Chapter 1167: Stepping on the Taiji Diagram

"Huh?" Xue Shiliou thought he had heard wrong. "What did you just say?" he repeated, his voice cautious. He had raced against time to create this technique, all so he could implore the Snow Emperor to save Lu Yang.

"I'm only a Half-Immortal; I can't defeat an Immortal," the Snow Emperor said seriously, not finding anything unusual about his statement. In fact, he found it more peculiar that he might be expected to defeat an Immortal. The far north was already sparsely populated, with a population far smaller than the Central Continent, the Buddhist Kingdom, the Demon Realm, or the East Sea. It was rare for even a Half-Immortal to appear in 100,000 years, and an Immortal had never emerged.

"Choose another wish. I can make you a Half-Immortal, grant you immeasurable wealth, and teach you every cultivation technique and spell that has ever existed."

Xue Shiliou gritted his teeth, repeatedly kowtowing. "Save Fellow Daoist Lu! This is my only wish!"

The Snow Emperor looked troubled, his expression changing for the first time. According to custom, he was obliged to grant one wish to anyone who completed the trials. But the problem was, he genuinely couldn't defeat an Immortal.

"If you're truly set on saving him, there is a way." Xue Shiliou looked up in surprise, realizing that the Snow Emperor indeed had a solution.

"According to custom, the Snow Emperor must grant one wish to the trial participant. If you have no objections, I will now cede the position of Snow Emperor to you, and you can fulfill your own wish."

Xue Shiliou was speechless.

Seeing Xue Shiliou's disappointment, the Snow Emperor spoke earnestly: "Our lineage of Snow Emperors is destined to become Half-Immortals, possessing a lifespan of 100,000 years. Over these ten millennia, we will forge countless friendships and witness many old friends depart. Your friend's death is simply the predestined fate for companions of the Snow Emperor's line; you must learn to accept it." The Snow Emperor silently added, *unless that ancient Immortal who granted me the nascent Dao Fruit were to intervene.* At this thought, the Snow Emperor instinctively touched the blank white jade plaque on his chest. But that was impossible.

Another loud self-detonation reverberated through the sky, catching the Snow Emperor's attention. Lu Yang, who had been impaled by ribs and pinned in that space, once again self-detonated to escape. Even Siming was stunned, no longer able to remain seated. A junior repeatedly escaping from him using the same method was one thing. But the crucial point was that after breaking free from the confinement, the junior simply stood nearby, showing no intention of running far! It was as if he held him in utter contempt!

"Myriad Ghosts Erosion." Thick, rolling smoke poured from the bone staff; each wisp was the manifestation of a ghost king. Ten thousand ghosts swept across the sky, blotting out the sun and devouring all spiritual energy in their path. Human sacrifice was prevalent in the Great Gan Dynasty, where people were sacrificed to gods, to the nation, and to heaven. Cultivators of the Great Gan had no shortage of ghosts and other malevolent entities; if they didn't possess them, they would simply create them.

The Snow Emperor shook his head, pitying the junior. Not to mention this junior, even if he himself were to engage, he would surely be dead or gravely wounded. The blank white jade plaque on his chest vibrated, asking the Snow Emperor what was happening outside. The Snow Emperor recounted everything he saw, word for word, to the supreme entity residing within the white jade plaque. To his surprise, after hearing the description, the supreme entity reacted with unusual intensity.

"Immortal! That is an Immortal's technique! What is the relationship between that boy and the Immortal?!"

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! That boy must be connected to the Immortal; he cannot be allowed to come to harm here!"

"But if I leave here, it will invite disaster..."

"What are you afraid of?!"

Before the Snow Emperor could even speak, a celestial light burst from the white jade plaque and shot into the sky, leaving the Snow Emperor utterly dumbfounded. "Th-this is impossible! He has never made a move in 300,000 years!"

The Immortal suddenly appeared before Lu Yang, moving with near-instantaneous speed. Facing the surging, ghostly horde of ten thousand ghost kings, the Immortal stepped onto a Taiji diagram. Supreme Yang power erupted, incinerating everything in its path, making even the sun appear dim in comparison. "All of you, begone!" Regardless of the ghost kings' cultivation levels in life, or what devouring intentions Siming had imbued them with, when confronted by the world's ultimate rigidity and pure Yang, they all burst into flames and were instantly reduced to ashes.

The Immortal wore coarse linen robes and was unkempt, his appearance resembling a wild man who had just emerged from an ancient cave, exuding raw wildness. The moment Siming saw the Immortal, he became instantly vigilant and slowly uttered the other's name.

"Ninefold Immortal!"

Hearing Siming utter the name of the Ninefold Immortal, the area beneath Muxue City erupted in chaos.

"The Ninefold Immortal?! Is that the legendary Ninefold Immortal, the very first one to attain immortality?!"

"Who else would dare to bear that name but him?!"

"Good heavens, even the Ninefold Immortal has appeared!"

The Ninefold Immortal turned his head and glanced at Siming. "You're Siming of the Great Gan? You too, begone! I'm not in the mood to deal with you!" He then turned to Lu Yang. "Kid, where did you learn that self-detonation technique, and what is your connection to the Immortal?"

"Ninefold?" The Immortaless was surprised to see the Ninefold Immortal appear so suddenly.

The Ninefold Immortal froze, staring at the Immortaless in shock. "That tone... You are the Immortal! How did you revive?"

"No, this isn't the time to discuss it. I cannot remain in the outside world for too long; Annihilation will track me down..."

"You mean Annihilation Immortal? She's already dead."

"What?" First the Immortal's revival, then Annihilation's demise—the succession of good news left the Ninefold Immortal momentarily speechless.

"Seven Slashes of Gods and Demons!" Siming hurled seven tokens. This was a soul-binding technique capable of immobilizing an opponent's three souls and seven spirits, rendering them helpless and at his mercy.

"Ugh, you're so bothersome! Immortaless, wait until I've dealt with him, then we can chat!" The Ninefold Immortal impatiently turned, shifting his attention to Siming. He flipped his hands, grasping a small sun, symbolizing extreme Yang, in his left, and a blood-stained full moon, radiating extreme Yin, in his right. Wielding both sun and moon, he slammed them directly toward Siming!

Siming didn't react immediately. Only after realizing what the Ninefold Immortal was doing did he raise his bone staff to block the sun and moon. Ancient texts recorded that the Ninefold Immortal's combat style was not close-quarters brawling.

The Snow Emperor watched the Ninefold Immortal battling in the sky, his eyes wide with nothing but pure shock. "This is impossible!"

"Excuse me, what's wrong?" Xue Shiliou asked, puzzled. Only then did the Snow Emperor remember Xue Shiliou was still present.

"Since you've passed all three trials, there's no harm in telling you these things," the Snow Emperor began. "Our lineage of Snow Emperors has produced six individuals. You will be the seventh."

"Although the far north reveres the Snow Emperor as a deity, the Snow Emperor's true identity is, in fact, an envoy of the Ninefold Immortal."

"An envoy of the Ninefold Immortal?"

"Yes, this was an agreement established between the Ninefold Immortal and the first Snow Emperor. The Ninefold Immortal resides within this blank white jade plaque, while the Snow Emperor wears the plaque and travels throughout the far north, gathering information from the outside world. Furthermore, the Ninefold Immortal bestows the nascent Yin-Yang Dao Fruit upon each successive Snow Emperor, helping them become Half-Immortals. I am no exception. According to accounts from previous Snow Emperors, for 300,000 years, the Ninefold Immortal has never once left the white jade plaque. Yet today, for reasons unknown, he actually left the plaque and emerged into the outside world!"

The Snow Emperor had already found Xue Shiliou's wish to save Lu Yang preposterous, but he never imagined that the Ninefold Immortal would actually intervene to save Lu Yang!

"Immortaless, what are you thinking about?" Lu Yang asked, having regained control of his body and noticing that the Immortaless was deep in thought.

"The Ninefold Immortal didn't seem to have this kind of personality before. His fighting style wasn't so unrestrained back then."