Immortal of the Nine Realms

Lin Yuan sighed when he saw that Fang Chen’s opponent was Yu Tiange. He sent out a voice transmission to the others. ”Looks like the captain’s run into a real tough one this time.”

”Not necessarily,” said Yu Wuxia, glancing at Fang Chen, then at Yu Tiange, his expression somewhat complicated.

Everyone’s faces shifted slightly. To this day, they still didn’t know how Fang Chen had managed to protect that immortal herb, or where Xiao Chenghe of the Mysterious King Expedition Team had gone.

At that moment, Little Immortal Honglian’s voice sounded in their ears. ”During the assessments, Fellow Daoist Fang has always handled things with ease. I never once saw him go all out. If he tries his best, I think he might be able to defeat a silver jade token holder.”

Even so, the group remained conservative regarding their expectations. Only those who had experienced it firsthand knew how hard it was to upgrade the token to the silver color. It wasn’t a skirmish of dozens or hundreds of people—it was a battle of over a million.

To put it bluntly, that was already a war. And they were not generals commanding armies, but mostly lone wolves. To face tens of thousands alone and emerge victorious in such a massive war was nothing short of a legend.

”Yu Tiange is, after all, someone who’s obtained the silver jade token. You and I both know how hard that is. I don’t have high hopes for this match. But as long as the captain can hold out for a short while against him, that result alone will be impressive enough to leave an impression on the two core disciples,” Lin Yuan analyzed calmly. ”As long as the captain gets noticed, the Nine Realms Expedition Team will gain some recognition. That will bring endless benefits in the future.”

”That’s true.”

***

Fang Chen and Yu Tiange walked toward the designated combat area. The captains of Yu Tiange’s temporary squad all wore looks of schadenfreude, but also of relief.

They were relieved that they hadn’t drawn Yu Tiange as their first opponent. All of them carried bronze jade tokens and knew just how terrifying Yu Tiange was.

Yu Tiange cupped his hands. ”Expedition Star 431, Tiange Expedition Team, Yu Tiange.”

Fang Chen returned the salute. ”Expedition Star 432, Nine Realms Expedition Team, Fang Chen.”

His divine soul instantly left his body, observing the subtle shifts in everyone’s expressions.

Li Shanzi and the young man both wore pleasant smiles, seemingly focused on the duel, but their minds were clearly elsewhere.

Of the Immortals nearby, only a small number truly showed interest in watching this contest between juniors.

Ji Tianjun, whom Fang Chen had been keeping an eye on, also seemed lost in thought. He showed no particular reaction to the name ”Fang Chen.”

From start to finish, he had never realized the true reason why his plan on Tuxiong Star had failed.

An opponent one didn’t even know existed—there was nothing easier to deal with.

Yu Tiange smiled faintly. ”Fellow Daoist Fang, shall we keep it to a friendly spar?”

Fang Chen nodded slightly. ”Of course.”

In the next instant, thunder roared as blinding lightning erupted about Yu Tiange.

In everyone’s eyes appeared a figure formed entirely of pure lightning.

”What technique is that?”

”Why did he turn into that?”

Many people were bewildered. Even some first-transformation Immortals couldn’t immediately recognize what Yu Tiange was using. They only felt that his aura now surged to the late stage of the Tribulation Realm, far beyond the average strength of a mid-stage Tribulation Realm cultivator.

The lightning around him carried an aura of destruction, as if it could annihilate everything.

Li Shanzi’s eyes fixed on Yu Tiange as he nodded slightly. ”Nine Tribulation Lightning Body.”

”This technique is extremely hard to master. Judging by this level, he’s reached the third tribulation. With a Nine Tribulation Lightning Body of that degree in the Dao Union Realm, suppressing peers would be effortless. Almost nothing can restrain him.”

”It’s a lightning technique. Only lightning can restrain lightning.” The youth nodded in agreement. ”If I recall correctly, this Nine Tribulation Lightning Body belongs exclusively to the Yu Clan of the Leichi Constellation. He must be one of their disciples.”

The nearby Loose Immortals all nodded in praise, clearly impressed by Yu Tiange’s mastery.

”No wonder he holds the silver jade token... To defeat me, he’d probably only need one move,” Lin Yuan muttered to himself.

Yu Tiange’s peers looked on with envy and jealousy. The technique was clearly above their level. Without a strong background, they could never access it. Even cultivating it would surely come with numerous restrictions.

That alone showed that even if Yu Tiange weren’t an external cultivator of the Enlightenment God Palace, his origin alone was enough to make him stand out among them all.

By contrast, when they looked at Fang Chen, many couldn’t help but shake their heads slightly. He also bore a bronze jade token, but against Yu Tiange, no technique would likely help.

Only overwhelming cultivation could turn the tide. However, they were both mid-stage Tribulation Realm cultivators. Where would such an advantage come from?

”Fellow Daoist Fang, my Nine Tribulation Lightning Body grants me near-total immunity to all spells. Let’s save some time. Why don’t you just concede?” Yu Tiange said with a smile.

The other was, after all, a temporary teammate. He didn’t wish to embarrass him.

”You were told to duel, not to trade words.” The young man snorted coldly. ”If neither of you dares to act, step down and let someone else take your place.”

Yu Tiange froze for a moment. Without another word, he turned into a lightning dragon and charged straight at Fang Chen.

In this state, no spell could pierce his Lightning Body; all would be instantly dispersed by lightning, unless his opponent crushed him with absolute power.

Yu Tiange saw his lightning-dragon form reflected in Fang Chen’s pupils and sighed inwardly. To make an impression before the two core members, he’d have to go all out.

But then, in the next instant, he noticed something. A strange blue gleam flashed within Fang Chen’s gray-white eyes.

Immediately after, layers upon layers of earthen power surged violently, wrapping Yu Tiange completely.

Yu Wuxia’s eyes brightened. ”Radiant Divine Eyes!”

He had guessed correctly. He, too, had believed that only the Radiant Divine Eyes could offer the slightest chance of victory in this situation.

The power of the earth element rolled like a flood. Magnified hundreds of times, its power far exceeded what a mid-stage Tribulation Realm cultivator could normally unleash.

”This spiritual energy, it’s immense. Is he using some kind of artifact?”

”No, this looks more like a technique from the Langgui Constellation’s Radiant Divine Dao Sect.”

”Radiant Divine Eyes? I’ve heard it lets spiritual energy erupt beyond its natural limits.”

At that moment, the lightning dragon had become an earth dragon. But within the earthen energy, flashes of lightning still burst out as Yu Tiange struggled to break free.

”It’ll come down to who can last longer,” thought Yu Wuxia, ”but activating the Radiant Divine Eyes like that must drain his spiritual energy fast...”

The Radiant Divine Eyes demanded an enormous amount of spiritual energy to sustain. And that, indeed, was its one fatal flaw.