Aside from Xu Ying and the demon god, everyone on board was an unaffiliated immortal who had smuggled themselves down from the Immortal Realm to hunt Xu Ying.
As the ferry sailed into the Boundless Sea of Fire, firelight flickered across their shifting expressions. Xu Ying, completely oblivious, produced seven incense coins and handed them to the demon god to pay his fare.
The demon god was taken aback. "You paid for seven people. That's too much!"
"It's not too much. There are seven of us!" Xu Ying replied.
The demon god hastily activated his divine eyes and peered closely around Xu Ying, thinking others were concealed beside him. But as formidable as his divine sight was, he could not detect anyone else.
*Is it haunted?* The demon god shuddered. The ghost must possess immense magic power.
Aboard the ferry, Xu Ying muttered away to himself.
He had discovered that chatting with himself was far more enjoyable than talking to anyone else.
The demon god recognized him and grew secretly anxious. Yet he could also tell that these passengers possessed extraordinary cultivation and strength; if a fight broke out, he would most likely be no match for them.
While the ferry traveled through the Boundless Sea of Fire, a celestial raft glided high above the flames as well. A woman in crimson, Xiao Xixian, gazed down at the ferry below with dark, brooding eyes.
Flying over the Sea of Fire was no easy feat. This Boundless Sea of Fire had been formed where Lord Lao's Eight Trigrams Furnace crashed to earth; immense tidal gravitational forces dragged everything down into the sea, and only ferries could navigate its surface.
Xiao Xixian's celestial raft, however, was no ordinary vessel. It had been crafted from the taproot of the divine tree that pierced through the Three Realms, making it immune to the influence of Lord Lao's Eight Trigrams Furnace.
On the ferry, True Lord Erlang's celestial tomb drew ever closer. Though it remained astonishing, giving rise to an immense immortal fire bodhimanda, the earth-shattering might it radiated was noticeably subdued this time.
Xu Ying stood by the boat's railing and gazed toward the tomb, bewildered. *The thing suppressed beneath the tomb has grown much quieter... Did someone help True Lord Erlang keep it down?*
Suddenly, someone rose and chuckled. "Xu Ying, just what great crime did you commit to make the Yuqing Mansion issue a bounty on your head?"
The moment those words were spoken, every pair of eyes locked onto Xu Ying.
Xu Ying had still been talking to himself, debating who might have suppressed the entity under the tomb. Feeling waves of hostility washing over him, he immediately ceased his mumbling.
A deep voice came from his mouth: "Those who don't know how to fight, step aside on your own. Don't embarrass us."
A stream of clear vapor surged from the crown of his head. As one Qi transformed into the Three Purities, three cowardly-looking versions of Xu Ying—dressed in azure, white, and yellow robes—dropped to the deck and stood sullenly to the side.
The unaffiliated immortals on the ferry looked on with suspicion and shock.
"Three versions of himself coming out of his body? What kind of technique is this? External avatars? An incarnation art?"
"The Shenxiao Yuqing Mansion issued a bounty on me?"
Xu Ying surveyed his surroundings, his face twisting with ferocious malice. "Probably because I slaughtered the Heavenly Dao world, killed the Four Great God Kings, wiped out every heavenly god, shattered the Heavenly Venerable's Heavenly Dao supreme treasure, the Jade Ruyi, and refined dominion over the Heavenly Dao world into this cauldron of mine. Is that why the Shenxiao Yuqing Mansion wants me dead?"
At these words, everyone aboard the ferry was visibly shaken.
More than a dozen immediately stepped back. One said, "This bargain isn't worth it. Sweeping through the Heavenly Dao world and wiping out all the God Kings and heavenly gods... such power is far beyond what I can handle. Consider my bottle of immortal spirit liquid lost. Gentlemen, farewell!"
The dozen or so leaped up and plunged into the sea of fire, attempting to cross relying solely on their own cultivation.
Yet in the very next instant, more than a dozen bloodcurdling screams rang out. The immortals who had tried to flee the Boundless Sea of Fire were incinerated to ash the moment they touched the sea, failing to escape!
Only one managed to struggle back aboard the ferry, but his lower half had already caught fire from Lord Lao's Eight Trigrams Furnace. No matter what techniques he deployed, he could not extinguish the flames, and shrieked continuously in agony.
The yellow-robed one was Xu Huangying. Soft-hearted after all, he couldn't bear to hear the immortal's screams, so he sighed and stuffed his fingers into his ears.
Unable to hear the shrieking, he felt much better inside.
Hearing the screams, Xu Aiying wept profusely, watching as he sobbed, "How pitiful. It's burned for so long, so why hasn't he burned to death yet? I can't bear to watch."
Only the real Xu Ying possessed true mercy. Flicking a finger, he sent out a beam of sword qi that severed the man at the waist.
The flames of Lord Lao's Eight Trigrams Furnace had consumed only the lower half of his body without killing him; Xu Ying's strike had in fact saved his life.
"I am Ding Simu, a humble unaffiliated immortal of the Immortal Realm."
A scholar stepped forward and addressed the others, "Friends, unless you possess the strength to sweep through the Heavenly Dao world, you had best not get involved. An existence capable of wiping out the Heavenly Dao world is not someone you can afford to provoke."
The other unaffiliated immortals frowned. One asked, "Ding Simu? Which Ding Simu?"
The scholar smiled faintly. "Is there more than one unaffiliated immortal named Ding Simu?"
Their expressions shifted abruptly. An elderly immortal asked, "You are Ding Simu, the Frontier Immortal King?"
The scholar smiled. "That would be me."
The crowd fell quiet. Frontier Immortal King Ding Simu was a legendary figure among the unaffiliated immortals of the Immortal Realm. In truth, Immortal Kings were not entirely rare among unaffiliated immortals; some had fallen from grace at court, been expelled from the Immortal Court, and thus become unaffiliated. Such cases were everywhere. But those who started from scratch, remained unaffiliated throughout, and attained the rank of Immortal King were few and far between.
Frontier Immortal King Ding Simu was one of them.
"Frontier Immortal King, renowned as you are and commanding great prestige among us unaffiliated immortals, everyone has a chance to capture Xu Ying during this descent to the lower realm!"
The white-haired elder said, "What are the heavenly gods of the Heavenly Dao world worth? How could they compare to us immortals? Slaying a few God Kings only makes him on par with Heavenly Immortals. Any Heavenly Immortal among us could slaughter those heavenly gods and overthrow the Heavenly Dao world!"
His words drew nods of agreement from the others.
Ding Simu sighed and shook his head. "And what when facing the Heavenly Venerable's Heavenly Dao supreme treasure, the Jade Ruyi? Do you still have the confidence to handle that? You should know that against so terrifying an opponent, the bounty offered by the Yuqing Mansion isn't generous—it's insulting. Is it worth throwing your lives away for a petty official post?"
With that, he leaped from the ferry and strode across the sea.
The Boundless Sea of Fire formed by the Eight Trigrams Furnace failed to incinerate him; crossing on foot with pure physical resilience, Ding Simu quickly vanished into the distance.
Scarcely had Ding Simu departed when the remaining unaffiliated immortals shouted in unison, Primordial Spirits rising behind them and bodhimandas expanding beneath their feet!
Though they were unaffiliated—having entered the Immortal Realm without subsequent immortal cultivation methods, left to grope in the dark without adequate resources—a Heavenly Immortal was still a Heavenly Immortal!
Unaffiliated immortals often created their own techniques; anyone who could attain the Heavenly Immortal realm was a genius!
After all, going from Human Immortal to Earth Immortal required mastering the Realm of the Six Immortals, and going from Earth Immortal to Heavenly Immortal required fusing the Realm of the Six Immortals into one to forge a Dao domain.
To pioneer one's own path, forge a Dao domain, and refine Dao phenomena into Dao principles without guidance was undeniably the mark of a genius!
And the unaffiliated immortals facing Xu Ying on this ferry were precisely such a group!
Because the Immortal Realm failed to make full use of talent, they had grown like resilient weeds after ascending, each achieving remarkable heights!
Killing intent surged in Xu Ying. He said flatly, "When I butchered my way through the heavenly road all those years ago, my name and portrait sat at the very top of the wanted list as the head of all bandits! Has a mere forty to fifty thousand years passed for you to forget?"
With a sharp cry, an eighteen-foot Primordial Spirit flew out and stood tall behind him, looking down disdainfully at their ten-thousand-foot Primordial Spirits.
Seeing how small his Primordial Spirit was, the crowd could not help bursting into laughter, their worries dissipating.
The white-haired elder stepped forward and barked, "Xu Ying, if you don't resist, your life may still be spared!"
His bodhimanda erupted, enveloping Xu Ying in an attempt to claim sole credit. But how could the other unaffiliated immortals stand for that?
Instantly, bodhimandas unfolded one after another, overlapping as Dao principles danced through the air, pressing down on Xu Ying in unison.
*Boom!*
The eighteen-foot Primordial Spirit behind Xu Ying took a step forward. In an instant, the Realm of the Six Immortals unfolded like a supreme Human Immortal, followed by a complete Heavenly Dao domain that unified the six realms!
As his Primordial Spirit brought that foot down, it felt as if it had stepped squarely onto the hearts of every immortal present. Their bodhimandas ground to a halt, struggling to function!
"Hunting me down..."
Behind Xu Ying, Xu Shangying, Xu Aiying, and Xu Huangying all wore terrified expressions, huddling in a corner of the ferry and shivering. Even they were terrified of this Xu Ying.
"You all deserve to die!"
The ferry shuddered violently. In the next moment, Xu Ying's hand punched straight through the white-haired elder's throat. Brilliant sword qi erupted from the back of the elder's neck, sending his head flying with an expression of blank bewilderment.
The other immortals were shocked and enraged. Shouting in unison, they unleashed divine abilities and Dao arts, lunging toward him. In an instant, the modest ferry resembled a miniature immortal realm, crammed with myriad immortal arts within the cramped space and erupting with horrifying power.
In a flash, immortal hymns roared, encroaching even upon the demon god punting the ferry, nearly inflicting Immortal Dao pollution on him!
These immortal abilities breached Xu Ying's domain and struck his body, yet Xu Ying remained motionless. His Primordial Spirit, however, soared out like a bolt of lightning, unleashing the Eight Desolations Sun Refining Seal to incinerate a Heavenly Immortal's Primordial Spirit to ashes!
The other Heavenly Immortals' Primordial Spirits flew out, weaving across the sky above the sea of fire to battle his. Innumerable spirits moved like ghosts through the flames as divine abilities, immortal artifacts, formation diagrams, and attacks of every kind poured forth endlessly!
Meanwhile, the Heavenly Immortals on the ferry stepped forward into Xu Ying's Heavenly Dao domain, baring their teeth as they launched lethal strikes at Xu Ying!
Yet before their lethal moves could even reach Xu Ying, every single one of them froze in place. Their eyes bulged wide, and one by one, they dropped dead on the spot!
*Whoosh.*
Xu Ying's Primordial Spirit flew back, descending behind him.
In just that brief moment, without exception, all sixteen Heavenly Immortals aboard the ferry had their Primordial Spirits slain by his eighteen-foot Primordial Spirit.
With their Primordial Spirits dead and their souls shattered, the Heavenly Immortals naturally perished.
With a sinister expression, Xu Ying activated the Huntian Cauldron and swept the sixteen Heavenly Immortals inside, muttering to himself, "These Heavenly Immortals cultivated for tens of thousands or even over a hundred thousand years; their physical bodies were long refined to rival immortal artifacts. Using their corpses to forge treasures and set up arrays will surely be wonderful."
The three other Xu Yings trembled.
Xu Ying cast a hostile glare their way. The three huddled together, watching him in sheer terror and crying out, "If you kill us, the words Sorrow, Grief, and Desolation will return to your body!"
Xu Ying's ferocious demeanor faded. He glanced at the unaffiliated immortal who was left with only his upper half, who was also cowering in the corner in unimaginable terror.
Looking benign, Xu Ying said, "Don't be afraid. I don't kill people who bear me no malice."
The immortal relaxed slightly.
Turning back to the three cowardly versions of himself, Xu Ying's expression shifted erratically as he muttered, "Should I kill him? Even half a body could make a decent treasure..."
Without turning his torso, he twisted his neck completely around to cast a furtive glance at the immortal, as though weighing his worth.
"His Primordial Spirit was crippled by the fire. He's of little use."
Losing interest in the immortal, Xu Ying shifted his gaze to the demon god punting the ferry.
The demon god shuddered, gripping his bamboo pole tightly. *If he tries to refine me into a magic treasure, with my hundreds of thousands of years of cultivation, I can withstand three moves from him. After three moves, I'll abandon ship and flee immediately; he shouldn't be able to catch me!*
Fortunately, Xu Ying lost interest in him as well. He withdrew the three versions of himself that couldn't fight and resumed talking to himself, laughing at times and flaring with fury at others.
The demon god remained on edge the entire journey. Punting the ferry across the Boundless Sea of Fire was purely to earn a bit of incense money to boost his cultivation—honest hard labor.
Who would have thought he'd cross paths with such an ominous fiend!
Finally, the ferry reached the opposite shore. Xu Ying disembarked, bowed to thank him, and turned to walk toward Dao Weeping Pass.
Watching him leave, the demon god breathed a sigh of relief. "He paid six extra incense coins, so I actually came out ahead. Then again, his head was fine the last time I saw him. How did he go crazy?"
Xu Ying felt better and better, overflowing with vigor as he made his way toward the Dao Revelation Ground.
Before reaching it, he saw a scholar sitting beside a fork in the road ahead, a ten-thousand-foot Primordial Spirit towering in the air above him.
Seeing Xu Ying approach, the scholar stood, bowed, and said with a smile, "Ding Simu, unaffiliated immortal of the Immortal Realm, pays his respects to Celestial Venerable Xu."
Sinister light flared in Xu Ying's eyes, his temper turning brutal. Just as he was about to strike ruthlessly without asking questions, the words snapped him to clarity for a moment. He asked in confusion, "What did you call me?"
"The Department of the Dipper is divided into five palaces: East, West, South, North, and Central. The Central Palace ranks supreme, and its three strongest immortals are known as the Three Realized Ones of the Central Dipper. Celestial Venerable Xu of the Department of the Dipper, known as the Realized Man of Purple Qi, the Immortal Court's foremost enforcer."
The scholar Ding Simu said leisurely, "I have long heard of your name and saw you on the wanted list, ranked above me. How could I not recognize you?"
"The Realized Man of Purple Qi, the Immortal Court's foremost enforcer?"
Xu Ying was stunned. He was one of the Three Realized Ones of the Central Dipper? A Celestial Venerable of the Department of the Dipper?
Chapter 449