Chapter 813 - 808: Heaven-Sent Opportunity
As the Old Dragon Monarch’s words fell, Lü Yang’s eyes narrowed.
His first reaction was that something was wrong. Because he had a very clear understanding of himself. True, he was currently someone of status in the Void Sea of Light.
But was his status that high?
Not necessarily!
At least, with the millennial tribulation approaching, under the tacit approval of the Master of Dao, and the arrival of an era dominated by Great Perfected Lords, a cultivator at the Middle Stage of Golden Core like him actually meant little.
In this gluttonous feast, only Great Perfected Lords were qualified to sit at the table!
As for the Middle Stage of Golden Core, no matter how strong one was, even if hailed as the number one beneath the Great Perfected Lords, it was meaningless. Their status and weight were far off.
And the only reason Lü Yang could deal with numerous Great Perfected Lords, and even attract the attention of the Master of Dao, was purely because he liked to make a scene. If he hadn’t possessed flashy things like the Dao of Arcane Body or the Emperor Fruit, a mere Middle Stage of Golden Core wouldn’t warrant a single glance from the Master of Dao.
"So am I currently worth recruiting by Profound Wall?" Lü Yang wondered. "And to recruit me at the risk of offending the Sword Pavilion Daoist Lord... No, even adding the risk of offending the old undying bastards of the Stain Sect. Do I have the qualifications for that?"
In truth, he wasn’t worth it!
"There must be a problem here," he thought. "Either there’s a problem with Profound Wall’s recruitment, or there’s a problem with Profound Wall itself. Either way, it’s definitely not a good thing..."
Both scenarios had their own nuances.
In the first case, if the recruitment was problematic, it meant the Old Dragon Monarch was setting him up. The so-called recruitment was just a trick to lure him out and kill him.
In the second case, Profound Wall itself had issues.
Lü Yang leaned more towards this possibility. After all, he was currently cultivating the Dao of Arcane Body, and he was only a single step away from completely mastering it.
"The Masters of Dao from Profound Wall and the Star Palace are definitely old acquaintances with Si Chou," he mused. "They might even have a plan to use me as material to revive Si Chou. After all, since we both cultivate the Dao of Arcane Body, rather than recruiting me, it would be better for them to figure out how to bring Si Chou back. At least he is an ally they know inside out."
Lü Yang pondered internally, but his face remained perfectly calm.
In the next second, he looked at the Old Dragon Monarch and suddenly changed the subject. "Profound Wall is a massive force. Why would they notice a nobody like me?
"Could it be that you told them about me, Old Dragon Monarch?" Lü Yang said with an unfriendly expression.
The Old Dragon Monarch remained silent.
After a moment, the Old Dragon Monarch spoke with a bitter expression. "Daoist, you underestimate yourself too much. That sword chime from fifty years ago wasn’t just heard in the Immortal Pivot; the entire Void Sea of Light heard it.
"Under such circumstances, how could Profound Wall not investigate? Moreover, even before that, you already had karmic links with Profound Wall. Daoist, you should have noticed it already, but simply didn’t delve into it."
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Lü Yang’s eyes narrowed as realization struck him. "It must be the Qi-eating Insect! So it really was a Magic intentionally released by Profound Wall?"
Thinking of this, he immediately waved his hand, summoning the Jade Maiden. As soon as she appeared, the Old Dragon Monarch’s gaze shifted toward her.
After inspecting the Jade Maiden from top to bottom, a look of enlightenment surfaced in the Old Dragon Monarch’s eyes. "It is indeed the Qi-eating Insect that made a fleeting appearance in the past. I didn’t expect there to be a surviving species, nor that it would be nurtured to this extent in your hands, Daoist. This is your karmic link with Profound Wall."
Speaking up to here, a trace of dread appeared on the Old Dragon Monarch’s face. "This insect is a Magic refined by the Celestial Master Chongying Yuan You, one of the three Grand Celestial Masters of Profound Wall. Its connection with that Grand Celestial Master is quite profound.
"Daoist, forcefully taking this branch of the Qi-eating Insect for yourself incurs heavy karmic links."
Lü Yang raised an eyebrow. "You seem to know a lot, Old Dragon Monarch?"
"I’ve just lived a long time." The Old Dragon Monarch shook his head. It was only because he had once sought the Dao in Profound Wall and cultivated Magic before the establishment of the Pocket World Technique that he had some understanding of them.
Relying on this bit of Incense connection, he had managed to pledge his allegiance to them.
But truth be told, he was also extremely wary of Profound Wall, which could be seen from how he had dealt with the Qi-eating Insect back then.
"Back then, the Qi-eating Insect appeared Overseas once and was mastered by a Loose Cultivator at Foundation Establishment," Lü Yang thought. "Normally, it should have used Overseas as its base, but instead, it inexplicably went on a killing spree in the Pure Land... Now that I think about it, it was probably the Old Dragon Monarch diverting the disaster to avoid being tainted by the karmic links."
Thinking of this, Lü Yang smiled.
This Old Loach seemed to have scaled up his old trick of playing both sides among the Four Great Forces, now applying it to the Immortal Pivot and Profound Wall!
"Let’s hear it." After a brief silence, Lü Yang revealed an intrigued expression. "My current situation is no different from being dead. Does Profound Wall actually possess a Magic that can help me escape?"
"Of course they do." The Old Dragon Monarch sighed in relief upon hearing this. He then hastily took out a Jade Scroll and said solemnly, "This skill is called the Supreme Daoist Lord’s Scripture of Constant Purity.
"Once you successfully refine this skill, Daoist, even with just the Initial Truth Ring, it will be enough for you to enter a state known as ’Profoundly and Constantly Still, Where Stillness Cannot Be Stiller,’ thereby avoiding the influence of that sword chime. If you can refine it to the Perfection Level of the Celestial Immortal Great Vow, you can even transcend the Sea of Suffering!"
"Really?"
"I don’t buy it!" Lü Yang thought.
His tone sounded excited on the surface, but his eyes were icy cold. How could there be such a thing as a free lunch dropping from the sky? Were they treating him like a fool?
"Daoist, Profound Wall is truly sincere," the Old Dragon Monarch urged earnestly. After all, coming here to recruit Lü Yang was a task assigned to him by Profound Wall, serving as his certificate of allegiance.
Moreover, he had his own selfish motives. He wanted to use Lü Yang to draw enemy fire. In his view, given this guy’s ability to stir up trouble, as long as he could get out, the Master of Dao definitely wouldn’t have the mind to bother with him anymore. Besides, this guy was very durable and built to take a beating. His quality as a meat shield was undeniable. Thinking of this, he became even more sincere.
"Daoist, you wouldn’t want to stay in the Celestial Human Residual Consciousness for the rest of your life, right? Furthermore, this millennial tribulation is an unprecedented upheaval. How could you miss it?"
With that, he took out a bizarre, brilliantly glowing stone from his sleeve and said in a low voice, "This object is called the Supreme Sensing Stone.
"By using this Rare Treasure as material, you can refine the Supreme Daoist Lord’s Scripture of Constant Purity."
Lü Yang’s eyes narrowed upon hearing this.
Deep in his eyes, the Immortal Core Survival Guide rapidly blossomed with light, locking onto the Supreme Sensing Stone before forming a line of large text:
[Massive Trap, Please Stay Away As Soon As Possible!]
"..."
"I knew it!" Lü Yang thought.
While inwardly hurling curses, he remained composed and looked at the Old Dragon Monarch. "Your invitation, Old Dragon Monarch, certainly shows a lot of sincerity.
"However, I have one more request."
"Please speak, Daoist," the Old Dragon Monarch hurriedly said.
"A wisp of Gold Attribute." Lü Yang held up a single finger and said faintly, "As long as you are willing to part with a wisp of Gold Attribute and give it to me, Old Dragon Monarch, I will agree to cultivate this skill and pledge allegiance to Profound Wall.
"How about it?"
As his words fell, the Old Dragon Monarch, who had just been wearing an eager expression and clearly hoping Lü Yang would agree, instantly withdrew his expression, no longer showing the slightest emotion.
"...Daoist, you shouldn’t entertain such thoughts."
Lü Yang frowned slightly. "It’s just a wisp of Gold Attribute. I’m not asking for much. To you, Old Dragon Monarch, it shouldn’t be anything too important, right?"
The Old Dragon Monarch frowned deeply. Seeing Lü Yang acting like a curious child, seemingly genuinely ignorant of the truth, he explained in a low voice, "For a Grotto Heaven Dharma Cultivator at our Realm, the Gold Attribute is of utmost importance. It is even intimately connected to our future path of the Dao. Not even the slightest bit can be missing."
"So that’s how it is." Lü Yang sighed, showing a look of helplessness. "In that case, I apologize. Don’t blame me, Old Dragon Monarch, I’m heartbroken too."
Hearing this, the Old Dragon Monarch blanked for a moment.
"Fuck! Not good!" he thought.
In the next second, as if struck by a sudden realization, the Old Dragon Monarch’s Qi trace erupted explosively from his entire body. But before that could fully manifest, Lü Yang’s large hand had already grabbed his body viciously.
In an instant, the Old Dragon Monarch only felt his body tighten as his vitality surged.
On the other side, Lü Yang let out a sinister laugh.
If peaceful words didn’t work, he would resort to force.
He had been coveting the Old Dragon Monarch for a long time. Today, the Old Dragon Monarch had actually delivered himself to his doorstep—this was a godsend opportunity to perform Gold Absorption on him!