Chapter 488 489: Ang Xiao Emerges!
Chapter 489: Ang Xiao Emerges!
Within the Pure Land, no one noticed the changes in [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying].
Deep within his sea of consciousness, [Ang Xiao] remained busy with his meticulous preparations. He certainly had no intention of snatching food from the World-Honored One's mouth—that would be no different from courting death.
Moreover, the World-Honored One had never been one to care about face.
Though [Ang Xiao] believed he had no conflict of interest with the World-Honored One, provoking him would still invite unnecessary trouble.
Thus, his plan was merely to borrow [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying].
'[Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying], as an External Path True Lord, achieved an External Dao Fruition closely resembling the imagery of [Earth in Sand], making it highly likely to attract the manifestation of a Fruit Position.'
External Path True Lords were not absolute.
If the External Dao Fruition held by an External Path True Lord aligned with the orthodox Fruit Positions of the local realm, there was hope for them to merge their External Dao Fruition with an orthodox Fruit Position.
The principle was similar to that of second-grade True Arts.
However, the risks were immense. External Path True Lords lacked a Dongtian and Metal Essence, meaning their attempts to seek orthodox Fruit Positions carried significant chances of failure.
Moreover, without Metal Essence, there was no possibility of reincarnation.
Thus, External Path True Lords had only one lifetime. Unable to rely on Metal Essence for rebirth, they lived permanently—once their lifespan ended, death was final, with no afterlife to speak of.
For the sake of immortality, many External Path True Lords were still willing to take the risk of failure.
To seek orthodoxy through the External Path, the first step was to integrate their External Dao Fruition into the world.
Only by merging their External Dao Fruition with the world and aligning with its rules could they gain recognition from the Fruit Position, allowing them to sense the orthodox Fruit Positions of the local realm and no longer be rejected.
Yet once an External Dao Fruition merged with the world, it meant accepting the rules of this broken place. Their Fruit Positions would then require Foundation Establishment to elevate them. The upside was that the Fruit Position's rank could rise, making them stronger. The downside was that they would henceforth be bound by its limitations.
Such was the vast gap between the External Path and orthodoxy.
More often than not, when External Path True Lords sought local orthodox Fruit Positions, their External Dao Fruition would be devoured by the orthodox Fruit Position while they themselves remained unaccepted.
They died, and their Fruit Position was lost.
The well-fed orthodox Fruit Position would then dust itself off and walk away without a care.
Thus, orthodox True Lords looked down upon External Path True Lords—so much so that a single phrase could vividly capture their disdain:
Even [True Lord of Bearing Heaven's True Virtue] disdained External Path True Lords.
Fortunately, [Ang Xiao] couldn't care less.
'I don't need [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying] to truly achieve [Earth in Sand]. I just need him to attract [Earth in Sand] so I can pull it into the Netherworld!'
Afterward, [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying] would be returned intact.
As for the World-Honored One, as long as [Ang Xiao] remained hidden in the [Netherworld], unless the World-Honored One paid a tremendous price to descend in person, there would be nothing he could do.
"But when you do something... you go all out!"
Having activated [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying] as his trump card, [Ang Xiao] naturally aimed for something grand—why settle for just [Earth in Sand]?
'Suo Huan!'
[Ang Xiao] shifted his thoughts, intending to contact Suo Huan next to draw out [Flowing Water]. Yet in the next instant, his expression abruptly changed:
'What happened?'
Within the Netherworld, [Ang Xiao]'s original body suddenly stood up, his face grave—because just moments ago, his karmic connection with Suo Huan had—
Snapped!
Overseas, within the Earth Fire Heart Furnace.
"Such wonders still exist in this world..."
Suo Huan stared dumbfounded at the man before him, identical in appearance, only to feel an overwhelming surge of divine sense flooding his mind.
The secrets of the Blessed Land of the Numinous Ruins.
The trap within the Myriad Spirits Return to Ruins Dao Scripture.
The Knowledge-Perception Obstruction.
In an instant, realization dawned in Suo Huan's eyes before settling into calm resignation. "Very well. If you can accomplish it, then take everything."
With those words, Suo Huan's aura instantly waned. His head lolled, and his life dissipated. His [Blessed Land of the Numinous Ruins] was stripped of all its essence, merging into the man opposite him, causing his aura to skyrocket. Within mere breaths, it reached a critical threshold.
The next moment, the man—or rather, Banner Spirit Suo Huan—turned and bowed respectfully:
"Thank you for your generosity, my lord."
"...No matter."
Lü Yang's immortal fetus avatar stepped out from the shadows, eyeing Banner Spirit Suo Huan with mild surprise. Truthfully, he had expected a fierce battle.
Yet the outcome was nothing of the sort.
Upon learning the truth, the original Suo Huan of this lifetime had chosen not to resist. Instead, he willingly ended his own life, gifting everything to Banner Spirit Suo Huan.
All for a single fixation:
'Seek Metal Essence, rebuild [Huanxu Realm].'
Suo Huan's gaze was resolute—this had been his sole purpose in clinging to life and cultivation. Since he himself had no hope, he entrusted it to another version of himself.
"How do you feel?" Lü Yang asked.
"Mostly restored."
Suo Huan's face brightened with excitement. His [Blessed Land of the Numinous Ruins] had been severely damaged in his previous life due to drawing upon [Flowing Water], teetering on the brink of complete collapse.
But after absorbing the essence of the original Suo Huan's [Blessed Land of the Numinous Ruins], all losses had been largely restored. With the addition of a first-grade Official Position from the Dao Court to refine Metal Essence, he could immediately conduct the ritual to attract the attention of [Spring Water] and attempt to ascend and seek Metal Essence!
At this thought, Suo Huan immediately turned to Lü Yang:
"My lord, what if we proceed now?"
"See, you're rushing again."
Lü Yang shook his head with a chuckle. "Slow and steady wins the race. There's no need to hurry. Fellow Daoist, return first to seclusion and settle your mind before proceeding."
"...Understood."
Suo Huan nodded, taking a deep breath to rein in his emotions. Clearly, he recognized his own impatience—such a state was ill-suited for ascending to seek Metal Essence.
The next moment, Suo Huan transformed into a streak of light and vanished into the Myriad Spirits Banner.
But just then—
Boom!
With a deafening roar that shook heaven and earth, a figure descended from the sky outside the Earth Fire Heart Furnace, radiant with Buddhist light—it was [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying]!
'Let's see who you really are!'
Within the sea of consciousness of [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying], [Ang Xiao]'s gaze turned icy. A massive hand spanned tens of thousands of miles of sea, ruthlessly grasping toward Lü Yang.
In that split second, Lü Yang hesitated not at all.
—Self-destruct!
Bang!
Explosive bloodlight erupted from [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying]'s fingertips, irreversible. [Ang Xiao] could only watch helplessly as Lü Yang vanished.
Not only that, as he manipulated [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying] to emerge from the Pure Land, the aura previously concealed by the [Knowledge-Perception Obstruction] was instantly detected. The gazes of several Bodhisattvas from the Pure Land immediately locked onto him, thick with suspicion.
"Something's amiss... Long She?"
"The Unity of All Beings remains unbroken, yet Long She's response feels sluggish... You're not Long She! What manner of fiend are you?"
"..."
Faced with the Bodhisattvas' interrogations, [Bodhisattva Long She Pan Ying]—or rather, [Ang Xiao]—couldn't even be bothered to respond. Instead, he looked up at the sky.
The World-Honored One did not appear.
'Just as I predicted.'
[Ang Xiao] smiled faintly, abandoning all concealment. With a thought, a brilliant light shot into the heavens, instantly igniting a star in the firmament:
[Earth in Sand]!
Simultaneously, a dark portal opened behind his head—clearly the gateway to the Netherworld. Beyond it stood [Ang Xiao]'s original body, shrouded in mist.
Meanwhile, in the Jiangdong Dao Court.
Lü Yang's true body abruptly opened his eyes, gazing toward the overseas direction. After a brief flicker of shock, his expression gradually settled into genuine admiration:
'What a formidable Ang Xiao!'
'He realized I was deliberately targeting him. To avoid prolonging the inevitable, he played his trump card early... Decisive and ruthless—truly worthy of being a True Lord of our Saint Sect!'
In such a short time, Lü Yang had dealt with Daoist Hong Yun and handled Suo Huan. Given more time, once he used the [Heaven of Non-Existence] to remove the True Lords of the world and trapped [Ang Xiao] in the Netherworld, he could feign holding [Overturned Lamp Flame] and deal [Ang Xiao] a devastating blow... It would have been a slow, inevitable demise.
Yet [Ang Xiao] sensed the anomaly.
He might not have known Lü Yang's exact plans, but his keen intuition alerted him to the danger. Thus, he struck first, leaving Lü Yang struggling to counter!