“So that’s the case…”

Ji Xian muttered to himself as he was deep in thought. Since his battle with the two Graha brothers near Solitude City, he had become aware of the connections between the Nether race and the Graha race due to the similarities in their appearances. He knew they were linked so he wasn’t surprised to learn that the Nether was just a branch of the Graha.

And while Li Yifan hadn’t said much, she had actually provided him with a lot of information. 

Although I don’t know too much about them, the Nether race should be a rather strong force in the Upper World, yet, they’re only a branch. What does this say about the Graha race, how strong are they?

Are they on the same level as the Celestial race?

Ji Xian had witnessed many varieties of forces descending from the Upper World to Mortal Haven. While he had never provided his home with any assistance, he would still occasionally watch the battle from a distance away.

Throughout all the years that he’s acted as a spectator, only the Celestial race caught his attention. Now, there’s also the Graha race. These two races were profound in not only their abilities but also their bloodline. 

The Graha specializes in the mysterious aspect of the soul while the Celestials pursue the physical. If Ji Xian had to guess, these two races must have a terrifying background because from what he had seen, their cultivation method, Divine Arts, and bloodline abilities are pushing the limits of reality. 

As he came to this conclusion, he bitterly smiled.

Well, shit. I offended both races.

Ji Xian had killed fifty Chosen of the Celestial race when they invaded Mortal Haven, and while he was in Mortal Desolate, even though he hadn’t done much, he still gave the two Graha brothers a beating and briefly experimented on them. Worse yet, he even let them leave.

If it was any other time, he wouldn’t have done this, but since his actions can lead to consequences that can involve the entire Mortal Desolate World, he let the brothers live. Inwardly, he does want to see a war break out with the Graha and the people of Mortal Desolate as he would be able to see and learn many things, but that was only a thought, he hadn’t degenerated that far yet, otherwise, he wouldn’t have stepped in and helped Mortal Haven when the Celestials descended.

Ji Xian had also been sealing the Chaos Tunnels that the Graha left behind. At this point, they should already know that it was he who did it. 

He had not only messed with their people but he has interfered with their plans of coming back.

“How unfortunate…”

Ji Xian let out a long sigh but he wasn’t too concerned. His identity remains a secret and as long as he has Heavenly Merit, it was impossible to divine his existence. Even if they discovered him one day, so what? He’ll put up the best fight he can muster and let fate run its course. He has already put the matter of life and death behind him long ago.

No one can live forever, and he doesn’t seek immortality. It has always been about the journey, as long as he lived without regrets, that was enough. Besides, he had already technically died twice. Once in his past life and once when he was younger in this life. Death was no longer frightening.

The Graha race’s Progenitor… what kind of person is he, I wonder?”

Ji Xian gave it a thought before shaking his head. He had no reason to think about such a being so beyond his reach.

He let out a relaxed smile before looking at Li Yifan, “It’s surprising that you would call the Nether race imperfect when they share so many resemblances to your kind. Is that because they don’t have the Spectral Physique?”

The Spectral Physique was shown by Yahui and Yazhu. It gave them translucent bodies that were immune to physical attacks. The only way to damage them is to infuse every attack with Essence. But while this hurts them. It’s still almost impossible to sever their bodies when they’re in that form. Ji Xian knew this because he had tried… many, many times.

Li Yifan narrowed her eyes. She wasn’t surprised to learn that Ji Xian was aware of the Spectral Physique. Almost every sect in Mortal Desolate has information on the Graha race in their library so this information was plenty available.

She nodded, “Yes. The fact that those worthless Nethers didn’t inherit the Spectral Physique makes them imperfect in our eyes. This also makes them not fit to carry the line of our Progenitor.”

There was a strong disdain in her voice. It wasn’t toward Ji Xian, but rather, the entire Nether race.

“So they’re outcasts?” Ji Xian softly chuckled. Just from Li Yifan’s attitude, it was obvious the Graha and the Nether aren’t on good terms.

“Hmph! The blood of our Progenitor still flows in their veins. We are not that heartless, besides, they have their uses.”

“Sounds like a master and servant relationship,” Ji Xian casually replied.

“…”

Li Yifan looked away, not saying anything else.

“There’s still one more thing I’m curious about,” Ji Xian tapped his chin with his finger.

“The Nether race has white hair, no? But I’ve seen one with green hair,”

Ji Xian was naturally talking about Di Shi, the one titled Absolute. He consumed the Heaven Merit Stone to increase his cultivation to deal with Xia Lihua. 

Li Yifan, however, thought he was talking about someone else.

She unhappily snorted while feeling a little suspicious.

This Ji Xian must’ve met that person. This explains a lot. No wonder he can use the Nether Water. Did the two of them fight? 

Wait a minute… that person can already be considered a Graha. It should be impossible to differentiate him and us. How does Ji Xian know that’s a Nether? He also knows that they have white hair. Did that idiot say something? Something doesn’t make sense…

While Li Yifan was confused, she still indifferently answered, “The Nether race didn’t inherit the Spectral Physique but on a rare once in a generation occasion, there would be one born with a much purer bloodline than the rest. Although it’s not guaranteed, there’s a chance for them to gain the Spectral Physique and become a Graha.”

“I see…” Ji Xian finally understood, “A Nether with green hair is an indicator that they have the potential to become one of you.”

“Hmph! A Nether is still a Nether in the end,” Li Yifan said coldly.

Ji Xian was amused to hear this. Seems like the relationship between the main family and the branch family was worst than he thought.

He looked down at his hand. The ball of black liquid slightly hovered above it. 

Compared to the Nether Water created by Di Shi, the one floating above his palm didn’t look any different. But with Ji Xian’s discerning eyes, he could tell that this ball of water was even darker than the one made by Di Shi. It was very slight, however, it was enough for Ji Xian to see a small amount of light being swallowed by it.  

A tinge of red could also be seen in the water. The color moved in tandem with the darkness making it difficult to notice. Ji Xian had never seen anything like this before in the Nether Water created by the other Nethers. It was exclusive to just the one in his hand.

After observing it for a while, he let out a smirk.

“An imperfect lifeform… what a joke!”

Li Yifan was also looking at the Nether Water. She immediately frowned upon hearing his words.

“What are you trying to say?”

Ji Xian didn’t reply, instead, he casually threw the black ball of liquid at her.

Li Yifan’s eyes widened in shock. If it was any other Nether Water touching her, she wouldn’t even bat an eye but the one heading toward her was different. 

Don’t touch it! Don’t let it touch you! DON’T TOUCH IT!

A voice screamed in her head.

She quickly waved her hand and a wall of ice materialized out of nowhere. But she didn’t feel like that was enough, she took a step back, leaving behind an afterimage before appearing once more on the other side of the second floor.

“You! What’re you doing!” Li Yifan exclaimed,

The ball of water flew in an arc, and just as it was about to hit the ice wall, it suddenly stopped. Its movement surprisingly reversed and it flew back into Ji Xian’s hand.

He chuckled as he inspected the Nether Water, “You seem to look down on the Nether race because they don’t have the Spectral Physique, and at the same time, you also view them as inferior because their abilities don’t affect your kind. However, look at what just happened. I can clearly see your fear.”

“Why do you think that is?”

“…”

Li Yifan’s expression became ugly.

Ji Xian stared at her for a moment before shaking his head.

“You should already have the answer in your heart. The person who conjured this Nether Water has somehow found a way to improve the Eighteen Cyclic Hell that you mentioned earlier. He had not only strengthened the effects of the Nether Water, but its quality also slightly changed. You now fear it on both the physical and spiritual level.”

Ji Xian momentarily paused as a hint of amusement flickered in his eyes.

“The Grahas are not afraid of the Nethers but what if one day the Nethers no longer become afraid of you? This new Nether Water looks seemingly made to perfectly counter your kind.”

As Ji Xian spoke, he put away the black liquid and turned around to return to the first floor. He left behind a few more words.

“If this new cultivation method gets passed around, would the roles of master and servant be reversed soon, I wonder?”

Li Yifan stared at Ji Xian’s fading back. His words caused her heart to drop.

She clenched her fists, “Di Wentian, who else could’ve done this but you, are you having rebellious thoughts after all we’ve done for you? I knew there was something off about you. Do you honestly believe the Graha would be afraid just because of this? Our foundation goes far deep than you think.”

“We are the Progenitor’s favorite, no matter what you do, you cannot replace us. Hmph!”

Li Yifan took a minute to calm down but there was still a frown on her face.

“What should I do about this? Should I seek him out?”

She shook her head, “Unfortunately, that’ll be difficult with how big Mortal Desolate is, not to mention, my cultivation is also restricted right now since we’re in the Lower World. Even if I find him, there’s no way for me to restrain him.”

“Even informing the others would be hard. Other than the one who’s always beside Yue Li, I haven’t met another Graha in centuries. They’ve all hidden too deep.”

Eventually, she sighed.

“Looks like I have to try to find that damn Legacy again. Once I find it, the Graha on the other side would have ways to sense it and cross over again using the Chaos Tunnels. Then, I should be able to tell them about Di Wentian’s rebellious thoughts.”

“Looks like purposely staying behind wasn’t a bad idea.”

After confirming what she needed to do, Li Yifan felt bitter, “The Legacy… this is the cause of Father’s obsession. I thought I can just give up on it and hide for a while before returning to the Upper World but… how unfortunate.”

She looked around the second floor of the Sacred Yin Hall. Other than her, there was no one else.

A complex emotion welled up in her heart, “Looks like I’ll have to leave the sect soon…”

As she was feeling emotional, she felt like she has forgotten something. She thought about it for a moment before shaking her head.

…

Ji Xian calmly returned to the first floor. The whole matter with the Graha and the Nether was an internal conflict so he didn’t put too much thought into it. However, he was a little concerned for the Mortal Haven World. 

“Would the Graha race descend as well?” He quietly muttered.

Although he left his Hell soul behind in case of emergencies, its prowess isn’t up to par with him yet, so it may not be enough if the Graha does descend, and that’s especially so if their strength is similar to the Celestial race. He can only hope the worst case scenario won’t happen until he returns.

When Ji Xian moved to the first floor, all the disciples present stared at him while giving him weird looks. 

He raised an eyebrow upon seeing this but didn’t dwell on it. He went to go look for Xia Lihua. All the while, with each step he take, two square blocks bounced from within his robe.

“What’s that thing protruding out of his clothes?” Someone suddenly whispered.

“That’s… those are books!”

“What the hell? Is he stealing our books in broad daylight? Someone call the Elders!”

“Where’s the Second Yin Pavilion Master?”

“Stop him!”