Immortal of the Nine Realms-Chapter 1438: Faking Her Death

Fang Chen had originally thought that using Wang Chongsong as an excuse would be enough to convince their senior sister, but the result was far better than he could have imagined. It was an unexpected windfall.

"The Enlightenment God Palace has indeed been infiltrated. Even the Elders' Council had people planted among them," Xie Aman said, regaining her usual composed, capable demeanor. "They knew that in the Upper Three Realms, as long as I have an Immortal Boat Formation, even sending an eighth-transformation Ancient Immortal would be useless. And if a ninth-transformation Immortal dared to move personally, the Palace Master himself would intervene."

She continued, "So they lured me out with that incident, tricking me into coming down to the Lower Six Realms. If you hadn't warned me, I might truly have fallen into their trap. Those two seventh-transformation Ancient Immortals we saw were only those who showed themselves. There must have been an eighth-transformation immortal watching in secret.

"Fortunately, they are overly cautious, afraid the palace still had hidden cards. And because I never truly trusted the intel and was prepared in advance, we managed to escape in time. Otherwise, even with the methods Wang Chongsong gave you, we would have suffered a terrible loss this time."

"Senior Sister, we should return as soon as possible," Fang Chen reminded her. "The longer we delay, the more things may change."

"Yes, we should," she said, "but not like this. Since they want to play, then I'll play with them, we'll see who's the winner when this is over."

Xie Aman removed the barrier and called Little Immortal Honglian over, explaining her plan in a few concise sentences.

Little Immortal Honglian's expression turned complicated as she glanced at Fang Chen.

Fang Chen calmly said, "If Senior Sister deems the plan feasible, it's worth trying. Even if the enemy suspects it's false, they won't resist verifying it."

***

Upper Three Realms, Fangcun Realm, on the Langgui Constellation

Aboard Little Immortal Honglian's Black Dragon Immortal Boat lay an ice coffin, and inside was a lifeless Xie Aman.

"Senior Sister's technique can even deceive the life lamps within the palace," Little Immortal Honglian explained. "Once her lamp extinguishes, the Elders' Council will locate where her body lies. They'll send people immediately."

She cast a brief look toward the coffin, then at Huang Wuji not far away, before finally turning her gaze to Fang Chen and sending him a private transmission, "Fellow Daoist Fang, what exactly did you and senior sister talk about earlier? And how did you manage to resolve that deadly situation?"

"It was thanks to her old acquaintance," Fang Chen replied with a faint smile. "He must have foreseen that something was wrong and made arrangements in advance, using me as a means to break the crisis. I can't say more, it's a secret that must be kept for his sake."

Little Immortal Honglian nodded lightly and did not press further.

***

Enlightenment Star.

Within a vast grand hall shrouded by sealing laws and guarded by puppet statues, thousands of life-lamps burned quietly, each representing a core disciple, marked with their names and origins. Among the countless flames, one lamp on the highest tier suddenly flickered with a strange, eerie green fire. Then, as if a cold wind passed through the hall, it went out.

An instant later, a deafening bell resounded through the Enlightenment God Palace.

In the blink of an eye, an elderly man appeared in the hall, his gaze locked on the extinguished lamp at the top. Two words were carved upon it—Xie Aman.

"How could Aman's life-lamp... suddenly go out?" the elder murmured to himself, rage swirling in his eyes. With a fierce wave of his sleeve, he roared, "The Chief Core Disciple of the Enlightenment God Palace has fallen! All who are still breathing, report here immediately!"

His voice swept across entire mountain ranges and echoed through every major territory on Enlightenment Star.

Shock spread through the realm.

Some looked stunned. Some could not believe it. Some grew grim and silent. And some... grew thoughtful.

Soon, one after another, core disciples arrived before the grand hall, their cultivations ranging from the first to the sixth transformation.

Roughly one-third of the core disciples were present. The remaining two-thirds were either outside on missions or deep within Ancient Forbidden Zones.

Even the Enlightenment Underworld Realm sent messengers to inform its stationed envoys.

"Elder Chen, what happened?" one of the senior core disciples asked, his voice tense. "How could senior sister's life-lamp suddenly go out?"

Elder Chen said nothing at first, his face dark, eyes sweeping coldly over the gathered core disciples.

Among the crowd stood Li Shanzi and Nanming Ruyue, both of whom looked shocked, but their expressions quickly hardened with concern.

Suddenly, a commotion rose outside.

"This hall is not for you to enter! Leave immediately!"

Elder Chen snorted coldly. "Let them in."

Moments later, Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign entered with several others, his face pale and grim. He stepped quickly to Elder Chen and bowed. "Greetings, Elder Chen."

All eyes turned toward him. Though not officially a core disciple, Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign's reputation within the palace was no less than one.

As a peak sixth-transformation Immortal, he was a veteran member of Xie Aman's Divine Seal Expedition Team. He had followed her through more than a dozen Ancient Forbidden Zones since the team was founded, earning countless merits and reaching his current realm through hard-fought battles. Even without contracting a Formation Heart contract to become a true core disciple, he was expected to soon qualify for a spot in the Immortal Register and ascend to an Ancient Immortal.

At that level, he was considered an equal to the core disciples, one of the Enlightenment God Palace's most prominent figures.

"Tell me," Elder Chen said coolly, his eyes sharp as lightning, "Why weren't you at her side?"

The cultivators nearby winced under his gaze, sharp enough to sting their souls.

Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign's face turned slightly pale. "Senior Sister went to the Langgui Constellation this time. We did follow her, but she told us she had private matters in the Lower Six Realms and forbade us from accompanying her. We could not disobey her commands."

"Private matters? Was anyone else aware she planned to go to the Lower Six Realms?" Elder Chen asked.

"It should be only us," Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign said after a brief hesitation.

"Seize them."

Elder Chen's tone was flat.

Immediately, several core disciples moved to apprehend Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign and his team. Though anger and disbelief flashed in their eyes, they dared not resist.

"Elder Chen, has senior sister's life-lamp truly gone out?" Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign asked, his voice trembling slightly.

"It has," Elder Chen answered coldly. "Let's only hope her soul managed to flee into the Underworld. But judging by past experience, souls from the Lower Six Realms can only reach the Lesser Underworld. To confirm the truth, we'll need time. Until then, you'll remain under custody. If we discover you had any hand in this, you'll be sent to the Enlightenment Underworld Realm for punishment." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

His expression remained completely indifferent. Even a sixth-transformation Immortal like Hundred Battle Immortal Sovereign was nothing but an insect in his eyes.

Those gathered exchanged uneasy looks, their faces growing more grim.

To be punished in the Enlightenment Underworld Realm meant one's lifespan would be stripped away. Only the soul would be tortured. It was a fate no one wished to experience.

"Elder Chen," Li Shanzi suddenly asked, "where is senior sister's body now?"

All eyes turned toward him.

The life-lamp could locate its owner's remains. Even if the body was destroyed, the lamp would point to where they last were.