Chapter 684: Transcendence and Omniscience

Tianmen Peak.

The melodious and exquisite sounds of the zither wafted through the air, twisting and turning like a murmuring stream flowing right past the ear, weightless and drifting as though one were deep within a soft cloud, imparting an indescribable sense of profound comfort to every meridian across the entire body.

Lu Yang reclined lazily amidst the grass, cradling his head in his hands with a stalk of green foxtail grass dangling from his lips, listening to his Third Senior Sister's zither music while feeling the exhaustion from his journey to Spring River City completely dissolve away.

As Lu Yang listened to his Third Senior Sister's playing, he pinched a lotus seed from a plate and tossed it into his mouth.

Had there been a connoisseur present, they would have recognized it as a seed from the Twin Parallel Lotuses; the surface of the Twin Parallel River was blanketed with them, and Lu Yang had plucked several lotus seedpods just before his departure.

Third Senior Sister was indeed a cultivator highly skilled in the arts of rhythm and melody, though Lu Yang possessed no real research in this area and could not distinguish between the traditional musical notes, from the perspective of an ordinary person, it simply sounded exceedingly pleasant.

"Senior Sister, what is the name of this piece you are playing?"

Third Senior Sister smoothed her hands over the strings, bringing the music to a halt as the surroundings fell into silence: "This is an ancient melody bestowed upon me by Senior Lianyi, titled 'The Phoenix Rests by the Stream'. It was a piece born from the sudden inspiration the senior felt while resting beside a creek."

Jiang Lianyi utilized a jade flute as her weapon, standing peerless and unmatched in the realm of musical composition.

Even the Immortal Fairy, who contested for the top spot in absolutely everything, had to concede defeat in this regard.

"Senior Sister, how exactly did you enter our Master's lineage back then?" Lu Yang inquired curiously.

Third Senior Sister let out a rare sigh: "My parents were merely Golden Core cultivators who knew little of our sect. The entrance examination at that time was organized by Master, and seeing that I possessed extraordinary natural talent, he insisted on taking me as his disciple."

"Back then, I had no idea what kind of person our Master truly was; I only knew he was the Sect Master."

"Since the Sect Master wanted to accept me, I was naturally willing."

"Who could have anticipated that after just two lessons, the teaching venue would completely change."

"Changed to where?"

"Inside the great prison. Master Senior Sister was in secluded meditation during that period, and Second Senior Brother had entered the Buddhist Kingdom, so I could only seek out Master for lessons under the pretext of visiting him in jail. Learning was truly arduous; back then, the inmates in the prison would praise me upon seeing me, remarking on what a filial daughter I was."

"Fortunately, Master Senior Sister later emerged from her seclusion, which significantly improved the learning environment."

"Did Master Senior Sister teach you then?"

Third Senior Sister shook her head: "Master Senior Sister bailed Master out by acting as his guarantor. Master Senior Sister is not adept at musical arts, so she could not teach me."

"Our Master actually knows musical arts?"

"He does, and his proficiency is even higher than mine. He is capable of singing while striking his sword, producing a vast variety of vocal shifts, and can even mimic the sounds of various instruments. I heard he cultivated this skill in his youth while performing storytelling, strumming and playing to liven up the atmosphere as he spoke."

Lu Yang had not expected his own Master to possess such grand capabilities.

Third Senior Sister resumed her playing, and as Lu Yang savored the music, a discordant voice disrupted the tranquil state of mind.

The Immortal Fairy gave a cold snort, thoroughly displeased at being underestimated by Lu Yang: "Who says this Fairy does not understand the Dao of Rhythm? The melodies this Fairy performs are utterly soul-stirring."

"Fairy, you actually understand the Dao of Rhythm? I have never heard you play before." Considering that the Immortal Fairy had discovered the Twin Parallel River and was currently in high spirits, Lu Yang temporarily showed her a bit more respect, altering his address from the casual form to the honorific.

"The melodies of this Fairy are not something a mere Nascent Soul stage cultivator like you is qualified to hear."

"When this Fairy's grand melodies are performed, no immortal artifacts are borrowed; the Dao Rhymes are utilized as the zither strings, capable of shaking heaven and earth and resonating with the Great Dao. Its grandeur is magnificent, standing supreme across eternity, and anyone who hears it will tremble with intense excitement."

Lu Yang grew increasingly curious: "Then how exactly do you perform it?"

"Self-detonation."

"...Well, no wonder their bodies would tremble."

"Speaking of which, Fairy, when you were being assassinated back then, did you not have enough time to self-detonate?"

Given the Immortal Fairy's personality, her very first instinct at that moment should have been to self-detonate, which could both harm the opponent and preserve her own life.

"Now that you mention it, that does make sense. Why didn't this Fairy self-detonate?"

The Immortal Fairy lowered her head, frowning as she tried to recall the events of that time, yet it remained a patch of absolute chaos, leaving it unclear whether it was a method utilized by the mastermind behind the scenes or if her own state of mind had been amiss back then.

"How detestable! If nothing had happened to this Fairy back then, this Fairy would have broken through beyond the Immortal realm long ago!"

"The Nine-Fold Immortal took the spot as the number one Immortal; it ought to be this Fairy's turn to be number one for once."

Lu Yang grew highly energized upon hearing this topic, neglecting even to eat the lotus seed at his lips: "Is that the boundary beyond the Immortal realm you mentioned before, Fairy, where one severs all karma and advances their cultivation further?"

The Immortal Fairy rolled her eyes: "That is the theory of the Nine-Fold Immortal and his lot. What this Fairy advocates is that the more karma one possesses, the higher their cultivation must be to achieve a breakthrough."

"According to the theory of the Nine-Fold Immortal and his group, the realm beyond the Immortals is called 'Transcendence', where ten thousand forms of karma do not cling to the body, a state that surpasses all existence."

"According to this Fairy's theory, the realm beyond the Immortals is called 'Omniscience', maintaining a connection with all things in the world to reach a state of being all-knowing and all-powerful, which perfectly aligns with this Fairy's brilliant wisdom and talent!"

Lu Yang looked the Immortal Fairy up and down; after returning to the Daoist Inquiring Sect, the Grand Hero Hall within his spiritual space had vanished, reverting back to its original rustic room appearance. As the Immortal Fairy introduced the realm beyond the Immortals, she was rolling around while talking, her hair disheveled, her clothing untidy, laughing merrily all the while—making it exceedingly difficult to connect her with words like "brilliant" or "omniscient".

The Immortal Fairy grasped her little feet with both hands, sitting up cross-legged with a small heave, swaying left and right like a rooly-poly toy: "If only this Fairy's cultivation insights were still around, perhaps looking over them would allow me to remember what happened back then."

"By the way, this Fairy suggests you pick up your plate and run far away right now, so that you might still save the lotus seeds inside it," the Immortal Fairy suddenly remarked.

Lu Yang froze for a moment: "What do you mean?"

The zither music abruptly ceased, and Third Senior Sister suddenly spoke to Lu Yang: "Little Junior Brother, distance yourself from this place quickly; Senior Sister is about to break through."

As she spoke, dark clouds gathered densely above Tianmen Peak, and the faint sound of rumbling thunder began to echo.

Lu Yang snapped to attention instantly—Third Senior Sister was about to break through to the Void Refining stage, and this was the Lightning Tribulation she had summoned!

Following the Nascent Soul stage, a breakthrough in every single realm would draw down a Lightning Tribulation; this was a rule established by the Heavenly Immortal!

Without a second thought, Lu Yang paid no heed even to the lotus seeds on the plate, turning on his heel and dashing down the mountain!

He had only recently glimpsed the 'Quotations of the Immortals', and what he feared most at this moment was encountering a Lightning Tribulation!

Lu Yang ran fast, but the Invincible Nascent Soul ran even faster than him, vanishing ahead of Lu Yang in the blink of an eye.

Lu Yang: "..."

Once the Invincible Nascent Soul reached the foot of the mountain and ceased its flight, Lu Yang also halted his steps, which signified that the Invincible Nascent Soul deemed this location to be the safest.

"How did she break through so suddenly?"

"It cannot really be considered sudden; this girl is currently performing 'The Phoenix Rests by the Stream' given by Lianyi. Unlike this Fairy's self-detonation, this is a melody capable of tranquilizing the state of mind. The Void Refining stage fluctuates unpredictably, and this piece happens to be perfect for stabilizing the realm. Coupled with the fact that she was already on the verge of a breakthrough, breaking through now is entirely within the realm of reason."