[For the sake of forging the array artifact, you remained unmoved even as the end approached, ultimately achieving your goal but also meeting your demise.]
[Available Leaves of Centome: 96]
[Reopening a life, you may choose one item from your previous life's harvests:]
A: Artifacts.
B: Cultivation.
C: Lifespan.
D: Trade all your harvests for a random Talent Skill based on your past life experiences]
"Those whose names I call, come and stand before me."
Lü Yang opened his eyes and drew a long, steady breath, as though waking from a trance woven out of two lifetimes. "I choose A."
At once, his dantian stirred.
A crimson Sword Pill—its surface etched with intricate patterns, gleaming like a cluster of stars—rose into view, ringing with a soft, crystalline sword hum.
A satisfied smile crept across Lü Yang's face. This Sword Pill was the culmination of more than twenty years of his past life's devotion. It wasn't merely crafted from top-tier materials, nor merely enhanced by the Heavenfiend Lifeblood Offering Radiance—its true worth lay in the superior array he had embedded within it right before his death, turning it into a genuine array artifact.
From now on, whenever he fought with an enemy, he could drag them directly into the array to his advantage.
No matter how fearsome a cultivator was, facing the array of someone at the same stage was like fighting on another person's home ground.
Qingchen only seemed weaker because she remained stuck at Mid-phase of Qi Refining.
And besides—Lü Yang now realized—her time studying array was far shorter than his own two decades of obsession. There was simply no comparison.
"It's time I gave you a name."
At his thought, a sinister blood shadow emerged from the Sword Pill, identical to him in form—a second body sharing his own heart and mind. Lü Yang chuckled.
"You were forged through my self-sacrifice in a past life, and empowered by the Blood Transformation Divine Light. From this day on, your name shall be Blood Sun."
The Sword Pill trembled in response, as if acknowledging him.
Clearing his thoughts, Lü Yang cast a glance toward Liu Xin, still giving his speech on stage. He then withdrew his gaze. The Primal Qi Myriad-Soul Banner… no need to rush.
He followed his past life's steps with quiet precision.
being called and assigned to Yin-Yang Unity Hall.
Killing Yu Suzhen.
No more borrowing from Zhao Xuhe; instead, he sold the White Bone Flying Sword gained from the awards and quietly bought up Death-Warding Skeletons.
Predictably, their price soon skyrocketed.
Lü Yang helped fan the flames, buying low and selling high, steadily inflating his funds, then aggressively accumulating more.
Yet to avoid attracting envy, he didn't cash out at last life's absurd peak. When the price hit 3000, he pulled out.
By then, he held twenty Death-Warding Skeletons.
A clean profit of 60,000 Contribution Points.
With that done, he bought a large stock of Qi Pills, sealed the cave mansion, and brought out the greatest harvest of his four reincarnations:
"Ninefold Dragon Metamorphosis."
"Imperial Dragonrise Scroll."
One for Qi Refining, one for Foundation Establishment—together, a cultivation system capable of refining Third Grade Qi. A perfect match to his ambitions.
"Ninefold Dragon Metamorphosis has ten layers, one for each Qi Refining Layer. As the name suggests, every layer triggers a metamorphosis of Qi—Celestial Snake Transformation, Divine Eagle Transformation, Cyan Ox Transformation, Brocade Tiger Transformation… After nine transformations, the Qi evolves into a dragon, raising the Foundation Establishment success rate by a full thirty percent."
Lü Yang's blood burned with excitement. He immediately chose to dissolve his cultivation.
"Bang!"
Qi rapidly dispersed from his dantian. His cultivation plunged, dropping from Fourth Layer Qi Refining back to mortal.
But he didn't let the dissipating Qi go to waste; he channeled all of it into the "Primal Qi."
Born from his second life's sacrifice and now nourished by his current cultivation, this external Qi had grown into something like a living avatar.
It would protect him during seclusion—just enough to keep him from being utterly defenseless.
...
Three years passed in a blink.
Within the sealed cave mansion, Lü Yang sat cross-legged, quietly operating profound arts. The once-empty dantian was now filled with a far more robust Qi.
He guided the Qi freely. One moment it was a swift jade rabbit sprinting through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians; the next, a coiled python nesting in his dantian. Then a roaring Brocade Tiger, then a soaring Divine Eagle—shifting, evolving, endless.
Only after a long time did Lü Yang exhale softly.
A streak of Qi shot from his body like a white arrow—but instead of dispersing, it morphed into a Cyan Ox, plodding forward.
"I did it!"
Joy lit his expression. These three years of concentrated cultivation had gone far smoother than three whole lifetimes combined. With abundant Contribution Points and every supplement at hand, he lacked nothing.
Thus, within just three years, he returned to Sixth Layer Qi Refining—the Peak of Mid-phase .
Though stuck at the Mid-phase bottleneck, he was certain that within five years—three, if all went well—he would break through to the Late-phase again.
Despite only being at the Sixth Layer, his actual combat power already rivaled his past selves. His Qi was simply on an entirely different level.
"Ninefold Dragon Metamorphosis—each transformation grants unique power: Brocade Tiger for destructive Qi force; Cyan Ox for raw physical might; Divine Eagle for far-sight; Celestial Snake for concealment; Jade Rabbit for speed; Mountain Camel for accelerated Qi recovery…"
Six transformations alone were almost enough to erase the gap between Mid and Late-phase.
But the one Lü Yang coveted most was the "Flying Fish Transformation," because its function was brutally simple—
Breaking bottlenecks.
"If I push into the sixth transformation now, I can break through to Late-phase immediately."
"But that would be wasteful."
Such a precious breakthrough—he would save it for the leap to the Final-phase of Qi Refining.
This life's plan was simple:
Just cultivate.
"I'll push straight to the Final-phase, and then seamlessly cultivate the Imperial Dragonrise Scroll to break into Foundation Establishment. When I emerge—I'll astonish the entire sect!"
With that thought, Lü Yang swallowed a Qi Pill and resumed his meditation.
Only moments later—
"Boom!"
A violent tremor jolted him awake. His eyes snapped open—his Primal Qi Avatar outside had been shattered.
Someone powerful was here.
Lü Yang stiffened. This life he had buried himself in cultivation, untouched by worldly affairs. Who would suddenly want to kill him?
Puzzled, he stepped out of his cave mansion—
And froze.
"You?"
Outside stood Zhao Xuhe.
His eyes were bloodshot, and several cultivators flanked him, all glaring daggers at Lü Yang.
"Senior," Lü Yang bowed calmly, "I am Lü Yang. May I ask—"
"It is you!"
Zhao Xuhe cut him off with a snarl, hatred dripping from every word. "Panlong Island vanished into thin air! The opportunity I fought for across three lifetimes just disappeared! I paid a huge price to beg my master for karmic deduction, and the answer was—some disciple surnamed Lü stole it!"
"Speak! Is Perfected Panlong's legacy in your hands?"
"…"
At Zhao Xuhe's words, Lü Yang froze for a moment—then his expression shifted, darkening as if something long forgotten had suddenly resurfaced.