Chapter 1766 The Fourth True Immortal Appears in the Nine Great Divine Realms

Zhang Xuan nodded and said, "Intelligence is of paramount importance. Old Youtou and the others have done a good job. Send a message back to them, telling them that their own safety must be their top priority. They should obtain as much intelligence as they can, but they cannot force it, and they must not expose themselves. The Gray Bone Alliance's trade channels and secrecy are our most important sources of information and resources at present, and we must not lose them."

"Yes!"

"Furthermore," Zhang Xuan said with a deep gaze, "send copies of this intelligence report on the second advance team to all the major powers in the nine divine realms, so that we can make preparations."

Hei Zi accepted the order and left.

“More than twenty True Immortals, reincarnated Demon Lords, and a vast demon army…” Zhang Xuan muttered to himself, “It seems that the time for stable development will be shorter than expected.”

Moreover, this is only the second advance team from the Abyss of Beginning Demons; the advance team from the Three Pure Immortal Realms is estimated to be quite large as well.

"A storm is brewing, and the wind is howling!" Zhang Xuan sighed.

In the Immortal Gourd Realm, deep within the Imperial Palace.

Zhang Xuanzheng was discussing strategies with You Wuyai and Tian Shi Laozu to deal with the second wave of the Shi Mo Yuan army. The atmosphere in the hall was as heavy as iron.

Suddenly, an extremely cold yet vast and boundless pressure descended without warning, instantly enveloping the entire Huangji Palace!

This pressure was neither the violence of demonic energy nor the magnificence of immortality, but rather an extreme coldness and purity originating from ancient ice, carrying a trace of the ancient majesty of the demon race!

Everyone in the hall was shocked, especially Zhang Xuan and Tian Shi Lao Zu, both True Immortals, whose expressions changed drastically!

"The aura of a true immortal?!" You Wuyai suddenly stood up. "What fellow Daoist has graced the Immortal Gourd Realm with their presence?"

The Heavenly Eclipse Ancestor silently ignited with gray-black tribulation flames, quietly drawing the space where the Imperial Palace was located into the range of tribulation power.

Zhang Xuan was deeply shocked.

Besides myself, You Wuyai, and Tian Shi Lao Zu, how could there be a fourth True Immortal among the Nine Divine Realms?

Where did this sudden appearance of a True Immortal come from? Is he friend or foe?

Just as everyone was on guard, a clear, cold female voice, like ice water striking jade, pierced through layers of palace restrictions and rang out directly inside the hall:

"Zhang Xuan, an old friend has come to visit. Why don't you come out and greet him? Could it be that... you've forgotten about the loan from back then? It's time to repay it, principal and interest."

A loan? An old friend?

Zhang Xuan looked completely bewildered.

When did he ever owe money to a fairy woman? Or was it an old acquaintance?

How come he has no recollection of this?

The palace doors opened silently, and a graceful figure, bathed in a cool, moonlit glow, slowly entered.

The fairy before me was tall and slender, with a curvaceous figure. She wore a flowing, ice-blue dress with wide sleeves that moved without wind, as if surrounded by a misty haze.

Her skin was as white as snow, and her temperament was otherworldly, like a celestial maiden descended from the heavens or a fairy descended from the moon.

What's most unsettling is the undisguised pressure of a True Immortal surrounding her, and the ancient demonic patterns that subtly flow deep within her icy blue eyes!

“You are…” Zhang Xuan’s pupils contracted slightly as he scanned the woman with his divine sense, trying to identify her.

When his divine sense touched the ancient, icy demonic power deep within the woman's primordial aura, a nearly forgotten memory surged forth like a frozen river suddenly thawing.

A place of chaos!

The far north ice sheet!

A pit a million feet deep!

The crack was split open by six-colored divine lightning!

Deep within the crack, frozen within the ice core, surrounded by countless objects imbued with dragon energy... a thousand-foot-long ice dragon!

Later, in order to replenish the spiritual veins of the Witch God City, he returned to the Ice Plains stronghold and used the Heaven-Suppressing Sword to split the ice layer, where he saw the vast spiritual pool and the high-level dragon sleeping at the bottom of the pool!

"It's...it's you?!" Zhang Xuan blurted out, his voice filled with disbelief and astonishment. "That ice dragon?! You...you've awakened?"

The woman's cold gaze fell on Zhang Xuan, and a faint smile appeared on her lips: "Looks like you haven't forgotten everything. Not bad. My name is Jiao'er. Thanks to you, I woke up early."

She took a step forward, and the pressure from the True Immortal was like a tangible cold wave, making Zhang Xuan feel a chill to his very bones.

This is too strong!

This is the power of the ancient demon.

Zhang Xuan believed that even he might not be able to defeat the dragon in front of him.

"Since you remember, then that makes things easier. Back then, you borrowed a massive amount of spiritual energy from the place where I slept, to help your magic weapon advance and your cultivation break through. Is that true?" Jiao'er's voice was cold and unquestionable.

Zhang Xuan opened his mouth, but was speechless for a moment.

Strictly speaking, that cannot be considered a "borrowing".

That was because the six-colored divine lightning accidentally split the ice layer, causing the dragon energy that was attached to the ice dragon to release its spiritual energy, which was then absorbed by him.

He went to mine again later, indeed to obtain spiritual energy.

“Uh… Fellow Daoist, there may be a misunderstanding.” Zhang Xuan carefully chose his words. “Back then, the Heavenly Tribulation accidentally split the ice layer, and spiritual energy leaked out. I did absorb some, but it was by no means intentional borrowing. When I went there again later, it was only to replenish my spiritual veins. I was unaware that it was the place where you were slumbering…”

"An accident?" Jiao'er's eyes grew even colder. "What an accident! Do you know that because of your accident, the Ancient Profound Ice Protective Spirit Divine Barrier that envelops me was damaged, causing spiritual energy to leak out continuously. This not only accelerated the loss of the energy I needed for my slumber, but also caused me to... awaken millions of years ahead of schedule!"

Her tone carried a hint of suppressed anger: "I am a direct descendant of the Ancient Ice Dragon Clan. I was ordered to slumber there, using the Ancient Profound Ice Protective Spirit and the Dragon Qi-infused artifacts to slow the passage of time and preserve my essence, all for the purpose of awakening in the ultimate battle to seize the Heavenly Dao's authority and revive the glory of the Ancient Era! Now, because of you, I have awakened prematurely and missed the best opportunity for the ultimate battle. How will you compensate me for this loss?!"

The ultimate battle! The ancient demon race! The authority of Heaven!

These words, like thunderclaps, exploded in the hearts of the three people in the hall.

You Wuyai and Tian Shi Laozu exchanged a glance, both of their eyes flashing with deep shock.

They knew some ancient secrets, but this was the first time they had heard the goal of the ultimate battle so directly from the mouth of an ancient demon immortal.

Zhang Xuan was also shaken, but he quickly calmed down and grasped the key point: "Fellow Daoist, please calm down. I do recall the Ancient Profound Ice Protective Spirit Divine Barrier you mentioned; it is a protective layer that emits a purple halo. But please investigate carefully, Fellow Daoist, it was not I who cleaved the ice layer back then, causing the protective layer to break!"

"Who else are you?"

"Back then, I was only at the Nascent Soul stage. How could I possibly shake the ancient restriction that even Golden Immortals could hardly harm? Even now, I have become a True Immortal, and I know I have absolutely no ability to break through that protective layer on my own. The damage to the protective layer was an accident, not my intention, nor was it within my capabilities."

Upon hearing this, Jiao'er's icy blue eyes flickered slightly, as if she were recalling and deducing.

Before she fell into a deep sleep, the elders of her clan did indeed tell her that the Ancient Mystic Ice Protective Spirit Barrier was laid down by several ancient demons working together, making it extremely sturdy, with the purpose of protecting them, these elite disciples, and ensuring their safe passage through the long tribulation.

Zhang Xuan, being only a Nascent Soul cultivator back then, certainly couldn't have intentionally caused this.