Chapter 319: Learning Heavenly Devouring and Earth Devouring

The Netheworld Sect’s ten-thousand-year accumulation had been swindled clean by the hundred-thousand-year-old Daoist Sect, and the sect master had perished as a result, a true ruin of both fortune and life.

For the subsequent nine hundred years, the Netherworld Sect remained utterly broken, unable to rise again.

The weak are meat, and the strong do eat; perhaps this is the cruel world of cultivation... my foot.

Lu Yang stopped midway through his narration, unable to bring himself to go on.

Shouldn’t a cruel cultivation world involve the mighty plundering others? Why did it turn into a financial investment scam here?

What happened to the promised supremacy of sheer strength?

The millennium-old cold case of the Netherworld Sect was solved this day, leaving Li Haoran at a total loss for words.

Though the sect master from two terms ago had nothing to do with him, and the previous sect master, Qin Haoran, held little relevance either, he still felt he ought to express something.

He began to applaud.

The Netherworld Sect deserved to be executed by anyone; they were swindled well!

The Fifth Elder gave a couple of dry coughs: "In short, I accept your invitation to become a Protector of the Heavenly Court Sect."

"According to what you said, the Heavenly Court Sect's external stronghold is that barbecue shop in Yanjiang County. When do we set out?"

"To avoid any unforeseen complications, why don't we leave tomorrow?" Lu Yang suggested.

"Very well."

"Right, please remember to disguise yourself, Elder. It would be troublesome if someone from the Netherworld Sect recognized you," Lu Yang reminded him. Previously, whenever they encountered members of the Netherworld Sect, they had used false names and altered appearances.

"That is simple enough. Though my techniques of disguise are not as proficient as Old Nine's, dealing with mere members of the Netherworld Sect poses no challenge. This time, someone of the Integration Stage from their sect might show up; before an Integration Stage cultivator, your disguises would be seen through at a single glance."

"Before we set out, I shall disguise the four of you."

It appeared the Fifth Elder was quite experienced in this matter.

After bidding farewell to the Fifth Elder, Lu Yang did not forget to expand the membership of the Heavenly Court Sect, intending to invite Tao Yao_ye and Mangu to join and impersonate ancient geniuses in Yanjiang County.

Regrettably, when Lu Yang arrived, he found that both Tao Yao_ye and Mangu were in secluded meditation.

His Senior Sister informed Lu Yang that they were currently consolidating their Golden Core realms and could not extricate themselves for the time being.

"Right, Immortal, could you teach me a few magical techniques or divine abilities? The kind that look very ancient, so people can tell at a glance they are from the ancient era."

Lu Yang explained: "Think about it, my current identity is an ancient genius. If I use contemporary moves, it would look suspicious and easily expose a flaw."

The Immortal Fairy stared at Lu Yang in silence, thinking to herself: Which of your moves even looks like a contemporary one? Is it the Shrinking Earth into an Inch or the Tree Planting Spell?

Yet, as a grand and empathetic Immortal, she refrained from speaking such discouraging words: "Very well."

"I have here the Ancient Qi Refining Art. It gathers the spiritual essence of heaven and earth, the rosy dawn and evening mists; consuming and refining it can extend one's lifespan and grant eternal youth. The current Qi Refining Stage was actually evolved from this Ancient Qi Refining Art."

"When the Nine-Layered Immortal was proving he was the first to achieve immortality, he leafed through many ancient texts, among which the Ancient Qi Refining Art was mentioned. He deduced it using immortal arts and said that if cultivated to the limit, the Ancient Qi Refining Art could produce the Primordial Violet Qi, making it peerlessly formidable. However, that is a mere theory; at least, I have never seen anyone achieve it."

Lu Yang shook his head: "This won't do. There won't be a chance to display it before the Netherworld Sect, and they wouldn't recognize it as the Ancient Qi Refining Art anyway."

"Then how about the Dragon Transformation Art? The Dragon Clan possesses formidable physical bodies. Mastering the Dragon Transformation Art allows parts of the body to undergo 'dragonification' and grants a portion of the Dragon Clan's innate talents, such as summoning wind and rain, or overturning rivers and seas."

"The Immortal Ying Tian once studied the Dragon Transformation Art and remains the one with the highest achievements in it to this day. He could fully transform into a dragon, and the Dragon Clan even referred to him as 'Yinglong'."

Lu Yang's eyes lit up: "Ah, this one is excellent. How do I learn it?"

"Let me think... it should involve soaking in dragon blood for three days first. Though it might cause your body to swell up just like Immortal Ying Tian's, with this Immortal guiding you, it shouldn't be a major issue... Right, is dragon blood difficult to obtain in your current era?"

In the ancient era, obtaining dragon blood required either using force to compel the Dragon Clan to surrender it, slaying a solitary true dragon, or, as in the case of Immortal Ying Tian, the Dragon Clan viewing your potential as high and being willing to invest in you.

"We do have dragon blood."

The Daoist Sect certainly did not lack dragon blood or phoenix blood, but the problem was they had to set out tomorrow. It was impossible to soak in dragon blood on the road, let alone for three full days.

Besides, the Immortal Fairy had just mentioned that he might end up with the same swollen fate as Immortal Ying Tian.

"Is there anything else?"

"How about Devouring Heaven and Earth, the divine ability of the Taotie clan?"

Lu Yang was startled. The Taotie clan's divine ability, Devouring Heaven and Earth, was renowned far and wide; he had heard storytellers speak of it even before he began cultivating.

He had heard that this move could devour souls, devour spiritual energy, devour the sun, moon, and stars, devour space, and devour all things in creation!

If he could learn it, it would naturally be magnificent.

"But shouldn't this be an innate divine ability that only the Taotie clan can master? Can I learn it too?"

The Immortal Fairy remained as confident as ever, patting her chest as she spoke: "Listen to yourself. With this Immortal guiding you, what is it that you cannot learn?"

"Then I shall learn this!" Lu Yang resolved, his heart filled with joy at the prospect of finally acquiring a new skill.

Lu Yang found a vast, empty clearing on Heaven's Gate Peak, far away from the kitchen, where the Immortal Fairy manifested to guide him.

"To master Devouring Heaven and Earth, the most crucial element is to possess the desire to devour. This is the foundation."

"Why is the Taotie clan exceptionally capable of eating? It is precisely because their desire to devour is an instinct, something uncontrollable!"

"Close your eyes and imagine that you are ravenously hungry, that you desperately want to eat."

Following the Immortal Fairy's words, Lu Yang imagined himself as a mortal with an empty stomach, starving, longing for food, and salivating from hunger.

He imagined a plate of delicious food before him... for instance, scrambled eggs with tomatoes.

Instantly, Lu Yang no longer felt hungry.

He opened his eyes, only to find the Immortal Fairy tilting her head and staring at him.

The Fairy looked at him with an innocent expression: "What is wrong with you?"

"...It is nothing. I made a mistake just now. Let me imagine it again."

Lu Yang cast the scrambled eggs with tomatoes out of his mind, replacing them with plates of delicacies complete with color, aroma, and taste:

A red, glossy, deep-fried braised pork trotter drenched in rich gravy, savory river snails infused with spicy flavor, noodles drizzled with sizzling chili oil...

Lu Yang wiped away his drool; he was genuinely hungry now.

The Fairy's voice chimed in perfectly beside his ear: "Remember the incantation I recite. Do not try to memorize it by rote; understand it, and imagine the meaning of this incantation from a deeper level."

What followed was an archaic, abstruse, and difficult ancient language.

Perhaps because Lu Yang’s hunger harmonized perfectly with the incantation, though he still could not comprehend the words literally, he did not find them jarring.

From noon until dusk, Lu Yang maintained his state of hunger to comprehend the incantation. Gradually, he grew more and more familiar with it, as if he understood its true meaning—to eat.

He opened his eyes once more, the incantation echoing in his heart. Looking down at the soil beneath his feet, an impulse suddenly welled up within him.

He wanted to eat the dirt.

"Wait a minute, why do I want to eat dirt?!" Lu Yang realized something was amiss.

The Immortal Fairy lay sideways on the ground, propping her cheek with her arm, and said as if it were the most natural thing in the world: "Congratulations, you have mastered 'Devouring Earth'."