Chapter 381: Lü Yang’s Growth Plan
With this thought, Lü Yang had already departed, leaving only his sword Dao avatar seated cross-legged in place.
His original consciousness, following Ancestor Nether Whisper's arrangements, withdrew from the avatar and settled into the [Sky of Separation], transforming it into a new main body.
No celestial phenomena manifested in the heavens and earth.
Because the entire process was completed within the Myriad Spirits Banner, and the Myriad Spirits Banner had been cleansed by the [Book of a Hundred Lifetimes], leaving no traces of cause or effect—enough to obscure the workings of heaven.
Now, Lü Yang had already arrived beyond the heavens.
"Strictly speaking, this is my first time truly venturing beyond the heavens."
The previous trip to the [Ten Thousand Martial World] relied on the Saint Sect's ultimate treasure, the [Heaven-Penetrating Hall], an official channel with door-to-door service, leaving him with no sensation throughout the journey.
This time, however, was an illegal crossing.
He took the narrow path opened by Daoist Hong Yun, and only upon landing beyond the heavens did Lü Yang truly witness what lay outside.
Unlike the "universe" he had imagined.
Before his eyes stretched a sea of blinding radiance, vast and boundless. Merely existing within it sent waves of excruciating pain through Lü Yang.
'This is the [Profound Light of Yin-Yang Creation and Destruction].'
According to Daoist Hong Yun's memories, the so-called [Profound Light of Yin-Yang Creation and Destruction] was unique to the world beyond the heavens—capable of decomposing all things, returning them to their primordial state.
For ordinary Foundation Establishment True Persons who fell into it, survival depended entirely on the quality of their Dao foundation. Those with third-grade foundations or higher could endure for a quarter-hour, while those below third-grade would inevitably turn to ashes within that time. Only those who had perfected Foundation Establishment and refined a Blessed Land could barely traverse it, and only Golden Core True Lords could pass through it as if walking on flat ground.
"I refined the Minor Paradise [Sky of Separation], which counts as a clever workaround."
Even so, the [Sky of Separation] was undoubtedly inferior to a true Blessed Land. After just a short while of travel, Lü Yang could already feel damage accumulating in his paradise.
"Fortunately, distance holds no meaning beyond the heavens."
The expanse beyond the heavens was vast, yet the concepts of near and far did not exist—everything depended on whether one possessed "coordinates." With coordinates, no distance was too great to cross in a single step.
Without coordinates, even the closest point might as well be at the edge of the sky.
Holding firmly to the coordinates provided in Daoist Hong Yun's memories, Lü Yang stepped forward slowly. Through his divine sense, he suddenly glimpsed the scenery within the sea of light.
It was filled with holes.
The sea of light beyond the heavens appeared flawless at first glance, yet in reality, it was riddled with holes—each one unfathomably deep, as if leading to another world.
Was this how realm worlds manifested beyond the heavens?
Lü Yang turned his head to look back—and his pupils abruptly contracted.
Because he saw the world he had just left.
The appearance of that wretched place in the sea of light could not be adequately described as a mere "hole."
It was an abyss!
Compared to the surrounding holes, that wretched place seemed to have torn through the sea of light itself—unfathomably vast, like a black hole!
Its behavior was strikingly similar to a black hole as well, emitting an immense gravitational pull that drew the holes symbolizing other realm worlds toward it one by one, devouring them... like a colossal beast opening its maw, inspiring sheer terror in those who witnessed it.
"That wretched place..."
Lü Yang dared not look further. He turned back, took a step forward, and vanished from his original position, plummeting toward the coordinates sensed by his divine sense!
The moon was bright, the stars sparse, and the night breeze gentle.
Lü Yang opened his eyes, no longer relying on divine sense perception. Instead, he allowed his form to collapse, transforming from human shape back into the [Sky of Separation], suspended high in the center of the sea of clouds.
"Looking back, the world has already changed..."
The first thing Lü Yang did was activate [Puppet on Strings]. As expected, just like during his time in the Ten Thousand Martial World, he could still sense the presence of his sword Dao avatar.
With just a thought, he could return his main body into the Myriad Spirits Banner, which would then follow the [Qian Tian's Omnipresent Dharma Body] to transfer to his sword Dao avatar's side—instantly returning him to that wretched place.
But before he had grown strong enough, there was no way he would make such a decision again.
'If I so much as entertain the thought, someone must be tempting me!'
Lü Yang surveyed his surroundings. Unlike his experience in the Ten Thousand Martial World, this time he felt no hostility or pressure from this realm world.
This was all Daoist Hong Yun's doing.
Back when he was still a True Lord, Daoist Hong Yun had exerted significant influence over this realm world, molding it into a form that would not reject outsiders.
"Strictly speaking, this realm world hasn't yet condensed a Fruit Position—it can't compare to the Ten Thousand Martial World. In theory, it should be similar to Suo Huan's original realm world."
At most, it was a Fruit Position embryo.
If it were a major realm world like the Ten Thousand Martial World, where a true Fruit Position had emerged, even Daoist Hong Yun as a True Lord would have found it difficult to exert such profound influence.
But a Fruit Position embryo was different.
Suo Huan's original world had once condensed a Fruit Position embryo, yet what happened? It was casually crushed by a True Lord, with only Suo Huan managing to escape.
"For a Fruit Position embryo to evolve into a true Fruit Position is an extremely difficult process."
With Daoist Hong Yun's memories supplementing his understanding, Lü Yang realized many of his previous assumptions had flaws.
"For example, having Ancestor Nether Whisper validate the Fruit Position embryo within the Myriad Spirits Banner... wouldn't actually work, because an embryo isn't a true Fruit Position—it can't support a True Lord."
Then how did the Innate True Person succeed?
"Because of [Flowing Water]!"
"[Flowing Water] embodies the concept of boundlessness. The Innate True Person used the Dao Calamity to channel millennia of [Flowing Water], drawing upon its vastness to supplement himself."
"In short, he used the Fruit Position power of [Flowing Water] to catalyze the Fruit Position embryo within the Myriad Spirits Banner, drastically accelerating its condensation—thus giving birth to the [Heaven of Non-Existence]. This required a long-term scheme, which Ancestor Nether Whisper didn't have the conditions for, let alone..."
Lü Yang suspected the heavens themselves had a hand in this!
After all, the Innate True Person's actions essentially amounted to taking from the heavens' surplus to compensate for his own deficiencies. Without the heavens' support, how could he have succeeded?
Moreover, judging by the results, the heavens also benefited greatly.
With the True Lords withdrawing from the world and no longer overseeing it, the heavens gained room to maneuver—the emergence of the [Heaven of Non-Existence] allowed them to reap immense advantages!
Thinking of this, Lü Yang couldn't help but curse again:
"What a wretched place..."
Suppressing his thoughts, Lü Yang looked up at the sky—only to see four moons occupying the four cardinal directions, firmly sealing the entire realm world.
This was a grand formation.
Its name was the [Seven Luminaries Stabilizing the World Grand Formation], ranked third-grade—a True Lord-level formation left behind by Daoist Hong Yun after discovering this realm.
Its purpose was to prevent him from being drawn back to that wretched place.
The formation's power manifested visibly as these celestial bodies: three suns crossing the sky by day and four moons hanging high by night, converging the radiance of the seven luminaries.
"After all, this is a new realm world—better safe than sorry..."
Lü Yang was cautious. Having been tricked too often in that wretched place, even now in a new realm world, he instinctively decided to proceed with care.
As for how to grow in this realm world, Lü Yang already had a plan.
'A Fruit Position embryo can hardly support a True Lord—this is likely one reason Daoist Hong Yun never fled here. Once he came, unless he waited for this realm world to evolve naturally, he would cut off his path to advancement, never becoming a True Lord.'
Even so, Lü Yang was different from Daoist Hong Yun.
'The Fruit Position is secondary—for me, achieving perfected Foundation Establishment alone would count as success.'
Because of Ancestor Nether Whisper!
Because of the Yama Palace's method of falsely holding a Golden Seat!
'Even if I can't become a True Lord, gathering nine perfected Foundation Establishment cultivators to falsely hold a Golden Seat would achieve a similar effect—at the very least, it would be more than enough to go back and crush those weaklings!'