Chapter 80
Chapter 80
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Listening to the Netherworld
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Looking at the lifelike red wax divine statue, Lu Yang's interest grew even greater. In his previous life, he had spent a full ten years researching the souls of Foundation Establishment cultivators.
It was precisely because of this that he could tell.
"I wonder which senior is before me?"
Lu Yang cupped his hands and looked directly at the statue before him. In his eyes, a wisp of a Foundation Establishment soul was clearly hidden within the red wax-carved divine statue!
However, the divine statue did not respond, merely continuing on its own course and declaring, "To violate my sect's authority is a crime that ten thousand deaths cannot redeem!"
As its voice fell, it took a step forward and vanished in a flash. The distance between it and Lu Yang was crossed in a single stride, and it clenched its five fingers into a fist to strike!
Seeing this, Lu Yang neither dodged nor evaded, throwing a punch of his own.
Upon seeing this, the black-robed Daoist was overjoyed.
This Patriarchal Divine Statue was no ordinary item. It was a protective treasure that only someone of his high standing within the Netherworld Listening Sect could obtain.
Carrying it on one's person on a daily basis could significantly slow the rate at which one was devoured by Sorcerer-Ghosts. In times of need, it could even be used like this to summon the Patriarch's true spirit to suppress enemies. Despite its mere red wax body, a single punch was enough to shatter mountains and crack stones—something no mortal flesh could withstand.
Therefore, in his eyes, Lu Yang was simply seeking his own death.
Boom!
The next second, a loud bang exploded between Lu Yang and the divine statue. A roiling wave of air swept out in all directions, and then Lu Yang's body directly disintegrated.
Whoosh—!
Clouds rose and fell, qi scattered and gathered. The roiling white smoke surged and churned, quickly pulling away from the divine statue before rapidly re-forming into Lu Yang's figure.
"What is this thing!?"
The black-robed Daoist was dumbfounded, clearly shaken by Lu Yang's ability to disperse and reform at will. His gaze towards Lu Yang became increasingly wary.
On the other side, Lu Yang's face was filled with admiration.
"What a fine divine statue."
Amidst his admiration, he also became certain in his heart: this so-called Netherworld Listening Sect was, in all likelihood, the handiwork left behind by a reincarnated Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Sorcerer-Ghost Dao!
"I knew it. A centipede dies but never falls down. Since the Sorcerer-Ghost Dao wasn't completely wiped out, they must have left some formidable contingency plans... Although, based on the results I saw in my previous life, this plan most likely failed. But for me now, it's still a behemoth."
As Lu Yang pondered, the divine statue had already charged at him again.
It was another punch, and Lu Yang responded with a punch of his own, but he was still beaten back, forced to disintegrate once more and reform in the distance.
"I'm no match for it..."
Lu Yang sighed. This Innate Primal Qi avatar of his specialized in the martial path, but its physical body was inferior to the divine statue's. With its greatest advantage gone, it was naturally difficult to win.
"...However, you can call for backup, but can't I?"
The next second, Lu Yang abruptly formed a hand seal.
Crack!
A fissure opened behind Lu Yang's head. Magnificent golden light poured out from the crack, finally transforming into a massive hand, heavier than a mountain, that reached out!
Outside the secret realm, Lu Yang's true self had made a move!
The great golden hand spread its five fingers. In its palm was a formation array suffused with bloody light. With a downward slap, it instantly swallowed the divine statue into the formation.
"Blood-Washing Celestial River Sword Formation Diagram, activate!"
Lu Yang formed a seal, and a ghastly rain of blood immediately began to fall within the formation. Each drop of blood was like a sharp sword light, slashing down towards the divine statue.
"Impudent junior!"
The divine statue stood awe-inspiringly, ten thousand ghosts roaring around its body, showing no fear. The wisp of the Foundation Establishment soul within it also regained its clarity and immediately sent a voice transmission:
"A mere seventh-rank formation cannot hold me."
"Which sect are you a disciple of? If you can rescue me, I will reward you handsomely. If you are willing, come to the headquarters of the Netherworld Listening Sect to meet me..."
"Senior, you seem to have misunderstood."
Outside the secret realm, Lu Yang's true self gave a cold smile. "The formation isn't meant to deal with you, Senior. It's just to trap you temporarily and prevent your escape."
"...What?"
The next second, outside the formation, the 'Sage's Visage' that Lu Yang's true self was manifesting moved with a roar. The great golden hand clenched around the formation, the authority of the Sage-Thief pushed to its absolute limit. He then slammed his palms together, as if using an eraser on a line of text in a book, instantly wiping away everything in his hand.
When the great golden hand opened again, the divine statue had already been crushed to dust.
Only a residual glow remained, which was caught by Lu Yang's Innate Primal Qi avatar. It was the divine ability's light of [Lord of the Profound Nether Capturing the Netherworld Authority].
As for Lu Yang's true self, he simply severed his own arm.
After all, his hand had already reached into the secret realm. With the Golden Core sword qi present, he couldn't pull it back out. Keeping it would be a waste, and besides, he could grow it back anyway.
Immediately after, Lu Yang had his avatar put away the [Lord of the Profound Nether Capturing the Netherworld Authority]. After examining it for a moment, he sighed with some regret. "It's still incomplete... one percent at most. That makes sense. This statue looks mass-produced; it couldn't possibly have been imbued with too powerful a divine ability."
As Lu Yang sighed, the black-robed Daoist at his side went mad.
He stared blankly at the divine statue that Lu Yang had crushed to dust. Only after a long while did he come to his senses, and his eyes instantly turned blood-red as he looked at Lu Yang:
"You dare destroy our sect's Patriarchal Divine Statue?"
Hearing this, Lu Yang raised an eyebrow. "So that was the Patriarch of the Netherworld Listening Sect... A Foundation Establishment cultivator can really live that long? Has he been continuously reincarnating, barely hanging on for a thousand years?"
The black-robed Daoist, however, paid no mind to Lu Yang's words. The Netherworld Listening Sect was deeply rooted in the secret realm, revered by all. Now that the Patriarchal Divine Statue was destroyed, it was as if his faith had been desecrated, and he instantly lost his sanity. "For destroying the Patriarch's statue, our sect will never let you rest in the future!"
Before his voice had even faded, he roared and lunged towards Lu Yang.
Seeing this, Lu Yang sneered. "At this point, it's *I* who will not let *you* rest!"
With that, he flicked his large sleeve, and his Innate True Qi formed a great hand that seized the black-robed Daoist. Then, with a slam to the ground, it smashed both man and ghost into fine powder.
However, Lu Yang did not leave immediately. Instead, he waited patiently for a moment.
Soon, the yin qi in the area reconverged, and a brand-new black-clothed ghost emerged. It was the very same Sorcerer-Ghost, the 'Name-Taker', that he had just smashed to pieces!
Lu Yang observed the entire process of the Sorcerer-Ghost's revival, clicking his tongue in amazement. "Just as I thought. So this is how the Sorcerer-Ghost Dao has managed to cling to life until now."
Sorcerer-Ghosts can't be killed!
The Sorcerer-Ghost secret realm is deeply rooted, almost bound to the earth veins beneath Skull Mountain. The inside and outside are seamlessly integrated, forming a sealed, cyclical system.
When a Sorcerer-Ghost dies, it turns into yin qi and merges with the earth veins. Then, the yin qi within the earth veins re-coalesces into a Sorcerer-Ghost and enters the secret realm, thus achieving a different kind of immortality. To break this cycle, one must either uproot the secret realm along with the Skull Mountain earth veins, or force the secret realm to manifest in the world.
The latter was Perfected Being Yin Shan's method, simply because no one would do the former.
It's not that it couldn't be done, but that no one would do it. Uprooting earth veins is an act that severely damages one's merit, directly affecting future reincarnations.
One must understand, even Golden Core Perfected Beings are not truly immortal.
When their lifespan is exhausted, they too must reincarnate to cultivate anew. And if they have done too many things that consume merit, they will inevitably face more tribulations after reincarnating.
"So that's why this strand of Golden Core sword qi was left in the secret realm, choosing to boil the frog slowly rather than flipping the table directly..."
"From this perspective, my actions of collecting ghosts are actually inadvisable. It will gradually lead to the yin qi in the earth veins beneath Skull Mountain being drained..."
"...But, so what?"
Lu Yang reached out and grabbed. The newly revived black-clothed ghost was thrown into his Ten Thousand Spirits Banner, completely unconcerned about whether it would affect the earth veins of Skull Mountain.
Merit? If I don't have it, then I don't have it.
A low point in this life just means more room for improvement in the next.