"Fang Yuan? That name sounds like I've heard it somewhere before!"
"Could it be that little beast king from San Wang Mountain—the one who refined an Immortal Gu?"
"I can't see clearly from here, but it's probably him!"
"He became an Immortal? What incredible fortune! Sigh, why couldn't I have been the one to encounter such an opportunity?"
The Gu Masters of the three clans erupted into chaos.
Everyone was discussing animatedly, venting their shock, envy, and other emotions, turning the scene into a cacophony of noise.
These mortals were still confined to outdated news. Fang Yuan's true reputation had only circulated among Gu Immortals—in the mortal world, information about him had always been scarce.
Tie Ruonan clenched her fists tightly, gritting her teeth as she stared ahead. Her relationship with Fang Yuan was the simplest one there was—it was deep, sworn enmity!
Her entanglement with Fang Yuan had dragged on for a long time. Their hatred had not diminished with the passage of time; rather, like fine wine, it had only grown more potent.
Yet with her enemy right before her eyes, Tie Ruonan discovered that she was utterly powerless!
Fang Yuan had already become an Immortal! In the past, Tie Ruonan wouldn't have known the difference between Immortal and mortal, and that would have been that. But after her contact with Iron Mask God, she understood the gap between the two states with painful clarity. She knew she was merely a mortal—seeking vengeance against a Gu Immortal was utterly hopeless!
Now, Tie Ruonan's only hope rested on Iron Mask God. She wanted to witness the Tie family Gu Immortal, Iron Mask God, slay Fang Yuan—upholding justice and avenging her friends, family, and subordinates!
Fang Yuan swept his gaze over the three Immortals and let out a cold, arrogant laugh. "I came here to retrieve something I lost. Do you insignificant few presume to stop me?"
Shang Qingqing and Hou Yao both felt their hearts lurch violently. Fang Yuan had spoken only a single sentence and employed no special means, yet to the two of them, it felt as though an overwhelming surge of demonic energy rolled off him in great waves, crushing their fighting spirit almost entirely.
Fang Yuan's name shook the world; his fearsome demonic reputation had long since intimidated all quarters. Even someone of Wu Yong's caliber had been toyed with by him, and the Heavenly Court itself—having issued his warrant for so long—still hadn't managed to capture him. That these Gu Immortals, mere Sixth Transformation cultivators, should feel this way was perfectly natural.
Down on the ground, every mortal heard Fang Yuan's words with crystal clarity.
Tie Ruonan's fury boiled over in her heart: "Demon! Even after ascending to immortality, he's still a demon! For someone like him to possess such power—what a tragedy for all living beings. He deserves to die! This demon must die! Punishing the wicked and eliminating evil—ridding the world of such a demon—*that* is the Righteous Path!"
With that thought, Tie Ruonan looked up at Iron Mask God with boundless expectation.
In her heart, this formidable Gu Immortal of the Tie family could practically hold up the sky and stride across the earth, pluck stars and seize the moon. Surely he would be able to destroy Fang Yuan!
After all, Fang Yuan was her contemporary. Even if he had become an Immortal, how long could that have been? How could he possibly be a match for Iron Mask God?
But in the very next moment, Tie Ruonan's sharp eyes went wide with disbelief.
She heard Iron Mask God let out a sigh and say, "Fang Yuan, you have roamed the Five Regions and made your name resound throughout the world, unmatched in your era. I am not your match. However, even if I die here, I will strike—this is my resolve as a Gu Immortal of the Tie family!"
"However, there is one matter. You and I are both Immortals—there is no need to concern ourselves with these insignificant mortals. Why not let these irrelevant commoners on the ground withdraw? Leave only us to battle. Even if I fall in battle, I will have no regrets."
"W-what? Lord Iron Mask God admits he's no match for Fang Yuan? Th-this can't be possible?" Tie Ruonan's jaw dropped, her mind staggered by the sheer enormity of this revelation, her mental state nearly shattering into pieces.
Such words—especially spoken by Iron Mask God himself—were enough to demolish her entire worldview.
"Let these mortals go? Why should I?" Fang Yuan's cold laugh was laced with killing intent that spilled forth in all directions.
His gaze swept across the mortal Gu Masters on the ground, seeing through every last one of them.
Tie Ruonan's fury was not even worth a dismissive scoff from him—the anger of an ant was no anger at all.
Ye Fan, bound to him through linked fortune, was a man blessed by fate. Though their fortunes were connected master-to-subject, now that Fang Yuan had seen him, he had no intention of letting the man go. Killing Ye Fan would bring no small benefit. After all, every time Fang Yuan burned his soul to detonate fortune, a portion of Ye Fan's luck was siphoned away.
Moreover, why the Ultimate Heavenly Eagle had appeared beside Ye Fan—that was something Fang Yuan was also curious about, and he wished to investigate.
As for Shang Xinci?
The cold light in Fang Yuan's gaze flickered slightly, betraying a hint of peculiar emotion.