Chapter 97: Charging Into Foundation Establishment Once More, the Coiled Dragon Appears!

Time flew by; in the blink of an eye, three months had passed.

On this day, Lu Yang sat cross-legged atop Skull Mountain, suddenly opened his eyes, and a look of joy crossed his face, for his physical body had finally completed the Corpse Dissolution Transformation!

The next instant, Lu Yang vanished from where he stood.

Inside the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner.

In a place of empty void, twisted flesh and blood had built a grand palace, with dense blood vessels like tree roots coiling around it on all sides.

These root-like blood vessels all spread out from the deepest part of the palace, and following them inside, one could see that whether the pillars or the walls, all were forged from ghastly white bone, with blood vessels wrapped around them, quietly writhing as if alive.

Terrifying, bizarre, grotesque.

This was precisely what his physical body looked like after the Corpse Dissolution—no longer human in form, shifting through ten thousand shapes every moment, impossible to describe, like an embodiment of chaos.

"I never expected this 【Corpse Dissolution Immortal】 to still have one final trial!"

Lu Yang's expression was one of surprise; the physical body's metamorphosis was not the end after all—the cultivator had to rein in the rampaging flesh and blood before truly mastering it!

If one could not restrain the physical body, one would become a flesh-and-blood monster possessing a Rank.

Yet for an ordinary cultivator who had reached this step, consciousness was already clouded, hovering between life and death, half asleep and half awake—how could they possibly have the ability to control their physical body?

"This difficulty is way too high—good thing I'm a cut above the rest."

With the help of his Dharma Protector Goddess, the Su Nü, he had successfully cultivated the "Severing Thoughts to See Me, Heavenly Silkworm Secret" a month ago, and his spiritual sense had smoothly transformed into divine sense.

And with the augmentation of divine sense, controlling a mere physical body was naturally a trivial matter.

At this moment, as Lu Yang's mind moved, the originally massive flesh-and-blood palace immediately began to collapse and contract, the chaotic anomalies returning to order beneath his will.

In the end, only a dashing, transcendent Daoist remained where he had stood.

The Daoist was dressed all in white, his black hair like a dragon, writhing as if possessed of life, and his entire being exuded an ethereal quality that transcended the mundane world.

【Corpse Dissolution Immortal】 achieved!

Lu Yang's soul fled into his physical body; in an instant spirit and flesh merged as one, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly, and his original Rank instantly soared to an unimaginable height.

Raising his head to gaze at the heavens, Lu Yang could already see that lofty 'Foundation Establishment Realm'; in fact, if that place were the mountain's peak, then he now stood less than a hundred steps from the summit—roughly on par with the previous Ancestor Tingyou, perhaps even slightly higher.

Yet even so, the grandeur of the 'Foundation Establishment Realm' still made him sigh involuntarily.

Being close, after all, is not as good as arriving.

No matter how close one gets to the 'Foundation Establishment Realm', even if only a single step away, without stepping inside and truly constructing the Dao Foundation, there will always remain the gulf between immortal and mortal.

"I lament the brevity of my life, and envy the endless flow of the Yangtze."

Just then, a streak of spiritual light suddenly came flying through the air from afar—it had been sent from the direction of the Holy Sect. After Lu Yang received it, a token materialized.

Ascension Token!

Just as he had anticipated, after the two sides had agreed upon the matter of the 【Heavenly Corpse Sha】, True Person Yinshan naturally would not be stingy with a mere Foundation Establishment treasure.

"Everything is ready!"

At this moment, Lu Yang was filled with resolve.

Better today than any other day—he would charge into Foundation Establishment right now!

At a single thought, Lu Yang made an instant decision and strode directly toward the 'Foundation Establishment Realm'. The next second, he had stepped into the 'Foundation Establishment Realm'!

He completed his ascension in barely a single step!

"Far easier than the last life."

In his previous life he had only possessed the Rank of 【Saint Thief】, and the ascension alone had consumed over half of his true Qi; yet in this life it was utterly different.

Zheng San Pin true Qi, 【Corpse Dissolution Immortal】 and 【Saint Thief】 paired with Foundation Establishment divine sense, plus the Ascension Token unlocking the seals of the Ninefold Heaven-Earth Barriers—Lu Yang stepped into the 'Foundation Establishment Realm' with almost no effort, possessing ample true Qi to construct his Dao Foundation, no longer as strapped as in his previous life.

"Next comes the Heart Demon invasion."

Lu Yang moved with godlike speed; the moment he entered the 'Foundation Establishment Realm' he summoned Su Nü, the 【Yama King Hall】 instantly reassembled, and a tremendous power erupted explosively.

Dharma Protector Goddess!

With Su Nü present, Lu Yang was equivalent to having already grasped the Foundation Establishment Rank in advance; using this to safeguard himself was enough to resist the majority of the Heart Demons within the 'Foundation Establishment Realm'.

"Eighty percent—sure enough, far easier than thirty percent."

Lu Yang was unhurried and steady; the Zheng San Pin true Qi 【True Dragon Sha】 roared forth, then coiled at his feet, its scales opening and closing, exhaling myriad clouds of vapor.

Clouds follow the dragon!

Above the "Nine Transformations Dragon Art" lies the "Ten Thousand Chariots Dragon-Riding Ascension Treasure Scroll"; the Dao Foundation constructed from this is a canopied carriage.

Riding the dragon, drawing a chariot of ten thousand carriages to ascend!

Soon, as the clouds of vapor gathered inward and the radiance was contained, the shape of a carriage gradually emerged, making Lu Yang's aura increasingly lofty and ethereal.

Yet Lu Yang's brows gradually furrowed.

"Something's not right."

His sensitivity to karma was extremely keen; therefore, as his own level drew closer to Foundation Establishment, he felt increasingly uneasy, a shadow rising in his heart.

Karmic threads he had once been unable to sense were now exceptionally clear, wrapping around him one by one. The more he charged toward Foundation Establishment, the more it felt like a moth flying into flame, or a butterfly falling into a spider's web. This feeling made Lu Yang's expression grow uglier and uglier, and a sudden realization arose in his heart:

"Someone is scheming against me!"

Who?

Master Chongguang, True Person Yinshan, the Peak Lord of Butian, even Ancestor Tingyou—all the people he knew flashed through Lu Yang's mind in an instant.

No, that's not right!

"Ancestor Tingyou was killed by Jin Dan sword Qi—he absolutely couldn't have come back to life. The Peak Lord of Butian was injured that badly; in just three months he couldn't possibly have recovered fully."

"As for Master Chongguang and True Person Yinshan, that's even more impossible."

The next second, a single name finally leapt from Lu Yang's mind; the other's situation was too special, which was why he had been overlooking them all along.

Suddenly, Lu Yang exhaled a long breath of turbid air and stopped deliberating—not because he was giving up on digging deeper, but because at this point, uncovering the truth was already too late.

Lu Yang gazed into the far distance, and saw that within the vast, boundless 'Foundation Establishment Realm', one person was walking over slowly.

The newcomer's bearing was unhurried; each step was taken with great solidity, the footfalls echoing through the 'Foundation Establishment Realm' like a great bell and sounding jade, like a clear, soaring dragon's cry.

At first, Lu Yang saw the other party still far away, yet after only a few steps, he had already arrived right before him; wherever he passed, golden lotuses bloomed, and a booming chant of Zen rang deafeningly loud. Merely standing before Lu Yang, he made it impossible for Lu Yang's gaze to shift away from him.

"So it really is you."

Lu Yang's voice was cold and grim as he stared straight at the newcomer, noticing the other's full and broad forehead, clad in a golden Zen robe, and holding a nine-ringed staff in hand.

The newcomer appeared as a youth, with red lips and white teeth, his face bearing an aura of compassion.

Yet the tiny dragon he held, claws bared and writhing, was the exact opposite: fierce and demonic, its pair of golden eyes filled with killing intent as it stared at Lu Yang.

The next second, Lu Yang felt his entire body freeze.

He saw that little dragon let out a low growl, its dragon eyes unblinking, reflecting all the surroundings around Lu Yang into its gaze, and trapping him within those eyes.

Dragon eyes, golden pupils, framing heaven and earth!

Seeing this, Lu Yang's expression did not change; he merely spoke in a cold tone:

"Panlong True Person!"

With the other's appearance, the karmic ties that had been hidden extremely deep finally revealed their traces; the newcomer was none other than Panlong True Person, whom Lu Yang had previously believed long dead!

(End of this chapter)