Chapter 1693: Stop Messing Around
Old Fourth and the others focused their attention on Xie Aman, while the ones Fang Chen had personally subdued—Core Disciple Zhang and Core Disciple Zhao—fixed their gazes on Fang Chen. The two glared at Fang Chen resentfully, their eyes filled with intense dissatisfaction.
Xie Aman said indifferently, "What's so funny? Are you happy to see me?"
The smile on Old Fourth's face stiffened slightly, and he then curled his lip. "How could I not be happy? How long do you plan to keep us trapped here? I've long heard that our Enlightenment God Palace's Ten Thousand Heavenly Prison is a grotto-heaven refined directly from the foundation of an Ancient Forbidden Zone. Now it seems the rumors were true. Within the Enlightenment God Palace, only you and the Palace Master can enter this place, right?
"Hmm, Elder Hou should also have access. Aside from the three of you, I fear the other Elders don't even know where this is located. Is it really necessary to use a place like this to imprison us?"
"Fourth Senior Brother, it is because you all fell to the demonic corruption." Li Shanzi sighed softly. "Do not blame Senior Sister."
"What do you mean, fell to the demonic corruption?" Old Fourth couldn't help but laugh. "Do you think if it were you, you wouldn't fall? Do you think we wanted to fall to the demons?"
A look of resolve appeared in Li Shanzi's gaze. "If it were me, I definitely wouldn't. I would hold firm to my original heart."
Old Fourth smiled, his expression rife with hidden meaning. "I hope so."
"Senior Sister, I feel that even after Fourth Senior Brother and the others succumbed to the demons, their temperaments don't seem to have changed at all," Ji Sheng said with a peculiar expression. "Is it possible THE Enlightenment God Palace has no way to reverse this?"
"Old Tenth sees the bigger picture." A flash of appreciation appeared on Old Fourth's face. "We are exactly the same as before. There is no difference. It is Senior Sister and the others who are making a fuss over nothing and blowing things out of proportion."
"Old Tenth, in that case, why don't you stay here from now on to chat with Old Fourth and the others and deepen your bonds? Maybe they will be moved by you and choose to sever the demonic thoughts in their hearts," suggested Xie Aman.
Ji Sheng was startled and immediately said with a serious face, "There is absolutely no need for that. I believe that for Fourth Senior Brother and the others to fall to the demons, their temperaments must have been weak, allowing the demonic thoughts to take advantage of the flaws in their state of mind. They should be imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison to reflect for a thousand years."
Having said that, he silently retreated behind the crowd, looking as though he no longer intended to speak.
"Senior Sister, speak. You didn't come here this time just to ask us the reason for our fall, did you?" asked Old Fourth as he looked at Xie Aman, his eyes conveying a message that only she could understand.
What "reason" could there be for falling to the demons?
Those who knew the truth naturally understood that the so-called "falling to the demons" was merely the awakening of memories from a past life. They had never changed. They were simply themselves.
"I have come today to retrieve your Formation Hearts. Since you have fallen to the demons, you are no longer core disciples, and the Formation Hearts should be returned."
Xie Aman smiled and said, "I hope you can cooperate so that we can conclude this quickly."
Taking away the Formation Hearts?
Everyone else's expressions turned solemn. Only Old Fourth remained completely indifferent. "Take it if you want. It's not like I can use a Formation Heart while locked up here anyway."
Old Seventh suddenly spoke. "Senior Sister, must it truly be so?"
Nanming Ruyue and the others instinctively glanced at Xie Aman. Old Seventh had always been a loyal supporter of Xie Aman. He even held a position in the Central Division of the Underworld and was her trusted confidant. No one expected that he would also be among those who succumbed to the demons this time. Truly, the world is unpredictable.
Xie Aman said softly, "Old Seventh, if you cooperate with us, you won't feel any pain."
Having said that, she scanned the crowd. "Everyone, close your eyes."
Close their eyes?
Fang Chen and the others were slightly startled but cooperatively closed their eyes. In the next second, everyone felt a cool aura sink into their bodies. Then, their blood began to boil, and faint flashes of green light appeared.
That was the Formation Heart fused within their bloodlines!
In an instant, Fang Chen's divine soul exited his body. Standing in mid-air, he stared at the scene before him. He saw Xie Aman with her hands raised toward the sky, continuously absorbing the pale green brilliance emanating from everyone. The green light on her body grew increasingly intense.
The expressions of Old Fourth and the others gradually turned grave. After about the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the green brilliance on Xie Aman's body had accumulated to a certain level, she performed a hand seal.
The green brilliance instantly dispersed in front of her, transforming into a magical formation. The patterns of the formation were ancient and primitive, spinning rapidly without pause. Green brilliance also began to emerge from the bodies of Old Fourth and the others, surging toward the formation.
Old Fourth closed his eyes and offered no resistance. The other Cores, however, were reluctant to part with their Formation Hearts and tried to contend with this force. One by one, their faces contorted in pain.
Before long, the green brilliance on Old Fourth's body had vanished, signifying that his Formation Heart had been completely swallowed by the formation. Because the others resisted for a while, green brilliance continued to pour from their bodies incessantly. But their resistance was clearly futile.
It took less than half an hour in total. The Formation Hearts of the forty-seven awakened demons present had been entirely confiscated by Xie Aman.
She slowly ceased her hand seals, the formation vanished, and forty-seven Matrix Hearts shimmering with green light appeared before her.
Surprisingly, forty-four of them were similar in size. Even where differences existed, they were merely by a hair's breadth. Only three Formation Hearts were larger than the rest. Unsurprisingly, these three belonged to Old Fourth, Old Sixth, and Old Seventh.
It would be great if she could spare a few for me, thought Fang Chen.
Last time, he had made a deal with the Palace Master of the Enlightenment God Palace. He had obtained three Formation Hearts and currently had two left, having used only one. If he headed to the Taicang Realm this time, he intended to open as many Yellow Springs Roads in key locations as possible. The benefit to the war effort would be far greater.
"Senior Sister, the Formation Hearts have all been returned to you. Why don't you show some mercy and let us go?" Old Fourth glanced at the Formation Heart that had once belonged to him and smiled. "Now that we lack Formation Hearts, we are just ordinary cultivators. Even if we have fallen to the demons, we pose no threat to the Enlightenment God Palace."
"You want to leave? Dream on. First, reflect here for a few years. As for your final disposal, we will make a decision once the higher-ups have finished their deliberations," Xie Aman sneered, then steered the Black Dragon Boat to turn and depart.
Upon returning to the Enlightenment God Palace, as they could be departing for the Taicang Realm at any moment, Old Second and the others left to make their respective pre-departure preparations.
Fang Chen waited specifically until everyone else had left before asking via voice transmission, "Senior Sister, could you sell me a few Formation Hearts?"
"Stop messing around. We have use for these," Xie Aman refused immediately.
They have use for them?
That's right... They have already broken through their cognition. Although I don't know when it started, they should also be able to see those illusory mountains.
Thinking of this, Fang Chen changed the subject. "Senior Sister, the outsiders we saw earlier in the Heavenly Prison are essentially the same as the Demon Race. If they were to discover the location of our Nine Realms, I fear they would launch an invasion against us, just as the Demon Race did back then."
