The Dragon Essence Fruit?

Fang Chen's gaze shifted as he took out one Dragon Essence Fruit.

Zhu Long looked at the fruit eagerly, but it understood that this particular Dragon Essence Fruit was not for it.

This was the last remaining Dragon Essence Fruit that Fang Chen had kept as a backup. He never imagined it would come to this.

"The Dragon Essence Fruit can extend the life of a mortal by a hundred years. It can indeed prolong life," said Fang Chen with a faint smile.

Had it not been for the reminder from Mirror of the Universe, he might have forgotten about this option.

"Hmm..."

Fang Chen pondered for a moment, then let out a self-deprecating smile. It wasn't that he had forgotten, but his mind had become increasingly unclear. Many of his memories had started to blur, a clear sign that his lifespan was coming to an end.

"Brother, the timing for taking this Dragon Essence Fruit must be precise. If your cultivation is still intact, taking it won't be very effective. If your cultivation is gone and you are left with only a limited lifespan, you will soon be on the brink of death. If you die, taking the Dragon Essence Fruit won't help much," echoed the Mirror of the Universe's voice, like a deep bell ringing in Fang Chen's ears.

Fang Chen nodded gently.

Time passed day by day.

When the last drop of his spirit blood drained away, the remaining flesh on his body began to wither.

"Brother, what are you waiting for?" Mirror of the Universe's voice urged him again.

Fang Chen grasped the Dragon Essence Fruit and threw it into his mouth.

The Dragon Essence Fruit transformed into a warm current, spreading through his limbs and bones.

Gradually, the deathly aura surrounding Fang Chen began to dissipate. His flesh and blood slowly began to fill out a little, but his appearance remained largely unchanged. He still looked like an elderly man in his eighties or nineties.

"No matter what, at least your life is preserved," said Mirror of the Universe, sounding relieved.

"Young master, how do you feel now?" asked the white paper figure softly.

How do I feel?

Fang Chen moved a bit. He answered hoarsely, "I feel alright. I can still walk."

As he had suspected, after the spiritual energy hit rock bottom, it didn't rebound. There was no trace of spiritual power left in his body. Not only that, even his soul became no different from that of an ordinary person. He could no longer exit his body like before.

In short, apart from still being in the Realm of Three Thousand Dao with the paper figures, Mirror of the Universe, Little Sword, and Zhu Long, he had turned into a normal old man.

In fact, he was even worse off than an old man.

He was blind, actually blind.

Back when he didn't have the Primordial Immortal Eyes, he had been able to rely on his sharp transcendent mind to perceive everything around him.

Now, however, his transcendent mind had become dull. Even if someone stood in front of him, as long as they didn't make a sound, he might not notice them. He could no longer summon Little Sword, Mirror of the Universe, Zhu Long, and the black and white paper figures. Even the Ancient Talisman could not be used by him to return to the Desolate Academy outside of the Realm of Three Thousand Dao.

However, he could vaguely sense a special aura circulating within him. This aura was from Zhu Long's blood essence that he had ingested.

The presence of this aura meant that he hadn't truly failed in his attempt to condense his Nascent Soul; he just needed some adjustments.

"Little Mirror, how long have I been here?" asked Fang Chen casually.

"Brother, it'll be exactly ten years tomorrow," replied Mirror of the Universe.

Fang Chen sighed. "Exactly ten years? What a pity..."

Within the Three Thousand Dao Realm, the abundant spiritual energy would have greatly helped him in re-cultivating the Introduction to the Three Thousand Daos. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough time. He didn't have enough mid-grade spirit stones either.

Even if he did, now being a mortal body, he likely wouldn't be able to activate the stone bead.

The next day, Fang Chen returned to the reef. The once enthusiastic young man, full of ambition before entering the Realm of Three Thousand Dao, now stood there as an old, frail disabled figure.

"Young Master, Miao Yan's corpse is here," reminded the black paper figure.

"Miao Yan's corpse should have been in the Immortal Demon Sea, but now it's here. It seems his death has indeed alarmed the Immortal Golden Lion. This Remote Descent method used was similar to that of Supreme Immortal Pudu. It seems the lineage is inherited from the Incense Sect."

Fang Chen was silent for a while.

The white paper figure said, "Young master, we cannot remain here for too long. Should we leave this place first and find a safer location?"

Fang Chen nodded slightly. "Thank you both."

The black and white paper figures lifted Fang Chen on each side, placed him on their shoulders, and flew off toward the distance.

Simultaneously, in the Central Continent, a distant and melodious bell rang. Countless cultivators paused, then shook their heads and smiled lightly. Another death bell, which meant that another Immortal Seedling had died in the Central Continent.

Before that, it had already rang several times, confirming the deaths of Meng Tianshu, Yang Qing, Fang Ze, Ding Wan, and Du Kong.

No one knew who the latest one was.

At the Void Immortal Sword Sect, countless sword cultivators stopped their work and looked up towards the main peak.

From the main peak, a deafening bell echoed through the air.

"Who has fallen?!"

"This is an Immortal Seedling's death toll! We only have one Immortal Seedling in the sect…."

Everyone froze in shock. Without a word, they rushed toward the main peak.

By the time they arrived, they found that Zhang Ling, the master of the Extreme Sword Peak, and others had already gathered. Each of them had a solemn expression.

After a moment of silence, Wang Zhenlong stepped out from the Sect Master's hall, his expression indifferent as he announced, "The bells in the Desolate Academy and the Three Thousand Dao Sect have rang and confirmed that my disciple, Fang Chen, has died."

"How could it be Brother Fang?!" exclaimed Langya Wenqiu.

Fang Chen was their Sword Leader. How could he have died so suddenly!?

Qin Hucheng looked at his juniors and sighed softly, "This bell...is never wrong."

His eyes were filled with complex emotions.

Was it true that Fang Chen had died?

Zhang Ling and the others exchanged complicated looks. With Fang Chen's demise, all three disciples under Wang Zhenlong were gone.

"You don't have to mourn," said Wang Zhenlong. "His soul lamp has not been extinguished."

Hearing that, the group grew puzzled.

Since the soul lamp is still burning, why did the Immortal Seedling death bell ring?

Zhang Ling's expression grew grave. "Master Wang, could it be that Fang Chen has failed in his attempt to condense his nascent soul?"

Wang Zhenlong nodded slowly. "Mr Ji from the Desolate Academy thought the same. It is likely that Fang Chen failed in condensing his Nascent Soul."

Langya Wenqiu heaved a sigh of relief. At least Fang Chen was not dead. But soon, she recalled the plight of cultivators who failed in condensing their Nascent Souls and her expression turned deeply worried.

"Failure in condensing the nascent soul would mean becoming a mortal… Even if he wanted to attempt cultivation again, he wouldn't have enough lifespan left. We don't even know where he is now. We can't find him, and he probably doesn't have the strength to come back on his own," muttered the bearded sword cultivator.

"We now have two things to address. First, we need to appoint a new Sword Leader," said Wang Zhenlong solemnly. "Second, once we've decided on a Sword Leader, all of you must go out and bring Fang Chen back. If he is alive, I want to see him. If he is dead, I want to see his body."

The peak masters exchanged looks. Finding Fang Chen wasn't the issue, but appointing a new Sword Leader was….

"I call upon Qin Hucheng of Extreme Sword Peak," said Wang Zhenlong indifferently.

Everyone was slightly startled and turned to look at Qin Hucheng.

"I am here," responded Qin Hucheng, clasping his hands in greeting.

"From now on, you will be the new Sword Leader of the Void Immortal Sword Sect. The path of the Sword Leader is now yours to walk," proclaimed Wang Zhenlong.

"Your wish is my command," acknowledged Qin Hucheng slowly.

The peak masters frowned slightly. Though Qin Hucheng's cultivation wasn't low, compared to the sword cultivators of the same rank from Celestial Heaven and the Northern Dipper, he was still lacking somewhat….

Before they could suggest to Wang Zhenlong to reconsider his decision, he ordered, "Now, go find him. I only have three disciples. Two are dead and I don't want the third to die an untimely death."

"Let's just listen to the old man," groaned the Sect Master.

Zhang Ling and the others fell silent. After a while, they nodded slowly and left with their subordinates.