Chapter 239: Desiring True Cultivation

In an instant, Wang Ping realized his Sound Perception spell had achieved a great merit once again, allowing him to unexpectedly overhear a secret others could hardly perceive.

'Wait, that's not right.'

By now, Wang Ping had grown vigilant. 'This is Dao Proving Mountain. How could the master of Dao Proving Mountain not know if voices were left behind here?'

Could this be another trap?

Deliberately left for me to hear?

'And then there's my master Ming... my master whose days are passing by so comfortably. He specifically had me come to Dao Proving Mountain. Could it have been for this too?'

Honestly, Wang Ping completely disbelieved Lian Shengyue's claims. Mingyou had specially sent down a dharma decree just so Wang Ping could use Dao Proving Mountain to share some of his qi destiny with her? What was Lian Shengyue, anyway? A mere true transmission disciple. Kunyun had died just like that, and did his master ever care?

As far as Wang Ping was concerned, Lian Shengyue was thinking far too highly of herself.

'Sharing qi destiny with Lian Shengyue is probably a fake excuse. The real goal was getting me to visit Dao Proving Mountain to overhear this secret conversation!'

That brought up a question.

Since this conversation took place inside Dao Proving Mountain, it was almost impossible to detect. Why did Mingyou know about it, and even direct him here to listen in?

There was only one answer.

'The master of Dao Proving Mountain!'

Wang Ping's heart jolted. He had previously guessed that there was an eighty percent chance Mingyou had the backing of a True Person or even a True Monarch from the Immortal Gate, and now the truth had finally come to light.

Barring any surprises, the True Person backing Mingyou was the master of Dao Proving Mountain. That very person had overheard the conversation between Great Cultivator Tianxing and the Heaven-Stealing Thief and passed it on to Mingyou. Mingyou, for some purpose of his own, had then guided Wang Ping here—thinking it over from every angle, Wang Ping felt this was the most likely possibility!

"Hiss..."

Thinking of this, Wang Ping sucked in a breath of cold air. He then focused his mind and continued to eavesdrop, as voices from the past echoed in his ears.

"I have already met with Kunlun."

It was Great Cultivator Tianxing who spoke first once again. "He is currently in Ghost Axe Grotto-Heaven. He has reincarnated and even shifted his Dao path to the Earth Yang Fire."

Earth Yang Fire... the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi?

Kunlun switched his cultivation path?

Wang Ping's heart chilled. Then, he heard the Heaven-Stealing Thief reply, "Junior Brother Kunlun is quite capable. Now that he has succeeded this time, I am also very pleased."

Great Cultivator Tianxing sneered at those words. "There is no need to hide it. Back then, because of you, the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi—which had already reappeared in the mortal world—suffered heavy damage and was forced to halt within the Eight Trigrams Furnace. Now, by having Kunlun switch to cultivating this qi, you want to eradicate it once more, don't you?"

"Wujiu, your heart leans toward the Great Rebellion!"

Rumbling sounds echoed through heaven and earth. Even though these were just voices a Qi Refining practitioner had left in the past, they still contained an inconceivable mighty power that outsiders were not meant to hear.

In just a few short sentences, blood had already begun to trail down Wang Ping's ears.

Even so, he still did not undo the Sound Perception spell. Instead, sparing no cost, he directly condensed two rice-sized specks of light on his fingertips.

Minor Mustard Seed Sumeru Wondrous Technique, amplify!

In an instant, the profundity of the Sound Perception spell vastly increased. The voices, which had begun to blur, were pulled close once again, continuing to rumble in Wang Ping's ears:

"So it can be expected."

"The next step in your plan is to erase the arrangements the True Monarch made in the Eight Trigrams Furnace back then, and obliterate the founding achievements of Great Shun. Am I right?"

Hearing this, the Heaven-Stealing Thief chuckled lightly.

"This is a matter known to everyone. Why waste your breath on it, Senior Tianxing?"

Great Cultivator Tianxing's tone was icy.

"As expected. You must have learned some world-shattering great secret within that Heaven Defiance Palace; otherwise, you would never have harbored such treasonous thoughts."

"What, does Senior wish to know as well?"

"There's no need."

"In that case, did Senior specifically seek out Kunlun just to meet with me and spout some pleasantries? It shouldn't be that simple, right?"

The voices paused for a moment.

Shortly after, Great Cultivator Tianxing's voice sounded again, bringing a world-shaking revelation:

"I can assist you."

"...What?"

Even the Heaven-Stealing Thief did not seem to anticipate this. His tone was full of surprise, yet Great Cultivator Tianxing's reply remained entirely unwavering.

"The opportunity lies in the Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle. You and I can borrow the hands of the Brahma Cultivators to destroy Great Shun, making everything fall perfectly into place. The one in charge of hosting the sword battle this time is a true transmission disciple of the Immortal Prescription Courtyard. If he is defeated and causes the founding achievements of Great Shun to shatter, we can conveniently push all the blame onto the Immortal Prescription Courtyard."

You've got to be kidding.

Wang Ping listened in dumbfounded shock. He knew who Great Cultivator Tianxing was—Kunlun and Kunyun's master, a Qi Refining practitioner of the Divine Weapon Courtyard, who had always been at odds with the Immortal Prescription Courtyard.

But he had never in a million years imagined that this discord could reach such an extent. Would he really prefer to let the Immortal Gate suffer a massive loss just to cause trouble for the Immortal Prescription Courtyard?

No, it couldn't be that superficial!

Although Wang Ping had plenty of curses to throw at the cultivators of the Immortal Gate, he wouldn't deny one thing: this bunch from Biyang's truly sought the Dao with single-minded devotion.

Their motives for doing things were absolutely never just personal vendettas.

Let alone for a matter as colossal as this.

Therefore, beyond the feud between the Divine Weapon Courtyard and the Immortal Prescription Courtyard, there had to be a far more important, critical reason that made Great Cultivator Tianxing choose to strike.

A second later, the Heaven-Stealing Thief gave Wang Ping his answer.

"Hahaha, so that's how it is!"

Within the amazed laughter was both surprise and joy, finally transforming into a sincere sigh of admiration. "Congratulations, Senior Tianxing, you are about to begin True Cultivation!"

Boom!

In that split second, right as the words 'True Cultivation' fell upon his ears, Wang Ping's ears practically exploded. Blood poured out in streams as he saw stars.

His head instantly jerked back.

The Dharma is Not Transmitted to Six Ears!

It wasn't that the conversation between the two ended there, but rather that the voices that followed concerned the profound mysteries of heaven and earth. With his current cultivation level, he simply no longer possessed the capability to listen.

However, just what he had heard was already explosive enough.

'True Cultivation? True Cultivation!'

'Great Cultivator Tianxing plans to use this Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle for True Cultivation? It's related to Great Shun—are they going to destroy Great Shun? And what are the underlying principles behind it?'

Wang Ping clutched his head, feeling as though his brain was a pile of mush.

Aside from that, there was also a deep sense of helplessness. Couldn't these great cultivators from Biyang's show a little immortal morality? If you want to break through, go find cultivators at your own realm.

Why are you constantly scheming against lower-level cultivators?

Isn't it annoying?!

What irritated Wang Ping even more was his suspicion that the Heaven-Stealing Thief and Great Cultivator Tianxing might not have been oblivious to the possibility that their voices could be overheard!

'How could they not be on guard against the master of Dao Proving Mountain when speaking so openly inside Dao Proving Mountain? Nobody in the Immortal Gate is a fool. The conversation itself was also a statement of intent. Tianxing deliberately spoke those words aloud; perhaps he was seeking the support of the master of Dao Proving Mountain!'

And what about the master of Dao Proving Mountain's attitude?

Turning around and telling Mingyou the contents of the conversation, then having Mingyou tell him so he could hear it... what exactly was the stance of these people from Biyang's regarding this?

Couldn't they just speak plainly?

A bunch of riddlers!

Right at this moment, Wang Ping suddenly heard a soft gasp of surprise from behind him.

"Senior Brother... Dousheng?"

"Hmm?"

Wang Ping turned back at the sound. Entering his sight was the conspicuously white-clad Lian Shengyue. Only then did he realize that he had fallen back to the 998th layer.

A second later, Lian Shengyue gave a light chuckle and said, "Senior Brother is quite impatient, having already gone to challenge the 999th layer. There is something you might not know: only Major Divine Ability cultivators can step into that layer. Since Senior Brother has not yet transcended the lightning tribulation, challenging it so rashly was truly ill-advised."

After speaking, she even offered some unprompted consolation:

"However, for Senior Brother to be able to retreat alive and not be directly eliminated proves your skills are fairly impressive. Might I ask whose mark avatar Senior Brother chose?"

Wang Ping was speechless.

'She is laughing at me. Laughing at my failure to gauge my own strength.'

'Asking whose mark avatar I chose is probably because she thinks whoever failed to kill me must be considered relatively weak among Major Divine Ability cultivators.'

'So she wants to fish out the information first, and then, when she challenges the 999th layer in a moment, she'll pick the exact same opponent to raise her chances of winning.'

—She was too easy to read.

Wang Ping's previously furrowed brow instantly smoothed out. This feeling of swimming effortlessly in a pond full of small fry made his mind relax quite a bit.

Even his tense expression melted away as he chuckled, "I've made Junior Sister Lian worry. I chose Senior Brother Kunyun, but unfortunately, I fell short by a single move at the end."

"...Senior Brother Kunyun?"

Lian Shengyue's smile faltered, but then she nodded slightly. "So that's how it is. Senior Brother defeated Senior Brother Kunyun in the past, so choosing him again is reasonable."

Immediately after, Lian Shengyue continued, "Senior Brother, since we have run into each other here, why don't we hurry up and start to avoid any unforeseen complications?"

Hearing this, Wang Ping instantly understood.

'She's anxious.'

'She's worried that I'll be stubbornly foolish and continue trying to break through the 999th layer, thus wasting qi destiny... It seems she's completely treating me as her qi destiny ATM.'

Be that as it may, Wang Ping didn't mind.

If he had held some hesitation earlier, then now, after listening to the conversation between the Heaven-Stealing Thief and Great Cultivator Tianxing, he had finally made up his mind.

'To that master of mine, all this talk of disciples is empty.'

The key was still one's value.

And looking at things right now, his own value should be the highest. So what if it was Lian Shengyue? At merely the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer, her cultivation and combat prowess weren't even fit to tie his shoes.

As for being a true transmission disciple or inheriting a legacy, that was utter nonsense. In Mingyou's eyes, all disciples were merely parasites waiting to inherit his wealth after his death.

Would Mingyou truly care about their life or death?

Impossible!

'Although he saved You Xuexin once before, in the end, it was only because the You Xuexin of that time was busy forging a life-extending magical treasure for him.'

Once she lost that protective talisman, You Xuexin was naturally useless. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sat back and watched as Wang Ping refined her into a protector wisdom consort, showing absolutely no intent of holding him accountable afterward... By the same logic, if You Xuexin was treated that way, what difference would it make if it were Lian Shengyue instead?

"...Junior Sister's words are quite right."

As his voice faded, Wang Ping reached into his sleeve and gently grasped Kunlun's Robber Cultivator Ghost Mask that he had just acquired. The smile on his face grew ever more sincere:

"Then let us begin."

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