Fang Yuan's Wisdom Path methods were already quite rich and diverse. He did not need to rely on meticulous planning or strategic orchestration to compensate for any shortcomings. Practicing these killing moves served a different purpose — it deepened his understanding of the Yuan Lian True Transmission and the Ju Yang True Transmission in his possession.
Over the past days, Fang Yuan's true body had been continuously studying the Yuan Lian True Transmission, the Ju Yang True Transmission, and the Dao Tian True Transmission.
The Refinement Path True Transmission left behind by Ancestor Chang Mao — Fang Yuan had already mastered it entirely. Comprehending it had been quite easy, after all, he had already reached the quasi-supreme realm in the Refinement Path.
As for the Yuan Lian True Transmission, Fang Yuan had assembled a Sixth Transformation Causal Divine Tree killing move, which could be considered a promising start.
However, due to his lack of Wood Path Immortal Gu and Wood Path realm, Fang Yuan had not invested excessive energy into this area.
He had placed his focus on the Ju Yang True Transmission and the Dao Tian True Transmission instead.
The former belonged to Ju Yang's three great true transmissions — the Self Fortune True Transmission, which could enable Fang Yuan to take control of his own fortune.
The latter, the Dao Tian True Transmission, had at its core the Eighth Transformation Steal Life Immortal Gu, detailing the methods for unsealing it.
Of course, both transmissions also covered the foundational cultivation of Fortune Path and Theft Path. More importantly, they contained each Venerable's personal insights into the two paths they had founded, which proved incredibly beneficial to Fang Yuan.
"What is fortune?" At the very opening of the Ju Yang True Transmission, Immortal Venerable Ju Yang posed this question.
Then, he answered his own inquiry: "To discuss fortune, one must first discuss fate!"
Before the Red Lotus Demon Venerable, there had been no Fortune Path.
After the Red Lotus Demon Venerable damaged the Gu of Destiny, subtle changes arose between heaven and earth.
People first perceived Fortune Path by discovering a certain component within Human Qi — luck.
Because the three types of qi — Heaven Qi, Earth Qi, and Human Qi — needed to reach balance for one to ascend to immortality, the more Human Qi a Gu Master accumulated, the higher the quality of the Immortal Aperture obtained after a successful ascension.
Because of the emphasis placed on Human Qi, people began studying luck.
Very soon, they discovered certain characteristics of luck.
Ever since the Gu of Destiny was damaged by the Red Lotus Demon Venerable, the trajectories of all living things were no longer fixed and immutable — they could be altered within certain limits.
People discovered that so-called "luck" bore an incredibly profound and direct connection to these deviations from destiny.
But what exactly was the nature of this connection?
Immortal Venerable Ju Yang stated his view directly: "Fate is a constant. Fortune is a variable!"
For an ordinary person, what constitutes good luck?
Good luck is a variable that benefits oneself.
And what constitutes bad luck?
Bad luck is a variable that harms oneself.
If the luck component within a person's Human Qi leans toward good fortune, then that person is likely to gain advantage.
If the luck component within a person's Human Qi leans toward misfortune, then that person is likely to suffer disadvantage.
However, whether it was good fortune or misfortune, neither one constituted fate.
Fate was a constant — fixed, inevitable, something one was bound to experience. Fortune was merely a variable, merely a possibility. The true outcome still depended on the concrete circumstances of reality.
If a person possessed bad fortune but used their own strength and wisdom to resist and reverse it, they could still achieve certain goals or accomplishments.
If a person possessed good fortune but was hopelessly foolish or lacked sufficient strength to seize it, they would still fail.
Subsequently, within Ju Yang's Self Fortune True Transmission, one could see the various scales, colors, and forms of fortune.
Some people possessed great quantities of fortune, while others had very little.
Generally speaking, the higher one's cultivation and the deeper one's foundation, the greater the volume of fortune one possessed.
The colors of fortune were primarily seven: black, grey, white, red, gold, azure, and purple, though uncommon colors such as pink and blood-red also existed.
Fortune came in all manner of forms — an endlessly bizarre variety with no limit to the strange shapes it could take. Ordinary people's fortune tended to be monotonous and mundane, while the fortune of geniuses or dominant figures often differed greatly from that of commoners, manifesting in countless unique forms.
For example, Fang Yuan had once possessed a black coffin fortune — his luck was pitch-black as ink, forming the shape of a massive coffin that enveloped his entire body, emanating a dense aura of baleful, deathly malice.
Another example was when he had observed Zheng Shanchuan at a Refinement Path grand assembly — this man's fortune resembled a seven-colored rainbow, its luster captivating and its movements extraordinary and unrestrained.
As for the fortune of individuals like Hong Yi, Ye Fan, and Han Li, each possessed their own wondrous manifestations.
The Self Fortune True Transmission left behind by Immortal Venerable Ju Yang was nothing less than a comprehensive manual for manipulating one's own fortune — its scale, color, and form!
For instance, if one desired variables related to romantic encounters with the opposite sex, one would form "peach blossom luck."
If one wished to obtain cultivation resources such as Yuan Stones, one would form "wealth luck."
If one carried bad luck, then one would employ a series of methods to transform it.
…
The contents of Ju Yang's Self Fortune True Transmission were extraordinarily rich, while the Dao Tian Steal Life True Transmission was concise and to the point.
"Theft Path is not about gaining something for nothing — it is the path that places the greatest emphasis on efficiency!"
"When Gu Masters and Gu Immortals seek to obtain Gu Insects or Immortal Gu — whether through refinement, trade, or spoils of war — every method carries excessively high costs and excessive risks."
"Theft Path targets Gu Insects directly, stealing them out, saving costs, reducing risks, and increasing efficiency!"
But what was the essence of a Gu Insect?
Gu was the true essence of heaven and earth.
To steal a Gu Insect was to steal fragments of Dao Traces.
From this, Theft Path killing moves were also derived.
And then there was the Steal Life Immortal Gu — a person's lifespan was manifested as certain Dao Traces within the body. The Steal Life Immortal Gu could steal out the corresponding Dao Traces, thereby reducing a person's lifespan.