Chapter 350
Chapter 350
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Translator: Ace
Chapter:
Chapter Title: Settling Hongyun's Experiences
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[Currently settling experiences for "Hongyun."]
[You are a heaven-born bearer of great fortune, beloved by heaven and earth. For you, cultivation is as simple as eating and drinking water—no difficulty whatsoever.]
". . . It actually worked."
Lu Yang finally breathed a sigh of relief as he gazed at the Hongyun soul now fully ensnared by the Book of a Hundred Lives. He knew this Golden Core reincarnation had truly fallen victim to his scheme.
*From ancient times to now, I'm probably the first to pull this off.*
A True Lord reincarnated through the Netherworld, their traces washed clean by the wheel of reincarnation, their karma fully concealed—no one could divine them. In theory, it was foolproof.
But they had the misfortune to encounter a freak like Lu Yang, who didn't bother with divinations at all. Instead, he simply followed along through reincarnation, tracked them down, and ambushed them. Not even the Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord could manage that feat. After all, aside from him, no one else could keep a soul fragment conscious during reincarnation.
*This time, the Book of a Hundred Lives really feasted.*
Lu Yang stared fixedly at Hongyun's soul. Golden light flowed across its entire form, devoured ravenously by the Book of a Hundred Lives.
The golden light appeared ordinary at first glance.
But as Lu Yang focused his attention on it, an uncontrollable hunger stirred within him. He swallowed hard despite himself.
*Golden nature! A True Lord's golden nature!*
*Unlike at the peak of Foundation Establishment, a True Lord's golden nature is fully fused with their soul—life and essence intertwined. The golden nature is the soul, and the soul is the golden nature!*
The more he observed that golden light, the more profound its mysteries seemed. It embodied Hongyun's lifelong cultivation. Forget eating it—even inhaling its scent filled his mind with insights, Hongyun's accumulated Dao attainments, his understanding of heaven, earth, and the Grand Dao.
*. . . No, hold back!*
In the next instant, Lu Yang forcefully suppressed his emotions and took a step back. A trace of wariness flickered in his eyes.
*What an insidious thing.*
Not just anyone could consume golden nature.
Especially a Golden Core True Lord's golden nature—the quintessence of their soul. Devouring it would indeed boost one's Dao attainments, but it would also assimilate you bit by bit.
In the end, who was refining whom? Who could say whether you absorbed the golden nature, or it absorbed you?
*This isn't something for those in the lower realms to covet.*
*Probably only a Golden Core True Lord with superior cultivation and Dao attainments could safely partake—like the Clear Serenity Flying Snow True Lord from his previous life.*
*But that's fine.*
Lu Yang's gaze gradually calmed. No matter how formidable a True Lord's golden nature was, it stood no chance against the Book of a Hundred Lives—like an egg striking a stone, utterly incomparable.
Boom!
At last, accompanied by a burst of brilliant radiance, Hongyun's densely packed life trajectory emerged on the Book of a Hundred Lives interface.
Meanwhile, Hongyun's soul floated emptily in the air, all thoughts and cognition erased as if they had never existed—leaving only a hollow shell. Lu Yang didn't dare delay. With a sweep of his Ten Thousand Spirits Banner, he collected it, then tore open space and vanished from the spot.
At the same time, Lu Yang checked Hongyun's experiences.
*Hongyun, Hongyun—no wonder the name. This True Lord's first half-life could only be described as "fortune as vast as the heavens"!*
A heaven-born bearer of great fortune.
*In a way, he's much like an innate true being—both favored by heaven and earth. But he's even luckier than an innate true being like Mu Changsheng.*
*Because he caught the last train to Golden Core.*
Compared to Mu Changsheng's era as an innate true being, when Hongyun sought Golden Core, heaven and earth were far less rigid—still offering room for ascent.
*But compared to that first half, Hongyun's latter half was a streak of utter misfortune. First ambushed by the Soaring Empyrean, losing vast swaths of memory. Then Uncle-Master Chongguang appeared out of nowhere, coveting his Dao fruit position. In his previous life, he died at the hands of the Clear Serenity Flying Snow True Lord. In this life, I reverse-slayed him . . .*
Why did it turn out this way?
*The turning point was that great calamity five thousand years ago!*
Enlightenment dawned in Lu Yang's eyes.
*During that calamity, while fighting in the boundary heavens, Hongyun gained benefits but didn't integrate them into his Dao fruit.*
*Instead, he fused them into his own cavern heaven!* That was the root cause of Hongyun's latter-half misery—endless turmoil, peak misfortune, nothing going right, his once-vast fortune vanished.
—He had deceived heaven!
*You receive heaven and earth's favor, your heavenly fate, merit, and virtue far exceeding the norm. Heaven and earth contributed at least a third to your True Lord attainment. But once you ascend, you turn your back, keeping every benefit for yourself without giving even a fraction back to the heaven and earth that supported you. How could they not mess with you?*
*But . . . it wasn't entirely Hongyun's fault.*
Normally, heaven and earth's constraints on a True Lord were minimal. Even if Hongyun turned his back, it would be hard for them to drastically cut his fortune and merit.
The problem was the Soaring Empyrean.
With one scheme, the Soaring Empyrean killed Hongyun outright, giving heaven and earth the chance to settle accounts with this "traitor." The outcome was predictable.
*So, for people, if you want to sit steady, figure out exactly where you're sitting!*
Sit in the wrong spot, or sit in one spot while dreaming of another, and you'll please no one. No matter how glorious, it'll only be temporary.
After this reflection, Lu Yang turned to Hongyun's soul shell.
The Book of a Hundred Lives didn't need to devour all the golden nature to settle experiences, so after feasting, it left the scraps for Lu Yang.
Heat flared in Lu Yang's eyes once more.
*Good stuff! After the Book of a Hundred Lives thoroughly cleansed it, Hongyun's consciousness is completely gone—only soul and golden nature remain.*
Slip into this shell, and who could spot the real him?
With a thought, Lu Yang draped Hongyun's shell over his immortal spirit body. With it, he could even impersonate a True Lord from now on!
*From today, I am Hongyun!*
With the Book of a Hundred Lives' settled life experiences, he had no fear of exposure. No matter who questioned him, he could respond flawlessly.
Don't forget—Hong Ju was still alive!
This peak Foundation Establishment great true being relied entirely on Hongyun's golden nature to survive. Now that Lu Yang had refined Hongyun, he could use it to fool Hong Ju!
*And that Shared Fate and Exchanged Luck Register Scripture . . .*
Lu Yang had long coveted this Covered Lamp Fire Dao fruit treasure.
*Beyond that, with Hong Ju as my inside man in the Primal Saint Sect, I can get channels for Uncle-Master Chongguang's Xin Gold too.*
But these required careful planning.
For now, he had one massive gain left to tally.
". . . Talent!"
His gaze shifted to the Book of a Hundred Lives interface. The data had finally settled, condensing into golden light—
[You have acquired the golden talent · Fortune-Divining Lottery!]
[Fortune-Divining Lottery: Select a task you wish to undertake, draw a lot for its fortune. Gain corresponding fortune boost, foretelling its success.]
[Supreme Auspice: Beloved by heaven and earth—inevitable success.]
[Minor Auspice: Fortune added—modest gains.]
[Low Auspice: Blessings and woes intertwined—success depends on effort.]
[Minor Omen: Ill stars loom—little achievement.]
[Dire Omen: Great calamity descends—ten deaths, no life!]
"It's this kind of talent . . ."
Lu Yang stared at the panel, momentarily stunned. But he quickly understood from Hongyun's life experiences why it existed.
"Probably because over these five thousand years of endless bad luck, everything going wrong, he wanted a way to divine his odds before every action."