Red, azure, black, and white—four sword beams, like the four pillars of heaven, descended with dazzling brilliance.
The Buddha of Immeasurable Life, relying on the protection of the “Buddha” character, was piercing through the chaotic currents of time to journey into the past when suddenly, a chilling sensation crept over him. A sense of danger, so intense it was unbearable, gripped his heart.
“Trouble!” he thought to himself, immediately halting his divine ability and returning to the present.
Though this danger could not alter the past—and thus would not affect the grand divine ability of time manipulation—unless he could permanently reside in the past without needing to return to the present, all future possibilities would inevitably lead to dead ends.
Weighing the two options, the more important choice was self-evident. After all, this was merely a casual act of goodwill toward Ran Deng, not an opportunity for his own enlightenment. There was no need to risk his life for it!
The glazed Buddha light scattered like water, and the figure of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life reappeared in the present. To the eyes of the Great Sage Peng, he had only vanished for an imperceptibly brief moment—this was the necessary delay for activating the grand divine ability, “Buddha of the Three Ages.”
Before him, sword beams crisscrossed, their red, azure, black, and white hues piercingly pure. The newly returned Buddha of Immeasurable Life instantly felt the illusion of his golden body being pierced through and utterly shredded.
For an ancient Buddha like him, who had attained perfection in creation, an illusion meant real and imminent danger!
“The Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation!” The Buddha of Immeasurable Life could no longer afford hesitation. Around him, six golden, glazed Sanskrit characters—”Om,” “Ma,” “Ni,” “Pad,” “Me,” “Hum”—burst forth, swirling around his body and forming layers of seals, transforming his surroundings into an ocean of Buddha light.
The sword formation was instantly established, its radiance soaring into the heavens. The intent of destruction, slaughter, and finality swept through the Buddha of Immeasurable Life’s location.
The barrier of Buddha light formed by the six sacred syllables shattered inch by inch, like an illusory bubble, a fleeting mirage. Within the barrier, there was nothing—no trace of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life remained!
*Pfft!*
Far from the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation, a mouthful of pure golden, glazed blood sprayed out, and the youthful yet ancient Buddha revealed his presence.
The moment this Buddha blood touched the outside world, it divided, transforming into countless golden bodies, each as small as a grain of rice, numbering 108,000 in total. They swirled around the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, chanting Buddhist mantras, gathering obsessions—more akin to demons than Buddhas.
The golden body of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life dimmed. He opened his mouth, inhaling and exhaling the heavens and earth, drawing all the eerie golden Buddhas back into himself.
The backlash from forcibly halting his divine ability, combined with the cost of evading the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation using the Tathagata’s Palm technique, “All is Emptiness,” had wounded him deeply. It had even birthed inner demons, forcing him to expel and then reabsorb them, temporarily robbing him of his terrifying power to laugh in the face of suffering.
Witnessing this change, Meng Qi felt a surge of joy. Just as he was about to greet his senior brothers like Guangchengzi, a voice echoed from within the sword formation:
“Junior Brother Sect Leader, proceed to the World Tree first. We will hold off the fellow Daoists here.”
Guangchengzi’s voice was bold and unyielding—he intended to block all the great supernatural beings of the world with just four people and four swords!
Meng Qi had long known of the might of the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation, and now, with four Creation-level experts jointly activating it, its power was unprecedented. He laughed heartily and replied, “Junior Brother awaits good news from his senior brothers.”
Summoning his Somersault Cloud, he left a streak of white light as he passed through the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation and sped toward the World Tree, vanishing into the boundless void in an instant.
Strangely enough, the “World Tree’s Pure Light” existed within the infinite darkness, accessible from all directions. Unless one could directly envelop it, how could any formation isolate it? Yet once the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation was established, whether it was the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, the Bull Demon King, or the Peng Demon King, all they saw was a sea of sword energy—red and azure intertwined, black and white mixed, sharp and unyielding, with no exceptions from any angle.
“Truly worthy of being the number one killing formation of the Primordial Era,” sighed the Mystic Maiden of the Ninth Heaven, Liu Luo, softly.
At this moment, streaks of light converged from all directions, a dazzling array of colors—representing the arrival of powerful figures like the Heavenly Lord of Treasures, the Three Fairies of Xiao, the Ancient Buddha Dipankara, the Divine Envoys of the Luo Sect, and other great sages of the demon race.
The two sides stood in clear opposition. Guangchengzi spoke again:
“All things in this world belong to those with virtue. Our Jade Void Palace’s Sect Leader Su possesses the Tree of the Great Dao and is thus the rightful master of the World Tree. Fellow Daoists, do not defy the will of heaven—withdraw now.”
“The will of heaven? Such arrogance!” sneered the Dragon Demon King.
Guangchengzi chuckled. “If fellow Daoists refuse, then come and test the might of this Primordial killing formation!”
Hearing this, the Heavenly Lord of Treasures flew into a rage and shouted, “Utter shamelessness!”
As if the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation belonged to the Jade Void Palace!
He glanced around at the great supernatural beings and laughed bitterly. “The World Tree is not far. Any further delay will be disastrous. Which fellow Daoists are willing to join me in breaking this imitation sword formation?”
An incomplete Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation, set up by four Creation-level experts, could be broken by four perfected Creation-level beings!
“Namo Amitabha, I shall assist,” intoned the Ancient Buddha Dipankara, his hands clasped in prayer as circles of perfect Buddha light radiated from him.
The Buddha of Immeasurable Life, having finally refined his inner demons, reappeared with the “Buddha” character glowing on his forehead, layered yet seemingly empty. “I shall also assist.”
Three of the four perfected beings were instantly gathered. Had Zhen Yuanzi been present, no further help would have been needed. But the Divine Envoys of the Luo Sect exchanged glances, none knowing where their acting envoy had gone.
Meanwhile, the demon sages were torn between shame and fury, wishing they could hurl themselves into the sword formation to die. None among them could match the Heavenly Lord of Treasures, the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, or the Ancient Buddha Dipankara. The remaining ones lacked the necessary cultivation, making them vulnerable to annihilation if they joined the fray. Thus, they hesitated.
Alas, great sages like Kong Xuan and Jiu Feng, who were no weaker than the Ancient Buddha Dipankara or the Heavenly Lord of Treasures, had perished in the battle at Mount Ling. The Great Sage Equaling Heaven and the Nine Spirits Sage were in unique situations and could not be considered pure members of the demon race. The once-mighty demon alliance of the myriad realms could not produce a single perfected Creation-level expert now… The Bull Demon King gnashed his teeth in frustration but could do nothing.
Seeing this, Bixiao of the Three Fairies of Xiao spoke up, unwilling to waste time: “Senior Brother Heavenly Lord of Treasures, shall we three sisters form the Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation as one path?”
Before the Heavenly Lord of Treasures could answer, a clear, melodious female voice rang out: “Three Fairies of Xiao, your opponent is this humble Daoist. The Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation once granted me great fortune, leading to my current achievements.”
Amidst shimmering pure light and the radiance of five-colored wisdom, Manjushri Bodhisattva, wielding the Sword of Great Wisdom, stepped out from the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation.
Having forged a unique path to the unity of all Daos through Buddhist emptiness and the Great Mirror Wisdom, she now possessed a semblance of the illusory Chaos and Non-Polarity, perfectly countering the Golden Chalice of Primordial Chaos and the Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation. Now, she sought to challenge all three fairies alone!
“Namo Amitabha, we must delay no longer,” said the Ancient Buddha Dipankara, the moon-like halo behind his head brightening like the sun, revealing the figure of a Daoist holding the Ruler of Heaven and Earth and a miniature pagoda.
“Agreed!” The Heavenly Lord of Treasures ceased further discussion. Five rolling white waves, seemingly composed of countless tiny sword beams, surged from his crown, atop which three illusory Dao flowers bloomed, emitting boundless radiance. He stepped into the Immortal-Slaying gate first.
The Buddha of Immeasurable Life, the Ancient Buddha Dipankara, and his “past Daoist incarnation” each entered the other three gates of the sword formation.
In an instant, the sword light blazed with unprecedented intensity.
…
The Somersault Cloud carried Meng Qi forward, howling through the void. After an immeasurable time, as the distance closed and the resonance between him and the World Tree grew faintly perceptible, he grasped the threads of karma and pierced through layers of darkness, arriving directly beside the World Tree.
Before him stood the towering tree, piercing through the void, the chaos, and realms beyond reach, its branches and leaves coalescing illusory Daos.
Stunned by the majestic sight, Meng Qi briefly froze before regaining his composure. He took out the Tree of the Great Dao and reached out to touch the World Tree, attempting to absorb it.
The water-like surface rippled—the Tree of the Great Dao passed through the World Tree without making contact!
“If this tree is destroyed, the end of the epoch will accelerate. Thus, after the Heavenly Court’s fall, several ancient ones reached an agreement, each leaving behind a strand of power to protect it,” a serene voice spoke beside him. Only then did Meng Qi notice the Green Emperor.
He had been there all along, his expression calm, showing no trace of “heaven’s will.”
Meng Qi nodded slightly. “This junior acted rashly.”
“The Tree of the Great Dao has not yet matured. It is not yet time,” the Green Emperor said, stepping ahead of Meng Qi and gazing at the World Tree, his voice ethereal. “In the previous epoch, there was also a ‘Tree of the Great Dao.’ It took root in the blood of the Heavenly Emperor and Donghuang Taiyi, absorbing the illusory Daos of the epoch’s destruction, and grew into the Fusang Ancient Tree. Thus, when your tree appeared, I felt a sense of familiarity and regained fragments of memory.”
So the Fusang Ancient Tree truly had once been a Tree of the Great Dao! Meng Qi felt a mix of surprise and inevitability.
Without turning around, the Green Emperor asked softly, “Do you know who planted the Fusang Ancient Tree in the beginning?”
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