Immortal of the Nine Realms

The two figures who emerged from the void were starkly different in appearance.

One was an old monk, thin and frail as dried wood, his face sunken and lifeless, as if one foot had already stepped into the coffin.

The other was a man in his forties, wearing a red-and-green robe, his hair neatly combed without a single strand out of place. The Nine Glaze Cauldron floated before him, emanating an awe-inspiring divine pressure.

Both men gazed silently at the place where their target had just stood, unable to speak for a long time.

After a few breaths, the old monk joined his palms together and intoned a low Buddhist prayer. “Amitabha. Benefactor Sansui, did you see what just happened?”

The patriarch of the Five Poison Sect, Chen Sansui, spoke in a cold voice. “I saw a man use a gourd to capture that woman from the Enlightenment God Palace, then flee into the void and vanish. That escape technique bypassed the seals we laid in advance. I don’t know who he is, or what art that was.”

The void rippled once more, and another figure appeared. It was a graceful woman whose mere presence made the old monk and Chen Sansui bow their heads in respect.

“Just now, I sensed Yin energy,” the woman said softly. “Whoever that was, he fled into the Underworld.”

Her voice remained calm, but the tone carried quiet authority. “If Xie Aman has managed to escape, both the Rulai Monastery and the Five Poison Sect will be implicated. Go back and make your preparations.”

The faces of both men grew grim. They understood full well what that meant.

They hadn’t expected failure, not with an eighth-transformation Ancient Immortal sitting in ambush nearby.

“Senior,” Chen Sansui hesitated, “You say she fled into the Underworld, but if that’s the case, she would’ve left her physical body behind in the Mortal Realm.”

“She likely prepared for that,” the woman said evenly. “She must have left her body in the Enlightenment Gao Palace, entering this realm in her Ghost Immortal form.”

With that, she added coldly, “I’ll pursue her through the Underworld. If I can catch up, fine, if not, erase every trace. Make it look clean.”

“Yes...” the two men answered in unison.

***

Dark mist swirled as the woman’s graceful figure emerged from the white fog. Her eyes glimmered, and countless threads of silk appeared between her fingers, shooting out in all directions with lightning speed.

Every Yin Demon her threads pierced, whether ordinary ones or great Yin Demons, immediately froze in place, their eyes going vacant, movements stiff and lifeless, as though their wills had been seized.

“How could they have escaped so far in such a short time?” she muttered under her breath, unable to find any trace of Fang Chen or his companions.

Her aura surged as she intensified her search. Within moments, tens of thousands of Yin Demons around her became puppets under her control. Their eyes became her eyes. What they saw, she saw.

But by then, Fang Chen had already used the Lesser Underworld as a transit point, traveling far away from the Heavenly Saint Sect’s territory.

Even an eighth-transformation Ancient Immortal, who had the ability to physically cross into the Underworld, could never catch up to him now.

He released Xie Aman, Little Immortal Honglian, and Huang Wuji from the World Gourd.

The two women immediately turned to stare at Huang Wuji, who turned his head away in innocence.

He couldn’t help glancing back at Fang Chen with a confused expression, as if silently asking why he had been stuffed into the gourd along with him.

Once Fang Chen confirmed that the surroundings were safe and devoid of any Ancient Immortal’s presence, Xie Aman turned to Little Immortal Honglian with a faint smile.

“Junior Sister,” she said, “step aside for now. There are a few things I wish to ask Junior Brother Fang.”

Little Immortal Honglian had questions of her own, but this clearly wasn’t the time. She simply nodded and moved to the side.

Seeing Huang Wuji remain motionless, Xie Aman’s tone turned sharp. “You too, go away. Amere fourth-transformation immortal, what good will it do standing next to Junior Brother Fang?”

Huang Wuji glanced at Fang Chen. When Fang Chen gave him a small nod, he obediently stepped back.

Xie Aman then waved her sleeve, erecting a barrier that sealed off sound and sight. Neither Little Immortal Honglian nor Huang Wuji could see what happened inside.

Xie Aman finally turned to Fang Chen and studied him, a faint smile forming on her lips. “This gourd of yours is quite interesting. The five elemental energy within it feel very familiar... almost like what I once saw in the Formless Purgatory.”

Fang Chen’s expression turned blankly innocent. “It was given to me by Senior Wang.”

“Oh?”

Her brows furrowed, eyes sharp and penetrating as she looked him over. “You’re still lying? You are that so-called Senior Wang, aren’t you? Just how many identities do you have?”

“Xie Aman, you misunderstand,” Fang Chen said with a sigh. “This World Gourd truly belongs to Senior Wang.”

“Say that again, to the gourd itself.”

She suddenly produced a strange flower in her hand. “This is called a Mirror Flower. If what you say is true, it will release a fragrance. If you lie, it will wither.”

Fang Chen took a deep breath and said calmly, “This World Gourd truly belongs to Senior Wang Chongsong.”

The flower released a faint, sweet fragrance.

Xie Aman’s expression softened. At least that confirmed one thing, the person she had encountered in the Formless Purgatory had indeed been Wang Chongsong.

“So, you’re not Wang Chongsong?”

“I’m not.”

The Mirror Flower continued to emit its fragrance.

“Where are we right now?”

“I don’t know.”

The flower suddenly began to wilt.

Fang Chen frowned slightly. “I really don’t know where we are.”

“It’s not about you,” she said casually. “The flower has a limited number of uses. I’ve already tested it a few times, it’s dying naturally.”

She tossed the withered bloom away with faint regret and said, “This gourd can house living people. You used it to store us, then used some kind of escape technique to flee the net the Ancient Immortals laid, didn’t you?”

“That’s right,” Fang Chen nodded. “The technique wasn’t my own. It too came from Senior Wang. I don’t know why he favors me so much. I planned to save it as a last resort.”

He sighed softly, a hint of gratitude flickering in his eyes.

Xie Aman’s gaze softened too, and she smiled faintly. “You’re talented, and you come from the Lower Six Realms. Perhaps he saw something of himself in you and couldn’t help but give you a few of his secrets.

“Wang Chongsong... whatever else he lacks, he certainly has more hidden techniques than anyone can count.”

She didn’t say the rest, that Wang Chongsong had likely foreseen the danger and given Fang Chen a trump card to use as his contingency.

Thinking of this, her eyes grew gentler, and even a sweet smile flickered briefly on her lips.

Then, as if remembering something, the smile faded, and her tone turned calm again. “Just now, what did you call me?”

“Senior Wang said that if I ever faced danger, using that title would gain your trust.”

“Oh...” Her eyes shimmered faintly, her mood suddenly light. She looked at Fang Chen with new warmth. “In that case, you could be considered one of his disciples. Perhaps not a formal one, but at least a registered disciple in name. You helped me out of a deadly situation, once we return to the Enlightenment God Palace, I’ll see to it that you’re granted merit for this deed.”

After a pause, she added, “As for that fourth-transformation immortal you brought along, he seems to follow your lead, but I won’t pry into it.

“With your talent and origins, your background must be extraordinary. He’s probably a guardian appointed by your elders. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

“His identity here in the Upper Three Realms is... less than clean, I imagine? Since you brought him here through the gourd, we’ll have him registered once we’re back at the palace. He can become a cultivator of the Enlightenment God Palace too, just like you.”