Chapter 309: Flip-Flopping, Playing Both Sides

Compared to contacting Chongguang, establishing contact with Daoist Hong Yun had cost Lu Yang considerable effort.

Of course, if one truly wished to contact him, it wasn't difficult—just stir up some of Daoist Hong Yun's core interests, and without even showing himself, Daoist Hong Yun would come knocking.

Lu Yang's method was simple: use the 【Puppet Strings】 to control a Qi Condensation hermit from Jiangbei, then indirectly manipulate Xiao Shiyeh's karmic thread; after this maneuver, Daoist Hong Yun, who had taken Xiao Shiyeh as bait, would inevitably be alarmed and come to him of his own accord.

Lu Yang's plan matched Chongguang's guess exactly.

With such an important piece of news as the Cave Heaven fragment, how could Lu Yang possibly sell it to only one party? After all, the greatest advantage of intelligence is that one item can be sold to many!

The next instant, the void split open.

Seeing this, Lu Yang's gaze brightened slightly: "Friend."

Boom!

Before his words had finished, Daoist Hong Yun immediately channeled his magic power and crushed the Qi Condensation hermit into pulp—but soon, two more figures appeared:

"Friend, don't you want to know..."

Before the first figure could finish speaking, Daoist Hong Yun shattered him again; fortunately, the second figure still spoke: "... your own Cave Heaven's secrets?"

As soon as the words ended, Daoist Hong Yun, who had merely come upon sensing Xiao Shiyeh's karmic thread being disturbed, only to find a mere Qi Condensation cultivator and casually killed him, froze in place. He stared closely and noticed the strangely unnatural expressions on these "Qi Condensation hermits."

"... Who are you?"

Daoist Hong Yun glanced at the sky, then swept his sleeve and vanished with Lu Yang from the spot; shortly after, a divine sense pierced through the air.

Whoosh!

The massive divine sense swept across the scene like a gale scattering fallen leaves—but found nothing. Finally, it coalesced into a slender, icy-cold silhouette.

【Qingcheng Feixue True Person】!

"Pity... he escaped too quickly."

Daoist Hong Yun had once been a Sacred Sect True Person; unless face-to-face, if he chose to hide, even she would struggle to find him.

Thinking of this, Qingcheng Feixue True Person suddenly smiled sweetly, her beautiful eyes brightening with keen interest: "Judging by this, could it be that he really sold the information to two parties and has now approached Daoist Hong Yun? Not impossible—if I wait by the stump, I might just catch him myself."

Jiangbei, a remote forest.

This location lay nestled among towering mountains, concealed by layers of arrays, each one a supreme technique for obscuring heavenly fate, completely severing all karmic traces.

The next instant, the void split open.

Daoist Hong Yun, accompanied by the Qi Condensation hermit under Lu Yang's control, stepped directly into the array—and like Chongguang, he began with a soul-searching probe.

Indeed, an old Primordial Saint.

Lu Yang's expression remained calm; he was accustomed to this.

Only after the soul-searching yielded nothing did Daoist Hong Yun finally regard Lu Yang with new interest, looking at him and asking: "My Cave Heaven—do you know its name?"

This was the final test.

Lu Yang did not hesitate: "【Changyao Baoguang Cave Heaven】!"

Upon hearing this, Daoist Hong Yun exhaled a long, heavy breath. Only a Primordial Saint or someone who had actually seen his Cave Heaven could name it.

"What do you want?"

Clearly, Daoist Hong Yun understood that there was no such thing as unearned affection or hatred—Lu Yang had come to him for a reason.

And unlike Chongguang, who as Acting Zhang Sect already held overwhelming advantage and thus had room to maneuver and leverage, Daoist Hong Yun had wasted five thousand years and was now backed into a corner.

So his attitude was straightforward.

Seeing Daoist Hong Yun's directness, Lu Yang cut straight to the point: "I want the half-true treasure and the primordial Dao sin you left behind in the Biyang cultivation realm."

"... Who are you?"

At these words, Daoist Hong Yun's expression darkened further, his brows knitted tightly—he had assumed no one knew of his arrangements in Biyang.

How had it leaked?

The half-true treasure he left in Biyang, 【Difu Jinzhuan Doulou Zhenchi】, was in truth a discarded move—he had once planned to use it to falsely claim the Golden Seat.

But the difficulty of falsely claiming the Golden Seat was far too high; even after using the entire Biyang realm's talent to refine it, 【Difu Jinzhuan Doulou Zhenchi】 remained a half-true treasure, unable to fully transform into a true treasure, its marvels limited to divining spells—hardly vital to him.

At best, it was utterly useless.

Thus, when Lu Yang demanded this half-true treasure, Daoist Hong Yun was surprised by the leak—but felt little reluctance to part with it.

"But... how can I trust you?"

Daoist Hong Yun sneered coldly: "As for the Cave Heaven fragment you mentioned, do you think I don't know? Isn't it the one beneath Gan Tang Dao in Jiangnan?"

At this, Lu Yang's eyebrows lifted slightly.

But he quickly understood: in his past life, Daoist Hong Yun had returned to Foundation Establishment peak and cultivated a Blessed Land—he must have found the Cave Heaven fragment.

Now it seemed he had long sensed traces of it.

But why hadn't he gone immediately?

At this thought, Lu Yang calmed, smiling lightly: "It seems you also harbor doubts—doubts that the Cave Heaven fragment might be flawed?"

Naturally!

Daoist Hong Yun, after all, had once been a Sacred Sect True Person—how could he not understand that every opportunity hides a trap? But the problem was—he had no choice!

"."

Lu Yang's words left Daoist Hong Yun wanting to refute, yet unable to speak—indeed, this was his greatest recent concern.

Yet Chongguang's pressure was overwhelming; as the former master of 【Fu Fu Deng Huo】, he could faintly sense 【Fu Fu Deng Huo】's attention toward him gradually fading, being slowly stripped away by Chongguang—if this continued, he would truly be ousted!

His options were few.

Thus, not long ago, he had resolved to journey to Jiangnan, reclaim the Cave Heaven fragment—even if it were poison, he would swallow it!

But Lu Yang's appearance changed his mind.

"What else do you know?"

Under Daoist Hong Yun's gaze, Lu Yang directly imprinted a copy of the 【Cave Void Inner Observation of Heaven and Earth True Exegesis】 he had obtained from the Cave Heaven into his divine sense.

Though 【Angxiao】 had erased all memories of this from Xiao Hai True Person.

But back then, Lu Yang had borrowed the body of True Person Xiaohai to record the contents; since True Person Xiaohai forgot, what does that have to do with me, Lu Yang?

"This is...!?"

The moment he saw the "True Explanation of Inner Observation of the Void and Heaven and Earth," Daoist Hong Yun Daoist's eyes immediately flashed with excitement; he felt the method before him was strangely familiar.

"I also possess another related method."

Lu Yang spoke calmly: "That one is more important; it is a secret technique used to connect with 【Fu Deng Huo】. I think you should be more interested in it?"

As his words fell, Daoist Hong Yun Daoist immediately closed both eyes.

Lu Yang smiled, knowing that unlike the transaction with Master Chongguang, this transaction with Daoist Hong Yun Daoist was one where he had completely seized the initiative.

"Daoist friend, you will go overseas with me."

With a tone that brooked no argument, Lu Yang spoke directly: "Besides the 【Di Fu Jin Zhuan Doushu Zhen Chi】, you must also help me subdue that Primordial Dao Sin."

After all, relying solely on himself, he could not handle that Dao Sin.

"... Very well." Daoist Hong Yun Daoist understood he had lost the initiative, so he did not haggle, but nodded and agreed to Lu Yang's request decisively and cleanly.

The transaction ended perfectly, with both host and guest fully pleased.

After leaving behind the Flying Letter Spirit Book used for mutual contact, Daoist Hong Yun Daoist watched Lu Yang depart while inwardly unable to stop muttering:

'Which Holy Sect True Person is this fellow?'

'Could it not be that Master Chongguang is using me as bait? Even if not, given the Holy Sect's style, selling information to both sides is the norm, and burning bridges after crossing the river is a daily occurrence.'

'He won't turn around and contact Master Chongguang, will he?'

"Hello? Hello?"

The Cloud Sea Reaching Heaven, the Holy Fire Cliff.

Master Chongguang looked strangely at the Flying Letter Spirit Book in his hand, seeing Lu Yang's handwriting quickly appear upon it:

【Daizhang Sect, I have a splendid opportunity here to bury Daoist Hong Yun.】

【Are you interested?】

(End of this chapter)