Chapter 392
Chapter 392
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 392
Chapter Title: Sudden Change!
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Outside Lihen Tian.
The White Lotus Cult had mobilized its entire sect, even transporting the sacred realm of the Vacuum Hometown along with it. The soaring incense fire nearly ignited the cloud sea.
If anyone on the ground looked up into the sky, it would seem as though a second sun had risen amid the clouds. To put it bluntly, if this Vacuum Hometown were to crash down, it would topple the heavens and shatter the earth. Gods and mortals alike would perish without burial!
At this moment, the Black Lotus Divine Venerable brimmed with confidence.
"A mere Lihen Tian, a single evil cult—today, I shall uproot it completely, set the world right, and ensure no one dares underestimate my cult's dominion."
He had noticed Lu Yang's little schemes.
This included cultivating Lihen Tian's incense fire within the White Lotus Cult itself—a case of borrowing a chicken to hatch eggs, siphoning away the White Lotus Cult's very foundations. Naturally, he could not tolerate it.
That was why he had assembled such a force today.
"The entire cult mobilized for battle, dozens of Divine Lords, Great Divine Lords, and even the Vacuum Hometown brought along. In a pinch, the Eternal Mother can strike as well."
How could they lose?
No sooner had this thought arisen in the Black Lotus Divine Venerable's mind than a vast divine sense suddenly spread from Lihen Tian before him!
"It's here!"
The Black Lotus Divine Venerable's expression grew grave. In the next instant, he felt the incense fire that belonged to his cult begin to divert, trickling bit by bit toward the enemy.
Yet he remained utterly confident.
"My White Lotus Cult has ruled its devotees for how many years? A mere Lihen Tian thinks it can hollow us out in a decade? What folly!"
However, as time passed.
He gradually sensed something amiss. The incense fire's flow did not slow as he expected—instead, it intensified, accelerating wildly!
Meanwhile, Lihen Tian's aura grew ever stronger!
"Not good!"
In a flash, the Black Lotus Divine Venerable roared in fury, ordering all the White Lotus incense gods to act. But the next moment, a despairing sight unfolded:
Lihen Tian lit up.
Like a sun igniting, dense incense divine light gathered upon it, manifesting scenes of bustling carriages, pavilions, towers, and myriad visions.
In stark contrast, the once-radiant Vacuum Hometown abruptly dimmed. The Black Lotus Divine Venerable turned in horror to his side, where a White Lotus Divine Lord stood—yet now, its incense fire had scattered, terror lingering in its pupils:
"Save—"
Before it could squeeze out a plea from its throat, with the incense fire gone, its body lost all support and exploded into flames in an instant!
But this was merely the first.
Boom!
The Black Lotus Divine Venerable looked out to see one fireburst after another erupting in midair, each one the demise of an incense god!
Such were the flaws of the incense god path!
Within Lihen Tian, Lu Yang manifested as a luminous shadow, calmly overlooking the horde of incense gods below. Insights into this cultivation system dawned on him:
"This system... all flash, no substance!"
Simply put, it relied far too heavily on incense, on external forces.
Yet its entry threshold was absurdly high—even the weakest Earth God feigned Foundation Establishment level, capable in truth of mass species extinction.
This created an awkward bind.
Once true combat erupted without restraint, it would inevitably engulf the ordinary folk providing the incense, causing the faith-bound incense gods to drop dead.
Even worse, Earth Gods, City Gods—these incense deities could only unleash full power in areas dense with their worshippers. But unleashing full power would instantly slay those worshippers in the aftermath, dooming the god as its incense scattered.
"What a massive pitfall!"
At this thought, Lu Yang couldn't help but chuckle. In other words, so-called incense gods were nothing but paper tigers, utterly incapable of real combat.
Earth God feigning Foundation Establishment? Just a bluff to scare folks!
"Even as a mere Qi Refining cultivator, if I seize the moment and slaughter an entire village in a flash, no matter how mighty the Earth God, it's still a death sentence!"
Qi Refining slaying Foundation Establishment—here, it was entirely feasible!
"Borrowing external power is fine in moderation, but relying wholly on it leads to fates like these incense gods." Lu Yang murmured inwardly, then shook his head.
One must rely on oneself.
He hadn't taken it to heart back then, but now he saw the truth: those words applied everywhere.
Soon enough, Lu Yang snapped back from his reverie. Relying on oneself was right, but sometimes, for breaking a deadlock, external tools had their place.
"The incense god path's flaws are glaring, but in my hands, they're no issue at all. Once they're in my Ten Thousand Spirits Banner, all problems vanish. So what if their strength is fake? Their rank is real enough—and that's plenty!"
With this realization, Lu Yang hesitated no longer.
Incense infusion!
At last, as over ninety percent of the White Lotus Cult's incense fire drained away, the Black Lotus Divine Venerable and every last incense god erupted into flying ashes across the sky.
It was then.
"Who...?"
From within the Vacuum Hometown came a dazed query. A graceful silhouette emerged—a female cultivator in white robes, her features strikingly beautiful.
She was the Eternal Mother of No Birth.
She had slumbered until now, roused by the incense ebb, still uncomprehending when Lu Yang seized her.
Boom!
Lu Yang now hovered midair, head throbbing with pain as myriad incense fires bolstered Lihen Tian. He felt himself soaring endlessly, reaching an untouchable pinnacle. Correspondingly, the Eternal Mother before him shrank, bit by bit.
In the end, she dwindled to a palm-sized doll in his grasp.
"This is rank."
Peak Foundation Establishment rank!
The disparity was like a Foundation Establishment expert overlooking Qi Refining back in the day—one lofty, one lowly. The latter's every trick was worthless before him now!
Yet at the same time, Lu Yang felt stabs in his brain, faint murmurs in his ears—the emotions embedded in worship: pleas for fame, profit, divination, even offspring...
"No wonder the patriarch said incense fire tempers sword intent!"
Lu Yang drew a deep breath, then entered Sword Heart Illumination once more. Even so, the headache persisted fiercely.
"Three minutes? No, at most one."
With his sword heart, he could endure this tier of incense for just one minute. Beyond that, irreversible corruption set in.
But for now, one minute sufficed.
After all, with the White Lotus incense transferred, his rank had risen; the Eternal Mother's had plummeted.
Pfft!
Lu Yang squeezed lightly, popping her like a balloon, then refined her into a banner spirit with a palm flip.
Only then did he withdraw from the incense infusion.
The大局 was settled!
"Borrow the chicken to hatch the egg—success. Next, repeat the trick: siphon the entire City God system, nurture nine peak Foundation Establishment incense Great Gods!"
"Smooth beyond belief."
At this, Lu Yang couldn't resist swiping himself with Calamity Wave, half-fearing it was all a dream and he'd wake at the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect's gates...
But then.
"Hm?"
A sudden stir in his heart—the Puppet on Strings talent shifted. A quick sense, and surprise colored his face.
"The Yun Clan ancestor's reincarnated? And headed to the Law Refining Secret Realm?"
Something was off!
"Normally, the Yun Clan ancestor should reincarnate in a few decades, then slip into the Primal Saint Sect's Law Refining Secret Realm on orders from the Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion Sect Master."
Why so soon?
This drastic divergence from his past life snapped Lu Yang from his post-slaughter ease. He swiftly projected his gaze via Puppet on Strings.
The next instant—
"Hahaha!"
Lu Yang heard狂妄 laughter erupt. Looking up, he beheld a robust soul raging at the heavens:
"Damnable Devil Sect! You beasts!"
"Beasts!"
"I, Mu Changsheng, swear undying enmity with you—!!!"
(End of chapter)