The End of the Immortal Path

The Overseas Islands.

Chen Shi’s eyes flew open. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, his gaze immediately locking onto the desk.

"I have to be quick. I can’t forget."

He rushed to the desk, his mind so frantic he didn’t even seem to know what to lay out first.

He glanced left and right before his eyes finally settled on a sheet of paper.

He spread out the Xuan paper and took a brush in hand.

He was about to start painting, but he realized there was no ink.

"Damn it! Of all times."

He took a deep breath and began to grind the ink stick.

"Calm down. There’s still time. There’s time."

He ground the ink ceaselessly, his mind replaying the vision over and over.

He had to etch what he had just seen into his brain, to keep from forgetting. Every single detail had to be remembered.

「A moment later.」

By the time he finished grinding the ink, Chen Shi had already perfected the image in his mind. His brush flew across the paper.

Fine lines fell one after another, smooth and natural.

In fact, the more he painted, the more excited he became.

On the paper, an outline appeared: the silhouette of a figure.

The figure stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes serene. His entire being radiated an indescribable brilliance.

The painting had captured his "spirit."

It needed no explanation.

Only after Chen Shi set down his brush did he finally let out a sigh of relief.

Beads of sweat, large as beans, dripped down.

Fortunately, he caught them before they could fall.

He then took several steps back, away from the figure on the desk.

He was terrified of sullying it.

"It’s done!"

He was filled with emotion.

It was the silhouette of Jiang Man. The details were unclear, but nothing about it felt out of place. It was as if this was exactly how he was meant to be.

Without daring to hesitate, Chen Shi left the islands.

He arrived out on the open sea.

A portly man entered the ship’s cabin, asking in surprise, "Why the sudden contact?"

"Take a look at this," Chen Shi said softly, taking out the painting.

Upon seeing the painting, the portly man’s brow furrowed. "This painting is no simple thing," he said. "It gives me a strange feeling."

Chen Shi continued, "Memorize this figure. Then, circulate the new Visualization Skill and use this figure to replace Taiyang."

The portly man was baffled.

Chen Shi just said, "Just give it a try."

The portly man mulled it over for a moment, then began to attempt the Cultivation.

「After an incense stick had burned down.」

His eyes snapped open.

He stared at the man before him in utter shock.

"How can this be?"

After the Visualization, what he saw was like an Immortal Spirit, and a feeling of pure clarity spread through his entire body.

Originally, this feeling came from the Immortal Spirit. He was shocked that practicing the Visualization Technique could produce the same effect.

Especially since the Immortal Spirit he’d perceived before had been cold and distant, causing his Heart Spirit to become unstable and obstructed.

But this time...

There was none of that at all.

"Is this Lord Envoy?" the portly man asked.

Chen Shi nodded. "Yes. What I just saw is him as he is now, completely different from before. It seems..."

Chen Shi fell silent for a moment before saying, "He is equivalent to an Immortal Spirit."

"What’s going on?" the portly man asked.

"We can’t know, and we shouldn’t try to know," Chen Shi said seriously.

They understood clearly that this was Jiang Man’s intention. Whether he had other motives beyond this, they were even less certain.

But they must not investigate.

Especially since his existence was of immense benefit to them.

They absolutely could not let this be exposed.

"Should we pass this on to the others?" the portly man asked.

"Yes, but we need to be selective," Chen Shi said.

Anyone not completely loyal to the Lord Envoy cannot be allowed to visualize this image.

The portly man hesitated before saying, "This might not be a problem while the Immortal Spirit is dormant, but this time, the Messenger is supposed to be working with that mysterious person to awaken the Immortal Spirit, right?"

Chen Shi was silent for a moment.

’Is Jiang Man really doing this for the Immortal Spirit?’

’Of course not. He’s after those forty thousand Spiritual Sources.’

’But will he really awaken the Immortal Spirit?’

"Let’s not concern ourselves with what the Messenger is doing for now." Recalling Jiang Man’s personality and identity, Chen Shi felt it was pointless to overthink it.

’He’s an undercover agent. What good could an undercover agent possibly be up to?’

People like them could never understand, nor could they intervene.

They could only be forced to accept it.

Especially since Jiang Man wasn’t afraid of being reported. In fact, he’d probably love it if someone reported the Immortal Spirit’s subordinates.

’In his eyes, I’m probably just a walking Spiritual Source. He’s just one step away from piercing the fog and seeing my true identity.’

’And then extracting my Spiritual Source.’

The portly man nodded in agreement. "That’s true. No one can stop the Messenger from doing what he wants."

Then, the portly man looked at the painting and said, "Can I borrow this to take back for Visualization?"

"This is the only one I have. Wait for me to paint another," Chen Shi said.

Hearing this, the portly man felt it was a bit of a pity, because the effect of a copy would surely not be as good as the original.

————

「Within the fog.」

Jiang Man walked forward slowly, holding the coordinate stone.

As he went deeper, the fog roiled and churned.

It parted for him, seemingly of its own accord.

This time, it wasn’t because of the Immortal Dao Coordinate, but because he was cloaked in the power of the Evil God.

’This cloak is actually quite nice, if a bit ostentatious.’

’But for an Unparalleled Celestial Pride, being a little flashy is nothing to be ashamed of.’

Jiang Man was quite pleased with this.

’But if I’m going to appear as Zui Fusheng, I’ll still need to modify it a bit.’

Along the way, however, he suddenly sensed someone observing the Immortal Spirit Power.

’It must be through the Visualization Skill—the one compiled by Mr. Ji.’

’One of the Immortal Spirit’s subordinates.’

’They’re using me to visualize the Immortal Spirit Power.’

The statue seemed to reject it somewhat, but Jiang Man smoothed over that rejection.

’It’s a good thing for the Immortal Spirit’s subordinates to be ambitious. The higher their Cultivation, the more they’re worth.’

’They’re all just at Foundation Establishment or Golden Core. Not much Spiritual Source to be had.’

’Besides, as an Evil God, one must definitely unite one’s subordinates.’

So, Jiang Man overrode the Evil God’s objection.

’Right now, I still have to find a way to awaken the Evil God. It won’t even have time to thank me properly.’

But before it woke up, he needed to master the second and third volumes of the Evil God’s Technique.

He had to admit, the technique passed down by Ting Fengyin was truly formidable.

As he ventured deeper, Jiang Man realized he wasn’t very far from the ball of light he had seen before.