Chapter 375: Tao Yaoye's New Script

When Lu Yang reached the summit of Hundred Refinements Peak, half of the Dao Seeking Sect's elders had gathered there.

The Second, Fifth, and Eighth Elders were present, along with the Sixth Elder, who was only there as a projection.

The Fifth Elder sized up the Second and Eighth Elders, looking at them as if they were two bizarre anomalies: "You two actually invented something new, and you even want me to apply for a patent?"

In his memory, Second Senior Brother guarded the herb garden all day long, having entered a state of early retirement; if not for his recent sudden burst of renewed vigor, he would have thought his brother was starting to grow mold.

As for Old Eighth, he had been hiding inside the sect lately and refusing to step outside, presumably having caused some trouble out there and using the sect as a refuge.

"It wasn't the two of them. Tao Tianye came up with the idea, and Old Second and Old Eighth were just responsible for bringing her thoughts to fruition," the Sixth Elder explained.

The Fifth Elder nodded; now that made perfect sense.

"Niece Tao, what exactly did you invent?" The Fifth Elder's demeanor was warm and amicable; he always encouraged the disciples to let their minds wander and create, urging them to boldly break through the limitations of conventional thinking.

In this regard, he thought very highly of Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, while Li Haoran's creativity was slightly lacking and required continuous effort.

"It is an item combining a formation and talismans that allows someone to enter an illusionary realm... Senior Brother Lu, what brings you over here?" Just as Tao Tianye was about to explain, she spotted Lu Yang strolling casually toward them.

Is it finished?

Seeing how lively the place was, Lu Yang roughly guessed what they were up to, so he smiled and asked, "Junior Sister Tao, about the illusionary construction..."

"Thanks to the assistance of the Second and Eighth Elders, the preliminary version is complete. I was just about to demonstrate it to the Fifth Elder. Senior Brother, would you like to give it a try?"

Lu Yang readily agreed; he too wanted to see how Tao Tianye's movie production had turned out.

From her identity jade plaque, Tao Tianye drew two talismans, handing one to the Fifth Elder and one to Lu Yang.

Next, she unrolled a scroll, upon which was drawn a formation that Lu Yang could not make heads or tails of.

"Was this talisman designed by Old Eighth? And the formation drawn by Old Second?" The Fifth Elder recognized the origins of these items; whether it was the talisman or the formation, both were designed in a fairly simple manner.

"Fifth Elder, Senior Brother, please stand upon the formation, then tear the talisman right down the middle. After ripping it apart, you will feel a sensation of being pulled; that is the precursor to entering the illusionary realm." Because this illusion was meant for mortals and low-level cultivators, Tao Tianye worried that if the two of them exerted even a fraction of their strength to resist the transition, the talismans would be rendered useless.

Lu Yang did as instructed, tearing the talisman. A faint pulling sensation tugged at his consciousness; he did not resist,

allowing himself to be drawn into another realm entirely.

Rumble—

The moment he entered this other world, Lu Yang witnessed countless thunders roaring, as if this sound were the only thing that existed within the vast sky and earth.

Amidst the flashing lightning and rolling thunder, a peerless figure stood aloft in the sky, completely unafraid as he allowed the lightning strikes to batter him.

"He is trying to ascend to the Tribulation Transcending Stage, it looks quite realistic." The Immortal Fairy's voice sounded right beside Lu Yang's ear, giving him a massive fright.

Lu Yang stole a glance at the Fifth Elder, who had entered the illusion alongside him, and whispered softly, "Fairy, why are you here? What if someone notices you?"

The Immortal Fairy's lips curled into a smug, triumphant smile: "Into a simple illusion like this, this Immortal can come and go as she pleases. As for being discovered, this Immortal's concealment skills are unmatched beneath the heavens; no one can possibly detect me!"

Lu Yang breathed a sigh of relief, remembering what the Immortal Fairy had just said: "Fairy, did you say he is trying to reach the Tribulation Transcending Stage?"

"Indeed, this is the lightning tribulation one must face when becoming a Tribulation Transcending expert, the Nine-Nine Primordial Heaven Lightning Tribulation. It was designed by the Immortal of Responding Heavens. The person who created this illusion has definitely seen this particular tribulation before."

Facing the churning celestial thunder, Perfected Lord Mitian laughed toward the heavens, choosing to clash head-on with his most prized Sword Dao. Bolt after bolt of celestial thunder was cleaved apart by the Perfected Lord's sword path, leaving him utterly unharmed.

Gradually, the celestial thunder became an unceasing torrent, and Perfected Lord Mitian's strength began to wane. Upon the arrival of the final bolt of celestial thunder, his Sword Dao shattered, and the lightning struck Perfected Lord Mitian's body squarely.

The celestial thunder dissipated, and Perfected Lord Mitian plummeted from the sky.

Boom—

Perfected Lord Mitian plunged headfirst into a massive mountain, crashing out a deep crater. Before losing consciousness, Perfected Lord Mitian muttered to himself, "How hateful... I, Perfected Lord Mitian, have cultivated for over two thousand years, only a single step away from the Tribulation Transcending Stage, yet I carelessly failed. My Sword Dao is shattered, and my cultivation is sealed by the celestial thunder, unable to be mobilized in the slightest!"

An unknown amount of time passed before a young woman from a nearby mountain village plucked up her courage to approach the deep crater. Seeing a person inside, she bravely carried Perfected Lord Mitian back to her home.

Perfected Lord Mitian awoke, but he had lost all of his memories, knowing neither who he was nor what cultivation meant.

The woman who had saved him was named Xiuxiu. Seeing that Perfected Lord Mitian had amnesia, she gave him the name Ah Lei.

The mountain villagers felt that Ah Lei was an ominous person and wanted to drive him away, but Xiuxiu opposed them, saying he could live here indefinitely until his memories returned.

Ah Lei and Xiuxiu lived within the grand mountains, with him helping her farm, fish, and hunt. During an attack by a demonic beast, Ah Lei displayed extraordinary and unimaginable power.

"Ah Lei, you..." Xiuxiu was utterly stunned. Ah Lei, who usually acted exactly like a regular mortal, had actually killed a Foundation Establishment stage wolf demon with a single punch when it tried to eat her.

"I... I don't know what happened either." Ah Lei was completely bewildered.

Another half a year passed, and a demonic cultivator placed a strange treasure within the mountains, ordering his subordinates to capture all the villagers for a sacrificial ritual to elevate the treasure's quality. Xiuxiu was among those taken.

Ah Lei had gone out, and Xiuxiu was captured. When Ah Lei returned to find Xiuxiu gone, he began a frantic, maddening search.

Ah Lei tracked down the demonic stronghold and slaughtered several demonic lackeys to rescue Xiuxiu, but unfortunately, it was already too late. Xiuxiu had been sacrificed, and the strange treasure had been refined, its quality drastically enhanced.

The demonic cultivator laughed arrogantly; with this strange treasure in hand, he no longer feared the pursuit of the righteous path and could roam the world in absolute freedom.

Ah Lei flew into a furious rage. His intense fury tore open the celestial thunder seal, and his shattered Sword Dao was reforged. Celestial thunder gathered, threatening to strike Ah Lei dead, but a brilliant, glaring sword path soared straight into the clouds, scattering the thunder entirely.

He had reclaimed the power and memories that originally belonged to him.

Ah Lei's hair stood on end with rage as his boundless Sword Dao blanketed the sky and earth, enveloping the hundred thousand mountains. With every step he took, a layer of the seal would shatter, accompanied by an endless torrent of spiritual qi. His aura erupted like a demon king descending from the heavens to destroy the mortal world.

"You. Court. Death!"

"It's... It's you!" The demonic cultivator slumped to the ground in terror, finally recognizing Ah Lei's identity.

Perfected Lord Mitian, the number one figure of the Sword Dao, the strongest existence beneath the Tribulation Transcending Stage; he was the one person no one dared to provoke!

"No, no, no! With the strange treasure in my grasp, I am no longer who I used to be!" The demonic cultivator activated the treasure, causing wild winds to rise and the earth to shake, intending to bury Perfected Lord Mitian.

A single beam of sword light fell like divine retribution, cleaving both the strange treasure and the demonic cultivator apart, turning them to ashes.

"Xiuxiu, I have avenged you..." Perfected Lord Mitian murmured, holding Xiuxiu's corpse as a single tear escaped his eye.

The illusion came to an end.

"How was it, how was it? How was the script this time?" The moment the illusion ended, Tao Tianye excitedly rushed over to Lu Yang to ask for his thoughts. Having listened to Lu Yang's advice, she had designed it meticulously, adding a massive amount of plot.

The male protagonist's cultivation is sealed, he loses his memory, lives alongside a humble and graceful maiden, develops unspoken feelings, and then the maiden is murdered. In his absolute rage, the protagonist breaks his seal and slays the mastermind behind it all with a single strike—just thinking about it was incredibly thrilling.

Lu Yang's face was a knot of conflicted emotions, at a complete loss for how to evaluate it: "The script is a good script, but why does the male protagonist constantly wear Master's face?"

Granted, their Master looked like a divine immortal with an elegant and handsome countenance, but it wasn't Lu Yang's first day knowing him. Seeing Master's face plastered onto the male protagonist made it utterly impossible to feel any sense of immersion.

The Fifth Elder deeply agreed.

During what was supposed to be a highly poignant final scene, seeing Old Ninth cradling Xiuxiu's corpse made him almost burst out laughing.