Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
In the Nine-Heaven Realm where the immortal palace was, pavilions were densely packed like forests, and great halls were everywhere. The place was extensively extravagant.
Among them was one massive hall surrounded by mountains. As it was shrouded by mountain shadows, the hall looked somewhat eerie, especially with its black-colored design and decor.
The plaque hanging on this hall read ‘Criminal Division’.
The Immortal Criminal Division, a place where its name easily frightened every immortal. Those who were brought here only had tragic fates awaiting them.
Aside from the trial court, this place also housed the immortal prison, situated right below the great hall. Secured with an eighty-one layer Hell’s Array, no matter how powerful an immortal was, they couldn’t escape this prison.
Unless they had the key.
Inside this prison, the array that supposedly lit up the place had now lost its effect due to the lack of spirit stone replenishment. Without light for a thousand years, the prison was now completely dark with only a few arrays still emitting faint lights.
Behind a large metal door, an aged man in prison clothes was staring out from his iron cell. Though he couldn’t see anything but a faint light from this angle, this tiny ray of light was considered precious here.
The man in prison clothing looked so aged that his back was hunched, and the skin on his face and hands were like the barks of a tree. He could be described as nearing the limit of his life.
A hint of reminiscence flashed past his eyes as he stared outside.
It was easy to tell that he yearned to be out there. And yet this short distance seemed like an unbridgeable gulf.
Another silhouette walked to the old man.
This man had a long beard and a vertical eye on his forehead. Standing at least ten feet tall, he had a robust appearance.
“Lu Changchun and the others haven’t returned yet?” he asked. The old prisoner shook his head. “No, Lord Judge.”
The three-eyed man chuckled. “What judge? The immortal emperor died two thousand years ago and the immortal dynasty is no more. We are the same now and I’ve told you many times, so why are you still calling me that?”
The old prisoner chuckled as well. “Habit. And there’s no need to change either. It’s thanks to your care over the years, doing everything in your means to prolong my life, that I, a mere half immortal, could still be alive now.”
The judge sighed and mumbled to himself, “Two thousand years, huh? We’ve been struggling to survive for two thousand years now. I don’t even remember how many immortals have died over the years.”
The old prisoner fell dark upon hearing this, but he quickly thought it through.
“There’s no light in this place and we have to live each day in fear. It’s no better than being a ghost. Perhaps death is a good thing as it will release us from this.” The old prisoner had just spoken when a horrifying beast roar thundered outside.
This voice reverberated through the skies, loud enough for all nine heavens to hear.
The old prisoner and judge immediately shuddered in fear.
“It’s that thing!”
“Oh no, Sanhuan and Liugong must have been discovered.”
Both men looked worried.
During the immortal tragedy, most immortals died. Some escaped into the extraterritorial land, while a few people hid inside this immortal prison.
As the prison had an eighty-one layer restriction spell, it could block off any immortal aura, preventing the immortal devouring beast from finding them.
However, just like all other hiding places, they couldn’t leave this place or they risked being detected. And once detected, it didn’t take much to imagine what would happen next.
Immortals could go without food and water for a long time as they could absorb spirit energy from their surroundings instead. However, they would still feel hungry after a while, and most importantly, their lives were limited.
An average half immortal couldn’t possibly hide for two thousand years.
Under normal circumstances, half immortals lived about a thousand years. If they had methods to prolong their lives, like the consumption of spirit fruits and medicinal pills, they could then extend their lifespan up to hundreds or even a thousand years more.
In the past two thousand years, many immortals had indeed died from having their lifespans exhausted. Beings who were once the pinnacle of existence were now left to die despairingly here. After all, this wasn’t the average sort of fear that any immortal could endure.
And so, some immortals began wanting to leave to search for items to prolong their lives, and then return here.
Only, this was a dangerous mission. If they rushed out recklessly, they might be discovered on the spot. The immortal devouring beast might even learn that the prison still had other immortals and kill them all.
Thus, the immortals here came up with a method to conceal their aura, thanks to their brilliant wits.
They crafted some magic treasures that could suppress and even conceal their immortal auras. They even came up with spells that gave similar effects and had been polishing it over the past thousand years until they were highly proficient.
Still, they might encounter unanticipated situations. Some immortals had been discovered before, and after hearing the immortal devouring beast roar, those immortals never returned.
No investigation was needed after that. The immortal emperor and many unfettered immortals died in the hands of the immortal devouring beast, so how could these people possibly survive?
This was just a game of cat and mouse. Once detected, there was only death.
Not too long ago, an immortal by the name of Liugong was near his end. If their estimation was right, the man only had about two weeks left.
In Liugong’s opinion, rather than dying in the darkness, it was better to take a gamble.
Sanhuan was Liugong’s best friend. Although Sanhuan still had a few decades left and had time, he found it meaningless to live on if Liugong were to die.
And so, after much preparation, the duo ventured outside in search of methods to prolong their lives.
Just running to the immortal empress’ garden and consuming a few fairy fruits could extend their lives by five hundred years.
If they were lucky, they could get a few more and that would be like hitting the jackpot. Among the immortals struggling to survive inside prison, many of them were powerful beings. One fairy fruit could be exchanged for premium-grade treasures and tools. There were tons of other benefits too.
Aside from fairy fruits, there were also Tianzun Pills.
Such treasures could extend lifespans too, and one pill could extend one by one thousand years.
Eating a few could help them live for a few thousand years more. Although they couldn’t defeat the immortal devouring beast, they might just be able to outlive it.
It was a contest of who could live longer.
Truth be told, many hiding immortals had the same thought.
But not all immortals had such long lifespans. Like Sanhuan and Liugong, they could only risk their lives in a gamble to survive.
The beast roar outside faded away quickly.
The old prisoner and the judge’s heart sank with it.
“Let’s go back. There’s no need to wait anymore.” The judge sighed, feeling despair.
In the past, among the immortals who snuck out, only one person was lucky enough to survive. No matter how prepared everyone else was, they couldn’t escape the fate of being detected.
Perhaps this idea didn’t work at all.
Their fate was to let their candles burn out here and then die despairing deaths.
After he turned and walked a few steps, the judge was stunned that the old prisoner didn’t follow him. He said, “Waiting will just be a waste of time. No one will…”
Before he could finish, the judge sensed something and abruptly turned to look outside the corridor.
The old prisoner was looking that way too, and soon, they heard footsteps..
