Chapter 311: Watch Me Play Dumb and Sabotage a True Person!

At this moment, Wang Ping's thoughts remained perfectly calm.

The fleeting glimpse he had just caught of the three True Persons was buried away a second later. He sank it into the deepest, most primordial depths of his sea of consciousness, hiding it completely from anyone else's perception.

He hid it even from himself.

'The gentleman should hide his implements at the right time.' Only when this Divine Power remained hidden to absolute perfection within the True Persons' game—hidden until it could fuel a breakthrough to the Tribulation Transcending Third Layer—would he remember it again.

Until then—

'Watch me play dumb and sabotage them!' Even this final, fleeting thought vanished rapidly, entirely converting into nourishment for 'the gentleman should hide his implements at the right time.'

Therefore, when the eyes within the twenty-four-colored radiant light sensed something and locked onto Wang Ping, he naturally showed no reaction, completely oblivious to it. He remained seated upright, gathering his magic power and slowly regulating his breathing. Instead, it was another True Person who glanced over upon seeing this.

"Danyang?"

A heavy voice like rolling thunder boomed in a higher dimension. What surrounded Wang Ping at this moment were not their actual bodies, but merely the manifestations of their respective gazes.

After all, the true bodies of the True Persons could not currently enter the Eight Trigrams Furnace. They could only project their vision inside, deliberately restraining their immense might to avoid interfering with the mortal realm.

"...It is nothing."

A response soon emerged from within the twenty-four-colored radiant light. "I suspect water qi might have made a move. I simply do not know who it was, or what exactly they did."

"Oh?"

Daoist Master Xuanxiao Yingyuan was not surprised by this. In fact, the three True Persons present had long reached a clear consensus regarding this grand layout:

Water qi would inevitably intervene.

The only question was who would intervene and when. That was precisely why they had colluded with the Brahma Nation, deliberately setting bait to lure their opponents into making a move.

However, the opposition had not taken the bait.

Truth be told, Daoist Master Xuanxiao Yingyuan had originally assumed that water qi had seen through their plans, choosing to remain dormant and pass on this opportunity to strike.

However, Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang offered a different view. "The Bliss Immortal Physique has the ability to enact qualitative changes upon magic power. This man has already transformed his magic power twice on Dao Proving Mountain. If a third qualitative change occurs, he could draw upon the qi of heaven and earth. Perhaps they intend to use that to slip past our sight."

"The Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi?"

The heavy, thunderous voice echoed with a note of wariness. "Indeed. If it were any other water qi, it would be a minor issue. But if it is this earthly yin water, that changes things."

"We should have eliminated that Bliss Immortal Physique."

"It would be useless. The Bliss Immortal Physique has already become a protector wisdom consort. As long as her master lives, the wisdom consort will not truly die. Even if we killed her, she would simply revive by this man's side."

"Striking rashly would only risk exposing our own foundations."

The twenty-four-colored radiant light churned. It was as if a hand reached out from within, slowly lifting Wang Ping's body as the gaze seemingly pierced straight into his sea of consciousness.

However, it found absolutely nothing.

Yet the less it discovered, the more oppressive the gaze from the radiant light became, ultimately culminating in a cold sneer. "Regardless, water qi is far too calm."

"Even if they realized we were setting bait, they should not have remained completely inactive. Making a minor move to test our stance would be the logical choice. But water qi did not even do that. It can only mean their true goal does not lie here at all. They have chosen another path entirely."

"Which is?" The thunderous voice rumbled with curiosity.

"I do not know."

The radiant light churned around Wang Ping.

"I do not know. But as long as we keep a close eye on this pawn and ensure nothing goes wrong with him, then no matter how capable water qi might be, even the cleverest housewife cannot cook without rice."

Daoist Master Xuanxiao Yingyuan voiced his agreement, his thunderous tone echoing, "Whatever schemes water qi may have, True Persons are barred from directly interfering inside the Eight Trigrams Furnace. As for the only exploitable loophole—Great Shun's national destiny—that rests firmly in our hands. Even if water qi wanted to strike, they would only be able to skirt the edges outside the furnace."

"And if they do, we will surely notice."

"As for other methods, such as borrowing the qi of heaven and earth or acting through lower-level pawns, they would have to avoid any grand displays if they hoped to slip past our notice."

"At most, they could pass along some information."

"Nothing that could affect the grand scheme."

As the conversation ended, the twenty-four-colored radiant light gently set Wang Ping back down where he had been sitting. Throughout the entire exchange, the Mysterious Wood Qi Daoist Master remained completely silent.

...........

Naturally, Wang Ping was oblivious to the conversation unfolding in a higher dimension. At this moment, his eyes shone with sharp clarity. Only a single thought occupied his mind:

'Cultivate martial arts! I need to cultivate martial arts!'

Inspecting the magic power deeply accumulated within his body, Wang Ping sighed. It seemed You Xuexin had her limits after all; they had fallen just short of triggering the third qualitative change in his magic power.

So be it.

A moment later, he took out the Heavenly Yin Metal spiritual item Baohu had given him—the Frost-Sunk Golden Battle-Axe Saber. Immediately following that, he retrieved the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome.

Without any hesitation, he sank his consciousness into the space of the Taiping Sutra and activated Invoking Deities. The newly acquired Heavenly Punishment Portrait instantly burst into flames, blessing his cultivation process. Wang Ping then opened his mouth and bit down hard on the Frost-Sunk Golden Battle-Axe Saber. "Crack!" A sharp, explosive sound rang out.

He was eating yin metal!

The cultivation method of the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome required the practitioner to devour metal qi spiritual items. As Wang Ping circulated the technique, he gnawed down the battle-axe in his hands bite by bite.

"Rumble!"

Piece by shattered piece, the battle-axe tumbled into Wang Ping's stomach. His digestive tract ground the fragments down, instantly converting them into a howling torrent of metal qi that violently swept through his limbs and bones.

In that instant, Wang Ping felt as if his very body had become a battlefield of clashing weapons. The surging metal qi began to spontaneously restructure his flesh. However, this violently clashed with the Heaven-Bearing Immortal Physique he already possessed. A bone-deep agony instantly forced Wang Ping to clench his teeth.

"Hiss...!"

The pain was like suffering death by a thousand cuts—except the torture wasn't happening on the surface. It was tearing at him from within, feeling as though it would slice his entire body apart from the inside out!

In his daze, he felt as if his flesh, bones, and meridians were all being peeled away by the howling metal qi.

'Endure it. I have to endure it.'

'Tianxing, why are you just watching?'

'Do something!'

Bead-sized drops of sweat continuously dripped down his face. As he gritted through the pain, Wang Ping desperately urged the invoked Tianxing to take control of the chaotic, rampaging metal qi inside his body.

At this moment, Wang Ping missed Spirit-Invoked Mingyou more than ever.

Although both were Qi Refining practitioners, Tianxing was clearly far inferior to Mingyou. The effects of invoking them were not just slightly different—they were worlds apart.

If he had called upon Spirit-Invoked Mingyou, she would have long since taken charge of the situation. Yet the invoked Tianxing was still trying to untangle the mess, slowly mulling over how to proceed.

"Crack!"

Suddenly, a fissure cracked across Wang Ping's cheek like shattering porcelain. However, no blood seeped out. Instead, the wound carried the metallic luster of iron and gold.

[Hm?]

Almost simultaneously, the Treasure Cauldron beside Wang Ping seemed to sense that something was wrong. After a brief probe, it trembled violently. [Ah! Why are you refining a second Immortal Physique?]

[Stop immediately!]

The Treasure Cauldron Spirit immediately moved to withdraw the profound blessing of Bearing Heaven from Wang Ping's body, but Wang Ping quickly stopped it. "Don't. Rest assured, I can endure it."

[That isn't the problem,] the Treasure Cauldron Spirit hurriedly said. [A single person cannot control two Immortal Physiques! The natural laws of different heaven and earth qi conflict with each other. No matter how strong your flesh is, it cannot withstand the clash. You will inevitably explode and die! In all my years, I have never heard of any method capable of accommodating both...]

"That was the past, and this is the present."

Wang Ping raised his head. His eyes shone brightly without a hint of fear. "My Lord, times have changed... Just watch. I am going to house both of these Immortal Physiques today!"

As he spoke, a brilliant luster burst forth from his armor.

Heavenly Martial Campaign Profound Armor!

An instant later, a terrifying series of cracks echoed from inside Wang Ping's body as his bones shifted and his meridians violently realigned. Fissures continuously tore open across his skin, only to be forcibly mended just as fast.

Perfected Person!

This profound ability allowed him to alter his flesh and blood at will, completely unshackled from a fixed physical form. Now, Wang Ping was utilizing it to restructure his physical body to accommodate two Immortal Physiques at once!

This was also thanks to the guidance of the invoked Tianxing. He was, after all, a cultivator bold enough to strive for the True Person realm. Furthermore, the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome had originally belonged to him, meaning his understanding of it was profound. Although it had taken him quite some time to figure things out, once he found a clear path, he slowly and methodically took control of the situation.

Gradually, the pain subsided.

Replacing it was an unprecedented sense of levity and ease. The violent metal qi that had been raging through his body was finally corralled into a single internal organ.

The lungs.

Then, a drastic mutation occurred.

"Hu!"

Wang Ping's eyes clamped shut as he exhaled a long breath. The moment that breath left his lips, a dense spiderweb of cracks erupted all over his body.

Then, he shattered!

There was no blood, and there were no bones. The shattered Wang Ping instantly dissolved into a swirling cloud of golden-white vapor. His empty clothes slumped uselessly to the floor.

Yet the golden-white vapor did not disperse. Instead, it rapidly swirled back in on itself, constantly shifting forms and manifesting all sorts of profound visions that wandered through the mist.

At times, it resembled a towering, majestic Buddha.

At others, a vast expanse of azure sky.

Then it became a myriad of weapons clashing with a resounding clang, and then a vast, surging ocean. It cycled continuously through these forms before finally reverting back to a simple cloud of golden-white vapor.

For Wang Ping, this was a truly wondrous experience.

Dispersing his form into qi, and gathering qi to restore his form.

Everything was under the perfect control of his Divine Intent. With a single thought, he could completely cast off the shackles of a physical body. He could even directly breathe in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to replenish himself.

"Whoosh!"

The golden-white vapor poured into the empty clothes lying on the floor. Within just a few breaths, it solidified back into flesh, perfectly restoring Wang Ping's original appearance!

"The Taibai Immortal Body is complete!"

Wang Ping's eyes lit up. That ability to disperse his body into vapor and re-coagulate it at will was precisely the profound ability of the Taibai Immortal Body: Nine Breaths Qi Ingestion. It was an absolutely extraordinary method.

"From now on, no matter how severe my injuries, as long as I disperse my physical form into spiritual energy and absorb ambient energy from heaven and earth, I can fully recover! This profound ability can even help me further purify a martial artist's Blood Qi True Gang, allowing its power to stand on equal footing with a cultivator's magic power!"

"And this is with just two Immortal Physiques."

Excitement surged in Wang Ping's heart. "I am still missing three: wood, water, and fire... Once I gather them all, will my Martial Dao be enough to shatter the seal of Divine Powers placed upon my body?"

"It definitely will be!"

Wang Ping felt utterly invigorated. His thoughts raced, and he soon caught onto another lead. "A wood qi Qi Ingestion Method... right! The Celestial Immortals' Secretly Bestowed Ageless Longevity Scripture!"

"Previously, Mingyou gave the First Seat half of the manual, while the other half remains in his own hands... It corresponds to Earth Yang Wood and is the Qi Ingestion Method for the Heavenly Pillar Immortal-Bearing Undecaying Qi. Although that qi was already eradicated by the Great Rebellion, isn't Senior Tianqu still around? He definitely still possesses the corresponding spiritual items."

At this thought, Wang Ping clenched his fists tightly.

"Everyone thinks I want the Heavenly Yin Metal."

"But in reality, the Heavenly Yin Metal is just a smokescreen. I can use this opportunity to pour everything into elevating my Martial Dao. Then, I will use my Martial Dao to violently tear down the locked Divine Powers on my body!"