Chapter 244: Meeting Mingyou Again!

Months had passed, and Wang Ping once again found himself facing the Qi Refining Great Cultivator whose schemes had terrified him so deeply he hadn't even dared to die. He buried every trace of emotion deep within his heart.

"Thank you for your guidance, Master."

Wang Ping bowed in respect.

Mingyou, on the other hand, ignited the radiance of the Golden Lamp within his eyes. He looked his unexpectedly acquired true transmission disciple up and down with keen interest.

Wang Ping remained entirely unbothered by the scrutiny.

He knew perfectly well why Mingyou had gone out of his way to speak in riddles and test him like this.

'He's selecting a chess piece.'

'I passed the test, so now I'm his chosen piece. Lian Shengyue most likely faced a test of her own, but failed.'

'This is probably how he chose Kunyun back then, too.'

A wave of helplessness washed over Wang Ping at the thought.

If given the choice, he wouldn't want to be anyone's pawn ever again. He just wanted to lie low, steadily build his strength, and see if he could use the Martial Dao to break the suppression the Divine Powers had placed upon him.

Unfortunately, Mingyou refused to give him that chance.

He could only try to look on the bright side. Serving as the pawn of a Qi Refining Great Cultivator would be considered a high honor among the disciples of the Immortal Gate. Where there was risk, there was opportunity.

A moment later, Mingyou spoke.

"Solving my riddle proves you have profound Daoist wisdom and a shrewd mind. Daring to strike at Lian Shengyue based on nothing but a guess proves you have the courage to act without hesitation. And managing to pry open Lian Shengyue's sea of consciousness to meet me here proves you have the strength to back it all up."

"Excellent."

Mingyou raised a finger. A wisp of divine sense immediately pierced through the shackles of memory and landed right in front of Wang Ping, transforming into a thin booklet.

Observing the Qi of Heaven and Earth.

"This is the Daoist treatise detailing the Nine Marshes Nether Demon-Suppressing Qi," Mingyou said. "The Nether Earth corresponds to the 'Ji' heavenly stem. In the sky, it takes the form of clouds; on the ground, it becomes the marsh; and within humanity, it acts as the Matchmaking between heaven and earth."

"However, after the Great Shun dynasty was established, the human-aligned nether earth—the Mid-Heaven Orthodox Origin Blended Harmony Qi—lost its rightful place and was assimilated into the terrestrial nether earth. Because of this, its original nature of harmonizing all creation through Matchmaking was tainted by the profound consequence of heaven and earth falling out of alignment. It was through achieving this very feat that Shunhe earned a True Monarch's protection."

Wang Ping took the booklet and quickly flipped through it.

Mingyou was right. The Nine Marshes Nether Demon-Suppressing Qi was the true terrestrial nether earth. It was perfectly balanced and accumulative; wood could not overcome it, nor could water wash it away. It could restrain fire and engender metal.

Its physical manifestation was the marsh.

Yet, after reading it, Wang Ping was still plagued by confusion. "Master, if I may ask," he ventured, "what does this have to do with Tianxing and the Heaven-Stealing Thief?"

By now, he had figured out the true objectives of Tianxing and the Heaven-Stealing Thief. First, they wanted to wipe out the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi within the Eight Trigrams Furnace. Second, they wanted to force the Mid-Heaven Orthodox Origin Blended Harmony Qi—which had already rejoined the natural order of heaven and earth—back into the realm of human-aligned qi.

The question was: what did they get out of it?

Wang Ping firmly refused to believe that anyone from the Immortal Gate would act without a tangible benefit, let alone commit such blatant treason to sabotage the sect's grand plans.

Moreover... where did Mingyou stand on all this?

And where did his backer stand—the master of Dao Proving Mountain, the entity suspected to be a True Person?

Wang Ping had too many questions, but he knew Mingyou would never reveal the whole truth. He could only push for answers where he saw an opening.

"Heh."

Mingyou chuckled softly. "Tianxing's motive is quite simple. The Nether Earth engenders yang metal. Only when the Nether Earth is realigned can yang metal truly shine."

"Furthermore, the path he cultivates is human-aligned yang metal—the Mysterious Halberd Revolving-Transformation Renewal Qi. The physical manifestation of this qi lies in warfare and mortal conflict. That is why he chose the Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle. He intends to use this massive war to force the three trinities of the Nether Earth back into their rightful positions. By acting as the catalyst, he can manipulate the generative and destructive cycles of the five elements to reap incredible rewards."

"As for the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi, that is even simpler."

"Because fire suppresses metal."

"By erasing this Earth Yang Fire once more, the fire qi will be crippled, leaving his metal qi entirely unrestrained. In that state, his odds of breaking through to become a True Person will increase by a full thirty percent."

"As for Gan Wujiu..."

Mingyou paused for a moment before continuing. "His heart is simply chained to the Great Rebellion. He's a fool. A pity to waste such phenomenal talent."

Wang Ping lowered his eyes.

"And... what about you, Master?"

Wang Ping's tone grew quiet. "You went out of your way to explain all this to me. Where do you, and the great figure standing behind you, fall on this matter?"

He dropped the act and laid his cards on the table.

Mingyou shot him a half-smile and replied leisurely, "You've already guessed the answer, haven't you? There's no need to play coy. You can be perfectly frank with me."

"..."

Wang Ping did have his suspicions, but only now that Mingyou had essentially admitted it could he be completely sure. "So you, and your backer... both approve of their plan?"

Exactly!

Why else would Tianxing and the Heaven-Stealing Thief deliberately hold their conversation inside Dao Proving Mountain? They had been implicitly seeking the approval of the mountain's master.

And since the master of Dao Proving Mountain hadn't simply struck them down, but had instead reached out to him through Mingyou, the master obviously approved of the scheme!

But looking at it from another angle: Mingyou had sought him out in private instead of just letting Tianxing and the Heaven-Stealing Thief operate freely. That meant that while Mingyou approved of the overarching plan, he likely disagreed on the finer details. He needed a pawn of his own to handle those specifics.

Which meant—

"So, the Nether Earth returning to its rightful alignment benefits you as well, Master?"

Mingyou nodded. "Fire engenders earth."

And what about fire suppressing metal?

Realization struck Wang Ping. "The Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi! You don't want that qi erased again. If the fire qi is crippled, it will ruin your chances of ascending to become a True Person!"

That was the core conflict.

Mingyou smiled in clear satisfaction. "You are smart. Exceptionally so. If your Divine Powers hadn't been locked down, you might have even had a chance to reach Qi Refining in the future."

'And whose fault is it that my Divine Powers are locked down?'

The corner of Wang Ping's eye twitched. Not daring to show his irritation, he kept his head bowed to hide his face. "And what does this disciple get out of it?"

He didn't bother asking about the True Person backing Mingyou.

There was no point. Mingyou wasn't a True Person, so he couldn't possibly know a True Person's full intent, and even if he did, he would never share it.

So, Wang Ping simply asked what was in it for himself.

"My Divine Powers are permanently locked, and I have zero hope of advancing my cultivation. I really don't see any reason for me to get involved in this. What do you think, Master?"

His tone was thick with pessimism and pointed implications.

Mingyou's smile only grew wider. "If you do this for me, I'll carve out a path for you. First, become a Corpse Dissolution Immortal under my command. I guarantee your ascension will succeed."

"After that, you can enjoy ten thousand years of absolute freedom, or you can choose to reincarnate and cultivate all over again. While reincarnation within the Immortal Gate is far more difficult than in the Brahma Nation, you now bear Kunlun's old condemned prisoner Destiny Pattern. That means you'll only ever reincarnate within the Eight Trigrams Furnace. Tracking you down will be a breeze, and I'll personally awaken your memories."

"Then, you can start fresh."

Reincarnate and cultivate anew?

Wang Ping feigned a look of hesitation, but internally, he rejected the idea outright. The reason was simple: heaven only knew what that 'awakening' actually entailed!

What if this Biyang's cultivator deliberately restored only a fraction of his memories and molded him from scratch? Would he even be himself anymore? How was that any different from dying?

"What exactly do you need me to do, Master?"

After a long silence, Wang Ping didn't outright refuse. Instead, he probed further, intending to find out exactly what Mingyou required of him.

"In three months, a True Transmission from the Immortal Prescription Courtyard will enter the Eight Trigrams Furnace."

"His title is Xianfu."

"This True Transmission has quite the background," Mingyou said idly. "As the name suggests, he is the reincarnation of a talisman drawn from a True Monarch's Handwritten Manuscript. That's where he gets his Daoist title."

"He cultivates human-yang wood—the Profound Firmament Governance-Bestowing Talisman-Wielding Qi. It's a path of Imperial Cultivation, which is incredibly rare within the Immortal Gate. As a result, its demands upon the mortal world are exceptionally high. Upon entering the mortal realm, he will be required to crown himself emperor. He will also need enough vassals to fully manifest the physical form of his path. When the time comes, he will undoubtedly single you out."

"Aside from you, Tianxing and Gan Wujiu will also send their own people to serve under his banner."

Wang Ping instantly understood. "Kunlun."

Mingyou nodded. "Exactly. Kunlun has already transitioned his cultivation to the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi. He's their pawn, the driving force they intend to use to wipe out that qi."

"So... you want me to make sure Kunlun survives."

Recalling the devastating impact Kunyun's death had leveled upon the wood qi, Wang Ping ventured a guess. "If he dies, the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi will likely be wiped out from the world alongside him?"

"Only if he dies in the Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle."

Mingyou added, "But I have other plans for him. You don't need to concern yourself too heavily with that part. The task I require of you is actually singular."

"Please give me my orders, Master," Wang Ping said, cupping his hands.

"You'll benefit from this as well," Mingyou said with a slight smile. "I want you to expand the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart until it covers the entirety of the Eight Trigrams Furnace."

Wang Ping couldn't bite his tongue. "The stronger that Divine Power grows, the harder it will be for me to break through."

Mingyou tilted his head. "Can you break through right now?"

"..."

'That bastard!'

Mingyou had clearly left him no room to refuse. Then again, it made sense. If a pawn refused to move where the player directed, it would simply be discarded.

Of course, in his case, it wouldn't mean being discarded outright; he would be shelved. Mingyou might even seal him away, leaving him unable to escape or die, leaving him to wither away slowly until his natural lifespan ran out. The rebirth granted by the Taiping Sutra didn't reset his lifespan. If he actually died of old age, he'd almost certainly stay dead!

"Enough. You are dismissed."

Mingyou waved his hand.

"...I take my leave."

Wang Ping offered another bow and turned around. He was just about to pull his divine sense out of Lian Shengyue's memories when Mingyou's voice suddenly rang out behind him.

"Oh, right."

"That martial artist in the Eight Trigrams Furnace... First Seat, wasn't it? She is quite impressive. I certainly didn't expect the Martial Dao to find a new lease on life in her hands."

"Managing to hide right under Shunhe's nose for so long... her methods are easily on par with Gan Wujiu's."

"A pity she's walking a dead end."

"Pass along a message for me. If she wants to extend her lifespan and take her strength another step further, tell her to step forward of her own accord, just like you did, and accept a royal decree from the Immortal Gate."

"I happen to have a qi-ingesting practitioner's inheritance that would suit her perfectly."

"And the same goes for you."

The calm voice rang by Wang Ping's ear, sounding as though Mingyou had already seen through absolutely everything. "Stop wasting your thoughts on these crooked paths."

"How can mortal strength defy the heavens?"

"If a butchered version of the Qi Ingestion Method—this so-called Martial Dao—were enough to shatter locked Divine Powers, then I, a Qi Refining practitioner, would have no need to pursue ascension to a True Person."

In that instant, Wang Ping felt as if he had been plunged into a freezing abyss.