued to recall the past.

Yuan Ming listened to Kong's narration, and couldn't help but feel a surge of unexplainable reverence.

He suddenly thought of a question: "So, by placing his corpse here, does it mean the Stealing Heaven Tripod is actually his coffin?"

Kong nodded slightly, with a hint of complex emotion flashing in his eyes: "Perhaps, I can't guess his true intention. But one thing is certain, although he has already passed away, this corpse retains a trace of the divine. You only need to respectfully bow before him and can ask any question, and he will answer. The premise is that you must offer corresponding Desire Power as compensation, otherwise he won't speak."

Yuan Ming was taken aback upon hearing this, finding this method of obtaining answers somewhat familiar.

He looked thoughtfully at Kong, who seemed to have guessed his thoughts, and smiled faintly: "That's right, it was through his power that I answered those questions for you back then."

Yuan Ming didn't regard Kong lightly because of this. Instead, he felt grateful.

After all, without Kong's guidance, he couldn't have received the help of this statue.

"May I ask where the Earth Element Stone is now?" Yuan Ming pondered for a moment, tidied his garments, and respectfully bowed toward the statue.

Before he could finish speaking, Kong interrupted: "There's no need to ask him this question. I previously promised to help you repair the Stealing Heaven Tripod. I already know the whereabouts of the Earth Element Stone; it is in Nine Kings Lake."

Nine Kings Lake, this name wasn't unfamiliar to Yuan Ming.

Though it's located in the distant Central Continent, for him now, the distance isn't an issue.

Since Kong had already informed him of the Earth Element Stone's location, Yuan Ming felt no need to ask further.

He pondered for a moment and thought of another question.

"Please help me identify the location of cultivators or spiritual treasures containing the Water Emperor, Earth Emperor, and Gold Emperor True Intent." Yuan Ming respectfully requested from the statue.

As soon as he spoke, the statue in the hall suddenly showed movement.

It slowly raised its head, and unexpectedly, two faint rays of spirit light shone from its hollow eyes, directly illuminating Yuan Ming.

Yuan Ming suddenly felt a sensation of being watched by a mysterious power, startling him.

However, what further surprised him was that at this moment, the Primordial Dao Seal within his Dantian suddenly began to operate autonomously, emitting a faint glow.

"This technique's future achievements are immeasurable, you should cultivate it well." The statue suddenly spoke while pointing to Yuan Ming's Dantian.

Yuan Ming was greatly shocked, hurriedly extended his Divine Sense to inspect, only to find that there was no life force present on the statue.

"Senior Kong, are you certain he has truly passed away?" He couldn't help but feel puzzled, turning to look at Kong.

"He absolutely cannot be alive; I personally witnessed his sitting transformation and handled the last step of his body transforming into the statue, without a doubt!" Kong now also showed a look of astonishment.

Yuan Ming looked at the statue before him, feeling uncertain.

Though he doubted whether the creator of the Stealing Heaven Tripod still resided in the human world, the statue indeed showed no signs of life, this he could not be mistaken about.

After all, he possessed the World Tree, making his perception of life force extremely sharp.

The statue, however, seemed to take no notice of Yuan Ming and Kong's surprise, continuing to mechanically respond to Yuan Ming's question.

"For your question, a thousand Vow Power Pills are required as the price for answers." The statue's tone was cold and stiff, void of any emotion.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming frowned.

Since the establishment of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, the number of his believers rapidly increased, resulting in the accelerated generation of Vow Power Pills—a pill can be condensed almost every day.

However, the consumption of Vow Power Pills was equally immense.

To enhance the strength of the Nether Moon Sect, he recently invested almost without regard to cost, now having only slightly over a hundred Vow Power Pills left in his possession.

"Can you make an exception? Or just inform me of the location of a cultivator possessing Emperor-level True Intent?" Yuan Ming hesitated, pondering on how to gather those thousand Vow Power Pills.

The statue remained silent for a long while, seemingly contemplating Yuan Ming's request.

After a lengthy pause, it finally spoke again: "The thousand Vow Power Pills can be paid in installments over a maximum of ten years."

Yuan Ming breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

Though needing many Vow Power Pills, ten years' duration is certainly feasible.

He had already decided to immediately adjust the expenditure plan for Vow Power Pills upon returning, striving to fill this debt sooner.

"There are twenty-seven suitable cultivators or spiritual treasures, the list is as follows..." The statue instantly absorbed the hundred Vow Power Pills from Yuan Ming's hand, its eyes flashing with spirit light for a moment, then reported the desired answers one by one.

Yuan Ming focused his mind, memorizing every piece of information provided by the statue.

He couldn't help but marvel; also, that thousand Vow Power Pills were certainly not spent in vain.

The list given by the statue not only detailed the specific positions of each person or spiritual treasure but also included their general information.

What truly surprised Yuan Ming was the realization that the Chuyun Realm had so many cultivators or spiritual treasures possessing Emperor-level True Intent.

He initially estimated the number to be less than ten, but now it seemed the actual figure exceeded twice his estimate.

Yuan Ming memorized all the information, then after a brief contemplation, selected three of the easiest targets.

He again looked at the statue, showing respect, and slowly bowed, then asked: "Dare I ask, Senior, what extraordinary qualities does 'Primordial True Skill' possess?"

The statue remained motionless, like a lifeless object.

The spirit light in its eyes quickly faded away, as if it had never been awakened.

"Before you pay off a thousand Vow Power Pills, he won't answer any questions." Kong reminded.

His expression calmed at this moment, he looked down at Yuan Ming's Dantian: "Moreover, this statue has high standards. Since the 'Primordial True Skill' can elicit a reaction from its corpse, it shows this skill is extraordinary. The number of Vow Power Pills needed for an answer to your question would be considerable."

Yuan Ming nodded, realizing this point himself. His previous question was merely to test if the statue would show any other special reactions.

Since the test proved futile, he could only suppress his doubt for now and turned to leave the grand hall.

...

Ten Thousand Demon Country.

In a quiet seclusion room, Wu Yu sat cross-legged quietly, forming seals with her hands as demonic power surged, circulating her cultivation technique to heal the injury from her failed Mahayana breakthrough.

The seclusion room was softly lit, the air filled with a faint scent of spiritual medicine.

As time passed, Wu Yu's complexion gradually improved, but her cultivation had yet to restore to the peak of Dharma manifestation.

The failure of that Mahayana breakthrough caused irreparable harm to her foundation, which she understood could not be fully recovered in a short time.

She closed her eyes in contemplation, a trace of worry rose in her heart.

Uncertain when she might finally exit this seclusion room and see the light of day again.

What would the state of Ten Thousand Demon Country be like then?

Just as she sighed inwardly, the seclusion room's door opened slowly, yet no one stepped out.

This strange occurrence tightened Wu Yu's heart, she immediately gathered demonic power, vigilantly focusing on the door.

"Who's there? Great Sun Glaze Flame, is it you?" Wu Yu shouted, her voice tinged with tension.

The seclusion room remained silent with no response.

Her Divine Sense quickly scanned the entire room, finding no trace of anyone.

This eerie scene left Wu Yu even more unsettled, barely daring to breathe.

At this moment, Wu Yu suddenly noticed the Ju Mang Taoist Pearl placed not far away had vanished into thin air, replaced by a white jade porcelain bottle.

Startled, she immediately cast a spell with a gesture, her fox tail's shadow swept toward that direction but hit nothing.

The door of the seclusion room then slowly closed again, the light sound like a thunderclap to Wu Yu's ears.

She instantly stood up, quickly walked to the door, checked the Forbidden seals carefully, confirmed they were undamaged, and looked back inside.

The room was silent as if nothing had happened.

Wu Yu knew clearly that the Ju Mang Taoist Pearl had indeed disappeared, and that white jade porcelain bottle was no illusion.

She walked up to the porcelain bottle, cautiously probing its contents with her Divine Sense.

Inside the bottle was an elixir, exuding a rich fragrance, evidently a high-grade elixir meant to heal the foundation.

Staring at the elixir, waves surged in Wu Yu's heart.

She recalled notes she saw years ago, a myriad of possible names flickered in her mind.

"Nine Infant? Or…" she murmured quietly, her expression hard to decipher.

She knew this elixir didn't appear without cause, there must be a deeper meaning behind it.

On the other side, Yuan Ming had already casually walked out of the Demon Emperor Hall.

Using the invisibility ability of the Yin Moon Body, he left without alerting anyone.

He fiddled with the Ju Mang Taoist Pearl he had just acquired, his heart filled with emotion.

Thinking of Wu Yu whom he just saw, he couldn't help but sigh softly.

The once formidable Wu Yu who pressured him was no longer his match after failing a Mahayana breakthrough.

He could have taken the Ju Mang Taoist Pearl directly, but thought it over and left a bottle of elixir to heal the foundation instead.

He knew though Wu Yu's cultivation was damaged, her influence in Ten Thousand Demon Country remained substantial.

If she could recover her cultivation soon, she might stabilize the situation in Ten Thousand Demon Country a bit.

Currently, Ten Thousand Demon Country's demon kings rule independently, splitting into factions and fighting one another, making the situation increasingly unstable.

Though this conflict benefits the Human Clan, Yuan Ming understood that if turmoil in Ten Thousand Demon Country escalated excessively, it would inevitably affect the stability and productivity of the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain Range.

Therefore, a chaotic yet not overly chaotic Ten Thousand Demon Country was Yuan Ming's ideal.

While contemplating the future of Ten Thousand Demon Country in his mind, he quickly flew, racing toward the nearest city.

Having obtained the Ju Mang Taoist Pearl containing the Wood Emperor's True Intent, next, he would venture outside the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain Range, seeking other targets mentioned by the statue.