[Equality of Things].
As the palace in the painting vanished, Lu Yang stood amidst a golden-white radiance. A human figure faintly emerged on the [Dao-Conquering Tianhun Diagram] in his hand.
At the same time, intense vitality and positive concepts continuously surged from the diagram. The golden-white radiance filled the human figure like ink, as if coloring the portrait and making it increasingly vivid. Finally, Lu Yang extended a finger and tapped down.
"Boom!"
Instantly, the Daoist who was previously just a portrait became completely clear. His eyes were lively; the consciousness from the Dark Aspect of the Light Sea had finally fed back into the mortal world.
The finishing touch.
A second later, nourished by the Dao of Yang, a soul leaped out of the golden-white radiance out of thin air. It then condensed a physical body, qi and blood, and began to circulate spiritual power.
Soon after, an infant landed on the ground.
The soul flew inside, and the infant rapidly began to grow. In an instant, he transformed into a handsome young man, and endless spiritual light formed a black and white Daoist robe that draped over him.
The young man stood there with his eyes closed.
Breathing deeply, he inhaled and exhaled spiritual energy almost greedily. Only after a long while did the young man recover. Opening his eyes, he looked at Lu Yang and bowed solemnly:
"Greetings, Master of the Painting."
Lu Yang nodded slightly and smiled. "No need for formalities. Fellow Daoist King Xi has just awakened and is still unaware of the current situation in the mortal world. Allow me to brief you first."
After speaking, Lu Yang sent out a strand of divine sense. The young man received it and remained silent for a long time. Anger flashed across his face, and his expression shifted several times before returning to calm. He sighed, "I have just awakened and need to harmonize with the Dharma Body Dao to recover my peak strength. But now, the Dharma Body Dao has already collapsed and perished..."
Hearing this, Lu Yang smiled. "That is an easy matter."
Before his voice faded, he formed a hand seal and extracted a massive amount of Dharma Body power from his own Dharma Body Dao, injecting it all into King Xi's Dharma body.
King Xi's qi aura instantly skyrocketed!
In just a few breaths, he ascended all the way from the early-stage Golden Core level, breaking through to the late-stage Golden Core, before barely stopping at the Dao Integration Great Perfected Lord level.
"This..."
Such a change made King Xi widen his eyes. If it weren't for the fact that there was only one Dharma Body Dao, he would have almost thought Lu Yang had already taken command of it!
As for Lu Yang, he naturally wouldn't explain.
Just as Tianhun said, the twelve Great Perfected Lords couldn't all be resurrected in a short period. He could only pick someone. At the same time, Lu Yang didn't want to resurrect anyone too strong.
Otherwise, it would be hard to say who was the master and who was the subordinate.
So Lu Yang only intended to resurrect one Dao Integration stage Great Perfected Lord.
And among the Dao Integration Great Perfected Lords, King Xi held the highest status, second only to the trio of Pan Huang, Di Ku, and Tai Zun. So in the end, he was chosen to be resurrected.
Of course, the more important reason was that although King Xi was a Dharma Body Dao Great Perfected Lord, he was a rare smart person.
Fighting were not his strong suit.
His comprehension of the Dharma Body Dao mainly focused on [deducing the outer macrocosm through the inner microcosm of the body]. In other words—he was very good at divination.
This perfectly suited Lu Yang's taste.
My [Divination Golden Scripture] is still in its foundational stages. I just happen to need these new deduction methods to help me further perfect it, and even consolidate the Dao lineage.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang immediately pulled King Xi aside and began to chat freely.
King Xi was also very sensible. He answered every question from Lu Yang, the Master of the Painting, holding nothing back. It wasn't until 3 days later that Lu Yang satisfyingly let him off.
"With this, I am relieved."
"These are the coordinates for the [Nourishing Life Master], as well as the intelligence regarding myself, the old Dragon Lord Ao Guang, and some of the chess pieces I've laid out in the mortal world. I entrust them all to Fellow Daoist."
Lu Yang solemnly handed over a strand of divine sense.
He planned to have King Xi replace him as the mastermind behind the old Dragon Lord. In short, adding another layer of disguise over himself!
This was also the reason why he chose King Xi. After all, a cultivator who knew divination, understood conspiracies, and could seek good fortune and avoid disaster was undoubtedly much more reliable than a bunch of brainless brutes. Not to mention he also had the special identity of a Dharma Body Dao remnant. It was simply the optimal configuration for a mastermind.
"I will certainly do my utmost."
King Xi wore a serious expression and then voluntarily opened up his soul. Seeing this, Lu Yang smiled. Without another word, his palm, wreathed in smoke, brushed over it.
Large chunks of memories were altered.
Lu Yang's figure was erased, replaced by King Xi's own efforts. However, these memories didn't disappear; they would activate autonomously if necessary.
After that, King Xi would take his place, supporting Mu Changsheng through the old Dragon Lord to attain the [Heavenly Fire], until he exposed a flaw and was discovered by the Dao Lords.
Then the Dao Lords would feel at ease.
After all, King Xi was just a Dharma Body Dao remnant. Everything would still be within their control, and still, no one would be able to detect his existence.
Except for one person.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang vanished from the spot.
[The Mortal World].
The bobbing sea of fog abruptly churned, immediately manifesting [Sky-shrouding]'s figure. His narrow eyes looked at the suddenly appearing Lu Yang with a hint of surprise.
"Fellow Daoist... are you setting off?"
Without Lu Yang needing to speak, [Sky-shrouding] instantly understood Lu Yang's intention: "It seems that compared to me, Fellow Daoist has other means to survive in the Netherworld?"
"That's right."
Lu Yang nodded slightly, then took out the [Cycle of Life and Death Pill]: "This pill can convert life and death, turning me into a pure Death Spirit so I won't be rejected by the Netherworld."
"A pure Death Spirit?" Seeing this, [Sky-shrouding] frowned, then sighed. "The restrictions on a Death Spirit are huge. Once you become a Death Spirit, your Great Dao stature immediately reverses downward. Even my [Inversion] cannot reverse it again. It seems Fellow Daoist has no intention of returning from this trip."
"Fellow Daoist truly understands me."
Lu Yang smiled. "Even so, I have left a contingency in the Light Sea that will lay out plans in the mortal world on my behalf. They can still coordinate with Fellow Daoist."
"There is no need."
[Sky-shrouding] shook his head out of boredom. "Having Fellow Daoist alone is enough. When Fellow Daoist escapes from the Netherworld in the future, that will be the best coordination with me."
Hearing this, Lu Yang waved his hand, then asked curiously: "How is the Tribulation going?"
"Do you have confidence in the [Sovereign Heart-Demon Scripture], Fellow Daoist?"
As soon as these words came out, [Sky-shrouding] immediately became displeased.
Who are you looking down on!
"Hmph, an unorthodox path. I mastered it long ago. As for the method of enlightening inner demons, I already have a plan for that as well. There is no need for Fellow Daoist to worry about me."
"That is good."
After Lu Yang finished speaking, he flicked out a streak of flowing light. Seeing this, [Sky-shrouding] first subconsciously blocked it. Only after checking that there were no problems did he receive it into his hand.
"This is..."
"The [Heart-Cleansing Chapter], and the Dao of Yang from the [Yin and Yang] Great Dao."
Lu Yang said casually: "The former can help you further elevate your Dao heart, and the latter can help you enter the Dark Aspect of the Light Sea. They should be of no small help to you."
These were useless to him now.
The [Heart-Cleansing Chapter], and even the Dao of Yang, held no meaning for him as he was about to enter the Netherworld; they might even be a burden.
Since that was the case, it was better to give them to someone who could put them to better use.
"Fellow Daoist, dont disappoint me."
"..."
Hearing this, [Sky-shrouding] put away the flowing light. He remained silent for a moment before shaking his head and laughing: "It's nothing more than wanting me to attract a bit more of the Dao Lords' attention."
"Isn't it the same for Fellow Daoist?" Lu Yang asked in return.
[Sky-shrouding] nodded, and then also sent out a streak of flowing light. Lu Yang similarly blocked it subconsciously first, only putting it away after confirming there were no problems.
"Many thanks." Lu Yang cupped his hands.
"The same to Fellow Daoist. Do not disappoint me."
[Sky-shrouding] clasped his hands behind his back. The billowing sea of fog completely buried his figure until no trace was left. Only a lingering echo drifted out—
"We shall never meet again."