Chen Fan's words made the Lord of Light enraged and yet somewhat helpless, as what he said was the truth. After a brief ponder, the Lord of Light said, "The Thunder Lord was a renowned figure across the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands. It's only natural that I am inferior to him." He admitted his inferiority to the Thunder Lord. Then, he changed the topic, "But even so, did he not ultimately die by my hand?"
"Oh?" Chen Fan's heart stirred. "You killed the Thunder Lord? How did you do it?"
"City Lord Chen..." a reprimanding voice filled with strong dissatisfaction interrupted him. "Our cooperation does not include these matters. Let us discuss the important business."
Chen Fan was not angry. He smiled and said, "Since you don't want to talk about it, then so be it. Alright... let's discuss the important business."
The Lord of Light breathed a sigh of relief. To prevent Chen Fan from bringing up irrelevant topics again, he directly stated, "I will tell you the location of that world, and you will accompany me to retrieve the Book of Order. Afterward, we shall go our separate ways."
"Agreed," Chen Fan nodded. "But you must first prove that the world is real, or let me see it." Honestly, he didn't fully trust the other party. Their personalities and methods were different.
"Very well." The Lord of Light, clearly prepared, made the Great Dao ripple, and an image appeared.
Hum.
The image was obviously recorded. While it could be fabricated, at their level, truth and falsehood were discernible at a glance. The image showed a vast mountain range, peaks connected and rising from the chaos. In the central depression of the mountain range, a golden great array stood quietly. The array in the recording was dormant, silently suspended. Within it, a complete world was trapped.
"That is..." Chen Fan's pupils contracted. He recognized at once that this world shared the same origin as the Heavenly Crown. This world was the prototype of the Heavenly Crown. Many objects floated around the world's barrier; those were the forces of flight restriction.
After a long gaze, Chen Fan withdrew his sight and asked, "Where is the world located?"
...
This time, he received no answer. The Lord of Light looked at him calmly.
"Alright." Chen Fan understood it was time for his side to fulfill their part. The Lord of Light had already shown sincerity in their cooperation by providing him with the image of the world. All cooperation was a two-way street.
"What do I need to do?" Chen Fan asked.
"You don't need to do anything," the Lord of Light replied. "In three days, I will come to find you, and then we will break the seal together."
"Mm." This was not a difficult task, but he was puzzled. "Why three days from now?" Couldn't they do it now?
The Lord of Light, sensing his confusion, explained, "I need a helper."
Upon hearing this, Chen Fan's expression immediately turned serious. A helper? One Lord of Light was already troublesome enough; adding another...
"Don't worry," the Lord of Light reassured him. "Those two are not my people. All three of us know the location of the Book of Order. If I were to act alone, it would definitely attract their attention. Therefore... cooperation is necessary." He added, "Also, if the Book of Order appears, it will draw the attention of many, and a major battle will be inevitable."
Chen Fan understood and nodded. "Are they also ninth-tier?"
"Mm." The Lord of Light did not conceal this fact. After thinking for a moment, he offered further explanation, "Originally, there were many who discovered it, but only three remained in the end."
"Heh heh." Chen Fan chuckled. "You got the news from the Thunder Lord, didn't you?"
"Hm?" The Lord of Light raised an eyebrow, looking at Chen Fan with surprise, curious how he deduced this.
"No need to mind," Chen Fan smiled. "It's easy to guess. So... you also killed the Thunder Lord together." He continued, "Let me think, when you jointly killed the Thunder Lord, there must have been more than just the three of you. In the end... only the three of you survived." He chuckled, "The Thunder Lord was truly strong, managing to take one down with him..."
The Lord of Light: ... This fellow... his expression turned grim, even somewhat sinister. If not for needing the Yin and Yang Dao and the Dao of Life and Death to obtain the Book of Order, he would never have endured Chen Fan's constant provocations here. It was incredibly irritating.
"Hmph." The Lord of Light offered no explanation. His body slowly transformed into a ball of light, and his voice reached Chen Fan's ears, "We will meet here in three days."
"Alright." Chen Fan did not refuse. The appearance of the Heavenly Crown World made it impossible for him to refuse.
As the Lord of Light departed, Elder Demon Chu and the other two converged.
"City Lord, how did it go?" They were unaware of the details of their cooperation but could infer some things. The two parties had previous enmity, yet now they could converse. It was clear they had reached some sort of agreement.
"Wusheng." Chen Fan spoke directly to Wusheng without answering them, "Do you know anyone in the Five Elements Realm?" The Ninth Earth was divided into two realms: Thousand Threads and Five Elements, with two ninth-tier beings each presiding over one.
"No," Wusheng replied with absolute certainty.
Chen Fan: ... Did you have to answer so definitively? This fellow had lost his drive since leaving the Realm of Life and Death. Understandable... he had a family now.
"Heh heh." Elder Demon Chu sneered, "As expected, women only slow down my draw of the sword."
Wusheng: ... Elder Demon Chu had a misunderstanding of women.
Chen Fan, however, said nothing and looked at Luo Ran beside him. As a native of the Thousand Threads Realm, surely she knew someone?
Meeting Chen Fan's gaze, Luo Ran knew it was her time to shine. So, she spoke directly, "No, but there is one person who definitely does."
"Who?"
"Dizang."
Right... Chen Fan slapped his forehead. How could he forget this person? To be precise, Dizang owed him a favor. When the King of Life was killed, Dizang took control of the Realm of Life, and Chen Fan ultimately spared the realm. Regardless, Dizang owed him this favor.
Elder Demon Chu nodded in agreement beside him, "If we seek Dizang's help, he should not refuse." As one of the only two powerful figures of the demonic path in this world, Elder Demon Chu was the senior, and Dizang, as a rising star, would surely agree.
"Let's go directly."
"Conceal our presence." Chen Fan commanded. "Let's go..."
The figures of the four rapidly disappeared. Silently, the four spent nearly an hour before reappearing outside the Realm of Life.
"Knock," Chen Fan instructed. This time, Luo Ran stepped forward. As a native of the Realm of Life, she had her own way of signaling entry.
Hum.
Luo Ran placed her hand on the realm gate. A faint aura flickered, and the realm gate quickly faded, revealing a figure. The realm gate did not open but became translucent, allowing connection between the inside and outside.