Great Villain: Starting by Humiliating the Son of the Heavenly Fate-Chapter 496: Crawling Back to Life

Back on Phoenix Cry Immortal Star, inside the luxurious crimson palace, Feng Haojin and Old Yu were still deep in thought, trying every possible way to find someone willing—and able—to go to Prosperous Stone Immortal Star.

"If it really comes to that..." Feng Haojin’s face darkened, a chill settling in his eyes. "I’ll go to Prosperous Stone Immortal Star myself and deal with Jiang Chen."

"Wait, Deputy Leader." Old Yu’s eyes lit up as an idea struck him. "There is someone."

Feng Haojin turned toward him, surprised. "Who?"

"Shen Xin," Old Yu said slowly. "The one known as the Devil Saber."

"Devil Saber Shen Xin?" Feng Haojin paused, then nodded in realization. "The one in seclusion on Lonely Sea Immortal Star? The one who never shows his face?"

"That’s him," Old Yu said. "Ten thousand years ago, he had already stepped into the Nirvana Cleansing realm."

He continued without pause. "A thousand years ago, he crossed paths with Hua Rongge, a Late-stage Nirvana Cleansing realm cultivator. Shen Xin won that fight and nearly shattered Hua Rongge’s Dao Heart."

Feng Haojin’s eyes narrowed.

"That means he’s at least at the peak of the Nirvana Cleansing realm," Old Yu said. "More importantly, his concealment methods are terrifying. Even people like us can’t track him."

"If he goes to Prosperous Stone Immortal Star," Old Yu added, "he might not be able to stop a full demon assault on his own. But he can gather crucial intelligence—and while he’s there, he could handle other matters as well. For example, cutting off Prosperous Stone Immortal Star from outside support."

"Shen Xin does have the strength," Feng Haojin said, nodding at first. Then he shook his head, his brow tightening. "But we can’t even find him. How are we supposed to make him move?"

He let out a slow breath. "And Shen Xin has always held a grudge against the Profound Jade Immortal Alliance. He’s closely tied to Devil Sword Zhu Zhongming. Over the years, he’s interfered again and again with the Zou Clan, all to try and save Zhu Zhongming."

Feng Haojin’s eyes darkened. "Those two come from the same sect. That alone makes them a hidden danger. If we had been able to track Shen Xin, he would’ve been dealt with long ago."

Old Yu shook his head, his expression heavy. "Deputy Leader, forgive me for speaking so plainly."

He met Feng Haojin’s gaze. "The Profound Jade Immortal Domain is facing a crisis of survival."

"Right now, any strength we can gather matters," he continued. "Shen Xin and Zhu Zhongming are both rare talents and proven fighters."

"If we keep tying our own hands because of internal grudges," Old Yu said quietly, "won’t that just make us a joke in the end?"

Feng Haojin’s face tightened. "Old Yu, Zou Ji was the only heir of the Zou Clan. He was the most gifted cultivator we had, the one with the best chance of stepping into the Void Tribulation realm."

He clenched his jaw. "Zhu Zhongming didn’t just kill a man. He destroyed the hope of our Profound Jade Immortal Domain."

"If not for Zhu Zhongming’s stubborn actions, Zou Ji might already be a Void Tribulation realm powerhouse by now."

He looked straight at Old Yu. "They carry that kind of blood debt. With hatred like that between us, how can we possibly trust them?"

Old Yu let out a long breath. He didn’t look away, even under Feng Haojin’s sharp stare. "Then tell me—do we have any other choice?"

The question hung in the air.

Feng Haojin fell silent.

For a moment, his mind was blank. No matter how he turned it over, he couldn’t find a better answer.

Outside of the frontlines, the Profound Jade Immortal Alliance did have a few Nirvana Cleansing realm experts. But most of them held key positions and couldn’t be pulled away. If they could, they would’ve already been sent to the battlefield.

As for sending ordinary Nirvana Cleansing realm cultivators to Prosperous Stone Immortal Star, that wouldn’t solve much.

Even if there were hidden powerhouses within the Profound Jade Immortal Domain, did they really have the time to search for them?

By the time such people were found, Prosperous Stone Immortal Star might already have turned into a demon stronghold, threatening the nearby life planets.

Old Yu suddenly smiled, a sharp glint in his eyes. "Deputy Leader, we don’t need to clear Shen Xin and Zhu Zhongming of everything."

"Zhu Zhongming is facing execution at the hands of the Zou Clan," he continued. "Shen Xin won’t sit by and watch that happen."

"That’s our leverage."

"If Shen Xin goes to Prosperous Stone Immortal Star and ends up in real danger," Old Yu added, "we can use that to push Zhu Zhongming into action as well."

Feng Haojin didn’t hesitate any longer. He nodded. "Good. We’ll do it this way."

With that decision made, Feng Haojin issued an order. Before long, it reached the guardians of Lonely Sea Immortal Star.

...

While all of this was unfolding, far away in the Profound Jade Immortal Domain, there was a life planet known as Sky Harmony. It was one of the weaker cultivator planets in the domain, rarely drawing much attention.

On Sky Harmony Immortal Star, atop an ordinary mountain ringed by old, sturdy pines, the ground suddenly stirred.

Rustle.

A hand burst out of the soil and pressed hard against the surface. Moments later, a figure crawled out, covered head to toe in mud, looking utterly miserable.

"Damn... this is insane!" the man shouted as he staggered to his feet. "I, Qin Ran, am alive again! I’m really alive!"

He leaned against a nearby pine tree, chest heaving, his face split by an uncontrollable grin.

Once, he had been nothing more than an ordinary office worker on Sky Blue Star, trapped in the endless grind of the 996 work schedule. Then, without warning, he had been thrown into this bizarre, fantastical world.

That had been ten thousand years ago.

When he first arrived, he had been bound to something called the Disciple Recruitment Divine System. By taking in disciples and guiding their growth, he could earn teaching points.

Those points could be exchanged for all kinds of things—cultivation methods, weapons, pills, and more.

On top of that, the system granted him a terrifying level of insight. As long as he saw a cultivation method once, he could grasp it almost instantly.

Just when Qin Ran thought he was about to rise to the top, crush this fantasy world underfoot, and live the ultimate dream, his system played a cruel joke on him.

His understanding had become terrifyingly sharp—but his talent for cultivation was nonexistent.

Not weak. Not average. It simply didn’t exist.

At first, Qin Ran didn’t worry too much. He figured it was only a matter of time. As long as he took in disciples and earned enough teaching points, he could exchange them for treasures that boosted aptitude.

But as time went on, he realized something was very wrong.

No matter what treasure he used, nothing changed.

Not even a little.

That truth almost broke him. He had absurd insight into cultivation methods, yet he couldn’t cultivate at all.

Even rare treasures that were meant to raise cultivation levels were useless to him. His soul didn’t improve either.

In the end, Qin Ran forced himself to accept it.

Since he couldn’t walk the path of cultivation, he focused fully on raising disciples, following the system’s guidance and helping them grow stronger.

With the teaching points he earned, he started exchanging for body-tempering treasures instead, strengthening his physical body by force.

If cultivation wasn’t an option, then physical training had to be.

And as it turned out... it worked.