Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

At this moment, the chime of the sword pierced straight into the Netherworld.

However, due to the Netherworld’s sheer mass and its unique Position, the sword’s cry—which would have been enough to affect the entire Sea of Light—was significantly weakened after entering it.

But this weakening was only relative to the Daoist Lord Level. No matter how weakened it was, this Daoist Lord Level Mighty Power remained a Dimension Reduction strike against a Perfected Lord. Even the strongest Perfected Lord would meet sudden death!

The sword’s chime descended, threatening to Slash Ang Xiao down right then and there.

In an instant, the space around Ang Xiao abruptly turned illusory. His figure left behind blurred afterimages on his path as he leaped toward the core of the Netherworld.

This afterimage severed itself from Ang Xiao. It was but a minuscule fraction of a second from his ultimate leap, yet now it had been carved out of thin air, forming an entirely new history. Like a Scroll, it Swallowed all the sword’s chimes, and both vanished into nothingness simultaneously.

And that wasn’t all. As Ang Xiao drew closer and closer to the core of the Netherworld, new fleeting moments of Time on his path were continuously carved out by a Mighty Power.

Every moment of Time was a Scroll.

Countless Scrolls pieced together, firmly protecting Ang Xiao in their center. Layer upon layer, they acted like a fortress wall, blocking out external forces for him.

Yet, the anomaly was not over. Just as these Time Scrolls appeared, the sword’s chime suddenly amplified several times over in pitch. It invaded from all directions, attempting to breach his defenses.

However, Time was Boundless and could be divided infinitely. No matter how fierce the sword’s chime became, the Time Scrolls continued to emerge endlessly, Swallowing the sound. Neither side could best the other. For every bit of Killing intent unleashed, an equal defense was spawned, resulting in a bizarre stalemate.

"Sword Monarch, Bhagavat!"

Ang Xiao understood in his heart. The former was the old honorary title of the Sword Pavilion Daoist Lord. Since Ang Xiao was a Saint Sect True Monarch, it made perfect sense for this Daoist Lord to strike. And Bhagavat did not disappoint him either.

Of course, if the two were to really fight, Bhagavat would definitely be inferior to the Sword Pavilion Daoist Lord. But the awkward part was that this was the Netherworld—the place furthest from the Other Shore. Under these circumstances, even if there was a discrepancy in their mass, there was a limit to their output. Therefore, the final result they could achieve was virtually identical.

It was like comparing a pond to a lake. Undoubtedly, the lake was vaster. However, the tool for drawing water from both was an identical faucet. As a result, no matter how immense the latter’s volume was, the amount of water it could draw was capped, leaving both sides evenly matched.

But right at this moment, above the heavens, a third anomaly appeared. It was a beam of light originating from the East. It pierced into the Netherworld with irresistible force and shone down!

Within the light, countless Talismans surged. Mounds of Talismans converged into words and sentences. These were the provisions of the Dao Court in the East’s Immortal Dao Law, now collapsing and merging into a beam of Dharma Light.

"Cang Hao!"

Ang Xiao’s eyes were icy cold. He called out the Daoist Court Daoist Lord’s honorary title in his mind but didn’t voice it aloud, instead focusing even more of his energy on his leap toward the Netherworld.

Meanwhile, the sword’s chime and the Time Scrolls kept each other in check, rendering them powerless to stop the Dharma Light born of the Immortal Dao Law from illuminating Ang Xiao.

Yet in the end, this Dharma Light was still blocked.

"CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!"

The violent sound of surging ocean waves emerged from the void, transforming into layered, golden ripples that planted themselves directly in the path of the Dharma Light.

This was different from the Fruit of Vast-Sea Water. It possessed none of the Profound Mysterious aspects of breeding and multiplication; it only held the purest density. The ripples and waves were merely superficial. Its core was an endless expanse of Vast Magical Power, now surging forth as a destructive storm, violently colliding against that Boundless Dharma Light!

"Daoist Lord of the Magical Power Dao!"

Ang Xiao felt a surge of pleasant surprise in his heart, though his expression also revealed a hint of predictability—in his plans, this Daoist Lord was indeed supposed to intervene.

The reason was simple:

"What I seek is the Netherworld, not a slot on the Other Shore, so I pose no threat to them.

"Building upon that, if I become a Daoist Lord and join them, it will undoubtedly help them bridge the gap against the Four Dogs of the Immortal Core.

"It’s all benefit and no harm. If they don’t help me, who would they help?"

Perhaps because he had already forsaken everything—achieve success or die trying—Ang Xiao’s thoughts had grown much bolder now, daring to entertain any notion.

"I’m halfway there!"

At this moment, above the Boundless darkness leading to the core of the Netherworld, Ang Xiao had already leaped past the halfway point. His entire Position was plummeting to its absolute limit.

This descent practically turned him into a Position black hole, even causing the Mighty Power of the four Daoist Lords trembling around him to weaken significantly.

However, Ang Xiao did not let his guard down because of this. Rather, the closer he got to success, the more dangerous it became... because then, as a ’crop’, he was inching closer to maturity and was far more likely to be harvested!

"Will you strike?" Ang Xiao’s thoughts raced. "Ancestral Master... You are the one who has been supporting me all along. Without you, I would never have been able to prove the Fruit of Great-Forest Wood.

"Are you going to harvest me?"

The distance shrank further. The remaining half was reduced to a third. Ang Xiao could even faintly sense the Netherworld calling out to him, welcoming his entry.

As for their previous minor frictions, they were trivial matters compared to the achievement of expanding the Netherworld across the entire Void Sea of Light. Of course, it would have been better if there had been no friction at all... At this thought, Ang Xiao inwardly cursed the little bastard who had driven him out of the Netherworld. Speaking of which, why hadn’t he made an appearance yet...?

"...Huh? This is bad!"

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

In a flash, Ang Xiao’s previously wandering thoughts jolted awake. His face turned exceptionally ugly as he realized exactly what had just happened.

The Saint Sect Ancestral Master!

Unlike the previous four Daoist Lords, the Mighty Power that appeared this time remained as traceless as ever, yet it was far more domineering and unyielding than the other four.

Because what it propelled was a metaphysical existence. Not karmic links, not the future, but a Variable.

The development and changes of things, karmic links and the future—these were all Variables, akin to a blank sheet of paper.

Yet right now, someone had picked up a brush and casually left a stroke of ink on that blank paper, and this single ink stroke was the only thing that could never be changed again.

This was a Constant.

Thus, it was an ending that could no longer be rewritten, a preordained conclusion: Ang Xiao would fail his pursuit of the Nascent Soul, perish in body, and have his Dao fill the Netherworld!

"You old relic! You really want to kill me!!!"

In a split second, Ang Xiao had already calculated the contents of the Constant through the Great Net of Karma Links. The Saint Sect Ancestral Master had never intended to hide it from him.

Besides, what need was there to conceal something that was already predestined? If he declared he would kill you, then you deserved to die!

Ang Xiao understood in his heart that this Constant wasn’t something with loopholes to exploit, nor was it something he could disassociate from by simply changing his name.

It would inevitably happen! And it had to happen!

Even if there was a one-in-a-billion chance that he managed to escape this Constant, it would only lead to one outcome: being rejected by the entire Void Sea of Light.

Because how could anyone possibly jump out of a Constant? If you truly jumped out of it, it would only prove that you shouldn’t exist in the first place.

"In the end... I will die!"

At this moment, Ang Xiao’s heart was incredibly heavy. Either submit to the guidance of the Constant, or die. The Saint Sect Ancestral Master had offered no second option!

Thinking of this, he grew even more infuriated, almost coughing up blood.

"Where is that bastard?! Why hasn’t he shown up yet?"

Ang Xiao had long known that the old relic of the Saint Sect would be difficult to deal with. That was why he had deliberately sought out Lü Yang—precisely so Lü Yang could draw the old relic’s aggro.

After all, the Dao of Arcane Body was undeniably more crucial than the Netherworld.

Yet even now, the other party had still not made an appearance, as if he had vanished from the face of the earth!

Wait a minute, where was his teammate?

***

At this moment, Lü Yang, inside the Nourishing Life Master, was watching the spectacle in sheer intoxication.

Because the Daoist Lords had intervened and pierced through the Netherworld, he was finally able to see Ang Xiao and realize the state the other was currently in.

"I can finally see clearly..."

All his Heart Spirit was immersed in analyzing Ang Xiao’s environment, the method of seeking the Nascent Soul, and the heaven-defying Profound Mysterious aspects displayed by the various Daoist Lords.

What? Ang Xiao’s life or death?

None of my damn business!

Go complain to the next life’s me!

As the saying goes, going out was absolutely out of the question... An ally is in trouble? Then I definitely need to stay as unmoving as a mountain!