Having learned the tragic news, Yun Zhiqiu did not dare to delay and hurried to a Cultivation Chamber deep within the ancestral home. Inside the Cultivation Chamber, smoke lingered in the air where a candle lamp was slowly burning. At first glance, it radiated a bright light, yet the oil within the lamp was nearly depleted.
The next second, a light cough came from within the mist.
"Zhiqiu, come forward."
As the voice faded, the smoke dispersed, revealing an old man dressed in magnificent robes. His face was aged, yet his back remained ramrod straight as he sat upright on a chair. Yun Zhiqiu immediately bowed.
"Greetings, Old Ancestor."
"Rise."
The Yun family's Old Ancestor smiled faintly.
"There is no need to worry. This is my second reincarnation. I have experience, so I don't foresee any problems."
"It's just a pity that after I reincarnate, it will take at least twenty years before I can hope to return. During that time, the family will have no one presiding over it."
"... Zhiqiu deserves to die ten thousand deaths!"
Yun Zhiqiu grew even more dejected. He understood the Old Ancestor's unspoken meaning. Yun Miaozhen, the clan's most outstanding member in the past century, a true Foundation Establishment seed.
Such a favored daughter of heaven had died at the hands of a Demon, all because of his momentary carelessness. Because of this, his prestige within the clan had plummeted. The Yun family, having lost its Foundation Establishment seed, had also suffered an intangible loss of prestige.
Over the years, Yun Zhiqiu had traveled to the righteous-demonic battlefield countless times, seeking revenge on Lu Yang who had killed Yun Miaozhen, but to no avail. After careful inquiries, he discovered that the old turtle had actually stayed within the Saint Sect for a full sixty years! Yun Zhiqiu was so enraged he couldn't stop himself from cursing loudly.
"You need not blame yourself too much."
The Yun family's Old Ancestor's expression was calm.
"Skull Mountain sixty years ago was a plot by the Demons. They concealed the heavenly secrets. Ultimately, it was my failure to predict it."
"If that weren't the case, I would never have let you and Miaozhen go to Skull Mountain."
"In any case, Miaozhen is dead, and our Yun family must now find another path. ... So, not long ago, I accepted a mission from the Sect Master."
"What!"
Yun Zhiqiu was instantly alarmed.
"The Sect Master's mission... could he want to use your reincarnated body, Old Ancestor, to assassinate the Demonic Sect's Foundation Establishment seeds?"
Such things were not uncommon on the righteous-demonic battlefield. The Yun family's Old Ancestor nodded.
"If I can slay the Demonic Sect's Foundation Establishment seeds, it will surely bring great merit, which can also serve as cultivation resources for me in the future."
"But Old Ancestor, you've already reincarnated once..."
For a Foundation Establishment Daoist Master, their first reincarnation is bound to be a one-in-ten-thousand Son of Heaven, with unshakable merit and fortune, and the greatest hope of re-ascending to the Foundation Establishment Realm. However, a second reincarnation was a different matter.
Especially since the Yun family's Old Ancestor's cultivation level had not improved much in the last three hundred years, remaining at the early Foundation Establishment stage, this added many variables to his reincarnation.
"In this life, one must always take a gamble."
The Yun family's Old Ancestor smiled faintly.
"The Sect Master recently performed a divination of karma and discovered that a variable has appeared in the Demonic Sect's Refining Arts Secret Realm. There may be an opportunity to exploit."
"The Demonic Sect's Refining Arts Secret Realm prevents hundreds of millions of souls from entering the cycle of reincarnation, and the Sect Master has long been displeased with this. This time, he will not only help me reincarnate into it but will also personally conceal the heavenly secrets for me, ensuring no one can detect it. Furthermore, he will allow me to awaken my memories at birth, free from the confusion of the womb."
"This way, I can wait for an opportunity to break open the secret realm and allow those souls to return to the cycle of reincarnation."
As he said this, the Yun family's Old Ancestor's face showed a look of anticipation.
"If this venture is successful, it will surely be a great merit, which will also aid my return to the Foundation Establishment Realm..."
"Such a thing is possible? This is truly a blessing for our Yun family!"
After hearing this, an excited expression finally appeared on Yun Zhiqiu's face. The most dangerous period for a reincarnated Foundation Establishment cultivator is the first few years, while still stuck in the phase of womb confusion.
However, with the Sect Master's help, their Old Ancestor would be able to break through the confusion of the womb the moment he reincarnated this time! This intangibly increased the Old Ancestor's certainty of returning to the Foundation Establishment Realm by a great deal.
Once the Old Ancestor succeeded, the Yun family could extend its glory for another three hundred years! Afterward, the Yun family's Old Ancestor gave some more detailed instructions, including how to create the illusion that he was still alive after he reincarnated in order to buy time for his return.
He continued until the flame in the nearby lamp grew increasingly dim, on the verge of burning out completely. Only then did the Yun family's Old Ancestor wave his hand, seemingly unsatisfied.
"Everything is prepared. You may leave now."
Yun Zhiqiu immediately bowed again and said respectfully, "I wish the Old Ancestor a successful reincarnation and return!"
"..."
Yun Zhiqiu waited for a moment but heard no response from the Old Ancestor. When he looked up again, the lamp was extinguished, and the Yun family's Old Ancestor had long lost all signs of life. It was the dead of winter, and the world was a blanket of white.
The great chaos that swept the world decades ago was suppressed due to the emergence of the heavenly scripture. One volume of it fell into the hands of the Vast Righteous Academy, which revered imperial power, and thus the chaos was quelled. Afterward, the fatuous ruler of the Great Zhou died suddenly, and a new emperor took the throne.
Ironically, because so many people had died during the great chaos, the population pressure vanished once the turmoil was quelled. As a result, an era of peace emerged. The new monarch was thus known as the ruler of the Great Zhou's restoration.
This was evident in the Great Zhou's capital, Heavenly Capital City, where no one would pocket lost valuables and doors went unlocked at night. Even in the evening, the city was filled with song, dance, and prosperity. And in the northeastern corner of Heavenly Capital City, deep within a certain residence.
In front of the delivery room, a dignified and solemn man was pacing back and forth anxiously, until a loud cry suddenly rang out from within.
"My lord! The baby's born! It's born!"
The next second, the delivery room door opened, and a maidservant hurried out, announcing loudly, "Congratulations, my lord, joyous tidings! The mistress has given birth to a boy!" Hearing this, the man instantly threw his head back and laughed.
"Heaven has not forsaken my Wei family! We finally have a male heir! Excellent! Everyone will be rewarded today!"
The man's name was Wei Tieyi. He had risen from humble beginnings twenty years ago, but had distinguished himself in the Great Zhou's war to suppress the rebellion, achieving illustrious military merit. He was enfeoffed as the "Marquis Who Pacifies the North" and had quite a reputation throughout Heavenly Capital City, considered one of the military aristocrats.
Now that the Wei family had a new male heir, it was only natural to hold a grand celebration. However, at the same time, inside the delivery room. Although the newborn infant was still wailing, no one could perceive that this frail body now housed an immense soul.
"I've succeeded..."
The Yun family's Old Ancestor had successfully reincarnated. The memories of his true self awakened in an instant, but he did not control the body's instincts. Instead, he sat upright within his sea of consciousness and began to silently perform deductions.
"Great Zhou, the heavenly scripture... heh heh, so that's how it is. It's The Sage's Theft."
In an instant, the Yun family's Old Ancestor had already grasped part of the truth. After all, as a Foundation Establishment Daoist Master of the Sword Pavilion, he was no stranger to the various cultivation techniques of the Saint Sect. The Sage's Theft was a particularly astonishing work among them, one he naturally would not fail to recognize.
This was the advantage of a reincarnated Foundation Establishment cultivator. Even if his cultivation level was gone after reincarnation, his powerful soul allowed him to easily deduce karma and manipulate fortune. Against Qi Refining cultivators, it was an utterly overwhelming advantage.
Soon, however, the Yun family's Old Ancestor's brow furrowed. For when he tried to deduce who was cultivating The Sage's Theft, he found only emptiness, as if the great net of karma had been severed where that person was concerned.
"Interesting. A secret treasure that obscures the heavenly secrets?"
The next second, the Yun family's Old Ancestor's brow relaxed. He had long known that the art of divination would be extremely important after this reincarnation, and thus had attached great importance to it. Therefore, he had also brought a secret treasure for prying into heavenly secrets.
"With the 'Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument' given to me by the Sect Master, no secret treasure can hide the heavenly secrets..."
With a mere thought, a spherical magical artifact appeared in the Yun family Old Ancestor's palm. Using it to divine, he instantly broke through the shrouded karma. The next second, the Yun family's Old Ancestor was stunned.
But soon after, he couldn't help but laugh uproariously at the sky.
"Every cause has its effect, every cause has its effect! So that's how it is! Karma, it is truly unerring retribution!"
"Lu Yang...!"
Muttering the name of the man who had killed Yun Miaozhen—the one in whom he had placed such high hopes—and had still lived freely for sixty years, the killing intent in the Yun family Old Ancestor's heart surged dramatically. This was especially true after he operated the "Heaven-Scrutinizing Instrument" and gleaned various pieces of intelligence about Lu Yang.
"Supreme Yin Corpse-Shedding Form Transformation True Art, The Sage's Theft, third-grade True Qi, the Stealing Heaven's Secrets secret art... If he masters all of these, this child will have a forty percent chance of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm!"
At this thought, a cold glint suddenly flashed across the Yun family Old Ancestor's eyes. This child absolutely cannot be left alive!
(End of Chapter)