Chapter 495
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 0
Chapter Title: Timing Has Arrived
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"Thank you, Senior!"
Under the gaze of Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord, Lu Yang showed no trace of worry. He simply reached out with a large hand and pocketed the wisp of divine sense that Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord had split off.
Such a calm move immediately raised Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord's eyebrows.
'He's not afraid?'
It had to be known that he wasn't bluffing—the Ji Earth Dao attainment he offered truly contained a trap! And without True Lord cultivation, it was impossible to spot the issue.
This was a test in itself.
Yet Lu Yang acted so composed. Either asking for the Ji Earth Dao attainment was just a smokescreen, or he had a True Lord backing him.
As these thoughts raced through Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord's mind, he turned his attention to the jade slip Lu Yang handed over. A sweep of divine sense revealed the so-called Long Flowing Water intelligence: In the Primal Saint Sect's Law Refining Secret Realm, there was a perfect Foundation Establishment soul who had cultivated Long Flowing Water?
'This could actually be useful to me.'
After Suo Huan's connection broke, he could no longer draw in Long Flowing Water.
A perfect Foundation Establishment cultivator of Long Flowing Water—even if just a soul—could be helped to reform a body, then seek gold once more.
But the problem was: it was too coincidental.
In that instant, Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord felt no joy, only heightened vigilance. He didn't believe Lu Yang was sharing this out of kindness.
'A trap! Definitely a trap!'
Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord wavered inwardly. 'A perfect Foundation Establishment cultivator of Long Flowing Water, perfectly matching my needs—could someone be baiting me?'
Boom!
With a massive rumble, Lu Yang resealed the cave-heaven fragment. Without another word to Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord, he left him to stew in suspicion.
As for the intelligence given to Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord, it pointed straight to the innate true person Mu Changsheng.
This wasn't deceiving him, either. After all, Mu Changsheng had been tossed into the Law Refining Secret Realm by the Primal Saint Sect's founding ancestor and hadn't yet had his divine abilities washed away by the underworld.
If Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord truly obtained Mu Changsheng, he might even succeed in drawing Long Flowing Water.
Of course, that would likely draw the Primal Saint Sect founding ancestor's attention. Lu Yang didn't care—he wished they'd clash.
With that thought, he rubbed his temples, a bit weary.
'Dealing with Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord really takes eight hundred schemes. Not a single honest word—every line a probe, every opportunity a hook.'
If not for his wealth of experience, that old beast would have swindled even his underpants away.
The next moment, Lu Yang pulled out the Ji Earth Dao attainment Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord had given him. At first glance, the knowledge seemed perfectly reasonable, but it surely hid lethal dangers.
Fortunately, he had a counter ready.
Jiangdong Dao Court.
Lu Yang's true body withdrew his consciousness, then shook the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner and retrieved the Sea-Commanding Conch that Dragon Lord had gifted him earlier. He softly called out:
"Grandpa..."
Moments later, the Sea-Commanding Conch trembled faintly.
A strand of divine will emerged from it—the old Dragon Lord. His majestic voice boomed forth: "What is it? Du Huan. Why summon me?"
"Reporting to Grandpa!"
Lu Yang immediately presented the Ji Earth Dao attainment, his tone urgent. "The mysterious figure who told me about the incense-offering divine path and realm-heaven coordinates has appeared again!"
"This time, he gave me this."
"Though I'm on the verge of breakthrough and truly need this Dao attainment knowledge, I'm worried there's something wrong with it. That's why I asked Grandpa to judge."
"Oh?"
The old Dragon Lord's eyebrows rose as he examined the Dao attainment knowledge Lu Yang had inscribed with divine sense. He immediately sensed a familiar mighty force within.
'This is... Knowledge Barrier!?'
The old Dragon Lord froze. The first thing that flashed in his mind was that inexplicable glance Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord had given him upon emerging.
At the time, he'd wondered why Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord was looking at him.
Now he understood.
'So Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord is the secret backer of my true dragon clan! If that's the case, that glance makes perfect sense!'
With that realization, he glanced at Du Huan.
'No wonder this grandson grew so fast, even exceeding my planned limits—reaching mid-Foundation Establishment in such a short time.'
The cultivation conditions for the Heavenly Speech Radiant Dragon Chapter were extremely harsh.
Only half-human, half-dragon could reach grand completion. Pure humans or pure dragons could at most reach Foundation Establishment; the higher one went, the harder it became.
From the start, the old Dragon Lord hadn't truly hoped the batch sent to Jiangdong would achieve much. In his view, their only use was breeding until a perfect half-dragon, half-human bloodline emerged—then he'd have his son White Chi's gold nature reincarnate and recultivate.
But Lu Yang had utterly exceeded expectations.
Clearly a pure true dragon, yet his progress in the Heavenly Speech Radiant Dragon Chapter was astonishingly swift, without bottlenecks—enough to arouse suspicion.
Now it all made sense.
'With Soaring Empyrean Sun-Obscuring True Lord backing him, it's no surprise.'
'After all, that's a late Golden Core great True Lord with a supreme fruit position. A mere half-human, half-dragon restriction is trivial to him.'
In that moment, the old Dragon Lord's mood soared.
He didn't care about Lu Yang's secrets. In his eyes, Lu Yang was a true dragon—any secrets would only benefit the true dragon clan.
'Even compared to Tian Qiu, Du Huan has far greater potential. Tianhe Water's image is severely damaged. Though a supreme fruit position, it's extremely hard to prove, and all sides covet it. If it truly comes to seeking gold, Tian Qiu may follow White Chi's fate.'
'By contrast, Du Huan's future is boundless.'
'He's in Jiangdong, deeply favored by Emperor Jia You. Given time, he might truly open a path for the true dragon clan there.'
The more the old Dragon Lord thought, the more favorably he viewed Lu Yang.
With that in mind, he casually dispelled the Knowledge Barrier in the Ji Earth Dao attainment and sent it back to Lu Yang. "Du Huan, do you still lack spiritual materials or treasures?"
'Hm?'
At those words, Lu Yang instantly grasped the old Dragon Lord's intent. 'He's seen my potential and plans to invest more in me?'
The next moment, Lu Yang sighed mournfully:
"Reporting to Grandpa, yes, I do!"
"Not just spiritual materials and treasures—I lack techniques too. Grandpa, you don't know how deep the Dao Court's waters run. Connections and networks all cost money!"
The old Dragon Lord waved grandly. "Don't worry, money's no issue!"
My Dragon Palace has mountains of gold and silver—endless wealth!
Moments later, Lu Yang gleefully received the massive batch of spiritual materials from the old Dragon Lord—enough to pay the Imperial City Division salaries for years.
Then he sent the old Dragon Lord off.
In the quiet chamber, Lu Yang decisively invoked the Immortal Kingdom Dao Law augmentation authority granted by Emperor Jia You and began digesting the Ji Earth-related Dao attainment knowledge.
Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.
In that time, Lu Yang expanded the Imperial City Division ever larger. With Emperor Jia You's tacit approval, it nearly monopolized Tian Wu City's inner and outer defenses.
Even One Heart Society grew massively.
In the end, not only demon cultivators but a substantial number of human cultivators joined—mostly low-ranking officials.
Finally, one crisp morning.
In the Imperial City Division yamen's quiet chamber, Lu Yang sat cross-legged. His lips parted slightly as he slowly exhaled a breath of turbid qi. A beam of radiance lit up at his brow.
It was dawn.
Abruptly, Lu Yang looked up. His mind merged with the sun rising languidly from the horizon. From his storage pouch, he retrieved two items:
Ji Earth and Wei Earth.
Over half a year, he'd cleared corruption multiple times while secretly embezzling Immortal Kingdom Dao Law augmentation authority. Today, his Dao attainment was finally complete!
The next moment, two Heavenly Gangs and Earthly Fiends descended into his palms.
He seized them and refined them in an instant!
Without the slightest hitch, rings of divine ability light blazed behind Lu Yang's head, interconnecting and blooming into a sun-like golden halo.
Emperor Si Ming. Return to Yuan Palace.
Heaven-Earth Union. Coiling Dragon Root!
Wu Earth, Wu Fire, Ji Earth, Wei Earth—the four divine abilities formed from Heavenly Gangs and Earthly Fiends melted in sequence, unfurling a majestic scroll behind Lu Yang:
Heavy Separation Imperial Edict Mountains-Seas Chart!
All divine abilities complete—Foundation Establishment perfection!
The next instant, the infinite blaze of divine abilities vanished as if never there. Lu Yang rose slowly, his eyes now unable to conceal their ambition:
'Emperor Jia You is useless to me now.'
'Half a year on, Heaven of Non-existence has expanded enough... The perfect chance for the ancestor to prove Heaven of Non-existence and drag all the realm's True Lords into the water!'
'The moment has come.'
Exterminate the vermin, shoot down the sun—now!