"Your Highness, did you obtain the Azure Emperor's inheritance?"
Lu Jingshu asked urgently.
Yang Xiu's face was dark.
That made Lu Jingshu's heart skip. Could it be that Yang Xiu had failed?
Fortunately, Yang Xiu then said, "I obtained the Azure Emperor's inheritance."
Lu Jingshu let out a sigh of relief and smiled. "If so, Your Highness should be happy."
"Lu Jingshu, am I really the Heaven's Mandate Son?"
Yang Xiu asked.
"Of course. I can confirm it with one hundred percent certainty," Lu Jingshu replied.
"Then why am I in such a pitiful state?"
Yang Xiu asked again.
"This is Heaven's way of tempering Your Highness," Lu Jingshu said with a smile. "You don't need to think too much. Now you should first absorb the Azure Emperor's inheritance. After that, another opportunity awaits you."
"Good."
Yang Xiu calmed his mind.
Three days later.
Yang Cheng walked out of the tomb.
Not far away, Lin Xinglan's eyes lit up.
"I greet Senior."
Yang Cheng cupped his hands. "Three days have passed. I wonder if Senior has truly made a decision?"
"Correct," Lin Xinglan said.
"If Senior trusts me, then I will take Senior to a certain place," Yang Cheng said.
Lin Xinglan smiled faintly. "Of course I trust you."
In truth, she had nothing to fear. Even if she was just a soul body, anyone below Martial True God could not threaten her.
Soon, Yang Cheng brought Lin Xinglan's soul into a mysterious space with floating minor stars.
On three of the stars, figures were already present.
This was the Square Inch Mysterious Realm.
When Lin Xinglan entered, two of the figures immediately struck out at her.
They were Zhu Xuanji and Luo Yunxi.
Before this, Asura had told them that he had been possessed by an evil god and asked for their help in suppressing and sealing it.
That was why, the instant Lin Xinglan appeared, they attacked without hesitation.
This was Yang Cheng's method of dealing with Lin Xinglan.
Luo Yunxi and Zhu Xuanji's cultivation was already close to Martial True God.
Over the years, they had used the Square Inch Mysterious Realm to gain countless opportunities, and now both had advanced to Martial True God.
Yang Cheng knew he couldn't suppress Lin Xinglan alone. So he had two Martial True Gods suppress her.
If even that failed, he would simply seal off the Square Inch Mysterious Realm and imprison Lin Xinglan within it forever.
The Square Inch Mysterious Realm was a reward from the system.
And Yang Cheng had complete confidence in the quality of the system's rewards.
The reason he acted this way was simple—he didn't trust Lin Xinglan.
He had the system and too many secrets. He couldn't gamble on her character.
Although he was over 500 years old, Lin Xinglan was a true ancient monster whose lifespan was far beyond his.
In schemes and calculations, he admitted he was no match for her.
If Lin Xinglan harbored any plots against him, he would easily fall into them.
So if he wanted to use Lin Xinglan but also prevent her from scheming against him, there was only one way: to control her life itself.
Lin Xinglan was completely caught off guard.
She never imagined Yang Cheng would have people ambush her.
Even more shocking was that a cultivator from the Wasteland Realm could call upon two Martial True Gods to act.
"Supreme Heavenly Heart!"
In the next instant, Lin Xinglan unleashed a mysterious spiritual technique.
Even though she was only a remnant soul, she actually blocked two Martial True Gods.
"You dare stand against me?"
Lin Xinglan glared at them, her eyes filled with majesty.
Luo Yunxi and Zhu Xuanji's hearts seized.
At that moment, they felt as if they were facing some ancient existence.
No—it was not an illusion.
They instantly realized that this mysterious woman was truly an ancient being.
"That bastard Asura tricked us into fighting someone like this!"
Both cursed inwardly.
They even felt the urge to surrender immediately.
Fortunately, they saw that "Suihuo" on the main star had moved.
They didn't trust Asura, but they did have faith in the most mysterious "Suihuo."
So the two continued to hold on.
At this moment—
Yang Cheng's mind descended onto the main star, taking on the identity of "Suihuo."
He pulled out the Heaven Dao Divine Book.
Flipping to the first page, he wrote the four words "Supreme Heavenly Heart."
Buzz!
In an instant, the Heaven Dao Divine Book began to madly deduce Lin Xinglan's technique.
Very soon, line after line appeared on the pages.
The secrets and contents of "Supreme Heavenly Heart" were all laid bare.
Then "Suihuo" acted personally.
Elsewhere, he wouldn't even qualify to join this battle.
But here was the Square Inch Mysterious Realm.
He was the master here.
His spiritual power multiplied countless times within this space.
Even he didn't know exactly how strong he was, but he was certain he was no weaker than an ordinary Martial True God.
With the Heaven Dao Divine Book already revealing the flaws in "Supreme Heavenly Heart," how could he fail?
At once, Yang Cheng pointed his finger at Lin Xinglan.
Samadhi True Fire!
Whoosh!
The Samadhi True Fire turned into a sharp sword, striking right at the weak point of Lin Xinglan's spiritual power.
This was recorded in the Heaven Dao Divine Book, and Yang Cheng trusted it completely.
As expected, Lin Xinglan's expression changed instantly.
Rip!
Her spiritual power ignited.
Pain filled her face.
At that moment, Zhu Xuanji and Luo Yunxi were no longer needed.
Yang Cheng decisively severed their link with the Square Inch Mysterious Realm.
Now only Yang Cheng and Lin Xinglan remained.
"Senior, you now have only two choices. Either hand over your soul's origin, or I will destroy you."
Yang Cheng dropped his disguise and revealed his true face.
Lin Xinglan said, "I never thought I'd misjudge you. Everything you did before, even giving up the Azure Emperor's inheritance, was just to trick me?"
"Correct."
Yang Cheng spoke calmly. "Senior, don't waste time. Your methods are too dangerous, so I'll only give you three breaths."
At this moment, the Samadhi True Fire had already pierced through Lin Xinglan's spiritual defenses and began spreading across her soul body.
Lin Xinglan felt the burning pain. "Power of Dao Source, power of Heaven Dao, Samadhi True Fire… impressive means. Are you, like me, also a fellow Daoist?"
Before Yang Cheng could answer, she shook her head. "No, you're not. Perhaps you fooled those two True Gods, but you can't fool me."
"Your soul shows no scars, no traces of time. Clearly, you're not a strong one who was wounded and grew weaker, but a true junior."
"Unbelievable. At your age, how can you wield such methods?"
"No wonder Yang Xiu, even as Heaven's Mandate Son, can't compete with you. Compared to you, he's far too green."
She didn't know that Yang Cheng was actually over 500 years old.
But since he had been reborn at age one, the traces of age in his soul had been completely washed away.
That was why, even as a half-step Martial Ancestor, she could only sense Yang Cheng as a ten-year-old child.
Yang Cheng stayed unmoved and pushed the Samadhi True Fire harder.
"You really think you can burn me to death?"
Lin Xinglan forced herself to endure the pain.
"Maybe I can't kill you, but crippling you and forcing you into slumber for a few thousand years is no problem."
Yang Cheng's tone was cold.
"You win."
Lin Xinglan's face shifted violently.
What shook her most was the sense that Yang Cheng wasn't even using his full means. He seemed to have something even more terrifying in reserve.
Her spiritual power instinctively swept across this mysterious space.
If she broke free of Yang Cheng's Samadhi True Fire, could she shatter this strange realm?
But the moment she had that thought, a chill pierced her bones.
That intuition told her the answer clearly.
So Lin Xinglan had no choice but to surrender her soul origin.
Yang Cheng immediately seized it.
[?!...]
Words flickered across the void.
But for the first time, the system text glitched and scrambled, flashing like broken code.
After several breaths—
The system finally stabilized.
[Defying the heavens, Host. You've defied the heavens.]
[Host actually drove Martial Ancestor Lin Xinglan to sever ties with Yang Xiu and even subdued her, forcing her to surrender her soul origin.]
[In all the myriad worlds, nothing could be more absurd than this.]
[Host is just over 500 years old, not even a Martial True God, while Lin Xinglan is an ancient powerhouse, a Martial Ancestor.]
[And now Host has taken her soul origin. Impossible. Unbelievable.]
[This legendary mission was simply to survive.]
[But not only did Host survive, Host subdued Lin Xinglan. This counts as massively over-fulfilling the mission.]
[Rewarding Host with one strand of Primordial Chaos Purple Qi, and automatically deducing ten thousand years for Host.]
[Deducing…]
Yang Cheng's eyes shone.
Over-fulfilling the task really did bring unexpected joy.
[Ten thousand years of deduction complete. Host has successfully refined the Primordial Chaos Purple Qi.]
[Congratulations, Host, you have obtained the Dao Fruit of Primordial Chaos—Incarnation Outside the Body.]
Yang Cheng's heart shook violently.
Normally, evolving Primordial Chaos Purple Qi into an external Dao Fruit would require him to personally deduce for ten thousand years.
Now the system had done it instantly, gifting him "Incarnation Outside the Body."
This incarnation possessed his full battle power and could even cultivate independently.
The cultivation gained would then be shared with his true body.
This was nothing short of a cheat for cultivation and battle.
And Dao Fruit, of course, meant even more.
Dao Fruit pointed directly to the supreme, sacred Dao itself.
This meant "Incarnation Outside the Body" hid even deeper mysteries, ones Yang Cheng would have to uncover later.
He didn't summon the incarnation for now, but instead looked at Lin Xinglan. "Yang Xiu is the Heaven's Mandate Son?"
"Correct."
Lin Xinglan nodded firmly.
"Then who are you?"
Yang Cheng asked.
"I am Destiny itself."
Lin Xinglan answered.
"You are Destiny… then who am I?"
Yang Cheng's gaze pierced her.
Lin Xinglan lowered her head slightly. "Yang Cheng…"
Yang Cheng cut her off. "Address me as Master."
Lin Xinglan took a deep breath. "Master."
"Good. Now tell me, who am I?"
Yang Cheng asked.
Lin Xinglan stayed silent for a long time, then finally said, "You are the Lord of Destiny."
Yang Cheng spoke calmly. "Good. Remember your place. From now on, before me, you will call yourself 'Yaoshi Bi.'"
Lin Xinglan's face flushed red.
Her childhood nickname was indeed Yaoshi Bi.
Only her elders had ever called her that.
For Yang Cheng to suddenly say it, even as a half-step Martial Ancestor, made her feel deep shame.
"Master, how do you know my childhood name?"
Lin Xinglan asked, both angry and embarrassed.
Of course, it was because in the future she met an old elder who mocked her with that name, and she killed him.
Even though she had killed that elder, her childhood name had spread.
That was what Yang Cheng knew.
But naturally, he didn't explain this, only smiled. "I know far more than you can imagine."
"I refuse."
Lin Xinglan said.