Chapter 329: Usurper Immortal

Wang Ping and Xianfu walked side by side into the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode.

The moment they entered, Wang Ping sensed a vast, profound mystery in motion. The temporal distortion of the entire Eight Trigrams Furnace was at its strongest here.

Then, a figure came into view.

Blurred and indistinct, the figure appeared to wear a Daoist robe with his hair bound in a crown. Yet he had no visible face and no discernible aura—the signature guise of the Heaven-Stealing Thief.

"Senior Brother Gan."

Xianfu spoke first. "That True Person Danyang filled this place with ten years of time, clearly intending to wear Junior Brother Kunlun down to his death. I wonder if Senior Brother has a solution?"

Hearing this, the Heaven-Stealing Thief turned around and smiled. "If I do, what does Junior Brother Xianfu plan to do? And if I don't, what then?"

Xianfu's answer came without hesitation. "If you do, we proceed according to our agreement. I will help you extinguish the Earth Yang Fire, allowing the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode to fade back into hiding without interference... But if you don't, then do not blame me for tearing up our deal and stepping in to stop Junior Brother Kunlun from continuing."

Wang Ping shot Xianfu a sidelong glance.

'A true transmission indeed.'

That Biyang's bastard, turning hostile at the drop of a hat.

Xianfu obviously wanted the Earth Yang Fire extinguished. However, judging by the current situation, the probability of Kunlun failing to do so was extremely high.

Once he failed, all previous efforts would be wasted.

In that case, Xianfu had to consider his own situation... Since the attempt was bound to fail anyway, he might as well be the one to sabotage it. At least he could give the Immortal Prescription Courtyard a satisfactory explanation.

"You worry too much, Junior Brother," the Heaven-Stealing Thief chuckled. "I already have a solution. It is just a bit troublesome, which is exactly why I need the help of both you and my good disciple."

With that, the Heaven-Stealing Thief looked at Wang Ping, his eyes bright. "I will be blunt. True Person Danyang's move is incredibly ruthless. Even using the Time-Stealing Thief, I cannot entirely siphon away the ten years of time he materialized out of thin air. Kunlun can hold on for three months at most before his Dao dissipates and he perishes. It is practically a dead end."

"The only way out is to speed things up."

"Only by compressing those ten years into three months can the Earth Yang Fire be successfully extinguished. To do that, I need control over the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode."

As he spoke, the Heaven-Stealing Thief stepped aside.

Revealed before them was a resplendent, profound throne. It sat entirely empty in the seat of honor of the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode, yet golden light coiled around it like snakes.

"This is the key," the Heaven-Stealing Thief explained. "As long as someone sits in this seat of honor, they can control the Heavenly Craft Cave Abode, and even dictate whether this Grotto-Heaven remains hidden or reveals itself to the world!"

"And if someone can make this cave abode fade into seclusion once more, it will undoubtedly provide immense conceptual aid to Kunlun. It will drastically accelerate the eradication of the corresponding Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi. According to my calculations, this will be enough to condense ten years of time into three months and finish the job."

It certainly sounded feasible.

"But what's the catch?"

Wang Ping shrugged and cut straight to the chase. "Just give us the 'but.' Is the throne impossible to sit on? What kind of restriction did that Biyang's bastard put on it?"

At these words, the Heaven-Stealing Thief shot Wang Ping a look.

This little beast... he had some skill. It seemed he had also seen through the Mysterious Wood Qi Daoist Master's disguise. That meant there was no need to worry about him ruining the plan on his end.

"...There is indeed a restriction."

After a moment of silence, the Heaven-Stealing Thief murmured, "And this restriction is not unfamiliar to you. That person left a phantom body on the throne."

'Indeterminate Illusionary Form Technique?'

Wang Ping frowned. This was the technique Tianqu had given him in the Cauldron Interior Grotto-Heaven so he could verify identities with the Mysterious Wood Qi Daoist Master.

Recalling the effects of the technique, his frown deepened. 'A True Person's phantom body... does this mean we have to defeat it at the same realm just to sit on the throne?'

"Correct."

That shameless beast!

Even if a True Person's phantom body shared the exact same Realm as its opponent, its Dao foundation and combat strength would definitely not be on the same level. Describing it as invincible within the same Realm wouldn't be an exaggeration in the slightest.

More importantly, the main body could pour its consciousness into this phantom; it was by no means a rigid, lifeless construct. Therefore, trying to exploit a loophole like he had in the Cauldron Interior Grotto-Heaven—using a Tribulation Transcending Second Layer Cultivation combined with Tribulation Transcending Third Layer Martial Dao combat power to muddy the waters and strike down a lower-level cultivator—was likely impossible here.

Beside him, Xianfu's brow was likewise furrowed.

"There's no need to lose heart," the Heaven-Stealing Thief laughed, noticing their expressions. "If the three of us go up individually, we definitely won't be its match. But I have a way for all three of us to fight this phantom body together."

Wang Ping instantly understood.

"Merit-Stealing Thief?"

The thief of merit could steal identities and achievements. This profound mechanism could, to a certain extent, allow three different people to participate in a single event under the exact same identity!

The Heaven-Stealing Thief looked mildly surprised. He glanced at Wang Ping and grinned broadly. "Good disciple, it seems your attainment in the Five Thieves Stealing Heaven Method is growing higher and higher. You must have pondered over it quite a bit, right? This is excellent stuff. You seem to have gathered four of them already?"

"I have."

Wang Ping nodded. "I only lack the final God-Stealing Thief to reach perfection. This disciple covets it deeply; I wonder if Master would be willing to part with it?"

"But then again—"

Acting as if he hadn't heard the request at all, the Heaven-Stealing Thief shifted his gaze to the hesitant, pondering Xianfu and silently transmitted a message to him.

Instantly, Xianfu looked up.

"Senior Brother Gan... is this true?!"

"Of course."

The Heaven-Stealing Thief nodded. "Junior Brother cultivates human-yang wood. I can swear an oath before your seat; if it is false, it constitutes deceiving the sovereign, and I will let the human-yang wood trigger a backlash against me."

"...Alright."

With that, Xianfu finally made his decision. "I can lend Senior Brother a helping hand."

"Many thanks, Junior Brother." The Heaven-Stealing Thief nodded slightly. He then looked at Wang Ping and chuckled. "Good disciple, I don't need to persuade you, do I?"

He truly did not need to.

'Extinguishing the Earth Yang Fire is beneficial to me in the first place.'

It wasn't just about extinguishing the Earth Yang Fire, but also about restoring the Great Rebellion's achievement of Purging the Stale Qi of the Six Heavens, ensuring that no new stale qi would be released.

This included the Heavenly Yin Metal and Earth Yang Wood.

Furthermore, the Heaven-Stealing Thief was clearly working against the three True Persons, even forcing them to make a move. Given this, Wang Ping had to help hold the line!

"...Good."

Seeing Wang Ping nod, the Heaven-Stealing Thief seemed to relax slightly. He immediately formed hand seals, and two streams of profound energy descended upon Wang Ping and Xianfu.

Merit-Stealing Thief!

At that moment, Wang Ping distinctly felt as if he had donned a garment named 'Heaven-Stealing Thief.' Even his physical body became blurred.

He looked at Xianfu beside him and saw the exact same change.

Right now, they were all the Heaven-Stealing Thief.

The next second, the original Heaven-Stealing Thief slowly stepped forward, turned around, and sat back into the resplendent, profound throne... Immediately after, Wang Ping's vision plunged into darkness.

...

The darkness did not last long.

Soon, a gentle breeze blew away the darkness before Wang Ping's eyes. What came into view was a towering divine mountain stretching straight into the firmament.

Surrounding it was a sea of clouds that touched the sky.

In a flash, Wang Ping narrowed his eyes. The Profound Nether Pearl emerged at his glabella, radiating a murky luster that swiftly concealed his figure.

It was an entirely subconscious action.

Only after doing this did he lift his gaze toward the mountain peak. He quickly spotted a figure in green clothes, standing out like a brushstroke of ink in a landscape painting.

It adorned the summit of the mountain.

Standing with hands clasped behind its back.

The Heaven-Stealing Thief landed steadily in front of the figure. He let out a soft chuckle and cupped his hands. "Senior, this junior has returned."

"Gan Wujiu."

The green-clad figure turned its head, still bearing Tianqu's face, and spoke coolly. "A dignified immortal descendant, yet I never expected you to remain so stubbornly misguided to this day."

"What immortal descendant is there left?"

The Heaven-Stealing Thief shook his head. "I am merely a rogue cultivator. Overestimating my own strength to act as a mantis trying to stop a chariot—I've made a fool of myself before you, Senior."

With that said, he took a step back. Without another word, he formed a hand seal and pressed it to his lips, condensing the light of his Dharmic arts before murmuring, word by word:

"Respectfully inviting the Qian Trigram to take command! Great is the Qian Origin, rectifying life and destiny, riding the immortal path to govern the heavens!"

Rumble!

In an instant, the hazy veil over the Heaven-Stealing Thief seemed to clear, revealing an extraordinarily handsome face. Shifting winds and clouds wreathed around him, giving him a transcendent, immortal bearing. His eyes blazed like the sun and the moon. Riding the mist, he transformed into an illusory stream of light and soared upward.

This was his destiny form, and also his achievement.

He had once suppressed the Earth Yang Fire, trapping the qi of heaven and earth within the Eight Trigrams Furnace. He had also committed acts of usurpation, causing chaos within the Divine Farmer Cauldron. He was a great thief who deceived immortals, a rogue who defied the heavens.

This was exactly what they called:

The Usurper Immortal!

In that split second, Wang Ping understood the meaning behind Xianfu's earlier words—why he, as the dignified third among the true transmissions, would pursue an achievement before stepping into Qi Refining.

The Heaven-Stealing Thief was the clear proof.

The dual empowerment of his destiny form and his achievement caused the profound might radiating from his body to climb to its absolute peak, completely different from any Tribulation Transcending Third Layer expert Wang Ping had ever seen.

His aura reached the ultimate pinnacle, distinctly exuding a sense of 'perfection.'

Even though he was facing a True Person's phantom body, the Heaven-Stealing Thief's imposing momentum did not lose out in the slightest. In fact, there was even a faint sense that he could stand on equal footing!

'So that's how it is...'

Wang Ping's eyes lit up with sudden enlightenment.

'This is true perfection! At the Tribulation Transcending Third Layer, using Divine Powers to trace one's destiny form, and then using that destiny form to establish an achievement! Only upon reaching this point in Tribulation Transcending can one truly be called incapable of advancing any further!'

If, on top of this foundation, one were to obtain a few highly compatible Spiritual Treasures, Wang Ping suspected that a cultivator at this level could even put up a fight against a Corpse Dissolution Immortal!