The loud sound of the alarm tower forced even the dead from their sleep. The tired cultivators alongside their Servants slowly made their way to the battlefields while stretching their limbs. They all knew the importance of this mission and they were willing to give their lives if they had to, just to earn another minute or two for the others to recover.

In one of the tents sitting quietly under the dark skies, there was still someone sleeping, even under all this chaos and noise. Opening the quilt covering the 'door', one of the visitors saw the lazy f*cker soundly enjoying the world of dreams and went ahead with kicking his ass - literally - to wake him up.

"Hmm!? What's going on? Are they attacking again?"

[Yeah, they are! Everyone's heading to the battlefield already. You and I are the only ones left here.](?)

"*Sigh* Can I skip this one? I'm deadass tired."

[So it's everyone else. We've all been here for three months already and most of us haven't slept a wink, you know?](?)

"F*ck off! Don't compare yourselves with me. I'm only at the Half-Immortal realm while you bastards are at least Golden Immortals. Not to mention that you forced a f*ckton of work on my plate. I had to battle almost daily alongside my Servants against Minions and Soldiers with little hitpoints left. It has literally been non-stop!"

[And we told you that your contributions are over the roof, didn't we!? You are in the top 5 for heavens' sake! What more than getting 4 Underworld Tokens and other nice rewards do you want?](?)

"Sleep, Door! I want to SLEEP!!!"

[Well, sad story! Get your ass moving, the Void Event is about to be over after today. We have one Commander-ranked mob left and plenty of Minions and Soldiers to go around for everyone. Your Servants are already on the Battlefield waiting for orders.](D00R)

"The f*ck are they doing there without my orders?"

[I told them to wait for you there.](D00R)

"..."

Seeing this bastard laughing his ass off and figuring that most likely he is telling the truth, he got up and followed this joker back to the fray. Ever since he managed to ascend, he met D00R and received a lot of help from him. If it was information, Spirit Stones, tips&tricks about how to get Celestial Stones, how to better improve his Servants faster, he could ask D00R and he would patiently explain.

He had a terrible sense of humor, but that would about his only fault. He personally saw him fight alongside LinkWill and Bian Hua in wars against the other worlds and he is not someone you can just write off. He had a strong sense of camaraderie and a 'none get left behind' policy, which was respected by many.

Listening to D00R brag about his accomplishments during this event for about 20 minutes straight, they finally made it to the battlefield. He said his goodbyes and good luck to the overly enthusiastic cultivator and was greeted by his Servants. Seeing their equipment and cultivation levels, he couldn't help but sigh. These people followed him on their own accord and he promised himself that he would do all in his powers to help them regain their former cultivations.

Unfortunately, it wasn't easy to do that when resources weren't as plentiful as one would hope. There were four Servants that he managed to bring to the Nascent Soul realm, while all others were either at the Gold Core or the Qi Gathering Realm. Even for those resources, he had to spend the little Spirit Jade he had left and give it away to the greedy System.

"Why the long faces guys? We are ranked in the top 5 which means that we'll have plenty of resources this time around. I can finally help more of you break through to the Nascent Soul realm. So cheer up!"

[But sir... due to the ascension to the Heavenly Realm, our souls are immortal and we can be revived easily if we die. You on the other hand don't have that luxury.](?)

"Don't worry, I'll be careful. Come on now! You have Pangu's blood flowing through your veins. You're supposed to say things like how you'll protect me while in battle."

[That's self-implied, sir. All of us will!](?)

Seeing the other camps where cultivators sat with their own Servants, he realized just how outnumbered he was. He didn't mind it that much though. The few that he had with him held unquestionable loyalty due to the help they received from their master and benefactor. After slaving away in the Immortal World for so many centuries, he made a couple of indigenous friends, which later on decided to follow him in this new adventure.

Thanks to them, while his cultivation realm wasn't high, his attributes were because of the relics. Shaking his head to get rid of the useless thoughts, he prepared for the battle at hand. His Servants weren't wrong in saying that this battlefield was dangerous, but he had no choice in the matter. Yes, due to the contract signed, the Servants became properly immortal, however, the cost of reviving them was... more than he could afford. So, just like every other event, he would be fighting side by side with them, as usual getting more injured and beat up than any of them, so that they don't have to.

Others might find it heroic and benevolent, but he knew deep down that it was as simple as protecting his assets.

[Sir, they're here!](?)

"Well then, let's get to work, shall we? Make groups among each other so that your total damage is around 200.000. Each group focuses on one Minion. The Nascent Soul group split in two and take out a Soldier each. Your total damage is slightly over 800.000 but I don't want to take any chances. Safety is the top priority, got it?"

[Yes sir!!!](everyone)

"Good! Let's rumble then!"

The final day of the invasion was starting and the number of monsters was much higher than everyone expected. Also, this world they were battling in had no Qi or oxygen to maintain life for long periods of time. With the System's help, all cultivators and their Servants could participate, however, the time they had was limited. There were ways of increasing the time, but they were costly.

Everything went well and even the Commander was getting wrecked by the big whales when another portal with two more Commanders and an army of Elites, Soldiers, and Minions made their way through. He couldn't help but sigh when he saw D00R already heading his way, knowing what was expected of him and everyone else.

[Sorry man, but the bigwigs agreed under the command of Harper, Mio, Link, and Bian Hua for everyone to use Battle Recovery Tokens. Please tell me you have some?](D00R)

"*Sigh* I do but only a couple. I can at most take care of another 10-20 Minions and about 4 Soldiers. Crap! I really didn't want to spend them this early on."

[I know and I'm sorry. The top guns will all use at least ten tokens each, so we should pass this event easily. Take care and don't die out there!](D00R)

"Yeah, yeah! You better do the same."

Seeing his tired Servants gather around him, he sighed and looked at them apologetically. Seeing as they didn't mind, he took out the two Battle Recovery Tokens he gained through much effort and used them. Their use was to help with the fatigue and extend the time the Servants could spend in rough environments like this one, regardless of their cultivation realm.

The battle began once more and he was at the front lines with his companions, giving orders and stabbing with his spear. Hours later, they finally managed to push the monsters back and celebrated while portals kept devouring the armies.

Falling flat on his ass and using the existing portals to send his Servants back to rest, he also fell on his ass and looked at the messy battlefield. The bodies could be stacked over each other as high as the Westmount peak, belonging to both monsters and cultivators. There was no small number of cultivators that perished or Servants that followed them. The stench of blood was disgusting and he felt even more disgusted by how used to it he became.

Turning his head at the sound of footsteps, he saw Mio, the leader of the Astreus alliance heading his way. She was covered in blood, a sign that she fought on the frontlines again, but there were no traces of happiness on her face. Rather, she looked somber and saddened.

"Speaking of which... where's that clown D00R? He knows that I cannot deal properly with the bigwigs..."

[I haven't seen you in a while on the frontlines. I'm glad to see you're still alive...](Mio)

"Likewise, miss Mio. You know of my cultivation realm, so I cannot exactly follow you guys everywhere."

[I know... D00R told me how you spent most of your time in the Immortal World helping out bottom feeders grow stronger, even going as far as to use your own cultivation resources. Thanks to you, we might not have more elites, but we certainly have a lot of soldiers ready to march and fight by our side.](Mio)

He kept quiet and looked at the ground in shame. It wasn't that he was a saint or magnanimous by any means. He just felt lost and helpless when compared with those leading at the front, therefore decided to play the role of a big fish in a small pond. The results were satisfactory, but once he had to ascend, everything had to be started from the beginning. Not to mention that the level of difficulty was increased tenfolds.

He knew better than anyone what sort of cowardly person he actually was. That's why, compliments... he couldn't stomach.

[Unfortunatly, I have bad news to give you. When we made the list of casualties, we found D00R among them.](Mio)

"!!!"

[I know that he was your friend, so I wanted to let you know in person. He died while throwing himself in front of one of my girls, protecting her at the cost of his life. I'm sorry!](Mio)

"..."

Seeing no response from the lifeless man in front of her, Mio sighed and departed. Raising his head to see her departing back, he saw one of the newbie ascenders from Astreus bowing his way. She must be the one he saved.

"Friend, huh? I don't know about that, but I do know that he was the real deal..."

While he pretended to be a benevolent and helpful cultivator, D00R was the embodiment of that. He would spend most of his time helping newbies get around and never hesitated to throw himself in danger to protect others.

"Idiot! Just a few more levels and you would've been a Golden Immortal. You would've had a chance at resurrection even if you died... And you just threw your life away like that..."

Laying on his back and covering his eyes with his right forearm, he pondered about his long life in the Immortal World and how he wished he would've done things differently. He felt despair when he saw the distance between himself and the top rankers and gave up on even trying. Now, he felt nothing but emptiness.

A hand landed on his shoulder and rocked him gently. He removed his hand and saw another hyperactive fool.

"Never... what is your Autarch highness doing here?"

[*Sigh* Everyone got invited to the Profound Immortal Clear Lake's daughter celebration. She's like 500 years old or something and apparently, that's a reason to be happy about. All those that participated in the Void Event are invited.](Neverfire)

"I'm surprised... I thought you guys never attended such boring events."

[We don't. But they have good alcohol.](Neverfire)

"What are we celebrating then?"

[Mya's passing. The Autarch of Dreams can finally rest in peace.](Neverfire)

"What!? Did she die? When?"

[Today on the battlefield. She did take an elite down with her though. You know, for people of our Blood World, death was never a scary thing. Rather, it is considered a relief. It's like retiring from the continuous battlefield that life is. So, all the people in my group are planning to get wasted today. Wanna join? I heard that the daughter of that snob is quite pretty.](Neverfire)

"Sure. Let's go! We have many fallen... friends, that we need to drink for."

---------------------------------------------------------------------

[...ke up! Herman, wake up!!!](Celeste)

"Hmm!? The heck? They're attacking again? How many and what ranks?"

[Huh!? What are you talking about? You were having a nightmare, talking about many people dying...](Celeste)

"Nightmare, huh? Yeah. It was a nightmare..."

[Are you okay? Because you don't look okay.](Celeste)

"If that's your subtle way of saying I look like shit, I am fine. Don't worry about it. How long was I out?"

[Only yesterday. It's morning already though. You passed out after building your foundation. Quite the weakling...](Celeste)

"...okay. I'm gonna take a shower and join you for breakfast. How are Xu Wen'an and Tianxia Xue?"

[The little squirt is a cultivation maniac and I can barely get her out of her room to eat. Xue said she's leaving to check up on some friends. Judging by her bloodthirsty smile, I feel bad for these 'friends' of hers.](Celeste)

"Mhm. In that case, is just the two of us?"

[Unfortunately...](Celeste)

"*Chuckle* Then, would you do me the honor of joining me for breakfast?"

[Sure, why not. I'll have the chef prepare my favorite.](Celeste)

Laughing at her lack of restraint and appreciating her honesty, Herman took a look at his attribute panel once more, happy with the progress. It was already the 17th day since he came to the Immortal World and being the third week, the Sutras Hall and the Treasure Hall were refreshed again.

Treasures Hall Sutras Hall Spirit Jade Hall Reputation Hall Top Up Pieces of Five Elements VII

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones

Already bought Pieces of Five Elements VIII

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Pieces of Five Elements IX

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Pieces of Five Elements X

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Enigmatic Thunder IX

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones

Already bought Enigmatic Thunder X

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones

Already bought Yin Pieces VII

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones

Already bought Yin Pieces IX

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Yin Pieces X

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Matrix Pieces VII

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones

Already bought Matrix Pieces VIII

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Matrix Pieces IX

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Matrix Pieces X

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Enigmatic Thunder V

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones Enigmatic Thunder VI

Cost: 499 Spirit Stones

Buying the available pieces of the series he hadn't already, the attribute panel was refreshed once more.

Personal Information

Attributes

Ultimate

Pill

Name: Herman Roy

Cultivation time: 0 Years (16 days)

Spiritual realm: Foundation II

Body realm: Mortal Flesh VI

Ascension number: N/A

Attributes

Life Essence: 702

Attack: 3.510

Strength: 538

Defense: 2.690

Vitality: 778

Health Points: 11.670

Dexterity: 672

Evasion: 2.016

Fortune: 63

Critical Strike: 21

Perception: 478 Points

Efficiency: 239 Primordial Qi points / 1 hour (reduced to 50% due to damage)

Absorption: 167.4 points

Superior Qi Absorption: 83.7 Spiritual Qi point / 1 hour

Character (Unlocked - please select to view)

Personality (Unlocked - please select to view)

Leaving aside his increased attributes, his body recovered a bit as well. The increase in bodily cultivation helped his meridians heal more than he expected. Who says that a good night's sleep doesn't fix most issues of an ailing body?

Having a pleasant breakfast with an immense beauty by his side, his mood soared even more after receiving good news from his sect master. She has successfully convinced most of the Basic-rank sects to allow him to meet with him, pushing his schedule ahead by leaps and bounds. Having to meet with the bigwigs of the sects under their own terms was a better thing than sect crashing.

"Bigwigs? *Sigh* Seems like I was rattled by that shitty memory more than I'd like to admit. Not to mention that it's one of my last..."

After he got hammered with the Autarchs in his previous life, the star of the celebration caused him to die from overpraising. He can blame himself and his lack of public presence for being disposed of in such a manner. That's why he planned to be more in the political spotlight this time around, making himself harder to get removed if he's a pillar of the Immortal World community.

And getting companions out of the major sects would be of extreme help for his agenda.

[You're finally here. How are you feeling? I heard that you fainted because of exhaustion.](Feng Qian)

"Nothing major for sect master Qian to worry about. I had to stabilize my Foundation cultivation after breaking through yesterday."

[What!? You're at the Foundation realm already? How?](Feng Qian)

"Eh? You didn't have the chance to talk with miss Yue?"

[How is she related?](Feng Qian)

"Cultivation covenant. She advanced quite a bit herself."

[Weren't your meridians damaged from the time with Yi Xuan?](Feng Qian)

"They were recovered sufficiently, but after this time, I'll need more than a month to get back to my normal self. Even my cultivation efficiency is dropped to 50%."

[50%? Wow... Any major damage?](Feng Qian)

"Nope. I am fit to fight whenever. When can we go?"

[As soon as you want. They just need a head's up for when we're heading their way.](Feng Qian)

"Let's start traveling then. Who's our first target?"

[The Illusion sect. I've known their sect master and son for a very long time now.](Feng Qian)

"Well then, Illusion sect, here we come."