Chapter 43: Master of the Blood-Clad Tower
The invasion of the Divine Martial Sect ended abruptly just like that.
With Ouyang Haoze dead, Wu Zhichong and Duanmu Yuan didn’t even dare to linger. Without a word, they turned and fled as if some savage beast were chasing them.
In stark contrast to the Divine Martial Sect scurrying away like rats, the market was filled with jubilation.
After all, following this battle the Skull Mountain market was now impregnable. As long as a Foundation Establishment Perfected One did not intervene, it would be difficult for the Divine Martial Sect to shake this tortoise shell.
As for the corpse tide, that was merely a minor skin ailment, not worth mentioning.
In short, it was safe!
A safe market would inevitably become a center of wealth. It was foreseeable that transactions here would become more frequent in the future, and opportunities to make money would increase.
The good days were still ahead.
However, the excitement belonged to others; Lu Yang only found them noisy.
At this moment, he was still immersed in the lingering palpitations from earlier, unable to recover for a long time.
For a long time—or rather, ever since Xiao Shiye was fished away by that Daoist Hong Yun—Foundation Establishment Perfected Ones had become a lingering shadow in Lu Yang’s heart.
When he realized that another Foundation Establishment Perfected One might be plotting against him, the joy of having just beheaded Ouyang Haoze was instantly swept away. Subconsciously, he grasped the [Primordial Chaos One-Qi Divine Talisman] around his neck. Only after ensuring it was still functioning did his suspended heart settle slightly.
“The Divine Talisman is still working, which means the other party still cannot calculate my whereabouts…”
That said, the efficacy of the [Primordial Chaos One-Qi Divine Talisman] had its limits.
Strictly speaking, it did not completely cut off karma but rather obscured it. It placed a layer of false karma lines on Lu Yang to achieve protection.
After all, completely cutting off karma would be too conspicuous.
So when a Foundation Establishment Perfected One divined him, they wouldn’t get no result; instead, they would calculate a flawless yet completely false, result.
The advantage of this was that it was more covert, but the disadvantage was that it couldn’t thoroughly shield him from the influence of a Foundation Establishment Perfected One.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang already had an answer in his heart— “In that case, the other party wasn’t specifically targeting me, but accidentally dragged me into this.”
This would also explain the matter of the Mystic Yin Sacred Jade.
It wasn’t that he was struck by great fortune, but rather that someone had deliberately delivered this item to his hands, intending to use him to achieve some ulterior motive.
“What motive?”
Lu Yang shifted his gaze to Ouyang Haoze’s corpse. Immediately, he waved the Myriad Spirits Banner in his hand, seizing the body that had been split in two.
Perhaps he could obtain some clues from this person.
Moreover, as a True Disciple of the Divine Martial Sect, Ouyang Haoze’s collection was surely substantial!
Soon, Ouyang Haoze’s corpse was refined into the Myriad Spirits Banner. Unfortunately, because the body had been split in half, the extracted true spirit was incomplete.
Whether the Myriad Spirits Banner could maintain a banner spirit’s combat power, memories, and consciousness from their previous life generally depended on the completeness of the corpse. The better preserved the corpse, the closer the banner spirit would be to its state in life, like Liu Xin. As for Ouyang Haoze, Lu Yang barely managed to preserve seventy percent of his state from when he was alive.
However, even so, he still learned many secrets.
“So this was the Divine Martial Sect’s goal.”
“There is a secret realm within Skull Mountain left behind by the ancient Shaman-Ghost Path. and the Earthly Fiend Yin Qi beneath Skull Mountain is leaking from that secret realm…”
“The Divine Martial Sect wants to monopolize the secret realm, which is why they planned to uproot the Primordial Saint Sect’s market here…”
“This is actually good news. If I report this back to the Primordial Saint Sect, I will surely receive a considerable amount of Contribution Points as a reward, and the sect will also send people to support us…”
“Although the benefits of monopolizing this news would be greater… why should I monopolize it?”
“I don’t intend to venture into that Shaman-Ghost Secret Realm anyway. I might as well hand it over to the Primordial Saint Sect, earn a steady sum of Contribution Points, and watch others fight to the death!”
Thinking of this, Lu Yang felt relieved.
Knowing now that a Foundation Establishment Perfected One was plotting in the shadows of Skull Mountain, he became even more determined to hide within the market and never step outside.
Next, Lu Yang began to process Ouyang Haoze’s belongings.
However, just as he picked up Ouyang Haoze’s storage bag, a round mirror floated over tremblingly. Upon getting close, it even affectionately rubbed against his hand.
It was none other than the [Supreme Sky Mirror].
This Spirit Treasure acted like an eager puppy, circling Lu Yang while hopping up and down, its movements full of intent to pledge loyalty.
“You want to forsake the light and join the darkness?”
Lu Yang was somewhat surprised. To be honest, for such an Extreme Yang Spirit Treasure to defect to a demonic cultivator like him… it seemed Ouyang Haoze had truly hurt it deeply.
Seeing that Lu Yang’s attention finally fell on it, the [Supreme Sky Mirror] first shone on the storage bag in Lu Yang’s hand, then swayed left and right. Then, a voice rang out in Lu Yang’s mind, sounding somewhat milky, like a child who had just learned to speak:
“They, no good!”
Then, the [Supreme Sky Mirror] emitted a strong light and bobbed up and down, its voice changing to one filled with innate pride and arrogance:
“I, good!”
This was a self-recommendation.
Lu Yang’s gaze became increasingly amazed. Although he had long known that Spirit Treasures possessed their own intelligence and were miraculous, this was the first time he had witnessed it.
“Fine, I’ll use you for now.”
Lu Yang beckoned with his hand, and the [Supreme Sky Mirror] immediately dropped into it willingly. With its cooperation, he quickly mastered this Spirit Treasure inside and out.
“Good! Truly a good treasure!”
Lu Yang’s face was full of delight. A Spirit Treasure truly lived up to its reputation!
It was well known that a so-called cultivator at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining was one who had nurtured the Qi Seed in their body to the limit, thereby evolving a streak of “Perfected True Qi.”
For example, his Nine Transformations Dragon Art would evolve a streak of “True Dragon Evil Qi” upon reaching Great Perfection.
In other words, Perfected True Qi was the hallmark of the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, and also the strongest means relied upon to suppress all Qi Refining cultivators below that stage.
However, the [Supreme Sky Mirror], this Spirit Treasure, naturally possessed a streak of Perfected True Qi called “Supreme Sky Wind-Thunder Qi”!
In other words, as long as one wielded this Spirit Treasure, even with a cultivation of only the First Layer of Qi Refining, one could rival the Great Perfection of Qi Refining while activating the Spirit Treasure!
“But there seem to be quite a few restrictions inside this Spirit Treasure…”
Lu Yang examined the [Supreme Sky Mirror]. Treasures were meant to be used by people, and the Orthodox Path was no exception. The [Supreme Sky Mirror] contained a large number of restrictions limiting its actions.
Therefore, if he used this Spirit Treasure in front of Divine Martial Sect disciples, the opponent might just pinch a seal, and the [Supreme Sky Mirror] would fly back on its own.
This had nothing to do with the will of the [Supreme Sky Mirror]; it was entirely a backdoor left by the person who refined the treasure.
“It would be a pity not to use such a Spirit Treasure…”
Lu Yang pondered for a moment, and suddenly his eyes lit up. Although his formation skills were not yet enough to break the restrictions in the mirror, it wasn’t impossible to find a compromise.
In the next second, Lu Yang shook the Myriad Spirits Banner and re-summoned Ouyang Haoze. He then refined him into a streak of [Primordial One Qi] and injected it into the [Supreme Sky Mirror]… He would control Ouyang Haoze, and Ouyang Haoze would control the [Supreme Sky Mirror], thereby bypassing the restrictions within the mirror.
Boom!
In an instant, the [Supreme Sky Mirror] in Lu Yang’s hand erupted with dazzling treasure light. The sound of wind and thunder was faint within the light, and its power had clearly reached the level of Qi Refining Perfection!
“…It really works!”
Lu Yang laughed heartily. He then suspended the [Supreme Sky Mirror] behind his head. For a moment, even the treasure light it emitted turned crimson, dyed with his color.
“Excellent! Excellent!”
Lu Yang laughed heartily again before putting away the [Supreme Sky Mirror] and opening Ouyang Haoze’s storage bag. Instantly, the gushing spiritual energy made him squint his eyes.
Inside was a massive pile of Spirit Stones!
In addition, there were various precious pills, artifacts, and materials… Lu Yang made a rough calculation; reselling them to the Primordial Saint Sect would be worth at least thirty thousand Contribution Points.
“Truly a huge windfall… sadly, there probably won’t be another opportunity like this in the future.”
After all, with Ouyang Haoze’s example, no one below Foundation Establishment would likely dare to storm the formation again.
‘Once the news of the Shaman-Ghost Secret Realm spreads, Skull Mountain will see another storm of blood… There is definitely a Foundation Establishment Perfected One plotting behind this.’
‘But as long as I don’t go out and don’t get involved in this trouble… unless he acts personally, what can he do to me?’
Lu Yang made up his mind. He stored everything away, parted the formation, and rode a streak of escaping light back to the market, landing on the terrace of the [Blood-Clad Tower].
From this day on, Skull Mountain fell into a strange calm.
The Divine Martial Sect continued to send more people, and the Primordial Saint Sect’s reinforcements arrived one after another.
Yet, on the surface, there were no ripples; only undercurrents surged behind the scenes.
Under these circumstances, Lu Yang’s deeds inexplicably spread and became widely known.
Joining the Holy Sect as a mortal ten years ago, making a fortune by speculating on Substitute Death Yin Puppets, entering seclusion for ten years to break through to the Late Stage of Qi Refining, becoming a Formation Master, and then beheading a True Disciple of the Divine Martial Sect at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining within a formation…
Such an inspirational counterattack by a commoner was almost like a shot of adrenaline for all the ordinary disciples of the Saint Sect.
Gradually, out of awe, many people even stopped mentioning Lu Yang’s name.
Instead, they used another honorific title—
‘Master of the Blood-Clad Tower’!
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