Chapter 20: Xiao Xiao Shiye

Nearly three months later, in the Earth-Fire Furnace Chamber.

Lu Yang trembled as he slowly rose to his feet.

No, rather than saying he stood, "floated" would be more fitting, for at this moment he possessed no skin, flesh, bones, or sinews, but was merely a scarlet blood shadow!

"I succeeded!"

The blood shadow had no face; only amidst swirling radiant light did it vibrate to emit a slightly distorted voice: "Eighty-one days of the Nine-Nines, and finally it is refined!"

The next second, the blood shadow gradually converged; the skin stripped away on the ground flew forth from thin air and was "donned" by the shadow. Pale skin slowly filled with crimson color, and shriveled flesh gradually plumped up. Within moments, an unharmed Lu Yang appeared inside the furnace chamber.

At first glance, he was no different from an ordinary person.

Even compared to three months prior, Lu Yang's qi aura was now far more vast; his robust true qi had even faintly condensed into a qi seed.

Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation! Late Stage!

Perhaps the process of cultivating the divine ability had been too painful, a trial beyond imagination for his essence, qi, and spirit, causing him to unexpectedly break through the bottleneck of his cultivation base.

Even more fortunately, this occurred before he had formally completed the divine ability.

Had it happened after completing the divine ability, breaking through the bottleneck would have been useless; for instance, right now, his cultivation base was permanently halted at the Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation.

"But this is sufficient."

Lu Yang murmured softly; possessing the Book of Hundred Lives, he had never been bound by the achievements of a single life; how to apply them in the next life was his true goal.

"Let us test its power!"

As soon as the thought arose in Lu Yang's mind, a magnificent sword pill manifested at his brow, whereupon his figure transformed into a streak of blood light and merged with the sword pill.

"Boom!"

Outside Ten Thousand Treasures Peak, the ground shook violently; the once-bustling crowd suddenly tilted, and several people toppled directly to the ground.

"What is happening?"

"An earth dragon turning over... Impossible! With various True Persons suppressing the earth veins, how could an earth dragon turn over?"

The disciples exchanged bewildered glances; among them, those with higher cultivation bases suddenly felt something, instinctively looking in a certain direction as surprise gradually surfaced in their eyes.

"Look quickly!"

"That is..."

Everyone's gaze shifted accordingly.

Immediately after, all witnessed a long rainbow piercing the sun shoot forth from a furnace chamber, leaping into the firmament in the blink of an eye, churning the sea of clouds wherever it passed.

Clang! Clang!

Crisp sword hums echoed through the nine heavens; intense red light dyed all of Ten Thousand Treasures Peak blood-red, stirring the spiritual energy of heaven and earth until it transformed into a towering tide!

Amidst such a great tide of spiritual energy, most disciples could not even breathe, nearly suffocating!

"Such momentum, yet only Late Stage of Qi Condensation?"

A disciple showed an envious expression: "He has already formed a qi seed; awaiting only the final step of nurturing transformation to achieve Great Perfection, from which Foundation Establishment will be within sight..."

"I wonder which Senior Brother has broken through?"

"I have seen Senior Brothers at the Late Stage of Qi Condensation before, but none possessed such spiritual pressure; that sword light resembling a long rainbow must also be an extraordinary magic treasure."

At the same time, above the sea of clouds.

Lu Yang, transformed into a blood shadow with his qi merged into sword light, spread his spiritual sense in all directions; every detail within a radius of over ten li was clear as day, appearing as distinct as the lines on one's palm.

"At the Late Stage of Qi Condensation, true qi sinks into the dantian, transforming into a qi seed and triggering the metamorphosis of essence, qi, and spirit. If I still had a physical body, my physique should now undergo a qualitative leap, making immunity to blades and spears commonplace, and my true qi should increase several dozenfold; pity that now only my spiritual sense remains."

Just as Lu Yang was sighing with emotion, his eyebrows suddenly lifted.

"Who goes there?"

Before Lu Yang's voice had faded, his sword followed his heart instantly; sword light like a scarlet rainbow tore through the sea of clouds, revealing the figure of a handsome young man.

"Senior Brother, please do not attack! Do not attack!"

Seeing that person shouting loudly, Lu Yang paid no heed whatsoever; the sword light pounced forward. Upon seeing this, that person hastily took out a small flag and planted it in the air.

The next second, the flag fluttered and transformed into a pair of flag gates.

That person hid within one of the flag gates; only after the sword light sent forth by Lu Yang chased inside did he emerge from the other flag gate, then reached out with a beckoning gesture.

The flag gates vanished, reverting to a small flag.

Lu Yang raised an eyebrow, discovering that the sword light he had dispatched had somehow been trapped in an unknown place, allowing the other party to evade it.

"Interesting..."

Lu Yang grinned; the sword pill at his brow shook violently, sounding like muffled thunder rolling across the sky, and in an instant, it fanned out like a peacock displaying its feathers, splitting into dozens upon hundreds of sword lights.

Witnessing this scene, the young man, who had been somewhat pleased a moment ago, suddenly turned pale with alarm; he hastily took out the small flag magic treasure again to protect himself while shouting loudly: "This Senior Brother, I am Xiao Xiao Shiye; I came merely to make your acquaintance and bear absolutely no malice; I beg you to withdraw your divine ability."

"Xiao Xiao Shiye?"

Hearing this, Lu Yang paused in surprise; the sword light that was about to erupt suddenly stalled, halting mid-air and reflecting a face drenched in cold sweat.

That predestined lucky dog?

The next second, Lu Yang withdrew his sword light, transformed into human form, and landed before Xiao Xiao Shiye, laughing heartily: "Junior Brother, do not misunderstand; I was merely teasing you just now!"

Hearing this, Xiao Xiao Shiye wiped the sweat from his forehead, thinking inwardly that Lu Yang had clearly intended to strike in earnest just moments ago, yet on his face he likewise displayed a brilliant smile and said eagerly: "Senior Brother's divine abilities are vast and your magic power boundless; Xiao is deeply impressed. Please accept this trifling gift; I beg you not to decline."

Having spoken, he casually handed over the small flag in his hand.

"How can I accept this? It would be improper..."

Shaking his head, Lu Yang accepted the small flag, only then noticing two characters embroidered in golden thread upon its surface: "Void-Dashing."

"This treasure is named the Void-Dashing Flag."

Xiao Xiao Shiye voluntarily introduced it: "Before joining the sect, I purchased it at an antique shop; initially it showed no strangeness, but after entering the sect, I discovered it to be a rare treasure."

"The flag has two sides; when activated, it transforms into two flag gates, one of life and one of death."

"Within the same realm, as long as one enters through the death gate and exits through the life gate, one can find a path to survival no matter how great the danger, remaining untouched by calamity."

Hearing this, Lu Yang could not help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

Such a miraculous magic treasure, and this Xiao Xiao Shiye had casually bought it from a mortal antique shop before even entering the Holy Sect to cultivate?

Thinking of this, Lu Yang suddenly moved his mind, gathering his spiritual sense into his eyes.

At the Late Stage of Qi Condensation, with spiritual sense greatly increased, naturally many wondrous uses became available; what Lu Yang was using now was a miraculous technique called Qi-Gazing Art.

The result was that without looking, all was fine, but upon looking, Lu Yang nearly bulged his eyes out.

For in his vision, Xiao Xiao Shiye's entire body—his crane-feather cloak, boots, robes, headpiece, and even the belt binding his waist—was radiating treasure light!

In terms of quality, 怕 none were inferior to his own sword pill!

Even with Lu Yang's current temperament, he could not help but feel a trace of imbalance.

After all, the magic treasure he had spent several months and a fortune to refine was, in Xiao Xiao Shiye's case, as common as dirt and seemingly free, inevitably making one green with envy.

"This person possesses immense fortune."

If previously Lu Yang had thought Xiao Xiao Shiye winning the grand prize from the Merit Pool was due to behind-the-scenes manipulation, now he changed his mind.

Could it truly be that he is just that lucky?

Thinking of this, Lu Yang's expression gradually became strange once more.

With such high fortune, one could say that simply following him would guarantee stumbling upon many opportunities, yet his cultivation base is not high, making him particularly easy to rob...

This Xiao Xiao Shiye seems to be a promising talent!

(End of Chapter)