Immortal of the Nine Realms
Chapter 1616: Sixth Star Lord
No one had expected the Enlightenment God Palace to act in such a decisive and ruthless manner. They had directly escalated the matter to the Heavenly Immortal Clan!
Ji Chunmei cast a thoughtful glance at Yan Qianjun, a relaxed smile lifting the corner of her lips.
The situation was already crystal clear. She trusted the Enlightenment God Palace without reservation. Since they had verified the matter, it had to be true. After all, the Ji Family was nowhere near powerful enough to warrant the Enlightenment God Palace shielding them regardless of consequences.
The cultivators of the Fire Virtue Immortal Division looked at one another, their eyes filled with alarm, anger, and unease.
Yan Qianjun remained silent for a long while before letting out a deep sigh. "Little Chen... What he said, is it true? Has the Heavenly Immortal Clan already intervened in this matter?"
Chen Enxue nodded. "Senior Yan, once we learned of this, we felt the nature of the matter was extremely serious, serious enough to warrant the Heavenly Immortal Clan taking charge. That way, our Enlightenment God Palace, the Ji Family, and your Fire Virtue Immortal Division can all avoid suspicion."
"Then... who is presiding over the investigation?" Yan Qianjun asked.
"The Sixth Star Lord of the Heavenly Immortal Clan," Chen Enxue replied.
Fang Chen had previously investigated the Lesser Immortal Realm and knew that the Heavenly Immortal Clan possessed thirty-six Star Lords. Those Star Lords were stronger than ordinary core disciples of the Enlightenment God Palace, yet far weaker than Xie Aman. Only the most outstanding figures of the younger generation could hold such a post. Even the lowest-ranked among them was at least as capable as Nanming Ruyue, a fifth-transformation Immortal.
As for the Sixth Star Lord, he was most likely a sixth transformation Immortal, not yet an Ancient Immortal.
"Zhu Ling was originally meant to marry the Sixth Star Lord, and now he's the one presiding over this case..." Yan Qianjun sighed. "So the investigation truly concluded as you said? Zhu Ling had already pledged herself privately to Qu Feng?"
"Rather than us speaking, it would be better to let the Sixth Star Lord explain it himself," Chen Enxue said.
Everyone was startled once more. As soon as her words fell, a faint white light appeared within the hall. Dense, condensed immortal essence surged forth, making even Immortals below the sixth transformation feel their hearts quake.
"This is a Heavenly Immortal Descent. The one arriving truly is a Star Lord of the Heavenly Immortal Clan," Yan Qianjun murmured.
At this point, he had already believed Chen Enxue's investigation results. What he hadn't expected was that he, a dignified seventh-transformation Ancient Immortal, had been toyed with so thoroughly by a young woman.
This time, the Fire Virtue Immortal Division's reputation would likely be disgraced before all the Hundred Divisions.
Xian Yueguan, who had remained silent until now, sighed. "The Heavenly Immortal Clan truly has preserved this immortal path exceptionally well."
"Among all sixth-transformation Heavenly Immortals, only the Heavenly Immortal Clan still commands the divine ability known as Heavenly Immortal Descent, right? It allows them to travel hundreds of millions of miles in an instant."
Fang Chen was taken aback. Hundreds of millions of miles? It seems every immortal path has its own unique strengths. Perhaps Heavenly Immortal Descent is what sets the Heavenly Immortal Path apart from the others?
His thoughts drifted to his own Sword Immortal Path. Beyond its terrifying offensive power, its true core lay in the fact that the flying sword could advance alongside its master. When he advanced to the third transformation, Little Sword's power had also increased. If one day he were to reach the ninth transformation as a Sword Immortal, could Little Sword rank within the top ten of the Spiritual Treasure Rankings?
As his thoughts churned, the white light gradually receded. A male cultivator appeared before everyone. He was around 1.5 meters tall, only slightly taller than Yan Qianjun, with a baby-faced appearance. His skin was snow-white, his bearing refined and otherworldly. His features were perfectly balanced, pleasant to behold, neither overly sharp nor bland. A glimmer of radiant divine light flickered briefly in his eyes before vanishing.
He frowned slightly after surveying his surroundings. "Why are there so many people here?"
"I am Yan Qianjun of the Fire Virtue Immortal Division. Greetings, Sixth Star Lord," Yan Qianjun said, leaping down from his seat and bowing, his expression awkward.
Ji Chunmei also stepped forward to pay her respects, then silently withdrew to the side.
The Sixth Star Lord returned the bow.
When he noticed Chen Enxue, he visibly froze for a moment. Before he could speak, Chen Enxue had already risen with a smile.
"Alright, Sixth, tell us your conclusion. Senior Yan doesn't quite believe what we've said, but it'll be different coming from you."
All eyes immediately turned toward him, filled with anticipation, anxiety, and tension.
Fang Tong was especially nervous, but when he noticed how calm Fang Chen looked, and how the Fire Virtue Immortal Division's cultivators seemed even more tense than he was, he gradually steadied himself.
For some reason, the Sixth Star Lord appeared a bit uncomfortable. He glanced around for a moment. He then began, "Uh... this matter, after several decades of investigation and evidence gathering, has reached a clear conclusion. Zhu Ling of the Fire Virtue Immortal Division had secretly pledged herself to Qu Feng of the Water Virtue Immortal Division. In order to break her engagement with me without implicating the Fire Virtue Immortal Division, she used Ji Tong of the Ji family as a scapegoat."
The Sixth Star Lord curiously glanced around, asking, "By the way, where is this scapegoat?"
Standing alone at the center, having endured years of humiliation, Fang Tong immediately raised his hand. "Sixth Star Lord, I'm here."
"So it's you," The Sixth Star Lord nodded. "You've suffered all these years. Fortunately, the Enlightenment God Palace sensed that something was amiss and allowed me to intervene in time. Otherwise, if the other Star Lords had learned of this, given their temperaments, you and the Ji Family would have..."
He smiled faintly and left the rest unsaid.
Ji Chunmei and the others immediately understood the implication. Their hearts jolted, and they looked toward the Fire Virtue Immortal Division with restrained anger and dissatisfaction.
Because Zhu Ling had acted recklessly, the Ji Family had nearly faced extermination. It was truly despicable! ๐๐ป๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐๐๐ธ๐ซ๐๐ก.๐ฌ๐ธ๐
Yan Qianjun's face turned slightly pale before he let out a bitter smile. "So that's how it is. I understand now. May I ask how the Sixth Star Lord intends to handle this matter? After all, it was our Fire Virtue Immortal Division that was at fault."
The Sixth Star Lord looked surprised. "Handle what?"
Yan Qianjun was taken aback. He explained, "Well, Zhu Ling's actions have also tarnished the Heavenly Immortal Clan's reputation, surely."
"Zhu Ling knew she had already lost her purity, so she chose this method to refuse the marriage," the Sixth Star Lord replied, brows raised. "In my view, she wasn't wrong. It's better than marrying me and having me discover it on the wedding day, isn't it? She simply chose the wrong method and dragged in people who shouldn't have been involved. Ultimately, this is a matter between your Fire Virtue Immortal Division and the Ji Family, perhaps with some involvement from the Water Virtue Immortal Division. You may handle it yourselves. I merely showed up so that no one would think the Enlightenment God Palace was favoring the Ji Family."
Upon hearing that, Yan Qianjun felt a surge of relief. He hadn't expected the other party to have no intention of pursuing the matter at all. If that was the case, this really wasn't such a major calamity. It could be resolved quite easily!
The Sixth Star Lord turned to Xian Yueguan and spoke earnestly. "Daoist Xian, you mentioned earlier that Heavenly Immortal Descent's range spans hundreds of millions of miles. That is an exaggeration. Even if it was capable of such a thing, someone of my cultivation cannot employ it to that degree. Perhaps our leader could."
"You're still the same as ever," Xian Yueguan said helplessly. "I was just making a point. I'm not a Heavenly Immortal. How would I know the true power of your Heavenly Immortal Descent?"
"Oh."
The Sixth Star Lord nodded in realization. He then gave a sneaky glance toward Chen Enxue. He wanted to say something but was clearly hesitant.
"Alright, you're done here. Go away," Chen Enxue said with a casual wave.
"Then I'll take my leave," the Sixth Star Lord replied.
He slowly closed his eyes. Immortal essence surged around him, white light blooming once more as his figure gradually faded from sight.