Immortal of the Nine Realms

In the Forgotten River, Fang Chen lay flat upon the water. He did not sink, nor did any creature come to trouble him. The surface was still, like a pool of dead water. He floated upon it like a rotting log.

Three months had passed since that sealed memory in his mind had opened. Fang Chen forced himself not to dwell on it, intending to wait until he completed the fusion to reach the Dao Union Realm before confronting it again.

But his thoughts kept circling back, his mind wandering with questions.

For instance, if reincarnation had ceased to exist since the Underworld’s defeat back then, then what were the crying infants born into this world every day? And what about his younger sister, his parents, and his uncles and aunts? What about Xia Ji? Fairy Yu?

Once, he had tried bringing it up with Pitu, but a sudden feeling of dread had seized his heart immediately. He had felt as if a terrifying presence had set its gaze on him from the void. If he spoke about it aloud, he might draw down a terrifying suppression he could not withstand, and his memory might be sealed again.

So to this day, he kept his discoveries to himself, unable to share them with anyone.

Many clues, once that sealed memory was undone, seemed to connect.

Old Master Fang and Yun He knew that people were important. Senior Brother Pitu knew it too.

It meant that in their era, even in defeat, they had discerned the enemy’s aim. Though the details were forgotten, they remembered this crucial point. Their enemies had used some peerless, dreadful method—like the Great Enigma Art—to seal away everyone’s memory of the matter.

This was far more terrifying than memory sealing; it was the sealing of awareness itself.

How terrifying was that?

”If they truly achieved that, and so many ages have passed since, then the great powers of the Nine Mortal Realms may already belong to them. But then, why do they not reveal themselves? Has something gone wrong with their plan?”

A spark flared in Fang Chen’s thoughts. He felt his reasoning was correct.

”Yes. By my reckoning, if their aim was to plunder the Nine Mortal Realms through this method, they should have succeeded long ago. The Floating Pagoda Realm, or Greater Underworld, should’ve already been rebuilt under their order. The Nine Mortal Realms should’ve been utterly different from what it is today.

”This could only mean that they had failed—or rather, something is still missing. Which means... we may still have a chance.”

Fang Chen’s mood lifted, the suffocating gloom of the past months fading away.

He realized that if the Nine Mortal Realms were already theirs, yet people still lived as before, showing no difference at all, then there was only one explanation.

Everyone’s memory!

They must have stolen the Reincarnation Mirror from the Underworld’s Reincarnation Division, sending their own into the Nine Mortal Realms, even into the Immortal Realm.

But... reincarnation erases memories of the past life. That is the key. The people they planted cannot retain their past memories. So in every respect, they seem no different from ordinary folk.

If this is true, then what they lack is a key, a key that unlocks the mystery of the womb. Once such a key appears, the Nine Mortal Realms will instantly be theirs, without even a battle...

Fang Chen sat upright and crossed his legs, his thoughts racing.

They stormed the Immortal Realm, the Underworld, and laid such a vast plan. How could they make such a mistake?

Even someone like Senior Brother Pitu, an Immortal Monarch, could retrieve memories of his past life after reincarnation. These beings are thousands, or even tens of thousands, of times as strong. How could they not have a solution?

Could someone have stopped them? Was it the old man and those Anomalies who interfered?

In his mind, the tangled thread slowly unraveled.

He recalled a trait of Anomalies—occasional memory lapses. This trait seemed almost like a lingering side effect.

Since Anomalies walk the path of the Yang Spirit, it shouldn’t have such an obvious flaw. Why would anyone choose that path if not? If the enemy can seal everyone’s awareness, even Anomalies, then perhaps the top powerhouses of the Nine Mortal Realms, after realizing the enemy’s plan, devised countermeasures.

Could it be that their enemies used a similar method, placing seals upon the Anomalies’ own memories, so they could not unlock their original ones, and thus the Nine Mortal Realms have yet to fall?

If such sealing caused those Anomalies to suffer dementia-like aftereffects, it is not impossible...

Master Yun He once took many disciples—Senior Brother Qingmu, Li Wuwang, and myself included. Those who were taken under his tutelage may be ’clean.’ Also, since the old master is an Anomaly, then my parents may be clean too.

Stone Dragon died early, and he lived for so many years in the Floating Pagoda Realm. He may also be clean.

But Yan Haoran, Chen Lingding... they may not be. But they are already Underworld True Gods; they can’t oppose me even if they regain their memories. I could snuff out their life with a thought.

”Memory... Cognition...” muttered Fang Chen.

He abruptly rose from the Forgotten River and returned to the Mortal Realm. He then drew out the World Gourd and released Fairy Yu.

She stretched lazily, looking at him with a languid smile. ”Lord, did you miss me?”

Fang Chen said thoughtfully, ”I want to ask you something.”

”So serious? Go on, what is it?” Fairy Yu said with a half-smile.

”You’ve never changed, have you? You just remembered your past life’s memories, and that’s what’s taken precedence. That’s why even the Skinning Technique didn’t work on you. You never changed. You’re still Little Yu, but also something else.”

The smile on Fairy Yu’s face stiffened.

Though she tried to hide the flicker of panic, Fang Chen caught it.

She smiled faintly. ”Your Lordship, I really have no clue what you’re saying. But if you think I am still the same, you should release me.”

Fang Chen pressed on. ”Wang Chongsong came from the same place as you, didn’t he? Still, some things don’t add up. What kind of place is it you come from? Is it similar to the Nine Mortal Realms, or completely different?”

Fairy Yu’s expression darkened. ”Enough. If you won’t let me go, then put me back into your gourd.”

Fang Chen pulled her into his arms.

Finding herself suddenly in his embrace, Fairy Yu stiffened.

He whispered into her ear, ”At first, I thought the Inverse Immortal Demonic Embryo was just a technique, and every technique can be dispelled—unfortunately, I was wrong.”

Fairy Yu’s heart chilled with dread.

”What are you doing—”

Hardly had she spoken when her physical body collapsed, and she became a wandering soul, stripped of all cultivation.

Fairy Yu’s mind reeled with shock.

Fang Chen looked at her calmly. ”This is the only way to dissolve the Inverse Immortal Demonic Embryo.”