Divine Emperor of Death

"So what matters is the first immortalization of ourselves."

"Exactly." Founder Alstreim nodded with a satisfied smile, "The starting point is important, and from there, they are only little variations that could be spun to the Immortal Vessel in order to improve it."

"That's why it is important to have peaked in all three cultivations before breaking through to the Immortal Foundation Stage. Don't ever be like me."

Founder Alstreim shook his head, causing Davis to raise his brows.

"Founder didn't achieve Peak-Level Ninth Stage in all cultivation systems?"

His question caused Founder Alstreim to be tongue-tied before he wryly chuckled, "If I could've peaked in all three cultivation systems, I would've made the Alstreim Family a Mid-Sized Territory Hegemon long ago before leaving."

"…" Davis also wryly smiled, feeling that he had asked an insensitive question to a logical conclusion.

At this moment, Lea returned with a bright smile behind her crimson veil.

"What are you two talking about?"

Davis lightly smiled and explained what he came to know, causing her to join in the conversation as well. Hearing Davis explaining to Lea, Founder Alstreim saw that he had absorbed what he told him, causing him to open his mouth.

"Indeed, I'll tell you two what kind of Immortal Vessel I have after explaining about the three levels to the Mortal Immortal Vessel."

Founder Alstreim took on from there, adopting a studious expression on his face.

"The first level is called average Mortal Immortal Vessel, one that is obtained by having a Peak-Level Ninth Stage Cultivation in essence or body cultivation while having non-peaked cultivation in the other cultivation system. It doesn't provide any increase in prowess, but it doesn't lower the prowess like a Cracked Immortal Vessel either."

"As for the second level, that's called the unperfected Mortal Immortal Vessel, which requires you to have peaked in body and essence cultivation and increases your prowess by half a level. There's no way around it. On the other hand, if you peaked in essence and soul or body and soul cultivation, then congratulations, you won't create a Mortal Immortal Vessel but would have created a Cracked Immortal Vessel. But for the soul, you would've created an unperfected Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel."

Looking at Davis make a confused expression while Lea's eyes squinted, Founder Alstreim knowingly smiled and nodded.

"For now, we won't go into the Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel as that gets even more confusing for you two without learning what the Mortal Immortal Vessel for body and essence is first."

"Alright. Continue…" Davis pursed his lips, wondering why he mentioned that then.

To look smug?

"For the third and final level of the Mortal Immortal Vessel, called the perfected Mortal Immortal Vessel, it allows the prowess to increase by one level, and to achieve that is rather simple. Just reached the Peak-Level Ninth Stage in all three cultivations and perform a breakthrough." Founder Alstreim shrugged but produced a wry expression on his face, "Yet that's what I and many others failed to achieve that I muse only the Heaven Mandate Temple and Heaven Gazing Sect's Immortals are in this level."

"Back then, I belonged to the declining Windstorm Family in the Desolate Territory that is now called the Tripartite Alliance Territory. It was nothing but a family made of two people, my father and me. I was talented, and my father did everything to protect me as I grew under his wings, but that didn't last long as he died to my enemies. Those enemies were from a branch power of a larger power, so I cultivated hard and rooted them out, establishing the Alstreim Family right in their location as I gained recognition from the Four Great Righteous Sects."

Davis slightly gawked, wondering if his Founder was a main character of his era.

"Only then did I read the letter my father left me after his death. I came to know about my origins that I had a minute amount of spirit blood within me as our ancestor of many unknown generations was a half-human and a half-spirit and that my genes had inherited the talent of that ancestor."

"As for that spirit's name, it was called the Windstorm Binding Spirit, also called as the Windstorm Binding Wisp, ranked second in the Emperor Grade Wind Elemental Charts in the First Haven World."

Lea's eyes went wide at this shocking origin.

Ranked second in the Emperor Grade Wind Elemental Charts in the First Haven World? It was ranked first in the Fifty-Two Territories!

Even Davis was flabbergasted as he had memorized the charts for Spirit Attribute Sources long ago. The rank difference between first and second was wide apart despite just being next to each other, so it was plain to see that the Windstorm Binding Wisp was extremely strong, but even in the First Haven World, where more Spirit Attribute Sources could exist, it was second? It just moved from first to second rank?

At the very least, Davis and Lea felt that it told volumes about its prowess.

"Although this is a source of pride, I didn't reveal the full details because it might cause the Alstreim Family to end up in danger as spirit blood combined with human blood is rather valuable to increase one's Soul Forging Cultivation just like a spirit race's spirit core. Although the current descendants have almost none of that blood anymore, desperate people, especially wicked path people, would stoop to any low to make our people livestock."

Founder Alstreim's voice was grim before it turned helpless again.

"Even though I had a minute quantity of the Windstorm Binding Spirit's blood through my fey ancestor, it still was not enough for me to reach Peak-Level in my Soul Forging Cultivation. As a powerhouse who had to take care of a propagating and developing power, I was even more burdened, not to mention that although I forced my way in through the Martial Overlord Stage, I couldn't obtain a cultivation manual that would allow me to enter the Emperor Soul Stage while my comprehension of heaven and earth through the soul was also insufficient, which heavily weighed down on me at that time of making a decision to wait and improve, risking dying of old age or breakthrough to pursue immortality."

"Hence, I chose the latter. With my Peak-Level Law Rune Stage, Low-Level Martial Overlord Stage, and Peak-Level King Soul Stage Cultivations, I had to break through to the Immortal Foundation Stage, creating an average Mortal Immortal Vessel."

Founder Alstreim's wry smile became helpless, "As a result, the Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel I later created when I stepped into the Immortal Foundation Stage for the soul after improving my lagging Soul Forging Cultivation produced a Cracked Immortal Vessel, making it so that my soul has a lesser prowess. Unless I somehow have resources to restore the Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel, I can forget about improving my soul to the Immortal King Stage as that has become hindered. Most likely, even if I make it to the Immortal King Stage in essence and body one day, my soul is fated to remain at the Immortal Foundation Stage forever."

Davis could feel the heaviness in his Founder's voice, but the latter still continued.

"In this case, the Glorious Pill Palace's Immortal, Shandra, does not have a limitation to enter Immortal King Stage in body, essence, and soul as she had peaked her Essence Gathering Cultivation and reached the Ninth Stage in the other two cultivations, making it so that she received an average Mortal Immortal Vessel and an average Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel."

"As for the Jade Lotus Valley's Immortal, Loraine, she also does not have a limitation to enter the Immortal King Stage in body, essence, and soul as she had peaked her Essence Gathering Cultivation and Body Tempering Cultivation while reaching the Ninth Stage in Soul Forging Cultivation, making it so that she received an unperfected Mortal Immortal Vessel and an average Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel."

"The most important thing to notice for the Immortal Soul Vessel is that the soul requires a connection with the Immortal Vessel of body and essence. Depending on whether you have reached, not reached, or peaked the Essence Gathering Cultivation and Body Tempering Cultivation in different combinations, you could receive a Cracked Immortal Soul Vessel, average Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel, unperfected Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel, and perfected Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel."

Davis's head spun a bit, but after putting the combinations in his head, he heavily nodded.

"I can now see why Founder sighed when I asked about this matter."

"Ah, it's nothing. Just a waste of breath as I always recommend any youth to just achieve Peak-Level all three cultivations to advance to the Immortal Foundation Stage so that they don't encounter any problems later. Fortunately, my sons who have advanced to the Immortal Foundation Stage possess perfected Mortal Immortal Vessel and perfected Mortal Immortal Soul Vessel as they peaked in all three cultivation systems."

Founder Alstreim smiled widely in pride, but it caused Davis's smile to disappear.

"Didn't Founder say that your sons… died to the rampage of those terrifying beasts?"

Founder Alstreim's smile froze before his shoulders drooped.

"… Yes… that's… unfortunate… Don't remind me about it..."

"…"

Davis blinked, "Alright, let's head back."

Founder Alstreim looked towards the Burning Phoenix Ridge with a complicated expression on his face before he turned around and left.

Together, they returned to the Alstreim Family, but as Davis said, his accommodation was still outside the capital, given in another growing city that didn't lose out to the previous capital before Davis's arrival, perhaps looking even more amazing than the Grand Alstreim City of that time.

As for Davis himself, he returned to the Mortal Hex Emperor Palace with Lea, reuniting with everyone else. Hearing his feats, they were stunned and excited but reacted as though it was expected of him, the person who beat a higher imitation of himself into a pulp in a trial.

He then explained about the Immortal Vessel and made their horizons widen. Some were confused, mostly because their concentration was somewhere else, their gazes falling on Nadia's elegant fur.

Nonetheless, after they left ogling all over Nadia's increased charm, Davis inwardly grumbled.

'Why did the Founder say that and look so happy? Could it be that his sons never died but is in a dire situation, like being held... hostage?'