Chapter 306: Ang Xiao's Gambit
Chapter 306: Ang Xiao’s Gambit
Yu Shuzhen—once an Outer Sect disciple of the Holy Sect alongside Lv Yang—had shared an unusually close bond with him. It was her essence that had forged the protective guardian Su Nu.
Yet no matter how one looked at it, she shouldn't be here now!
And her cultivation...
Lv Yang’s eyes widened as he observed the scene unfolding within the Immortal Alliance Headquarters. Yu Shuzhen stood there, her aura vast and overwhelming, having already reached the Grand Harmony Stage of the Emerald Sun Cultivation Realm.
What did that mean?
The Emerald Sun Realm had been established by the Primordial True Sage. It bypassed conventional status rankings and focused solely on refining true qi. While Grand Harmony cultivators were theoretically still within the Refining Qi Perfection tier, their true qi could rival even second-tier Perfected Qi cultivators. With the aid of the Imperial Decree of Golden Inscription, they could even temporarily mimic the power of Foundation Building cultivators.
Lv Yang could almost accept Yu Shuzhen reaching this stage. After all, in a previous life, he’d orchestrated her transformation into a "Heaven-Blessed Daughter", during which she’d astonished him with her prodigious talent. She’d been the living embodiment of a superhuman.
But even so, she should not be here now. And she should not possess Refining Qi Perfection-level cultivation.
It had only been three years since his reincarnation. For an ordinary Outer Sect disciple to ascend to Dao-Harmonizing Refining Qi Perfection in such a short time?
Impossible!
Lv Yang’s gaze sharpened as he saw Yu Shuzhen enter the grand hall housing the Imperial Decree of Golden Inscription.
“This must be the place,” she murmured, her expression tense but eager. She raised her delicate hand, withdrawing a familiar banner from her satchel—the Ten-Thousand Spirit Banner.
Lv Yang’s mind clicked. So Liu Xin’s Primordial True Sage inheritance fell into her hands? That makes sense. In her previous life, she’d driven Liu Xin to death through sheer ruthlessness.
Realization dawned. He now understood why Yu Shuzhen had come here. But even so, her cultivation advancement defied logic. Three years to reach Refining Qi Perfection? Even he couldn’t match that pace if he started anew.
“Fellow Daoist? What’s wrong?”
Hong Ju, sensing Lv Yang’s sudden silence, followed his gaze to the figure inside the hall. Instinctively, he performed a divination technique—only to freeze.
Yu Shuzhen’s presence was shrouded by a treasure concealing heavenly mechanisms.
What secret does this woman hold? Hong Ju narrowed his eyes. Wait—that banner… Primordial True Sage?
Caution overriding action, he and Lv Yang remained still, observing Yu Shuzhen as she chanted incantations, her Ten-Thousand Spirit Banner swirling with energy.
After all, one was a Foundation Building Mid-Stage cultivator, the other a Foundation Building Perfection expert. Even if Yu Shuzhen could mimic Foundation Building power through the Imperial Decree, the gap remained insurmountable. Their concealed auras rendered them invisible to her.
“Primordial Qi, seal and command ten-thousand spirits!”
Yu Shuzhen poured her energy into the banner, which expanded into a boundless illusory space. This void merged seamlessly with the Imperial Decree of Golden Inscription.
Blinding light erupted. From it emerged a hazy figure—
A Primordial Dao Aberration!
Lv Yang’s mind raced, recalling intelligence from his previous life. Now he understood her goal.
This was the Primordial True Sage’s final contingency plan. By channeling the Ten-Thousand Spirit Banner, Yu Shuzhen sought to dominate the Dao Aberration, extract its Golden Nature essence, and cultivate the supreme first-tier true qi technique the Sage had devised. A plan so intricate, so flawless, it left him breathless.
But then realization struck.
Yu Shuzhen’s rapid ascension, her journey across oceans to reach the Emerald Sun Realm—she’d been orchestrated.
Someone had engineered this.
And that someone could only be… Ang Xiao.
The Primordial Dao Aberration… In his previous life, the Primordial True Sage had pursued the Golden Dao through the Everflowing Water Fruit Position, only to perish due to the Chen Earth calamity. Later, Chongguang’s failed Golden Pursuit had seen the Dao Aberration transformed into Ang Xiao’s peerless foundationless clone—a puppet that let him dominate the Modern Realm.
But that hadn’t happened yet. The Primordial Dao Aberration should still be sealed away.
Unless…
Ang Xiao had changed the timeline.
The truth crystallized: Ang Xiao needed a vessel to act on his behalf. The Dao Aberration was the perfect material. But the Primordial True Sage’s final act had trapped it using the Everflowing Water’s power. Only by triggering Heaven-Sundering Malice and Karmic Causality could it be freed—a feat Ang Xiao could accomplish, but one that risked exposing himself.
So he’d chosen subtlety.
He’d spent three years manipulating Karmic Causality, accelerating Yu Shuzhen’s growth to harvest the Dao Aberration now.
Yu Shuzhen was Ang Xiao’s gambit.
The moment Lv Yang pieced it together, he struck.
“Imperial Mountain-Moving Technique!”
Finger seals blazing, he executed the incantation in three swift steps. As Yu Shuzhen turned in shock, his fingertip pressed against her forehead.
Her true qi collapsed. The Ten-Thousand Spirit Banner, mid-ritual, shattered into disorder.
“.Ah?”
Yu Shuzhen’s scream of disbelief echoed the shock on Lv Yang’s own face.
Ang Xiao wasn’t watching?
Lv Yang had expected this to be a test—to gauge Ang Xiao’s reaction. But it had worked.
Was he absent? Too afraid to show himself?
Then another thought struck him: Could True Monarch Qingcheng Feixue have been observing all along?
That explained everything.
Chongguang’s usual caution would’ve warranted a True Monarch’s supervision during their Emerald Sun Realm machinations. Lv Yang had assumed Qingcheng Feixue would’ve lost interest after Fortune never arrived. But what if she’d remained in the shadows all along?
If so…
This is my chance!
Grinning fiercely, Lv Yang turned to the subdued Yu Shuzhen. He would pry the truth from her—every trick Ang Xiao had planted in her.
The Golden String Puppet technique required his original body, and even her Perfected Qi mimicry retained Foundation Building traits. As a “True Man,” he couldn’t carelessly probe her soul.
Sacrifices must be made.
He steeled himself.
Time to end Yu Shuzhen.
(End of Chapter)
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