Although Lu Yang didn't know exactly what the World Honored One was thinking, he could guess a thing or two. After all, although the Light Sea was vast, there were only a few people capable of placing chess pieces.
He most likely connected it to Dao Tianqi.
This was also done intentionally by Lu Yang. After all, the Netherworld had always been isolated from the world. If he falsely assumed his merit, Dao Tianqi had no way to clarify it, nor would he try to clarify it.
And with the World Honored One's guarantee, Lu Yang naturally going all out, continuing to expand the scale of the Immortal Alliance. Then he discovered a delightful change. Although he was the one who passed down the Dao Lineage of the Investiture of the Gods Method, the wisdom of the masses could sometimes truly surpass that of an individual.
Immortal Alliance Headquarters, [Heaven of Nothingness].
Mu Changsheng's consciousness was coiled within this Unorthodox Dao Fruit. He created a physical body for himself using concepts, his hands pressed together to form a hand seal.
And with his every breath.
On the super island continent where the Immortal Alliance headquarters was located, every mountain peak, every river, and every inch of land transmitted a peculiar fluctuation that resonated with him.
[Divine Offering].
This divine ability, used to sense the [Heavenly Palace], had been developed with brand new applications after spreading throughout the entire Immortal Alliance and being studied by countless cultivators.
"Interesting."
Through the [Off-Stage Observer], Lu Yang looked at Mu Changsheng with great interest and took the initiative to say: "Tell me, what has happened in the Immortal Alliance recently."
Mu Changsheng naturally couldn't hear his voice. However, with the [Off-Stage Observer] present, this question turned into a doubt arising from his own heart. Then, carrying a bit of nostalgia and a desire to confide, he slowly explained to the empty space without any suspicion:
"The key lies in the [Virtuous Immortal Temple]."
"I initially established this temple just to make preaching the Dao and contacting [Heaven of Nothingness] easier. However, as time went on, I gradually realized something was wrong."
"Some cultivators began to use it."
"Those people discovered that the piety and reverence cultivators held toward the [Virtuous Immortal] could actually form a peculiar aura that could be used to nourish divine abilities."
Lu Yang knew this perfectly well.
It's incense offerings.
After all, [Divine Offering] was extracted by him from the Incense Offering Divine Dao. Although it had been severed, it ultimately still had some residual concepts.
However, the drawbacks of the Incense Offering Divine Dao were too great. It was a classic case of being experts at internal strife but amateurs at external combat. Moreover, its foundation lay in the massive scale of common people. The [Virtuous Immortal Temple] only targeted cultivators. Logically speaking, it shouldn't be able to accumulate much incense. Why would cultivators think to use it?
Soon, Mu Changsheng gave the answer—
"Ever since discovering the peculiar aura, those people started thinking: if people can possess these auras, then what about mountains, rivers, and this heaven and earth?"
"Someone tried it."
"In short, they buried [Divine Offering] into a piece of mountain and river. The divine ability resonated with it, captured its aura, and then refined it into the divine ability."
"In the end, someone actually succeeded. He successfully controlled a small mountain using [Divine Offering]. Thanks to this, the progress speed of his divine ability is astonishing!"
"Thus, I was inspired."
"I am only a consciousness now, without a physical body. But if I can control the territory of the Immortal Alliance using [Divine Offering], then the Immortal Alliance will be an extension of my hands."
Lu Yang clicked his tongue in wonder as he listened.
His understanding of [Divine Offering] was unquestionable. Previously, he just lacked a train of thought. Now that Mu Changsheng had provided one, he was suddenly enlightened.
It's [Fortune]!
All living beings in heaven and earth possessed fortune. Among them, spiritual qi was the most prevalent, and human qi was the most precious. And in the theory of [Fortune], cultivation was refining spiritual qi into human qi.
And when the innate spiritual qi of heaven and earth in a region was expelled, or even completely replaced by the human qi of cultivators, this region would naturally be controlled by the cultivator who was the source of the human qi. This was the principle Mu Changsheng spoke of—using [Divine Offering] to become the god of a region.
Similar situations had actually existed before.
For example, the mountain gates of sects, large and small, were stationed by sect cultivators year-round and had various formations set up. This in itself was using human qi to replace the spiritual qi of heaven and earth.
But this time was different.
Compared to the massive investments required for sect mountain gates, Immortal Alliance cultivators only needed the single divine ability, [Divine Offering]. They even did it more thoroughly!
"This might be a path."
Thinking of this, Lu Yang seemed to have received some kind of inspiration. He abruptly stood up, his eyes bright: "Right now, it's only limited to the territory of the Overseas Immortal Alliance."
What if it expanded?
What if it expanded to the entire Immortal Nexus, or even the entire Light Sea? If it reached that level, could he control the Light Sea and the operation of all things?
It should be possible.
Lu Yang lowered his eyelids and soon came to a sudden realization: "Because this is the [Heavenly Dao]! Isn't this exactly what the two Dao Lords of the Sword Pavilion and the Dao Court are trying to do?"
Having said that, Lu Yang quickly realized that his methods were different from the [Heavenly Dao]: "The foundation of my Investiture of the Gods Method is for everyone to become a god, accumulating small amounts to make a large sum in the microscopic domain. The [Heavenly Dao], on the other hand, directly mobilizes the mighty power of [Fortune] to control the Light Sea in the macroscopic domain."
Both had their pros and cons.
The advantage of the [Heavenly Dao] was that it had absolutely no reliance on living beings. As long as the Great Dao of [Fortune] was firmly in hand, it could achieve a certain degree of control over the Light Sea.
The disadvantage was that it wasn't low-end enough.
"Putting aside everything else, the [Heavenly Dao] can only monitor Great Perfected Lords. This is its flaw. The giant net of the [Heavenly Dao] isn't tight enough; there will always be fish that slip through the net."
However, his Investiture of the Gods Method and the [Heavenly Palace] were different.
There were naturally disadvantages too, mainly that the difficulty of development was extremely high. Wanting to expand to the entire Light Sea couldn't bypass the Dao Lords' sights, carrying a huge risk.
But the advantages were also obvious.
That is, as long as the development was successful, the degree of control over the Light Sea would be meticulous enough to reach every inch of territory and every person. It was much tighter than the [Heavenly Dao].
"No, strictly speaking, this isn't controlling the Light Sea anymore, but using my system to replace the original system of heaven and earth. This is changing heaven and earth!"
Lu Yang's eyes grew increasingly bright.
The [Heavenly Dao] will definitely love this very much.
Or rather, they will definitely try to control it in their own hands.
The next second, he felt a sensation in his heart. He shifted his gaze, looking down at the mortal world, and soon his line of sight landed outside the Immortal Alliance, on a remote sea region.
"...Trouble has arrived."
As far as the eye could see, a person was pacing over. The surging waves beneath his feet were like flat ground to him. Nine dragon shadows circled and hovered around his body.
And as he approached.
Above the celestial vault, a Dao Fruit star was lit up. Instantly, the world responded, and all cultivators related to the Dao Fruit felt an inexplicable resonance.
[Wayside Earth].
To Lu Yang, this person could be considered an old acquaintance.
It was Emperor Jiayou!
And it wasn't just him, because Lu Yang could clearly sense that hidden on this Son of Heaven of the Dao Court was an even more noble aura.
Cang Hao had also arrived!