Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Dueling Arts!
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The moment Lu Yang appeared and spoke, the Heavenly Capital turned black and white. An indescribable ripple expanded in all directions.
Wherever the ripple passed, everything was annihilated.
Buildings vanished, pedestrians disappeared, and everything seemed as if it had never existed. It treated everyone the same, whether they were beggars on the street or celestial martial artists.
"How can this be!?"
A celestial martial artist roared in terror, unable to accept it.
But no matter how they reacted—whether they fled, stood bewildered, or became hysterical—they could only dissipate silently within that ripple.
The only exception was the 'Sage Heart Scholar' Wang Boyuan. This peerless genius who had pioneered the fourth step of martial arts was unexpectedly calm. He simply looked up at the sky, a hint of relief on his face. "Gazing at fate, observing the heavens... Heh, how can a frog at the bottom of a well speak of gazing at fate, let alone observing the heavens?"
Wang Boyuan had realized something was wrong long ago, when he broke through to the celestial realm.
Wang Boyuan created the "Three Talents Fate-Gazing Art" to calculate the heavens through human means. However, when he exhausted all his life's learning to peer into the world, a tremendous change occurred.
Because he saw that the world was flawed!
Though exquisite, it was not self-consistent, like a meticulously crafted counterfeit!
He once thought he had miscalculated, that his Fate-Gazing Art was imperfect. Yet, no matter how many times he recalculated, the result never changed.
Was the world truly flawed, and mortal life just an illusion?
From then on, the once dashing and elegant 'Sage Heart Scholar,' with his feather fan and silk turban, became a slovenly man who spent his days drinking and wasting his life away.
Now, he saw the truth.
Only at this moment did Wang Boyuan finally regain some of the heroic spirit of the 'Sage Heart Scholar' of old. He looked at the sky, his relief tinged with regret.
"What a pity... If only I could have a glimpse of the real world, it would surely be a joyous occasion."
The next second, his figure dissipated.
The entire Heavenly Capital vanished from the land just like that. Everyone was gone, leaving only the Yun family ancestor's residence and Lu Yang in mid-air.
In the blink of an eye, Lu Yang had used his authority over the secret realm to erase the entire Heavenly Capital. All living beings were stored in the deepest part of the Art Refining Secret Realm, waiting for the next disciple to reactivate them. Meanwhile, he compressed the secret realm space where the Heavenly Capital had been, confining it around the Yun family ancestor.
By doing so, the space became highly condensed, preventing the Yun family ancestor from escaping through the void.
"Lu Yang."
The Yun family ancestor's voice was filled with apprehension and frustration.
Apprehension, because Lu Yang's current strength was no longer something he could underestimate. Frustration, because he himself was the cause of all this!
Without him, even if Lu Yang had mastered the Sage's Theft, it would never have been this perfect!
How could he not be frustrated?
However, the Yun family ancestor quickly suppressed all his negative emotions and said in a deep voice, "By erasing the Heavenly Capital, aren't you afraid that the Sage's Theft will lose the support of destiny?"
"Senior, you worry too much."
Lu Yang smiled faintly upon hearing this.
"Since the Sage's Theft is already perfected, the world's destiny is no longer important to me. After all, since it is 'theft,' how could I possibly return what I've taken? In comparison, Senior should be more concerned about his own current situation."
"...Are you threatening me?"
The Yun family ancestor's expression grew darker. The aura he had been restraining was gradually released, brimming with killing intent.
"You dare speak so insolently to me, all by yourself?"
"Just a reincarnated Foundation Establishment cultivator. What's so special about that?"
Lu Yang met his challenge head-on, not yielding an inch.
"I happen to be in need of a reincarnated Foundation Establishment soul to research a secret art. Senior, you've arrived at the perfect time to aid my cultivation."
"Junior, you're courting death!"
Amidst his fury, the Yun family ancestor also assessed the current situation. He even felt a bit fortunate that Lu Yang hadn't left the secret realm and had chosen to fight him instead.
If Lu Yang had left the secret realm to report him, he would surely be dead.
But now that he had come alone, perhaps there was still a chance to salvage the situation!
The Yun family ancestor frantically channeled his magical power. A brilliant golden light erupted from above his head, splitting into three colors. Gold, silver, and jade shone together, instantly illuminating the sky!
Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower!
Unlike Yun Miaozhen's half-baked version, the Yun family ancestor's Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower was the complete, successfully refined version—a true grand divine ability!
In an instant, the vast golden light surged forth. The world seemed to obey its passage as it swept up the surrounding spiritual energy, forming a monstrous wave that crashed down towards Lu Yang.
Lu Yang's vision was then filled with a golden glow, as if he had been instantly isolated in another world. His vital essence began to drain away, his body withered, his true qi depleted, his magical power weakened, his will scattered, and his spiritual sense dulled. His essence, qi, and spirit were all being scoured away by the golden light!
But the next second, Lu Yang stomped his foot.
*Rumble!*
In that moment, the entire secret realm seemed to tremble violently, like the tremors caused when someone jumps from a great height and lands on the ground.
Almost simultaneously, the Yun family ancestor's spiritual sense was violently shaken.
The condensed Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower actually exploded and scattered the instant Lu Yang stomped his foot. The essence, qi, and spirit it had scoured away rapidly returned to Lu Yang's body.
The next second, Lu Yang moved.
With a cold smile, he flicked his sleeve. Countless streams of smoke and fire flew from his body, spiraling and coiling around him. A deafening blast erupted from within, causing the Yun family ancestor's ears to ring with pain. He looked up to see a magnificent golden body rising from the ground, as large as a mountain, wreathed in the aura of the mortal world.
"Steal the world's destiny, forge a sage's golden body!"
Only now did Lu Yang truly reveal the power of his perfected Sage's Theft. The 'Dharma' had used destiny to manifest a form, creating a 'Sage's Manifestation'!
Seeing this, the Yun family ancestor hurriedly urged his Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower.
For a moment, the golden flower filled the sky, splitting into three lights representing essence, qi, and spirit. Arranged like the sun, moon, and stars, and heavier than a mountain, it came crashing down towards Lu Yang.
But before the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower could land, the colossal 'Sage's Manifestation' extended a magnificent hand. The palm, full and round, as translucent as jade, descended from the sky. With a simple closing of its five fingers, it captured the majestic Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower, along with the Yun family ancestor, in its grasp!
"How dare you!"
The Yun family ancestor grunted. The Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower expanded continuously, growing ever more blazing until it almost became a golden sun, trying to force open the hand of the 'Sage's Manifestation'.
On the other side, however, Lu Yang also formed a hand seal.
His own body gradually became illusory, while the 'Sage's Manifestation' behind him grew more real, more solemn and majestic, and increasingly impervious to external forces.
The burst of power from the Yun family ancestor's Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower could at most scour away a layer of its flesh. But no sooner was it scoured away than Lu Yang would regenerate it. The result was a battle of attrition, one side consuming magical power and the other consuming vital essence. The ancestor could gain no advantage.
"Delays will bring complications... I must take him down as quickly as possible!"
The Yun family ancestor's thoughts raced. He knew that Lu Yang had obtained a great fortune with his help; the Sage's Theft was near its ultimate form, comparable to a grand divine ability.
To defeat him, he would have to use more powerful methods.
At this thought, the Yun family ancestor immediately took out a spherical magic treasure. It was none other than the 'Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument' bestowed upon him by the Sect Master of the Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion before his reincarnation.
The Yun family ancestor offered this spirit treasure to the air, then bowed respectfully.
"I request the Heavenly Duke to act."
As his voice fell, the Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument began to spin, pulling the surrounding space along with it. Up, down, left, right, front, and back were all inverted in an instant!
Within the range of the 'Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument', all positional changes were thrown into chaos. Forward was actually backward, left was actually up, and up was actually forward... all according to the will of the treasure's wielder. As it was deployed, the 'Sage's Manifestation' suddenly lost its momentum and strength, allowing the Yun family ancestor to escape.
Immediately after, he held the 'Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument' and aimed it at Lu Yang.
In an instant, Lu Yang felt a violent tremor run through his entire body. The 'Sage's Manifestation' seemed to be pinned by a vast magical power, unable to move, frozen in place.
The Yun family ancestor had clearly distorted the direction of all Lu Yang's movements into 'staying still'.
After immobilizing the 'Sage's Manifestation', the Yun family ancestor didn't stop. He continuously unleashed the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower, clearly intending to break it apart with this method of slow attrition.
"So strong, far too strong."
Seeing this, Lu Yang praised with a smile. The Yun family ancestor's strength was undeniable; after all, he was a reincarnated Foundation Establishment cultivator with a supreme treasure like the Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument in his hands.
In terms of pure strength, if they fought a hundred times, he would probably lose a hundred times.
However, duels of arts were not decided by strength alone. Just as a chess player can defeat an opponent on the board, there are also ways to win off the board.
Meanwhile, outside the Art Refining Secret Realm, Lu Yang's Innate Primal Qi avatar had been traveling non-stop and arrived directly before the entrance of Perfected Being Yin Shan's secluded cultivation cave.
"Perfected Being! I wish to report something!"
"There's a bad person inside the secret realm!"
(End of this chapter)