by Imperfection
"Senior Brother Liu? He's come for me!?"
Hearing the voice from outside his cave dwelling, Lü Yang's pupils contracted sharply. His expression darkened to the extreme. Not only did he not respond, but he also deliberately concealed his aura.
"...Junior Brother?"
The voice called again. Lü Yang still did not answer. Although he had no proof, he was already certain that the contents of the Innate Dao Scripture he had been cultivating were flawed.
I was still too inexperienced. I should have suspected it from the start.
The Joyful Union Hall and Heaven-Mending Peak share a close relationship. Their cultivation techniques should have something to do with the harmony of Yin and Yang. Yet the Innate Dao Scripture had nothing to do with any of that.
He deceived me!
But why would he want to harm me? Even though the Primordial Saint Sect is a member of the Demonic Path, there are still sect rules. Private duels between official disciples are strictly forbidden. Once discovered...
At that thought, Lü Yang slapped his own forehead.
How could I have believed in the Demonic Path's lies!
Once discovered, once discovered... if no one discovers it, then it doesn't count as a private duel?
The more Lü Yang thought, the uglier his expression became. Ultimately, it was simply a force of habit. Everything Liu Xin had said and done before had perfectly fulfilled the duties of a guiding senior disciple.
Aside from introducing the situation of the Inner Sect, there were the benefits Inner Sect disciples were entitled to: Spiritual Treasures, pills, spirit beasts, and so on. He had been nothing short of thorough and generous, withholding nothing. Lü Yang had received every last thing he was owed. At the Artifact Refinement Hall in particular, Liu Xin had even instructed the steward there to give him the very best.
And all of it had been a facade!
Everything before had been in service of that final step: handing him the Innate Dao Scripture. It was all to make him lower his guard, to make him believe completely in Liu Xin's good intentions!
Now that I think about it, he was probably planning to pocket everything for himself.
After all, once he killed me, all those Spiritual Treasures, pills, and spirit beasts I'd received would naturally fall into his hands... no wonder he specifically asked them to give me the best of everything!
That beast!
Just then, the voice sounded once more from outside the cave dwelling.
The next instant, a sharp crack rang out as the formation guarding Lü Yang's cave dwelling shattered apart. The main doors were torn open by a streak of sword light!
The doors flung wide open, and Liu Xin strode in, his robes fluttering with each measured step.
When he caught sight of Lü Yang, a look of satisfaction, like that of a farmer at harvest, spread across Liu Xin's face. He nodded approvingly. "Junior Brother really is a rare talent..."
Boom!
Before Liu Xin could finish his words, Lü Yang directly exploded!
A torrent of Innate True Qi surged forth, carrying the Bone Jade Sword with it, condensing into a single piercing streak of sword light that slashed toward Liu Xin with unstoppable momentum.
Yet in the very next instant, the sword light froze mid-air.
"...A futile, dying struggle."
Liu Xin had neither dodged nor evaded. He merely formed a hand seal, and Lü Yang's body instantly lost all control, as though he had been reduced to another's puppet!
"This Innate Dao Scripture truly is a fine treasure." Witnessing the scene, Liu Xin could not help but laugh. "The cultivator transforms their flesh and primordial spirit into a strand of Innate Primordial Qi. It can be used as a medicinal ingredient, for refining artifacts, or even to increase one's cultivation base. Now that I possess this treasure, breaking through to late-stage Qi Refinement should be well within reach!"
"To aid my breakthrough, Junior Brother, at least your death will have served a purpose."
As his words fell, Liu Xin immediately began changing his hand seals. Lü Yang felt his consciousness begin to scatter, dissolving little by little, as though it were being forcibly erased!
In that moment, enlightenment struck him:
So this is the second half of the Innate Dao Scripture!
The first half is a trap for others to cultivate. The second half is the true art. You simply wait for someone else to cultivate the first half, then reap the rewards of their labor!
Rather than calling it a cultivation technique, it was better described as a method of artifact refinement.
Only it did not refine objects into artifacts. It refined people into artifacts, and it made them refine themselves, while the true cultivator hid in the shadows, saving both time and effort.
A Dao Scripture in name, Demonic Art in truth.
I'll give you this one. This life is yours.
With that thought, Lü Yang ceased resisting entirely, allowing his consciousness to fade. Strangely, in the wake of his shock and fury, a cold calm had settled over him instead.
A fall into a pit, a gain in wit. You can fool me once, but I have countless lives yet to live.
I will remember this grudge!
In the next instant, Lü Yang's consciousness plunged into darkness.
Within the void, only the rustling sound of pages turning remained.
【You were refined by Liu Xin, your consciousness erased entirely. You were transformed into a strand of Innate True Qi and died.】
【Remaining pages in the Book of a Hundred Lives: 98】
【Beginning a new life. You may select one reward from your previous life's gains:】
【1: Treasure】
【2: Cultivation Base】
【3: Lifespan】
【4: Forfeit all gains and randomly awaken a talent based on your previous life's experiences】
"Those whose names are called, step forward."
The familiar voice came from the platform above. Lü Yang gritted his teeth to keep his emotions in check. He did not raise his head, instead turning his thoughts to the panel before him.
Treasure, cultivation base, lifespan.
If he could, Lü Yang naturally wanted to choose cultivation base. But he worried it would draw attention, and when the time came, he would have no way to explain where his cultivation had come from.
As for lifespan, he skipped it without a second thought.
So treasure is the only option...
Lü Yang frowned. Speaking of treasures, the only thing he had worth mentioning was a single Bone Jade Sword. But without a cultivation base, possessing a Spiritual Treasure meant nothing if he could not activate it.
Just then, his gaze suddenly froze.
Because in that very moment, the Book of a Hundred Lives sent him a piece of feedback.
That... counts as a treasure?
Lü Yang was first surprised, then his expression shifted to one of contemplation. Finally, he gritted his teeth and made his decision: Option one. Retain one treasure obtained in the previous life.
In the next instant, a sudden transformation occurred!
Without alarming anyone. Every change was contained entirely within Lü Yang's Dantian. At its source was a wisp of white qi, churning and billowing like smoke.
Innate True Qi!
The Innate True Qi that he had refined in his previous life by transforming his organs and six viscera, his skin, flesh, tendons, and bones. It was actually counted as a treasure. Now, he had redeemed it.
"Incredible." Lü Yang lowered his eyelids, hiding the surprise in his eyes.
For he discovered that not only could he manipulate this wisp of Innate True Qi as naturally as moving his own arm, but he could also even use it to cast the spells from his previous life!
Under normal circumstances, this should be impossible.
To manipulate Innate True Qi, one must use the secret art from the second half of the scripture. But I am different, because this strand of Innate True Qi is me.
The two were originally one and the same. For Lü Yang, it was as though he had gained an additional avatar at the first layer of Qi Refinement.
And before I died in my last life, I heard Liu Xin say that Innate True Qi, when used as a medicinal ingredient, could assist in breaking through realms... this wisp of True Qi will prove immensely useful in the future!
Having sorted through his gains, Lü Yang began his new life.
First, once again, he was assigned to the Joyful Union Hall.
Then he killed Yu Suzhen, as before.
However, this time, to avoid drawing attention, Lü Yang did not use Senior Sister Yu's primordial yin to break through to the Qi Refinement realm. Instead, he fed every last drop of it to the Innate True Qi.
This life, I'm lying low. No more reckless moves!
Sure enough, Liu Xin, who had been watching from outside the door, saw that Lü Yang had failed to break through even after plundering Yu Suzhen's cultivation. He immediately lost interest in him.
From there, Lü Yang waited patiently.
More than ten days later, a disciple of the Joyful Union Hall named Qin Yu achieved a breakthrough. Lü Yang watched as Liu Xin rushed over at the news and led the man away, beaming with delight.
A few more days passed. Liu Xin announced he was entering closed-door cultivation, and the senior brother in charge of guiding new disciples was replaced.
Still, Lü Yang did not show himself.
Heaven knows what sort of person this new Senior Brother is. If he turns out to be another Liu Xin... no, best I not stick my neck out.
To be safe, I'll wait another month.
And so another half month crawled by. Only after yet another Outer Sect disciple broke through to Qi Refinement and ascended to the Inner Sect, emerging safe and sound, did Lü Yang finally choose to make his own breakthrough.
With the Innate True Qi bolstering him, Lü Yang did not actually need to use dual cultivation to break through.
Still, to maintain his cover, he found a few Outer Sect disciples to drain.
This time, the official disciple assigned to guide him was far more perfunctory. He lacked even a fraction of Liu Xin's enthusiasm. His expression even carried a faint trace of disdain.
"This is the Scripture Pavilion."
After collecting his benefits, the disciple led him before a pavilion and casually said, "Take your token and go in. Whatever technique you want, exchange your Contribution Points for it yourself."
With that, the man turned and left without another word.
Yet Lü Yang found this deeply reassuring. Being a nobody had its advantages. The fact that his guide didn't spare him a second glance was, in truth, exactly what he wanted.
With that thought, Lü Yang turned and looked toward the distant Heaven-Mending Peak.
Liu Xin... hmph!
Several days ago, Liu Xin had emerged from seclusion, having formally broken through to late-stage Qi Refinement. He had even become the personal disciple of the Heaven-Mending Peak's Peak Lord in one fell swoop. These were his days of glory.
Lü Yang let out a cold snort, withdrew his gaze, and strode into the Scripture Pavilion.
Although he harbored thoughts of revenge, he was still far too weak. Without strength, everything was empty talk. The most urgent task was to cultivate diligently. Everything else could wait until he had grown powerful.
A gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after ten years.
For now, patience. There's no need to rush.