Chapter 85: Possession

The towering statue of the God of Untimely Death in the City of Unjust Death was far more than just a sight to behold.

This statue served as the foundation upon which the You Sect established its teachings, built directly at the secret realm's central hub in secret alignment with the Skull Mountain ley lines; one could say it was the very cornerstone of the Witch-Ghost Secret Realm.

Construction of the statue began during the lifetime of the You Patriarch, using cultivators as laborers and mortals as materials, and was only barely completed after the Patriarch's three-hundred-year reign ended with his death from old age; it possessed countless divine marvels and even involved a trump card of the You Sect, not to be used unless absolutely necessary.

Yet at this moment, everything had changed.

Lu Yang sat cross-legged atop the statue's head; without making any move, he instantly reversed the feng shui, replaced the statue, and became the heavenly and earthly central hub of this secret realm!

This was not something he did intentionally, but rather the natural influence of the disparity in their status.

Just as mortals only pay attention to the number one peak under heaven while mostly remaining unaware of the number two, heaven and earth often only focus on the person of higher status.

"I have come as invited; where are you, Senior?"

Before Lu Yang's voice had even faded, a magnificent sage figure rose from the ground behind him as well, its lips parting and closing to emit a thunderous roar!

In an instant, Lu Yang's voice echoed throughout the interior and exterior of the secret realm.

The countless mortals within the City of Unjust Death fared relatively well; they could not help but cover their ears, feeling as though thunder had erupted from the mountains, leaving them bewildered and at a loss.

Only the eight Elders of the You Sect felt that Lu Yang's voice possessed a certain 'weight,' crashing down upon them with a boom that scattered their escaping light and nearly knocked them from the sky; looking up at the sage manifestation Lu Yang had revealed, they all displayed expressions of terror.

"This thief is arrogant... he is blaspheming the Patriarch!"

"A single sound has already affected us like this... could he be an existence on par with the Patriarch?"

"Impossible!"

In that instant, all eight Elders changed color, their faces flushing red; all their previous discussions on how to subdue Lu Yang instantly turned into a joke!

Yet the very next second, they suddenly broke into smiles.

They saw the God-Connecting Statue tremble slightly under Lu Yang's voice, awakening a soul hidden within it, which let out a long sigh:

"A disciple of the Chusheng Sect... has finally arrived."

As the words fell, the originally cold and rigid statue suddenly relaxed its brows, and its eyes, originally cast from refined iron, instantly shimmered with intelligent color.

A Foundation Establishment soul had awakened!

This was a true Foundation Establishment soul, identical to the Yun family Patriarch from the previous life, and even superior, simply because this individual's cultivation seemed higher than that of the Yun Patriarch!

Immediately after, Lu Yang saw a brilliant light fly out from within the God-Connecting Statue, which then formed an image by borrowing qi, manifesting as a handsome Daoist priest with crane-white hair and a youthful face, possessing an immortal bearing and Daoist bones, who landed before him and sneered: "Interesting; where is your physical body, little friend, that only a soul remains?"

"Let me make a fool of myself before you, Senior."

Lu Yang smiled slightly, gazing directly at the You Patriarch: "Senior seems to be in no better state; this should already be your fifth life, correct?"

He could be certain that this person was undoubtedly a remnant of the Witch-Ghost Path.

Yet it had been a thousand years since the Witch-Ghost Path existed; for a Foundation Establishment True Person to survive until today, they would have to reincarnate at least four times, and even with tremendous cultivation, they were no longer something to fear.

"I wonder how Senior knew I was a disciple of the Holy Sect?"

The You Patriarch shook his head: "Little friend, you出手 almost slaughtered all my subordinates the moment you acted; with such conduct, if you aren't a madman from the Chusheng Sect, then who could you be?"

Hearing this, Lu Yang frowned, then declared with righteous indignation: "Senior's lineage uses ghosts to herd the people and harms all living beings; my actions were merely to eliminate harm for the sake of the people!"

The You Patriarch immediately laughed: "Truly a disciple of the Holy Sect!"

Lu Yang: "..."

After a moment of silence, Lu Yang took the initiative to change the subject: "Senior invited me here; what is your intention?"

"I wish to break free from my predicament and re-establish the lineage of my Witch-Ghost Path," the You Patriarch said with a light laugh. "Therefore, I must borrow an item from you, little friend; please do not decline."

"Oh?" Lu Yang's gaze burned intensely. "What item does Senior wish to borrow?"

As the words fell, the You Patriarch's expression became bizarre, his eyes carrying a chilling glint as he stared straight at Lu Yang, looking at him as if he were prey.

Lu Yang was not in the least afraid and calmly met his gaze.

"Little friend actually understands this as well, does he not? I plan to use the hand of the Chusheng Sect to break through that Golden Core sword qi, so naturally, I need the identity of a Chusheng Sect disciple."

The You Patriarch grinned, his teeth snow-white and flashing with a grim cold light: "My Witch-Ghost Path specializes in the study of souls, so we have some insights into reincarnation and possession; I have already reincarnated four times, and logically, my fifth life should be completely obscured by dust, never to transcend again, but there is no harm in trying a clever workaround."

"As long as you, little friend, are willing to lend me your body for use."

"I will take your place, and my fifth life can regain its vitality; I see that your potential is extraordinary, and perhaps you can even assist me in returning to the position of Foundation Establishment."

His tone was calm, yet the facts he stated made one's hair stand on end.

"Senior wishes to possess me?" Lu Yang raised an eyebrow.

"This is not the first time; do you think that on the day the Golden Core sword qi descended, so many Foundation Establishment experts died, yet I alone survived, why was that?"

The You Patriarch was experienced; he had done something similar before, using the method of possession to seize a mortal's physical body as a dwelling, borrowing that person's fate to conceal his own, thereby evading the sweep of the Golden Core sword qi; among the Witch-Ghost Path of those days, only he had mastered such a technique.

"So Senior has come for me this time?"

"I should thank you," the You Patriarch laughed. "My time is running short; if you had not appeared, I fear I would not have lived much longer either."

Lu Yang sneered: "Do you think you can possess me?"

"In this life, one must always take a gamble; the Witch-Ghost Path cannot perish in my hands, and for this, I am willing to pay any price; life and death are nothing."

Although he spoke thus, the You Patriarch's attitude displayed great confidence; perhaps he was certain Lu Yang could not be his match, or perhaps after lingering on for a thousand years, he had long since become indifferent to many things; regardless, at this moment, he brought a strong sense of crisis to Lu Yang.

However, Lu Yang still had a question in his heart.

If it were merely a matter of possession, why would the Golden Core sword qi need to slaughter the entire secret realm? There must be another, more important reason unknown to him.

Of course, Lu Yang did not expect the You Patriarch to tell him.

Even regarding what was being said now, Lu Yang only believed three parts of it, not taking it all as truth; after all, who knew if this was not deliberately spoken to confuse the issue.

"It seems I must capture Senior first before interrogating you in detail!"

Lu Yang's eyes flashed with brilliance, his figure suddenly vanishing, while the sage figure behind him instantly became clear and distinct; two golden light hands came from left and right, clapping together in the center.

Boom!

In an instant, brilliant golden light flooded the You Patriarch's vision; it was as if he had been caught in the palm of Lu Yang's sage figure, which intended to refine him on the spot.

Yet the very next second, even more intense brilliant light erupted explosively from within the sage figure's hands, directly blasting open Lu Yang's palm; then, rolling black clouds interwove with the brilliant light, finally manifesting as a towering mansion reaching into the clouds, with jade steps and red terraces, solemn and dignified, upon whose plaque were written three large characters:

【Hall of Yama and Demons】!

The gates of the mansion stood wide open, revealing jade steps and red terraces; the You Patriarch sat in the primary position, with a Dharma Body manifesting behind him as well, holding a banner of human heads in his left hand and standing with a book in his right.

This was—the Image of the Lord of Xuanming!

"To achieve Foundation Establishment, status is merely an entry ticket; there is nothing worthy of boasting about," the You Patriarch said, and before his voice had even faded, his qi mechanism simultaneously soared.

Boom!

The next second, his status reached a level equal to Lu Yang's; both sides stood on the same starting line, yielding not an inch, and collided directly with a tremendous crash!

In that instant, the remaining eight Elders of the You Sect had not even had time to lend assistance.

The collision between the two raised visible, sky-high waves of qi, surging back and forth like a tsunami, forcing them to retreat violently while vomiting blood incessantly.

Amidst such a collision, the brilliant light between the You Patriarch's eyebrows grew increasingly bright.

"Since it can no longer be hidden, whether I succeed or fail, I will become a benevolent one!" The You Patriarch's tone was eerie, yet his movements became increasingly resolute, as if he had already made up his mind.

This mysterious Foundation Establishment expert had relied on the method of possession to conceal heavenly secrets back then, thus escaping the reckoning of the Golden Core sword qi.

Yet at this moment, he abandoned concealment and no longer hid the heavenly secrets, causing his true identity from the past and the corresponding karma to become increasingly clear.

Clang clang—!

Within the secret realm, the Golden Core sword qi hanging high in the sky also seemed to sense something, emitting a series of light sounds, like a divine sword roaring within its sheath.

(End of Chapter)