The End of the Immortal Path

During this time, Jiang Man was supposedly grievously injured and unable to move.

After hearing all this, Ye Jingtian and Mo Xin’s pupils contracted.

Ye Jingtian, in particular, had suspected that Monk Zhen Kong and the others were caught up in a major event, but he never imagined it would be *this* major.

The changes back then and the grand display of the Immortal Sects flocking to the scene were anything but ordinary.

And yet, Monk Zhen Kong and his group were at the very heart of it all.

’And they were still allowed to leave?’

He even suspected the other party would kill them to silence them.

Finally, he sighed and said, "From now on, just pretend this never happened. You don’t know anything."

You can’t provoke those prodigies. Whether they’re good or bad, you’ll easily get dragged into their affairs, losing control of your own fate.

————

Jiang Man now stood below in the great hall, awaiting the man’s questions.

’By the looks of it, the person before me is most likely True Master Tai Hua.’

’If it were Red Eagle and the others, there wouldn’t be just one of them.’

’They always hold their meetings as a group of three. For a matter this significant, all three would be needed.’

’But if it’s True Master Tai Hua, then no one else is qualified to be present.’

"Jiang Man. At nineteen, you graduated from the Yunqian Bureau, entered the Sect, and reached Foundation Establishment. At twenty-two, you obtained a Golden Core Secret Realm and successfully formed your Core in the same year." True Master Tai Hua looked at Jiang Man and said softly, "And now, it seems that at twenty-seven, you have achieved the Primordial Spirit realm.

"To advance your Cultivation so quickly is truly remarkable.

"What level of Cultivation did Shangguan Yang believe you had?"

"Late Stage of Golden Core," Jiang Man answered truthfully.

"Why did he want to travel with you?" True Master Tai Hua asked again.

"Because he considered me a genius who could better merge with the Divine Object," Jiang Man replied.

True Master Tai Hua said calmly, "And what happened after that?"

"I refused, so he planned to use force." Jiang Man looked at the man and continued, "But I was lucky. I was just a bit stronger than him, and he fled."

"Did he take the Divine Object with him?" True Master Tai Hua asked casually.

Jiang Man shook his head slightly, then took out a simple box and gently proffered it. "It’s here."

The moment the box appeared, True Master Tai Hua was taken aback.

For Jiang Man to so bluntly state the situation and produce the item was not what he had expected.

Nevertheless, he extended his hand, and the box flew into his grasp automatically.

Opening the box, he saw a square stone inside.

After a closer look, he slowly closed the box and placed it under his hand.

Only then did his gaze fall back on Jiang Man. "You’ve been carrying it with you ever since you got it?"

"Yes," Jiang Man nodded.

"Did anything strange happen?"

"No."

"Then why hand it over? Why not keep it for yourself?"

Hearing this, Jiang Man lowered his head. "I don’t know how to use it."

’It’s true I don’t know how, but it’s not like I could stop the Infinite Stone from acting on its own anyway.’

True Master Tai Hua was also surprised by this reason.

But the item they had been searching for was now in their possession, obtained in a way he had never imagined.

He had thought he would merely be asking for clues.

Who would have thought that the young man would just hand the item over directly?

The whole thing felt absurd.

"What do you want?" True Master Tai Hua asked.

Jiang Man had been about to ask for 200,000 Spiritual Sources, but after thinking about that black-hearted intermediary, he said, "I’ll leave it to you, Senior."

"Three hundred thousand Spiritual Sources, one Top-grade Primordial Spirit Technique, one Primordial Spirit High Grade Skill, the seventy-two volumes of the ’Array of Seventy-Two Books,’ one Primordial Spirit Level Magic Robe, one Spirit Pet Egg, and a Zhenyue Bureau Identity Token. From now on, you will be a member of the Zhenyue Bureau, primarily responsible for communicating with the Evil God." True Master Tai Hua looked at Jiang Man and said calmly, "How does that sound?"

Jiang Man didn’t hesitate for a second. "Thank you, Senior."

’I’ve already decided. Next time, I’m definitely not making the first offer. I’ll let them name the price.’

’I don’t know enough to understand the going rate.’

’No wonder Fang Yong was able to sell me for such a high price.’

’I’ve really struck it rich this time.’

’But now, I truly have the backing of the Zhenyue Bureau.’

’The Peak Master’s blockade will have much less of an effect on me now.’

Afterward, Jiang Man withdrew.

True Master Tai Hua stared at the box in silence for a long time before finally sending a message using a special method.

This item couldn’t be carried around. Something could easily go wrong en route; otherwise, he would have already taken it straight back to the Immortal Sect.

As things stood, he could only have the Immortal Sect bring something here to seal it.

「That afternoon.」

True Master Tai Hua received a message.

It contained instructions on how to handle the situation.

"Place it in an open area, and someone will naturally come to retrieve it?" True Master Tai Hua frowned.

He questioned the authenticity of the message.

’The Immeasurable Calamity Stone is no ordinary object. Just leave it in an open place and wait for someone to pick it up?’

’Who would retrieve it?’

However, after triple-checking, he confirmed the message was genuine.

True Master Tai Hua fell silent for a long time.

Finally, he switched the stone into a special box and placed it in the center of the great hall.

He then sat quietly at the highest seat, waiting in silence.

————

Jiang Man returned to his cell.

The sturdy Old Yellow Ox looked at Jiang Man and said, "I heard you were in a rush to get back to your Cultivation, so you got yourself eliminated first?"

Jiang Man took out a small fruit. "Old Huang, have some."

The Old Yellow Ox tried it and frowned.

"Don’t like sour things?" Jiang Man asked.

"You like them?" the Old Yellow Ox asked.

Jiang Man casually tossed one into his mouth and said with a smile, "Sour, sweet, it’s all flavor. Neither is bad, because each has its own distinct character.

"Being first and being last are the same in that way—very interesting.

"Old Huang, you just haven’t grasped this level of understanding yet."

The Old Yellow Ox was silent for a moment, then went back to eating grass.

"By the way, I also took the opportunity to advance to the Primordial Spirit realm. I’m at the Early Stage of Primordial Spirit now," Jiang Man said calmly, looking at the Old Yellow Ox.

The Old Yellow Ox kept his head down, eating his grass as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

"Old Huang, do you know about the Immeasurable Calamity?" Jiang Man asked suddenly.

"Are you going to touch it?" the Old Yellow Ox replied, still chewing his grass.

"Already touched it," Jiang Man answered.

The Old Yellow Ox froze, raising an incredulous eyebrow at the man before him.

"It even took a liking to me and insisted on merging. It almost succeeded, too," Jiang Man said calmly. "It was quite the experience. Have you ever been through that, Xiaohuang?"

The Old Yellow Ox stared silently at the man before him.

Jiang Man then told him everything that had happened.

The Old Yellow Ox asked, "Why did you touch it?"

"Why not?" Jiang Man countered.

The Old Yellow Ox fell silent for another moment before saying, "So you’re planning to get it back?"

Jiang Man nodded. "Right now, I’m just trying to figure out what to write in the note. Once I’ve written it, I can get the item back. But I’ll have to wait a while, since I can’t be sure True Master Tai Hua has received the message that I’ll be taking it.

"If the message hasn’t arrived, that’ll be a big problem."

The Old Yellow Ox couldn’t interfere in this matter, so he dropped the subject and offered a well-intentioned warning instead. "You should be careful. The news about you marrying Meng Qiewei has been exposed."

Jiang Man, who had been unconcerned, suddenly froze. He stared at the Old Yellow Ox in disbelief. "Old Huang, you’ve got to be kidding me."

"Ask your wife. Her maid came and told me," the Old Yellow Ox said calmly.

Jiang Man couldn’t for the life of him figure out what had happened.

’How could it have been exposed all of a sudden?’

’How am I supposed to face Ting Fengyin now?’

’If they find out and get upset, they could just detonate the Immeasurable Calamity. Wouldn’t that be the end of everyone?’

Just then, Ji Hao arrived.

"There’s been a sudden development I need to discuss with you," Ji Hao said, sounding rather helpless. "I never expected this to happen either."

After that, Ji Hao led the man away.

He was going to explain the situation.

The matter was too serious.

——

Meanwhile, Qing Dai had also completed her mission and come to Ji Meng’s side.

"What’s the situation?" Ji Meng asked.

"Something unexpected happened." Qing Dai immediately began recounting the events of the Immortal Sect’s grand competition, finishing with a puzzled tone, "Why did *that man* suddenly appear? Does this mean the situation is even worse?"

Normally, he shouldn’t have appeared yet, and the Immortal Sects wouldn’t have disturbed him.

He is needed in many places within the Void.

How could he have the spare time to concern himself with a mere Immortal Sect competition?

The Immortal Sects haven’t even used their real methods yet.

If the merging had truly reached its final moments, the Immortal Sects’ methods would have been deployed.

They would have interrupted the process and then sealed everything away.

Everything was clearly still under control, but then someone appeared who was not.

Ji Meng didn’t seem concerned about that, instead asking, "I heard Jiang Man is out. Did the Ji Family complete the trial?"

Hearing this, Qing Dai shook her head. "No. I heard the Young Master was eliminated by force, so the Ji Family members didn’t even have time to complete the trial.

"The news about the Young Master and the Young Miss is ready to be spread now. I’m afraid they’ll have to fake it and pretend the trial was completed.

"Some people in the Ji Family will probably look down on the Young Master now.

"Having to fake his way through the trial."

————