Immortal of the Nine Realms

Beneath the green-robed elder, thousands of cultivators knelt in neat rows. The lowest among them were at least at the Foundation Building Realm, with over a dozen at the Soul Splitting Realm. Apart from these Soul Splitting Realm cultivators, the rest wore expressions of confusion, fear, and unease.

Meanwhile, more cultivators were being captured and brought in continuously.

The green-robed elder chuckled lightly before sweeping the Soul Splitting Realm cultivators with his gaze. ”You are at the Soul Splitting Realm. Your split souls are not within the Giant Antler Empire’s borders, so you’re not as afraid, are you?”

The Soul Splitting Relm cultivators exchanged glances.

One of them quickly replied, ”This junior wouldn’t dare!”

The green-robed elder smiled. ”It’s actually fine. If I can find you here today, I will naturally be able to track down each of your split souls and kill them in the future. Even if one or two manage to escape, so what? Your path to advancement will already be severed, and you’ll be stuck at your current level for the rest of your lives. Is this what you want to see?”

The faces of the Soul Splitting Realm cultivators grew paler and paler as they listened, their previous composure fading.

If their split souls were destroyed, their path to the Fusion Realm would be cut off. Furthermore, if they wanted to maintain their current level, they would have to expend a lot of resources. This required having an immense foundation. It wasn’t uncommon for those with slightly weaker foundations to regress in their cultivation.

That was why Soul Splitting Realm cultivators were careful not to engage in battles unnecessarily, even if they didn’t fear death as much.

”Senior Hong, we truly don’t know who killed His Majesty. The ministers who were with him are also dead, and not a single survivor was left.”

”That’s right, we have absolutely no connection to this matter. We’re only at the Soul Splitting Realm and are subjects of Giant Antler. How could we dare to assassinate His Majesty...”

”Empty words mean nothing. Only by handing over the murderer who killed the prince or providing me with some clues will you be allowed to live today,” said the green-robed elder with a smile. ”Don’t think I’m joking. If the murderer isn’t found within ten days, or if no clues are provided, all of Giant Antler will be buried with him.”

The crowd was both shocked and furious.

Would Giant Antler really be sacrificed? How many people would die because of this?

Most of them had spent their entire lives in the Giant Antler Empire. Their ancestors had lived on this land for generations. Their roots ran deep in its soil. If the Giant Antler Empire were destroyed, this would be nothing short of annihilating their families and clans!

At that moment, a celestial soldier arrived and bowed respectfully to the green-robed elder. ”Lord Hong, all the prominent cultivators in the capital have been captured, and the rest have been imprisoned. What should we do now?”

The green-robed elder replied indifferently, ”Do I need to teach you how to do your job? Tell those outside not to stop. I want every cultivator in the Giant Antler Empire brought here for questioning. Who dares to have the audacity to harm the lord of Heavenly King Zhen’s Manor?”

”Yes!”

The celestial soldier quickly turned and left.

The kneeling cultivators were horrified.

Heavenly King Zhen Manor’s attitude was crystal clear! If the murderer wasn’t found, they’d become the scapegoats who would accompany the emperor of the Giant Antler to the afterlife!

Seeing what was happening below, Shen Ji glanced at Fang Chen and said, ”The situation has already unfolded. Any intervention would be useless now. Let’s head to Li Xiao.”

”If Gai Hong were still alive, he wouldn’t want to see the people of the Giant Antler Empire sacrificed for him,” remarked Fang Chen.

Shen Ji nodded lightly. ”That’s true, but what can we do? That’s the wrath of an Immortal King. What water could quench his rage? Even if you tell them that Qin Hucheng was the one who killed Gai Hong and they believed you, that would only serve to alert the enemy prematurely.”

She glanced at the green-robed elder. ”Hong Sanxiang is a notorious executioner within the Heavenly King Zhen Manor. The amount of karma he has accumulated surpasses even that of an Immortal King. From the beginning of his cultivation to his current level as a Profound Immortal, he has killed countless people.

”If not for the sheer number of lives he has taken, he might have already overcome his tribulation and ascended to the Immortal King Realm. The manor sent him out not just to find the murderer but to vent his fury. Not only will people in Giant Antler Empire die, but many others elsewhere will also perish.”

She sighed softly. ”I’ll go and speak to him. Let’s see if he’ll give me some face as the fourth princess.”

Fang Chen said, ”I’ll go with you.”

Fang Chen and Shen Ji arrived near Hong Sanxiang, taking him by surprise. They had arrived so suddenly that he hadn’t noticed them.

When Hong Sanxiang saw Shen Ji’s face, he was surprised.

His surprised expression disappeared, replaced with a frown. ”Why are you here, Fourth Princess?”

As soon as Gai Hong died, the fourth princess appeared. It was hard for Hong Sanxiang not to connect the two events.

Shen Ji clasped her fist respectfully. ”Senior Hong, I was just passing through and overheard your words. Gai Hong... is dead?”

His gaze fixed on Shen Ji, Hong Sanxiang said, ”The prince is indeed dead. His life lamp has been extinguished. Do you know anything about this?”

Shen Ji replied, ”Gai Hong’s death involves significant implications. I hope you will not implicate the innocent people of the Giant Antler Empire, Senior Hong.”

Hong Sanxiang’s expression turned cold, and he waved his hand dismissively. ”Since you are merely passing through, you may leave. The manor’s stance on this matter is clear. No one can intervene.”

Fang Chen interjected, ”What if it was Gai Hong himself?”

Hong Sanxiang glanced at Fang Chen, a flicker of contemplation in his eyes. ”Are you Fang Chen from the Void Immortal Sword Sect?”

”That’s correct.”

Hong Sanxiang frowned. ”What do you mean by that?”

Hong Sanxiang had naturally heard of Fang Chen. This junior had recently gained quite the reputation in the Central Continent Empire. Not only was he connected to the Void Immortal Sword Sect, but he also had ties to the anomaly of the Three Thousand Dao Sect and was even a disciple of the Desolate Academy.

Hong Sanxiang had no choice but to be a little patient with him. If Fang Chen was just spouting nonsense, he would be sent away all the same.

Nearby, Gai Hong looked helpless. ”Me? What can I say? Can my corpse speak?”

The wandering souls of the ministers beside him exchanged glances, their moods heavy.

They never expected that Gai Hong’s death would lead to disaster for the Giant Antler Empire. Their roots were also in Giant Antler. Their clans would suffer if it were destroyed, too.

Gai Hong grew angrier the more he thought about Qin Hucheng. ”Qin Hucheng, you scoundrel! I thought you were an upright gentleman, but you’re just a petty villain.”

Gai Hong flew directly in front of Fang Chen and shouted, ”Your senior brother Qin Hucheng is a Spirit Blood Sect cultivator, did you know that?”

Fang Chen nodded. ”I know.”

Gai Hong was momentarily stunned.

The ministers exchanged bewildered looks.

Hong Sanxiang frowned. ”What are you talking about? What do you know?”

Fang Chen looked at Gai Hong. ”Only you can quell your father’s wrath. Are you ready?”

”Ready for what!?” Gai Hong was utterly shocked. ”Wait, how can you see me!?”

Suddenly, Gai Hong felt a surge of yin energy around him.

Fang Chen raised his hand and waved, sending a force into Gai Hong.

Gai Hong found the sensation peculiar. He felt as though he had regained a physical body.

Before Hong Sanxiang and Shen Ji’s surprised eyes, Gai Hong’s body slowly materialized.

The kneeling cultivators couldn’t see this scene, as Fang Chen had already set up a barrier around them.

Qin Hucheng definitely had eyes in the capital of the Giant Antler Empire. Fang Chen didn’t want him to learn of this yet.

Hong Sanxiang was stunned. ”My Lord?”

Shen Ji was shocked.

Was Gai Hong not dead?

She studied Gai Hong carefully and discovered he was different from a living person. She couldn’t pinpoint exactly how, though.

Gai Hong’s expression was grave. ”Fang Chen, what kind of technique is this? I’m clearly dead, so how can you see me, and how can they see me? Am I dreaming?”