Chapter 160: Chapter 137: If I Could Marry Her Ladyship, I’d Even Be Willing to Become a True Monarch

"That stone looks familiar, but I can’t quite recall where I’ve seen it before."

True Master Xuanmiao stroked his whiskers. Standing upright on Jiang Yi’s shoulder, he craned his neck to get a better look.

"Ah, forget it. I really can’t remember."

The calico cat swished his tail, his tone firm.

"Xiao Jiang, you’ve just taken control of the Yang Qi Taiyin Heaven and become its new master. In this world, not even a True Monarch or a Great Power can easily tamper with your Life Qi.

The name ’Jiang Shang’ must be a result of the heavens concealing the truth."

Hearing this, Jiang Yi stopped worrying about it and reached out to tie the golden bell back onto True Master Xuanmiao’s neck.

However, the Cat Master had been overfed recently and was growing rather plump, and the collar faintly pressed a shallow groove into the flesh of his neck.

’No wonder I didn’t sense anything at all. It’s the name I used before when I captured the Majestic Spirit Essence Qi.’

Jiang Yi breathed a sigh of relief. For Cultivators, one’s birth date, true name, and origins always had to be concealed and never casually revealed.

Especially on the Nanzhan Continent, many Demon Cultivators practiced the art of Witchcraft Curse Killing, so one had to be vigilant.

’But even though I’ve inherited the Yang Qi Taiyin Heaven and become the so-called ’new master’, I can still only look, not enter. It’s pure torture.’

Jiang Yi felt a helpless frustration. He closed his eyes and looked inward. In the space between reality and illusion within his Heart Spirit, where only the Celestial Book had once been...

...a sheet of golden paper had now appeared out of nowhere. Imprinted on it was a radiant palace, with buildings large and small blooming layer by layer like a lotus flower, containing all manner of things within.

Scripture and Daoist Books were piled into towering mountains. Divine Sand Spirit Jade was so plentiful it had to be measured by the bushel. Magical Treasure and Elixir Materials were as common as dirt, and rare treasures from across the universe drifted like stars...

The sight made Jiang Yi’s heart pound with excitement. He felt he could finally escape poverty and get rich, transforming from a poor wretch of a Demon Cultivator from the Inner Sect Dharma Lineage into a tycoon whose wealth could rival an Immortal Dao True Monarch!

However, just as he tried to probe it with his Divine Thought, he felt as if he had slammed headfirst into an iron plate. A sharp pain shot through his brow, and his Primordial Gate trembled violently!

"Xiao Jiang, don’t be in such a hurry to grab the treasures. ’When Tai Yang appears, Shao Yang does not emerge.’ This has been the rule since my former master perished."

True Master Xuanmiao said slowly, as if he had long since guessed that Jiang Yi would impatiently try to sneak into the Yang Qi Taiyin Heaven.

"The last time I pried open a tiny crack to exchange for the ’Long-term Nourishing Daoist Embryo Skill’ for you, it alerted that fellow named Ji, who came patrolling on the sun.

First, reach the Twelfth Level of Cultivation and achieve the Flying Foundation Establishment Realm. Then you’ll be able to unlock a few layers."

Jiang Yi’s face twisted slightly. To be sitting on a mountain of treasure without being able to spend lavishly—what kind of torture was this?

’Forget it, forget it. It will all be mine sooner or later. On the bright side, once I reach Foundation Establishment, I’ll be the most prosperous and distinguished True Master in the entire Yanfu Vast Land!’

He took another long look at the open gate of Fengdu. Only the thick stone walls were faintly visible in the dense fog; there was no other movement.

With the Taifu Sect’s Exquisite Magic Tower positioned above, no one dared to fish in troubled waters and compete for the Opportunity.

No matter which power they belonged to, everyone was behaving themselves, silent as cicadas in winter. It seemed unlikely that anything else would happen in the next three to five days.

’If only I could get a chance to go inside and get my hands on that Fire Life Destiny.’

Jiang Yi mused as he turned and returned to the Gao Village ancestral hall. He planned to meditate for a while and prepare to break through to the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer.

Having obtained the Yang Qi Taiyin Heaven, his originally meager destiny was gradually on the rise, which would surely help him resolve his tribulations.

’Later, I will beg the Celestial Book and ask about my chances of breaking through to the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer. If it’s a hundred percent, then I might as well give it a try.’

...

...

「Fengdu, within the grand hall.」

A profound Qi Mechanism, like layers of heavy curtains, filled the air, flowing unpredictably.

"Lady!"

The big, chubby girl skipped and hopped, shaking the ground with a THUD THUD like a colossal beast.

Each step she took carried the heavy might of a mountain-shaking earthquake.

Back inside the great hall, the chubby girl with festive-looking, sky-high pigtails finally revealed her true form.

Baleful energy billowed, and a ghostly wind howled. It was as if the heavens grieved, the moon refused to shine, and floating clouds obscured every star.

Looking closely with focused attention, one could finally see a terrifying, ferocious form with wings a dozen feet wide and nine heads arranged unevenly, all breathing fire and roaring!

It was as if she carried a hundred ghosts, their energy scorching the very souls of onlookers!

"Lady! That Daoist may not have good intentions! Why else would he want to arrange a ’Yin marriage’ and a ’Yang wedding’ for you for no reason?!"

The big, chubby girl tilted her head back and yelled:

"In this whole world, even if a True Inheritance disciple from one of the great Daoist Lineages of the Four Directions came, how many would be worthy of a second glance from you, Lady? It would have to be a Daoist Level figure, and even that would barely be acceptable!"

Deep within the hall sat a slender, graceful figure, poised elegantly upon a Jade Platform.

Four great pillars, coiled in the shape of sun wheels and densely branded with Tai Yang magic seals, bound her delicate, willow-like body firmly from the four cardinal directions.

Furthermore, eighty-one Jiaoyao Flame Dragons, formed from the Six Ding Divine Fire Formation, writhed and danced around her.

"A Daoist from an Ancestral Sect Dharma Lineage is a Crown Prince of the Four Directions Continent, a True Monarch destined to rule the universe. Why would he ever be interested in a lonely ghost like your lady?"

This lofty existence, once known as the "Profound Law Nvqing True Monarch," didn’t seem like the majestic Lord True Monarch who could suppress all evil. Instead, she had the gentle and refined air of a sheltered young lady from a scholarly family.

"An old maid like me, having to rob the cradle to find a husband... heheh. If word got out, I’m afraid the True Monarchs I used to know would laugh their heads off."

The slender figure raised a hand to cover her crimson lips, smiling softly with a hint of self-deprecation in her eyes.

"Bah! What a short-sighted fool!"

The chubby girl put her hands on her hips and retorted, her neck stiff with indignation:

"What does the old saying go? ’A woman thirty years older gives you an empire; three hundred years older, an immortal pill; three thousand years older, a place among the immortals’... OUCH, OUCH! Lady, I was wrong!"

Before she could finish, a gentle force swept over her. Caught off guard, the big, chubby girl stumbled and rolled several times.

"That’s what you get for showing off your clever tongue! You never learn the good things, only picking up nonsense like this to prattle on about!"

Lady Xuan’nv’s rebuke was soft, carrying the sweet, gentle cadence of a southern dialect, completely devoid of any intimidating force.

The chubby girl rubbed her bottom as she got up, dusted off her red jacket, and mumbled,

"Don’t you worry, Lady! Gui’er will stand guard for you. I definitely won’t let any of that riffraff pollute your sight!"

The slender figure on the Jade Platform gave a faint smile, tinged with a bit of helplessness.

"It was always meant to be left to fate. A moment ago, I wasn’t actually thinking of accepting the Taifu Sect’s disciple. It’s just that when Fengdu manifested and its gates opened wide, I felt a Sympathy with the Celestial Lord and faintly sensed that a Young Monarch who has inherited a Golden Position has appeared in the Yanfu Vast Land.

Perhaps my Yin marriage is fated to be with him... This presumptuous thought came to me for no reason. I wonder if some Daoist Monarch is watching from on high and has made a move."

A True Monarch who had lost their Dao was like a high minister who had fallen from power. Though their title remained, and they were still supreme and noble, the authority they wielded was greatly diminished, a pale shadow of their former glory.

"Why worry, Lady? Once you agree to the Yin marriage, marry a person from the Mortal World, and by borrowing the destiny of a Yin Celestial Emperor, you will surely be able to shed your physical body and dharma form and escape this wretched place."

...

...

Three to five days passed in a flash. A rumor about a massive Opportunity began to spread like wildfire across the northern and southern lands.

It was said that a certain Lady, a direct descendant of a respected and transcendent Daoist Lineage, was looking for a husband.

She was widely recruiting a live-in husband, and her dowry was of a richness unseen since ancient times. It was claimed that it could allow a person to ascend to the heavens in a single step, directly reaching the great seat of a True Monarch!

The Dao Materials and True Inheritance disciples from every Dharma Lineage were all stirred by this news and came swarming over.

All of them declared, "If I can marry that Lady, I am more than willing to achieve Flying Foundation Establishment, attain the Dao, and become a True Monarch!"

In the Gao Village ancestral hall, Jiang Yi stared at the sudden appearance of Sect Leader Liu Huan and his own Grandpa, Yang Xun, who was accompanying him. After a moment of silence, he asked,

"Are you two also here to... become a live-in son-in-law?"