Lu Yang had to admit, for a split second, he was tempted.
However, he quickly and decisively abandoned the thought. After all, his ambition lay in the Nascent Soul and the Great Dao itself. How could he possibly choose to anchor his grotto-heaven to another's?
"This junior must disappoint Senior."
Lu Yang waved his hand, politely refusing. "The [Heavenly Fire] concept is unique. It cannot submit to others. If I were to anchor my grotto-heaven, I fear it would rebel."
"What difficulty is there in that?"
Perfected Lord Feixue chuckled lightly. "It's merely that the concept isn't intense enough. As long as you and I dual cultivate, with me taking the lead and suppressing you beneath me, and you anchor your grotto-heaven during the process—faced with such a concept, I expect [Heavenly Fire] will have no choice but to submit to me, just like you."
Lu Yang: "..."
Upon hearing this, the look in Lu Yang's eyes became visibly heavy, and his expression grew tight. I knew it! You just want to beat me to my knees!
Do you think just because you're beautiful, I'll agree?
Let me tell you, you've misjudged me.
But in the next second, Perfected Lord Feixue shook her head. "Forget it. [Heavenly Fire] is blazing and fierce after all, and my [Ravine Stream Water] has not yet ascended to the supreme position."
"Moreover, I have no prior experience."
"If we really dual cultivate and you insist on resisting, I might not be able to hold you down. If you were to turn the tables and take the lead, it would not only be unbeneficial to my cultivation but harmful."
Lu Yang fell silent.
Of course, the dual cultivation part wasn't important. What mattered was the profound implication in Perfected Lord Feixue's words. "Senior... intends to change the supreme position?"
"Why not?"
Perfected Lord Feixue smiled. "Among the five elements, water has no constant form. The supreme position is the easiest to shift. If [Heavenly River Water] can be it, why can't [Ravine Stream Water]?"
As her voice fell, Perfected Lord Feixue's aura rose steadily. The entire [Cinnabar Mountain Red Water Grotto-Heaven] shook violently. Above the dome of the sky, the [Ravine Stream Water] radiated magnificent light, accompanied by a profound, cleansing purity that seemed capable of washing away all the filth under the heavens.
While chatting, she had actually begun her breakthrough!
Truly decisive...
Seeing this, Lu Yang couldn't help but marvel at Perfected Lord Feixue's swift and resolute style. She said she would break through today, and she did so immediately. After being rejected by him, she showed no lingering attachment.
Boom!
In the next second, [Perfected Lord Iridescent Brocade] beside her also released her own aura. Next to the [Ravine Stream Water], a dao fruit star flashed into existence:
[Mulberry Silkworm Wood]!
At the same time, on the Sacred Fire Cliff.
Chong Guang stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the [Ravine Stream Water] and [Mulberry Silkworm Wood] emerging in the sky. The anticipation on his face was instantly replaced by a touch of disappointment.
"He didn't agree... That makes sense. After all, he attained a supreme dao fruit."
Anchoring a grotto-heaven meant severing one's dao path.
For Chong Guang, this was actually unacceptable. However, Perfected Lord Feixue's grace upon him was simply too heavy; he couldn't avoid repaying this karma.
Although, as a Saint Sect perfected lord, he had never been one to keep promises.
But Perfected Lord Feixue was too strong. If he really didn't repay it, he was guaranteed to be beaten by her until he did. So, on second thought, it was better to just pay up.
"Forget it, forget it."
Chong Guang sighed inwardly, though he wasn't too depressed. After all, the greatest advantage a Golden Core Perfected Lord had over a Foundation Establishment Perfected One was near-eternal life.
Hong Yun was an exception.
Generally speaking, even at the early stage of Golden Core, as long as one wasn't completely annihilated in body and soul during a tribulation, the probability of returning to one's position after reincarnation was nearly one hundred percent.
With the ambition of a perfected lord, one is bound to seek the Dao in the future. For those intent on the Great Dao, the dao fruit is merely a burden that will eventually be discarded. Once the perfected lord seeks the Dao, regardless of success or failure, I will regain my freedom. Until then, accumulating dao comprehension is the correct path.
With this thought, Chong Guang hesitated no more.
Boom!
In the next instant, a candlelight rose from the top of Chong Guang's head. Within the light, myriad phenomena appeared, radiating thousands of brilliant colors. It was none other than the [Cave Sun Hidden Observation Grotto-Heaven] he had condensed!
Simultaneously, another dao fruit appeared beside the [Ravine Stream Water].
[Overturned Lamp Flame]!
Water, Fire, Wood. The three dao fruits intertwined, seemingly transforming into a colossal alchemical furnace, intent on brewing a perfect, flawless Golden Core!
During this process, Perfected Lord Feixue's already immense aura began to grow exponentially. In an instant, it seemed to break through some invisible boundary. Although she stood right in front of Lu Yang, she gave him a sense of ethereal transcendence, as if her true body stood in another world.
Late-Stage Golden Core!
In the current world, there was no Golden Core Perfection, nor could the existence of such a realm be confirmed. After all, even [Sky-Shrouding] only had Late-Stage Golden Core cultivation.
Therefore, Late-Stage Golden Core was the absolute peak!
At the same time, Lu Yang witnessed numerous concepts emerging from Perfected Lord Feixue, clearly displayed intentionally for him to observe.
However, what surprised Lu Yang was—
Aside from the concepts related to [Ravine Stream Water], there is actually one more... This concept is the most immense, the grandest in scale. It actually encompasses heaven and earth...
The concept was simple: [Five-Thousand-Year Combat Supreme]!
This was an affirmation of Perfected Lord Feixue's talent and her greatest achievement. It was recognized by all perfected lords under heaven, to the point that it had actually formed a concept!
No, that's not right!
This concept is crucial. Five-Thousand-Year Combat Supreme, a concept encompassing heaven and earth... Is this the secret to why Perfected Lord Feixue's cultivation far exceeds ordinary people?
Lu Yang's eyes shone brightly, and the fingers hidden in his sleeves calculated ceaselessly. A concept that encompasses heaven and earth, recognized by the world, engraving one's own concept between heaven and earth. This brings immense benefits to a perfected lord's cultivation. Perfected Lord Feixue relied on exactly this to become invincible among perfected lords.
In Lu Yang's view, below the Late-Stage Golden Core, the strength of perfected lords could be roughly divided into five grades.
The fifth grade consisted of Unorthodox Perfected Lords and those using the [False Holding Golden Stature Method]. Although they far surpassed Foundation Establishment, within the tier of perfected lords, they were existences looked down upon by everyone.
The fourth grade was the [Perfected Lord Chengtian Zhengde].
Among perfected lords, they were weaker. Brilliant unorthodox cultivators like Patriarch Nether Whisper, or incarnations enlightened by a Dao Lord like the True Body Tathagata, were comparable to them.
The third grade was the level of most perfected lords.
Polished by time, with increased dao comprehension; aside from dao fruit concepts and profound wonder, they had also successfully refined a few true treasures to protect their path.
The second grade was the Mid-Stage Golden Core.
They had cultivated their own [Dao Seeking Immortal Method], their grotto-heavens would not fall, and they possessed infinite resurrection. Compared to perfected lords below the second grade, their lead was precipitous.
Lu Yang estimated his own current combat power to be roughly between the second and third grades.
Relying on the concept and profound wonder of [Heavenly Fire], very few third-grade perfected lords were his match. Against second-grade perfected lords, he could win for a moment, but not forever.
As for the first grade, that was Perfected Lord Feixue.
So far, Lu Yang had only seen this one person. She was simply invincible, her dao comprehension already at the level of a Great Perfected Lord. She only needed to gather the dao fruits to break through.
Thinking of this, a realization suddenly dawned in Lu Yang's heart. The so-called "Five Grades of Perfected Lords" actually has no decisive gap in stature. It is merely my personal classification. Not only is it subjective, but the fluctuations between the upper and lower bounds are large. It has not been recognized by the people of the world, let alone influencing heaven and earth.
However, given time.
If he could be like Perfected Lord Feixue and make the concept of "Five Grades of Perfected Lords" recognized by heaven and earth, perhaps even evolving into real gaps in stature...
Then perhaps he could also reach her level!
Thinking about it carefully, didn't [Sky-Shrouding]'s Late-Stage Golden Core also deceive the people of the world through feigning death? In a sense, that also counts as influencing heaven and earth...
Lu Yang's mood suddenly burned hot.
This, perhaps, is also an advantage of the supreme dao fruit!
Perfected Lord Feixue was able to make [Five-Thousand-Year Combat Supreme] deeply rooted in people's hearts and recognized by heaven and earth only after narrowly escaping death nine times and defying the natural order to defeat mid-stage cultivators.
However, [Sky-Shrouding] didn't need to go through all that trouble... and neither do I!
[Sky-Shrouding] feigned death and achieved it relying on the [Knowledge-Perception Barrier]. As for me, with the [Inscribing the Heavenly Chapter], wanting to influence heaven and earth would be effortless.
The only flaw was that his current cultivation was not enough.
His dao comprehension was too low, and his understanding of the Mid-Stage Golden Core was not deep enough. That was why he couldn't immediately engrave the concept of "Five Grades of Perfected Lords" into heaven and earth.
But at least he had a direction.
Just then, a clear sound that penetrated heaven and earth broke Lu Yang's thoughts. Above the dome of the sky, the Golden Core refined from the three dao fruits had emerged from the furnace.