Far to the west, beyond the Qilian Ridge, and far beyond Jianghu, a caravan trudged toward the mysterious and deadly Taklamakan Desert. Here, the earth is barren, the sun is harsh, and water is rare - truly, a demon realm on earth. But, amidst the death and desolation, lies the mysterious and fabulous kingdom of Loulan, rich in wealth and the final stop of civilization before the Western Wastelands.

The fact that these strange, yet brave and resilient people return from the Wastelands speaks of wild legends about even stranger people who live in the mythical Daquin Empire, the land of sea giants. These giants have skin as pale as milk, hair as golden as the sun, living all as equals yet ruled by kings. They tend the sea sheep and make silk out of their wool, and farm corals for food. The rich purple dye made from sea sheep’s blood is worth more than a full wagon of silver, luring foolhardy people to venture into the Western Wastelands, never to be seen again.

But all these peasant fables did not concern Luo Shu An, who traveled west for months, seeking his destination - Kunlun Mountain, a first step towards the Heavens. He could have traveled using Lightfoot Techniques and arrived weeks earlier, maybe even within a month, but with all the materials and equipment needed for the ascension, he had to hire a whole wagon just to carry it all. So, frustrated with the slow speed, dull company, dreadful view, and stale food, he usually found retreat in the Diamond Roads manual as he studied them.

The manual was indeed the real deal, speaking in great lengths about techniques that can make people immortal. Luo Shu An had already mastered some, rendering himself immune to thirst and hunger, needing only a handful of rice and a gulp of water once a week to fully nourish his body. But it was just a taste; as he peered more and more into the manuals, mastering its bizarre teachings, he grew more youthful and vigorous. His gray hair subdued, fatigue had left him completely, and he felt as if he was once more a young man again, just stepping outside of Luhai village.

After they finally arrived at Jingjue Pass, the last stop before the Wasteland, Luo Shu An began preparing for the second part of his expedition. He tried to gather information about Kunlun Mountain, but the locals, rough and hospitable folk, suddenly grew silent and serious whenever the topic of that mountain was brought up. Some made warding gestures, some suddenly forgot how to speak in a civilized language, and some outright shooed Sage away from them. Until a spice merchant from Pekao politely, but firmly, suggested that Shu An should never speak with the locals about "that accursed place." Only after an obscenely large bribe, Luo learned the rough location of Kunlun from a local drunk, but after that, he suddenly disappeared without a trace - "tigers got him," others said. Ever since then, everyone shied away and ignored this strange, wild man and his wagon. They feared him as his peers feared him, but Karma Sage didn't mind - he had better goals to achieve.

The next day, he parted ways with the superstitious caravan folk and moved towards the north, into the desert, towards the forbidden sacred mountain. Not even a day later after he left the pass, a group of strange horseback bandits began harassing him. They were relentless in their assault, attacking day and night, even killing his horse, leaving him to push the wagon all by himself. All watering holes he found were unusable, poisoned by the bandits, so Shu An had to rely on scavenging what he could from the corpses of the raiders, subsisting on raw horse meat and insects. This was the longest two weeks of his life, but eventually he arrived at the foot of that mountain and the raids were abruptly stopped. Now all he had to do was to scale the infamous mountain.

It was a perilous task to scale the mountain with a wagon, but Karma Sage prevailed. He spent almost a month traveling through the mountain, carving and pushing the wagon all by himself amidst the cold and isolation. It would drive any man insane, but not Luo Shu An - he was no longer a mere mortal at this point. At last, near the summit of this wild mountain, he stood before a strange, unsightly stone hut and a simple pillar, with a list of names carved upon it.

Some of these names Sage recognized, some he did not. But all of them, without a doubt, were those who were worthy enough of stepping upon the road towards Heaven. Here, Sage began his work, refining wild and untamed Qi, shaping the body's Golden Core, preparing poisonous elixirs, and training the body to the point of breaking. He spent a whole year in the toil, but at long last, he was ready. He broke his alchemical cauldron, tidied up the hut, carved his own name upon a pillar, and buried manual in a lead box under the hut, so he could find them once more, if needed.

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He sat before the pillar and began meditating and gathering Qi until the moon appeared. Then, he ate the Bitter Herbs pills and drank Poisonous Elixirs, focusing upon the stars. And, lo and behold, there it was, a shimmering light with clear outlines of numerous steps of those who came before. The Diamond Road. He could finally see it.

The easiest part was done.

- [DIAMOND ROADS: BRILLIANT CLAWS]! - Shouted Luo Shu An, as he flew towards the Diamond Road. His Karma arms flared up, and he gripped onto treacherous lights with all four hands. He felt resistance from the Heavens themselves, but held strong. If he let go of them now, it would all be for naught. He gritted his teeth, and shouted once more: “[DIAMOND ROADS: GOLDEN LEGS]”. He drove his foot deep into the light, feeling as if he were trying to kick a boulder with a naked foot. Once he felt steady footing, he began to climb. He clawed and climbed, slowly but surely gaining ground.

Then, the Diamond Road began to shrink, and he had to be careful where to grip. Footsteps of others Karma Sage used to grip quickly became sparse, and his climb slowed down. And then, Heaven noticed him and began its assault.

The heavenly light and thunder of the roads had been burning and searing his flesh, but he climbed. Shu An felt as if the whole world was crushing his body, but he climbed. Howling winds were driving him insane. The poison from elixirs had begun taking over his body. He felt as if his insides were rotting alive, how the Golden Core had begun to crack. Shu An knew that if he stops now, he would fall down, and even if the fall wouldn’t kill him, the poison would.

And yet, he climbed and climbed and climbed. His flesh was torn apart; Shu An wanted to scream in pain, but he knew that if he showed the smallest weakness, it would be over for him. After what felt like eternity, he tried to stand up. He had to, the Karma Sage knew, for it is a part of this trial. The resistance from Heaven grew once more, the light was burning as if he was sitting on the sun, and he felt how the mountains themselves were crushing his bones, how the poison had begun to kill his sight, hearing, and even his consciousness itself. With the last ounces of willpower, he forced himself to stand up. And in a moment, it was over. He didn't feel anything at all.

In fact, he felt never more alive than right now. The light that was burning him no longer felt like a raging inferno, but a pleasant warmth. The Karma Sage no longer felt pressure all around him, and the poison was completely gone from his body. He touched his belly, where the Golden Core was. It was shining bright and intact. Luo Shu An glanced down and saw the whole world, so small, dark, and insignificant. He looked up and saw myriads of stars shining brightly above him. Whoever said that the night sky is dark and silent was a liar, for it was full of light and colors. What was maddening howling turned out to be harmonious music. The stars were singing the most beautiful melody the Karma Sage ever heard. Lastly, Luo Shu An looked upon himself and was surprised to see that he had changed as well. He was young once more, his hair was deep black, but his skin turned a reddish hue, and most importantly, his karma arms, immaterial and useless outside of combat, had become real ones.

He passed, thought Luo Shu An. He passed Heavenly Tribulations! The Karma Sage began to laugh as he walked on the wide and open Diamond Road towards the golden light of Immortal Heaven. He breathed in deeply, sensing how undiluted and pure Qi filled him to the brim, nourishing his body like a feast. It was the most intoxicating feeling he ever felt.

As the Karma Sage appeared before the golden and red gates of Heaven, he saw a giant man with the sharp features of a noble general and a luxurious long dark beard. The giant wore armor made out of pure golden light and wielded an enormous guandao, surrounded by fierce-looking stone lion dogs. Unlike the ones that surround palaces and temples, these were indeed real, watching the approaching sage with the keenest of interest. The man stood before the Karma Sage, pointing his guandao at him.

- Halt, stranger! Who goes there? - The guard’s voice boomed like thunder.

Luo Shu An stopped before the guard. It was the Second Trial, and now he had to follow the complex rules of Heavenly Conduct if he wished to be accepted into the ranks of Heavenly Immortals. Therefore, he clasped his fists in his palms and deeply bowed, then kowtowed twice.

- They referred to this mortal once as Luo Shu An, a humble apprentice of the wise master Gujin Caomeng and disciple of Fei Chong Gao, from the deeply respected Yuanmeng School. - Said Luo Shu An with deepest respect and genuine humbleness in his voice. - This mortal had passed the Tribulations of Heaven and was now humbly begging for permission to attend the Heavenly Immortal Trial.

The guard relaxed his posture but did not stop pointing the guandao at Luo Shu An. They stood like that in silence for a while, as protocol dictated. Then the guard finally said,

- The one they call Luo Shu An, you must wait here until His Eminence Shou Menren considers this mortal’s wish.

With that, he turned towards the gates and stepped inside. Lying in a kneeling position, Luo Shu An allowed himself to grin. This is it. He is Immortal now.