Immortal of the Nine Realms

It could be inferred how valuable immortal crystals were from the wages of third-transformation Loose Immortals in the Spiritual Killing Division, receiving only one per year.

Second-transformation Loose Immortals receive one immortal crystal every five years, and first-transformations are only compensated with one every ten years.

To save up a hundred immortal crystals, a first-transformation Loose Immortal would have to work for the Spiritual Killing Division for a thousand years.

Using a hundred immortal crystals to unearth a path of immortality was hardly a bad deal. Even receiving the path toward only a single stage, and not the entire inheritance, was worthwhile. Any of the Niner Realm’s top powers would take a deal like this without batting an eye.

These top powers would treat this path like a treasure, hoarding it for themselves and keeping a tight secret.

Fang Chen was different. He had no such concerns, nor did he plan to hoard it. Having spent a hundred immortal crystals now, he expected at least a tenfold return, possibly even a hundredfold.

After a few days, the Mirror of the Universe had fully absorbed all one hundred crystals. Fang Chen had thought this time would be different. Such vast energy should have triggered some transformation in the mirror.

To his surprise, it was like dropping a pebble into the ocean. It was just a faint splash and a ripple that vanished immediately.

”Brother, I’m ready. Turn to page 107,” came Little Mirror’s now deeper and more resonant voice.

Fang Chen turned the page. The ink swirled and shifted, forming an illustration and accompanying text.

The illustration showed a simple mountain stone. Growing from it was a flower that looked utterly ordinary.

The text explained ot came next. The flower was called a Golden Soul Flower, a crucial immortal herb for a sword cultivator’s advancement from the third transformation to the fourth transformation.

It only grew from Crimson Soul Gold, a rare and precious spiritual material scarcely seen in the Nine Regions. Even when it did appear, quantities were minuscule. Only deposits as large as boulders could give rise to a Golden Soul Flower.

Such immortal herbs, even when known to exist, were exceedingly difficult to obtain—normally monopolized by the great powers of the Nine Regions.

But that assumed they knew it was an immortal herb.

In truth, they had no idea that the Golden Soul Flower was one, let alone that it was essential to the path of a Sword Immortal.

Given that, Fang Chen could mobilize the Day and Night Walkers of the Lesser Underworld to scour the land.

There was a good chance they could track down a Golden Soul Flower’s whereabouts.

The worry was that some cultivator might stumble upon one, fail to recognize its value, and carelessly damage or discard it. That would be a true pity.

”Little Zhou, how far is the nearest Golden Soul Flower from me?” Fang Chen asked casually.

”Brother, if you want a specific location... That may cost another hundred immortal crystals,” the Mirror of the Universe replied tactfully.

”No need,” Fang Chen said with a chuckle. ”I’ll have my subordinates investigate first. If they can’t find it, then I’ll consider buying the location from you.” After a pause, he added, ”By the way, what other uses does the Golden Soul Flower have?”

”This information isn’t secret and doesn’t involve karmic consequences. It also serves another purpose. It can be used in treasure refining.”

”Treasure refining?”

”Since it grows from Crimson Soul Gold, the flower accumulates much of that metal’s spiritual essence. If you refine it into an artifact, it can slightly boost its quality and even help repair it.”

”In that case, the Golden Soul Flower might enter circulation. That’s good news.”

Fang Chen put away the Mirror of the Universe, already planning to summon Du Yunxu and have him direct the Lesser Underworld’s scouts to search for the flower. He would also inform Shentu Cang and others to be on the lookout.

”Xu Changshi has a strong background and was a Spirit Blood Sect cultivator. I could have him check too. Better inform Chen Lingding as well.”

”The Huang Clan’s Qingque... never mind. If I suddenly ask them to find a Golden Soul Flower, they’ll think it’s some precious treasure.”

Suddenly, Fang Chen’s expression shifted. He flipped his palm over, revealing a waist token given by Huang Qingque. It was emitting a gentle white glow and warmth.

With a thought, Fang Chen stepped out of the Three Thousand Dao Gate and into the void. There stood a middle-aged man, hands clasped behind his back, overlooking the world below.

”And you are?” Fang Chen cupped his hands politely.

The man was a fourth transformation Loose Immortal.

The middle-aged man smiled warmly and produced a waist token. ”I am Wu Zhengde, the Division Leader of the Killing Spiritual Division on Ziqing Star.”

”Fang Chen, Division Leader of the Killing Spiritual Division on Creation Star. A pleasure to meet you.” Fang Chen bowed respectfully.

Wu Zhengde put away the token, his expression still amiable. ”No need for such formality, Brother Fang. Just call me Brother Wu. Truth be told, I’ve been an unfit superior. Too busy with other matters, I neglected Creation Star. That’s why the Killing Spiritual Division here fell into disarray and ended up suppressed by the Spirit Blood Sect.”

Suppressed? More like completely flattened.

Fang Chen smiled faintly. ”This isn’t your fault, Brother Wu. Don’t take it to heart. Victory and defeat are part of any conflict between the Killing Spiritual Division and the Spirit Blood Sect. Perfectly normal.”

”Sigh. I truly had no time to manage Creation Star. Fortunately, the Huang Clan helped find a capable new Leader, and I feel deeply ashamed.” Wu Zhengde sighed again. ”I heard that once you took office, you wasted no time before striking down the Spirit Blood Sect, forcing them to retreat. It was the greatest victory the Creation Star Killing Spiritual Division has ever known. That only made me feel even more ashamed.”

”Brother Wu, I just happened to get lucky,” Fang Chen replied. ”It was only because a Thousand Dao Tower elder got into trouble and was detained by the Spirit Blood Sect’s experts that we had an opening to exploit. If not for that, we’d still be stuck.”

”Even so, I can still see your skill, Brother Fang. Just your ties to the Huang Clan alone place you far above most of your peers in the Division.” Wu Zhengde chuckled, then took out 10 immortal crystals and handed them to Fang Chen. ”You’ve only been in your position a bit over three years, so technically you should have only earned three crystals. The rest is from me, a token of support for your work on Creation Star. I’ll rely on you to manage things there while I focus on handling the Spirit Blood Sect on Ziqing Star.”

”Oh, I couldn’t possibly...” Fang Chen said modestly as he accepted the ten crystals with a sheepish smile.

Seeing him accept them, Wu Zhengde’s smile remained unchanged. ”Do your best, Brother Fang. I must return now. I can’t be away too long or the Spirit Blood Sect might exploit the gap.”

”Shall I see you out?”

”No need, no need.” Wu Zhengde turned into a stream of light and vanished into the horizon.

Fang Chen watched him go, murmuring to himself, ”He seems wary of Huang Qingque. Maybe this visit was just to curry favor... But more likely, he’s feeling guilty, hoping that since I took his crystals, I’ll mind my own business and not meddle in his domain.”

Flattery? A veiled warning? Perhaps a little of both.