The suddenly appearing voice, like thunder piercing the ear, almost instantly made the World Honored One tear off all his disguises. Terrifying mighty power descended upon [Heaven of Nothingness] in a flash.
Of course, it wasn't the World Honored One's main body located in the [Paramita] that acted, but the [Tathagata Vajradhatu] on the lower layer who triggered a wonder. Like shattering glass, the surrounding world exploded instantly. All scenery sank into deep darkness, and what surfaced in its wake was a heaven-spanning giant net.
The Great Karmic Net.
In this instant, the World Honored One's reaction was incredibly swift. He didn't waste any more time in the mortal world, but escaped into the Great Karmic Net to suppress all karmic fluctuations.
There were some words that could not be spoken in the mortal world.
It was precisely because he was right in front of him that he was in time to suppress the corresponding karmic fluctuations; otherwise, if he wasn't careful, it would spread to the higher layers of the [Paramita].
"Inconceivable..."
The next second, the scenery of karma surfaced. The World Honored One returned to the moment right before he entered [Heaven of Nothingness], preparing to probe again using a different method.
However, right at this moment.
"Senior, it's safe now."
The World Honored One turned around, only to see the Qi Refining cultivator who had acted as his guide within the karmic scenery suddenly looking up, gazing at him with a face full of curiosity.
And it wasn't just him.
In the vast karmic scenery, all the Immortal Alliance cultivators within sight almost simultaneously turned their heads at this moment. Countless pairs of eyes stared straight at him.
Naturally, the World Honored One wouldn't feel terrified because of this. Instead, he felt a sense of familiarity. How should he put it? He really liked using this trick to scare lower-realm cultivators. However, the methods of the person in front of him gave him the feeling of "If it were me, I would definitely do the same," which was weird to the extreme.
This person is definitely not Mu Changsheng!
Looking at it this way, the fact that the Qi Refining cultivators here can deduce karma is probably also his doing. How did he do it? Which Dao Lord's chess piece is he exactly?
A massive amount of doubts swarmed out.
However, soon enough, he cast aside these distracting thoughts and instead asked the most crucial question: "You just said, the Primordial Saint has already controlled the Ancestral Dragon?"
This was the truly major event.
"Correct."
Within the karmic scenery, the Qi Refining cultivator nodded: "The Primordial Saint established the [Paramita] and sealed the Ancestral Dragon. From the very beginning, it was to turn him to his own use."
"The current Ancestral Dragon has his sea of consciousness suppressed by the [Paramita], and all the Dao Lords are the Primordial Saint's accomplices. A portion of the Ancestral Dragon's consciousness has already been enslaved. He secretly reincarnated under the alias [Perfected Lord Azure Firmament], and now he has even transformed into a death spirit, lying dormant in the Netherworld... Senior, you should have also noticed some warnings, right?"
For the first time, the World Honored One felt shocked.
He completely hadn't expected that his probe, initiated merely due to changes in the Great Karmic Net, would suddenly uncover such super explosive information from the Dao Lord domain.
The [Paramita] is a tool to enslave the Ancestral Dragon? The Dao Lords are all accomplices?
He did have some understanding of Perfected Lord Azure Firmament, but he hadn't expected that he was actually the Ancestral Dragon. If that was the case, then the Incident of Seizing the Huai River back then was also... In an instant, the Buddha light in the depths of the World Honored One's eyes circulated madly.
He was deducing the authenticity of this sudden intelligence. And the more he deduced, the heavier his heart became, because these were very likely true!
To think the Primordial Saint's layout is so profound?
Oh no! If the Ancestral Dragon has already been enslaved, then what about Pill Cauldron? The Ancestral Dragon's remnant bloodline in his hands might also have problems. Could it be that his plan back then...
The World Honored One's eyes grew increasingly gloomy.
Extreme silence echoed within the karmic scenery. It was only after a long time that the World Honored One finally regained his calm and looked up at the Qi Refining cultivator in front of him.
"Fellow Daoist, who exactly are you?"
Hearing this, the Qi Refining cultivator innocently tilted his head:
"What does Senior mean? I am Mu Changsheng."
Hearing this, the corner of the World Honored One's eye twitched instantly, and a look of suspicion subsequently surfaced in the depths of his eyes: Spouting nonsense with his eyes wide open, and saying it so naturally... Could he be from the Saint Sect?
Before the World Honored One could continue thinking, the Qi Refining cultivator continued:
"The Primordial Saint acts against the natural order, suppressing the Ancestral Dragon, killing Sisui, and treating the living beings of the Light Sea as playthings in his palm. I intend to save the common people from the abyss of suffering and pull the Light Sea back from the brink of collapse."
"Senior, are you willing to assist me?"
Such impassioned words left even the World Honored One stunned.
After a moment, he cautiously uttered: "...Sisui?"
Lu Yang: "..."
The next second, before Lu Yang could think of how to respond, the World Honored One himself snapped out of it, shaking his head and chuckling: "Impossible, Sisui cannot come back to life."
As soon as these words came out, a thought suddenly flashed through Lu Yang's mind: "That might not necessarily be true."
"Senior, in truth, you don't need to view many things so heavily. In the current Light Sea, under specific circumstances, Sisui is actually needed to break the deadlock."
Speaking up to here, Lu Yang simply stopped hiding and directly recounted the experiences from the lifetime before the last—from the Primordial Saint's Deity Transformation Ascension to the preparations the Primordial Saint made after the [Paramita] collapsed. If he kept this intelligence to himself, it would be hard to leverage using a small force to move a heavy weight, but handing it over to the World Honored One was a completely different story.
On the other side, the World Honored One was completely numb.
Pill Cauldron was schemed against, Heaven-Mending was actually hidden inside the [Five Elements] seal, joining forces with the Sword Lord and Cang Hao, secretly embezzling the mighty power of the [Five Elements]...
Thinking of this, the World Honored One almost couldn't maintain his composure.
So the Primordial Saint set up a trap on the [Five Elements] seal, and both the Sword Lord and Cang Hao knew there was a problem and prepared in advance. I'm the only one who knows nothing, is that it? And Bu Tianque...
To think I treated you as a dear junior brother, even worrying about where you went after you disappeared, searching for you in secret. Yet you didn't tell your senior brother about such a major matter?
You wicked beast!
At this moment, as the World Honored One's thoughts flew in all directions, the transcendent, inhuman feeling around him grew increasingly thin. The strong scent of humanity amazed even Lu Yang.
As expected, among the Four Dogs of the Immortal Nexus, only the World Honored One still slightly resembles a human. To oppose the Primordial Saint, I must drag him in, or there is absolutely no hope.
Despite saying this, completely trusting the World Honored One wouldn't do either.
After all, this person only somewhat resembled a human; when necessary, he could easily not be human. If he trusted him too much, he might just be sold out by him one day.
After a long time, the World Honored One finally spoke faintly: "...I understand."
"I will help you temporarily conceal the karma here, Fellow Daoist. As long as you don't act too ostentatiously and make it known to the whole world, you will not be discovered."
Hearing this, Lu Yang immediately pressed:
"To what extent is considered ostentatious?"
"...Great Perfected Lord."
The World Honored One also gave the answer: "Anything below Great Perfected Lord is just harmless minor squabbles. I can block all the karmic fluctuations for you, Fellow Daoist."
Only then did Lu Yang cup his hands: "Then many thanks, Senior."
The World Honored One didn't respond, merely silently dissipating the karmic scenery. As the wonder vanished, he opened his eyes, and time resumed its stable and orderly pace.
Guangming's mission was complete.
Above the [Paramita], the World Honored One's main body pressed his palms together, recalling the content of the conversation with that "Mu Changsheng" while deducing the karma.
Who exactly is he?
In eyes as majestic as mountains, endless karma collided. Soon, the causes related to [Mu Changsheng] were brought up one by one, beginning a new round of deduction.
As expected, Mu Changsheng's cause has changed.
Awakening early, abandoning the original plan, no longer extravagantly hoping for reincarnation, but seeking to expand [Heaven of Nothingness], thereby jumping out of the Primordial Saint's scheme...
...Hm?
The next second, the World Honored One's thoughts suddenly stagnated.
He went to [Responding to Emperors]?
Instantly, all the clues were connected by a clear line. Like being enlightened with perfect wisdom, the World Honored One deduced the most logical answer in an instant.
Why could the other party know that the Ancestral Dragon turned into a death spirit? Why could the other party know that the Primordial Saint used the Beast Taming Dao, combined with the [Paramita], to enslave the Ancestral Dragon?
Why would the other party know about Bu Tianque's situation, which even he didn't know? Who could Bu Tianque trust more than his eldest senior brother? There was only one answer.
With this thought, a few ripples finally arose in the World Honored One's heart, which was normally as still as a placid lake. Lowering his eyes to look down, he seemed to see that Netherworld which had been silent for many years.
Beast Taming... is that you?
Have you awakened?