Chapter 153: Lu Yang Is Actually a Decent Person

As the Fuhou Luo Han perished, a wisp of his soul reincarnated, and his collapsing Golden Body left behind a round, gleaming golden pill in its place.

The next second, the pill was about to tear through the air and depart.

"Hm? Trying to leave?"

Lu Yang's eyes were quick and his hands were fast; with a great grab, he snatched the golden pill right out of the air: "This is... a relic? Daoist Friend Fuhou, you're far too kind!"

Lu Yang's gaze brightened at the sight; clearly he recognized this treasure peculiar to Buddhist cultivation. As a Foundation Establishment marvel, whether used to aid Foundation Establishment or to refine artifacts, its effects could be called top-grade. His Qi-Devouring Insects had recently hit a growth bottleneck, so a bit of fine nourishment would do nicely.

Thinking this, he promptly tucked the relic into his pouch.

Next he searched the place thoroughly, found nothing else of value, and only then shook his head in disappointment. With a wave of his hand he set the cave abode ablaze, then drifted away.

Heaven-Touching Sea of Clouds, Butian Peak.

"Panlong... is dead after all. Even the relic was taken by Lu Yang."

The Butian Peak Lord gazed into the far distance, a trace of regret surfacing in his eyes. Then he turned his head toward Luofeng Mountain, and a look of wariness crept across his face.

In just fifty years, the name Lu Yang had spread throughout virtually the entire Holy Sect.

Almost every disciple knew their sect harbored a rare old tortoise—one who had holed up in the sect for fifty whole years just to outlive a great enemy.

Even some True Persons had come to look down on Lu Yang somewhat.

Only the Butian Peak Lord, who truly knew the inside story, held Lu Yang in the deepest wariness, knowing he had narrowly dodged a life-and-death catastrophe.

Perhaps other True Persons felt that even if Lu Yang left the Holy Sect, so long as he focused on fleeing, Luo Han Fuhou could do nothing to him. Yet the Butian Peak Lord understood that Luo Han Fuhou truly hated Lu Yang to the bone, and had prepared many targeted measures specifically to eliminate him.

If Lu Yang had truly been careless and left the Holy Sect alone...

Then even if he didn't die, he would surely suffer grave injuries requiring at least a hundred years to recover. Compared to that, what were fifty years?

"This one cannot be offended!"

The Butian Peak Lord sighed at length. The one thing worth rejoicing was that both times he had acted, he had stayed hidden in the shadows; in theory, Lu Yang should not have discovered any clues.

As for the Wind-Sheltering Pills, though losing three of them pained the Butian Peak Lord immensely, and because of Lu Yang's presence he hadn't even obtained the Golden Body relic after Fuhou's passing—at least Fuhou had dual-cultivated once with his daughter Chen Shuqian, and now Chen Shuqian had already cultivated the Six Paths Nirvana Phoenix Art.

On the other side, his son Chen Xinan's growth was also very encouraging.

"If this had been before, as long as I had one Foundation Establishment, I'd dare to take a gamble. But now my merit and fortune are both depleted—one Foundation Establishment is no longer enough."

Thinking of this, the Butian Peak Lord felt another pang of heartache.

The journey to Skeleton Mountain had truly cost him his lady and his troops; not only had he gained nothing, he'd ended up covered in dust and utterly humiliated.

What made it even more stifling was that now Fuhou's relic had fallen into Lu Yang's hands. For the sake of his son Chen Xinan and daughter Chen Shuqian breaking through and gaining an extra measure of certainty for Foundation Establishment, he still had to seek out Lu Yang and buy the relic back at a great price... One item, and he'd already offered three times!

It was simply a total loss.

The Butian Peak Lord drew a deep breath, then suppressed all his negative emotions: "Enough, enough. As long as I can break through to the late stage, everything is worth it."

With this thought, he immediately mounted a beam of escape light and flew toward Luofeng Mountain.

By the time he arrived at Luofeng Mountain, his face was already beaming with a warm smile. He called out loudly: "Is Daoist Friend Lu present? Chen Taihe of Butian Peak has come to visit."

The next second, Lu Yang's figure appeared atop Luofeng Mountain.

His face likewise bore a brilliant smile. He actively stepped aside, cupped his hands, and said: "Senior is here before me—I have failed to greet you from afar. Please, come up to the peak and let us talk."

"Not at all! Not at all!"

The Butian Peak Lord promptly guided his escape light down. The two entered the great hall together and sat facing each other. The Butian Peak Lord did not waste words, and said crisply:

"Daoist Friend Lu, you have already killed that Fuhou, haven't you?"

"Correct."

Lu Yang did not conceal it either. When he had acted, he had not veiled the heavenly secrets; any Foundation Establishment True Person could simply calculate with their fingers and naturally learn the whole story.

The Butian Peak Lord knew the details even better. Seeing this, he immediately said cautiously: "I have heard that when an Luo Han of Jiangxi dies, a Golden Body relic forms, to aid cultivation in the next life. Now that Fuhou has suffered heavenly punishment and has no hope of reincarnation, that relic should be in your hands, Daoist Friend?"

Lu Yang's eyebrows rose at the words: "It is indeed in my hands."

The next second, a gleaming golden pill was produced and placed on the table. At the sight, the Butian Peak Lord narrowed his eyes and hid his greed.

"... I wish to trade with you for this item."

Saying this, a touch of warmth appeared on the Butian Peak Lord's face: "To be frank, my son Xinan is now at the critical juncture of breaking through to Foundation Establishment."

"As his father, I ought to lend him a helping hand."

Lu Yang's face took on a half-smiling, half-not expression at the words.

Really?

I don't buy it.

That look made the Butian Peak Lord a bit awkward too. Realizing Lu Yang wouldn't release the hawk without seeing the rabbit, he could only sigh: "What do you want, Daoist Friend?"

Lu Yang smiled faintly: "What do you have, Senior?"

Beast!

The Butian Peak Lord cursed inwardly, then directly played his trump card: "I have a secret art I can exchange with you—it would be useful to you as well."

Having said this, he produced a jade slip and placed it on the table.

Lu Yang swept it with his divine sense, and a look of surprise immediately appeared. Though the secret art's contents within the jade slip were not complete, he could still deduce its effects.

It was actually a Calamity-Substitution Art.

"At the early Foundation Establishment stage, one endures the agony of the Heavenly Tribulation; the lifespan limit is three hundred years. Yet within the Foundation Establishment realm, every step forward triggers the realm's innate repulsion."

"When breaking from early to mid Foundation Establishment, one must contain the Cheng Cheng Tian Gang and Earthly Sha to forge a natal divine ability. However, this containment process is extremely perilous. After the Foundation Establishment realm senses it, it will summon a fierce fire called 【Yin】. The Yin fire surges up from the Yongquan acupoint, piercing straight through the Nirvanic Palace, burning the five viscera and six bowels."

This is opportunity, and also crisis.

If one can endure it, the Cheng Cheng Tian Gang and Earthly Sha tempered by 【Yin Fire】 will completely transform into a natal divine ability, forever inseparable from the True Person's soul.

Fail to endure, and one becomes a handful of flying ash.

Likewise, when breaking from mid to late Foundation Establishment, the Foundation Establishment realm will send down 【Heavenly Thunder】. Endure it, and one becomes a great True Person of late Foundation Establishment.

Fail to endure, and one still dies and the Dao vanishes.

As for breaking from late Foundation Establishment to Foundation Establishment Perfection, the tribulation encountered is yet different. At that point, one may attempt to ascend the throne and seek Gold."

And the Mysterious Heaven Peak Lord's secret art was precisely a technique designed to ward off these calamities.

"Using one's own biological offspring as a medium, transfer the karmic cause of the calamity to them; let them bear the cause and undergo the tribulation, while one reaps the result and enjoys the transformation after the tribulation."

In an instant, Lu Yang understood the Mysterious Heaven Peak Lord's thoughts.

He intended to use this secret art, leveraging Chen Shuqian and Chen Xinan, his children, to help him withstand the 【Heavenly Thunder】, thereby breaking through to the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment!

"No wonder."

Thinking of this, Lu Yang's expression suddenly turned strange.

The reason was simple: Chen Xinan was a fake!

In this life, the real Chen Xinan had long been killed by him; the one who survived was the Banner Spirit Chen Xinan, merely wearing the karmic cause of the real Chen Xinan!

Under such circumstances, if the Mysterious Heaven Peak Lord intended to cast this secret art to transfer the calamity to Chen Xinan, and one suddenly stripped away the real Chen Xinan's karmic cause and retracted the Banner Spirit...

Then the fun would be immense!

With this thought, a look of utmost sincerity immediately appeared on Lu Yang's face: "Since the Senior is doing this for the sake of your children, how could this junior refuse?"

Having spoken, he directly pushed the Sarira bead forward.

Seeing this, the Mysterious Heaven Peak Lord, who had originally expected to suffer a heavy loss, was stunned, then gratefully clasped his hands in a bow: "Then I thank you, Daoist friend."

I didn't expect it; Lu Yang is actually quite a decent person!

Amidst this sigh, the Mysterious Heaven Peak Lord could not help but feel excited, planning to hand the Sarira bead to Chen Xinan immediately upon returning, so he could break through to Foundation Establishment as soon as possible!

(End of this chapter)