Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

Chapter 256: Chapter 256: I Want Them All

As his vision gradually cleared, Lü Yang looked up at the sky. What greeted him was the breathtaking spectacle of a sky where countless stars hung high and the sun and moon shone together.

”Interesting.”

Lü Yang briefly sensed his surroundings and immediately felt the malice of this Outer Realm. The Spiritual Qi permeating the air was as sharp and piercing as a thousand silver needles.

Rashly absorbing the Spiritual Qi of this realm would only result in being shredded to pieces. The Spiritual Qi might even contain a potent poison capable of corrupting one’s Dao Foundation. This was clearly a trial for a Foundation-Stage Cultivator; anyone at the Final-phase of Qi Refining would have an even harder time.

After all, a cultivator at the Final-phase of Qi Refining lacked the necessary position and could be easily assimilated by the Outer Realm.

Only a Foundation-Stage Cultivator, whose attainment was a permanent breakthrough, could use their Dao Foundation as an anchor to prevent themselves from being eroded and influenced by the Outer Realm’s power.

Next, Lü Yang checked the status of his main body.

’Hmm... No problem. I can withdraw my consciousness at any time. If my main body goes to the Heaven-Reaching Hall, it can even teleport to my avatar’s side!’

The next moment, he looked up at the sky again. He felt as if the stars were individual eyes, and their light made him feel uneasy.

Lü Yang was all too familiar with this feeling.

’Heaven and Earth’s Killing Intent again!’

As an outsider, there was no ordinary way to evade the killing intent of an Outer Realm. This was a necessary danger one had to face when performing Qi Collection from Beyond the Heavens.

Just then, Master Miaoyin spoke up.

”Yuan Tu, if we travel together, we’ll be too conspicuous and easy to track. Why don’t we separate for now and meet up again after we’ve concealed our Qi traces?”

This was, of course, just an excuse. In truth, Master Miaoyin wanted a reason to separate from Lü Yang so he wouldn’t discover her intentions. She planned to then summon Suo Huan, per their prior agreement, to kill Lü Yang. In exchange, she would earn the chance to use a Blessed Land to overcome her tribulation.

Little did she know, this was exactly what Lü Yang wanted.

The two readily agreed. Master Miaoyin immediately departed in a streak of Flying Light, while Lü Yang remained behind to deduce information about the Ten Thousand Martial Realm.

’Life Star Martial Artists, Sun and Moon Emperor...’

Soon, Lü Yang had a basic understanding. ’This realm’s Cultivators place their entire Cultivation in their Life Stars, and these Life Stars are clearly a manifestation of a Fruit Position...’

”What a world-governing Dao Fruit!” Lü Yang exclaimed.

”This type of Dao Fruit is a bit like the Fruit of Rampart Earth. It’s probably the kind the Dao Court favors most. This whole system even bears similarities to the Dao Court’s.”

In other words, the Dao Fruit of this Outer Realm would be of great use to him as well.

’But in my current state, I can’t cultivate at all. The most I can do is a quick smash-and-grab before fleeing. There’d be some gains, but they wouldn’t be very substantial.’

Lü Yang’s brow furrowed as he pondered how to maximize his gains. Just then, he suddenly felt a Qi trace emerge from within his body. The surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi—which had previously regarded him as a mortal enemy, wishing it could tear him to shreds—suddenly faltered. Then, its attitude completely changed.

’...Earth Vein Qi?’

Lü Yang raised an eyebrow, sensing the reason for the Outer Realm’s shift in attitude. After a quick deduction, a strange expression crossed his face.

’It wants this strand of Earth Vein Qi I’m holding?’

’That’s right. The Earth Vein Qi is also a foreign energy to this Outer Realm. If it can devour it, it will surely reap significant benefits.’

’But what’s in it for me?’

’Although I won’t be smitten by heavenly punishment right now, when I go back, if Heaven and Earth discover I took the Earth Vein Qi but didn’t bring it back, it’ll kill me...’

In other words—

’...You’ll have to pay more!’

The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi roiled for a moment, then seemed to fall into a dead silence. A long while later, Lü Yang suddenly felt a ray of starlight descend upon him.

”Hm?”

Looking up, Lü Yang immediately sensed a change. The previous Heaven and Earth’s Killing Intent had been completely withdrawn, and high in the sky, a star burst into light.

’Is this... trying to bribe me?’

Lü Yang frowned. ’The Heaven and Earth Fruit Position of this Ten Thousand Martial Realm... its intelligence is a little too high. It’s completely different from the Fruit Positions in my own world.’

Still, its offer was quite good.

Every living being in this realm had a Life Star, which was equivalent to an identification card issued by Heaven and Earth. Anyone without a Life Star was an outsider, and it was obvious to all.

Conversely, if he could obtain a Life Star, it would be like getting a green card for the Ten Thousand Martial Realm. Interacting with the locals would be much easier, and his future actions would be far more convenient. Otherwise, he would be forced to hide, braving the Heaven and Earth’s Killing Intent just to seize the Essence of Heaven and Earth.

There was only one problem.

’How do I know you won’t go back on your word?’

Lü Yang judged the realm by his own standards. If their roles were reversed, he would first focus on tricking it into handing over the Earth Vein Qi. The moment he got it, he would immediately renege on the deal.

”How about this? I’ll give you a little bit first, and I’ll give you the rest later, bit by bit.”

As soon as Lü Yang spoke, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi responded with what seemed like great impatience.

Seeing this, Lü Yang immediately split off one percent of the Earth Vein Qi and merged it into the world. Almost simultaneously, he felt a connection form in his mind.

SHIMMER!

High in the sky, a Life Star instantly lit up. Its corresponding Divine Effect traveled down the starlight and into Lü Yang’s mind, forming a single word:

Villager.

’The Divine Effect is that when I’m hungry, I can eat anything—chaff, dirt, tree bark... What the hell kind of Villager is this? I could become one of the disaster victims at any moment!’

Lü Yang pinched his fingers in a quick calculation, and the response from Heaven and Earth came through the unseen karmic links: more Earth Vein Qi was needed to unlock a stronger Life Star.

In short: he had to pay up.

Lü Yang let out a cold laugh. He decisively put away the remaining Earth Vein Qi and began to circulate the *Qian Heaven One Yuan Supreme Heavenly Divine Technique*.

It was obvious that this so-called Life Star was a type of Essence of Heaven and Earth. Lü Yang devoured all the descending starlight. Soon, a spectral image slowly materialized behind him—an imposing apparition with three heads and six arms, a green face, and sharp fangs. With every movement, Profound Fire flared and danced around it.

”Excellent, excellent...”

A look of joy spread across Lü Yang’s face. ”The initial Qi Collection was a success! I finally have the foundation to truly cultivate this Heavenly Qian Totalizing All Manifestations Dharma Body!”

A Dharma Body was the foundation of protecting one’s Dao.

Abilities, Daoist Skills, and Spiritual Treasures were all external things. When facing the Celestial Thunder Tribulation to break through to the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment, they would often shatter on impact and could not be relied upon to resist it.

Only the Dharma Body was different.

’Refining a Dharma Body to protect my Dao will increase my chances of surviving the Celestial Thunder Tribulation by at least thirty percent... Unfortunately, a mere ”Villager” Life Star is far from enough.’

At this thought, an idea popped into Lü Yang’s head: if a single strand of Earth Vein Qi could make the Fruit Position of the Ten Thousand Martial Realm salivate with desire, what about an entire lay line? Could it provide him with all the External Qi Resources needed to cultivate the Heavenly Qian Totalizing All Manifestations Dharma Body in one fell swoop?

’No matter what, I must successfully cultivate this Dharma Body!’

What made Lü Yang so determined was not just the Dharma Body’s power, but more importantly—

’This Dharma Body is named ”All Phenomena” because it possesses the ability to encompass everything. Once cultivated, it can be continuously upgraded by smelting and integrating external items.’

’In other words, once I cultivate it, I can integrate the Abi Sword, the Myriad-Soul Banner, the Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita, and many other Spiritual Treasures into the Dharma Body!’

Before this, Lü Yang had been troubled by the fact that he had gained so much in this life that he wouldn’t know what to choose after restarting.

But if he had his Immortal Embryo Avatar cultivate the Heavenly Qian Totalizing All Manifestations Dharma Body, he could use the Dharma Body to package all his gains from this life. Then, after restarting, he could choose the Immortal Embryo Avatar and bring everything back with him in one go!

The Abi Sword? The Myriad-Soul Banner? The Emperor’s Golden Seal of Tushita?

I want them all!