Chapter 696

To be honest, after hearing Li Shangxian introduce Lu Yao, Zheng Fa felt a twinge of despair.

Now, upon hearing that the merging of three bodies could lead to the attainment of the Taiyi Dao, it was hard not to find Lu Yao's relentless efforts over several epochs somewhat perplexing. It was like watching a classmate who studies diligently until midnight, their perseverance admirable, yet their exam results never quite reflect their hard work.

Indeed, Lu Yao hadn’t achieved the transformation into the Three Pure Ones yet.

Seeing the envy on Li Shangxian's face, Zheng Fa reminded himself that this method of transforming into the Three Pure Ones was likely more formidable than he had imagined. It might even be more significant than other innate abilities, so it needed to be kept secret as much as possible.

After pondering for a moment, he changed the subject and asked, “So, what you’re saying is, we need to prevent him from attaining the Golden Immortal Dao in this lifetime? Otherwise, we must stop him from merging his three bodies?”

“Exactly.” Li Shangxian looked at Zheng Fa. “According to our estimates, the connection between the Fusang Tree and his merging of three bodies to attain the Taiyi Dao is crucial, which is why he is targeting the Jiushan Sect so aggressively.”

Zheng Fa stood up, understanding the gravity of the situation: for Lu Yao, this was a matter of the Great Dao, leaving no room for compromise.

The first objective of the Taishang Dao was clear and, in fact, was Zheng Fa’s inevitable choice.

“What about the second objective…”

Li Shangxian paused, his expression serious. “It concerns the Tianhe Sect.”

Zheng Fa turned to Li Shangxian, noticing the lack of a smile on his face. “The Jiuyou Demon Ancestor is a formidable enemy of the Immortal Sect. Regardless of the conflicts among the four sects, we are united in our efforts against him. Alliance Leader, your acceptance of Xie Qingxue for the Qingping Sword is understandable, and we are willing to help you navigate this.”

Zheng Fa lowered his gaze, contemplating for a long time before asking, “What’s the current situation with the Tianhe Sect?”

Li Shangxian replied calmly, “The Jiuyou Demon Ancestor needs time to refine the four swords, and the true immortals of the four sects are hesitant to enter the sword formation, resulting in a stalemate. However, the ancestors have devised a plan.”

“What plan?”

“Since we cannot enter the sword formation, we can use a formation to counter it. The chaotic extermination sword formation can not only prevent the Jiuyou Demon Ancestor from refining the four swords but, once the grand formation is established, we can strike decisively against the Tianhe Sect.”

Zheng Fa listened and understood: the four sects were already lacking unity and were afraid of death; it was unlikely anyone would be willing to take the lead.

Now, they were preparing for a war of attrition.

He looked at Li Shangxian and saw the complex emotions in his eyes. He knew there were some things the other party was reluctant to say but felt compelled to express.

His relationship with the Jiuyou Demon Ancestor was, of course, still a secret.

However, his connections with Yan Wushuang and Xie Qingxue were no secret at all.

Now that Yan Zhaomeng had turned against the four sects, how could that not raise eyebrows?

The Taishang Dao was keen to use him but naturally did not want to delve too deeply into the matter, yet they would not turn a blind eye either.

What had been said earlier was, in fact, a warning.

It was just that Li Shangxian, out of some consideration, had chosen to phrase it delicately.

Seeing that Zheng Fa seemed to understand, Li Shangxian thought for a moment and said, “Alliance Leader, if you are discovered to be involved in this matter, no one will be able to protect you, regardless of who it is.”

Zheng Fa smiled and bowed slightly. “Thank you for the warning, Shangxian. I have the Jiushan Realm behind me, so I won’t act foolishly.”

“…”

Li Shangxian returned to the guest courtyard, his mind heavy.

With a flick of his sleeve, a precious mirror flew out, inverted in mid-air, its surface facing down, projecting a beam of light.

Ming De and the others exchanged glances and stepped into the light together.

The six transformation stage cultivators stood with Li Shangxian in a void.

“This treasure can block external detection,” Li Shangxian said. “No need to worry about Zheng Fa overhearing.”

An elder in the transformation stage asked eagerly, “Li Zushi, what do you think of Zheng Fa?”

“This young man is resolute and harbors a strong aversion to Haori Mountain, making him an asset to our sect.”

“And the situation with the Tianhe Sect…”

Li Shangxian paused for a moment, shaking his head. “I can’t discern his true intentions, but as Xuan Ding Zushi said, there’s no need to worry too much.”

“Hmm?”

“We not only need to guard against Zheng Fa but also the Jiuyou Demon Ancestor escaping.” Li Shangxian explained, “Currently, we cannot trust anyone from the four sects; it must be a true immortal leading the charge, or else entering the grand formation is impossible.”

“Even if Zheng Fa wants to help that Yan Zhaomeng, he can’t.”

Ming De and the others exchanged glances, realizing that this arrangement wasn’t aimed at Zheng Fa but rather out of fear of the Jiuyou Demon Ancestor—his hidden abilities were simply too formidable.

The elder in the transformation stage pondered for a moment and nodded lightly. “Since the master has given orders, I have no objections. What else did you discuss?”

At this point, Li Shangxian also looked puzzled. “He asked me about the cultivation of the Yang God method.”

“Hmm?”

The elder was surprised. “Master, did you share any secret techniques with him?”

“...No! I only mentioned some common knowledge.” Li Shangxian replied, somewhat exasperated. “I just have a poor memory, not that I’m foolish!”

The elder shot him a skeptical glance but didn’t dare to press further.

“Alright, please organize what I just said, ensuring nothing is missed, and send a message to Xuan Ding Zushi, asking him to decide how we should collaborate with the Jiushan Sect.”

“The Yang God method of the Daoist Master is indeed extraordinary.”

Zheng Fa, accompanied by Senior Sister Zhang and others, arrived at the medicinal garden, standing before the Sun and Moon Bell.

“What’s so extraordinary about it?”

“I used to think that the Xuanwei Immortal Dao originated from the Divine Dao,” Zheng Fa explained. “But after Li Shangxian’s insights, I realized that the Daoist Master created the Yang God method first, and the Divine Dao civilization came afterward.”

Uncle Pang and the others exchanged glances, not understanding the significance of this revelation.

“So, the Tianzun must also be practicing the Yang God method!”

Senior Sister Zhang froze for a moment, suddenly grasping something. She pointed her Flying Immortal Brush, and the innate Eight Trigrams spun in the air.

After a moment, she nodded. “The probability is over sixty percent.”

Zheng Fa knew that while the Tianzun was powerful, he no longer existed, allowing Senior Sister Zhang to make such a straightforward deduction.

“That’s why I say the Yang God method of the Taishang Dao is extraordinary… It not only shaped the current Xuanwei Immortal Sect but also gave rise to the Divine Dao civilization.”

With that, Zheng Fa’s figure flickered, and he condensed a clone practicing the Yang God method.

Everyone began to understand what Zheng Fa was aiming for.

“You want to try the path of the Tianzun?”

Zheng Fa nodded. “Lu Yao poses too great a threat; I must find a way to accelerate my cultivation.”

“I’ve seen in the Tianzun’s memories that the Divine Dao cultivation is incredibly rapid; it’s worth a shot.”

Although achieving the transformation into the Three Pure Ones and attaining the Dao in one lifetime didn’t require dying twice, it didn’t mean that cultivating a clone to the Golden Immortal stage would be easy.

Cultivating three different methods to reach the Golden Immortal stage was likely a hard requirement for the Taiyi.

Previously, Zheng Fa wouldn’t dare to attempt the Divine Dao methods, after all, the Tianzun had gone mad.

Even with the True Fire of the Great Sun, he wouldn’t dare to act recklessly; if he lost his sanity, self-recovery would be a significant issue.

But if he could leverage the transformation into the Three Pure Ones, the risks would be nearly eliminated.

At most, he could retract the clone and start over.

After hearing Zheng Fa’s thoughts, Senior Sister Zhang and the others exchanged glances, feeling that it was indeed feasible.

Walking the path of the Tianzun essentially meant fully merging with the Sun and Moon Bell.

This wasn’t particularly difficult; when Zheng Fa faced the Yuan Ying tribulation, he seemed to have gained the Tianzun’s recognition, strengthening his connection with the Sun and Moon Bell. It could even be said that the bell had an inherent ability to merge with him.

If he spent a little more time, Zheng Fa would naturally be able to achieve this.

But what Zheng Fa needed was time, which was why he brought Senior Sister Zhang along.

“Failed…”

Zheng Fa’s Yang God clone shattered into pieces, dissipating into the void. Yet, he wasn’t disheartened; instead, he looked at Senior Sister Zhang and said, “Sister, I had some insights just now; please try to deduce again.”

Senior Sister Zhang’s Flying Immortal Brush danced, and the innate Eight Trigrams evolved into countless runes.

After a moment, she said to Zheng Fa, “You should try this technique.”

“Sounds good; I feel the Sun and Moon Bell is even more responsive than before.”

After another half-day of attempts, Senior Sister Zhang frowned, looking somewhat helpless. “I can’t deduce anything further from the innate Eight Trigrams here.”

Zheng Fa thought for a moment and suddenly drew a circle with his hand, condensing a Taiji diagram. “This Taiji diagram of the Daoist Master seems to relate to the control of space and the rotation of yin and yang.”

Senior Sister Zhang’s eyes lit up as she carefully listened to Zheng Fa explain his insights on the Taiji diagram method before starting her deductions again.

A few days later.

Li Shangxian held the reply from Xuan Ding Zushi, reading it twice before stepping out of the courtyard to find Zheng Fa.

He was followed by six transformation stage cultivators.

After all, this was to finalize the details of their collaboration, which could be considered Li Zushi’s Achilles' heel, requiring their assistance.

As they reached the door, a brilliant golden light shone from the horizon. Turning around, they saw a purple figure rising slowly, a great bell hovering above its head.

This figure seemed to merge with this realm, as if it were the very sovereign of this world.

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