Immortal of the Nine Realms
Chapter 1040: Breakthrough

Chapter 1040: Breakthrough

Chen Zuozu felt a chill run down his spine, and he muttered, "This guy has got some nerve, doesn't he? He actually dared to kill Lu Bingbing despite knowing full well that his father, Lu Qingshu, had ascended to become a Loose Immortal?"

While sword cultivators were looked down upon in the Prison Wind Lands, the same couldn't be said about sword cultivators who were Loose Immortals. Such individuals could not be underestimated, much less looked down upon. A first-transformation Loose Immortal couldn't fight a head-on battle with a sword cultivator at the same level. It would take a second-transformation Loose Immortal to take down a first-transformation sword cultivator.

Someone advised via voice transmission, "Long Xuan, the person your father brought along... has stirred up serious trouble this time. Best not to get too close to him."

Long Xuan's expression grew serious.

Fang Chen had indeed gotten himself into huge trouble. Lu Qingshu had Long Jingyao behind him, and Long Jingyao had the third-transformation Loose Immortal of the Long Family behind him. That was a figure even the Heaven Calamity Dragoness wouldn't dare defy.

Chen Qingtai grimly said, "This kid really doesn't understand how the world works, Brother Li."

The other noble family heads didn't look much better. Some looked grim, others angry.

The Long Family's first branch already had enough enemies. If they offended the second branch and had a true falling out, they too would be dragged into the storm.

"There's no need to panic, gentlemen. My husband knows what he's doing," reassured the woman in the plain dress softly.

She then turned to Li Changsheng, her eyes showing a hint of inquiry.

Li Changsheng fell silent for a few moments before saying, "We'll get through this first. We will deal with anything else later."

On the third branch's Immortal Boat, Long Jingchun looked at the Heaven Calamity Dragoness with a bitter smile. He said, "Aunt, Long Jingyao is definitely going to blow up over this. I think it's best if we don't get involved with this kid anymore."

The Heaven Calamity Dragoness replied, "Blow up? Lu Bingbing started it by attacking one of the people Li Changsheng brought. It's his fault he is dead. Lu Qingshu has no right to be angry at anyone.

Her eyes drifted toward Fang Chen as a gentle light flickered within them. "This child bears a bit of resemblance to Li Jingnian."

The first-transformation Loose Immortals by her side sighed when they heard this.

It looks like the third branch might soon clash with the second branch as well.

Lu Qingshu glared at Fang Chen with burning eyes, his sword intent surging within him. As his sword aura clung to his son's mutilated corpse, it was reduced to dust.

His fury was on full display.

"No need to rush. I'll ask someone from the Yin Holy Sect to help preserve Lu Bingbing's soul," said Long Jingyao in a low voice.

Lu Qingshu cupped his fist and bowed. "Many thanks."

Long Jingyao's gaze turned toward Li Changsheng. "This matter won't end here. That reckless country bumpkin you brought in has no sense of decorum. He must be punished."

Li Changsheng didn't respond, remaining silent.

***

Months passed in a flash.

At this stage, it took more than ten days to ascend a single level of the Sword Burial Heavenly Steps. As the pressure coming from the staircase grew increasingly heavy, it slowed down everyone's pace.

Nearly a year had passed since everyone started climbing the stairs. The furthest person had reached the 86th step, while the ones lagging behind were still around the 60th.

Looking out into the vast void, Bai Qingming sighed softly. "Junior Brother, the gap between you and the others grows larger by the day. Perhaps... it's time to leave me behind.

"If you can't reach the top, none of the factions will let you go. Let me break it down for you. People from the Long Family want you dead. People from the Sun Family want you dead. Even that third-transformation Loose Immortal wants you dead. Basically, everyone wants you dead."

Fang Chen chuckled. "The number of people who want me dead back in the Central Continent Empire is as many as the number of hairs on a cow. A few more won't make a difference."

" The three Dao Sects see me as a thorn in their side. Ji Liang, the son of the Nine Generation King, wants me dead. And don't forget those trash from the Spirit Blood Sect. You never know when they'll stab me in the back. But so what? I'm still alive, aren't I?"

Bai Qingming rolled his eyes. "That's because someone from the Desolate Academy was protecting you. Even before he was around, you had the old sword immortal looking after you secretly. But here in the Prison Wind Lands, we are like rootless duckweed. Who can protect you here?"

He insisted, "Let me down. Even if someone from the Long Family comes to settle scores with you after you reach the top, the third branch's elder might step in and protect you. Before I came, I heard from Elder Wang that she had quite a good relationship with our old sword immortal.

"Back when you were taken away by the second branch, I actually wanted to ask her for help. But your master warned me that unless it was a life-or-death situation, we couldn't speak to her."

Fang Chen smiled. "Oh? You seem to know quite a bit of inside info, Senior Brother. Why not share with me? I am quite curious."

Bai Qingming replied, "Well, since we've got nothing better to do, I'll tell you what I've heard. It might not all be true, though. It came from your master's hearsay, and I just pieced it together."

Fang Chen continued to climb as Bai Qingming shared with him what he knew.

They repeatedly climbed and rested, then climbed and rested. Now, it wasn't a test of strength anymore, but of willpower and determination. In this harsh environment, if a person lost their resolve, they would be done for. Even climbing another zhang would become an insurmountable task.

By now, snow had begun to fall from the sky, and pure white snow had settled on the vines, turning the once-vibrant green vines into cascading icy waterfalls. This greatly increased the difficulty of the climb.

That winter, Fang Chen carried Bai Qingming and reached the 86th level of the Heavenly Steps.

Fang Chen vaguely felt his mental state improving, as though his cultivation had unknowingly advanced, a sort of breakthrough.

For ordinary mortals nearby, after half a month of excitement when the competition began, life had returned to normal. They did what they needed to do. Occasionally, they'd chat about who was climbing fastest or who might reach the top.

Time, to them, was precious. They couldn't afford to waste even a moment. After all, wasting today might mean going hungry tomorrow.

In contrast, cultivators seeking immortality barely noticed the passage of time. Sometimes, a single closed-door cultivation session could last decades. What was a single year in comparison? If nothing unexpected happened, there would be an outcome in another two years.

During this time, the top climbers, if lucky, would cut down some vines to shield themselves from the cold. As for the less fortunate, like Fang Chen and Bai Qingming, they would simply hang on to the fronze vines and endure till the cold passed before continuing their climb.

As the winter snow gradually melted and gave way to spring, the vines returned to life, bursting again with fresh green vitality. And so, the climb toward the peak continued.

A group of cultivators from the Sun Family rushed over. The one leading them had a tall, imposing figure and moved with the might of a dragon and the force of a tiger. Even without speaking, he exuded a natural air of authority.

Upon seeing him, Sun Yi hurried forward and respectfully greeted, "Father."

"Mm." The man gave a slight nod. He then quickly walked over to a few of the Sun Family's second-transformation elders and said in a deep voice, "Honored uncles, I've sent people to investigate Sun Gu's matter, and I even went personally to the Yin Holy Sect. They said... the underworld is currently in great chaos, making it hard to locate anyone. As for Sun Gu's death... It likely has something to do with the Long Family."

The elders were taken aback.

"The underworld is in chaos? What's happening down there?"

It seemed that the affairs of the underworld took greater precedence over Sun Gu's death.

This made sense, however. After all, though none of these elders had ever used the Path of Yin Technique and seen the Underworld for themselves, the Yin Holy Sect had secured its position as one of the three great sects precisely because of the Path of Yin Technique.

This alone showed that there was an intrinsic connection between the Underworld and the world of cultivators.

The man shook his head slightly, his gaze showing a hint of disappointment at the elders' reaction. "I don't know the specifics. Most likely, it's due to a change in power."

The man's eyes then turned toward Zhao Yunlu, and he asked, "Senior Yunlu, what is your opinion on this matter?"

"That youth was the last living person to see my son," said Zhao Yunlu, pointing toward the Burial Sword Heavenly Steps. "Once I search his soul, I will know who killed my son."

The man's gaze followed his finger and landed squarely on Fang Chen. In his eyes, a cold and ruthless light flickered.