Conspiracy

Lu Yang had never imagined that the Heavenly Court he founded as an afterthought would actually turn out to be the orthodox one. Yet, on second thought, what Ao Ling said was not without reason. Ao Ling noticed someone rather peculiar among the members of the Heavenly Court. "I wonder who this Yun Zhi mentioned by Senior Brother is, to actually be the Cult Master of the Heavenly Court Cult—ranking second only to Sister Immortal, above even Lianyi." Just as Lu Yang was about to explain, the Immortal Fairy beat him to it. "Girl Yun is my formidable nemesis. The two of us are evenly matched. Once I recover to my peak, with the four of us joining forces—you, the Second-in-Command, Lianyi, and me—we will definitely triumph over Girl Yun and return in glory!" Lu Yang stared at the Immortal Fairy in utter disbelief. *How does this involve me too?!* As if reading his mind, the Immortal Fairy explained, "You are the Second-in-Command, after all! We must share both tribulations and blessings!" *Did being the Second-in-Command come at such a steep price?* *Besides, ever since I revived you, Fairy, have I enjoyed a single day of blessings?!* "To think such an extraordinary person exists." Ao Ling was astonished. For Sister Immortal to deem her a formidable nemesis, the people of later generations were truly not to be underestimated. "Lianyi has already fought her," the Immortal Fairy added. "What was the outcome?" The Immortal Fairy replied with utmost gravity, "A draw." Ao Ling let out a sigh of relief. Then this person named Yun Zhi was not as difficult to deal with as she had imagined. "Senior, should we leave this pearl?" Lu Yang thought that while the environment inside the pearl was scenic—the ideal paradise for reclusive cultivators—they couldn't stay here forever. "Naturally, we must leave." Ao Ling nodded, then asked in bewilderment, "But how do we get out?" The space inside the pearl had been crafted by Immortal Kirin. Neither the Immortal Fairy nor Ao Ling knew anything about it, let alone how to leave. Lu Yang: "..." The Immortal Fairy volunteered eagerly, "That's simple! It's just a shoddy bead. We can get out by smashing it to pieces!" Forcibly shattering the pearl from the outside would cause the internal space to randomly teleport, but breaking it from within posed no such risk. Lu Yang jumped in fright. This was an immortal artifact refined from an entire celestial star—capable of neutralizing all poisons, with a miniature world housed within! To break an immortal artifact just because she felt like it was far too extravagantly wasteful. "Then what do you propose we do?" That was the only method the Immortal Fairy had. Lu Yang scratched his head. He was even more clueless. "Come to think of it, when I entered this pearl, it was constantly flying somewhere. Where is it headed?" *** The inner circle of Penglai Island, at the core of a rank-nine spiritual vein. Unknown to the outside world, the three Tribulation Transcendence stage cultivators of the East Sea's human race had quietly gathered here. "Eldest Brother, do we really have to do this?" The speaker wore an anxious expression. He was the Island Master of Yingzhou Island, known as Mister Tinghai. Daoist Sanshan let out a soft sigh. "There is no other way. I am mired too deeply in the quagmire of faith to extricate myself. While establishing faiths across various regions helped me condense a rudimentary Dao fruit and become a half-immortal, the power of faith carries fatal drawbacks. "Putting aside the time I was brought to coughing up blood simply because someone of higher status bowed to me—that was still manageable, as such mighty figures wouldn't bow to me every day and it was only a freak accident. "The worst part is that my physical body is slipping from my control! It is influenced by faith, and every single move I make is driven to fulfill the wishes of my believers!" Daoist Sanshan had watched helplessly time and again as his own body disobeyed his will, committing acts contrary to his true intentions. "My physical body is on the verge of breaking away from my control entirely. I must take corrective measures while I can still exert some sway over it." The fact that Daoist Sanshan had become a half-immortal was known only to the Island Master of Fangzhang Island and the Island Master of Yingzhou Island. Had his condition not been so dire, he would have made his half-immortal cultivation public long ago and united the East Sea. Daoist Sanshan said resentfully, "I once tried indulging my daughter, allowing her to commit evil deeds to ruin my reputation, but the faith the East Sea cultivators place in me is so deep-rooted that a few misdeeds couldn't taint my name in the slightest!" "There are quite a few Tribulation Transcendence experts in the East Sea. Eldest Brother, why must you seize the Old Dragon Emperor? Although he is the most powerful Tribulation Transcendence cultivator in the East Sea, he is also approaching the end of his lifespan!" The one raising the question was the Island Master of Fangzhang Island, Venerable Liuhe. Daoist Sanshan waved his hand dismissively. "You need not worry about that. A half-immortal is different from a true immortal. An immortal's cultivation resides in both the immortal soul and the Immortal Physique. A half-immortal's cultivation, however, rests entirely within the soul; the rudimentary Dao fruit is bound to my soul. "As long as I seize the Old Dragon Emperor's body, I will remain a half-immortal, and his lifespan will multiply from ten thousand years to a hundred thousand years. There will be no need to worry about longevity at all. "Furthermore, the Old Dragon Emperor commands the entire Dragon Clan. What is the Dragon Clan? It is the place where the Dragon Clan Ancient Ancestor was born! Not to mention that she was the wife of Immortal Kirin. One can only imagine the sheer wealth of the Dragon Clan—it isn't just about spirit stones. They might even possess half-immortal or true immortal artifacts! For instance, that stone pillar he always wraps himself around is at least a half-immortal artifact! "Once I seize the Old Dragon Emperor, all of that will belong to us!" Daoist Sanshan's words made the blood of the other two island masters surge with excitement. "It's just a pity that the old beast refuses to leave that stone pillar. We can only make our move during his longevity banquet!" Daoist Sanshan sighed. The Dragon Palace had immense foundations; even as a half-immortal, he didn't dare barge in recklessly. Venerable Liuhe, Island Master of Fangzhang Island, asked again, "Still, attempting a body seizure on the Old Dragon Emperor in full public view won't be easy. Setting aside the fact that everyone will witness it—which defeats the purpose—the most crucial issue is that your rudimentary Dao fruit cannot assist in a body seizure, and your soul strength is inferior to his. How do you plan to pull it off?" Daoist Sanshan gave a cold smile. He had long since prepared for this. "Liuhe, have you forgotten the 'Longevity Immortal Grass' of Yingzhou Island?" Venerable Liuhe was startled. "You mean the Taixu Immortal Grass?!" Mortal rumors held that deep within the rank-eight spiritual vein of Yingzhou Island grew a stalk of Longevity Immortal Grass planted by Supreme Changqing of the ancient era. In truth, it was no Longevity Immortal Grass at all, but rather the Taixu Immortal Grass, capable of inducing profound hallucinations. Anyone poisoned by the Taixu Immortal Grass would fall into an illusion, believing in their dream that they had attained immortality. That was how the rumor of the "Longevity Immortal Grass" had spread. The poison of the Taixu Immortal Grass was formidable enough that even a half-immortal would fall prey to it. Over the vast passage of time, the Island Master of Yingzhou Island had already mastered the method to neutralize the poison of the Taixu Immortal Grass. "All we need to do is release the Taixu Immortal Grass during the banquet under the guise of presenting a gift, catching the Old Dragon Emperor completely off guard. Everyone present will be poisoned and plunge into illusions—the Old Dragon Emperor included. Only we will remain unharmed. "The Taixu poison even affects the soul! I will seize that opportunity to take the Old Dragon Emperor's body in one fell swoop! "Afterward, no one will ever know what truly happened at the longevity banquet!" To seize the Old Dragon Emperor's body, Daoist Sanshan had plotted for ages and made every preparation foolproof.