Chapter 326: Chapter 326: Why Not Use a Cheat?

“Damn it, how treacherous!”

In the South, at Hidden Sword Manor, Lü Yang’s Immortal Spirit Body clearly saw the predicament his Split Soul had fallen into through his Puppet ability.

This was the crux of the second tribulation’s difficulty.

’According to the intel going around, the second tribulation in No Heaven is completely different from the first. This time, a Cultivator won’t retain their past memories.’

’Their past memories will be obscured, forcing them to truly assume the identity of a Primal Daoist. Although their memories will quickly return after leaving No Heaven, making it all seem like a dream… this whole process is clearly not right. No matter how I look at it, something is wrong!’

’Thank goodness… I only sent in a Split Soul!’

To this day, Lü Yang had never once allowed his own Divine Sense to enter No Heaven. He was full of suspicion and didn’t dare to act recklessly.

The corruption of his consciousness was a secondary concern… what if No Heaven could lock onto him?

The moment his main body entered No Heaven, the Primal Daoist would discover him. ’Eh? An Immortal Spirit? Let me take a look at what’s going on…’

Although the Primal Daoist had yet to display the Mighty Power of a Perfected Lord, and No Heaven seemed much weaker compared to other Fruits, Lü Yang wasn’t about to bet that the entity lacked such strength. He wouldn’t rely on wishful thinking, so it was better to let his Split Soul bear the hardship.

’Besides, this has its advantages.’

This was why Lü Yang was so certain he had a high chance of clearing the second tribulation—his main body could provide support to his Split Soul from the outside!

Normally, this was impossible.

A Saint Sect Zhenren had tried it long ago, but even when using a Split Soul to enter No Heaven, the connection to the main body would be severed, making it impossible to cheat.

But Lü Yang was different.

’The connection from the Puppet can’t be severed by No Heaven!’

At this thought, Lü Yang grew even more excited. While keeping a close watch on the battlefield over on Demon-Vanquishing Perfected’s side, he focused his mind and waited. He was going to speedrun the second tribulation!

……

“I have now reached Early-stage Foundation Establishment Perfection.”

At this moment, the Split Soul, having completely assumed the identity of a Primal Daoist, was still reflecting with a sigh, “My Innate Ability is complete, and I lack neither Merit, Fortune, nor Cultivation.”

“I have also obtained the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches.”

Before it, a shimmering aquatic light floated in the air. This was Ren Water—in the heavens, it becomes clouds; on the earth, it becomes marshes. It is the most yang and purest of all waters.

His memories told him that as long as he succeeded in Refining this strand of Ren Water, he could break through to the Mid-phase of Foundation Establishment and take another step toward his ideal goal… Yet, in the next second, a great sorrow and long-suppressed despair surged into his heart, and his expression grew increasingly grim.

“But… what’s the use!”

The next moment, he flung aside the Ren Water before him, his expression contorted. “My path… is broken! Even if I refine this, I can never attain a Fruit!”

The scene from the first tribulation surfaced in his mind.

The Array of Celestial and Earthly Convergence of Dragon and Tiger Yin and Yang, one hundred and eight Celestial Maidens… that battle had truly tortured him to the brink of collapse, leaving him battered and broken.

It had also severed his path.

“I was originally aiming for the Fruit of Long-Flow Water, but now, with a Dao Foundation built from Fourth Grade True Qi, I have an Innate Defect. The highest my Cultivation can ever reach in this life is Foundation Establishment Perfection!”

“To make matters worse, the Dao allows for no regrets. I can’t even start over.”

“You bastards… You’ve pushed me too far!”

Where was the path forward?

At this thought, this Split Soul of Lü Yang’s grew ever more distraught. Outside, Lü Yang’s main body also came to understand the true challenge of this tribulation.

’One must sink into despair, completely internalize the Primal Daoist’s circumstances, and finally find a way out. Using one’s Dao Heart as a sword to slash through all confusion and obstacles is the only way to achieve Breaking the Tribulation… Without a doubt, if I could break this tribulation on the strength of my own Dao Heart, the boost to my Divine Sense and mental fortitude would be immense.’

The prerequisite was that one couldn’t cheat, as Lü Yang was doing.

But even so, Lü Yang wasn’t the least bit envious. Compared to a minor boost to his Divine Sense and mental state, his own safety was what he valued most.

Thinking of this, he immediately activated his Puppet ability.

In his eyes, this trial was actually quite easy to pass. Even without considering the threat of the Primal Daoist, he was confident that he could clear it even if his main body had gone in.

Because to him, this challenge was nothing at all.

If he were the one trapped in such a Tribulation, he wouldn’t feel sorrow or resentment. His instincts would only give rise to a single, simple thought:

’Why not just use a cheat?’

Is it because I don’t want to?

Lü Yang slightly modified this thought and sent it into his Split Soul’s consciousness, causing an identical idea to surface irresistibly within it.

“Start over… That’s it!”

“It’s just a matter of starting all over again! If I just kill myself, reincarnate five times, and cleanse my Soul with the Power of Reincarnation, I can naturally start fresh!”

“I’ve figured it out!”

The words had barely left his lips when the Split Soul, in his role as the Primal Daoist, drew the Magical Sword from his waist without another word, placed it against his neck, and with a remarkably nonchalant flourish, sliced—

SHLICK!

……

「In No Heaven, high above the endless Cloud Sea.」

The Primal Daoist sat upon a cloud, facing innumerable streams of light. Each stream reflected a Foundation-Stage Cultivator who was currently inside No Heaven, attempting to break their tribulation.

“Hm? Has someone else broken the second tribulation?”

He suddenly opened his eyes, a look of joy spreading across his face. He then focused on one of the streams of light. “And this quickly, too?”

When he got a clear look at Lü Yang’s Split Soul within the light, he was even more surprised. “It’s this person… Could the Perfected Lord backing him have given him secret instructions?”

At this thought, the Primal Daoist felt a rare spark of interest.

“How did he achieve Breaking the Tribulation?”

He recalled his own past, when he had faced the despair of a hopeless future and nearly went mad. It was only after countless hardships that he finally broke through the layers of the Illusion Barrier and reforged his Dao Heart.

In his design, there were only three ways to overcome the second tribulation.

The first and best method, the Upper Grade, was to achieve Breaking the Tribulation through one’s Dao Heart—to face a hopeless future and a dead end, yet continue to press forward with an unwavering will.

The second, a middling method, was to simply muddle through—to stop thinking and just break through for now.

The third and worst solution was to simply give up—to accept the fact of one’s own mediocrity, feeling neither despair nor any motivation to keep striving.

Any of these methods counted as escaping the Heart Demon of despair.

However, the Primal Daoist still considered the first method supreme. After all, cultivation was like scaling a treacherous peak; if one’s Dao Heart wasn’t firm, if one didn’t walk an extreme path, how could they ever attain the Dao?

At this thought, the Primal Daoist opened his mouth, the corners splitting wide. His once-dignified, immortal-like face instantly twisted into a bizarre and hideous form. He swallowed the stream of light reflecting Lü Yang in a single gulp. After a moment of sensing its contents, his expression grew progressively stranger.

“Suicide… Does he want to reincarnate and start over?”

“Isn’t that a bit too extreme?”

The Primal Daoist could sense the emotions of Lü Yang’s Split Soul at that moment. It wasn’t despair, nor was it apathy. It was a genuine belief that this was a Breaking the Situation Technique.

“’If I can attain my Fruit, then this self and other selves are all, in the end, me. If I cannot attain my Fruit, then there is no difference between this self and other selves…’”

Gradually, the Primal Daoist sank into silence.

A long time passed before he snapped out of it, only to burst into loud laughter. “Excellent! What a way to ’start all over again’! Such a firm Dao Heart is truly beyond the capabilities of any ordinary person!”

In all the world, who does not fear death? Who is not terrified of reincarnation?

The path of the Dao allows no regrets, so who could ever truly start over?

And yet, here was someone who treated reincarnation as nothing, seeking only to “start over.” How similar he was to the Primal Daoist’s current self.

He had exhausted his knowledge of Karma Links and plotted for many years, transforming into this current state of neither human nor ghost. Wasn’t it all for a chance to “start over” while preserving his own identity?

Even he himself was like this.

And yet, this person could disregard everything, his only goal the decision to “start over.” What incredible fortitude was that? Faced with such a Dao Heart, even the Primal Daoist couldn’t help but feel a sliver of admiration.

“’If I attain my Fruit, it is, in the end, still me…’ I have been taught a lesson!”

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