https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-84-Aiming-to-Conquer-the-Wugui-Secret-Realm-/13504955/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-86-Last-Patriarch-of-the-Wugui-Sect/13504957/
Chapter 85: Body Theft
Chapter 85: Body Theft
The Heaven-Connecting Statue of Vain Death City was far more than an ornamental monument.
This statue formed the very foundation of the Tingyou Sect, constructed at the heart of the Wugui Secret Realm’s spiritual nexus, its structure aligned with the ley lines of Skull Mountain. In essence, it was the cornerstone of the entire Wugui Secret Realm.
Built during the Yanluo Patriarch’s lifetime, the statue’s construction spanned three centuries under his rule. It employed spiritual cultivators as architects and used ordinary humans as materials. Countless divine mysteries were embedded within it, and it concealed the Tingyou Sect’s ultimate trump card—a secret to be unleashed only in dire circumstances.
But now, everything had changed.
Lv Yang sat atop the statue’s head, motionless yet radiating power. In an instant, he inverted the realm’s spiritual currents, supplanting the statue itself as the new axis of the Secret Realm.
This was not deliberate—it was the natural consequence of their Status Rank disparity.
Just as mortals revered only the world’s highest peak while ignoring the second, the heavens themselves gravitated toward those of greater Status Rank.
“I have come as summoned,” Lv Yang declared, his voice echoing across the realm. “Where is the elder?”
Before his words faded, a second colossal Holy Sage Form erupted behind him, its lips parting to unleash a thunderous roar that reverberated through the Secret Realm and beyond.
The countless mortals within Vain Death City clutched their ears, overwhelmed by the sound’s seismic force. But for the eight elders of the Tingyou Sect, the voice carried a crushing weight, slamming into them like a physical blow. Their flight formations shattered, they nearly plummeted from the sky, staring up at Lv Yang’s Holy Sage Form with terror.
“Blasphemer! He defiles our ancestral master!”
“How could a mere voice overpower us like this? Is he truly on par with the Patriarch?”
“Impossible!”
The elders’ faces flushed with fury, their earlier confidence in subduing Lv Yang crumbling into panic. Yet their despair was short-lived.
The Heaven-Connecting Statue trembled under Lv Yang’s voice, awakening a dormant soul within. A deep, ancient sigh resonated:
“A disciple of the Primordial Sacred Sect… you’ve finally arrived.”
The statue’s rigid features softened, its iron-cast eyes igniting with sudden sentience. The Foundation Building Soul had awakened—a true one, surpassing even the late Patriarch of the Yun Clan, its power refined to an even greater peak.
A beam of light erupted from the statue, condensing into a refined, white-haired immortal draped in an ethereal robe. Landing before Lv Yang, he chuckled, “Interesting. Where is your physical body, young one? You’ve come here as nothing but a soul?”
Lv Yang smiled faintly, meeting the Yanluo Patriarch’s gaze. “You’re in no position to mock, elder. This is your fifth reincarnation, isn’t it?”
He was certain this was a remnant of the Wugui Sect. But the Wugui Sect had fallen a millennium ago—any Foundation Building cultivator surviving until now would have required at least four reincarnations. Even with immense cultivation, such a being should pose no threat.
“How did you know I recognized you as a Holy Sect disciple?” the Patriarch asked.
“Your sect’s reputation precedes you,” the Patriarch replied, shaking his head. “You slaughtered my followers the moment you arrived. Only the madmen of the Primordial Sacred Sect would act so recklessly.”
Lv Yang’s brow furrowed. “Your sect’s legacy is built on enslaving ghosts and preying on the innocent. My actions were justice.”
The Patriarch laughed. “Indeed, only a Holy Sect disciple would speak such righteousness.”
Lv Yang fell silent, then shifted the conversation. “You summoned me here. What do you want?”
“To escape this prison and revive the Wugui Sect,” the Patriarch said, his smile sharpening. “I need something from you. I trust you won’t refuse.”
“Oh?” Lv Yang’s eyes narrowed. “What is it you seek?”
The Patriarch’s gaze turned predatory, his eyes gleaming with an unsettling light as he stared at Lv Yang.
“You already know,” the Patriarch said, baring his teeth in a grin that shimmered with cold menace. “To shatter the Golden Core Sword Qi, I need a vessel bearing the Primordial Sacred Sect’s identity. My sect has long mastered soul transference. I’ve reincarnated four times, but the fifth risks oblivion. Unless…”
He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Unless I borrow your body. By replacing you, I can renew my cycle. Your potential is extraordinary—you might even help me ascend to Foundation Building once more.”
His tone was casual, yet the words sent chills down the spine.
“Elder,” Lv Yang said, arching an eyebrow, “you wish to steal my body?”
“It’s not the first time,” the Patriarch replied. “Tell me, why do you think so many Foundation Building cultivators perished when the Golden Core Sword Qi descended, yet I survived? I stole a mortal’s body then, using its fate to conceal my own. It was a technique perfected only by me in my era.”
“So you’ve come for me now?”
“You should feel honored,” the Patriarch chuckled. “My time is nearly up. Without you, I’d soon fade into dust.”
Lv Yang scoffed. “You truly believe you can overpower me?”
“Life is a gamble,” the Patriarch said. “The Wugui Sect cannot die with me. I’ll pay any price—even death.”
His confidence was unshaken, whether from certainty in his own strength or the apathy of a thousand years of survival. Either way, he radiated a suffocating pressure.
Yet Lv Yang harbored doubts.
If body theft alone could evade the Golden Core Sword Qi, why had the entire Secret Realm been slaughtered? There was a deeper reason—one the Patriarch would never reveal.
Even the Patriarch’s words now were likely half-truths, meant to mislead.
“Then I’ll extract the truth after capturing you,” Lv Yang said.
His eyes blazed. In a flash, his Holy Sage Form materialized, its golden hands slamming together.
The heavens erupted in blinding light as the Patriarch was engulfed, the Holy Sage Form’s grip tightening to crush him.
But from the light, a counterforce erupted—a storm of dark clouds coalescing into a towering palace inscribed with the words Yanmo Hall.
Within, the Patriarch stood atop a jade staircase, his own Xuanming Fugun Form manifesting behind him, a Skull Banner in one hand and a scroll in the other.
“Status Rank alone means little,” the Patriarch said. “To reach Foundation Building, one must do more than qualify.”
His aura surged, matching Lv Yang’s. The two clashed, their collision unleashing a cataclysmic shockwave that sent the eight elders reeling, blood spilling from their mouths.
The Patriarch’s forehead glowed brighter, his resolve hardening.
“No more hiding. If I fail, I’ll face the consequences,” he murmured.
For the first time in a millennium, he abandoned his secrecy, inviting the karmic retribution he’d evaded for centuries.
Above the Secret Realm, the suspended Golden Core Sword Qi trembled, its blade humming like a sword unsheathed.
(End of Chapter)
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