Mutual Micromanagement

Forging a "Toll Coin" from the essence of the Five Elements was an arduous task for Great Luo beings whose magic power was sealed, but for Chen Yi, who wasn't bound by such restrictions, it was child's play!

After all, without magic power, controlling the tempering process precisely became nearly impossible. The volatile essence of the Five Elements, with its cycles of mutual generation and destruction, coupled with the oppressive Five Elements field in this place, meant the slightest misstep would cause the furnace to explode!

If time weren’t a constraint, the task would be much simpler—Great Luo beings possessed an exquisite mastery over their power. But with a strict time limit of one incense stick’s worth, they’d inevitably blow up the furnace a few times before succeeding.

In just a hundred and fifty seconds, Chen Yi effortlessly crafted a Five Elements Life Coin. After verification by the termination stele, he secured his passage to the next stage.

Pop~

Without a moment’s hesitation, Chen Yi turned and walked away, stepping through the thin, shimmering barrier until his figure vanished completely.

Black Earth, who had been eagerly waiting, was left dumbfounded.

"Hey, wait—what about me? Where’s my Toll Coin?"

"Chen Yi! Chen Yi!!!"

"Damn it! Damn it all!"

"When you needed me to decipher the clearance conditions, you were all smiles. Now that you don’t, you just leave without a second thought?!"

"How can you be so selfish?! Ugh!!!"

Black Earth raged, condemning such shameless behavior!

Of course, while it seemed Chen Yi had already left, he was, in fact, still present. Forty-nine Chaos-Colored Pearls lay hidden in the void, observing Black Earth’s every move.

So what if he was being cursed at?

He didn’t care in the slightest.

As everyone knew, he was a man of caution—calculating before acting, deliberating before proceeding.

Since he had decided to annihilate the entire Immortal Realm faction in the third stage, he had to ensure absolute preparedness for victory.

First, he needed to confirm whether the Spirit-Sealing Seal remained effective in the third stage.

If not, things would get complicated. With just one Five-Star avatar, suppressing six Great Luo beings, eighty Taiyi cultivators, and nearly a thousand Golden Immortals would be impossible.

Of course, striking in the second stage, the Five Elements Mountain, was also an option. But the enemy would be on guard, and there was still the lurking threat of Wuji, hiding within an unknown host. A flawless annihilation would come at a high cost, and the post-mission health inspections and soul integrity tests would be tricky to handle.

The optimal strategy was to ambush them one by one at the entrance to the third stage.

After all, entering the third stage required forging a Five Elements Life Coin. The speed of crafting varied—Great Luo beings would naturally be faster than Taiyi cultivators, and Taiyi cultivators faster than Golden Immortals.

Of course, it wasn’t a matter of "first come, first served."

Thanks to the pressure he had applied in the second stage—vanishing Chaos-Colored Pearls, disappearing members of the Taichu Heart-Soul Clan—they had been thoroughly warned. The smart move for them would be to have the stronger members cover the retreat while letting the weaker ones advance first.

Thus, once he confirmed that the Spirit-Sealing Seal remained effective in the third stage, the Immortal Realm faction would be in for a treat.

He would camp at the entrance, picking them off one by one!

Pop~

Handing over his Toll Coin, Chen Yi smoothly passed through the thin membrane of light. In an instant, space shifted, and he found himself amidst a raging torrent of chaotic energy.

Countless meteorites formed from Chaos Star Cores hurtled through the void at devastating speeds, each impact carrying the force to shatter stars!

At the same time, the space was filled with crushing gravity and violent spatial distortions. Without the use of magic power, survival depended solely on the resilience of one’s physical body.

At the edge of the impact zone stood a directive stele, once again bearing an encrypted message left by "Little Fang."

The Great Dao’s true script read: Chaos Crucible—Galactic Tempering.

The encrypted proclamation stated: This area has been claimed by our faction and is under exclusive development rights—Fang Fan, Ninth-Rank Wealth Attendant of the Purple Star Immortal Court’s Treasury Division.

"Little Fang, excellent work! You’ve cleared the third stage too. Keep it up—I’ll be there soon to back you up!"

Chen Yi’s eyes gleamed with approval as he pulled out thirty-one Chaos-Colored Pearls and began setting up an array.

By now, he had confirmed it—the Spirit-Sealing Seal was still active in the third stage!

Thus, he would lay an ambush in the safe zone before the directive stele, catching the Immortal Realm faction off guard when they were most relaxed.

Meanwhile, the forty-nine Chaos-Colored Pearls still in the second stage would launch feints, tying down their main forces and forcing the weaker members to advance first—straight into his trap.

"After multiple simulations, this plan has a 100% success rate... assuming we exclude Wuji."

"So, I’ll need to find out which unlucky soul Wuji is possessing, then drag him out for a one-on-one duel. That way, he’ll be too busy to interfere while I refine these Immortal Realm elites."

"So, Wuji... just who are you hiding inside?"

Immortal Realm, Wuji’s Treasure Hall.

Wuji stood before the Heaven-Gazing Mirror, calmly observing the events unfolding in the Five Elements Mountain Range through the shared senses of the Yin-Yang Daoist, a Great Luo elder of the Ancient Green Lotus Immortal Clan.

"Tsk tsk tsk... The companion resources of this treasure are truly abundant. Just the Five Elements Mountain alone rivals a fourth-grade ancient mine—and one that’s exceptionally easy to exploit at that. It’s hard to imagine how much richer the deeper layers of this secret realm must be..."

"Ah, what a pity. That unpredictable variable is inside, and he even seems to bend the rules of the secret realm to some extent. Snatching anything from him would be like taking food from a tiger’s mouth..."

"Ah well. The Heavenly Court may be poor, but we’re not so desperate as to fight a dog for scraps!"

"Consider it feeding a pig. Once it reaches slaughter weight, we’ll butcher it then."

"The Purple Star Immortal Court? Pfft... A bunch of exiled stragglers daring to establish an ‘Immortal Court’? Do they even have the karma to shoulder such a title?!"

Wuji’s gaze deepened. After a moment of silence, he suddenly called out:

"Zhang Qian! Zhang Aotian! Step forth!"

In an instant, two figures materialized on the lowest-ranked lotus thrones within Wuji’s Treasure Hall.

"Zhang Qian greets Your Majesty!"

"Zhang Aotian greets Your Majesty!"

Their faces were nearly identical—square-jawed, honest, radiating an air of simple reliability. To an outsider, telling them apart would be nearly impossible.

But their builds and auras were starkly different.

Zhang Qian was burly, his frame almost comically oversized. Even as a projected will-form, he loomed like a small mountain, his bulky immortal robes failing to hide his explosive musculature.

Zhang Aotian, meanwhile, was gaunt as a bamboo stalk, looking as if a stiff breeze could snap him in half.

It was hard to believe such physically contrasting individuals were grandfather and grandson.

Wuji regarded them coolly. "If I recall correctly, both of you hail from the Purple Star Continent, yes?"

Zhang Qian and Zhang Aotian stiffened, then immediately prostrated themselves.

"Your Majesty speaks true! We are indeed from the Purple Star Continent, but we long ago severed ties with the conservative faction led by the Eternal Life Profound Vault Immortal King, Cui Changsheng! Our loyalty lies solely with Your Majesty—we harbor no rebellious intentions!"

The best deep-cover agents were those who could even deceive themselves.

Not long ago, the Hall Guard General Liu Xiaoyao and the Seal-Keeper Immortal Official had conducted an internal purge, exposing comrades Chu Xingyun and Ling Que.

Both of them were also under scrutiny, but with spotless backgrounds and not a single flaw to be found, they even received the Seal-holding Immortal Official’s absolute verdict of purity!

Now, suddenly summoned, they stood tall and unshaken, utterly fearless!

Wuji gave a slight nod. "Indeed, the loyalty of my two ministers has withstood the test. I trust you completely!"

"But now, the fugitive faction of Cui Changsheng has established a rogue immortal court in the lower realm. What should my two ministers do about this?"

Zhang Aotian answered without hesitation, "Such audacity! How dare these traditionalist conservatives commit such treason? This general requests to descend and annihilate this false immortal court!"

Zhang Qian chimed in, "Same here!"

Wuji clasped his hands behind his back and said calmly, "Do not overstep. Regardless, the Purple Star Continent has contributed greatly to the immortal realm’s development. Both of you hail from there—you should know what must be destroyed and what must be spared."

"Your servant understands!"

"Good. Proceed."

"By Your Majesty’s decree!"

The two withdrew after receiving their orders.

Unbeknownst to them, Wuji had quietly attached a wisp of his will to them.

Not that he distrusted them—but because the unpredictable variable might very well originate from the Purple Star Continent!

And so, two more figures appeared on the Heaven-Gazing Mirror, and Wuji resumed his meticulous manipulations.

......

OS: Mwah, have a lovely day~