novelraw Chapter 137 : 『Primordial Starry Sky Doumu Heavenly Venerable, the Demon-God Embryo Shows Its Might!』
Chapter 137 : 『Primordial Starry Sky Doumu Heavenly Venerable, the Demon-God Embryo Shows Its Might!』
Chapter 137: 『Primordial Starry Sky Doumu Heavenly Venerable, the Demon-God Embryo Shows Its Might!』
The Lamp-Igniting Method had a total of four stages.
Fire Dwelling, Fire City, Fire Nation, Fire Hell!
Each stage required crossing its corresponding tribulation.
The Ash Lamp would then nurture the sources of the three Treasure Lamps—Star, Moon, and Sun.
When all three sources eventually merged, it would become the Divine Lamp.
In terms of proficiency, the Ash Lamp Spirit had long cultivated to 【Mastery Level 99%】, but due to lack of materials at home and insufficient karmic nutrients, it could only grind slowly over time.
Now, using the karma of the Golden Fuguo Diseased Domain as fuel and burning it, countless Ash Insects had been born.
They gathered in the flame, densely packed, numbering in the tens of thousands.
If Jiang Yan had to accumulate this on his own, who knew how much time and effort it would take, and he might even get into trouble collecting karma.
But now…
All it took was one spark.
“Not to mention higher paths, even adjacent ones can’t stand it!”
Jiang Yan sighed inwardly.
Indeed, no effort could match the speed of robbery.
Though cultivating a Lamp-Igniting Method of the Immortal and Divine level came with great difficulty and numerous precepts, he was repaying his father’s debts.
No pain, only pleasure!
Buzz!
Masses of Ash Insects gathered together, their glow flickering like stars, forming a radiant starry nebula.
Sizzle sizzle!
Soon, starry sky-colored flames ignited on their bodies and surged onto the Ash Lamp, transforming the previously ashen lamp into a Starry Sky Lamp.
Using starlight as material, and karma of all beings as the carving knife—
It was carved bit by bit.
Yet through it, Jiang Yan seemed to hear a mysterious voice calling.
Before he could react, his consciousness was suddenly pulled into a vast, boundless starry sky.
Even civilizations appeared as mere specks of dust before It.
Jiang Yan’s heart stirred, and a name surfaced in his mind.
Primordial Starry Sky.
Or rather—
The Nurturer of Endless Stars, Ruler of the Constellations, Light of the First Star—The Great Mother of Stars, 『Doumu』!
It turned out to be… an Immortal God, and a supreme one at that.
『Ancient Celestial Venerable』!
For the first time facing a great being, Jiang Yan realized that this starry sky like the universe was only the tip of Its endless form.
Unimaginable—what kind of horror was the true form of Doumu?
Just a single gaze could likely annihilate the present world.
Yet now,
The boundless starry sky had dimmed…
Billions of stars extinguished, suns withered, countless life planets decayed into void.
The source—an indescribable, taboo darkness more vast than the universe itself.
A glimpse of the whole from a narrow view—
Even the vast starry sky had succumbed to an unknown mutation.
Jiang Yan was shaken. He hadn’t expected this mutation to reach beyond history, into the cosmic star rivers and divine beings.
No wonder…
The Tianxia Alliance and other nations had repeatedly tried to explore the stars, yet gained nothing—
This mutation’s spread was far greater than he imagined.
“Wait, why would the Star Treasure Lamp of the Lamp-Igniting Method be connected to the Primordial Starry Sky and Doumu?”
“If the stars are sick, what about the Moon and the Sun?”
Unlike modern science, in mythological and spiritual hierarchies, the three held equal status.
The Lamp-Igniting Divine Scripture corresponded to the three Treasure Lamps of Star, Moon, and Sun.
Jiang Yan wasn’t naive enough to think it was a coincidence.
To beings of such hierarchy, every action held profound meaning.
Especially since, when he first received the Lamp-Igniting Method, the message mentioned that 『She sighed at the sorrow of all beings』.
“All beings” referred to whom?
Like the term "commoners" in ancient times—it referred to gentry and nobles who had surnames, while the lower class were just serfs, and slaves not even considered human.
Only in modern times did “commoners” include all the masses.
Perhaps it referred to Immortal Subjects and Buddha Followers.
And where had 『She』 sighed?
The Lamp-Igniting Method was shattered the moment it was born, clearly having touched a taboo.
That location definitely concealed a massive secret.
“What in the world are these great Immortal Gods doing?”
Jiang Yan frowned but had too little information to infer more, so he gave up.
As for diving deeper?
That would be pure suicide!
The starry sky being ill… what’s it to him?
He didn’t do it.
“Stars… Void… Truth… Creation…”
Just as Jiang Yan searched for a way to return, countless whispers reached his ears, weaving into billions of dark tendrils that shrouded the galaxy.
Each tendril—larger than star clusters.
Though still smaller than those of the Demon-God Embryo.
They spread forth, fracturing billions of galaxies in their path, as if dragging him into the deep, dark void.
Jiang Yan’s pupils trembled, an unspeakable terror engulfed his heart, his thoughts spun with no solution in sight—
Unless!
A thought stirred, the Demon-God Embryo trembled faintly, the Chaotic Sea surged violently—
Like great bells and drums, shattering star rivers.
In an instant, Jiang Yan’s consciousness returned.
He was back in the Golden Fuguo Diseased Domain.
Though his expression remained calm, his breath was clearly heavier.
And from the reactions of Ba Lie and Zhao Yinman, it could be inferred—
Everything he had experienced had passed in but a finger-snap.
An illusion?
Yet deep within his consciousness, two-thirds of the Ash Lamp had already transformed.
The Treasure Lamp shone like the Milky Way, tinged with hues of the dark starry sky—
Just like the starlight on the Ancient Celestial Venerable, Doumu.
Was this… a gift?
Or… a contamination?
For now, the former seemed more likely.
“So you’re saying I should add the mutation of the Primordial Starry Sky to the main menu like I did with the Historical Long River? What am I, antivirus software?”
Jiang Yan was speechless, but not too worried.
Because in mythology, the Star Officials and Star Lords were at least Saints or Lords of the Nation—
Beings he could only look up to.
Let alone the one who birthed them all, the Great Mother of Stars.
Without the status granted by the Demon-God Embryo, he’d probably have exploded from just a glance—
Or mutated into some bizarre dark starry sky monster.
At this stage, he wasn’t even qualified to intervene.
Might as well deal with the issue in front of him.
Because…
Someone was completely enraged!
Rumble rumble rumble!
With a deafening boom, the burning fire-being "Guanyin" lowered its massive, mountain-sized head to gaze upon Jiang Yan and the others.
Atop the enormous head, countless golden tree roots entwined, parasitized, and pierced through—
Utterly grotesque.
“Mama mia, my fear of giant creatures is kicking in—this thing is massive!” Ba Lie couldn’t help but blurt.
“No wonder your mutated bug form is so small. You must have gigantophobia. Jiang Yan must have microphobia, no wonder his shell is so big,” Zhao Yinman calmly analyzed, notebook in hand.
Ba Lie: “???”
What kind of nasty review is this!
Jiang Yan pretended not to hear, gazing at the Guanyin statue before him—or more accurately, the golden apple tree atop its head—and chuckled lightly:
“I knew you'd come see me.”
Mission Two only said to witness the Golden Apple—it never specified how.
“……”
That sounds like my line.
The golden apple tree on Guanyin’s head fell silent, then coldly said:
“Didn’t expect to meet a karma-path expert. Your means exceed your strength. You actually saw through my scheme.”
“It was just too easy.”
Jiang Yan shook his head lightly and spoke softly:
“Alright, enough of the small talk. Hear my wish.”
“Arrogant!”
The golden apple tree laughed in anger.
To outsiders, it might seem Jiang Yan was about to grant *it* a wish.
“You burned the karmic firewood I prepared and extinguished the last hope of Tree Guanyin. Its final power was used to block my flames, giving me the opening to suppress it completely.
How foolish. It pretended to be the Buddha of Universal Salvation for too long, forgot it was fake. As a reward for helping me deal with that burden…”
The golden apple tree sneered without mercy at Tree Guanyin’s foolishness. Gazing coldly at the trio below, it said:
“Extinguish the flame, and I’ll leave you a whole corpse. Otherwise, I’ll use your flesh and karma to ripen the 【Wishing Golden Apple】.”
As it finished, the aura of early-stage Ancient Talisman level spread without restraint.
Had Jiang Yan not ignited Tree Guanyin, suppressing it with Ash Fire, it might have reached high-stage Ancient Talisman by now.
Zhao Yinman frowned, her crimson eyes calm, resisting the flood of aura.
Ba Lie’s gaze grew serious.
Jiang Yan, holding his lamp, seemed unfazed by the pressure and softly said:
“You haven’t let me down. Barely strong enough.”
Too weak a foe could never satisfy his needs.
Beside him, Ba Lie was dumbfounded—this guy’s one-liners just kept coming.
If he had spoken like this in his youth, he would’ve been the dream of countless girls.
“Sure enough, I’ve been influenced by this Tree Guanyin. Even I’m wasting words on a bug like you.”
The face on the trunk of the Golden Apple Tree wore a calm expression, having completely lost its patience.
Swish swish swish!
Countless roots forcibly pulled themselves out from the burning Tree Guanyin, snapped with a crack, and intertwined into the shape of an apple. The roots melted, merging in midair into the form of a muscular man, radiant in golden hue, resembling a statue of a Greek hero.
“Though my true body cannot move easily, that won’t stop me from crushing you with a clone. This way, your flame that burns karma is useless.”
“Remember this. The one who grants you death is named 【Metios】.”
“Metios. It means wisdom. Remove one character, and it’s the name of the god of wisdom in mythology. The more you lack something, the more you flaunt it,” Jiang Yan interjected coldly.
Ba Lie silently gave him a thumbs-up. That mouth was poison.
Metios’ golden root-woven face instantly darkened. He said coldly, “Arrogance must be backed by power!”
He stretched out his hand and grasped the air. A magnificent, golden orchard shrouded in endless night enveloped Jiang Yan and the others.
『Grade-Five Sanctuary——Orchard of the Night God Hesperos!』
Sanctuary—that was what they called it in Greece.
Unlike the Historical Long River of Tianxia, which revered self-cultivation and mastering one’s fate…
Greek history was filled with the shadows of gods, its timeline bound by bloodline.
Without noble blood, one could not become a hero, let alone a demigod with legendary deeds.
Nobles—born superior.
Commoners—born inferior.
Ordinary people could only scour the Historical Long River for ways to change their bloodline. Otherwise, their upper limits were locked.
Thus, what they mastered were not Law Domains, but Sanctuaries—powers bestowed by the gods.
A battle of ancestors. The floor was higher, but the ceiling was sealed.
This power was also a shackle.
“My bloodline comes from the noble Mother Earth Goddess Gaia’s creation, later planted in the orchard by the Night God Hesperos—a mythical Golden Apple Tree.
He governs the Path of Wishes, the ability to fulfill desires. Even the gods covet it. Yet still, it pales compared to Tianxia’s system, which holds infinite possibilities.”
Metios whispered softly, pronouncing judgment:
“For the sake of my path to godhood—become nourishment!”
As his words fell, the countless fruit trees in the orchard transformed into terrifying demons that preyed on humans, wreathed in the power of endless night, lunging toward Jiang Yan and the others.
“This is bad!”
Ba Lie’s expression turned grim. Under the Sanctuary’s suppression, half of his strength was sealed.
Before, he wouldn’t have feared this. He had once condensed a Law Domain prototype, able to resist Sanctuary suppression.
But that was shattered in an accident, and he had yet to reform it.
Thus, he couldn’t ascend to the Ancient Talisman level, nor could he counter an Ancient Talisman’s greatest advantage.
Unable to resist suppression, what hope was there for challenging above his level?
Beneath the Ancient Talisman—were all ants.
Metios watched them drown in the sea of trees with indifference, murmuring, “Now then, it’s time to ripen the Golden Apple, devour the Tree Guanyin, and convert it into the Tree of Compassionate Causality—then breach the real world.”
Just as he prepared to wait for Jiang Yan and the others to die and extract their flesh—
Crack crack crack!
Suddenly, within the 【Grade-Five Sanctuary——Orchard of the Night God Hesperos】 came the sound of shattering glass.
“Roar roar roar!”
A great number of fruit tree demons howled in fear, instantly withering, decaying, turning into drifting gray ash.
“Decay—brings rebirth.”
Jiang Yan strolled through the orchard. Everywhere he passed, all things decayed. Ashes swirled around him as if courtiers were worshiping an emperor, exuding a profound sense of finality.
He had forcibly carved a shattered apocalyptic dynasty into this Sanctuary.
Above, the night sky now held a dusk-colored glow.
Within the 【Law Domain——Decaying Dynasty】, life wilted and civilization crumbled.
Only the black shadow on a decayed throne inside an ashen palace—nine-tenths resembling Jiang Yan—remained eternally.
Before it, even the divine orchard began to wither and collapse.
“Law Domain prototype!”
Metios and Ba Lie shouted in unison, their expressions shaken.
The former was shocked—this Law Domain hadn’t even reached Ancient Talisman level or received an official grade, yet it tore through a Grade-Five Sanctuary.
Its essence was terrifyingly high.
If it succeeded in ascending, wouldn’t it be at least Grade-Three?
Possibly even Grade-Two!
Such talent!
At that moment, Metios’ killing intent surged.
This child—must not be allowed to live!
“So this is what a monster looks like…”
Ba Lie couldn’t believe it. He had seen many prodigies nurture powerful Law Domain prototypes at the Law Seed Stage, but…
Jiang Yan was only at the Foundation Establishment Stage!
Others merely planted a Law Seed at this stage, which was already miraculous.
But you… you planted a Law Domain prototype!?
That’s just cheating!
Old Ba felt conflicted. Ever since meeting Jiang Yan, his entire worldview had begun to crumble.
Metios coldly said, “So what if you have a prototype? Your opponent is—”
Before he could finish—
Tens of thousands of threads pierced him, nailing him to the void.
These threads writhed like living creatures, drilling into his limbs and bones, piercing his meridians, and weaving into new ones.
But they weren’t helping. They were—
Forcefully constructing a garment of meridians—seizing control of his body.
Heaven-Weaving Maiden——Reforging of Muscle and Bone.
“Now, your opponent is me!”
Ba Lie’s voice rang out. The Decaying Dynasty wrapped around him, transforming into endless withering ash, negating the Sanctuary’s suppression.
Without the suppression of a Law Domain, Old Ba’s combat strength was near the Ancient Talisman level.
“Maybe the full version of you would’ve been trouble. But a mere clone? You’re not qualified to act arrogant before me!” Ba Lie sneered.
Metios had just begun to struggle when the Heaven-Weaving Maiden’s arm grabbed his head, siphoning vast quantities of life thread. His vitality rapidly drained, and his once-mighty body grew frail.
Crack! His head was twisted off, and his chest was impaled by another of the Maiden’s arms.
Had Metios not been woven of roots instead of flesh, lacking human organs or vital points, he would’ve died instantly.
“Get off me!”
A new head sprouted from Metios’ chest. He roared, and countless roots burst forth like vipers, striking at Ba Lie.
Crack!
But the Heaven-Weaving Maiden’s arms wrapped them in thread, grinding them into mulch.
The orchard Sanctuary compressed, its power focusing into a single point to trap Ba Lie.
But 【Decaying Dynasty】 forcibly blasted open a path. Ba Lie darted in and out, pounding Metios continuously.
A vibrant orchard—its greatest nemesis was the power of decay.
“The Golden Apple Tree’s roots… they’d make great clothing.”
Ba Lie grinned savagely. It had been a while since he’d used a Law Domain, and his blood was pumping.
Who hadn’t fought Ancient Talismans before!?
“You lot are good at scheming behind the scenes, but face-to-face brawls? That’s my specialty!”
Ba Lie roared. Countless threads wove into fists, the Heaven-Weaving Maiden’s arms becoming shadows.
Ora ora ora ora…!
Each punch landed with a crunch—fierce and unrelenting.
Zzzzz!
The black Sky-Stealing Shuttle spun, extracting Metios’ life essence and spinning it into thread. His body shrank before their eyes.
Punching while draining blood—
That was the true origin of Ba Lie’s infamous reputation!
Sky-Stealing Shuttle?
More like a blood pump!
“Damn it!”
Metios’ eyes were a mix of shock and rage. Never did he imagine he’d be overwhelmed by a human not even at Ancient Talisman level.
Just how many monsters had the real world bred?
“These old things always love pulling strings in the shadows. But once forced into reality—they behave.”
Jiang Yan watched with amusement.
Old Ba was more useful than expected. Saved him a few trump cards.
Jiang Yan leapt to the top of the Tree Guanyin statue. Beside the Golden Apple Tree, Zhao Yinman followed close behind—synchronized in motion.
Because the Golden Apple Tree had split its will into the clone, its main body now ran on instinct alone.
The blazing Ash Flame was powerful, yes—but it targeted souls and karmic paths. It had no heat.
Thus, it couldn’t burn the Wish-Golden Apple Tree, whose path had yet to change.
Perhaps, after evolution, that might change.
Golden light lifted Jiang Yan midair. He floated before the sole golden apple.
He could feel the power of wish within it.
To possess it… was like grasping the whole world.
Jiang Yan chuckled. “No wonder the goddesses fought over it. It really is tempting.”
“Stop!!”
Metios howled, eyes bloodshot, desperately trying to break free from Ba Lie.
But now the Heaven-Weaving Maiden’s arms shifted tactics, tightly binding Metios’ body, coiling ever tighter—readying for a death embrace.
Combat Art——Heavenly Serpent Guillotine!
Metios was locked in place, reduced to impotent fury, screaming:
“Noooo!”
A shrill cry—like a powerless husband, forced to watch his golden apple be fondled and toyed with by Jiang Yan.
“The wrath of the defeated—truly music to the ears.”
Jiang Yan chuckled lightly, grasping the golden apple. Because it hadn’t fully ripened yet, it couldn’t grant any wishes.
“Can it really fulfill any wish?”
Saying so, Jiang Yan injected a portion of excess karmic force, scorched by the Ash Flame, into the golden apple to begin ripening it.
Buzz!
A radiance appeared on the golden apple’s surface. It gradually matured, dazzling divine script flashing across it. The stem at the base began to detach, and the fruit fell.
Into Jiang Yan’s hand.
He could clearly feel the mighty power surging within—it was the power woven from the faith of all beings.
A miraculous force that could rewrite everything.
Jiang Yan paused in thought, then softly said: “Then I wish…”
“To resolve the greatest calamity I currently face!”
As his words fell, the golden apple burst into sacred golden light. Brilliant and resplendent, the power of the wish formed a curtain of light, interweaving and condensing into a grand divine tree’s phantom.
“Excellent!”
Ba Lie’s face lit up at the sight—finally, the disaster was going to be resolved.
However, at that moment, Metios’ expression turned dark:
“Damn it…”
Suddenly, an unexpected change occurred. The once radiant golden apple dissolved, turning into black mist that surged into Jiang Yan’s body—or rather, into the karmic shell behind him.
Crack crack crack!
The once splendid karmic shell began to distort, morphing into the shape of the golden apple.
Yet all the brilliance had vanished. What remained was a rotting golden apple, which split open to release countless maggots, ravenously devouring the accumulated karmic force inside Jiang Yan’s shell.
“What’s going on…”
Jiang Yan’s face was full of shock. Before he could react, he realized—
Something was plundering his karma and existence.
He was being replaced, little by little!
Soon—
“Jiang Yan’s” pupils filled with countless insects, forming the pattern of a sundial. A benevolent smile rose on his lips as he softly said:
“This body and karma—I’ll be taking them.”
“What!?”
Ba Lie was stunned. He never imagined there’d be something else hidden inside the golden apple.
Metios had lied!
But when he turned his head, he saw Metios looking just as shocked, roaring:
“What the hell are you!?”
In that moment, its soul trembled. If not for Jiang Yan acting first, it would’ve been the one replaced!
There had been something hiding inside the golden apple all along—and it had never noticed.
Fake Jiang Yan chuckled: “Me? Merely a seeker on the path of 【Causality of Compassion】.”
“Causality of Compassion?”
Metios felt a strange sense of familiarity, then roared:
“Fox Guanyin? Or Tree Guanyin? Impossible—you were devoured by me!”
But in the next moment, the still-burning Tree Guanyin statue’s face curved into a benevolent smile.
From the scorched branches, the surviving worms, to every flower, blade of grass, and tree—faces emerged,
Each wore the exact same benevolent smile.
Together with “Jiang Yan,” they all spoke as one: “I observe the world’s causes, the beings’ effects—omnipresent, how could I be eaten?”
Though it gazed at all with kindness, the chill it evoked was bone-deep.
“How could this be…”
Metios was in disbelief. Had it been a pawn from the very start? Trembling, it muttered: “When did it… Wait—no…”
The face on its chest began to struggle. Its disbelieving expression vanished, replaced by that same eerie, benevolent smile as it softly chuckled:
“There was never any golden apple or Metios. From beginning to end—there was only the Compassionate Multitude.”
To observe all beings’ causes, one must become one of all beings.
I am all beings, and all beings are me.
If all beings become one, can we not cross the Bitter Sea to reach the Other Shore?
Metios had acted the part so well, even it fooled itself.
As it spoke, it looked to the Heaven-Weaving Maiden’s arm that was about to strangle it.
“Not good!”
Alarms rang in Ba Lie’s heart. He immediately activated 【Reforging of Muscle and Bone】 to seize control of the opponent’s body, and manipulated the Sky-Stealing Shuttle to weave a defensive brocade before him.
Boom boom boom!
Metios suddenly self-destructed, blasting apart the threads and the 【Decaying Dynasty】 projection. Ba Lie was sent flying, rolling across the ground.
“Shatter delusion, return to truth—guard the true self!”
Zhao Yinman formed the Celestial Master’s Seal, pressing a Spirit-Guarding Tranquility Talisman to Jiang Yan’s forehead.
Zzzzz!
Jiang Yan’s eyes regained clarity. But quickly, the talisman self-ignited into ash.
“A mere Spirit-Guarding Tranquility Talisman is useless.”
Fake Jiang Yan sneered, only to see over a hundred 【Spirit-Guarding Talismans】 slapped onto Jiang Yan’s body, trying to awaken his consciousness.
All of them had been hastily crafted by Zhao Yinman. If given more time, she could have made thousands.
But they too quickly burned to ash and fell.
Fake Jiang Yan stood with hands behind his back, smiling: “Your 【Spirit-Guarding Tranquility Talisman】 was timely. Pity it’s useless. I didn’t seize his body—I plundered his existence and karma. I’ve inherited everything.”
Ba Lie stood up, having grasped the issue:
“The karmic shell was your setup. The golden apple wish was a trap!”
They had been tricked from the start!
“Very clever.”
Fake Jiang Yan smiled gently: “Still, the wish itself was real. But just because you say it—doesn’t mean I have to fulfill it.”
Ba Lie’s face turned grim: “Just who are you?”
Fake Jiang Yan chuckled: “Me? I was born alongside Tree Guanyin’s former self, Fox Guanyin. I walk the path of 【Causality of Compassion】.
But that one was too detached, leaving me no room to grow. That was, until I met a former tribute—a rotten golden apple, rising from the Historical Long River.
A once beautiful golden apple, corrupted by desire, decaying from within—perfect nourishment for my growth.
I devoured it from the inside, turned it into fuel for myself.
Left behind an empty wish shell, used it to rot Tree Guanyin, and wove it with human greed.
Thus was born the karmic shell, structured upon the hollow apple, a vessel for the Compassionate Multitude.
At first, I only meant to wait for a suitable body in the real world—one that could bear karmic force.
But I caught a big fish…
This body I now wear.”
Fake Jiang Yan spoke in awe: “This body possesses unimaginable potential. Even I was moved. But devouring both the golden apple and Tree Guanyin already pushed me to the limit, so I could only guide events from the shadows.
Luckily, he finally took the bait, wished of his own accord, and activated the rite.
Using the hollow apple as medium, I forcibly fused his karmic shell into myself—and seized this powerful body.”
At that moment, fake Jiang Yan tilted his head to glance at Zhao Yinman charging toward him.
She lunged forward, a blazing punch roaring with fire hot enough to incinerate all.
Fake Jiang Yan didn’t move. Because—
The Heart Monkey Arm had already appeared at Zhao Yinman’s abdomen, pressing lightly.
Witnessing Truth of the Heart Monkey!
Boom!
A burst of invisible force flung Zhao Yinman away like a cannonball, her body skidding across the ground.
“Rise!”
Yet her gaze was calm. With her powerful physique, she pressed a hand to the earth, flipped midair, and landed steadily.
The Ming-style Hanfu, stitched by Old Ba himself, revealed a handprint on her fair stomach.
“Give him back!”
Zhao Yinman didn’t pause, charging again, crimson eyes burning with determination.
She would bring Jiang Yan back!
But…
Jiang Yan’s strength far exceeded her imagination.
The formless Heart Monkey Arm descended, delivering suffocating pressure—only enemies should feel this kind of oppression.
With casual swats, she was suppressed and repelled again and again.
“This power is addictive… And the bloodline coursing through this body—it feels Buddhist in nature…”
Fake Jiang Yan squinted in delight, easily taking over all powers within the body.
It was effortless.
Yet upon doing so, he was stunned—
This was a human body? With such a profound foundation?
That mysterious Dao Foundation… vast beyond compare. Unprecedented. Unmatched.
He once thought Jiang Yan merely had the potential to become a Lord of the Nation.
But now…
He might reach the realm of Great Divine Ability—overlooking eternity!
Boom!
Zhao Yinman unleashed the power of law-breaking and her bloodline, ready to go all out. But fake Jiang Yan casually waved—
【Decaying Dynasty】 descended, enveloping them both.
Ba Lie coldly said: “So all this chatter was just to justify killing us off!”
Fake Jiang Yan smiled: “Not quite. I’d actually like to invite you both—to become part of the Compassionate Multitude. Aid me in slaying the world’s greatest demon, then return to the real world as heroes.
After all, I don’t know much about the real world. Only with the protection of the Bureau of Historical Revision can I safely gather the karma of all beings.”
“Delusional fool!” Old Ba and Zhao Yinman struck together to resist the Decaying Dynasty.
“Futile resistance.”
Fake Jiang Yan was unfazed. While suppressing the two, he continued browsing through Jiang Yan’s powers.
Finally, after fully replacing his karma and existence, he found the true source of that strength.
It was—
Inheritance of the Immortals and Gods!
Lamp-Igniting Method!
In that instant, fake Jiang Yan was ecstatic.
No wonder that mysterious flame could burn endless karma! He knew it was extraordinary—but he hadn’t expected this…
A Buddha’s inheritance.
With this, he didn’t even need to become part of Guanyin’s lineage. If he just collected the Lamp-Igniting Method’s fragments, he could ascend step by step to the level of Arhat, maybe even a Bodhisattva!
“Heaven really did favor this boy too much. But no matter. Now his life, fate, and karma—all belong to me!”
Fake Jiang Yan, thrilled, opened his mind to inspect the Ash Lamp.
This was power from the Buddha himself!
But the moment he saw the Ash Lamp—his expression changed drastically.
It had already completed its transformation. The lamp’s body had turned into a Starry Sky Treasure Lamp, dark yet resplendent, as if forged from a swirling galaxy of darkness.
Its flame glowed dimly, illuminating all of existence.
Through that flame’s light, fake Jiang Yan saw the most mysterious path of tribulation, now displayed before him.
And what he saw—
Made him stop breathing.
Because he saw the surge of endless Calamity Qi, engulfing and sweeping through the Historical Long River.
The entire world—radiated pure malice.
This was… The Lamp Tribulation!!!
……
……