Immortal of the Nine Realms

After Gong Tianxin left the teahouse, he started mulling over the earlier conversation. Soon, he couldn’t help but feel like something felt off.

He touched the 100 Yin Lifespan Coins in his sleeve, and a look of frustration suddenly crossed his face.

He had said too much today.

He had traded valuable information for only one hundred years of Yin Lifespan Coins when it was obviously worth a lot more. For someone like him, a professional, it was a serious lapse in business judgment.

A trace of greed flashed in Gong Tianxin’s eyes. ”Forget it. Maybe there really is a chance to cooperate. It might all be pie in the sky, but there is no harm in giving it a shot. If cooperation is possible, and Yu Tingzhai of the Yin Holy Sect gets involved, we might be able to extract some benefits. The foundation of Nine Immortal Mountain Holy Land... is no ordinary thing.”

As Gong Tianxin was lost in contemplation, a Yin Walker approached him and asked, ”Fellow Gong, have you found any leads regarding the matter I entrusted to you?”

Gong Tianxin immediately put on a smile and cupped his fist. ”Our men have been working on it continuously, but that person’s origin is far too mysterious. We’ve found no clues at all. It’ll still take some time.”

”Do what you can. We can’t wait much longer. Over in the Lesser Underworld, we need to restore the previous state of affairs. We can’t go on like this,” the man said coldly. ”We came to your Immortal Worshipping Palace precisely because of its strong reputation in information gathering across the Nine Realms. Don’t let us down.”

After a pause, he added, ”Try probing from the Killing Spiritual Division’s side. He might be from there.”

Gong Tianxin sighed. ”To be frank, we already suspected that. But even after leveraging all our ties with the Killing Spiritual Division, I still couldn’t find a thread of information. In fact, I’ve heard... the Killing Spiritual Division is also searching for him.

”This figure appeared out of nowhere and completely restructured the Lesser Underworld into what it is today. His methods are truly extraordinary. Back when I had people stationed there, guess what happened? They either vanished or broke off all contact with us. That shows how swift and ruthless he is.”

He paused before speaking again. ”Fellow Daoist, you can’t rely entirely on our Immortal Worshipping Palace. Your Spirit God Sect should also activate its networks. See where anything feels off. Maybe that’ll lead you to his background.”

”The Nine Realms are too vast, and now we’ve lost the Lesser Underworld as a messaging hub. Inter-regional communication is no longer what it used to be.”

”Understood.”

Gong Tianxin nodded, sighing inwardly.

This was no different from looking for a single special drop of water in the ocean. Even for the Spirit God Sect, let alone anyone else, even the top sects of the Upper Three Realms would struggle with this—unless someone got absurdly lucky and came face-to-face with that Monarch Fang in the Lesser Underworld, only then might they hear his identity directly from him or his inner circle.

***

In the shadows, Fang Chen glanced at Gong Tianxin, then at the Spirit God Sect’s Yin Walker speaking with him, before quietly turning and returning to the private room of the teahouse.

”Fellow Yang, back to our previous topic. The Immortal Worshipping Palace... is it really that famous across the Nine Realms?”

”Very famous. We in the Killing Spiritual Division also collaborate with them from time to time. But the Immortal Worshipping Palace is neutral. They also cooperate with the Spirit God Sect. To put it simply, whichever side pays more, that’s where their information goes. They’ll leak our intelligence to the Spirit God Sect, and vice versa.”

Yang Yuanwu nodded. ”Back when I was stationed at a certain post, traces of the Immortal Worshipping Palace were present. There was a major scheme by the Spirit God Sect, and they were involved. We suffered a terrible loss.”

Fang Chen frowned. ”Selling intel to both sides.... Can a force like that really survive in the Nine Realms? If it were me, I’d wipe them out immediately.”

”The power structures above are too entangled. The Immortal Worshipping Palace has its reasons for existing. Both the Killing Spiritual Division and the Spirit God Sect have a mutual understanding. They wouldn’t hold a grudge against them over intelligence leaks,” Yang Yuanwu explained. ”I personally lean toward eliminating them. A force like that is nothing but a shit-stirrer.”

”They control various intelligence channels, which makes all sides wary. No one knows what secrets the Immortal Worshipping Palace might be holding, so they hesitate to act. And the more this happens, the more the Immortal Worshipping Palace grows, leading to what it is today,” Fang Chen said. ”Of course, this also means the Immortal Worshipping Palace must have a powerful figure whom none dare offend lightly. Otherwise, they would’ve been wiped out long ago.”

Yang Yuanwu nodded slightly. He found Fang Chen’s insight reasonable.

Although the Immortal Worshipping Palace didn’t hold destructive power per se, the chaos their information could unleash was enough to make anyone cautious.

Yang Yuanwu chuckled. ”There’s a joke I once heard. Someone used the Immortal Worshipping Palace’s services to discover that his Dao companion was secretly involved with a clan elder. That led to internal conflict. At least three or four third-transformation Loose Immortals died, not to mention countless first and second transformation immortals. A once-renowned clan fell into total decline.”

”Say... do you think the Lesser Underworld could get a foot in this kind of business too?” asked Fang Chen, tapping lightly on the table.

Thud, thud, thud.

Yang Yuanwu knew very well that the person before him was none other than Monarch Fang of the Lesser Underworld. Right now, the entire Lesser Underworld was under his control.

Not only that, he held an orthodox Monarch Yan’s inheritance. He was able to officially appoint Ghost Gods.

Given time to develop, he could absolutely become someone even the top sects of the Upper Three Regions would fear.

After a few moments of thought, weighing the pros and cons, Yang Yuanwu suddenly exclaimed, ”Why not? With how the Lesser Underworld operates, its ability to gather intel on a small scale already surpasses the Immortal Worshipping Palace. They might not steal high-level clients away, but low- and mid-level business? That’s absolutely possible. And the profits could be terrifying.”

”Profit is secondary. The key is that controlling information means having narrative power. Once you have that, others must consider your position when you speak,” Fang Chen said.

Yang Yuanwu’s eyes lit up slightly. That was indeed the case. If the Lesser Underworld could infiltrate every faction like the Immortal Worshipping Palace and grasp their secrets, they could strike unseen.

It was far superior to the ghostly tricks of the Spirit God Sect.

The Spirit God Sect maintained its footing in the Nine Realms with the Blood Spirit Pill as its foundation. But that pill only worked on Loose Immortals below the third transformation. It couldn’t influence high-level strategic decisions.

The Immortal Worshipping Palace was different. Sometimes, a single word from them could stir up a storm in an entire domain.

”This could work. It would be of great benefit to the Lesser Underworld,” Yang Yuanwu said seriously.

Fang Chen smiled. ”We can discuss it more after we return. I’ll introduce you to the various Monarchs of each division.”

***

In the end, Fang Chen didn’t manage to find a way to return to Dangyin Mountain and had to double back through the Mortal Realm.

Half a year later, after many detours, he returned to the Central Continent Empire and met Chu Jia at their agreed location. She had been waiting a long time.