Chapter 1151

Five Gu Immortals move together over the sea, Ying Wu Xie smug about an arrangement meant to make Fang Yuan suffer, and greatly delay his growth even if it cannot trap him. They cannot act personally, since Ying Wu Xie carries the heaviest task of all, rebuilding Shadow Sect. Warned by Ying Wu Xie of a desolate beast moving strangely through the water, Shi Nu attacks it, and huge waves erupt as Fang Yuan bursts out, declaring he has finally found Ying Wu Xie. None of the five have seen his true face, since he changed his appearance for the trip. But Ying Wu Xie’s luck inspection Immortal Gu shows this stranger’s luck matches what he had traced from Hei Lou Lan to Fang Yuan, and a changed face cannot hide a man’s luck. Recognizing him, Ying Wu Xie shouts a panicked order for the ancient battle formation. Hei Lou Lan, Shi Nu and the fourth immortal vanish with him through Omni-directional Travel, a formation that outruns even Heavenly Court’s Gu Immortals, leaving only Liu Qing Yu behind with Fang Yuan. ^{ch. 1151}

Deciding he can track the others later with Qi Luck Sensation, Fang Yuan turns his killing intent on Liu Qing Yu, who flees backward on instinct. Liu Qing Yu’s mood is even worse than Fang Yuan’s own: having already lost the crucial clue and his comrades, he now watches his new master abandon him too, unable even to curse. Nobody has told him they fled from Fang Yuan’s rank eight battle strength, the upper extreme heavenly eagle. What Ying Wu Xie and the rest do not know is that the eagle already died back into an unhatched egg, a secret Fang Yuan made Lang Ya land spirit keep, so Sixth Hair passed on only the earlier half. Fang Yuan judges their flight correct, since probing a rank eight is courting death. Fang Yuan decides killing Liu Qing Yu will weaken Ying Wu Xie’s side and yield intel through a soul search. He attacks with the extraordinary sword path killer move Sword mark targeting death. ^{ch. 1151}

Liu Qing Yu dodges the strike. He is completely focused against so huge a foe despite his inward panic. He judges bitterly that this one, like Hei Lou Lan before him, is a rank six Gu Immortal carrying rank seven Immortal Gu, and guesses sword path. After a dozen rounds Fang Yuan has almost completely read his limited repertoire, while his own time path defensive methods let him press the advantage easily. Where Liu Qing Yu once chased Fang Yuan and made him run, Fang Yuan now suppresses him instead, his battle strength grown far beyond his cultivation level. ^{ch. 1151}

Liu Qing Yu, losing heart, understands at last why Ying Wu Xie fled: this is a monster of unbelievable power, likely still holding back. He wants badly to surrender, but Shadow Sect’s alliance agreement forbids it, leaving him only the choice to fight to the death. He flees deeper into the sea area as a green rainbow, daring Fang Yuan to follow. Fang Yuan blocks his path with Year Beast Summoning, a snake year beast tearing through space, then closes in with sword escape Immortal Gu. The strike ends Liu Qing Yu’s life. ^{ch. 1151}

His body self-detonates and his soul shatters, though Fang Yuan salvages only a portion of it. His remnant soul dissipates quickly, apparently a Shadow Sect method, but Fang Yuan manages a hurried soul search first, catching dozens of memory fragments before the rest dissipate completely. Among them is the scene of Liu Qing Yu and Ying Wu Xie setting the earlier trap, laid once Ying Wu Xie learned of Fang Yuan’s rank eight battle strength and judged he could not fight him, a sign he has truly grown. Liu Qing Yu’s body turns to pulp, too ruined to collect. Fang Yuan had hoped to absorb the dead man’s dao marks, but they have already returned to Liu Qing Yu’s own immortal aperture, and a Gu Immortal of the five regions is not so easily looted. The sinking aperture finishes forming into a blessed land and its entrance opens, a rare chance that would face far greater obstacles if taken later, the same opening he used after placing Star Form blessed land and Ge Pi blessed land. ^{ch. 1151}