Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Through various accomplishments, he left others in the dust on the Second Order Reputation List, creating a record-setting gap between himself and the second-place Ji Xingyue.

If it weren't for the rule prohibiting skipping ranks on the Reputation List, even if he weren't first in the Third Order, he would still rank within the top hundred or even the top ten.

This was made possible both by his battlefield successes and the profits from Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion's operations; his progress was a result of managing both aspects.

Of course, his rise also attracted numerous enemies. Internally, it affected the interests within the Sky-reaching Tower, and externally, it invoked life and death disputes in the Ten Thousand Demon Abyss. Various powers were eyeing him eagerly, waiting for him to advance so they could settle scores.

Nevertheless, he wasn't worried; plentiful debts don't crush one, and with many lice, one does not itch. Under the rules of the Sky-reaching Tower, he feared no confrontation with anyone.

So...

"Newcomer List ranking settlement complete!"

"Reputation List ranking settlement complete!"

"You are ranked first in the Second Order Newcomer List, achieving the 'Late Bloomer'!"

"You are ranked first in the Second Order Reputation List, achieving the 'Dual Crown King'!"

"You have earned 500,000,000 experience points and 30,000,000 reputation points!"

"Your physical strength +50, intelligence +50, charm +50, and you have gained 300 free attribute points!"

"You can choose one reward from each of the following as awards for topping both the Newcomer and Reputation lists!"

"..."

"First: Divine Martial Domineering Body (Physical strength +150, physical attribute can further break the limit of the current tier by 300 points)"

"Second: Taoist Bone Immortal Root (Intelligence +150, intelligence attribute can further break the extreme limit of the current tier by 300 points)"

"Third: Dragon Chapter and Phoenix Face (Charm +150, charm attribute can further break the extreme limit of the current tier by 300 points)"

"Fourth: Scholar of Heaven and Man (Physical strength +50, intelligence +50, charm +50, all three attributes can further break the extreme limit of the current tier by 200 points)"

"Please choose your reward!"

The prompt from the Sky-reaching Tower urged Xu Yang to make his choice.

Sticking to his usual strategy of balanced development and covering all bases, Xu Yang immediately chose the fourth option, Divine Transformation, boosting his breakthrough attributes for physical, intelligence, and charm by two hundred points.

Adding the fifty from the First Order Dual Crown, his breakthrough value had already reached a staggering two hundred fifty points, surpassing even mythical heroes like Liu Xiu.

After the attribute rewards, it was time for the land blessings.

"..."

"First: Soldier Master Blessing (Receive the blessing of Soldier Master Chi You, improving all military building effects in your domain by 1000%)"

"Second: Shennong's Protection (Receive the protection of Emperor Yan Shennong, improving all production building effects in your domain by 1000%)"

"Third: Xuanyuan's Blessing (Receive the blessing of Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan, improving all building effects in your domain by 500%)"

Faced with the choice of three, Xu Yang continued with the same strategy and directly chose the third option, Xuanyuan's Blessing.

Aiming for comprehensiveness, he pursued it to the utmost without abandoning halfway.

After the first attribute breakthrough and the second land blessing, the third unsurprisingly arrived at skill enhancement.

"First Option: Divine Martial Unrivaled (All skills related to physical strength, including but not limited to talents, martial arts, spells, and divine arts, will be tremendously enhanced)"

"Second Option: Taoist Bone Immortal Wind (All skills related to intelligence, including but not limited to talents, martial arts, spells, and divine arts, will be tremendously enhanced)"

"Third Option: Human Emperor's Holy Aura (All skills related to charm, including but not limited to talents, martial arts, spells, and divine arts, will be tremendously enhanced)"

"Fourth Option: Unity of Heaven and Man (All skills, including basic ones, will be greatly enhanced and strengthened)"

Skill enhancement, as expected, came along.

Xu Yang, adhering to his unchanged approach, still chose the fourth, comprehensive option.

"You have selected the fourth reward—Unity of Heaven and Man!"

"Your talent skills have been enhanced!"

"Your basic skills have been enhanced!"

"Your civilization skills have been enhanced!"

"Your martial skill skills have been enhanced!"

"Your magic skills have been enhanced!"

"Your 'Unrivaled Skills' have been enhanced!"

"..."

Prompts followed one after another, data refreshing massively, dazzling and overwhelming for any onlooker.

Without a way around it, in the past ten years Xu Yang had, through cultivation, combat, and the hidden power of cheats, "converted" a multitude of skills, including Martial Path martial arts battle skills, Immortal Path cultivation skills divine magic, and various talent special techniques, as well as Talisman, Elixir Skills, Artifact Skills, and Formation auxiliary skills.

Although it was just a preliminary conversion, the effects were not too powerful, yet there was a trend of playing the "Lord Game" of the Heaven-reaching Tower and the Ten Thousand Demon Abyss as if it were a cracked version.

Now with the enhancement, Xu Yang not only progressed but also regained much of his strength.

Such a set of enhancements ensured that even without a dominion's support, and advancing on his own to the Third Order, he could still stand firm, suppressing all opposition.

After the skill enhancement came the ultimate rewards.

"First Item: Immortal Relic (Randomly obtain a piece of Immortal Spirit quality weapon, equipment, or skill inheritance)"

"Second Item: Heavenly Destiny (A high probability to obtain the loyalty of a Mythical Hero, a low probability to obtain the loyalty of an Immortal Spirit Hero)"

"Third Item: Creator Lord (Construct a type of personal guard species, whose attributes and skills can grow through combat/training, weapons, and equipment can be acquired through combat or crafted, and whose troop order and ranks can be upgraded/opened by consuming Lord's experience, Heaven-connecting coins and various resources)"

The rewards for the Second Order Dual Crown King culminated in the final, and most interesting, item.

The first and second need not be elaborated upon—Immortal Spirit weapons and equipment or skills, Mythical Heroes or Immortal Spirit Heroes—highly tempting, especially that Immortal Spirit Hero, which might incite action from even Seventh, Eighth, or Ninth Order Immortal God Lords, even leading to fierce conflicts.

However, for Xu Yang, the temptation was ordinary.

Given his highly diversified strength structure, Immortal Spirit armaments and skills offered him limited enhancement. Once he had "converted" his Taoist Scripture and Martial Scripture, Heavenly Gang and Earthly Sha Skill, Heavenly Crafts Natural Creation Skill, Xuanyuan Divine Sword Jue, and the Imperial Mansion Heavenly Decree Book, and the Cultivation Skills Divine Magic, he would immediately have a plethora of Immortal Spirit skills.

Thus, the first item did not greatly tempt him.

And the second item, a hero, likely Mythical, unlikely Immortal Spirit—regardless of how probable or improbably small—the direct certainty of the Immortal Spirit Hero would hold average temptation.

Being an oversized Immortal Spirit Hero himself, having another was merely lily-gilding; the value was there, but it was not fundamental, choosing or not choosing had no bearing on the overall situation.

Rather, the final item...

Self-built personal guard species?

This piqued Xu Yang's interest.

Typically, a lord could only "self-build" upon reaching the Ninth Order, with the capability to create civilizations, troop species, heroes, skills, and various items on their own.

Only a Ninth Order lord with a self-built civilization could truly uphold a powerful dominion, as was the case with the past Heaven-connecting Immortal Palace, Netherworld Tao Mansion, and Kunlun Immortal Realm.

Although Xu Yang currently lacked the capability to create his own civilization, he could still construct his own type of personal guard species, thus acquiring some privileges of a Ninth Order Lord.

This could well help him understand the Sky-reaching Tower, dissect the secrets of lords (Earth Deities) and their troops (Taoist Soldiers).

Even if not, as a Dual Crown reward, this self-built troop species would not be less valuable than the first item's Immortal equipment or the second item's Mythical Hero.

Therefore...

"You have chosen the third item reward—Creator Lord!"

"You have obtained the authority to build a type of personal guard species!"

"You can recruit and train this personal guard species in all recruiting/training buildings!"

"Please name your personal guard species..."

Listening to the prompt from the Sky-reaching Tower, Xu Yang pondered for a moment, then made a decision.

"Naming successful!"

"You have constructed the personal guard species—Mingxiao Taoists!"

Mingxiao Taoists

Troop Order: First-Order (Common)

Troop Attributes: 5 Physical Strength, 5 Intelligence, 5 Charm.

Basic Skills: First Order Strong Body LV1, First Order Strong Attack LV1.

Troop Equipment: Clothing, Cloth Shoes.

Troop Special Skills: None.

Troop Description: Lord "Xu Yang"'s personal close guards, although untrained and seemingly weak, possess extraordinary potential.