Immortal of the Nine Realms

”This was equivalent to an old minister of the previous era meeting the emperor of a new generation. Though they belonged to the same system, there were still differences.”

Fang Chen stared at the old decree, a thought rising in his heart. If he were to use his decree to replace it, would the ancient tree then fall under his control?

There might be risks. If the old decree dissipated during the conferring process before he actually succeeded, the ancient tree would turn into a true Great Yin Demon, and he would fail to control it. It would not care whether he was Monarch Yan or not. It would strike him all the same.

As he pondered silently, a sudden commotion came from outside.

Fang Chen’s thoughts stirred, and he appeared beyond the city. He saw Huang Wuji locked in combat with another man. Though Huang Wuji possessed the strength of a fourth-transformation immortal, he was being forced back again and again. His opponent wielded a gourd that looked very much like the World Gourd. Any technique Huang Wuji unleashed was nullified.

On the back of Zhu Long, tens of millions of wandering souls watched the spectacle, most of them with dazed eyes, unable to grasp the essence of such a duel. Only cultivators could sense the deadly peril within it.

”Wang Chongsong!” Fang Chen suddenly shouted coldly.

The man fighting Huang Wuji froze for an instant, and in that brief lapse, he failed to guard himself. Huang Wuji’s sword qi struck him, sending him tumbling thousands of feet away.

”What a pity,” muttered Fang Chen. ”Huang Wuji can’t suppress him, and the ancient tree doesn’t heed my command right now. Otherwise... this would have been the perfect moment to force him to accept a decree.”

From the man’s reaction, Fang Chen was certain that he was Wang Chongsong.

The fact that he could traverse the Underworld confirmed that this was his true body. Judging by his power, he was at least a fourth-transformation immortal, if not a fifth-transformation immortal. Otherwise, he could not have overwhelmed Huang Wuji.

”You’re Fang...”

Wang Chongsong rubbed his eyes and looked at Fang Chen with a strange expression. When he saw Huang Wuji cease attacking, he slowly descended to land not far from them.

”Don’t leave,” Fang Chen said in a deep voice. ”Let’s have a proper talk.”

Monarch Yan’s Battle Armor had already been put away, and now he looked like nothing more than an ordinary Yin Walker.

Wang Chongsong studied him for a long moment, then glanced at Huang Wuji before grinning. ”Our meeting here, is it a coincidence?”

”It isn’t,” Fang Chen replied. ”I saw you break the seal here. Without you, this place would never have been accessible.”

”You saw that?”

The smile on Wang Chongsong’s face faded at once. His gaze grew heavier with suspicion. ”What exactly did you see?”

”I saw what others cannot see,” Fang Chen said calmly. ”And I know what others do not know.”

”That’s worth a real conversation,” Wang Chongsong said. ”But he cannot be present. Otherwise, some things we say might bring grave trouble.”

He pointed at Huang Wuji, then smiled faintly. ”You once infiltrated the Void Immortal Sword Sect, and now you’ve followed Fang Chen. I suppose that’s poetic justice, you got what you sought.”

Huang Wuji was slightly taken aback. ”You knew?”

In truth, from the moment Fang Chen had shouted Wang Chongsong’s name, he had already been deeply shocked. When he served in the Void Immortal Sword Sect, he had always known the sect master was named Wang Chongsong, but he had never taken him seriously.

In his eyes, that man was merely a cultivator at the Dao Union Realm. Yet now... in the Underworld, the man could suppress him in battle. Clearly, his true strength was far beyond appearances.

”Lord...” Huang Wuji said solemnly, setting aside his astonishment, ”If I leave, it may be dangerous.”

”It’s fine,” Fang Chen said with a wave of his hand.

This was a rare opportunity, one he didn’t want to miss. From what he had gathered so far, Wang Chongsong’s goal might, in some way, align with his own.

Huang Wuji gave a slight nod and slowly withdrew.

Once he had gone far enough, Wang Chongsong approached Fang Chen and smiled with faint emotion. ”To think that the little Foundation Building Realm cultivator of the past has now become such a figure of renown. I never expected to find you here, in the Langgui Constellation, nor did I expect you to witness what I did.”

”The Inverse Immortal Demonic Embryo allows one to break the ’confusion of the womb’ and regain memories of past lives,” Fang Chen said with a smile. ”Have you recovered yours?”

He continued, ”If you have, then you are no longer human, but a demon. Isn’t that right?”

”Correct. You’re absolutely right,” Wang Chongsong said, a look of pleased surprise crossing his face. ”It seems you really do know some things. That makes this easier. I did indeed regain my past memories, but I sealed those memories away. Well, not exactly sealed. I refined them out of my body and suppressed them separately. So, I am still myself.”

”You sealed away the memories that belonged... to the demon?”

Fang Chen was slightly stunned. He hadn’t expected that outcome.

Why would he do that?

If he had regained his past memories, Wang Chongsong should logically stand on that side. Why would he seal away his memories?

”Think about it,” Wang Chongsong said with a light smile. ”Since I’ve reincarnated, I should live this life. What does my previous life have to do with me? If my past self tries to influence everything in my present one, then why shouldn’t I cut him off? He is him, and I am me. We are not the same at all. Though, perhaps this has something to do with my origin. After all, I’ve reincarnated more than a hundred times upon the Enlightenment Star.”

He smiled gently. ”I consider myself human.”

”Assimilated, then...” Fang Chen said quietly. ”If you’ve reincarnated a hundred times, the memories of the demon indeed become meaningless.”

He neither agreed nor denied it, but he was truly shocked.

So Wang Chongsong had been reincarnating on Enlightenment Star since the very beginning? Then how had he later arrived in the Lower Six Realms? How had he entered the Spirit God Sect? And how had he, under that identity, gone on to the Upper Three Realms to become a cultivator of the Enlightenment God Palace?

Fang Chen set those questions aside for now. From Wang Chongsong’s words, it seemed that the very purpose of the Enlightenment Underworld Realm was to assimilate those demons who had come from elsewhere.

Does that mean the Enlightenment God Palace is on our side?

”Does the Enlightenment God Palace know of this as well?” Fang Chen asked. ”Do they also know that someone is scheming against the Nine Mortal Realms?”

Wang Chongsong chuckled softly. ”Depends on how you look at it. Perhaps they know. Perhaps they don’t.”

”What do you mean?” Fang Chen pressed.

”What else could I mean? I don’t know,” Wang Chongsong said with a shrug. ”How would I know what the Enlightenment God Palace thinks? Even at my peak, I wasn’t qualified to meet the palace master. All I can do is act upon the meager scraps of information I possess to accomplish what I must. To be honest, this whole matter is exhausting. I nearly gave up. If I ignored it, I could live freely to the end of my days. Wouldn’t that be better?”

He laughed and shook his head.

Fang Chen frowned. ”Even you can’t determine the Enlightenment God Palace’s stance?”

The smile faded from Wang Chongsong’s face, and he spoke with rare seriousness. ”You have to understand. Even if there are people among the Enlightenment God Palace’s higher-ups that regained their past memories—even if they’ve reincarnated hundreds or thousands of times upon Enlightenment Star and believe themselves human—they still might not stand with us.”

”Here’s a guess. What if the Palace Master knows the entire truth, yet chooses to cooperate with the other side, or use their power, to dominate the Upper Three Realms?”

Wang Chongsong’s tone softened into a faint smile. ”Don’t think too highly of people. But don’t think too poorly of them either. Many pursue profit, not righteousness.”