Chapter 611 The Conditions for Emptiness Attestation

In the second year after Lu Yang entered the Celestial Mansion, the frenzy stirred up by the Worry-Free Talisman still had not subsided.

Two years ago today, the exchange ratio between the Worry-Free Talisman and External Dao Immortal Talismans had been 1:5. Yet two years later, that ratio had reached a staggering 1:482.

Nearly five hundred times!

This exchange rate was already enough to drive cultivators who had not bought into the Worry-Free Talisman—or who had exited early—completely mad, and it also pushed more and more people to choose to enter the market.

Then, one piece of news further intensified the frenzy.

On the sixth level of the Celestial Mansion—a level even the External Dao Alliance had been unable to enter, a realm where only orthodox Immortal Lords and Immortal Lord clans, along with their servants, could reside as people above people—participants had now entered the market as well.

Large quantities of orthodox Immortal Talismans also flowed into the market to purchase Worry-Free Talismans, and recognition from the upper strata made everyone even more convinced of the Worry-Free Talisman’s value. It was no longer regarded as merely an External Dao Immortal Lord’s talisman, but rather as a potential asset capable of rivaling orthodox Immortal Talismans, with even greater room for appreciation.

All of this was naturally Immortal Lord Qingyang’s maneuvering.

To this end, he contacted no fewer than four Immortal Lords with whom he was on good terms, acting together to buy Worry-Free Talismans and hype public opinion, causing the bubble to swell even further.

500, 600, 700

Ever-higher exchange rates and ever-higher prices further ignited the cultivators’ enthusiasm. Countless people firmly believed that the Worry-Free Talisman would rise forever.

Of course, there were also those who remained clear-headed.

“The upper echelons are intervening… this is a harvest.”

Within the External Dao Alliance, Ban Shan convened another high-level meeting. Seven External Dao True Lords gathered together, voices overlapping with discussion.

“Make preparations. Sell immediately.”

“Alliance Leader, are we really selling?”

One External Dao True Lord clenched his teeth. “It’s already risen for two years. Even if there’s a chance of a drop, it shouldn’t fall within the next month at least, right?”

“How about waiting a bit longer?”

“We can’t wait any longer.”

Ban Shan shook his head. “We aren’t people of the upper echelons. We don’t know what those orthodox Immortal Lords are planning. Without inside information, what right do you have to speculate alongside others?”

“Sell now!”

“At the very least, we’ve already earned a lot over these two years. Sell everything now, then when it crashes, buy back in. When it rebounds, we can still make a small profit.”

Being able to become the Alliance Leader of the External Dao Alliance, Ban Shan was by no means a fool. As early as his youth, the patriarch of his lineage had earnestly instructed him that as an External Dao True Lord in a place like the Celestial Mansion, one should not think about cultivation battles at all, but instead devote one’s mind to making money.

“After all, you are an External Dao True Lord.”

“As long as you possess this rank, dealing with mere Foundation Establishment or Qi Refinement is effortless. Facing orthodox True Lords, even if you risk your life, you certainly won’t win.”

“So why bother working hard?”

“As for External Dao True Lords like yourself, if you’re richer than them, then instead of fighting them in cultivation battles, wouldn’t it be better to spend money to hire an orthodox Immortal Lord to kill them?”

This was the way an External Dao True Lord survived in the Celestial Mansion!

Thus, over the long term, Ban Shan might have been terrible at cultivation battles, lacking in attainment and with a shaky foundation, but when it came to returns and risks, his mind was always clear.

“Listen to me—sell all Worry-Free Talismans!”

Ban Shan’s hardline decision made several External Dao True Lords frown. “Should we first discuss it with Fellow Daoist Minghe and hear his thoughts?”

“Minghe? What thoughts could he possibly have?”

Ban Shan sneered coldly. “Of course he’ll continue to hype the Worry-Free Talisman and refuse to let us sell. After all, the more valuable the Worry-Free Talisman is, the more assets he has.”

“Don’t forget, he’s never been a member of the External Dao Alliance. He’s not of one heart with us.”

“But it’s still rising…”

“There is no ‘but’!” As the words fell, Ban Shan slammed the table and made the final call. “Do exactly as I say. Immediately sell all Worry-Free Talismans held by the alliance.”

“Ban Shan, you’ll regret this.”

“Everyone, I am the Alliance Leader!”

“Bang!”

The internal dispute within the External Dao Alliance was naturally completely unknown to Lu Yang. He did not even devote much thought to the surging Worry-Free Talisman.

At this moment, he was engaged in a major undertaking.

At the mountain gate of the Path of Righteous Qi, within the Banner of Enlightening the Righteous Dao.

Lu Yang sat facing Ancestor Tingyou. As Ancestor Tingyou moved, he spoke softly:

“Yes, right here… a little lighter, don’t use too much force.”

“That’s right, it can go a bit deeper here.”

“Press harder here, that’s better.”

“Right here—there! There!”

Under Ancestor Tingyou’s hand-in-hand guidance, before Lu Yang’s eyes, countless images interwove and piled together, finally sketching out a vague form.

However, the next moment, a light cracking sound rang out.

The images collapsed. Illusory colors poured forth like a breached flood, causing the nascent profundity to dissipate. Seeing this, Lu Yang could not help but frown:

“Still a little off.”

These two years, Lu Yang had not been idle.

With Ancestor Tingyou’s assistance, he had continuously experimented with his prior ideas regarding “Emptiness Attestation.” Relying on his astonishing intellect, he had gained much.

“So-called Emptiness Attestation is actually like weaving a net, knitting together different images and combining them, ultimately forming an entirely new existence. However, images easily conflict with one another, and finding complementary images is extremely difficult. Formal weaving requires heaven-piercing attainment.”

And that was not all.

‘Relying on my astonishing intellect, spending two years, I’ve more or less resolved these difficulties. But the problem is that everything feels like a castle in the air.’

The piled images always collapsed.

No matter how many optimizations he made or how many times he revised the weaving plan, the result was always destruction. As for the root cause, Lu Yang had some insight:

‘It’s probably because the number of true treasures is insufficient. Just like a house needs several main pillars to support it, the Fruit Position of Emptiness Attestation also needs pillars—perhaps true treasures corresponding to the images. Right now, I only have one true treasure in hand, so I can’t support the Emptiness Attestation Fruit Position.’

Moreover, after prolonged experimentation, Lu Yang gradually developed an intuition:

‘To achieve the Emptiness Attestation Fruit Position, three true treasures are probably not enough… or rather, three true treasures combined can at most form a 【Seeking Dao Immortal Art】.’

In Lu Yang’s view, the 【Seeking Dao Immortal Art】 was the lower tier of Emptiness Attestation.

To push it further and reach the level of Emptiness Attestation, the number of true treasures had to increase—and that number, Lu Yang guessed, should be five.

‘Five true treasures are required!’

‘The Five Elements form heaven and earth; divine abilities require five paths to be considered complete. Emptiness Attestation should be the same—five true treasures are needed to support the framework of the Fruit Position!’

This was absolutely not a coincidence.

In Lu Yang’s view, this was more like some deeper-level imagery. The number five manifested correspondingly within the Immortal Axis, and even throughout the Outer Heavens Sea of Light.

‘Unfortunately, one cannot increase one’s own attainment simply by devouring External Dao Fruit Positions. To refine true treasures, one must devour External Dao practitioners compatible with one’s own Fruit Position—like those of the Ten Thousand Martial World or the Profound Spirit World. Otherwise, I wouldn’t need to do anything at all; I could just swallow the few True Lords of the External Dao Alliance and run away with everything.’

Of course, nothing was absolute.

That Emptiness Attestation required five true treasures was merely his conjecture. Though it was very reasonable, cultivation tolerated no trivialities—sometimes a hair’s breadth of difference led to a thousand-mile error.

“It would be best to verify it.”

With that thought, a glimmer flashed in Lu Yang’s eyes. “I’ve been out for two years—it’s time to go back and take a look. Perfect timing to seek out a senior with sufficient qualifications and ask for guidance.”

Although he was in the Celestial Mansion, Lu Yang’s heart had always been with the Immortal Axis.

And with the existence of the 【Puppet of Threads】, even with the boundless void separating them, Lu Yang could traverse the Outer Heavens Sea of Light and easily observe the scenes within the Immortal Axis.

Thus, he knew very clearly that after his departure, Old Dragon Lord had acted to preserve the Path of Righteous Qi’s foundation in Jiangxi, while True Lord Feixue had set up a thatched hut in Jiangnan and stubbornly camped on True Lord Sturdy Path-Preaching. As circumstances shifted, the three Bodhisattvas of the Pure Land had been forced to choose exile overseas.

Two years had passed, and a new balance had already been established.

The turmoil Lu Yang had once stirred up had gradually subsided.

“Although asking True Lord Feixue would be better, those of the Saint Sect… aren’t reliable. Old Dragon Lord, on the other hand, has no backing—he’s far more worth talking to.”