A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Immortal Realm

"It's a bit of a long story, but I was blessed with some strokes of fortune. Senior Vial Spirit, is it true that one's three corpse souls can be tamed," Han Li asked.

"Why would I lie to you about something like this? It's possible, but it's not very easy to accomplish," the vial spirit replied in a succinct manner, seemingly not wanting to dwell on this subject.

Han Li had always wanted to find out more about corpse souls, and he certainly wasn't going to pass up this opportunity.

"Senior Vial Spirit, why is it that there's a disparity in power between Patriarch Liu Qi's three corpse souls? Liu Tianhao is at the pinnacle of the Great Encompassment Stage, whereas Liu Zizai and Liu Haoran are only at the mid-Great Encompassment Stage. Could it be that just like cultivators, corpse souls can advance their own powers through cultivation?"

"Didn't I just tell you that corpse souls are no different from living beings? Of course they can cultivate! As for why there's a disparity between the cultivation bases of Liu Qi's corpse souls, that's obviously because his wicked corpse soul was able to attain his physical body, thereby allowing it to progress in its cultivation much faster than the other two," the vial spirit explained in an impatient manner, as if all of this should've already been abundantly obvious.

"Is the body of the host really that important for corpse souls?" Han Li asked.

"Of course. The body of the host concerns the limits of the Great Dao. Without attaining the body of the host, a corpse soul will never be able to become a Dao Ancestor. On top of that, the body of the host contains all of the host's insights in terms of law cultivation, so once a corpse soul obtains the body, their law powers will fuse with it, instantly giving them a drastic enhancement in power.

“Why else do you think all corpse souls are so intent on taking over the body of their host?" the vial spirit explained.

"I see. What kind of relationship exists between a cultivator and their three corpse souls? If the corpse souls are constantly plotting to take over their body, why don't they just kill their corpse souls to permanently eliminate this threat?" Han Li asked.

"The corpse souls are manifestations of a cultivator's attachments, so they're impossible to completely eradicate. Even if the corpse souls are killed, those attachments will return to the cultivator, significantly impacting their mental state and cultivation, so they'll need to be severed again. With each severance, those attachments will only grow in power, making each successive severance more and more difficult.

“Hence, the three corpse souls can't be killed, nor is it a good idea to release them and let them do as they please, so the best way to treat them would be to seal them away," the vial spirit explained, and it seemed to be quite happy to share knowledge on this subject with Han Li.

"What would happen to a cultivator's corpse souls if the cultivator is already dead?" Han Li asked.

"If the host dies, then the corpse souls will have no origin, thereby making it possible for them to be killed, so sometimes, corpse souls will protect their host for their own survival," the vial spirit replied.

Meanwhile, Bai Ze had already arrived near the four Heavenly Fox beings, and Liu Tianhao extended a respectful salute toward him as he said, "Your Majesty, I am a member of the Heavenly Fox Tribe as well, so I should also have the right to inherit the bloodline of the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox, is that not correct?"

"You do indeed have this right, but how do you explain what happened to Liu Qi?" Bai Ze asked.

"I'm sure you're aware that all corpse souls have the innate urge to take over the body of the host, so I can only ask that you pardon me for acting on those urges, Your Majesty," Liu Tianhao replied.

"Nonsense! Patriarch Liu Qi was already a Dao Ancestor, so you would've been no match for him! Your Majesty, Liu Tianhao must've colluded with outsiders to bring about Patriarch Liu Qi's downfall, whether that be the Heavenly Court or the Gray Realm, so he must not be spared for his crimes!" Liu Qing objected vehemently.

"I did indeed collude with the Gray Realm at the time, but since then, I've already renounced them and decided to return to the primordial land. I have primordial blood flowing through my veins, and that's something that I've never forgotten. Now that I've attained Liu Qi's body, I'm only a step away from becoming a Dao Ancestor, so if I were to inherit the bloodline of the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox, my chances of becoming a Dao Ancestor would be far higher than Liu Le'er's," Liu Tianhao proclaimed.

A contemplative look appeared on Bai Ze's face upon hearing this, seemingly swayed by Liu Tianhao's words, and Liu Qing hurriedly interjected in an urgent manner, "Your Majesty, Liu Tianhao is not to be trusted! Patriarch Liu Qi only fell to his demise because he chose to trust Liu Tianhao in a fatal lapse in judgment! We cannot allow him to inherit the bloodline of the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox!"

"Both of you have made valid points. On top of that, this is an internal matter for your Heavenly Fox Tribe, so even as the True Spirit King, it wouldn't be right for me to interfere, so how about this? The bloodline power of the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox possesses a high degree of sentience, so why not let it choose who it chooses to be inherited by?" Bai Ze proposed.

Han Li's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this, while a hint of surprise flashed through Liu Qing's eyes at this proposal, following which he agreed after a brief moment of contemplation.

Liu Tianhao also nodded in agreement after some hesitation, then turned to Liu Zizai and Liu Haoran as he said, "You two can come as well. Quit pretending that you're so righteous and noble, I'm sure you also returned to the Heavenly Fox Tribe for the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox bloodline."

Liu Zizai made no effort to deny the notion, and Liu Qing gave an internal sneer upon seeing this, but didn't display any outward derision.

In contrast, Liu Haoran shook his head with a serious expression as he said, "I returned to the Heavenly Fox Tribe because I promised Master to protect the Heavenly Fox Tribe in his stead. I have no intention of fighting over the regal bloodline, so don't get me involved."

"You're still as righteous as ever, Fellow Daoist Haoran. How admirable," Liu Tianhao praised in a mocking fashion, while a sheepish look flashed through Liu Zizai's eyes, only to quickly be replaced by a look of determination.

Liu Qing took a grateful glance at Liu Haoran, then beckoned to Liu Le'er and the others.

Liu Le'er had been observing the unfolding scene this entire time, and she turned to Han Li with a nervous expression, clearly intimidated by the prospect of having to compete over the regal bloodline with someone as powerful as Liu Tianhao.

Han Li smiled as he gave her a reassuring pat on the head and said, "Don't worry, Chief Liu Qing looks very assured, so I'm sure he's very confident that this method of selection will yield a favorable outcome. Just do your best, and don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Liu Le'er was very reassured to hear this, and she flew over to Liu Qing with Elder Mu and the others.

Liu Qing latched onto Liu Le'er's hand, giving it a gentle pat as he said, "Just do your best, Le'er. You are the true heir of our Heavenly Fox Tribe, and I'm sure the bloodline of our esteemed ancestor will choose you."

At the same time, a drop of gray blood essence flew out of his storage ring before seeping into the palm of her head in secret.

Liu Le'er was rather taken aback by this, but she was able to catch herself before any surprise could appear on her face.

"Rest assured, Chief Liu, I won't disappoint you," she said as she extended a graceful curtsey.

All of a sudden, Liu Tianhao turned to take a glance at Liu Qing and Liu Le'er with a perplexed look in his eyes.

"Go on," Liu Qing said with a smile and a nod of encouragement, and Liu Le'er drifted up into the air before landing in front of the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox projection.

Before long, she was joined by Liu Tianhao and Liu Zizai.

"Let's begin," Bai Ze declared, and gray light began to glow from all three of their bodies.

Due to the disparities in cultivation base, the brightness of light radiating from their bodies varied drastically.

Liu Tianhao was glowing so bright that he was almost impossible to look at, while Liu Zizai was glowing a little dimmer, but both of them were far outshining Liu Le'er.

Their bloodline powers were also on full display, with a Heavenly Fox projection appearing behind each of them.

Both of Liu Tianhao and Liu Zizai's Heavenly Fox projections had nine tails, while Liu Le'er's only had six.

The three Heavenly Fox projections each extended a paw toward the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox bloodline to release bursts of receiving force.

Even though the gray light emanating from Liu Le'er's body was being outshone by the other two, the six-tailed fox projection behind her was extremely clear, even more so than the nine tailed fox projections behind Liu Tianhao and Liu Zizai.

Liu Zizai's expression darkened slightly upon seeing this, and he channeled his Heavenly Fox bloodline with all his might, causing the gray light radiating from his body to glow even brighter, but his nine tailed fox projection displayed no changes.

Liu Tianhao's expression also darkened slightly as he took a glance in Liu Le'er's direction.

Right at this moment, the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox projection rippled slightly, then turned to the three candidate heirs as if it were a living being.

It swept its gaze briefly over Liu Zizai, then immediately turned its attention solely to Liu Le'er and Liu Tianhao, much to Liu Zizai's despair.

The Nine Tailed Immortal Fox projection's gaze roamed back and forth between Liu Le'er and Liu Tianhao, seemingly unable to make a choice between them.

Right at this moment, Liu Tianhao made a strange hand seal while letting loose a melodious cry, and the Heavenly Fox projection instantly became a little clearer and brighter.

The Nine Tailed Immortal Fox projection instantly turned its gaze to him, seemingly having made its choice, but before it was able to do anything, a radiant, water-droplet-shaped gray mark suddenly appeared on Liu Le'er's glabella.

The gray patterns all over her body instantly lit up, and they also began moving as if they had sprung to life.

Immediately thereafter, the Heavenly Fox projection behind her became almost twice as bright as before, comprehensively outshining Liu Tianhao's nine tailed fox projection.

A hint of elation flashed through the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox projection's eyes, and it immediately abandoned Liu Tianhao for Liu Le'er, opening its mouth to release a pillar of gray light that began fusing into Liu Le'er's body, while the Nine Tailed Immortal Fox projection began to rapidly fade.

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