Chapter 114
Chapter 114
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: Talent and Effort
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“. . . One got away.”
On the charred black earth, deep craters pockmarked the ground as if it had just been plowed over. Each pit cradled a mangled corpse.
Seventeen Release Cultivators. One had escaped.
The remaining sixteen had all been obliterated by Lu Yang's Nine Heavens Capital Ledger Secret Demon Yin Thunder. The Buddhist light that should have countered阴煞 proved utterly useless.
But that was only natural. Suppression was always relative. Water and fire clashed, sure—under normal circumstances, water doused fire. Yet what good was a cup of water against flames engulfing a thousand li? The gap between Lu Yang and these Release Cultivators was even wider.
On that note, the fleeing Guang Ming understood it all too well.
At this moment, thousands of li from Lu Yang, in a mountain forest that served as a gathering point for Release Cultivators, the leader of this Pure Land contingent, Guang Hai, waited.
“Hm?”
Guang Hai, who had been meditating with eyes closed, suddenly snapped them open. A visible ripple of golden Buddhist light surged around him.
The next instant, Guang Ming staggered out from within that light.
The moment he hit the ground, he scanned his surroundings in abject terror. Only after confirming the terrifying figure was nowhere in sight did he exhale in profound relief.
“I escaped! I actually escaped!”
It hadn't been for nothing. He had deliberately clustered all the Release Cultivators together, using them as meat shields—feigning a grand technique on the surface while secretly activating the “Shared Heart Binding Life Talisman” to flee.
The Shared Heart Binding Life Talisman was a supreme treasure of the Pure Land Release Cultivators. It allowed any cultivator marked with its sigil to teleport directly to the talisman's owner. Guang Ming had reversed the effect with a secret art, instantly transporting himself to Guang Hai's side.
“What happened?”
Guang Hai frowned at his disheveled junior brother.
“You ran into a powerful foe? How many were there? Where are the fellow Daoists who were with you?”
Guang Ming froze at the question.
His mind raced. Tell the truth? Was he insane? Admit to his senior brother that he had fled the battlefield?
That would truly spell his doom!
After all, to give the fallen Release Cultivators some closure, Guang Ming had no doubt his senior brother would happily use his head to rally the troops.
Guang Ming's eyes darted. In the next breath, grief twisted his features. With a choked sob, he said,
“So many! I couldn't even count them! Those fiends had backup waiting. I fought to the death, took down a few before breaking free. The others... they were all slaughtered by the demons!”
“What?”
Before Guang Ming could finish, Guang Hai's expression hardened, a sense of grave peril washing over him. Had the Primal Saint Sect demons already assembled in force?
“Must find a way to wipe them out.”
Guang Hai took it deadly seriously. He immediately summoned another Release Cultivator draped in kasaya robes.
“Guang Hui, take the Dragon Host and exterminate that pack of demons.”
The Release Cultivators of Deep Joy Pure Land were divided into eight Buddhist hosts. The Dragon Host ranked second—Guang Hai's most elite force.
He then turned to Guang Ming.
“Junior Brother Guang Ming, you'll lead the way.”
“Me? Ah?”
Guang Ming blinked, his mouth twitching. His heart screamed refusal, but under Guang Hai's gaze, he clenched his teeth behind a forced smile and nodded.
‘No problem this time, right?’
Staring at the majestic Dragon Host—over a hundred strong—Guang Ming steadied himself. After all, the enemy was just one person, no matter how you sliced it.
The weakest in the Dragon Host were mid-Qi Refining. Their leader, Guang Hui, had mastered three great incantations. In a pinch, he could rally the group for a secret art, summoning a Dragon Elephant Vast Strength Vajra of lofty stature—nearly a Dharma Protector Vajra, second only to a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
With that kind of power, how could they lose?
The grand demon was just Qi Refining, no matter what. Before his true Qi ran dry, he couldn't possibly slaughter a hundred Release Cultivators!
Meanwhile, on the scorched battlefield.
“True Lord above... A Foundation Establishment cultivator actually entered the realm heaven?”
Gazing at Lu Yang's retreating figure, Qin Tianhe sank into profound confusion. Clearly, the misunderstanding from their earlier meeting hadn't cleared up.
If anything, it had deepened.
But that made sense. Lu Yang's battle had been devastatingly overwhelming. To him, facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator made no difference.
Yet in the next moment, Qin Tianhe surged with excitement anew.
He had no idea how Lu Yang, a “Foundation Establishment True Person,” had entered the secret realm. But as long as he was one of their Primal Saint Sect True Persons, that was enough.
This round was in the bag!
At the same time, Lu Yang paid no mind to Qin Tianhe's misconception. His focus was entirely on the Release Cultivator corpses strewn across the ground.
“Maybe I can make use of these...”
With that thought, Lu Yang pinched a hand seal and unfurled the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner. In an instant, thick white mist rose from the surrounding bodies.
One by one, the Release Cultivators dissolved into Qi. Souls drifted free, sucked into the banner. Once their true spirits mounted the flag, the white mist recombined, reforming the sixteen Release Cultivators. They bowed in unison to Lu Yang.
“Greetings, Master!”
Only then did Lu Yang nod in satisfaction. Eyeing the still-sparse positions on the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner, his heart burned with anticipation. This Path-Seizing War might just be an opportunity!
An opportunity to fully refine the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner!
After all, this Path-Seizing War had drawn cultivators from Jiangdong, Jiangxi, the Dao Court, and the Pure Land—legions of them, swarming the hills and valleys like fresh talent!
“Interesting.”
Just then, Ancestor Ting You's voice echoed behind Lu Yang. He appraised the banner spirits with keen interest before speaking.
“I once drew inspiration from Jiangdong's Heavenly Proxy Hunt-Dao Ritual to create the Hall of Yama Demons. Now it seems Jiangxi has its merits too. Collect more Release Cultivators like these, and I might refine the Hall of Yama Demons further—elevating its power to new heights.”
“Oh?”
Ancestor Ting You's suggestion lit a spark in Lu Yang's eyes. He suddenly recalled the Dragon-Subduing Temple that Fulong Arhat had unleashed on him in his previous life.
The so-called Dragon-Subduing Temple was none other than Fulong Arhat's Dao base.
Release Cultivators didn't form their foundations internally. Instead, they built them in Deep Joy Pure Land, forged by World-Honored One of Jiangxi. Their Dao base was their temple.
The more incense and worshippers a temple drew, the stronger its master grew.
If Ancestor Ting You could adapt that into the Hall of Yama Demons, the sheer scale of banner spirits in the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner would catapult his strength to new heights!
Without a word, Lu Yang cupped his hands.
“Then I must trouble Ancestor to lend your wisdom!”
Ancestor Ting You sighed.
“Strengthening the Hall of Yama Demons bolsters our Witch-Ghost Dao's foundations. This is the most I can manage now.”
“Try not to disturb me hereafter. I'll enter seclusion for a stretch.”
“Pity we only netted a dozen or so Release Cultivator banner spirits this time. More, and I'd comprehend faster...”
With that, Ancestor Ting You led the Release Cultivators into the banner's cavern-heaven, clearly intent on dissecting their arts.
Seeing this, Lu Yang finally grasped Ancestor Ting You's true purpose.
Send him out to fight?
Too narrow a view!
He was pure technical talent—far surpassing the Mingdao Jade Slip from his last life. Anything requiring insight could be delegated to him!
Evidently, with Ancestor Ting You's prodigious talent and relentless effort, Lu Yang's path this life would stretch even farther!
Someday, he might even boast to others, “My realm today? All thanks to my gifted talents and tireless hard work!”
(End of chapter)