"What has happened?"
Listening to the Daoist chime echoing from the [Paramita], Lu Yang told himself to endure and not laugh, while outwardly manifesting a look of appropriate confusion.
None of the Dao Lords answered.
Only the World Honored One, after a moment of silence, suddenly revealed a smile: "Hoho... he actually couldn't help himself? As expected, he is the one who knows the most."
"He?" Lu Yang immediately followed up.
"The strongest being in the Light Sea today," the World Honored One sneered. "He sits at the absolute apex of the [Paramita], but his heart is utterly rotten. Fellow Daoist, do not trust a word he says."
"The strongest?"
Lu Yang blinked, then peered toward the far end of the [Paramita]. Sure enough, he saw a tiny black speck, so small it was almost invisible, seemingly looking back at him.
In the next second, Lu Yang cupped his hands:
"Xuande greets the Senior."
"..."
The Primordial Saint did not respond. The silhouette at the apex of the [Paramita] rapidly vanished, seemingly no longer paying attention to this place. Seeing this, Lu Yang felt a sense of certainty:
'It seems he hasn't checked the [Supreme Grandmaster] yet. Otherwise, he wouldn't have this attitude. With his current stance, could it be he's starting to suspect I'm a cultivator from beyond the Light Sea? It's not impossible; after all, my background in this life is truly unique.'
Since that was the case, he would keep playing the part.
At this thought, Lu Yang even felt a bit of anticipation for when the Primordial Saint would see the records left by his previous-life self. The identity of "Xuande" was prepared specifically for that moment.
'Hmph... let's see how long you can hold out!'
At the end of the [Paramita].
The Primordial Saint withdrew his gaze and stood with his hands behind his back. His eyes were fixed on the seemingly boundless Dark Void. After a long while, he lowered his head, a look of contemplation surfacing.
He had observed the duel between the World Honored One and the Primordial Ancestor Xuande from start to finish. However, unlike the other Dao Lords who were focused on the [Order], his attention was on Lu Yang's eyes. In those eyes, he saw only a murky depth.
'No... Light of Wisdom.'
Reasonably speaking, for a cultivator capable of becoming a Dao Lord, the Light of Wisdom was an absolute hard requirement. Furthermore, any being born of the Light Sea would inevitably possess it.
Yet, this Xuande had none.
The Primordial Saint recalled the records of the [School of Names] and [School of Forms] in his possession: 'In the pre-ancient era, it seems cultivators did not possess such a thing as the Light of Wisdom.'
Could it be? Truly a visitor from beyond?
The more he deduced, the more the Primordial Saint felt that the other party was truly a cultivator from the pre-ancient era who had fled into the Dark Void—especially given the critical evidence Lu Yang had produced at the end.
That face of [Jun].
The supreme inheritance of the [School of Forms], the legendary Visage of a Heavenly Being, the appearance of that Immortal... in the entire Light Sea, only he himself could recognize it.
For the other party to be able to draw that face, they either saw it with their own eyes or had also obtained the inheritance of the [School of Forms]. He was certain the latter was impossible. As for the former... then it perfectly matched the claim of being the "nephew" of Senior Uncle [Jun]. In that case, was this Xuande truly the junior of the Deity Transformation Immortal?
'It shouldn't be possible.'
'Even the Ancestral Dragon doesn't remember that face. When a Deity Transformation transcends, all records should be deleted. How could anyone still remember him?'
'No, not necessarily.'
'If he truly is the Immortal's junior, it's not incomprehensible. After all, they were from the same sect. Perhaps the Immortal intentionally allowed him to remember?'
What to do?
Given his spirit of doubting everything, the Primordial Saint almost instinctively thought from a negative perspective, but the more he thought, the more he suspected it was the truth.
Then the question was:
'The [School of Names] and [School of Forms], the two sects that were enemies of the Deity Transformation Immortal—what special meaning do they hold for this Immortal's junior?'
'Hatred? Indifference?'
'I have taken up the inheritance of these two schools and used that face. If I appear before him, what will his attitude be? No, more importantly...'
This Xuande seemed unaware that [Jun] had already transcended?
'That's right, he doesn't know.'
The Primordial Saint's eyes suddenly brightened: 'If he knew, his first question wouldn't have been to ask where [Jun] was. In that case, perhaps I have a way...'
At this thought, an idea leaped out in the Primordial Saint's heart.
[Perhaps, I can impersonate that Immortal.] [And meet him.]
'Impersonate that Deity Transformation and come to see me as [Jun].'
Lu Yang withdrew his gaze, calculating in his mind:
'This is the most logical guess. The Primordial Saint will eventually be unable to resist. I've laid so much groundwork; the probability of him impersonating [Jun] is extremely high.'
In the Primordial Saint's eyes, this was a win-win situation.
If he was truly the Deity Transformation's junior, then by impersonating the Immortal, he could definitely extract critical information—perhaps something related to transcendence.
If he wasn't, then when the "Immortal" arrived, the ruse would surely be exposed.
At that point, he could just flip the script and seize him immediately.
However—this logic applied to Lu Yang as well.
'I'll just beat him at his own game and play along. Perhaps I can trick more important intelligence regarding [Jun] out of him.'
More importantly, that book.
The book the Primordial Saint used to record information and restart this life with him. Lu Yang guessed that the book also had many connections to [Jun].
This was also an opportunity for a probe.
Furthermore, he had an advantage over the Primordial Saint: as the impersonated junior, he "hadn't seen" the other party for a "very long time."
He didn't even know the other had transcended.
Therefore, it was perfectly logical for him to be ignorant of certain things. this would significantly reduce the chances of his identity being exposed by the Primordial Saint.
'Heh heh!'
Tucking away his thoughts, Lu Yang turned to look at the Dao Lords present and smiled: "It seems that Senior is still unwilling to see me. No matter."
"But, Fellow Daoists."
"I am certain my Senior Uncle once stayed in this place, though I do not know exactly when. I intend to open a world realm here and stay long-term to seek clues."
"...Stay long-term?"
The Dao Lords looked at each other; none showed any sign of resistance. After all, Lu Yang did not occupy a seat on the [Paramita], and his strength was roughly equivalent to the World Honored One.
If there was any hidden hazard...
"You may!"
In the next second, the Sword Lord proactively took a step forward. Her voice was cool, her beautiful eyes staring straight at Lu Yang: "Fellow Daoist Xuande, you may come to the Jiangnan to stay temporarily."
"This humble one shall certainly sweep the couch to welcome you."
Cang Hao: "...?"
He just asked, and you didn't even haggle? You just gave it to him?
Could it be...
Suddenly, Cang Hao's expression changed slightly. Looking at Lu Yang again, his gaze became more profound. He then proactively said: "Fellow Daoist may do as he pleases."
With these two speaking up, the World Honored One would not object, and Myriad Laws and Du Xuan had no standing to interfere anyway. As long as the Primordial Saint didn't speak, the matter was essentially settled.
Even Lu Yang himself didn't expect it to go so smoothly.
However, upon seeing the Sword Lord's gaze, he suddenly had a realization: 'Dammit... this vile woman. In the last life, she set her sights on my [Heavenly Palace].'
And [Order] was effectively the culmination of the [Heavenly Palace] and the Investiture of the Gods Method.
In that case—
'She wouldn't want me, would she?'