Jiangnan, outside the Mass Grave.
Above the firmament, a majestic and imposing ship hovered amidst the clouds, its entire form concealed by layers of spiritual light.
On the deck of the ship stood a solitary figure with hands clasped behind his back.
It was none other than Daoist Dangmo, Ye Guangji.
Flanking him on both sides were two direct descendants of the Ye family, both at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment Realm, and old acquaintances of Lu Yang: Ye Guyue and Ye Xingfeng.
"Uncle, I believe you're being too pedantic."
Ye Xingfeng spoke first, "The 玄灵界 (Mystic Spirit Realm) is, after all, a realm with established positions. We should find a way to capture it, not drive it away."
"Indeed."
Ye Guyue nodded, "I understand your concerns, Uncle. You're worried that the 玄灵界's invasion might cause some damage to Jiangnan."
"Not just some."
Before Ye Guyue could finish, Daoist Dangmo turned his head and interrupted, "Once the 玄灵界 invades, they will inevitably engage in massive slaughter to extract qi."
"By then, centered around the Mass Grave, in the surrounding regions, how many of the hundreds of billions of people will have their families destroyed, how many will be torn apart?"
Ye Guyue nodded, showing understanding, "Repopulating after such a cycle would indeed take decades, not just some time."
"But this is the karma they must bear."
"Our Sword Pavilion has nurtured the people for so many years; isn't it for this very moment?"
"Using them as bait, we can capture all the cultivators from the 玄灵界 alive, and even counterattack into the 玄灵界. The gains would be even greater!"
Daoist Dangmo didn't respond, merely shaking his head, "You don't understand."
Ye Guyue's brows furrowed deeper.
"Uncle, how could I not understand? Life and death are cycles. These mortals are ignorant and unenlightened. They can't see through it, but surely you can?"
"And you can?"
Daoist Dangmo looked helpless, "If you died and couldn't break through the mystery of the womb in your next life, ceasing to be yourself, could you truly let go?"
Ye Guyue's expression changed dramatically, "How could that be the same!"
Daoist Dangmo retorted, "How is it different?"
"I'm a True Person!"
Ye Guyue's expression was solemn, as if stating an absolute truth, "For mortals, seeking the truth is unattainable. Life is but an illusion, a grand dream of life and death." ṝãＮ𝙤ВƐ𝙨
"But we have already sought the truth and established our Dao foundation. Naturally, we are incomparable to mortals!"
After speaking, Ye Guyue looked at Daoist Dangmo with concern, "Uncle, what's wrong with you? Could it be that something went wrong in your cultivation, leading to a heart demon?"
"…"
Daoist Dangmo opened his mouth but said nothing more, for he could see that Ye Guyue's concern was genuine, without any falsehood.
Yet, the more sincere it was, the more speechless he became.
Fortunately, he didn't need to respond, for in the next moment, he looked outside the ship, and Ye Guyue and Ye Xingfeng also sensed something and looked over.
In the clouds, a streak of light was flying swiftly.
"Has the Demon Sect discovered us?"
Ye Guyue immediately frowned, while Ye Xingfeng shook his head, "Judging by the aura, it doesn't seem like the Demon Sect. It actually carries the righteous qi of our Sword Pavilion."
In the next moment, the streak of light stopped in front of the ship.
Then, the light split to both sides, and a handsome young man stepped out, his brows exuding sword qi, presenting a righteous appearance.
"I am Lu Yang, greetings to the True Persons of the Sword Pavilion!"
In front of the ship, Lu Yang spoke sincerely, "I am a rogue cultivator from Jiangbei, here to present important information related to the Jiangbei Demon Sect!"
Although he had no evidence, Lu Yang suspected that the Sacred Sect was setting him up.
'Could it be that they're planning to use me as bait to lure out people from the 玄灵界, then kill them and extract qi themselves?'
Unfortunately, unless he gave up the 申金 (Shen Metal), he couldn't escape this trap. Yet, the 申金 was crucial to his cultivation, and he couldn't abandon it.
After much contemplation, Lu Yang made a decision.
'I'll join the Sword Pavilion!'
'I had no choice before, but now I want to be a good person!'
With this thought, after leaving the Mass Grave, Lu Yang directly used the connections of the Yun family's ancestor and others to locate Daoist Dangmo and hurried over.
'This is actually an opportunity!'
'An opportunity to truly join the Sword Pavilion!'
Thinking of this, Lu Yang directly presented his bargaining chip, "I understand the rules of the Sword Pavilion and am willing to undergo a reincarnation, cleanse my karma, and then join!"
"…Oh?"
Upon hearing this, Ye Guyue, who had been frowning and about to speak, was momentarily stunned. Then, admiration appeared in her beautiful eyes as she looked at Lu Yang:
"You are quite impressive!"
The Sword Pavilion had a set of rules for accepting Foundation Establishment True Persons from outside Jiangnan.
Just like how the former 承天正德真君 (Chengtian Zhengde True Lord) recruited Ancestor Ting You, the first step to join the Sword Pavilion was to be killed by a True Person of the Sword Pavilion.
Once dead, one would reincarnate.
At that time, the Sword Pavilion would use secret methods to guide them back, then let them be bound by the mystery of the womb, severing ties with their previous life, thus truly becoming a member of the Sword Pavilion.
Only those recruited in this manner could receive the true teachings of the Sword Pavilion. However, once someone became a True Person, who would willingly accept such a fate? Therefore, in most cases, the Sword Pavilion's recruitment was more of a forced acquisition: I kill you, then bring you into the sect, which could be considered your opportunity.
Lu Yang was the first to voluntarily express willingness to do this.
How could Ye Guyue not admire that?
Little did she know that such reincarnation was of no consequence to Lu Yang, as it was merely a split soul reincarnating, having no impact on his true self.
For others, a split soul reincarnation might develop its own consciousness and become uncontrollable.
But for Lu Yang, as long as the Puppet Strings remained, no matter how many lifetimes the split soul reincarnated, it would still be his disguise!
He could even take this opportunity to have the Sword Pavilion help cleanse the True Lord karma from his avatar, completely eliminating any potential surveillance from a True Lord!
Lu Yang's plan was perfect.
However, before he could continue speaking, Daoist Dangmo suddenly waved his hand, "No need for that. Cultivation is arduous; don't speak lightly of reincarnation."
"Uncle!" Ye Guyue immediately frowned.
However, Daoist Dangmo remained indifferent and continued, "As long as the information you provide is valuable and you sincerely wish to join, I can vouch for you."
"…" Lu Yang was stunned.
This Daoist Dangmo was so normal!
Really?
Lu Yang was puzzled, but his expression showed no hesitation as he directly took out the Shen Metal's qi and then laid out his suspicions about the Sacred Sect.
Although these were just speculations, Lu Yang judged by his own reasoning that the likelihood was high.
"The Demon Sect uses the Shen Metal as bait, letting us fight the 玄灵界, while they themselves invade the 玄灵界 to extract qi, reaping the benefits without effort."
After hearing Lu Yang's account, Daoist Dangmo frowned slightly.
On the other side, Ye Guyue's face showed anger, "To use us righteous cultivators as bait to seek greater gains—truly shameless!"
"…"
Daoist Dangmo glanced at her, then looked back at Lu Yang, "This information is indeed valuable. From now on, you shall follow me."
"Thank you, Senior!"
Without hesitation, Lu Yang directly offered the Shen Metal, "I lack the virtue to possess this treasure. I present it to you, Senior. Please accept it."
'Currently, the Shen Metal still bears the mark left by the 玄灵界. It's useless to me. Better to give it to this Daoist Dangmo and have him help cleanse the mark… Anyway, he's already perfected in divine abilities and doesn't lack spiritual treasures. The Shen Metal is useless to him and will eventually be given to someone else. I'll find a way to take it back then.'
In an instant, several plans formed in Lu Yang's mind.
However, in the next moment, all these plans were shattered.
"No need." Daoist Dangmo solemnly said, "The Heavenly Gang and Earth Fiends are crucial to cultivation. Your acquisition of this qi is your fortune; there's no need to forcefully offer it to me."
"I'm also aware of your concerns."
"In this battle, I still need you to lure the 玄灵界's people. After it's over, I will help you remove the mark left on the Shen Metal."
At this point, Daoist Dangmo smiled warmly.
On the other side, Lu Yang could hardly believe what he was hearing. Could someone in this wretched place truly speak such righteous words?
Truly a good person?
There must be a scheme!