Immortal of the Nine Realms

In the Great Heavenly Sovereign Chapter, the description for the Yang Corrosion Flame was as follows: In ancient times, there was a spiritual flame named Yang Corrosion Flame, born of primordial brilliance. Its warmth was like the first light of dawn, yet its ferocity could devour the sun and blot out the sky.

The implication was that this flame possessed the ability to devour the sun itself. Of course, such descriptions were somewhat exaggerated. But like the Frost Water Immortal Flame, the Yang Corrosion Flame was indeed an extremely rare and powerful Immortal Flame. It was one of the ninety-nine special spiritual energies detailed in the Great Heavenly Sovereign Chapter.

Although Fang Chen didn’t manage to acquire the herbs needed for the third stage of the Four Stage Profound Yang Body, obtaining the Yang Corrosion Flame was more than enough reason to enter the Three Thousand Dao Realm.

Fang Chen was full of anticipation. He wondered whether Fang Tianzun would break through to the Tribulation Realm after refining the Yang Corrosion Flame.

Fang Tianzun had already begun refining the flame.

The other avatars, like Fang Xuanyang, naturally didn’t waste the opportunity and followed their regular cultivation routines within the Three Thousand Dao Realm.

Fang Chen stood at a distance, silently observing Fang Tianzun’s progress.

Though the avatar appeared to be refining the flame, in truth, it was the Yang Corrosion Flame that had enveloped his entire body, like a pill being refined in a furnace.

Fang Chen mused silently. ”The core of the Great Heavenly Sovereign Pill Technique is to turn one into a human pill and forge oneself into a Great Heavenly Sovereign through a process of live refinement. I wonder, within the Immortal Dao hierarchy, what level a true Great Heavenly Sovereign stands at...”

Though gathering all ninety-nine types of spiritual energy was extremely difficult, this cultivation method had a unique advantage. It possessed its own advancement pathway and required no Immortal Herbs to break through.

Every required spiritual energy was recorded within the Great Heavenly Sovereign Chapter, and Fang Chen knew them all by heart. This alone set it apart from other immortal cultivation systems.

The creator of this technique had clearly forged a new path, replacing the role of immortal medicine with special spiritual energies. Such a being was an unmatched genius of their time.

Among the Nine Mortal Realms, there had to have been many peerless talents, no weaker than the one who created the Great Heavenly Sovereign Pill Technique in terms of brilliance.

Logically, other cultivators practicing such methods that don’t require immortal medicine should exist. Granted, they would be vanishingly rare, but they certainly existed.

Whether the Lower Six Realms had any, Fang Chen couldn’t say. But he could almost be certain that they existed in the Upper Three Realms.

***

A hundred years passed in a flash.

Because Fang Xuanyang and the others consumed one high-grade spirit stone every three years, Fang Chen’s stockpile quickly ran dry. His last three hundred spirit stones had been depleted.

Fortunately, these avatars far surpassed Fang Chen’s main body in cultivation aptitude. They were incredibly ”pure” and were born directly from Dao condensation and cultivating their own specific paths. Over the hundred years, one by one, they advanced into the Dao Union Realm.

Their cultivation fed back into the main body, and Fang Chen felt his own spiritual power had reached a limit, unable to increase any further. Any excess feedback was now wasted, dissipating into nothingness.

It was worth noting that, even without forming his third body, Fang Xuanyang managed to break through to the Tribulation Realm through a century of cultivation, aided by high-grade spirit stones. His strength had skyrocketed.

”Avatars born from the Dao need not undergo Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, and they don’t experience any bottlenecks in cultivation. Such an advantage...”

Even Fang Chen couldn’t help but feel envious. Once he reached the Dao Union Realm, he would have to endure nine rounds of tribulation lightning. At the Tribulation Realm, there would still be four rounds of Heavenly Tribulations to survive. Only upon reaching the Ascension Realm would the path ahead start to ease.

***

Over the next several hundred years, Fang Xuanyang and the others slowed significantly without spirit stone support, but they still steadily grew stronger.

Even though Fang Chen himself hadn’t yet reached the Dao Union Realm and could no longer cultivate further, he didn’t waste those centuries. Instead, he took on the role of an observer, attentively studying every detail of how each of his ten avatars cultivated, gaining far deeper insight into their respective paths.

For example, Fang Wushi, the female avatar. After she entered the Dao Union Realm, her aura turned increasingly mysterious. Strange lines even appeared beneath her seat without warning.

These lines contained an ancient and profound aura, forming a natural spirit-gathering formation that drastically increased her cultivation speed. She far outstripped the other avatars.

Fang Chen watched closely. Could the essence of the Primordial Immortal Eyes... be related to formations?

Standing near her, Fang Chen studied the formation encircling Fang Wushi. It felt completely natural, like something that had formed over countless years of natural evolution, without any artificial design.

His thoughts drifted back to when he had first acquired the Primordial Immortal Eyes from Xun Xiyin.

Back then, he believed the eyes would merely help compensate for his blindness, restoring some semblance of vision through sensitivity to lines and structure. The scenes he saw differed from normal sight. It was more abstract, composed of lines and constructs. However, to him, it offered unique advantages.

For instance, when analyzing formations, these pure lines allowed him to identify points and flaws in formations more easily.

He had always thought that this was the full extent of its abilities.

Now, seeing this natural-born formation around Fang Wushi, his understanding of the Primordial Immortal Eyes completely shifted.

The Primordial Immortal Eyes—and the mysterious lines they revealed—were very likely deeply connected to the true nature of formations themselves.

Condensing Dao, that was the core of these avatars. Perhaps their cultivation process was in fact a journey of returning to the source, tracing back to the fundamental truth of their respective paths.

A glint of excitement flashed through Fang Chen’s eyes. As long as each avatar could refine their Dao down to its original form, he would be able to master its root essence and fully unleash the power it was meant to carry.

He turned his attention to the other avatars, and through this new perspective, gained even more clarity into each of their Dao.

With a single thought, the formation surrounding Fang Wushi spread outward, enveloping the other avatars as well, allowing all of them to share in its benefits.

Several years later, Fang Tianzun finally succeeded in refining the Yang Corrosion Flame. His cultivation surged, breaking through into the Tribulation Realm.

Now, both Fang Tianzun and Fang Xuanyang had reached the Tribulation Realm. The remaining eight avatars had almost all reached Peak Dao Union Realm, their cultivation far surpassing Fang Chen’s main body.

Fang Chen, stirred by a sudden feeling, turned and stepped out of the Dao Palace, raising his head to look at the sky.

The sky of the Three Thousand Dao Realm had always been a pure white expanse, saturated with spiritual energy.

But now, one part of it didn’t look right. The spiritual energy there seemed to be boiling like water bubbling over a flame. As this phenomenon faded, the spiritual energy in that region had clearly thinned. Though it was slowly recovering, it looked as if a faint crack had opened in the sky itself.

A dark shadow passed through Fang Chen’s heart. He stood still, silently pondering for a long time before leaving the Three Thousand Dao Realm with all his avatars.

***

Xu Dongjiang stood nervously in the Cangyun Sect’s guest hall. Over the past two months, he had visited several times, but never once managed to meet Fang Chen.

He had spoken briefly with Zhao Jiaolong, but upon hearing his request, he was simply told to wait as Daoist Fang was in seclusion and could only be approached after he emerged.

From what he knew, this Daoist was only a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. What he found strange, however, was that even the sect’s Dao Union Realm cultivators didn’t dare act on his behalf.

This strongly suggested that Fang Chen’s position with the Cangyun Sect was unusual. It was likely related to the sect’s rumored fourth-transformation Immortal.

That was why, standing next to him today was the Xu Family’s Ancestor—Xu Guangyuan.