Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

Drawing fire was, in fact, a relative concept.

When one person drew fire for another, the reverse was also true. The only difference lay in the degree of it—in who managed the delicate balance better. Take the current situation, for instance.

Ang Xiao thought, "If that little bastard steps out to draw their fire, then I have the upper hand, because I’m not yet ready to make the ultimate leap."

He was currently standing at the very edge of the Void Test Dao, having yet to jump. If the other party appeared now to draw the gaze of the Masters of Dao, Ang Xiao could leisurely plan the timing of his jump. He could seize the exact moment when the Masters of Dao’s interference was at its weakest to complete his ultimate leap.

The same logic applied in reverse. "If he keeps his composure and doesn’t show himself, it’ll turn into me drawing fire for him. In the end, that would only perfect his Dao of Arcane Body."

As Ang Xiao pondered this, he felt a long-absent sense of tension. "What will you choose? I’ve already refined the Fruit of Great-Forest Wood, so you should have noticed that the Veil of the Trees has disappeared. You must have guessed that I’m at the crucial turning point of breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage. Will you lose your composure?"

Residing in the deepest part of the Netherworld, Ang Xiao couldn’t see the Current World. He could only judge its situation by sensing the ethereal gazes of the Masters of Dao.

If the gazes of the Masters of Dao were distracted, it meant that little bastard had definitely emerged, and Ang Xiao would immediately begin his jump. However, if their gazes remained immovable and continued bearing down on him like a mountain, it meant the other party was steady and knew Ang Xiao still held back some strength.

TICK TOCK. Time slowly slipped away.

Ang Xiao waited quietly like this. He even reached out to the Netherworld, managing to conjure some flashy, illusionary phenomena to deceive any watchful eyes.

He thought in hopeful anticipation, "Look! I’m about to succeed! Opportunity knocks but once. If you don’t come out now, you’ll really lose your chance. Hurry up and draw their fire for me!"

Meanwhile, inside the Nourishing Life Master.

"What is this old ghost doing?" Lü Yang frowned, looking in confusion at the live broadcast Mu Changsheng had restored. "One phenomenon after another—he’s certainly putting on a grand show."

Before his eyes, over the Overseas Skyline, immortal rain fell from Heaven, Jin Lian sprang from the earth, chants filled the sky, and Daoist shadows covered everything. These visions left the newly freed Perfected Lords bewildered and on high alert, treating it as a formidable enemy’s arrival. Yet, despite these occurrences persisting for the better part of a day, absolutely nothing actually happened.

"Did he succeed or not? Where is he?"

Lü Yang wore a look of impatience. To be honest, ever since Ang Xiao used the Veil of the Trees to conceal the details of his pursuit of the Nascent Soul, Lü Yang had lost interest. Had he not wanted to see the final result, he would have restarted the simulation long ago. But now, even the result refused to show itself. There were only endless layers of phenomena on the sidelines without any concrete outcome. It was almost as if he was fishing...

"...Huh?" Lü Yang suddenly perked up. He stroked his chin, his expression turning odd. "Is this inherently evil old ghost actually trying to bait me out? He wants me to be his meat shield, doesn’t he?"

At this thought, his gaze suddenly shifted to Mu Changsheng, who had maintained his silence nearby. Lü Yang chuckled. "Daoist, are you also in contact with that old ghost?"

"Ab—absolutely not!" Mu Changsheng hurriedly shook his head, but then nodded soon after. "I really am not. It’s just that he wanted me to observe the Current World for you, Daoist, so you wouldn’t be left completely in the dark..."

He confessed!

Indeed, the reason Mu Changsheng had come to the Nourishing Life Master was not only to seek refuge but also to help Lü Yang smoothly grasp the changes in the Current World. In Ang Xiao’s view, only by doing so would there be a chance for Lü Yang to wait for an opportunity to emerge.

These eyes and ears were delivered straight into Lü Yang’s hands by Ang Xiao! Otherwise, with information cut off within the Celestial Human Residual Consciousness, Lü Yang would have no idea that Ang Xiao was pursuing the Nascent Soul. How else could Ang Xiao get Lü Yang to be his meat shield?

"HAHAHA!" Lü Yang burst into laughter. Yes, yes, yes, this was exactly his style!

Understanding the reason behind the continuous phenomena, he broke into a grin. "Go out? Going out is impossible!"

"Uh..." Hearing this, Mu Changsheng spoke up cautiously. "Senior, do you truly not plan to make a move? Opportunity knocks but once; the Great Dao allows for no regrets..."

Lü Yang shot him a glance and shook his head.

He thought, "What do you mean, ’opportunity knocks but once’? You can’t restart a simulation anyway, so it’s very hard for me to explain this to you."

Meanwhile, in the Netherworld.

"You ruthless little bastard, I’ll hand it to you!" Since there was no one around anyway, Ang Xiao cursed aloud. He pondered, "Forget it. It seems maximizing my benefits is impossible. He’s probably guessed that I’m at the final push, waiting for him to take the bullet for me... Unfortunately, I can’t maintain this state for long. Since that’s the case, I have no choice but to initiate the ultimate leap myself. But no matter what, as long as he can’t resist emerging, he’ll still draw some fire."

In Ang Xiao’s eyes, this counted as a moderate victory. If the other party couldn’t resist and emerged first, it would be a major victory for him. If they emerged late, like now, it was a moderate victory. If the other party misjudged the situation and only emerged right as Ang Xiao was finishing, it would be a minor victory... In short, he was going to win, win, win regardless!

"Then let’s do this!" With this thought, Ang Xiao made his decision. At this moment, his entire Spiritual Essence, Mana, Spiritual Space, and even his Dao Heart began to burn.

The Void Test Dao beneath his feet was pushed to its Extreme.

This Dao was named Curved and Straight. "Wood is Curved and Straight, and Right and Wrong are Curved and Straight." As the name implied, the Profound Mysterious of this Dao was named the Yuting Command—a Profound Mysterious capable of determining right and wrong.

The so-called "right and wrong" was abstract. In essence, it referred to the dual nature of things: existence or nonexistence, Yin or Yang, life or death... And the Curved and Straight Great Dao could invert the symbolic positions of these opposing forces. Back then, it was by relying on this Great Dao that he reversed the Earth of Chen. Just now, his expansion of the Netherworld and his reversal of life and death had also relied on this very Great Dao.

And now, he had undeniably pushed this Great Dao to its Extreme. He had even begun to faintly burn it, endlessly draining its Mighty Power.

The Great Dao was merely a tool. Before reaching the Other Shore, it was an important foundation, but once one reached the Other Shore, the tool lost all meaning. Therefore, there was no need to feign pity for it. Draining the pond to catch all the fish was exactly what he needed!

"I’ll exhaust all its Mighty Power and operate the Profound Mysterious to the Extreme to elevate me to that ultimate pinnacle...!"

Ang Xiao pinched a Daoist Hand Seal.

At this moment, he was not a Master of Dao. However, under the augmentation of the Yuting Command—the Profound Mysterious of the Curved and Straight Great Dao—this "right and wrong" was reversed by him, making it so that he was a Master of Dao!

This was different from the modification logic of the Engraving Laws. Because the Engraving Laws had too vast an area of effect and could alter too many things, it was actually inferior in this specific regard to the pinpoint focus of the Curved and Straight.

In an instant, Profound Light bloomed. The Great Dao beneath Ang Xiao’s feet withered and cracked, finally elevating a streak of Boundless Illusionary Colors that leapt vigorously toward the core of the Netherworld!

But just at this moment...

CLANG! CLANG!

Without any warning, the sword chime that had echoed through the Sea of Light fifty years ago resonated once again, Slashing directly toward Ang Xiao!

Finally, a Daoist Lord took action!