The Three of Us

The Imperial Preceptor was utterly bewildered. The makeshift space was something he had constructed; apart from him, its master, no one should have been able to open the space and escape. Yet the present reality was that without his permission, the Immortal Celestial had grabbed hold of him and dragged him right out of the spatial pocket. An ability of a rudimentary Dao fruit? Presently, that was the only possible explanation. Beside them, Venerable Black-White was in a daze. The person who had suddenly appeared felt vaguely like the Imperial Preceptor, but that bruised, swollen, and battered face differed vastly from the Imperial Preceptor in his memory. The moment the Immortal Celestial saw the trio of Lu Yang, the Immortal Fairy, and Eldest Senior Sister together, a wave of intense familiarity struck him. Even his soul twinged with an instinctive phantom ache. However, he quickly remembered that he was on their side now; the Imperial Preceptor was the one getting beaten. "First-in-Command, Second-in-Command! You've finally come to save me!" The Immortal Celestial burst into bitter tears. For these past ten days, he had been entirely on his own, blowing up the Imperial Preceptor day in and day out. It had truly been an agonizing ordeal; his rudimentary Immortal Dao fruit had withered, and his soul had dimmed considerably, struggling to recover. Reason dictated that as soon as the Cult Master and the others realized he was gone, they only needed to call upon his honorable title and true name before his statue, and he would be able to break free of the makeshift space. Yet he had waited ten days without hearing them call his name even once. He guessed that since the Imperial Preceptor could make him forget the Imperial Preceptor's existence, the man could just as easily make the Cult Master and the others forget his own existence. "Look at what an embarrassment you are. Ten whole days and you still couldn't win." The Immortal Fairy looked at the weeping Third-in-Command with utter disdain and made him stop three paces away. With a casual flick of her finger, the Immortal Fairy caused Third-in-Command's dimmed soul to seem reborn, restored entirely to its peak. Even his withered rudimentary Immortal Dao fruit brimmed with vitality once more. "Go back and train properly. How could my Dao fruit have such pathetic utility that you only know how to self-detonate?" The Immortal Fairy had extensive experience with self-detonation. One glance at the wretched states of Third-in-Command and the Imperial Preceptor was enough for her to tell this was the result of Third-in-Command's repeated explosions. "Understood!" "That's more like it. All right, go hide in the back." Third-in-Command scurried sheepishly behind First-in-Command and Second-in-Command. Behind the Immortal Fairy and Lu Yang stood Venerable Black-White, tied securely to a pillar. "Brother, what crime did you commit to get beaten so terribly?" the Immortal Celestial asked curiously, looking full of gossip now that he felt an inexhaustible surge of energy. Venerable Black-White: "..." The Imperial Preceptor's eyes were sharp as a hawk's. He heard the Immortal Celestial address the Immortal Fairy and Lu Yang as "First-in-Command" and "Second-in-Command." Did that mean that of the three in the Immortal Lineage he spoke of, he was ranked third? And Lu Yang, the target of their operation, was ranked second? He felt that the waters of the Immortal Lineage ran terrifyingly deep. This was no place to linger; he had to escape immediately. Third-in-Command had already been difficult enough to deal with. With Second-in-Command and First-in-Command both present, how could he possibly survive if a fight broke out? Decisive as ever, he did not hesitate for a moment and immediately activated his rudimentary Karma Dao fruit, erasing all sense of his presence. There were plenty of bystanders here. The other side definitely wouldn't dare self-detonate recklessly and harm the innocent! A faint smile curved at the corners of his lips as he openly strode right past the Immortal Fairy. Even though their plot at the Dao Seeking Sect had failed, as long as he remained, and his master remained, the restoration of Great Yu was still within reach! *Smack—* Seeing the Imperial Preceptor walk right past her while grinning like a lunatic, completely ignoring her presence, the Immortal Fairy raised her hand on instinct and slapped him across the face. The Imperial Preceptor spun half a turn midair before his head hit the ground with a loud *clatter*, sending him sprawling. "Is this Imperial Preceptor an idiot?" the Immortal Fairy wondered aloud. Even if one wanted to escape, nobody ran away like that. Was this really the level of the Imperial Preceptor whom Great Yu cultivators praised as having peerless intellect under heaven? By comparison, she was indeed far cleverer. "He probably is an idiot," Lu Yang agreed with deep conviction. Anyone who came up with a plan to infiltrate the Dao Seeking Sect couldn't have that high an intellect to begin with. Lying on the ground, the Imperial Preceptor froze in disbelief. How could this be? He had already activated his rudimentary Karma Dao fruit, so how could he still be detected? Unless... "An immortal?!" The Imperial Preceptor's eyes went wide as he finally grasped the gravity of the situation. The First-in-Command of the Immortal Lineage was an immortal?! What kind of joke was this? In all of recorded history, which immortal had ever borne the title "Immortal"?! "Soul-Breaking Needle!" The Imperial Preceptor drew his final Soul-Breaking Needle—the very needle that had once torn the Immortal Celestial's soul into fragments! Aiming directly at the Immortal Fairy, the needle shot forth at invisible speed, imbued with the attribute of "forgetting." The Immortal Fairy reached out with two fingers and casually caught the Soul-Breaking Needle, examining it with curiosity. "What's this gadget? Oh, an immortal treasure capable of cleaving souls. Quite a clever design. Let me test its strength." Curious, she pricked herself with it. The Soul-Breaking Needle instantly shattered, while she remained completely unharmed. "What's that? That's all?" The Immortal Fairy curled her lip in disappointment. Such a trinket might work on a half-immortal, but against an immortal with a soul as powerful as hers, it was entirely useless. Seeing this, the Imperial Preceptor felt his blood turn completely cold. The Soul-Breaking Needle he took the greatest pride in couldn't even serve as a minor hindrance! One had to realize that even his master, the first Imperial Preceptor, would never have willingly taken a strike from this needle! He slowly closed his eyes, waging a fierce inner struggle. When he opened them again, his gaze was manic, resembling a madman. "Immortal, don't think you've won just because I fell into your hands! Today, I shall show you that a half-immortal with over ten thousand years of cultivation isn't so easily dealt with! Even if I must throw away my life, I will tear a piece of your soul from you!" "I sacrifice my life-force for Great Yu!" Blood leaked from the Imperial Preceptor's seven orifices as he sacrificed his lifespan in exchange for a brief surge of explosive power—another function of his rudimentary Karma Dao fruit. Karma, after all, also entailed equivalent exchange. A half-immortal's lifespan spanned at least a hundred thousand years. Feeling his lifespan drain away at terrifying speed as his final day drew closer and closer, the Imperial Preceptor found his body growing exponentially stronger. If he were to face the Immortal Celestial again, he was confident he could withstand the self-detonations and capture the man alive! Unfortunately, once this technique was unleashed, there was no turning back. After the burst faded, he would have only a few years of life remaining. Space roiled, spiritual energy dispersed violently, and souls felt pricked by needles as an inexplicable terror gripped the surroundings. The faces of the Immortal Celestial and Venerable Black-White paled in unison, their hearts pounding in fright as they sensed a lethal threat emanating from this technique! "You forced my hand! Bear witness to my ultimate move—" *Thud.* Seeing the Imperial Preceptor continuously gathering power, Eldest Senior Sister simply delivered a kick, sending him crashing straight into the dirt. The power he had just amassed drained away into nothingness, scattering into thin air. All the sacrificed lifespan returned to heaven and earth, lost forever. "How is that possible?! It's impossible to interrupt this move!" The Imperial Preceptor shouted in disbelief. During this entire trip to the Dao Seeking Sect, not a single one of his decisions had come to fruition, and now even his suicidal finishing move had been cut short! Lu Yang sighed, walked up in front of the Imperial Preceptor, and pointed at himself. "Just admit defeat obediently. With the three of us here, let alone you, even Immortal Ying Tian would have to throw in the towel." The Imperial Preceptor drew a deep breath and glared fixedly at Lu Yang. Since there was no escape and no hope in battle, he would drag this boy down with him! He activated another ability of his rudimentary Karma Dao fruit—the curse. "I, Jin Buqun, swear here and now: in this life you shall suffer the eight tribulations of birth, old age, sickness, death, unfulfilled desires, association with the hated, separation from the loved, and the raging of the five skandhas; you shall endure the seven calamities of fire, flood, rakshasas, blades and staves, ghosts, fetters, and hateful brigands; in life, your cultivation shall never advance another step, and in death, your soul shall be scattered to the winds!"