Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect-Chapter 89: Xiao Shiye

’If I can really refine a Avatar Guardian which can temporarily reach Foundation Establishment Position, it will be a huge help for my breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, boosting my chances of success by at least thirty percent!’

Lü Yang sat cross-legged, thinking to himself:

’Not only that, but more importantly, the Avatar Guardian is able to bear all the karmic links. When necessary, I can sever my connection to it and offload all the karma from the Wu Ghost Sect onto it.’

’Although this way, the Cultivation gained from Bond of Devouring Fate can’t be used for my Foundation Establishment and must be used on the Avatar Guardian, I will still have a seventy percent chance of breaking through to Foundation Establishment with an Avatar Guardian, combined with my Third Grade Qi, Corpse Shed Immortal, Theft to Sainthood, and Soul Splitting Technique!’

If I can also get the Ascension Order, that’s eighty percent!

’And according to Progenitor Tingyou, the more preparations one makes before Foundation Establishment, the higher the chance of success, and the greater the benefits after breaking through.’

’This relates to cultivation in the Foundation Establishment Stage.’

’The so-called Foundation Establishment is actually a life-or-death gamble. There’s no shortage of Perfected Persons who bet against Heaven with only a thirty or forty percent chance of success, ultimately breaking through by sheer luck.’

’However, these breakthroughs achieved through such gambles are not without a price. The fewer preparations you make beforehand and the lower your chances of success, the greater the Dao injuries you will sustain during Foundation Establishment. These injuries become deeply rooted after the breakthrough, and until they are healed, you can never make another breakthrough.’

’The entire cultivation process of the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment is actually a process of healing.’

’Conversely, if you are fully prepared and only attempt the breakthrough with a seventy or eighty percent chance of success, the corresponding healing time after succeeding will be greatly reduced.’

’If you attempt the breakthrough only when you have a one hundred percent chance, you’ll immediately reach the peak of Early-phase Foundation Establishment and can start looking toward the Mid-phase.’

’In the Cultivation World, this method of breakthrough is also known as ’Perfect Foundation Establishment.’ Generally, only the direct disciples of a Perfected Lord would even have the hope of attempting it...’

This was to be expected.

After all, with Lü Yang’s several lifetimes of arduous cultivation, his chance of breaking through to Foundation Establishment reached only eighty percent. The final twenty percent was still nowhere in sight.

This was not a matter of talent, but of resources.

The sheer cost of Perfect Foundation Establishment was beyond the reach of anyone other than the direct disciples of a Golden-Core Perfected Lord.

But that being said, Lü Yang had no intention of pursuing the so-called ’Perfect Foundation Establishment’.

’Although ’Perfect Foundation Establishment’ sounds impressive, it really only saves some cultivation time. There’s no need for me to obsess over it.’

’An eighty percent chance is enough to take the gamble!’

’I’ll break through first and worry about the rest later!’

There was a saying: only from a higher vantage could one see farther.

Many doors remained closed until one reached the Foundation Stage—only then was one finally allowed a seat at the table.

The advantage of prioritizing the breakthrough was undeniable.

Having made up his mind, Lü Yang no longer hesitated.

’Considering the time, Yu Suzhen should be about done. If that old codger, the Master of Heaven Mending Peak, was really willing to act, she has probably succeeded already.’

Lü Yang formed a hand seal with one hand and began to divine Yu Suzhen’s current situation once more.

.....

Stain Sect, Sea of Clouds.

Within a Secret Realm, inside a grand, ancient bronze hall, Yu Suzhen was seated in mid-air. The skin visible beneath her thin robes was currently flushed a deep crimson.

On the other side, Xiao Shiye’s eyes were bloodshot and his face was contorted in a struggle, as if he were enduring something. His body, strong as a young bull, was radiating intense Yang Qi, forming a stark contrast with Yu Suzhen, whose body overflowed with potent Yin Qi.

"Shameless wretch!"

The next second, Yu Suzhen’s voice turned ice-cold. With a single palm strike, she shattered the bronze coffin at the core of the Secret Realm, her face burning with a visible, intense rage.

Seeing this, Xiao Shiye was terrified.

Yet, amidst his terror, a strange feeling also began to surface quietly in his heart in response to Yu Suzhen’s resistance, making his self-control increasingly difficult.

It had all started with a simple treasure hunt in the Secret Realm.

Relying on his overwhelming fortune, he had been the first to enter the core of the Secret Realm. He never expected Yu Suzhen to be just one step behind, forcefully seizing his opportunity.

As it turned out, the opportunity left by the Secret Realm’s master contained a hidden trap. After receiving the inheritance, one had to harmonize it with the Power of Yin and Yang, or else they would immediately die from the imbalance. And at this moment, only Xiao Shiye and Yu Suzhen were in the core of the Secret Realm.

At this thought, Xiao Shiye subconsciously stood up.

"Don’t come any closer!"

On the other side, Yu Suzhen cried out in alarm almost instantly, but her hazy eyes and flushed skin held no conviction whatsoever.

The two drew closer and closer, and their Power of Yin and Yang completely converged.

In an instant, a Fragrant Wind wafted through the air.

Yu Suzhen’s weak voice, laced with a sigh, echoed in Xiao Shiye’s ear, "You little jerk, if you dare touch me, I will take your life one day!"

The words instantly kindled a spark of defiance in Xiao Shiye.

He had heard of Yu Suzhen, the famous Fairy Su Zhen. Her talent was outstanding, and at a young age, she had already surpassed many disciples to break through to the Late-phase of Qi Refining.

In comparison, he was just a nameless nobody in the Mid-phase of Qi Refining.

And from the moment they entered the Secret Realm, Yu Suzhen had maintained this cold and aloof appearance, never once paying him any mind, and had even stolen his opportunity.

This was intolerable!

"I’m going to touch you. What can you do about it?"

Xiao Shiye’s eyes were bloodshot. In a fit of anger, he instantly cast aside all the unease and self-control that had instinctively arisen in his heart.

It wasn’t until several days later that Yu Suzhen awoke. In the end, she chose to let him go, and even saved his life.

From then on, the two were bound by an inextricable fate.

After that, Xiao Shiye could not forget Yu Suzhen.

Especially when he occasionally saw that cold Fairy appear before the crowds, he couldn’t help but recall the passion hidden beneath her aloof exterior.

Xiao Shiye’s choice was self-evident: he had to become stronger! Strong enough to stand before Yu Suzhen again and openly become her Dao Companion!

Driven by this thought, Xiao Shiye went to the Stain Sect’s Merit Pool.

He was already at rock bottom anyway. No matter which way he went, it was up.

Time to gamble!

In a place unseen by mortals, Xiao Shiye’s immense fortune, which soared to the heavens, began to burn wildly at this moment, and in exchange, it received a response from the Merit Pool.

"I’ll definitely win this time!"

"I’ve dumped all my Contribution Points for the year into this. At least give me a gold prize, right?"

"If not gold, at least give me a guaranteed purple..."

Under the bloodshot, intensely nervous gazes of the Stain Sect disciples, the Merit Pool announced the winner, and a seven-colored beam of light erupted!

"The grand prize! The grand prize!"

In an instant, the crowd erupted.

Nearly every eye instantly focused on Xiao Shiye, who was enveloped in the colorful light. The jealousy, anger, and killing intent in their gazes were barely concealed.

Who the hell is this lucky bastard!?

Xiao Shiye paid them no mind, just excitedly accepting the Colorful Merit Fish that landed in his hands and nuzzled affectionately against his palm.

’With this, I can finally turn my life around!’

’From now on, that cold and proud Fairy Su Zhen will definitely see me in a new light!’

Sensing the jealous and greedy gazes around him, Xiao Shiye didn’t hesitate. He acted decisively, slaughtering the Merit Fish on the spot and began to consume and refine it.

The next second, everything fell dead silent.

"...."

All the angry, jealous, and greedy Stain Sect disciples, including Xiao Shiye, stopped thinking. It was as if time itself had stood still.

A figure seeming under the spotlight of Heaven and Earth quietly appeared.

It was none other than the Perfected Fortune.

"It seems the bait I cast this time has yielded a good harvest."

The Perfected Fortune looked at Xiao Shiye and nodded in satisfaction. With the Qi from this Colorful Merit Fish to replenish his own, it would be enough to solve his pressing problems.

At this thought, he immediately moved to reclaim Xiao Shiye and extract his Qi.

However, he soon froze.

Because when he probed Xiao Shiye’s body with his Divine Sense, he found it completely empty. All of his Qi and even his life force had vanished into nothingness.

He was dead.

’...Where’s the fish I just reeled in? It was a huge one!’

The Perfected Fortune’s smile froze on his face. His expression turned ashen at a visible rate as he stared at Xiao Shiye’s corpse, a mixture of shock and fury.

The next second, the Perfected Fortune performed a divination, and then laughed in extreme anger.

"How audacious!!!"