Chapter 369: Avoidance is Shameful, But Useful

At the Edge of the Highest Heaven, inside the Quiet Room.

Lu Yang sat cross-legged on a rush mat, before him lay the 【Non-Killing Sword】 of the True Person of Purging Demons, his mind completely sunk deep into the Sea of Consciousness.

And within his Sea of Consciousness, a ray of Jin Guang shone brilliantly.

The Golden Nature of Great Fortune!

This Golden Nature had been drained of its spiritual essence by the 【Book of a Hundred Lives】, leaving only a layer of skin, yet even so, it still exerted considerable pressure on Lu Yang.

The next second, Lu Yang opened the panel.

This time, without interference from Heaven and Earth, he carefully and completely reviewed the life of Great Fortune calculated by the 【Book of a Hundred Lives】.

After a long while, he finally opened his eyes.

"Damn it!"

He couldn't help but curse.

Only now did Lu Yang realize how much he had previously possessed a treasure mountain without knowing it, merely using the Golden Nature of Great Fortune to disguise his identity.

As the Great Fortune One supported by Heaven and Earth, Great Fortune had countless opportunities in this life, exploring secret realms and dangerous places beyond number; without even mentioning anything else, just this experience alone was precious, including how to find treasures within secret realms and methods to confirm if a secret realm had a master.

Even that was merely a side branch and trivial detail.

Lu Yang spent a full three days sweeping with his divine sense, finally organizing and archiving Great Fortune's memories, ultimately dividing them into three major categories.

'First, cultivation and knowledge!'

'As the True Lord of 【Extinguishing the Lamp】, Great Fortune knew the Cheng Cheng Tian Gang and Earthly Fiends corresponding to 【Extinguishing the Lamp】 inside out; his cultivation was already considered the pinnacle.'

【Jia Wood】, 【Yi Wood】.

【Chen Earth】, 【Si Fire】,

Four Cheng Cheng Tian Gang and Earthly Fiends; their Yin-Yang attributes, internal transformations, how to combine them... Great Fortune's memories contained corresponding knowledge for all, simply vast as the sea and mist!

'If I patiently integrate this knowledge and seriously contemplate it for several hundred years, completely turning it to my own use, perhaps in the future I could use this to seek 【Extinguishing the Lamp】... Even if I cannot seek it, trying to seek other fruit seats related to these four Cheng Cheng Tian Gang and Earthly Fiends would likely yield twice the result with half the effort!'

Such wealth was enough to make every Foundation Establishment realm envious.

Not to mention it also included the two previous secret methods, 【True Explanation of Observing Heaven and Earth from Within the Void】 and 【Upper Bright Golden Goblet Jade Light】, both completely intact!

Regarding these two secret methods, the latter sensing 【Extinguishing the Lamp】 was secondary.

For Lu Yang, the former was important; this was a secret method for creating a Cave Heaven and Blessed Land, of great use for cultivation in the Foundation Establishment realm!

'I never expected the secret method traded away back then would now return to my hands...'

This is fate!

Moreover, what was traded away back then were incomplete versions where Great Fortune had kept hidden tricks; what was retrieved now was the complete version without the slightest hidden danger!

"Hmm? What is this?"

Suddenly, Lu Yang felt a slight movement in his heart and looked at a page in 【True Explanation of Observing Heaven and Earth from Within the Void】, where a secret technique deduced by Great Fortune was clearly recorded.

"【Small Blessed Land】?"

Lu Yang read carefully, his eyes growing brighter and brighter.

The so-called 【Small Blessed Land】, as the name suggests, is a prototype of a Blessed Land; not only can it be cultivated to form a true Blessed Land, but more importantly, the restrictions are extremely low.

Because it does not require cultivation to be perfect in the Foundation Establishment realm.

It can be refined even in the late stage of Foundation Establishment!

'Although it cannot boost cultivation like a true Blessed Land, the 【Small Blessed Land】 also has the ability to hide from disasters and calamities; once one flees inside, even immortals would find it hard to investigate!'

This point is especially critical.

'As long as I can refine this 【Small Blessed Land】, I can hide inside it, avoiding the investigation of Heaven and Earth, without worrying about being tracked down!'

'In addition, the 【Small Blessed Land】 can also be used to evade the Five Declines of the Heavenly Man, greatly increasing the probability of perfecting the Foundation Establishment realm; truly a wonderful method!'

The only flaw is that it requires many spiritual materials.

'But I just obtained the 【Ten Thousand Calamities Indestructible Gilded Silkworm】 from the Ten Thousand Poison Sect; using this as material is just right, greatly reducing other expenses.'

Thinking of this, Lu Yang immediately placed refining the 【Small Blessed Land】 as his top priority.

Only then did he continue to observe Great Fortune's memories.

'Besides cultivation and knowledge, secondly are the secrets of Heaven and Earth!'

Seeing this, Lu Yang gritted his teeth again: 'No wonder Great Fortune chose to betray Heaven and Earth in the end, taking benefits during the Thousand-Year Calamity without sharing them with it.'

Heaven and Earth do not support you for nothing! This is like investment; having worked hard to raise you up, naturally one must take back double the reward to recover costs, otherwise wasn't the investment in vain?

'The reason Heaven and Earth supported Great Fortune to become a True Lord was purely for 【Extinguishing the Lamp】. As an object supported by Heaven and Earth, as long as Great Fortune held the position for one day, 【Extinguishing the Lamp】 would be subtly influenced for one day, and with each passing day, 【Extinguishing the Lamp】 would be one step closer to being controlled by Heaven and Earth.'

'However, doing so violated the great taboo of the Dao Lords!'

'Great Fortune realized this point, which is why he chose to betray; after all, the four Dao Lords suppress Heaven and Earth, and following Heaven and Earth has no future...'

True Lords of the Holy Sect always distinguish very clearly on such major issues of right and wrong.

They only follow the winners.

'Moreover, after Great Fortune became a True Lord, Heaven and Earth no longer supported him; seeing the Thousand-Year Birthday approaching, this was the reason Great Fortune decided to betray...'

Mid-stage Jin Dan, Cave Heaven unshaken.

To reach this step, one must constantly strengthen one's own Cave Heaven, plundering external resources for the Cave Heaven, but this goes against the original intention of Heaven and Earth.

Otherwise, if Heaven and Earth chose to continue supporting Great Fortune, letting him have hope to see higher realms, rather than having to start over after a thousand years, Great Fortune might not have betrayed; but if you treat people like dogs and stop paying wages, who the hell is willing to continue working for you?

Moreover, Heaven and Earth's tactics looked increasingly familiar to Lu Yang.

'Isn't this just throwing money to grab the market first, then turning face to harvest once monopolized...'

'If I had seen this in advance back then, I would certainly have become wary of Heaven and Earth, and wouldn't have known so late that the World Venerable had set his sights on me...'

Alas, the past cannot be retrieved.

Lu Yang gathered his mood and looked at the third category, which was the part he valued most.

'Five thousand years of time, Great Fortune truly did not live in vain!'

Indeed, for five thousand years, Daoist Hong Yun has died and died again, living days so wretched they defy description.

Yet he had actually realized the problem.

After all, compared to his first half of life, the severe decline in his fortune was something even a pig could have noticed.

In fact, even before falling from his divine seat, Daoist Hong Yun, who had betrayed Heaven and Earth, had foreseen this.

And he had left a contingency plan in advance.

'The Rite of Cultivating the Dao at the Open Altar!'

This is a Second-Rank True Art, personally deduced and recorded by Daoist Hong Yun.

That is not the most important part; the most important thing is that the coordinates of the Realm-Heaven corresponding to this Second-Rank True Art were not recorded; it was discovered by Daoist Hong Yun alone, and only he knows!

Moreover, Daoist Hong Yun had processed this Realm-Heaven to ensure it would not approach this world, thus avoiding being captured just like the 【Xuan Ling Realm】.

'This is... the final escape route Daoist Hong Yun prepared for himself!'

'Daoist Hong Yun arranged it within the art; by means of this art, one can be reincarnated into that Realm-Heaven.'

'If he truly cannot return to the position of True Lord, he will settle for less, flee to that Realm-Heaven, first become the Lord of that Realm-Heaven, and then kill his way back... Pity that although he prepared many contingencies and plans, he was truly too unlucky; in his past and present lives, not a single one could be used...'

After sorting through this memory, Lu Yang's impression of Daoist Hong Yun instantly improved greatly.

Thinking carefully, his own current situation is actually very similar to Daoist Hong Yun's in the past; both were targeted by Heaven and Earth, and both faced an enemy too great to resist.

'Originally I was worrying about what to do next, but now I don't need to think.'

Daoist Hong Yun had already arranged everything; he just didn't have time to implement it.

But it doesn't matter; when he implements it, he can take Daoist Hong Yun's Golden Nature along, giving him a sense of participation.

'I finally see clearly: this broken place has no real fish-pond game; even Heaven and Earth and the Dao Lord can descend to blow up the fish, so trying to develop oneself is simply a fantasy.'

To break the game, one must jump out.

Go to a real fish-pond game!

'Escaping is shameful, but it works!'

The moment the thought of fleeing arose, he instantly felt the world widen; Lu Yang immediately felt that the previously bewildering path ahead had become bright again.

That's right, go beyond the heavens!

What Buddha-Child, what Immortal Spirit; this old man won't serve them anymore!

Wait until I first achieve True Lord status beyond the heavens, then return and settle the score with each one!

(End of this chapter)