Daotian sat cross-legged, his gaze listless as he stared at the sky. His hair was a brittle, frosty white, and his breath was so faint it seemed he might depart this world at any moment.
"Why didn't I leave back then?" Daotian squinted at the artificial sky above and let out a soft sigh.
Long, long ago, there was a poor youth who sought a lucky break to become one of those lofty, exalted immortals.
He braved countless hardships, presenting himself at sect after sect, but not a single one would take him. His innate talent was deemed too poor.
Decades passed. The youth from back then was now in his fifties, yet nothing could halt his footsteps.
He refused to be discouraged by the words of others. Even if it killed him, he would never stop.
He caught whispers about the existence of elixirs. He became convinced that if he could only create one, he would finally be able to cultivate.
On an unnamed mountain, he accidentally stumbled into a strange, separate dimension.
A large stone stele stood there, inscribed with lines of characters glowing with golden light: "If you are willing to pay the price, you can reach the pinnacle."
For the Daotian of that year, merely being able to cultivate would have been the greatest joy of his life, let alone reaching the pinnacle.
Inside this space, the spiritual energy was exceptionally dense. A mediocrity like him could cultivate here as efficiently as the most talented genius outside.
Furthermore, there were countless ancient manuals, alchemy recipes, cultivation techniques… everything one needed to reach the peak was laid out before him.
But as the years rolled by, when he finally touched that so-called peak, he realized it was as fake as the sky above his head.
He was just one step away. Yet, that single step felt longer than the entire lifetime of struggle he had already endured. He was powerless, utterly alone. The freedom he had once scorned was now also gone, trapped as he was in this place.
He had traded everything for a false summit. He… was filled with regret and bitterness.
"Although this was my choice back then… damn it! Where is the pinnacle you promised? I'm clearly just one step away! None of the ancient texts here even mention a tenth realm, yet I can clearly feel it right before my eyes!" Daotian gritted his teeth, the weakness in his eyes now swallowed by raging flames.
But after only a few breaths, he sighed again. There was no one here to answer him. The endless, lonely passage of time had made him lose track of the years and months.
"Whatever. I'm going to die anyway. Might as well give it one last try."
Daotian slowly rose to his feet, his gaze resolute, deciding that this would be the final moment of his life.
Crackle, crackle, CRACKLE!
Bolts of lightning erupted from all over his body, growing increasingly powerful until they coalesced into a majestic thunder dragon.
From his glabella, an electric cudgel materialized in his hand.
He swung the cudgel a few times, the colossal thunder dragon coiling around it, forming black lightning bolts saturated with destructive power.
The surrounding space trembled, fissures spider-webbing across it. Yet, the outermost barrier didn't show a single scratch.
"Ah," Daotian sighed, feeling somewhat ridiculous. "I'm this powerful, yet it still feels like a locust trying to topple an elephant."
Contrary to his words, his hand gripped the cudgel tightly, not loosening for a second. This was his final stand against the goal he had pursued his entire life.
Judgment of the Storm Dragon!
Daotian clenched the cudgel with both hands and swung it with all his might. The mighty thunder dragon shot straight towards the sky.
The annihilating black lightning and the deafening roar shattered the space around them. The impenetrable barrier that had stood firm for countless years finally began to show a network of cracks.
His eyes widened in disbelief at the bizarre scene unfolding before him. He had tried countless times—thousands, tens of thousands, so many he'd lost count—but he had never once managed to cause even a scratch.
"HAHAHA! Let me go crazy one last time! I will shatter this damnable barrier!" Daotian screamed, gritting his teeth. Torrents of spiritual power surged out from him uncontrollably.
A smile, unseen for who knows how many years, finally reappeared on his face.
This time, he would succeed. He had to smash this place that had imprisoned him for so long to finally vent the rage in his heart.
CRACK... CRACK!
The cracks spread rapidly, and then the entire barrier shattered. The already devastated surrounding space completely collapsed.
In this terrifying environment, forget life, even matter would be torn into its smallest components upon entering.
"HAHAHAHA! I broke it! I finally shattered this damned barrier!" Daotian laughed heartily, his arms now hanging limply at his sides.
His body, which didn't have long to live anyway, had been pushed to its absolute limit this time, accelerating his remaining time even faster.
'If only I could have another chance at life...' This final thought flashed through his mind. In this life, he still had regrets.
His consciousness faded, his eyes quickly turning vacant. His frail body was torn apart by the terrifying shockwaves and vanished into the void.
From within his disintegrating form, a brilliant light suddenly erupted. A strange, glowing object floated amidst the emptiness.
Its shape gradually became clear: it was an ancient, metallic sphere, incessantly absorbing the minute fragments of his dissolving body.
...
'I... I'm not dead?' The thought crossed Daotian's mind, and then he felt that something was very wrong with his body.
He couldn't open his eyes, nor could he move. His entire being felt like it had turned into a stone statue.
His weak soul force spread throughout his... form... to assess his current situation.
'How... How is this possible? Why have I become a lump of metal?'
Daotian was stunned, unable to immediately adapt to this bizarre circumstance.
'But why does this thing feel so familiar?'
A memory flashed in his mind, recalling his first days within that strange space.
Among the cultivation resources and materials, he had once stumbled upon a peculiar metal lump.
At first, he thought it was some kind of treasure. But after finding it utterly useless except for being incredibly hard, he had dismissed it as worthless and forgotten about it entirely.
'Hah, damn. To think I'd continue existing because of this thing.' Daotian thought to himself, his damaged soul managing a satisfied smile.