Immortal of the Nine Realms

Blow after blow landed. No one knew how many times the Dangyin Mountain Lord had punched before he finally withdrew his fist. He turned to Fang Chen with a grin and said, ”Lord, this man had just broken through to the third transformation, so his foundation was still unstable. Even five or six like him couldn’t match me. He’s now dead and gone to the Underworld.

Dead and gone?

The five ghosts, including Songling, glanced at one another. The way he spoke made it sound as though he had crushed an ant, not a third-transformation Loose Immortal.

Everyone knew that the third transformation was the upper limit for most Loose Immortals. To go beyond that required extraordinary luck, connections, and powerful backing. Talent and comprehension meant little.

Anyone who reached the third transformation was a top-tier powerhouse, the elite among elites.

And yet, they watched in stunned silence as a ghostly wisp floated out of the deep pit, glancing around in dazed confusion.

”Where am I...?” Zhao Yunlu murmured.

”You’re dead,” Fang Chen said.

”I... I’m dead?” Zhao Yunlu forced a smile. ”What kind of joke is that? I’m a third-transformation Loose Immortal. I clawed my way here through countless brushes with death. I still had years left to live! How could I be dead?”

”You’re really dead,” a voice sounded in Zhao Yunlu’s ear.

A heavy iron chain pierced through Zhao Yunlu’s shoulders before he could react, yanking him straight down into the Yellow Springs.

”Who are you?!” roared Zhao Yunlu in rage.

”I am Li Badao of the Day Waker Division!” came an answer.

With Zhao Yunlu vanishing into the Yellow Springs, the Dangyin Mountain Lord let out a cackling laugh. He then suddenly turned serious and asked Fang Chen quietly, ”Lord, he was a third transformation Loose Immortal. If you had forced him to become a Ghost God and given him a decree, you could’ve gained a powerful general. Why kill him?”

”The Ghost Gods who serve me may have opposed me in the past, whether due to position or ideals. But someone like him... willing to kill his own colleagues just to embezzle their treasures... What right does he have to walk the path of divinity?” Fang Chen said coldly.

The Dangyin Mountain Lord paused, then smiled with some pride. So there were standards to becoming a Ghost God. Not just anyone qualified.

Fang Chen looked at the five of them. ”You five were all core members of the Killing Spiritual Division. You were wrongfully slain and have wandered the Underworld for years. Now that you’ve been granted official posts, it’s time to resume your cultivation and reconnect with my subordinates here. Return to your duties.”

They exchanged glances.

Songling gave a bitter laugh and said, ”Ever since the last division chief left, the cultivators of Creation Star’s Killing Spiritual Division became disillusioned. Some likely defected to the Spirit Blood Sect. Had we retained our strength, we might have been able to suppress them. But now...”

He glanced at his ghostly state. ”If we reach out carelessly, we might be the ones to get suppressed.”

”You’ll have someone going with you,” said Fang Chen

He lightly stomped the ground. Mist billowed forth, and from it stepped Du Yunxu, who clasped his hands respectfully. ”Lord.”

”You’ll accompany them. If any former Killing Spiritual Division cultivators have defected to the Spirit Blood Sect, deal with them.” Fang Chen ordered.

”Yes.”

Seeing a powerful cultivator like Du Yunxu joining them, the five ghosts breathed easier. Songling pounded his chest and promised, ”Rest assured. We’ll re-establish ties with our former colleagues and get the Killing Spiritual Division here running again as soon as possible.”

***

At Thousand Dao Tower, Sun Susu emerged from her secluded chamber, frowning up at the sky. Cultivators were streaking by in hurried flight, their expressions anxious.

Her true identity was Ding Wan, a Central Continent Empire cultivator who had taken possession of Sun Susu’s body. Because of that, she didn’t know much about Thousand Dao Tower. She rarely interacted with others, staying in seclusion most of the time to avoid revealing herself.

A cultivator suddenly stopped mid-flight, staring at her in surprise. ”Junior Sister Sun! You’re still here? Hurry and pack up! Get out while you can!”

Sun Susu remained calm and cupped her hands. ”Senior Brother, what happened?”

”Someone’s targeting the Thousand Dao Tower! Over a dozen Loose Immortals have died in the past half month. You didn’t even know? Ancestor Yunding is dead!” he blurted out rapidly. ”Rumor has it that Thousand Dao Tower had ties to the Spirit Blood Sect. Now we’re losing ground in a fight with the Killing Spiritual Division. There’s talk of a powerful figure coming to wipe us out!”

”No time to explain. The Sun Clan had met disaster, and now the Thousand Dao Tower has been hit with the same fate! You’ve got the worst luck! You’d best get out while you can!”

He vanished in a rush. Sun Susu looked conflicted. She was still debating whether to leave when a handsome young man suddenly descended from the sky.

Yan Haoran looked her up and down, brows raised. ”Sun Susu?”

Sun Susu quickly bowed. ”Senior Brother Yan.”

”The lord said you’re safe here. Stay put and focus on your cultivation. No need to run.”

With that, Yan Haoran took to the skies and disappeared.

The lord?

Sun Susu stood stunned for a long while. Slowly, the meaning behind his words dawned on her.

She drew in a sharp breath. ”He must be referring to Lord Fang...”

Even Yan Haoran had become one of Fang Chen’s men? Could Thousand Dao Tower’s calamity have been his doing?

Sun Susu was shocked, but thinking back on Fang Chen’s unfathomable power, it all made sense.

If not for him, her Nascent Soul would’ve long since been destroyed in the Immortal Demonic Sea. She would never have acquired such a fine body to possess. That alone proved he surpassed many so-called mighty figures here.

***

Thousand Dao Tower’s downfall was not an isolated incident. Over the next three years, Prison Wind was rocked by one upheaval after another. Some great sects were wiped out overnight. Some renowned wandering cultivators were killed in full view of the public with a single punch.

Those who died ranged from mid-tier to top-tier cultivators. Many were Loose Immortals!

The scale of it sent shockwaves across the region.

There were Loose Immortals from the Qu Clan, the Du Clan, from the Great Sun Sect, and also from the Thousand Dao Tower. Some were even from the Nine Immortal Mountain Holy Land.

Once the news broke, everyone realized that the conflict between the Killing Spiritual Division and the Spirit Blood Sect had erupted in full.

Even the mighty Nine Immortals Mountain refrained from intervening.

To many, this was just two foreign factions tearing each other apart, a dogfight between outsiders.

***

Central Continent Empire, the Three Thousand Dao Sect.

”The mobilization from Xu Changshi’s side has been approved. In half a year, they’ll be stationed on Creation Star.” Fang Chen murmured. ”As for Li Wuwang... it’s about time we gave him an answer.”

”Little Brother, are you sure about this? I mean... one hundred immortal crystals isn’t a small number... sluuurp...”

Fang Chen looked speechless.

Indeed, one hundred immortal crystals were no small amount. It was enough to support a Loose Immortal from the second transformation all the way to the third transformation. If all of it went to Elder Xun, he could probably break through to the third transformation in a few years.

These crystals were the spoils of recent campaigns. Some even came from Zhao Yunlu.

”The path of sword cultivation isn’t just for Li Wuwang,” Fang Chen said. ”You explained it yourself. Sword cultivators can’t walk the usual immortal paths because the moment they become Loose Immortals, they’re already on the path of Sword Immortals. They can only go forward. They can’t do anything else. That’s just too tragic.”

As he spoke, Fang Chen tossed the immortal crystals into the Mirror of the Universe. ”Hurry and eat. Once you’re done, give me the path for sword immortals’ fourth transformation.”