"You guessed right. He's spent a long time in the Lower Six Realms, so he has extensive connections. He's well-suited to investigate this," Xie Aman explained. "You're worried about this? You think the Lesser Immortal Realm might also be affected...?"

Chen Enxue smiled faintly and interjected, "Your concern is unnecessary. Every core disciple of the Enlightenment God Palace has signed a contract with a Formation Heart. In essence, our souls are already different from those of ordinary cultivators. That kind of demonic calamity may ensnare ordinary cultivators, but it cannot ensnare us. Techniques like possession or soul-seizing are likewise useless against us." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Xie Aman smiled and nodded toward Fang Chen. "What Third Sister said is correct. Such petty techniques pose no threat to us. What I'm actually curious about is whether the Lesser Immortal Realm getting involved in this matter means they want to step out of their realm and establish a foothold in the Fangcun Realm, hence their cooperation with the Rulai Monastery."

Fang Chen's thoughts stirred. So a Formation Heart has that kind of effect?

He hadn't really felt much change to his soul after contracting with Formation Heart. Perhaps that had something to do with the fact that his soul had already been different to begin with.

Fang Chen thought, the Formation Heart is the blood of the Heavenly Dao. It can break demonic arts, so it makes sense for it to offer resistance to that kind of demonic calamity. It seems I don't need to worry about the core disciples being forcibly awakened this time.

He suddenly thought of Little Immortal Honglian. She had awakened first and only then became a core disciple, rather than awakening after becoming one.

"By the way, Senior Sister, do you know the true background of Rulai Monastery?" Fang Chen suddenly asked.

"Rulai Monastery?" Chen Enxue frowned. "What background could it have? Isn't it just like us, controlling some Ancient Forbidden Zones and nearly a thousand Immortal Boat Formations?"

Xie Aman faintly smiled and said, "Oh, now that you mention it, the Rulai Monastery were originally the guardians of the Buddha Realm. In the past, the Nine Mortal Realms were named after their guardian powers. For example, the Fangcun Realm was originally famous because of Fangcun Mountain. The Buddha Realm was originally famous because of the Rulai Monastery. However, those factions have long since declined. Only a handful of forces still retain a fragment of their inheritance."

"Named after guardian powers?" Fang Chen pondered.

If so, then within the Nine Realm Alliance, there had been at least two realm-guarding forces? The Five Element Grand Sect and Rulai Monastery. Had the Five Element Grand Sect guarded the Five Elements Realm?

Fang Chen reflected silently.

The Five Element Grand Sect followed the Five Elements Immortal Path, which was equivalent to 5 immortal Paths. If each had a ninth-transformation immortal, there would be at least 5 ninth-transformation immortals and 30 eighth-transformation Immortals. At its peak, its power far surpassed organizations like the present-day Enlightenment God Palace. But back then, there didn't seem to be Formation Arts... If you really compare them... aside from the ninth-transformation immortals, they wouldn't have been overwhelmingly stronger.

Chen Enxue looked puzzled. "Ninth Brother, why are you suddenly bringing this up? This is ancient history from who knows how many years ago. Even I don't know much about it."

"Do you think it's connected to what's happening recently?" Xie Aman grew interested, sat down, crossed her legs, and nodded at Fang Chen. "Go on, explain it carefully."

"I can't be certain. I just happened to hear some things. After you hear them, see whether you think they're connected," Fang Chen said.

He shared, "I heard that a very long time ago, in ancient times, the Nine Mortal Realms experienced a great upheaval. During that upheaval, both the Underworld and the Immortal Realm split in two, all because of that chaos."

The two women nodded. They were aware of this. This information was buried deep in history, but after entering the Enlightenment God Palace, a person gained access to the necessary channels to obtain it.

Fang Chen carefully chose his words, deliberately avoiding the taboo art to prevent being influenced or having his cognition sealed. After a brief silence, he continued, "At that time, there existed a Nine Realm Alliance, formed under the leadership of the major top-tier powers across the Nine Mortal Realms. The purpose of this alliance was simple: to overthrow the original structure of the Nine Mortal Realms.

"This likely had to do with Ancient Immortal Registries, and even the allocation of ninth transformation Immortals positions. That upheaval was instigated by them, and as a result, ninety-nine percent of the Nine Mortal Realms' accumulated foundation was lost. Using the present as an example, even in the Lesser Immortal Realm now, there's not a trace of immortal essence to be found. The Immortal Realm can only barely survive by relying on immortal crystals."

Xie Aman's eyes lit up. "Are you saying... the Rulai Monastery is connected to the Nine Realm Alliance?"

Fang Chen's words made it feel as though she had spotted a point of light within a fog. Following that thread might lead to a clear conclusion.

"The Rulai Monastery was indeed a member of the Nine Realm Alliance. And the Five Element Grand Sect of the Five Elements Realm back then was also a member," Fang Chen revealed.

"How can you be sure the information you obtained is true?" Chen Enxue asked.

Fang Chen shook his head. "I can't be sure. But why don't we assume it is?"

Xie Aman nodded. "What Ninth Brother says makes sense. Let's treat it as true. Rulai Monastery has appeared to follow the rules these past years, but behind the scenes, it keeps stirring up trouble, reeking of rebellion."

"Alright, let's assume it's true." Chen Enxue nodded. "Based on that assumption, we can deduce that both Rulai Monastery and the Lesser Immortal Realm are pulling these cheap tricks because they're members of the Nine Realm Alliance. Even now, they want to stir up another upheaval in the Nine Mortal Realms to reap benefits?"

Fang Chen didn't answer Chen Enxue directly. Instead, he turned to Xie Aman and asked, "What do you think, Sister Sister?"

What mattered was Xie Aman's stance.

If Xie Aman accepted this line of reasoning, he was very curious to see what countermeasures she would take.

"There is some possibility," Xie Aman mused. "But their nerve would be enormous. Whether back then or now, why would they think they're guaranteed to win? That part doesn't feel quite right to me."

Fang Chen couldn't directly say it was because they had the demon race backing them, so he spoke in a more roundabout way. "Originally, the Nine Mortal Realms weren't humanity's territory. It's said this place once belonged to the demon race."

Upon hearing that, the two women were astounded.

"The demon race?!"

They glanced at one another, seemingly thinking of something unbelievable.

"The demon race has been... extremely low-key these past years..." Chen Enxue murmured.

Xie Aman pondered carefully for a while, a faint glimmer flashing through her eyes. "The more low-key they are, the more abnormal it is. We've overlooked this point for many years."

Fang Chen continued, "Back then, within the Nine Realm Alliance, there was a force called the Demon Immortal Army. Every one of them was a Great Demon Immortal. Their leader was apparently known as the Night Emperor. Have either of you heard of this?"

"I haven't heard of it," Xie Aman replied. "When we return to the Enlightenment God Palace, I'll look through the ancient records, and also go to the Enlightenment Underworld Realm to ask a few old Ghost Immortals. They've lived long lives; they might still remember something."

After saying that, she looked at Fang Chen. "Ninth Brother, the clues you've provided have given me a very good line of thought. For now, don't worry about what happens at the Ji Family. Go handle the task I assigned you first, then return to regroup with us at the Ji family."

"I've calculated the route. Along the way, I'll have Third Sister stall a bit. You should be able to arrive at the Ji Family at roughly the same time as us."