Immortal of the Nine Realms

When everyone returned to Fang Chen’s cave dwelling, the atmosphere felt somewhat heavy.

They had once believed that becoming cultivators under the Enlightenment God Palace would grant them limitless prospects for the future. Yet, not only had they failed to reach the place they so admired, but upon arriving, they had already experienced what their so-called ”seniors” called gentle guidance. It was nothing less than ruthless plundering.

”Here, the competition is even fiercer than within the Radiant Divine Dao Sect,” Yu Wuxia said heavily.

Meng Qingling gave a cold laugh. ”Now I finally understand, each expedition team is allowed to claim only one Immortal Boat, and that right rests entirely in the captain’s hands. If Xu Qian had managed to lure the captain away, the rest of us would have been forced either to join another team or to stay here in seclusion, unable to explore the Ancient Forbidden Zone and seek our fortunes.”

”Fortunately...” Lin Yuan exhaled, still shaken. ”That almost became a disaster. Luckily, the captain didn’t accept the Mysterious King Expedition Team’s invitation.”

”The cultivation world has always been filled with conflict. Our assessment was the same. The Enlightenment God Palace has no need for the useless. If you want to survive and live well, you need greater strength and harsher methods,” said Little Immortal Honglian lightly. ”From here on, we might face the same kind of predicament again. This time, Fellow Daoist Fang’s refusal of the Mysterious King Expedition Team’s invitation is equivalent to offending them.”

Meng Qingling’s eyes narrowed slightly. ”Mm. It’s very likely we’ll be targeted. That’s fine while we remain here, but once we enter the Ancient Forbidden Zone...”

Several people’s expressions tightened with worry as they imagined what it meant to offend an expedition team led by a first-transformation Immortal. Silently disappearing in the Ancient Forbidden Zone... wasn’t completely out of the question....

Expressions wavered; hesitation spread among them.

”If any of you are willing to shoulder this risk, then stay. If not, you can leave now and join another team,” Little Immortal Honglian said calmly. ”With your talent and aptitude, you’ll have no trouble finding a place elsewhere. But I’ll say this first. If you stay and later dally or drag your feet because of this matter, I’ll deal with you myself.”

”Ah... To be honest, I’m not that interested in the Ancient Forbidden Zone anyway.” One Dao Union Realm cultivator sighed. ”The yearly stipend of twenty high-grade spirit stones is plenty for my cultivation here. Once I reach the Tribulation or Ascension Realm, it won’t be too late to explore.”

He cupped his hands to everyone and turned to leave.

Some indeed had no desire to risk their lives so early and preferred to use the yearly spirit stones to strengthen their cultivation first. Others, thinking of possible retaliation from the Mysterious King Expedition Team, also took their leave.

In the end, after a round of comings and goings, nearly everyone had left Fang Chen’s cave dwelling. Only a handful remained, those who had fought Fang Chen several times before and had a deep impression of him. They were Yu Wuxia of the Radiant Divine Dao Sect, Meng Qingling of the Thunderfire Immortal Sect, Lin Yuan of the Demonic Insect Immortal Sect, and Hong Zhi of the Honglian Immortal Sect.

Counting Fang Chen himself, there were only five people left. For an expedition team, that number was far too small. But to Fang Chen, it was actually a relief. He had never needed many people. Apart from Little Immortal Honglian, the others merely served as a convenient cover.

”Those cowards... they have no guts!” Lin Yuan muttered helplessly.

”Forget them. The five of us are enough,” Meng Qingling said with a laugh. She then looked at Fang Chen and spoke in an almost coquettish tone. ”Captain, hurry up and refine the Immortal Boat already. Let’s see what’s so special about it.”

Little Immortal Honglian frowned slightly and cast her a disapproving glance, dissatisfied with her tone and demeanor.

Yu Wuxia and Lin Yuan exchanged glances and quietly took a step back.

Fang Chen took out the miniature Immortal Boat and began refining it in front of everyone.

A low-grade Heavenly Artifact would normally take a Dao Union Realm cultivator a long time to refine, and the group had already prepared themselves for a prolonged effort. Yet, after just one hour, it was successfully refined.

”It’s not my doing,” Fang Chen explained. ”This Immortal Boat seems to have been pre-refined. I’ve only been granted temporary control by refining it again.”

He then led the group outside the cave and released the Immortal Boat. It expanded in the wind until it was roughly two hundred feet long and seventy to eighty feet wide.

As they remembered Fang Chen’s earlier words, they boarded the Immortal Boat to inspect it.

Gradually, they gained some understanding of the treasure.

”There are twenty formations here. If you channel spiritual energy into them, they can unleash powerful effects,” Meng Qingling said.

Being from one of the Five Great Sects, she was deeply versed in formations and quickly realized that the Immortal Boat had been specially fitted with numerous formations.

”This is a defensive formation,” she added. ”If we insert a high-grade spirit stone and infuse a little energy, it can generate a protective barrier.”

”And this...” she continued, ”seems to be just a mark. When activated, it identifies the Immortal Boat as a treasure from the Enlightenment God Palace...”

”The material feels odd,” Yu Wuxia remarked as he knocked along its surface.

Suddenly inspired, he jumped down and gave the hull a light push. The Immortal Boat nearly tipped over.

”I didn’t use any spiritual power, just the strength of about ten ordinary mortals...” Yu Wuxia said, surprised. ”This thing is way too light. Even without any energy activation, it’s much lighter than any Immortal Boat I’ve seen before.”

”It must be made from a special material and crafted through a unique refining process,” Lin Yuan mused. ”The lighter the ark, the less energy it consumes to move. That means it can travel farther and faster through the void. I’d wager its speed surpasses most vessels of the same grade.”

Everyone’s eyes brightened. Having such an Immortal Boat would greatly reduce the time and effort needed to explore the Ancient Forbidden Zone.

”What’s this...”

Little Immortal Honglian suddenly brushed her hand against a section of the hull, and a star map instantly projected into the air before them. The map displayed numerous travel routes and territories along the way. Some regions were white, others green or red, and one black area bore the inscription: Ancient Forbidden Zone No.157.

”With this map, exploring the Ancient Forbidden Zone will be far easier. At the very least, we won’t lose our way,” Yu Wuxia said with awe.

While they were still marveling at their discoveries, Fang Chen, through his Primordial Immortal Eyes, had already discerned the Immortal Boat’s true nature.

At its core lay a hidden seal that faintly radiated a subtle wave. When Fang Chen infused spiritual power into it, he found that the energy of a Dao Union Realm cultivator was entirely sufficient to pilot it. Most of its propulsion came from that very seal.

This imprint was embedded during the Immortal Boat’s creation. It likely originates from the Enlightenment God Palace and maintains some sort of special link to it, perhaps even a monitoring or tracking function... Fang Chen thought to himself.

The Essence Long, he realized, was most likely just a component of a greater artifact. It was not a complete Heavenly Artifact. Its true core had to, without question, be a Spiritual Treasure!