Immortal of the Nine Realms

”What do you mean?” Daoist Yun Que was surprised. ”You’re saying that narcissistic fellow not only died, but spilled his blood all over the place?”

Wang Chongsong gave an awkward laugh. ”That might be the case...”

The Formation Hearts were scattered across the Ancient Forbidden Zones, though no one could say for sure whether they had been deliberately left behind by the Heavenly Dao before its fall.

”To die in such an undignified way...” muttered Daoist Yun Que, then suddenly brightened. ”Wait, if he’s dead, doesn’t that mean I have a chance to take his place?”

”Senior... you are an Anomaly now, aren’t you?” Fang Chen reminded him.

”An Anomaly?” The Daoist frowned unhappily. ”Oh, right. I forgot again. My memory really is terrible.”

He waved a hand. ”Come on, the three of us will look together. Let’s see if we can find any trace of that fellow’s blood.”

Wang Chongsong nodded enthusiastically. ”Alright!”

He then sent a voice transmission to Fang Chen. ”Didn’t we worry we’d run out of time? With him helping, we might actually finish this before the next war starts.”

Fang Chen nodded. ”Let’s hope so.”

Along the way, Daoist Yun Que truly seemed diligent in his search for traces of a Formation Heart.

”Senior Yun Que,” Fang Chen asked when he saw the chance, ”Do you still remember the Lunar Beast and the Azure Lightning Beast?”

He carefully watched Yun Que’s expression. If the man remembered anything at all, his reaction would surely give it away. After all, the three God Beasts of the Dao Sect had always shared incense offerings side by side. Their bond had to be deep.

”Old Cang and Old Ye? Of course I remember them. Why do you ask?” The Daoist answered offhandedly.

”Senior Yun Que, you may not know, but Daoism has declined badly. The sects are divided, and many no longer even worship the Three God Beasts,” shared Fang Chen, choosing his words carefully. ”If you and the other two were to appear together again, it might restore the Dao Sect’s strength and prestige. Perhaps—”

”What’s that got to do with us? Isn’t that your master’s job?” Yun Que shot him a glare. ”We three agreed long ago, we were only lending our names to help him out. If he’s run the Dao Sect into the ground, that’s on him, not us. Don’t expect us to clean up his mess.”

Wang Chongsong chuckled.

Fang Chen glanced at him and saw the gloating in his eyes. He ignored him and kept talking. He wanted to learn more about the other two beasts, and about his own master, Yun He. By now, he was certain that his teacher had once been a being nearly on par with the Heavenly Dao itself. Otherwise, how could he have been so close with the Three God Beasts?

Yet back on Tuxiong Star, Yun He had struggled just to defeat Li Wuwang. That alone proved his current cultivation was only a shadow of his former heights. He had to have suffered a catastrophic incident after becoming an Anomaly.

”Senior Yun Que,” Fang Chen asked, ”Where are the other two beasts now?”

”They’re right in... hmm. I don’t remember.”

”Then my master, was he ever injured?”

”Injured? Him?” Daoist Yun Que scoffed. ”He’s the sort who never lets himself lose out. Once, I just bad-mouthed him behind his back, and he threw me into the Pool of Transformation. I nearly lost all my cultivation.”

A cold sneer crossed Daoist Yun Que’s face as his eyes swept the surroundings, still searching for traces of Heavenly Dao Blood. ”If anyone ever managed to make him suffer, I’d have to laugh three times first. But I’ll tell you this, if he did suffer, whoever crossed him definitely paid a worse price.”

Fang Chen fell silent for a moment, then asked, ”Senior... do you still remember how you became an Anomaly?”

Daoist Yun Que froze. ”Right... why did I choose the Path of the Yang Gods?”

His brow furrowed. ”That road’s a dead end. I was clearly cultivating the Great Sun Pure Yang Immortal Path...”

He fell into deep thought, ignoring both Fang Chen and Wang Chongsong completely.

”Looks like back in the days of the Yang Gods, he must have been one of the leading figures,” Wang Chongsong said through a voice transmission. ”His memory loss is even worse than we thought.”

”If so, then our ability to live peacefully here must’ve come at a great cost to him,” Fang Chen replied softly. ”Is there any way to undo these side effects?”

”Not unless they abandon their great struggle,” Wang Chongsong said, shaking his head. ”But if that happened... have you thought about what it would mean? The entire world would change overnight, the Mortal Realms would fall into the hands of the demons.”

”You mean... their battle still hasn’t ended?” Fang Chen was startled. ”All this time, the Anomalies are still maintaining the technique?”

He had assumed that the great war from long ago was long finished and that the Yang Gods’ memory loss was simply its aftereffect. But Wang Chongsong’s words implied something terrifying. The Anomalies, including Yun Que, were still in that struggle, still fighting. That even Little Immortal Honglian’s homeland had never truly been at peace, that the titans of both sides had been fighting, unceasingly, since that ancient age until now.

”It’s almost certain,” Wang Chongsong said grimly. ”From what I know of that side, if these Anomalies weren’t constantly taking on the pressure, the Mortal Realms would’ve long been overrun by demons. That’s why they keep sending people here, again and again. If the fighting stopped, there’d probably be an age when not a single child would be born in all Nine Realms.”

Fang Chen suddenly looked toward Daoist Yun Que. Wang Chongsong sensed something amiss too. Both of them grew still.

Daoist Yun Que’s expression had twisted into one of anguish. It was as if he were remembering something unbearable, tears silently streaming down his weathered face.

The two didn’t dare disturb him, afraid to break the fragile thread of memory. They suspected he was recalling that ancient battle.

After about half an hour, Daoist Yun Que’s expression returned to normal, as though nothing had happened. Perhaps even that pain had already been forgotten.

”What are you two standing there for? Weren’t we looking for Heavenly blood?” He scowled at them. ”I haven’t slacked off, yet you’re the ones dawdling? Are all juniors like this nowadays? No sense of drive! Get moving! I’m not staying here forever!”

”Yes, yes,” replied Wang Chongsong, smiling nervously.

Wang Chongsong shot Fang Chen a look.

Fang Chen stared at Daoist Yun Que, who had reverted to his usual cantankerous self, no trace of what had just happened, and felt a dull ache in his chest.

These Anomalies... living endlessly through time, trapped in half-memory and half-oblivion... no wonder people called them monsters. Even lesser cultivators looked down on them. What use was power, if it left you mocked as a fool?

Was the old man once like this too? Was Master Yun He the same? And one day... will Father and Mother become like them as well?

”Old Wang,” Fang Chen said quietly, patting his shoulder, ”We’d better step it up.”

Wang Chongsong blinked.

”Step it up? Haven’t I already been?” he muttered under his breath, puzzled.

***

Several days later, Daoist Yun Que suddenly let out an excited shout, pointing ahead. ”Found it!”