Chapter 1415: Return

Fang Chen had unknowingly spent a little over a year in the Floating Pagoda Realm. He could sense that his physical body had not suffered any major issues, which meant that the Little Immortal Honglian had been protecting it well. As long as his divine soul remained unharmed, the Enlightenment God Palace had no reason to prematurely dispose of his body. So he could afford to stay here for a few more years.

"Lord, what exactly did you mean the last time?"

"Did I really let something slip before?"

"Please just tell me, okay?"

Fairy Yu came to Fang Chen frequently, trying to pry out some useful information.

Fang Chen ignored her entirely, only smiling faintly at her questions. Fairy Yu was so irritated that she wanted to hit someone, but she had no one to vent her frustration on.

Currently, in front of Fang Chen stood over a thousand skilled members of the Nether Guard Division, many of whom had been part of the Grand Xia Hidden Guard Division long ago. Some had already arrived in the Underworld long ago. Others were those whose lifespan had run out over the years and thus came to the Underworld. No matter who they were, as long as they had been in Grand Xia's Hidden Guards, guides would lead them to the Underworld after their death. There was no fear of them becoming lost, wandering souls.

Among them stood Xu Ge, Tie Ma, and many other familiar faces, each one causing the smile on Fang Chen's face to widen further.

After all these years, these old friends were still by his side. In life, that alone was enough to leave no regrets.

Fang Chen said slowly, "The place you're going this time is quite far, so you'll face some dangers along the way. Are you aware of this?"

No one spoke. They only silently nodded. When they arrived in the Floating Pagoda Realm, they already knew the upcoming mission would be very dangerous.

"I will take a team there first. After the locations of the other places are discovered, the rest will depart. I will return in a few years. Until then, you should cultivate here."

"Lord, how about we go first?" asked Xu Ge eagerly.

"You're all seasoned veterans. This time, don't move yet," said Fang Chen, waving his hand,

He then selected fifty veteran soldiers from among them. They were the old hands who had once fought alongside him on the battlefield and later went into hiding among the common folk. Compared to Xu Ge and the others, they just lacked a bit of edge.

Xia Ji looked at Fang Chen. "How long will you be gone this time?"

"Not too long. Once I get a solid footing, coming back will be easy. Let's take it step by step, haste makes waste," said Fang Chen.

He paused, then added, "Also, keep an eye on things with Little Yu's side."

"Understood."

After bidding farewell to Xia Ji, Fang Chen led the fifty veterans into Forgotten River.

A bridge stretched across the void and instantly appeared beneath their feet.

Xia Ji and the others watched as Fang Chen and his group vanished at the bridge's end, and the Forgotten River returned to its calm silence.

***

In Enlightenment Underworld, Lin Yuan stood before the entrance to the Demon Refining Tower. He was counting the days in boredom.

"Over ten years now, and still no news from the captain. It seems both the Judgement Division and the Nether Guard Division have given up searching..."

Opposite him stood Yu Wuxia, sighing softly. "The more we understand this place, the more dangerous it seems. Perhaps it is a hundred times more perilous than the living world. I fear the captain's chances are slim this time."

Lin Yuan frowned thoughtfully. "Captain's physical body hasn't been harmed. If he's not dead, he should've been found by now. Could he have gotten lost?"

Yu Wuxia's expression grew serious. "Very likely. As I said, the Floating Pagoda Realm is vast. It is comparable to the Nine Mortal Realms. Even in the Langgui Constellation, we got lost. How much harder is it here? If he's truly lost his way, finding him again would be... extremely difficult."

"Luckily, our duties are easier. Guarding the gate here earns us thirty years of Yin Lifespan annually." Lin Yuan shivered. "Others don't have it so easy. They hunt Yin Demons and suffer losses. They either get killed by demons or get lost like Captain..."

Yu Wuxia's expression was complicated. "The only reason we have such an easy assignment is because Nanming Shaoze feels indebted to the captain. I heard this duty was originally his."

Lin Yuan sighed. "By the way, you're probably about to advance to the late Tribulation Realm, right? Daoist Meng seems close to reaching the grand completion stage of the Tribulation Realm. Being with Daoist Hong is really great. I thought they didn't get along, but Daoist Hong has truly let go of grudges."

He paused, then said, "When we reach the Ascension Realm, with our merits, we should be able to exchange for immortal herbs. These are blessings left to us by the captain."

Yu Wuxia fell silent, gazing into the distance.

Just then, a figure hurried over ."Brother Du?"

It was Du Rufeng, one of the team members who once hunted the Thousand-Legged Yin Demon with them. He said anxiously, "I need to tell your superiors. Our people just saw Daoist Fang outside. You two should come with me to confirm. Honestly, I'm not sure if it was really him and don't want to mistake him for someone else."

The two were startled.

They didn't have time to think it through and quickly found their superior to request leave. After learning the reason for the leave, the superior in charge of the Demon Refining Tower generously granted them two days off.

They left the Enlightenment Underworld and flew straight south.

At the same time, Fang Chen was chatting casually with several off-duty cultivators from Enlightenment God Palace while heading toward Enlightenment Underworld.

The fifty veteran Hidden Guards had already been settled in several cities not far from the Enlightenment Underworld. Those cities were under the jurisdiction of the Yin Demons and maintained a relatively good cooperative relations with the Enlightenment Underworld.

Once Fang Chen had established a foothold, these veterans would have the chance to enter the Enlightenment Underworld.

"Daoist Fang, it's really our lucky day to run into you like this," said one person curiously. "You should know, the Judgement Division and the Nether Guard Division have been looking for you for many years, but couldn't find you."

He asked, "I heard you were being chased by a powerful Yin Demon last time. What happened afterward? What about that demon?"

"It chased me for a while but then ran into another powerful Yin Demon. Those two started fighting, so no one bothered me anymore. When I planned to return to the Enlightenment Underworld, I suddenly didn't know which path to take and wandered until now," Fang Chen sighed. "If I hadn't seen you all killing Yin Demons and asked, I probably still wouldn't know how to get back."

Everyone nodded in agreement, filled with emotion.

That was luck, plain and simple.

They were extremely pleased. This was someone both the Judgement Division and Nether Guard Division were looking for, someone who had a close relationship with the new core disciple, and someone who knew Nanming Shaoze. Finding him meant they could definitely gain considerable rewards.

Before long, Du Rufeng came toward them with Lin Yuan and Yu Wuxia.

Du Rufeng quickly asked, "Is that Daoist Fang?"

He had only seen Fang Chen once, and after more than ten years, he indeed couldn't quite recognize him anymore.

Lin Yuan and Yu Wuxia were slightly startled, then excitedly called out, "Captain!?"