bookpower Chapter 321: Talk with the Heavenly Master
Chapter 321: Talk with the Heavenly Master
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Three years later.
Inside the secret chamber of his cave dwelling, Lan Chang'an, now 285 years old, attached the final refined component to the leg of the straw hat assassin puppet.
The puppet’s eyes emitted a dark, icy gleam, and the fluctuations of its soul aura were almost indistinguishable from that of a human cultivator.
Swish! Thud!
A phantom-like shadow flickered, and a throwing blade shot out from the puppet’s sleeve, slicing through Lan Chang'an’s mid-Core Formation stage protective barrier.
Clang!
The remaining force of the throwing blade struck Lan Chang'an’s arm with a metallic sound, failing to penetrate further.
“At last, I’ve pushed it to the threshold of third-rank superior grade! If not for my status as a third-rank superior-grade artifact refiner, the materials might not have been sufficient.”
Lan Chang'an smiled faintly, finally allowing himself a small sigh of relief.
Over the past four or five years, he had used his skill as an artifact refiner to refine and upgrade the puppet, ultimately bringing it to an entirely new level of strength.
The straw-hat assassin puppet now barely reached the threshold of the late Core Formation stage in power—slightly weaker than Fang Zhen from back then.
However, it could easily defeat two mid-Core Formation stage opponents at once.
In the short term, Lan Chang'an wouldn’t be able to gather enough materials for a second third-rank superior-grade puppet.
Even with his considerable financial resources and connections, it would typically take decades to amass the materials needed for a single third-rank superior-grade puppet.
And even if he managed to gather the materials, the crafting process wasn’t guaranteed to succeed. The risk of failure was significant.
The other puppet, the seductive “Pink Butterfly” puppet clone, also had the potential to be upgraded to the third-rank superior grade.
The Pink Butterfly’s illusions primarily relied on the soul power of the second-life possession, so her enhancement was less urgent for now.
With these two puppet clones working together, they could suppress most ordinary late Core Formation stage Great Cultivators.
“It’s a pity that I still lack a few materials for crafting the exotic Peacock spirit puppet. Moreover, with my current puppet techniques and the inheritance I possess, the success rate is too low.” ꞦÅꞐỖbÈś
Lan Chang'an felt a twinge of regret. He would need to find a way to obtain the core puppet-making inheritance of the Thousand Mechanisms Sect, including their puppet formation techniques.
...
After leaving seclusion, Lan Chang'an was greeted by his maidservant, Yun Ling, who presented a jade slip to him.
“Mister Xu, this is the latest intelligence report on the demonic war, sent by the Pavilion Master.”
Nowadays, Lan Chang'an no longer needed to personally handle routine intelligence regarding the demonic war.
The Xuan Yin Pavilion had a comprehensive intelligence network, and due to Lan Chang'an, Pavilion Master Ni Yue paid special attention to gathering such information.
The demonic war had been raging for over four or five years now.
“‘Lingyu True Monarch,’ the child of fortune of Jing Kingdom, has remained absent from the battlefield during this war,” Lan Chang'an noted as he read the information in the jade slip.
Among the various details, the figure of Lingyu True Monarch—who could potentially shape the war’s outcome—was of particular interest to him.
Although Lingyu True Monarch hadn’t appeared, the Beast King Valley hadn’t launched a large-scale invasion of Jing Kingdom. Instead, they had shifted part of their focus to Heng Kingdom, a minor cultivation nation located in the backwater eastern region of Feng Kingdom.
Heng Kingdom was similar to Jing Kingdom—small to medium-sized, with no fourth-rank spirit veins.
Years ago, when Lan Chang'an had formed his Immortal Golden Dan in Wangyue Immortal City, he had encountered Granny Yan and Zhu Yuting, both cultivators from Heng Kingdom.
At that time, Lan Chang'an had considered the Heng Kingdom a potential fallback location for secluded cultivation. But now, it seemed even this small nation couldn’t escape the demonic invasion.
“The former Palace Master of Proud Moon Palace, ‘Long Yue True Monarch,’ has fallen in battle against the demonic forces. She was killed by the Great Elder of Beast King Valley.”
This was the first news of a Righteous Dao Alliance True Monarch falling since the demonic war resumed.
Lan Chang'an sighed. Fortunately, over a decade ago, Proud Moon Palace had successfully transitioned to a new Nascent Soul True Monarch, who was Xia Wenyue’s master.
Otherwise, in the current climate, Proud Moon Palace’s Nascent Soul legacy might have been in danger of being extinguished.
“Zhang Tianfeng advanced to the late Core Formation stage several years ago. Last year, he severely injured a renowned demonic Core Formation Great Cultivator and killed two True Dan cultivators from Beast King Valley, making a name for himself in the demonic battlefield.”
The intelligence also included news of some old acquaintances.
Zhang Tieshan, now known as Zhang Tianfeng, had risen to prominence within the Righteous Dao Alliance. He was now ranked among the top three in the Core Formation Combat Merit Rankings!
For those cultivators who had earned significant merit in battle, the Alliance offered generous rewards.
The rewards on the merit rankings included rare resources that even tempted Lan Chang'an.
“Nascent Soul-forming spiritual items! Tribulation-resolving treasures!”
The most valuable rewards, meant for Core Formation cultivators, were incredibly enticing—even the major sects were covetous of them.
The highest reward was a single inferior Infant Transformation Pill!
Lan Chang'an couldn’t help but feel his heart stir, almost tempted to earn merits himself.
After all, his own strength placed him at the pinnacle of the Core Formation stage. Even top-tier Core Formation cultivators like Liang Shaotian and the Peacock Saintess weren’t his match.
“I can't fall for the Righteous Dao Alliance’s tricks!”
He understood that the Alliance offered these rewards to incentivize cultivators to fight bravely, alleviate dissatisfaction among the middle and lower ranks, and provide a glimmer of hope for upward advancement.
Conscription alone wouldn’t suffice.
Without some tangible benefits or hope for advancement, why would mid- and high-tier cultivators risk their lives on the battlefield?
Lan Chang'an speculated that the Infant Transformation Pill and other treasures would ultimately end up in the hands of Core Formation cultivators from major sects, leaving loose cultivators with little chance.
Moreover, those who stood out on the merit rankings would undoubtedly become prime targets for Beast King Valley, possibly even drawing the attention of Nascent Soul True Monarchs.
...
Lan Chang'an's original plan did not waver!
To obtain more precise intelligence, he quietly left Fengyuan Kingdom after completing the third-rank late-stage puppet. He sent the straw-hat assassin puppet to Liang Kingdom to meet with Xing Peng.
This time, Lan Chang'an learned shocking news.
According to Xing Peng, Beast King Valley had paid a high price to invite the mysterious and supreme Unseen Gate Master.
The child of fortune of Jing Kingdom, Lingyu True Monarch, might have been held in check by the Unseen Gate Master.
The Unseen Gate Master possessed the "Faceless" disguise treasure, which allowed him to take on thousands of identities, making him nearly impossible to defend against.
Over the past centuries, the Unseen Gate Master had rarely acted, but whenever he did, a Nascent Soul True Monarch from an opposing force would inevitably fall—including even mid-Nascent Soul cultivators.
“The clash between the child of fortune and the Unseen Gate Master... I wonder who will emerge victorious.”
Lan Chang'an’s interest was piqued.
Unfortunately, battles at this level were far beyond his ability to observe or comprehend.
While returning, his puppet clone took the opportunity to stabilize the “Gu God Seal” within Zhou Qingxuan’s sea of consciousness.
Lan Chang'an’s unique restriction technique, now refined through his Nascent Soul-level understanding, had become even more advanced. Ordinary True Monarchs would find it difficult to undo them.
This fact was known to most of the nearby Nascent Soul True Monarchs.
The Liang Kingdom was one of the cultivation nations within the Righteous Dao Alliance closest to the Fengyuan Kingdom.
Back in the day, the Lihuo True Monarch had some understanding of the Heavenly Master.
This was precisely why Lan Chang'an dared to confront the Heavenly Master’s envoy directly.
The Heavenly Master was a cautious recluse, even more so than Lan Chang'an himself. He rarely left his "three acres of land" in Fengyuan Kingdom.
As long as he remained within the Ice and Snow Sacred Mountain or the kingdom’s core territories, he was as powerful as a mid-Nascent Soul stage cultivator, with no nearby True Monarch capable of threatening him.
However, leaving that region introduced certain risks to his otherwise invincible position.
“Now then, Mister Xu, you still haven’t answered my earlier question,” Elder Xuesong pressed, his tone sharper this time.
It was clear he believed this question to be the key to unraveling Lan Chang'an’s true origins.
“The answer is simple,” Lan Chang'an said with a faint smile, answering truthfully, “Yun Ling, in her previous life, was a maidservant on Little Turtle Peak under my care. Her reincarnation and our reunion were purely coincidental, so I decided to look after her.”
“Reincarnation?”
This answer caught the Heavenly Master off guard. For the first time, he appeared genuinely surprised.
Matters involving the mysteries of reincarnation and identifying someone’s past life were not things ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators could accomplish.
As a fourth-rank divination grandmaster, the Heavenly Master himself could only confirm someone’s reincarnation identity by directly encountering a reincarnated individual and then using divination to deduce their past life.
Yet Lan Chang'an, whose divination skills were clearly not at the fourth-rank level, had confidently declared Yun Ling’s past life.
The Heavenly Master had intended to use this question to probe Lan Chang'an’s roots, but the unexpected answer only shrouded him in deeper layers of mystery.
“If the Heavenly Master doubts me, you can use your knowledge of Yun Ling’s origins to verify and confirm this for yourself. It should not be difficult,” Lan Chang'an said calmly, exuding quiet confidence.
This confidence stemmed from his reliance on the Nine Seal Stele and the mysteries of reincarnation. These formed a formidable barrier of information that naturally obstructed attempts at divination or deduction.
The more the Heavenly Master tried to probe along this line of reasoning, the deeper he would sink into confusion and uncertainty.
Failing to unravel Lan Chang'an’s secrets, and with his inherently cautious nature, the Heavenly Master would likely grow wary and avoid making any rash moves against him.
Moreover, Lan Chang'an now possessed initial means of self-preservation and escape even in the face of a Nascent Soul True Monarch.
Even if the Heavenly Master were to personally descend upon the Outer Sect Alliance, with his power diminished, Lan Chang'an would not be so afraid that he had no power to resist.
“What a vast world, full of wonders. Mister Xu, you have truly broadened this poor Daoist’s horizons,” the Heavenly Master remarked, his tone now laced with admiration.
After attempting to divine the truth of Lan Chang'an’s claim, he found it to be accurate.
Yet, as he tried to probe further, he encountered an impenetrable fog of heavenly secrets, leaving him unable to grasp the full picture of Lan Chang'an’s origins.
He could only sigh inwardly, thinking that such a mystery might require the combined efforts of the Ten Sects Of Xuan Gate to accomplish.
“You flatter me, Heavenly Master. When it comes to divination, the Heavenly Master is a mountain to climb,” Lan Chang'an replied modestly.
Too much was too little, he didn't have to deliberately put on airs. Even if he had successfully fooled the Heavenly Master, it was best to remain humble and low-key.
The rest of the conversation was amicable, with the two speaking as equals.
The Heavenly Master gradually shifted the topic to the Ten Sects of the Xuan Gate, attempting to glean Lan Chang'an’s intentions and affiliations.
Lan Chang'an, however, was evasive on this topic, merely stating that he was neither an enemy nor a rival of the Heavenly Master and had no affiliation with the Six Demonic Sects.
After half an hour of conversation, the Heavenly Master grew increasingly convinced that Lan Chang'an was no ordinary cultivator.
The breadth of Lan Chang'an’s knowledge was astonishing, akin to that of a Nascent Soul cultivator.
Even concerning regions beyond Qing State, Lan Chang'an could speak with authority, describing their cultures and geographies with surprising detail.
This left the Heavenly Master, who stayed at home all day, inwardly sighing in inferiority.
By the end of their discussion, the Heavenly Master was firmly convinced that Lan Chang'an was either part of some hidden scheme by the Ten Great Xuan Sects or a Nascent Soul old monster who had reincarnated or seized a new body.
In any case, he wasn't a person to be provoked easily.
...
That afternoon, Elder Xuesong bid farewell and left Xuan Yin Pavilion without bringing up the matters of taking Fairy Qiu as a concubine or turning Xuan Yin Pavilion into a subordinate force of Ice and Snow Sacred Mountain.
Inside his cave residence, Lan Chang'an exhaled deeply, finally relaxing after the tense encounter.
Spending half an hour "talking and laughing" with a Nascent Soul-level old monster was mentally exhausting. Every word had to be chosen carefully, leaving no room for error.
If not for the fact that Lan Chang'an truly possessed the experiences of a Nascent Soul cultivator from the fourth life, with the knowledge and demeanor to match, it would have been impossible to fool the Heavenly Master.
The notion of a mere Foundation Establishment or Core Formation cultivator without relevant experience being able to deceive a Nascent Soul True Monarch, as depicted in certain stories, was laughable.
In reality, when faced with a Nascent Soul-level cultivator, even the slightest ripple in one’s mental state or a single flaw in one’s words would be seen through at a glance.
This conversation had provided Lan Chang'an with two critical pieces of information:
First, the Heavenly Master’s position was not as invulnerable and transcendent as it seemed.
The Heavenly Master was not the detached and untouchable figure who sat back and watched the world’s events from on high.
Not only did he harbor concerns about the Six Demonic Sects, but he was also wary of the Nascent Soul cultivators from the territories of the Two Teachings' Sects bordering the Fengyuan Kingdom.
The regions controlled by these two sects were in chaos, and a handful of their Nascent Soul old monsters, unable to establish themselves in their own territories, were attempting to migrate into the Fengyuan Kingdom.
Lan Chang'an suspected that Ice and Snow Sacred Mountain might hold some significant secret that was drawing external attention.
Additionally, the two sect branches operating in the Outer Sect Alliance—supported by Nascent Soul cultivators—were clearly a thorn in the Heavenly Master’s side.
However, the Heavenly Master’s mastery of divination and his reluctance to leave his homeland made it difficult for those Nascent Soul cultivators to find a weakness to exploit.
Secondly, information about the Thousand Mechanisms Sect's core inheritance.
When it came to the details of the two sect branches in the Outer Sect Alliance, the Heavenly Master was surprisingly forthcoming.
Lan Chang'an realized that the Heavenly Master might be hoping to subtly get his help. Rather than remaining passively defensive, the Heavenly Master might prefer a proactive approach to resolve the threats posed by the two sect branches.
The information revealed by the Heavenly Master was shocking:
"The Thousand Mechanisms Sect branch in the Outer Sect Alliance possessed quasi-fourth-rank puppets and had mastered third-rank puppet formations. This meant that even if a Nascent Soul True Monarch attacked, they could hold their ground and resist."
"The Five Poisons Sect branch wielded fourth-rank poisons and soul-affecting toxins, potent enough to pose a threat to Nascent Soul cultivators."
This revelation left Lan Chang'an astonished.
If when he had entered the mid-Core Formation stage and defeated Fang Zhen, a Core Formation Great cultivator, only to then assume he was invincible within the Outer Sect Alliance below the Nascent Soul stage, it would have been a grave mistake.
The Heavenly Master’s willingness to share this information was likely intended to provoke Lan Chang'an into action, hoping that he would confront the two sect branches and weaken their strength.
However, this was an open scheme.
Even though Lan Chang'an could see through it, he would still be tempted by the resources the two sect branches possessed, as they could provide him with the means to better contend with Nascent Soul-level cultivators.
Lan Chang'an decided to bide his time. Once he reached the late third rank of body cultivation or advanced to the late Core Formation stage, he would carefully plan his next move to seize these opportunities.