Above the Buddha statue’s head, a blazing sun slowly rose.
In an instant, pure and majestic Buddhist light filled heaven and earth, and the whole world seemed to become a Buddhist kingdom.
The radiance of that great sun pierced through the vortex in the sky, shattered the clouds, halted the sandstorm raging across the heavens, and turned the dust into molten slurry that fell like rain.
Thus, fire rained from the sky. Most of it turned to ash before it even reached the ground, drifting down in fluttering clouds.
The sight was magnificent and splendid.
Under the illumination of the Buddhist light, the Vajra Dharma Aspect rapidly “melted”. From skin to flesh, inch by inch, it turned to ash, only to regenerate in an instant, over and over again.
“Roar!”
Shenshu’s furious and shrill roar shook the eight wastes.
Thud, thud, thud… the ground trembled as Shenshu’s Dharma Aspect strode forward towards the blazing sun.
He didn’t walk quickly. Every step felt as though he were carrying an immense burden. Every step shed countless flakes of ash, and gradually, a row of pitch-black, oily footprints appeared on the ground.
He was enduring pain beyond imagination.
Nalan Tianlu closed his eyes, tears pouring down like rain:
It is said that the Buddha has nine great Dharma Aspects. Why can he only use the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect? Is it because the seal is still there? The Warlock God doesn’t seem capable of projecting such powerful strength.
That means the degree to which the Buddha has broken free of the seal far surpasses the Warlock God. That’s bad news. Killing Agaruka Bodhisattva will be difficult.
The Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect can easily kill every Beyond-rank below a half-step Martial God…
Hm, Shenshu’s body has only just reformed, and his fighting strength isn’t at its peak either. If he can get close to the Buddha, there may still be hope. Otherwise, today a half-step Martial God will reappear in the world, but it’s fated to be no more than a brief flash.
The Great Feng and the Wanyao Kingdom had schemed for so long to reclaim the head, and the Buddhist Sect had also been waiting for them to walk straight into the trap.
Now it depends on who has more trump cards, and whose methods are stronger. When two tigers fight, one is bound to be injured. For our Church of the Warlock God, that’s a guaranteed profit.
Nalan Tianlu wiped away his tears and circulated the Blood Spirit technique to ease the stinging pain in his eyes.
After Shenshu had taken just over ten slow but steady steps, his pace began to falter. Each stride now required several seconds of gathering strength. The unimaginable heat scorched his body, and even more terrifying was the Buddha power contained within it.
This force, existing at a microscopic level, drilled into Shenshu’s body, destroying his cells, dismantling the finest structures in his genes and in his very existence as a living being.
Gradually, the pitch-black Vajra Dharma Aspect was burned down until the skull was exposed. Its eye sockets were hollow, with only two masses of soul-fire burning within.
He hadn’t taken a step for a long time.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox stared into the distance. Tears streamed from her beautiful eyes, and her delicate brows were tightly knit as she said anxiously:
“This blazing sun is much stronger than the one before.”
She wasn’t crying because Shenshu was in danger, but because staring directly at the “sun” had injured her eyes with the Buddhist light.
Al-Asura too had tears rolling down his face. In a deep voice, he said:
“It’s all right, we still have a trump card!”
Even so, he couldn’t help but feel anxious. It wasn’t that he was worried about Shenshu. Shenshu had now returned to the realm of a half-step Martial God, and even a Beyond-rank wouldn’t be able to kill him easily.
But the opponent was, after all, a Beyond-rank. No matter how detailed the plan was, there was no way it could be foolproof.
…
Above Shenshu’s head, a figure appeared, unclothed.
The moment he emerged, his clothes were burned away by the power of the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect.
Li Miaozhen, al-Asura, the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, and the other beyond-mortals all rose to their feet and stared fixedly. Though tears streamed down their faces and the pain in their eyes was unbearable, none of them was willing to miss a single detail.
This was the trump card al-Asura had spoken of. In their plan, this was the final measure.
Success or failure would be decided in this one move.
“Xu—Xu Qi’an?”
Watching from afar, Nalan Tianlu froze, thinking, Is he trying to get himself killed? No matter how strong a first-rank martial artist is, he can’t withstand the “searing” of the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect for long.
Even a half-step Martial God was on the verge of running out of steam, let alone a mere first rank martial artist like him.
But what happened next left Nalan Tianlu gaping in shock. Xu Qi’an, standing atop Shenshu’s head, was swallowed by Shenshu.
Although the radiance of the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect was blinding, he still saw that detail clearly.
Nalan Tianlu hadn’t seen wrongly, but this wasn’t devouring. It was a temporary fusion.
In the domain of first-rank martial artists, this was called “fleshly possession”, merging with the target’s flesh and blood and taking over the other party’s body.
Only, unlike soul possession, fleshly possession wasn’t so cruel. The possessor could choose to lie dormant and return control to the host. He could also choose to coexist with the host and control the body together.
After possession, one could also forcibly separate again through control over one’s own flesh and blood.
This move could only be used by martial artists of an extremely high level. Back then, Shenshu’s right arm had done exactly this to Xu Qi’an.
The only flaw of “fleshly possession” was that vitality and stamina could complement each other, but fighting strength and cultivation level were difficult to raise.
Because Shenshu was stronger than Xu Qi’an, he was accommodating downward. Taking in a first rank martial artist couldn’t raise the upper limit of a half-step Martial God.
After merging with Xu Qi’an, the pitch-black Vajra Dharma Aspect began changing at a speed visible to the naked eye. Flesh regrew over the scorched skull, and the flesh all over his body rapidly proliferated.
He had gained Xu Qi’an’s strength, and he had also gained the spiritual essence of the Undying Tree.
The power of the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect continued to melt away his flesh, but his regenerative ability brought the two into a relative balance.
For a short time, this blazing sun could no longer severely injure Shenshu.
Thud, thud, thud… at last, he reached the Buddha. The twenty-three arms of the pitch-black Dharma Aspect came together and gripped the blazing sun above the Buddha’s head.
Then the final arm stretched backwards, and Xu Qi’an’s voice echoed across the wilderness of the Western Regions:
“Knife!”
The Confucian carving knife in Zhao Shou’s hand shot out with a howl.
As it flew, it changed from giving off a faint clear glow into a ball of light like a meteor. Clear radiance surged from it, filling the universe with noble qi.
Rarely had this carving knife erupted with such terrifying power.
At this moment, it truly seemed like a genuine Beyond-rank artefact.
Clear light was reflected in Zhao Shou’s eyes, and his emotions were complicated as he looked at the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox and said:
“Weren’t you curious before as to why I opposed Xu Qi’an summoning the Confucian Sage’s heroic soul?”
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox kept her gaze fixed on the distance. Two clear tear tracks lay across her fair and stunning face as she said flatly:
“Summoning the Confucian Sage would bring him irreparable damage.”
Zhao Shou gave a grunt of assent and said slowly:
“The price of summoning the Confucian Sage is backlash from the laws of heaven. It isn’t an injury in the ordinary sense. The Flower God’s spiritual essence can heal wounds, but it can’t heal backlash from heavenly law.”
After a pause, he said:
“While the Confucian Sage’s carving knife is in my hands, it was always a pearl cast into dust. Apart from the two times Wei Yuan and the Jianzheng summoned the Confucian Sage’s heroic soul, it has never displayed the might belonging to a Beyond-rank artefact. Do you know why?”
Li Miaozhen and the others looked at one another and shook their heads.
Zhao Shou said:
“The Confucian Sage possessed great fortune, and throughout history he was the one who gathered the densest fortune.”
Everyone understood at once.
To truly unleash the power of the Confucian Sage’s carving knife, one had to be someone with great fortune.
Though Zhao Shou cultivated the Confucian path, he had previously been buried in obscurity, and though he had now entered officialdom, too little time had passed. It wasn’t enough to awaken the power of the Confucian Sage’s carving knife.
“After the fate-scattering hammer opened his meridians, Xu Ningyan can already freely control the fortune of the nation within him.” Zhao Shou smiled:
“So there’s no need to summon the Confucian Sage’s heroic soul.”
As he spoke, that streak of clear light delivered itself into Shenshu’s palm.
Vast noble qi spread along the arm and covered the pitch-black Dharma Aspect, effectively resisting the searing heat of the Great Sun Tathagata.
“Buddha!”
Shenshu let out an enraged roar and viciously thrust out the Confucian Sage’s carving knife in his hand.
Across the wilderness of the Western Regions, a golden halo spread out at high speed, rippling hundreds of miles into the distance.
It looked exactly like the prelude to a star exploding.
Immediately after, a deafening muffled boom began to ring out. Along with the sudden swelling of golden light, those rays shot in all directions like streams of fire, scattering into the distant wilderness.
Li Miaozhen and the other beyond-mortal experts had already moved far away from Ananda, yet they were still injured by the power released from the collapse of the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect.
Left with no other choice, Sun Xuanji endured the scorching pain and teleported everyone away.
…
After the violent, chaotic golden light dissipated, the pitch-black Dharma Aspect stood alone between heaven and earth. His twelve pairs of arms had already been shattered, and his chest and abdomen had nearly been blown through. Whether it was the wounds on his arms or those on his torso, flesh and blood writhed, yet found it hard to heal.
As for that vaguely outlined Buddha statue, it collapsed once more into a mountain of flesh. Stubbornly and slowly, it crawled up along the pitch-black Dharma Aspect, devouring him.
The pitch-black Dharma Aspect slowly lifted a foot and stamped hard on the flesh mountain.
It looked like two exhausted wounded men, sustained by hatred, struggling towards each other, trying to bite each other to death.
Seeing this scene, Nalan Tianlu, who had sneaked back in secret, suddenly felt as though “I can do it again”.
But reason restrained his impulse and made him recognise himself clearly.
At this moment, somewhere on the flesh mountain split open, revealing three Bodhisattvas sitting cross-legged. Their auras were weak, and they didn’t look to be in very good condition.
“Let’s go!”
From within the pitch-black Dharma Aspect came Xu Qi’an’s voice.
If they left now, the Buddha wouldn’t be able to stop them.
The purpose of this trip had already been achieved. There was no meaning in staying to continue the fight, because they couldn’t kill the Buddha, and whether it was him or Shenshu, both were now extremely weak.
And beside them there was also a second rank Master of Rain watching them like a tiger eyeing its prey.
The two-thousand-foot-tall Dharma Aspect slowly departed, walking across the wilderness towards the distance.
Behind him was Ananda, reduced to ruins, and upon those ruins was the Buddha, writhing slowly, appearing feeble and drained.
Xu Qi’an can wield the power of the Confucian Sage’s carving knife… A half-step Martial God has reappeared in the world, and the degree to which the Buddha has broken free of the seal far surpasses that of the Warlock God… The three Bodhisattvas aren’t dead, so it’s not suitable to strike while the iron’s hot. Better slip away quietly.
Nalan Tianlu simply summarised the intelligence.
The first and second pieces of information were extremely important. It was equivalent to uncovering another of Xu Qi’an’s trump cards.
Heh, what irony. The one who can truly use the Confucian Sage’s carving knife isn’t a beyond-mortal of Cloud Deer Academy, but a coarse martial artist.
Nalan Tianlu gave a sneering laugh, then fell silent again.
Putting the cultivation system aside, that Xu really did have the right to use the carving knife.
…
Southern Marches.
Inside the palace of the empress of the Wanyao Kingdom, Li Miaozhen held a cup of hot tea in her hands and repeatedly looked outside the hall.
“They still haven’t separated? When will they recover?”
This was the third time she had asked the same question.
It had already been four hours since they returned from the Western Regions to the Southern Marches.
After Xu Qi’an and Shenshu entered the sealing tower, they had not come out again, while Li Miaozhen and the others temporarily remained on Wanyao Mountain to rest and recuperate.
The silver-haired Yao enchantress, lying on her side on a soft couch and inviting everyone to drink tea and wine, looked radiant, as though a happy occasion had refreshed her spirit.
With a charming laugh, she said:
“Don’t worry. At their level, separating from each other takes a bit of time. Besides, Shenshu also has to merge with the remnant soul in the head and restore himself to his peak. How could it be that quick?”
Li Miaozhen gave a cold snort.
She was actually afraid that Shenshu might suddenly lose his mind and “eat” Xu Qi’an.
Peak martial artists of the same field could plunder each other’s qi and blood.
In her view, Xu Ningyan had been far too reckless.
An ally wasn’t his own father, was he really going to bare his heart and soul like that?
“Daoist, say something.”
Li Miaozhen transmitted her voice to the Daoist Leader of the Earth Sect.
Jinlian shook his head and said:
“Have you forgotten the fortune on Xu Qi’an’s body?”
Fortune had already fused with Xu Qi’an. Experts outside the Arcanist system found it hard to remove, and if Shenshu wanted to eat Xu Qi’an, he would have to refine that fortune. This half-step Martial God clearly didn’t have that ability.
After thinking it over, Lanlian felt it made sense, and she relaxed considerably.
Everyone chatted casually for a few more moments, then the Nine-tailed Heavenly Fox shifted the topic to the battle just now. She swept her gaze over the beyond-mortal experts and said:
“It seems the Buddha had some sort of problem.
“In the earlier battle, apart from the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect, He didn’t use any other Dharma Aspects.”
Daoist Jinlian pondered and said:
“Perhaps He hadn’t completely broken the seal?”
Al-Asura shook his head.
“I’m certain that the Confucian Sage’s seal had long since ceased to exist. Rather, after separating from Shenshu, He lost part of His power, so He could only use the Great Sun Tathagata.”
The silver-haired Yao enchantress immediately rejected her nominal elder brother’s guess.
“But Shenshu only knows the Vajra Dharma Aspect.”
Where had the power of the other Dharma Aspects gone?
After thinking for a moment, Zhao Shou exhaled and said:
“I have two ideas. First, when the Jianzheng summoned the heroic spirit of the Confucian Sage and destroyed the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Aspect, it caused some kind of damage to the Buddha and weakened His combat strength.
“Second, the Buddha isn’t the real Buddha. It’s someone else.”
The beyond-mortals thought about it and felt both possibilities were highly likely.
Given the Jianzheng’s ability to lay plans, it was entirely possible that he had really left a hidden move back then to pave the way for today’s battle.
As for the second guess, that depended on Shenshu.
Now that Shenshu had regained completeness and his memories were no longer fragmented, if there were any questions, they could get the answers directly from him.
“Why did the Buddha become like that?” Li Miaozhen asked the question she had long been curious about.
She meant that exaggerated and terrifying mountain of flesh.
“Perhaps that’s His original appearance.” Zhao Shou gave an answer that became more terrifying the more one thought about it.
Al-Asura shook his head.
“I have never seen the Buddha, but in the legends of the Asura race, the Buddha wore kasaya robes and his whole body seemed cast from gold. He had a human form.”
“But that might only have been an incarnation, or an illusion,” said the silver-haired Yao enchantress.
If it was an incarnation or illusion, its cultivation wouldn’t have been too high… Zhao Shou looked towards al-Asura.
“What realm was the Asura King in back then?”
If the Asura King had already been a half-step Martial God or a first rank expert at the time, it would have been hard for the Buddha’s incarnation to suppress him.
Al-Asura frowned, then shook his head in explanation:
“At that time, ranks hadn’t yet been divided. While I was still in my mother’s womb, the Asura King was already killed by the Buddha in Ananda. The clansmen only said that the Asura King was an invincible expert of the Western Regions.
“When Shenshu wakes up, we’ll know by asking him.”
As Sun Xuanji had no monkey by his side, he could only watch his companions discussing things in lonely silence, unable to join in.
His mind held ten thousand ideas, all kinds of flashes of inspiration, but his mouth couldn’t keep up with his brain.
At this moment, Qingji, cold and serene in temperament, with a graceful figure and the air of a noble young lady, walked into the hall with her skirts fluttering.
“Your Highness, Master Shenshu and Silver Gong Xu have awakened.”
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