Chapter 1783: Welcome Back

Jiang Fan was surprised. Could it be that Xia Chaoge no longer wanted to play along and was ready to reveal everything?

He immediately dismissed the thought.

Xia Chaoge should still be in Tianzhou at this time; how could she possibly rush to the underworld in time? But if it wasn't her, who else could it be? Could it be the white-robed skeleton from the Thunder God's Palace?

The thought of its formidable power sent shivers down his spine. He secretly prepared the Immortal King's Indestructible Bell and quietly took Yue Mingzhu's hand.

If it truly was that entity, then they would jump into the Netherworld! That being was from the Angel Race, a mortal enemy of the Netherworld. Surely, it wouldn't dare trespass into the Netherworld to pursue them, right?

"What's wrong?" Yue Mingzhu was silently weeping, gazing at the direction where Asura King Ayu had disappeared. Suddenly, sensing Jiang Fan's abnormality, she became alert.

Jiang Fan pulled her back towards the edge of the abyss and said in a deep voice, "An invincible presence has arrived."

Yue Mingzhu's pupils constricted. It was the first time she had heard the words "invincible" from Jiang Fan's lips. How powerful must such an enemy be?

As she was wondering, suddenly, a graceful woman in white, with pure white wings, materialized out of thin air before them.

Teleportation? Isn't that a Spirit Transformation stage ability? Yue Mingzhu was stunned. Is a Spirit Transformation stage cultivator considered a strong enemy? Well, she wasn't belittling Spirit Transformation, just in comparison to Jiang Fan. Among Spirit Transformation cultivators, only a Great Venerable could pose a fatal threat to Jiang Fan; the rest were not worth mentioning. Moreover, the winged woman before them probably wasn't very strong among Spirit Transformation cultivators, was she?

Jiang Fan was also bewildered. He stared at the mini angel floating above the female angel's head and was momentarily stunned. Is this a One Qi Archangel? Equivalent to a human Spirit Transformation cultivator in the First Heavenly Decay stage. So, after all that, it wasn't the white-robed skeleton. Jiang Fan's heart, which had been in his throat, finally settled. He then curiously sized up the female angel who had appeared out of nowhere.

"Hehehe, Jiang Fan, were you scared?" The female angel chuckled triumphantly, her arms crossed.

Jiang Fan was full of doubts. Did this female angel know him? That shouldn't be possible. Xia Chaoge was his only female connection in the Heavenly Realm. Who was this female angel who suddenly appeared? Currently, there was only one place in the entire Central Land that had other angels. That was the Thunder God's Palace. But apart from the white-robed skeleton, there were only the corpses of deceased angels there; no one else...

Wait.

A remnant soul that could eat, drink, and sleep flashed through Jiang Fan's mind!

After observing the female angel before them, Yue Mingzhu also sensed something was off. With a flicker of nine-colored light in her eyes, she transmitted a message: "Husband, her body is a corpse."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Fan confirmed his suspicion. The person before him was none other than Huaxin!

"Hehehe, you scoundrel, don't you know who I am?" Huaxin stared at Jiang Fan, memories of gnawing on yin-qi radishes in the Netherworld Crystal surfacing in her mind. Flames surged in her eyes. She pulled out a yin-qi radish and said menacingly, "Do you remember now?"

Jiang Fan then showed a look of sudden realization: "Oh, it's an old friend? My apologies, I accidentally lost you in the Thunder God's Palace last time."

Accidentally? Lost? Huaxin laughed in anger: "You shameless dog, using me as a scapegoat! Today, I've come for revenge!" She clenched her hand, crushing the yin-qi radish until its juice splattered everywhere.

"You never dreamed I'd be this tough, did you? Not only did I come back alive, but I returned as a Spirit Transformation cultivator!" Jiang Fan was indeed a bit surprised. He had thought that even if Huaxin didn't die, she would be trapped in the Thunder God's Palace. It shouldn't be possible for her to have gotten out alive.

He stroked his chin and asked, "Why didn't that white-robed skeleton kill you?" Huaxin scoffed, "Of course I..." Mid-sentence, she remembered that the only reason she was alive was because she had impersonated Jiang Fan's favorite wife, which made the white-robed skeleton see some value in her and spare her life. Guiltily, she rephrased: "I survived by relying on my own wit and battling wits with that old thing."

Really? Jiang Fan looked directly into Huaxin's eyes. This woman was somewhat clever and not stupid, but "battling wits" was far from her capabilities. He didn't know how she managed to fool them. However, it no longer mattered.

He asked, puzzled, "You finally managed to leave the Thunder God's Palace; why didn't you hide instead of coming to find me?" Huaxin laughed in anger at his words: "What do you mean 'why'? I endured hardships, and finally attained Spirit Transformation cultivation. How could I not avenge your abuse? You scoundrel, prepare to die!" Her One Qi Archangel aura surged like ocean waves, and fury blazed in her eyes.

Yue Mingzhu's expression turned strange. Huh? Seeking revenge on Jiang Fan? She even felt a little sorry for this little female ghost, who had been bullied by Jiang Fan since they first met. "Cough, cough..." She cleared her throat and said, "Senior Huaxin, just let it go. The Netherworld has been opened. Since you are a being of the Netherworld, just go back. Let bygones be bygones."

Huaxin laughed in anger at her words: "Let bygones be bygones? What, are you afraid I'll kill your beloved? Don't worry, I'll spare his life. I'll imprison his soul and slowly torment him, just like he did to me!" Then, she glared fiercely at Jiang Fan: "You little scoundrel, prepare to die!"

Her words were still lingering in the air when her figure teleported. She knew Jiang Fan was formidable and had many tricks, but he had one major weakness. That was his inability to counter Spirit Transformation stage teleportation! As long as she was fast enough, she could break through all of Jiang Fan's techniques.

"Hmph, this is my first battle since recovering my Spirit Transformation cultivation; you'll be my target!" Huaxin snorted coldly while teleporting. However, suddenly, her vision blurred, and Jiang Fan, along with Yue Mingzhu, actually kept up with her teleportation.

Huaxin was stunned. How could Jiang Fan also teleport? Isn't that an ability of the Spirit Transformation stage? An unbelievable thought popped into her mind, and she said, "You haven't also reached Spirit Transformation, have you?"

Jiang Fan shrugged, releasing his aura of the Second Heavenly Decay stage. His aura, far surpassing Huaxin's, directly interrupted her teleportation, causing her to fall from mid-air and crash heavily onto the ground.

Her beautiful eyes widened, and she exclaimed in horror, "Second Heavenly Decay? I was in the Thunder God's Palace for a few days, so surely not a few years have passed in the outside world?"

Jiang Fan landed, smiling calmly: "Not at all, I just cultivated a bit faster."

Huaxin was bewildered. When she left the Thunder God's Palace, Jiang Fan was only at the Eight-Aperture Nascent Soul stage; whether he could ever reach Spirit Transformation in this life was a huge question mark. How could he be at the Second Heavenly Decay stage after only a few days?

Regaining her composure, Huaxin's eyes darted. She decisively flapped the wings on her back, turning into an afterimage, and teleported towards the abyss, clearly intending to escape back to the Netherworld. But just as she teleported above the abyss, a ten-zhang-tall colorful miniature mountain pressed down, crushing her onto the ground with a resounding thud.

Jiang Fan took out the Netherworld Crystal and smiled slightly: "Welcome back, my old friend."