The Undying Immortal System

My win in the competition was strange. I didn't understand it. Possibly, the System-granted ability was more accurate in calculating efficacy than the sect elders. It was possible, but I didn't believe it, not to this extent.

There had to be another factor at play, but I didn't know what it could be. I had to just take things one step at a time. Eventually, I would figure everything out.

Having come third in the competition, I would be rewarded with a spirit fire. I knew that this was the difference between a Disciple and a Master Alchemist, but I didn't know many details. I had avoided looking into it too much until after I knew that I could get my hands on it.

The winners had a few days before we would be taken to receive our prizes, so I spent that time researching. Thankfully, there was an easy solution to learn everything I needed to know. The Technique Hall had a few books detailing what spirit fires were and how to use them. Clearly, they knew many disciples would be interested in the topic.

I borrowed a copy of the book from the Hall and went back to my apartment to read.

So, what was a spirit fire? My personal analogy was that they were a type of symbiote, though parasite might be a more apt description. A spirit fire lives in a host's body and consumes a small amount of the body's energy to feed itself.

Spirit fire was attracted to qi. Someone with one in their body could channel their qi in a specific way to make the fire emerge and burn their target. They would then need to pull that portion of the fire back into their body before it dissipated.

While spirit fires were much more difficult to control than qi or natural fire, their destructive potential was far greater than either of those more manageable options. This extra power was what made them invaluable for cleansing the more resistant toxins of Rank 2 herbs.

The spirit fire given out by the Twin Mountains Sect was called the Cold Mountain Fire. From what I read, despite 'fire' being in its name, it contained no fire qi. 'Spirit fire' was simply the name given to this type of energy construct because of its appearance.

Instead of fire qi, it was composed of something closer to a type of earth qi. This 'fire' was supposed to be made of roughly 90% earth energy and 10% water energy. The energy wasn't even qi, but nothing I read said what it was.

The hows and whys of spirit fires were beyond my comprehension, but the benefits were certain. The reason one needed a spirit fire to be a Master Alchemist was because of the ingredients used in higher-rank pills. Pure fire qi was a poor tool for dealing with them. Instead, the unique energy of a spirit fire would break down these robust, complex pill toxins much more easily.

The Twin Mountains Sect had what was called a 'fire seed.' Fire seeds were incredibly powerful and unbelievably important. Fire seeds created spirit fire. With a Cold Mountain Fire seed, the sect had an endless supply of spirit fires to infuse into their disciples' bodies. After a portion was taken away, they just had to wait for it to recover. As long as the seed remained, it would keep producing new flames.

While fire seeds were beneficial to organizations like the sect, they had an even more profound impact when absorbed by a cultivator. Unlike regular spirit fires, a seed isn't absorbed into the body, it is absorbed into the soul, and seeds absorb energy from the environment, not the cultivator.

Seeds strengthen the soul and can produce endless flames. Some spirit fires are better than others, but most cultivators would fight tooth and nail to get any seed possible.

So, why wasn't this seed absorbed long ago? Because only Martial Grandmasters came to this area, no one higher. To absorb a fire seed safely, a cultivator needed to be far more powerful than a mere Grandmaster. The book didn't give any specifics about how strong one would need to be to successfully absorb a seed, but it made clear that any attempt to do so by a Grandmaster would only result in death.

When someone absorbed a fire seed, it would wash their soul in flames, purifying and strengthening it. These flames would be so intense that they would burst forth from the soul and wash the body in fire, burning it to a crisp. To survive, one needed a powerful enough body to absorb this initial burst and allow the flame to die down and return to a calmer state.

After learning the details of spirit fires, I sat alone in my room.

Darkness came, but I didn't turn on any lights.

I continued to silently consider.

Normally a spirit fire is absorbed into the body. It is like an external object, no different from clothing or a weapon. If I received a portion of the Cold Mountain Fire, after I died, I would have to return to the sect and go through this entire process again to get it back. I would have to reenter the sect and go through this competition any time I wanted a spirit fire.

But a fire seed was absorbed into the soul. If I had a fire seed, I would always have it. When I died, it would stay with me. I only needed to absorb the seed of the Cold Mountain Fire once. Then, I would have it with me throughout all of my future lives.

Was it possible though?

It was considered safe to let disciples near the fire seed because the sect believed there was not even the possibility of it being stolen. We would not be given flames directly. We would be taken to the core spirit fire where the seed was located, and we would gather a spirit fire for ourselves. I would be right there, next to the seed.

If I tried to absorb it, I would die. This didn't bother me too much. I was willing to die for a purpose, and this seemed like it might be the most impactful death I could possibly have. The details were important though.

Everything I read said the danger was to the body of a cultivator. There would be a one-time burst that would char my body to cinders, but that was the only damage it would cause. Not only would the process not damage my soul, but it was also supposed to strengthen it. The death of my body didn't matter, much. As long as my soul was safe, I would be fine.

I wanted to take the fire seed. Having a seed for the Cold Mountain Fire would be enormously beneficial for a long time to come.

Taking the seed was the right course for my future.

But, taking it… that would be stealing the lifeblood of the sect. It would be a calamity. The sect had been good to me. The amount I had learned, the amount I improved… It was a lot. Yes, I knew they gave me a cultivation method that was probably messing with my mind in ways I didn't know, but still, I couldn't shake the feeling that stealing this fire seed from them was wrong.

This would be the first thing I did that I felt was morally wrong on a fundamental level. This would be pure theft, and I was trying to use the time loop to excuse my actions.

Stealing the seed felt wrong. I thought about why. I would be destroying a sect with people I had come to like. Bao Wen was my friend. We had lived together for years. Cao MeiLan was my teacher. I had learned so much from her. Over the years, I had been focused on advancing, so our relationships weren't as deep as they could have been, but I still cared for them.

If I took this flame, I might be dooming the sect and destroying their futures.

Did it matter? Did any of it actually matter? I was going to die and be reborn. The sect would get their seed back. I would just have one too. Did it matter if I stole it? It felt wrong, but if I took it, would anyone truly be hurt?

After I took the flame, I would die. All of this would reset. None of it would have ever happened.

It didn't matter. My time at the sect. Spending time with Bao. Going to lessons and learning from Cao.

None of it would have ever happened.

Suddenly, I froze.

A question with horrifying implications appeared in my mind. It was… I mean… Why had I never even thought to ask before? The more I thought about it, the more I had to have an answer.

"System, what happens to these timelines after I die?"

I waited. No response came.

I started shouting.

"System! What happens to these timelines after I die? Do they vanish, completely resetting with me, or do they continue on after I'm gone?"

The cost of this information cannot be calculated at this time.

"Bullshit! I'm supposed to be able to purchase anything! How much does it cost?"

Calculating… Error. The cost of this information cannot be calculated.

System Message: The price of information depends on the degree to which it will affect the flow of karma and how much it will change destiny. The greater the effect, the greater the cost. The cost of this information is impossible to calculate.

How could the cost be impossible? What did that mean? I knew immediately. It was obvious.

The answer to the question would change who I was. It would change everything I did from that point forward. It would affect everything I touched.

I couldn't know the answer to the question. The System wouldn't tell me, and I had no way to find it out on my own.

So then. What should I do?

I needed an answer, but I couldn't get one.

My body started shaking as I considered the implications of these different possibilities.

Did I even really have a future?

If everything always reset. If everything vanished every time I died.

Did anything really matter?

What if I fell in love? What if I had children? Would they just vanish with me?

I couldn't know. I couldn't allow that to happen. To love and raise children, perhaps for hundreds of years, only for them to vanish? For them to have never existed? No!

If I told myself 'It's okay. The universe will just keep going after you're gone. They'll be fine.' If I told myself that and it turned out I was wrong… I couldn't deal with that.

No, I had to act like the universe vanished with me. I had to believe that. I couldn't move forward with the naive hope that someone I cared about would simply keep existing peacefully after I died. I had to believe that the world ceased to exist after I died. I couldn't allow myself to become too attached to anyone, and I definitely couldn't bring children into such a world.

But then… Was it fine for me to murder and torture people? Was it fine because, afterward, it would never have happened?

'Hey, I beat your child to death in front of you, but don't worry, it will all be reset in a few months.'

To act, to truly believe that everything vanished. That nothing was permanent. To know, no matter how hard I worked, nothing I did mattered…

No, I couldn't be that person either.

I made a vow to myself.

First, I would not allow myself to become a monster. Even if the evil I did was reset and it didn't permanently hurt anyone else, it would still hurt me. I had to be willing to cross some lines I wouldn't have in the past—that was just how this world worked—but every single time I did so it needed to be done with deliberation. Never just doing evil because I could.

Second, for the time being, no attachments. Working with people was fine. Becoming friends was fine. But falling in love. Raising children. Anything I couldn't bear to allow to be reset. That could not happen.

Third, this System seemed to have given me eternal life, but the cost was that I no longer had a future in this world's timeline. I could solve this by just getting rid of the System. That was possible, but there was a better way. I could create my own timeline apart from this world. With my storage space that could be expanded infinitely and didn't reset upon my death, I had already taken steps that could lead in that direction.

I looked up. The moral crisis strengthened me. It focused me.

Should I take the fire seed? That was the question I had to answer.

This was crossing the line of my personal morals. I had to be deliberate in my decision.

If the universe vanished, no harm would be done. Even if it felt wrong, I could accept this.

If it didn't vanish, the sect would be hurt badly, but the people would survive. It might be tough times for them, but they would still be skilled and knowledgeable. It was bad, but not apocalyptic.

The advantages to myself for taking the seed would be immense. While the damage to the sect would be incalculable, it was something they could recover from.

My time in the Su Clan had taught me that this world wasn't kind. If someone else had the power to take the seed, they would take it. The morals of this world, those I had seen, told me that taking the seed was acceptable. This theft crossed my moral line, but not the line of this world.

Was I deluding myself? Making justification for an unjustifiable act? Maybe. Probably so. But I still made my decision. Right or wrong, I would stand by it.

I had to take the seed. However, I would also acknowledge a debt to the sect for this action. Having a fire seed would allow me to advance further and faster than ever before. I had to repay that debt.