"A huge amount of Nine Yang Holy Water?"
Prince Yi hesitated at Fang Han's request. "How much are we talking about? One or two gourds, sure—I use it for my own cultivation. But you look like you want far more. Don't tell me you need… an entire river. Unless you find a Pure Yang River drifting through the outer starfields—which only exists in legends from The Many Worlds—no sect could possibly have that much. Even Taiyi Sect's Pure Yang Dragon Pool, said to nurture true dragons, only has a limited supply."
In the boundless starry seas, ancient chronicles spoke of rivers of pure yang drifting between worlds. But only those who fully mastered spatial and temporal laws—wielding supreme treasures—could traverse cosmic distances freely and search for such wonders.
Even a Longevity Realm expert found it difficult.
As for Taiyi Sect's Pure Yang Dragon Pool, ordinary disciples weren't allowed anywhere near it. It was as inaccessible as the hidden retirement grounds of the Feather Gate's ancient elders.
"How much can you get?" Fang Han asked. "Give me everything you can. I have a treasure—surely you've heard of it—the Yellow Springs Diagram. It was left behind by a demonic emperor. To restore its power, I need Nine Yang Holy Water. If I can revive it, I can unify the Yellow Springs Demon Sect. With that kind of backing supporting you… what do you think your chances would be?"
He smiled slightly.
"In that case," Prince Yi said, "stay in my study for the next three days. We'll discuss the details once I've arranged everything."
He turned to leave.
"Hold on."
Fang Han flipped his palm, tossing out six treasure pouches.
"Sell what's inside these. I need capital for the Nirvana Pill auction, and these items are too conspicuous. If I sell them myself, I'll draw too much attention. They need to move through your hands."
"So many treasures!" Prince Yi opened one pouch and nearly gasped aloud.
Weapons, talismans, rare pills—an entire miniature armory.
His heartbeat accelerated. Even he felt tempted.
These six pouches were everything taken from the six Godlords Fang Han had slain.
He needed funds—massive funds—to secure the Nirvana Pill. And passing these Godrace artifacts through Prince Yi's channels meant that if the gods ever tracked the goods, they would go after the prince, not him.
Fang Han selling this quantity alone would cause a major uproar—exactly the kind that might reach Taiyi Sect's ears.
"Of course I'm selling them. How else would I afford the Nirvana Pill? Unless the prince intends to sponsor me himself?"
Fang Han's smile was faintly mocking.
"I—I've been preparing a birthday tribute for the Exquisite Immortal Sovereign. My expenses are enormous." Prince Yi coughed. "But if you want these sold, I can do it. And yes, only I can fetch top price. If you go to Nine Cauldrons Pavilion, the Six Paths Alliance, or Heavenly Dao Exchange on your own, they'll definitely skim off a chunk."
"Then I'll leave it to you," Fang Han said calmly.
Prince Yi exited the room.
"Fang Han, you just let him walk away? What if he—"
Yan finally spoke.
"Of course I have measures in place." Fang Han tapped his fingers. "I planted Five Emperor Essence in his body. Everything he does, I can sense. Did you think I'd trust him so easily? He knows exactly who I am—and that I killed the Ghost Emperor, a Taiyi Sect Golden Core, and still roam free. Would he dare cross me? A prince of the empire is inferior to a Golden Core expert. Offending me would bring him nothing but disaster."
He waved his hand, and a five-colored halo appeared.
Inside it, Prince Yi's silhouette flickered—utterly unaware he had been marked.
Fang Han then settled into cultivation.
Between meditation sessions, he browsed the prince's collection of books—and discovered treasures not found anywhere in The Many Worlds:
Secrets of the Heavenly Palace,
The Henhuang Compendium of Rare Treasures,
Atlas of Ancient Immortal Mansions,
Worlds of the Abyssal Ruins,
The Ten Thousand Worlds Map of Guixu…
Maps of the underworld demon tribes, records of the three Demon Emperors, the Asura warlords, lost relics hidden across the Xuanhuang World—countless secrets.
A day and a night passed.
Prince Yi returned, carrying three crystalline talisman cards—each inscribed with the glowing symbol for "one hundred million."
"Three hundred million elixirs in total," he sighed. "You're terrifyingly wealthy. I spent eighty million to buy a three-thousand-six-hundred-sword Yin-Sand Formation—nearly three or four years of savings. You casually toss out treasures worth hundreds of millions."
"You're not poor either," Fang Han said.
"Three or four years to gather eighty million? Even many Golden Core elders of Feather Gate can't match that."
Prince Yi was, after all, a royal prince.
"And here," Prince Yi said, pulling out a palm-sized gourd, "is all the Nine Yang Holy Water I could gather."
Though tiny, the gourd radiated an immense spatial presence—thousands of times stronger than a normal treasure pouch.
"There are 1.3 million catties inside. Return the gourd later—it's a Heaven-Pocket Gourd forged from fifty thousand void crystals. It has no offensive abilities, but its internal space is enormous."
He emphasized the point.
He shouldn't have.
"Oh? In that case," Fang Han said smoothly, "give me the gourd as well. I'll owe you a favor. I've been cultivating a supreme demonic art—Great Severing. It requires immense amounts of void crystals to speed the process. You know its reputation."
Before the prince could respond, Fang Han had already taken the gourd.
Prince Yi's face twitched—pain, grief, resignation.
Finally he forced a smile.
"Since it will help you master the Great Severing Art… I won't be stingy. Use it well. And if you can one day cut down some vermin for me, then this gourd will have died a meaningful death. Rest and cultivate. I'll notify you when the auction begins."
He left quickly—almost fleeing—unable to watch his beloved treasure's imminent demise.
The moment he vanished, Fang Han punched forward.
The gourd was flung into the Yellow Springs Diagram—and crushed.
A deafening roar shook the pocket world.
Space shattered.
A rain of Nine Yang Holy Water poured down like liquid sunlight.
"Haha!" Yan whooped, jaws stretching wide as he swallowed the torrent whole.
1.3 million catties disappeared into his body.
He swelled again, his aura surging.
Meanwhile, Fang Han calmly summoned his own powers.
Symbols glowed above his head, descending into the Yellow Springs Diagram as the Great Severing Art spun into motion.
All the shattered space-energy converged into thin black lines etched onto his life-seal rune.
Originally faint and barely visible, they now darkened—twisting, coiling, growing sharper—until they merged into a single bizarre sigil.
No human script resembled it; it was an ancient symbol of pure cutting intent.
"Good. Not perfected yet—but I've finally formed my own Severing Rune. My life-seal has grown far stronger."
Then he glanced at Yan.
His companion had contorted into a strange shape, chanting a desolate, primordial spell—a hymn from the dawn of chaos.
The Yellow Springs Diagram trembled like a world splitting apart.
Mist peeled away.
The Yellow Springs River deepened.
And then—across that endless, corpse-filled current—
a bridge appeared.
A bridge that should not exist.
Broken stones.
Ancient blood.
Battle scars from forgotten gods and devils.
Every race—immortal, demon, human, ghost, dragon, phoenix—seemed to echo the same whisper:
"Why? Why? What cannot be changed…"
It was a bridge of inevitability.
A bridge of fate's cruel limits.
Its aura surpassed even the Gate of Avidya.
The Bridge of "What Cannot Be Changed."
"Fang Han—quick! Give me the Sun-Moon Five-Star Bangle! If I devour it, I can fully summon the bridge! I'm still too weak—1.3 million catties of Nine Yang Holy Water isn't enough!"
Yan roared.
The bridge flickered—fading again.
"No." Fang Han slapped him on the head.
"You're always trying to eat the bangle. Once the auction begins, I'll buy you a few Pure Yang treasures instead."
The bridge dissolved into mist.
The Yellow Springs Diagram quieted, returning to its previous state.
Its true power had not yet awakened.
But it was close.
Very close.