Chapter 980: 975: Then I Shall Grant Your Wish
Chapter 980: Chapter 975: Then I Shall Grant Your Wish
Current World, Netherworld.
At this moment, Lü Yang’s shout had yet to dissipate. The echoes still lingered in the air. Only a second ago, his figure had just vanished from the spot under everyone’s watchful eyes.
“The Variable has arrived…”
On the Road to the Underworld, Ang Xiao stood with his hands behind his back. Feeling the subtle changes between Heaven and Earth, he keenly noticed the quiet shift in the Mighty Power of two Masters of Dao.
“The Constant and Bhagavat’s Time Scroll have both shown anomalies,” he thought. “The Constant has weakened by about a third, and the Time Scroll by about a fifth… As expected, it is the Fruit of Rampart Earth. That guy, Master of Tribulation, has escaped into the Great Net of Karma Links, and the Stain Sect’s old geezer and Bhagavat have chased after him.”
“Since that’s the case, I can’t stay idle either.”
In a flash, Ang Xiao had already made his judgment. At least for this moment, he and that Master of Tribulation, Immortal Monarch Du Ye, were in the same boat. Since the other side had drawn the enemy’s fire, it was time for him to move as well.
With this in mind, Ang Xiao immediately took another step forward. This time, he held nothing back. With a single stride, he crossed the Road to the Underworld. Following closely were the Naihe Bridge, Wangxiang Platform, and Three Lives Stone.
These components of the Netherworld passed by his eyes one by one, causing thoughts to continuously surface in Ang Xiao’s mind, yet they did not make him hesitate in the slightest.
“The Three Lives Stone can awaken a Soul’s past and present lives,” he mused. “Even for a Soul that has lived through five lifetimes, whose original self has been completely washed clean by the Netherworld, and has rebirthed a new consciousness—it would still recall its past memories and innate wisdom before the Three Lives Stone. Is it trying to make me remember the past too?”
In a daze, images surfaced. Then, Ang Xiao discovered that he had no Previous Life. At least before the consciousness of “Ang Xiao” was born, his Soul was a complete blank.
“…Heh!” Looking at the scenes before him, Ang Xiao laughed. “What is the meaning of this? Are you trying to remind me that my birth and my Soul were arranged by someone else?”
It was the only explanation. The Void Sea of Light had existed until today, with Souls constantly reincarnating over countless ages. In theory, it was impossible for a Soul to have only “one lifetime.” Unless this Soul was not naturally born, but deliberately created by someone for a specific purpose, this was the only situation where it would have only one life… Such a truth was equivalent to telling a person that their life, their achievements, and their everything were nothing but an elaborate, premeditated plot. This was enough to make anyone doubt themselves, or even break down completely.
However, Ang Xiao’s expression did not change. Without a moment’s pause, he simply lifted his foot and stepped right over the Three Lives Stone, an obstacle that would have stopped countless Cultivators in their tracks!
“So what if it’s a premeditated plot? It can only scheme against my past and my Soul, but it cannot calculate my insights and my determination… My Dao is right beneath my feet!”
Ang Xiao strode forward with his head held high, completely unbothered by the truth revealed by the Three Lives Stone. The Four Directions Ghost Realm did not even dare to block his path.
His Qi trace was still climbing!
The number one Perfected Lord in the world—this was not a title Ang Xiao gave himself, but an undeniable fact. For many Great Perfected Lords, this insurmountable threshold was like crumbling clay beneath his feet, unable to stop him for even an instant.
RUMBLE!
Finally, Ang Xiao shattered the obstacles and arrived at the core area of the Netherworld, which was also its final component—the gates of the Netherworld Lord’s Hall.
At almost the exact same time, his Qi trace finally broke through the Critical Point of the Late Stage of Golden Core. His Position, which was already at the Extreme of the mortal world, climbed even further. It fiercely broke into a profoundly mysterious level. It seemed as though it had not reached the level of a Master of Dao, yet it had already achieved Transcendence from the mortal world and was no longer bound by worldly matters.
Golden Core Perfection!
This Position transcended above a Perfected Lord, yet sat below a Nascent Soul Daoist Lord. Perhaps it could be called a Daoist Monarch. This was a Realm with no turning back. One must either ascend and step onto the Other Shore, or fall, perishing along with their Dao! Breaking through to this Realm was like leaping off the edge of a cliff. Only a Cultivator with tremendous courage, perseverance, and determination could walk this path.
At the same time, right at this moment, the Netherworld Lord’s Hall moved. The doors of the towering palace opened. Vaguely, a figure of light seemed to emerge, weak and withered to the Extreme.
In an instant, the Bhagavat, the Daoist Lord of Magic, the Sword Pavilion Daoist Lord, the Daoist Court Daoist Lord, and even the lofty Saint Sect Ancestral Master—who had all been locked in fierce combat—seemed to experience a subtle pause. They temporarily set aside their respective opponents and coincidentally cast their gazes toward the figure of light in the hall.
The Variable had appeared.
In the Previous Life, right up until Ang Xiao crashed to his death against the Netherworld Lord’s Hall, the First Generation Demon Taming Peak Master slumbering within had shown no signs of waking up. He had simply perished together with Ang Xiao in a haze.
However, things had changed in this life. Because inside Emperor Ying, Lü Yang had preemptively stimulated the First Generation Demon Taming Peak Master, allowing this true Lord of the Netherworld to regain a portion of his lucidity ahead of time! Thus, at this moment, he woke up!
Undoubtedly, this exceeded the expectations of all the Masters of Dao present. In contrast, a look of “just as I expected” flashed through Ang Xiao’s eyes.
“Just as I thought,” Ang Xiao pondered. “Normally, most of the Netherworld’s components remain in a state of dormancy. Even the Four Great Ghost Realms are almost completely sealed off from the outside, never interacting with the mortal world. Yet now, they have all awakened one after another, and the Three Lives Stone even took the initiative to block my path. It really is the Lord of the Netherworld waking up.”
With this realization, Ang Xiao felt a faint sense of urgency in his heart.
“Master of Tribulation, what exactly are you doing in the Great Net of Karma Links? I have delayed taking the final step and reclaiming the Fruit of Lamp-Cover Fire for so long. You had better not let me down…”
Ang Xiao hesitated in his heart. At this moment, the Constant was still looming overhead, and the First Generation Demon Taming Peak Master was blocking the way. Even if he had two lives, it would be difficult to break through.
However, right at that moment, the figure of light inside the Netherworld Lord’s Hall suddenly moved. A faint, melancholic voice echoed out, “Must it really come to this?”
“Master…”
As the sorrowful voice rang out, Ang Xiao’s vision suddenly shifted. It seemed to be a sight that only he could see. He saw that the figure of light, which was weak to the Extreme yet fundamentally still unbelievably powerful, had suddenly transformed into a teary-eyed youth. He was sighing.
A second later, he glanced at Ang Xiao again. He froze for a moment, then, as if understanding something, gave a slight nod. Immediately after, he shifted his gaze toward the Time Scroll conjured by the Bhagavat. His faint voice sounded once more, echoing throughout the inside and outside of the Netherworld:
“Senior Brother Wan Bao, are you involved too?”
A flash of understanding passed through the youth’s misty, tear-filled eyes. He then turned back into a figure of light, cutting off all connections with the outside world. Only his final words remained:
“Master wants to kill me, and Senior Brother wants the Netherworld. This great tribulation… Fine, I shall grant your wishes.”
RUMBLE!
At this moment, this Variable—stirred up by Lü Yang, which even he himself hadn’t anticipated—finally brought about a crucial, dramatic shift to the grand scheme of things.
Inside the Netherworld Lord’s Hall, the figure of light fluctuated for a moment before quietly shattering.
There was no Soul, no Spiritual perception. It just shattered, annihilated, leaving nothing behind… All the Masters of Dao had their gazes fixed on this place, and this outcome left no room for doubt.
The First Generation Demon Taming Peak Master—had committed suicide!
At the same time, due to the death of its owner, the originally awakened Netherworld Lord’s Hall instantly lost its luster. The Netherworld was left vacant!
In this instant, the Time Scroll—which hadn’t wavered in the slightest no matter what the First Generation Demon Taming Peak Master had said previously—finally stirred with a slight ripple.