Chapter 1682

In immemorial white heaven, Fang Yuan commands a white crane by thought and uses his rank nine killer move heaven form for the first time. The crane circles over the Five Xiangs grotto-heaven and passes him its inner scenes. Heaven form is an investigative move from Thieving Heaven Demon Venerable, with an extremely wide range and extremely strong detection that costs no immortal essence. It finds hidden grotto-heavens in immemorial white heaven even when their entrances stay closed, though over a much shorter range. Forcing entry does cost rank eight white litchi immortal essence, and though Fang Yuan already controls the Five Xiangs grotto-heaven, he enters unobstructed on heaven form alone. Charging into a grotto-heaven unprepared is extremely difficult, which shows the value of heaven form. ^{ch. 1682}

Fang Yuan reasons that after Ren Zu’s children destroyed the other seven heavens, rank eight and rank nine Gu Immortals could basically place grotto-heavens only in white or black heaven, so a stock of their apertures must lie there. Annexing one would let him skip calamities and tribulations, if it has devoured no fragment of the immemorial nine heavens. A fragment ends a grotto-heaven’s calamities and tribulations but fills it with heaven’s will that cannot be cleansed. So the Five Xiangs and Hei Fan grotto-heavens are not in his consideration. ^{ch. 1682}

Qi clan’s Qi Sea grotto-heaven holds no fragment, but his qi path attainment level obstructs annexing it for now. The dragon whale grotto-heaven is also out, since the blue dragon whale has moved far from where Fixed Immortal Travel could return him and Paradise Earth Immortal Venerable may have left hidden methods for him. He does not dare act rashly. Fang Yuan stays confident that grotto-heavens which suit him definitely exist. His previous life’s memories hold the Nine Phantoms, Dao Formation and Holy Deceit grotto-heavens, which appeared during the five regions chaotic war. Nine Phantoms can turn into phantom form to escape calamities, and Thieving Heaven Demon Venerable made heaven’s will misjudge Holy Deceit, greatly easing its tribulations. Such grotto-heavens hold very few rank eight Gu Immortals, since their resources alone can hardly nurture one, so powerful super forces are all based in the five regions, where rich resources and competition hasten rank eights. ^{ch. 1682}

Summer passes into autumn, and earth vein turbulence grows more frequent. In Western Desert, Gong clan’s second young miss Gong Wu Hua kills an ancient desolate beast with one arrow, and the Gu Immortals watching retreat from the new Earth Trench. In Southern Border, an Earth Trench destroys Sunny Mountain before two Ba clan Gu Immortals. Ba De says a new mountain will come, and notes Gong Wu Hua’s recent rise, which will be no threat once he advances to rank eight. He confirms to his companion that he is finally advancing, since the Southern Alliance is established, its leadership is undecided, and resources are plentiful. His main reason is that an unprecedented great era is descending and he does not wish to be swallowed by its tides. ^{ch. 1682}