Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

Xuantian Continent, Tianzhu Mountain.

The wind on the mountaintop carried a slight chill, causing He Damin's clothes to flutter slightly. He stood on the massive rock, smoothed by time, with a sheer cliff below. Clouds swirled around the mountainside like a white belt. Looking up, the sky was a pure, deep blue, a blue that made one feel empty inside.

It's been 340 years.

He Damin exhaled softly, and the breath turned into a white ribbon that quickly dissipated in the mountain wind. Three hundred and forty years had passed, and he had gone from a clueless transmigrator to someone who had stumbled and struggled his way up to the peak of the Tribulation Transcending stage. He was just one step away from touching the threshold of the legendary Immortal Realm.

In the past three hundred years, the most "outrageous" thing he did was probably helping several "fellow countrymen" like him, who were reincarnated into this world with memories of China, to establish five dynasties.

Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty, Ying Zheng of the Qin Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin of the Song Dynasty, and Liu Bang of the Han Dynasty. Which of these five old men wasn't a man of great talent and ambition? With the guidance of this "prophet" and the help of some cultivation resources provided, they managed to manage their respective dynasties in an orderly manner, and now they are super powers on the Xuan Tian Continent, whose every move can make the entire continent tremble.

And the fortunes of these dynasties, like rushing rivers, ultimately flowed into He Damin's body. After all, he was the mastermind behind it all.

"Sigh, I can't hold it in any longer..." He Damin murmured to himself, his voice not loud, but carrying a sense of relief and helplessness.

He could clearly feel that the true essence within his body was surging like an angry ocean. With each breath, a massive amount of spiritual energy from heaven and earth rushed into his body. Within his Purple Mansion, his primordial spirit sat cross-legged on a ninth-grade lotus platform. The lotus platform was nurtured by him with countless rare and precious materials, and now, illuminated by the purple-gold light emanating from his primordial spirit, it seemed almost alive. The light was so intense that it seemed as if it would burst out of his body at any moment and illuminate the entire Tianzhu Mountain.

A dull ache throbbed in my meridians, as if countless tiny needles were pricking me simultaneously. This wasn't an injury, but rather a sign that my body was reaching its limit and was about to give out.

This is a sign of the impending celestial tribulation. There's no escaping it.

"Brother Da Min".

A gentle voice sounded behind him, carrying a familiar warmth. He Damin didn't need to turn around to know it was Chen Xueru.

He turned around and saw Chen Xueru, dressed in an elegant light blue dress, slowly walking to his side. Time seemed to have been exceptionally kind to her; apart from her eyes being more serene and profound than three hundred years ago, imbued with a worldly-wise tranquility, her appearance had hardly changed; she was still the gentle and charming woman he had first met. She reached out and gently grasped He Damin's hand.

He Damin's hands were rough, the marks left by years of refining pills, forging weapons, and inscribing array patterns. Chen Xueru's hands, on the other hand, remained soft.

"Your cultivation level..." He Damin sensed the aura within her body and nodded, "Early stage of the Tribulation Transcending Realm, not bad."

Chen Xueru gave a soft "hmm," feeling a reassuring warmth emanating from her fingertips. "You felt it? Your aura is fluctuating, like water about to boil." Her voice was soft, yet carried an undeniable certainty.

He Damin grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. "Yes, it can't be hidden anymore. The Celestial Tribulation is coming." He paused, his gaze fixed on the sky, "The Nine-Nine Heavenly Tribulation, a total of eighty-one bolts of heavenly lightning. If you survive it, you can ascend to the legendary Immortal Realm in broad daylight. If you don't survive it..."

He didn't say anything more, but the meaning was clear. If one couldn't cross that threshold, it meant death, the dissipation of one's spiritual energy, and the annihilation of one's three hundred years of arduous cultivation, all to nothing.

Chen Xueru tightened her grip on his hand, feeling a slight pressure on her palm. "We'll get through this." She looked into He Damin's eyes, her gaze resolute. "Brother Damin, you will definitely get through this."

He Damin took her hand in return, feeling her trust and strength. He smiled, this time a relaxed smile: "I'm not too worried about not being able to get through it. I'm worried about... what will happen after I get through it."

"After that?" Chen Xueru asked, somewhat puzzled. Ascending to the Immortal Realm—wasn't that the end of cultivation? Was there something wrong with it?

"The Immortal Realm..." He Damin looked up at the sky again, that blue expanse seeming to have become a huge mystery. "Who knows what the Immortal Realm is like? If the Immortal Realm is similar to our Xuan Tian Continent, with mountains and rivers, spiritual veins and resources, that would be fine. But if..."

"If what?" Chen Xueru pressed.

"If the Immortal Realm is really like those stories, with immortals, strict rules, and a rigid hierarchy, what if?" He Damin turned around and looked at Chen Xueru seriously, "Would those cultivators who painstakingly ascended from the lower realms be treated as the lowest-ranking laborers as soon as they arrived in the Immortal Realm? Would they be captured by those veteran immortals and sent to remote mines to mine day and night? Or would they simply be incorporated into some kind of immortal army and used as cannon fodder to fight those inexplicable battles?"

Chen Xueru was stunned. She had never thought of these things before. In her understanding, ascension meant achieving enlightenment, transcending the Three Realms and the Five Elements, and attaining carefree freedom and immortality. What He Damin said completely overturned her imagination of the immortal realm.

She was silent for a moment before asking softly, "Brother Damin, do you... know something?"

He Damin shook his head and said with a wry smile, "How would I know anything? It's all just guessing. But, as you know, sometimes when I think about things, I'm not too far off the mark."

He recalled the cultivation novels he had read on Earth in his previous life. Novels like "XX's Cultivation Tale" and "XX's Mortal Cultivation Tale" described as where ascension wasn't the end, but rather an even more brutal beginning. The immortal realm had Heavenly Immortals, True Immortals, Golden Immortals, Taiyi Golden Immortals, Daluo Golden Immortals… a strict hierarchy rising layer by layer. The struggles, schemes, and oppression were no less intense than in the lower realms. Those "newcomers" who ascended from the lower realms, lacking foundation and background, often ended up at the very bottom, constantly bullied and exploited. Mining and being cannon fodder were the least of their worries.

He Damin had no desire to become a beast of burden in the celestial realm. He had toiled for three hundred years, not to suffer in another place.

"Xue Ru," He Damin took a deep breath, his eyes sharpening, "I have a plan."

"What plan?" Chen Xueru looked at the glint in his eyes and knew he was definitely not joking.

"Smuggling." He Damin uttered two words with a resolute tone, "We won't follow the rules to undergo this immortal tribulation; we'll find a way to enter the immortal realm directly."

"Smuggling?" Chen Xueru was completely dumbfounded. "How can you enter the Immortal Realm without undergoing the Immortal Tribulation? Isn't the Immortal Tribulation the key to opening the passage to the Immortal Realm?" This is common sense, and all cultivators know it.

He Damin laughed, a sly glint in his eyes: "Who said ascension necessarily requires tribulation? Tribulation is indeed for opening the passage to the Immortal Realm. But once the passage is open, I can find a way to get in. As for tribulation..."

He deliberately kept everyone in suspense, paused for a moment, and then continued, "I can use that 'flying saucer' in the small world to help me get through it."

"A UFO?" Chen Xueru opened her mouth, somewhat incredulous. "Is that the iron lump you found in that 'alien relic' three hundred years ago? It... it can withstand the heavenly tribulation?" She had seen that thing before; it was a silver-gray disc that looked quite sturdy, but she really had no idea whether it could withstand the immense power of a celestial tribulation.

"Three hundred years ago, atop the Taihang Mountains, it helped me withstand it once," He Damin recalled, his gaze drifting into the distance as if he could see the scene from that time again. "Back then, I had just reached the Nascent Soul stage and attracted the Nascent Soul tribulation lightning, almost killing me. It was it that bravely withstood it for me. Now it cultivates alongside me and has reached the peak of the Tribulation Transcending stage. Withstanding this immortal tribulation should... be no problem, right?"

The last "ba" made him feel a little guilty. After all, the tribulation of Nascent Soul and the tribulation of Immortal were worlds apart.

"But," Chen Xueru still worried, "will the UFO have enough energy? Withstanding the heavenly tribulation will definitely consume a huge amount of energy, right?"

"Not enough." He Damin shook his head frankly. "So, for the past three hundred years, I've been secretly recharging it. From the top-grade spiritual vein at the foot of Tianzhu Mountain, to the national fortune dragon energy of those five dynasties, and even the dragon essence of those old dragons deep in the Endless Sea, I've managed to 'borrow' some of it... After three hundred years, it should... be enough, right?"

It's another "吧" character.

Chen Xueru looked at him for a long while, then nodded gently and asked no more questions. She knew He Damin; he wasn't the kind of person to act rashly. Since he had said that, he must have been seven or eight parts confident. Even if he was only seven or eight parts confident, it was still worth a try. It was better than the unknown hardships he might face after ascending to immortality.

In the following year, He Damin began to arrange his "funeral affairs" in an orderly manner.

He first found his most outstanding disciple, Lin Feng.

Lin Feng has now reached the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, and his alchemy skills have surpassed those of his master. In the entire Xuan Tian Continent, his alchemy attainments are second only to He Damin, and he is known as the "Little Alchemy Saint." At this moment, he is wearing a white alchemist's robe and is carefully refining a "Nine-Turn Rejuvenating Grass" in the alchemy hall of the He Clan Immortal Sect.

Upon seeing He Damin enter, Lin Feng quickly put down his work and respectfully bowed, saying, "Master."

He Damin walked to the alchemy furnace, looked at the bubbling medicinal liquid inside, and nodded in satisfaction: "Hmm, the heat control is quite good. Lin Feng, the sect's alchemy hall will depend on you from now on."

Lin Feng was taken aback. He looked up and saw the unusual solemnity in his master's eyes. His heart skipped a beat: "Master, you...you're leaving?"

"It's not about leaving, it's about going to see a higher place." He Damin patted his shoulder, quite firmly. "The He Clan Immortal Sect was built by me, and now I'm handing it over to you. Manage it well, don't disgrace the He family. Remember, protect the sect, and protect those who trust us."

Lin Feng's eyes instantly reddened, and his voice choked with emotion: "Disciple...disciple understands! Master, rest assured, Lin Feng will dedicate himself to the utmost, even unto death!"

He Damin smiled, said nothing more, and turned to leave the alchemy hall. Some things are better left unsaid.

Then, he called Li Zhi over.

Li Zhi, the founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty, is now at the peak of the Mahayana stage of cultivation and is also the leader of the Five Kingdoms Alliance. The Tang, Qin, Ming, Song, and Han dynasties—these five dynasties founded by the souls of the Chinese people—have, under his coordination, united as one, becoming a behemoth that no one on the Xuan Tian Continent dares to provoke.

At this moment, Li Zhi was dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe. Although he was already a cultivator, the imperial aura of someone who had long held a high position was still strong. He came to He Damin and bowed slightly: "Senior He, did you look for me?" In front of He Damin, he never acted like an emperor and always maintained the humility of a junior.

"Li Zhi, I'm leaving." He Damin looked at him and got straight to the point.

Li Zhi was stunned for a moment, a look of astonishment on his face: "Leave? Where are you going, Senior?"

"The Immortal Realm," He Damin uttered.

Li Zhi remained silent for a long time, long enough for the mountain wind to blow and stir up a few fallen leaves. He slowly raised his head, looking at He Damin with a complex expression: "Senior He, will you... come back?"

He Damin smiled, a smile that carried a hint of nonchalance, but also a touch of uncertainty: "Perhaps. Perhaps... I won't come back." He paused, his tone becoming solemn, "But whether I return or not, I entrust this Xuan Tian Continent, this land where we, the descendants of the Chinese nation, can take root again, to you."

Li Zhi took a deep breath, then solemnly bowed deeply to He Damin, his waist bent very low: "Senior He, rest assured! As long as Li Zhi is here, he will ensure that Chinese civilization takes root and flourishes in this world, is passed down for generations, and will never be forgotten!"

He Damin looked at his resolute eyes and nodded with satisfaction. With Li Zhi around, he could indeed rest assured.

Finally, He Damin returned to the valley where they had originally lived in seclusion.

In the valley, the pomegranate tree that he and Chen Xueru planted with their own hands has now grown lush and verdant, its branches providing ample shade. Bright red pomegranates hang heavily from the branches, like tiny lanterns, gleaming alluringly in the sunlight. Several small, unidentified colorful birds hop and play among the branches, chirping and frolicking, filling the air with life.