Chapter 391
Chapter 391
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 391
Chapter Title: Fishing with Explosives Feels Great
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Time flew by, stars shifted in the heavens.
In the blink of an eye, another decade had passed.
Within Lihen Tian, Ancestor Master Tingyou sat cross-legged in meditation, while the incense fire divine register of the Yanmo Heaven's Profound Nether Ghost-Seizing Mansion Lord floated before him.
Moments later, Ancestor Master Tingyou opened his eyes.
In an instant, three innate divine abilities lit up across his body, joined by one lifebound divine ability. His aura surged fiercely, shattering the bottleneck.
Late Foundation Establishment—a great perfected being!
This step in Foundation Establishment cultivation was a qualitative transformation, making recovery far more difficult than before. Even Ancestor Master Tingyou had needed considerable time.
But no matter what, success was achieved.
On the other side, Lu Yang watched with excitement. After all, as a fellow late Foundation Establishment cultivator, Ancestor Master Tingyou's foundation was leagues beyond Long Yue's.
"Congratulations, Ancestor Master."
The moment Ancestor Master Tingyou finished his cultivation and opened his eyes, Lu Yang appeared before him, bowing respectfully.
Ancestor Master Tingyou shook his head with a wry smile. Though he had restored his fleshly body, he remained bound by the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner. Strictly speaking, Lu Yang, as its master, had no need to treat him with such courtesy—even excessive demands could not be refused.
Yet Lu Yang's attitude never wavered.
It was undeniable: this sense of respect felt good to Ancestor Master Tingyou. Moreover, Lu Yang always kept the revival of the Witch-Ghost Way at heart.
What was this?
*A pure heart.*
Ancestor Master Tingyou sighed inwardly, then personally helped Lu Yang to his feet.
"I've tested the incense fire divine register for you and uncovered all its strengths and weaknesses."
As expected of the Ancestor Master!
"What are the pros and cons of this incense fire divine power?"
At this, Lu Yang recalled knowledge from his past life and could not help asking,
"Could it be that the incense fire is toxic, carrying immense hidden dangers after use?"
"Not quite." Ancestor Master Tingyou shook his head.
"Or rather, it originally trended that way, but someone forcibly reversed it."
Lu Yang was momentarily stunned, but quickly understood.
*Of course. With Hongyun viewing this world as their final retreat, how could they allow a blatantly harmful toxin like poisoned incense fire to evolve?*
"The advantages of incense fire divine power are straightforward," Ancestor Master Tingyou continued.
"First, its floor is high—even the weakest reaches great Qi Refining divine ability level. Second, it progresses swiftly. With enough incense fire, there are no bottlenecks or tribulations; it can ascend straight to peak Foundation Establishment!"
These two points alone were absurd.
Yet Lu Yang remained composed. There was no such thing as a free lunch—the greater the benefits of the incense fire divine path, the more severe the inevitable drawbacks.
"But..."
Sure enough, Ancestor Master Tingyou shifted tone the next instant.
"I've resolved most of its flaws, but two are innate and unavoidable."
"First, the Dao foundation."
Ancestor Master Tingyou said gravely,
"Incense fire gods have rank but no self-cultivated essence or Dao foundation. Their rank is propped up by incense fire."
"Once the incense fire scatters, they plummet."
"The higher they stood, the harder they fall—the worst being the capital city gods. Without incense fire, they perish on the spot!"
This resembled how True Lords were sustained by Foundation Establishment.
But the difference was stark: True Lords had cavern realms. Even if all their Foundation Establishment followers died, they merely withdrew into seclusion, unscathed.
Incense fire gods, however, were different. If the populace below suffered mass death, the gods would lose their incense fire, facing immediate life-threatening crisis!
*This must be why the world remains at peace. In all-out war, a peak Foundation Establishment capital city god could flip the table, sinking states and lands, extinguishing the divine path entirely. Only with such deterrence can the three sides maintain balance.*
Having pieced it together, Lu Yang looked back at Ancestor Master Tingyou.
"And the second?"
"Second, the incense fire itself."
Ancestor Master Tingyou shook his head.
"Born of human hearts, it carries vast杂念. The unstable of mind risk qi deviation upon use."
"The higher the realm, the greater the trouble."
With that, Ancestor Master Tingyou pointed to the Yanmo Heaven's Profound Nether Ghost-Seizing Mansion Lord divine register before him.
"It's merely late Foundation Establishment now."
"Yet it already pressures me somewhat."
"Even at this world's peak—Foundation Establishment perfection—I could suppress it. But what I can handle, others may not."
"If I'm not mistaken, the great gods at capital city god level stay hidden precisely because the incense fire burdens them, requiring seclusion to preserve their divinity and avoid qi deviation. On the flip side, it's also a fine chance to temper one's divine intent."
His words finished, Ancestor Master Tingyou turned to Lu Yang.
"Aren't you cultivating sword intent?"
"Though I know nothing of swordsmanship, per my deductions, controlled use of this incense fire divine power should aid your sword intent tempering."
Lu Yang's heart stirred.
But he quickly calmed. Using incense fire divine power to forge sword intent was feasible—but it required a stable external environment.
*Soon, though.*
A gleam of certainty flashed in Lu Yang's eyes.
A decade of lurking, covert proselytizing: the White Lotus Cult was now an empty shell, its innards hollowed out and devoured by him.
His method was simple: nest-building.
Using the base of the three White Lotus Divine Lords to expand outward, spreading by word of mouth among believers, turning one White Lotus cultist after another into banner spirits willingly.
By now, nine in ten believers had been secretly converted by Lu Yang into banner spirits. As long as he kept them from altering their faith—maintaining surface offerings, directing incense fire to the White Lotus Cult—the gods would struggle to detect anything amiss.
At this thought, Lu Yang pinched his fingers to divine.
*About time.*
Boom!
Soon after, thunderous blasts echoed outside Lihen Tian. Several vast incense fire powers formed sky-shrouding hands, clawing toward him!
Looking out, Lu Yang saw dense crowds beyond Lihen Tian—the weakest comparable to early Foundation Establishment county city gods. Their auras erupted, weaving a gorgeous, myriad-treasure radiance that sealed the surrounding void domain.
Vacuum Homeland!
This time, the White Lotus Cult had mobilized en masse!
Leading them was none other than the Black Lotus Divine Venerable. His incense fire divine power nearly substantialized; his aura rivaled Long Yue's.
Yet Lu Yang showed no panic.
*Though I deliberately left this loophole, I didn't expect the White Lotus Cult to bite so readily. They've improved since ten years ago, at least.*
They'd learned to bully with numbers.
But did they never consider traps? Or assume their might could crush any?
Pity their beautiful notions played right into his hands.
*With my momentum secured, their 'bullying with numbers' is just group deliveries of heads.*
At the thought, Lu Yang sighed inwardly.
*Divining karma, scheming layouts, toying with foes in my palm—everything as foreseen. Feels like ages since this thrill!*
*Ah.*
He somewhat understood the World Honored One now.
Fishing with explosives feels great!
With that resolve, the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner appeared in Lu Yang's hand. The next instant, the vast incense fire—enough to sustain a capital city god at Foundation Establishment perfection, once the White Lotus Cult's—surged toward Lihen Tian!
(End of chapter)