"The Demon Lord?"

The black and white paper figures revealed a thoughtful expression, then shook their heads slightly.

Fang Chen pondered for a moment and recounted the events that had transpired in the Sea of Suffering.

The white paper figure reflected, "Lord, this may just be a lie fabricated by the heart demon to tempt you."

The black paper figure nodded in agreement. "That should be the case. While demons do exist, it's impossible for them to be truly invisible and come to you."

Fang Chen nodded. Since the Demon Calamity had passed, it was time to transform his core into a Nascent Soul and take the final step of the Lower Four Realms.

The voice of the Mirror of the Universe suddenly sounded, "Little Brother… if what you're saying is true, then you should be cautious."

Fang Chen's eyes flickered. "Little Mirror, what do you know?"

"I'm only familiar with the realms of immortals and mortals. As for demons… ordinary demons indeed do not need to be taken seriously; as long as you survive the Demonic Calamity, it's fine. But if you truly heard a demon mention the term 'Demon Lord,' then you need to be very careful.

"In the upper realm, there have been immortals who had encountered this Demon Lord you speak of. After they were told they were favored by the Demon Lord, they faced a series of Demonic Calamities and eventually transformed into demons themselves, committing unspeakable atrocities!

"There are powerful beings who have used countless methods to investigate this matter but have never been able to confirm whether the Demon Lord truly exists in the world.

"Little brother, you still have two calamities you have yet to pass: the second during the Enlightenment Realm and the third during the Fusion Realm. It's highly likely that these two calamities will also be Demonic Calamities."

Hearing his words, Fang Chen felt a twinge of doubt regarding everything that the demon had said earlier.

The Demon Lord... does he really exist?

"Of course... this is something that even the great beings of the Immortal Realm are confused about. Just listen to me and be a bit more cautious in the future."

Fang Chen nodded. He rose and went to the Dao Palace. He opened the drawer

containing the Three Thousand Dao Laws and took out a jade slip and held it in his palm.

The essence of the Nascent Soul in the Three Thousand Dao Laws unfolded word by word in Fang Chen's mind. He focused entirely on it, quietly digesting the content.

An unknown period of time passed until he slowly opened his eyes, staring at the jade slip in his palm with a strange expression.

The white paper figure, insightful as ever, noticed Fang Chen's demeanor. "You seem to be in trouble?"

Fang Chen nodded lightly. "Indeed, in quite a bit."

He had initially thought that by entering the Three Thousand Dao Realm to survive the Demonic Calamity, he would be able to smoothly cultivate the

Three Thousand Dao Arts: Essence of the Nascent Soul

and advance to the Nascent Soul stage.

However, he didn't expect that the path the Three Thousand Dao Arts took would be different from the usual paths. It turned out that he needed to put in extra hard work and obtain a very important spiritual item to advance to the Nascent Soul Realm.

Fang Chen looked at the black and white paper figures. "Do you know... where I can quickly find a high-grade spiritual stone?"

These two had once followed an Immortal King, so they should be well-informed.

The black and white paper figures were slightly taken aback, looking visibly surprised. "High-quality spiritual stone?"

The white paper figure pondered. "Lord... high-quality spiritual stones are extremely rare in the mortal realm. Even those in the Three Upper Realms mostly use mid-grade spirit stones. Even if they had a high-grade spirit stone, they would keep it to use during a breakthrough. No one would sell such a thing." ᚱΑŊo͍ＢËș

Seeing that neither had an answer, Fang Chen turned his attention to the Mirror of the Universe.

"You want high-grade spirit stones? I'm afraid, you'll have to give me quite a few mid-grade spirit stones to obtain any related information."

Fang Chen didn't bother asking how many mid-grade spirit stones that would take. He knew couldn't afford them anyway.

"I can ask the Void Immortal Sword Sect or the Desolate Academy; these two forces are among the top in the Central Continent and might have high-grade spirit stones in their reserves. However…"

Fang Chen smiled bitterly to himself.

He needed a high-grade spirit stone, yes, but that wasn't actually the spiritual item he needed. The Three Thousand Dao Nascent Soul Chapter refined a nascent soul known as the Origin Spirit. Its full name was the Nine Heavens Profound Mother Primordial Spirit. In order for him to refine this primordial spirit, he needed the blood of the Profound Mother Yin Beast.

Fang Chen asked again, "Have you two heard of the Profound Mother Yin Beast?"

"The Profound Mother Yin Beast? Naturally, we've heard of it. It's a protective immortal beast in Dao sects, but there's no trace of this beast in the mortal realm. It's said to only be found in the Immortal Realm," replied the white paper figure.

"There is no trace of it in the mortal realm?"

A hint of contemplation flashed in Fang Chen's eyes. The mortal realm had to have such beasts; otherwise, how could the practitioners who cultivated the Three Thousand Dao Art have advanced to the Nascent Soul stage?

"It's not necessarily true that these beasts can only be found in the Immortal Realm. Perhaps you might find a few in immortal ruins," suggested the black paper figure.

Fang Chen's gaze shifted slightly. "The immortal ruins?"

"Little brother, if you want to know about the Profound Mother Yin Beast, just ask me. The price isn't high—only five hundred mid-grade spirit stones," Mirror of the Universe chimed in.

That's indeed not that expensive,

thought Fang Chen.

Fang Chen took out five hundred mid-grade spirit stones and tossed them to Mirror of the Universe.

After deducting the five hundred, Fang Chen now had a thousand mid-grade spirit stones left in his storage ring, which came from the ten years' worth of salary he had advanced from the Desolate Academy.

Having consumed the spirit stones, Mirror of the Universe was quite satisfied and said, "You can head to the Immortal Demonic Sea to search for the Pitu Ruins. Remember, it's best not to let this be known. If someone finds out you need the Profound Mother Yin Beast, they might cause trouble for you."

"The Pitu Ruins... is it an immortal ruin?"

"Yes, it was left behind by an immortal named Pitu. This immortal was known for raising all sorts of unusual pets, including the Profound Mother Yin Beast."

"Is there an exact location?"

"Once you arrive at the Immortal Demon Sea, you can ask the cultivator there, and they will tell you, so you won't have to waste any spirit stones."

"How many spirit stones would it take for you to tell me?"

"Since the immortal ruins involve significant karma, you would need a thousand mid-grade spirit stones if you want me to tell you the exact location. "

Fang Chen sighed. "Then I'll just ask for directions."

He had solved the issue regarding the Profound Mother Yin Beast, but he still needed a high-grade spirit stone to neutralize its blood. Only the spiritual energy contained within a high-quality spirit stone could neutralize the essence of that beast's blood for him to use it.

If not neutralized, the Profound Mother Yin Beast's blood essence would be akin to poison for a Golden Core Realm cultivator.

***

In the next ten years, Fang Chen made the most of his time, diligently practicing the various techniques he had learned in the chamber inside the Desolate Academy.

After all, there would come times were he'd need to act as a teacher. He needed to master these techniques to look the part when the time came. He couldn't afford to embarrass himself.

Throughout this period, he practiced while in his Three Heads and Six Arms form. With the help of two additional heads, he effectively reduced a ten-year effort to a measly three years.

At the same time, it also made him increasingly familiar with the Three Heads and Six Arms Technique, allowing him to perform it more smoothly.

Ten years flew by in the blink of an eye, while only a day had passed outside.

When Fang Chen walked out of the quiet room, he startled everyone outside.

Wu Ruochou blurted, "Young Master Fang, you're alright?"

She hurriedly stepped forward, looking Fang Chen up and down. Upon seeing that he was in good spirits, she felt a wave of relief wash over her.

"The Demonic Calamity has passed," revealed Fang Chen, smiling. "Where's Xia Ji?"

The Demonic Calamity passed just like that?

Ge Shao and the others were secretly astonished and ultimately had to exclaim in admiration.

As expected of the sword leader of the Void Immortal Sword Sect

. What would be a catastrophe that could ruin an ordinary cultivator's life or even lead to death has been so easily overcome.

"Your junior brother was worried you'd have a hard time during the calamity and went to gather money to buy the Vast Origin Fruit."

At that moment, Xia Ji's voice resounded. "The Heavenly King Zhen Manor is truly outrageous. They are despicable!"

Xia Ji hurried over with a face full of anger, but upon seeing Fang Chen, he was immediately taken aback, "Fang Da, how are you feeling now!?"