Chapter 229

At this moment, heaven and earth fell utterly silent.

In Jiangdong, Jiangbei, Jiangxi, and Jiangnan, towering magical bodies rose from the ground, smashing through the thirty-six layers of罡clouds, gazing far off toward Master Chongguang.

Above the dome of heaven, the stars appeared.

These were not real stars, but manifestations of the Seat Holders—some radiating Buddha-light, others unleashing unchecked sword qi, while Foundation Establishment cultivators appeared as a tangled mess.

Yet the next second, a furious wind swept through.

The wind flew a thousand li, snow drifted across ten provinces, instantly severing all supernatural phenomena—it was Qingcheng Feixue True Person who had acted, blocking every act of surveillance.

At some point, Master Chongguang's body had already begun to radiate dazzling light.

Not just him—throughout the entire Kingdom of Qing, from the highest officials to the lowest commoners, all glowed with this light, staring in shock at their own bodies.

This radiance spread rapidly outward from them, engulfing Qing's houses, cities, mountains, rivers, and finally even Qing's cultivators—from Qi Condensation, to Foundation Establishment, to Foundation Establishment Mid-stage, and even the fleeing Five Elements True Person was not spared.

"What is this?"

The Five Elements True Person looked bewildered; as a Foundation Establishment Mid-stage True Person, he could see far more than the ordinary mortals who understood nothing.

Thus he quickly discovered the source of the radiance.

【Official Position】.

He had long pledged allegiance to the Dao Court, and thus received its official position—and now, it was precisely that 【Official Position】 he had once accepted that was emitting the light.

"This is wrong!"

At that moment, the Five Elements True Person felt a sudden dread, and immediately summoned his magic power to shed the 【Official Position】 from his body.

But how could a Dao Court official position be discarded so easily?

As the Five Elements True Person summoned his magic power, the radiance from the 【Official Position】 did not fade—it expanded further, accelerating rapidly.

Like a lamp.

A single lamp might be insignificant, illuminating only a tiny space—but a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand lamps could unleash sunlight-bright radiance.

"Snap!"

The next second, the lamps ignited.

First to be consumed were the residents of Ducheng, the capital of Qing—they burned fiercely, their flesh turning to lamp oil, their bones and sinews becoming lamp holders.

This burning spread swiftly.

Initially only commoners, then cultivators, then houses, then cities—until finally the entire Kingdom of Qing blazed in flames!

No one could resist, for they were merely 【subjects】, while Master Chongguang was the 【ruler】!

When the ruler commands a subject to die, the subject must die!

Flames ignited the entire Kingdom of Qing; wherever the radiance passed, only piles of white bones remained—all had become fuel for the fire!

In an instant, countless astonished gazes from all directions pierced through the air, landing on Master Chongguang, fixed upon his calm, gentle eyes.

Even Lu Yang showed a hint of surprise.

In the Holy Sect, Master Chongguang had always been regarded favorably—a relatively decent sort, a good leader to his subordinates.

Yet now, he had done this.

Blood sacrifice of the Kingdom of Qing!

The entire spectacle—vast and sweeping—had become utterly lifeless, all ignited by him, a million souls turned into lamp oil for his flame!

Previously, Lu Yang had also considered that the Kingdom of Qing, as a wonder implanted by the Dao Court into Jiangbei, had long been influenced by True Person Seats—it could be reversed, but never expelled; today you reverse it, tomorrow the Dao Court restores it, creating only a stalemate—what meaning would that hold?

Now Master Chongguang had given the answer.

Reversing the rule was merely the first step; now that he had successfully seized power, he never intended to keep the Kingdom of Qing—he meant to end it once and for all!

Kill everyone, and the Kingdom of Qing would cease to exist!

Others might call it cruel, but in the Holy Sect, we call it efficient.

"Under heaven, only the Dao Court system could accomplish such a thing," Master Chongguang smiled, then turned his gaze toward Lu Yang.

"Now, Yuan Tu, you'll have to suffer a bit more."

Lu Yang froze: "What?"

Boom!

Almost simultaneously, dark clouds gathered above the heavens, and streaks of Lei Guang flashed forth—it was heavenly punishment! But the target was not Master Chongguang—it was Lu Yang!

"Why is it striking me?!"

Lu Yang's face turned ashen; the overall situation was settled, and Qingcheng Feixue True Person had released the karmic bonds, so he quickly deduced the reason.

'It's because Master Chongguang is framing me!'

'The Kingdom of Qing, as a wonder, is not only part of the Dao Court—it is also part of heaven and earth, once fused into it by the Dao Court's Son of Heaven.'

'But now, Master Chongguang has blood-sacrificed the entire Kingdom of Qing, turning it into fuel for his ascension to True Person—equivalent to carving flesh from heaven and earth, stealing from the cosmos to nourish himself, far worse than damaging earth veins—how could such an act escape heavenly retribution?'

In an instant, Lu Yang understood:

'That's why he wanted me to kill the King of Qing!'

'Because I killed the King of Qing, Master Chongguang could do all this—I am the true instigator, and he has transferred all the heavenly punishment onto me!'

Monster!

He pretended to be a good leader—protecting me, escorting me, handing out spiritual treasures left and right—just to trap me in this massive scheme?

Is this how you treat your subordinates?!

Thinking of this, Lu Yang glared at Master Chongguang—how could you betray me, a loyal subordinate who trusted you so completely?

—Fortunately, I was already prepared.

The next second, without hesitation, Lu Yang activated the Deceive Heaven Great Art he had obtained from Blood Demon True Person, diverting the falling heavenly punishment entirely.

The recipients? The numerous Foundation Establishment True Persons of Jiangbei who had received countless gifts from him—spiritual techniques, scriptures, and treasures beyond count.

These are karmic debts—now pay them back to me!

In an instant, the dark clouds that had nearly locked onto Lu Yang suddenly halted, as if trying to discern something; then, with a boom, they exploded into fragments high in the sky, splitting into more than a dozen smaller dark clouds that sped toward the Zhalong Pass, no longer seeking trouble with Lu Yang.

"Oh?"

Seeing this, even Master Chongguang, the True Person, showed surprise; he immediately calculated with his fingers, then burst into hearty laughter.

"Hahaha, well done!"

"Truly a pillar of our Holy Sect!"

As his words fell, Lu Yang saw the Formless Sword in his hand radiate brilliant light; a golden nature detached from it and floated lightly into his palm.

"You have earned it."

Master Chongguang's voice drifted softly over; Lu Yang accepted it calmly.

For only he could understand the true meaning behind Master Chongguang's words: why would Master Chongguang use this golden nature as a reward?

Because under the protection of the golden nature, a reincarnation would not be blinded by the mystery within the womb; and in Master Chongguang's view, after being struck by Heavenly Punishment, Lu Yang would surely, like the ancient Arhat Fu Long Arhat, lose all fortune and spend a thousand or ten thousand lives as swine or dogs, so he bestowed this golden nature to prevent him from sinking utterly into oblivion.

When the tribulation ends in days to come, there will still be a chance to return.

This was probably one of the few bits of goodwill Master Chongguang could offer; after all, Lu Yang was a fine talent and proved very handy to use.

Yet in the end, Lu Yang did not suffer Heavenly Punishment.

In that case, this golden nature was purely Lu Yang's reward, earned by his own skill, and Master Chongguang had acknowledged this result.

"Enough, withdraw."

Master Chongguang waved his hand, signaling Lu Yang to retreat; from start to finish, he never showed any fierce or vicious expression, only calmness and tranquility.

Calmly, he ignited the Kingdom of Qing.

Tranquilly, he killed everyone.

Including Lu Yang, he transferred the Heavenly Punishment without hesitation and made use of it.

Though he did not say it outright, his words and deeds all served to illustrate one sentence: To prove my Daoist fruit, count yourselves well dead!

(End of this chapter)