Nine monks included three strangely dressed individuals, wearing red robes and ceremonial crowns, clearly high-ranking figures of the Vajra Temple akin to Dharma Kings.
They floated above the vast fish sea, positioned in an arcane manner, seemingly becoming the pivot of a certain barrier, while the remaining six lamas surrounded the periphery, as if connecting to something.
The three Dharma Kings clasped their hands and chanted:
“Thus have I heard. At one time, the Buddha was…”
Their speech was extremely fast, and soon they finished reciting the lengthy Diamond Sutra. Immediately, they spoke in unison: “All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, shadows; like dewdrops and lightning flashes. One should contemplate them thus.”
The six outer lamas echoed the chant in loud voices:
“All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, shadows; like dewdrops and lightning flashes. One should contemplate them thus.”
A faint golden glimmer emerged as lotus blossoms began to condense above the Sea of Fish. Unnoticed by all, a sacred relic had manifested between the three Dharma Kings. It gleamed in a golden-yellow hue, exuding an aura of unparalleled hardness and sharpness—as though it could sever all afflictions, vanquish all demonic obstructions, dissolve all karmic bonds, and guide one to the far shore of enlightenment.
“All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, shadows; like dewdrops and lightning flashes. One should contemplate them thus.”
The profound words echoed across the fish sea, seemingly capable of reverberating into infinite distances.
At twelve locations along the fish sea and the Greedy Sweat Ridge, suddenly Buddha light arose, transforming into the forms of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination. The lights connected into a vast expanse, covering an area spanning hundreds of miles.
Within the Buddha light, all external experts who had not yet left after the arrival of the “Great Asura” Meng Nan and still harbored greed were seemingly trapped like insects in amber. No matter how they struggled, they could not escape, as their inner strength was gradually drawn out, merging into the Buddha light, flowing toward the fish sea, and circling around the golden relic!
Among these external experts, only Grandmasters and those protected by Grandmasters were spared. The rest were shocked beyond measure but could only watch helplessly as their power drained away.
While the Asura Temple continuously provoked and drew attention, the Diamond Sutra had unknowingly deciphered the mystery of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination, setting up a peculiar barrier!
The radiant Buddha light gathered around the relic, swiftly solidifying, stretching, and transforming. In no time, it took the form of a sixteen-foot-tall Vajra warrior. With his chest and abdomen exposed, clad in a waistcloth, his fierce and majestic countenance was enveloped in a dazzling golden aura. He embodied unshakable strength, sharpness, and supremacy, capable of vanquishing all obstacles!
Golden motes of glazed light swirled around this Vajra, who stood atop golden lotuses, radiating supreme sanctity and majesty. He raised his hand, and a dark golden precept blade descended into his grasp. With a single swaying step, the void itself trembled in response.
“All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, shadows; like dewdrops and lightning flashes,” it solemnly chanted, raising the precept blade and slicing straight down toward the fish sea.
The fish sea parted, revealing the seabed, which also split open, revealing unfathomable depths!
…
Deep in the Snowy Mountains, two Sect Grandmasters of the Snow Mountain Sect, their hands marked with icy spirits, arrived before nine massive ancient tombs.
They respectfully performed a bow, one holding an ancient talisman, the other wielding a strange object resembling neither a banner nor a staff.
The ancient talisman radiated brilliant colors, piercing the clouds. The peculiar banner-like object gently swayed, scattering profound light.
The two Grandmasters performed another bow, chanting incantations.
Suddenly, the gray-white stone door of an ancient tomb swung open, unleashing an overwhelming, domineering, and terrifying aura that instantly enveloped the Snowy Mountains. The void trembled and groaned as a figure emerged from within the tomb—clad in feathered robes and crowned with stars, their face obscured by flowing white hair!
He appeared devoid of the breath of life, pressing down upon all living beings in the Snowy Mountains, rendering them motionless. With a single step, he tore through the void, traversing thousands of miles in an instant, bringing the two Grandmasters to hover above the Fish Sea. There, they stood back-to-back with the Vajra warrior, poised to unite against the external threat!
“What a terrifying presence…” Xue Lengzhao, who had already returned to the sect, murmured in a daze, “and that Vajra warrior… No wonder the Master warned that delay might bring disaster…”
As the void split open, the scene near the Fish Sea fleetingly appeared before their eyes, only to vanish in an instant.
…
At the westernmost part of the Snow Mountain Sect, there was a deep, bottomless fissure, filled with rolling black mist, thick with the essence of evil and death, almost tangible.
On the southeastern side of the fissure stood a vast temple unlike any Buddhist temple, dominated by black and blood-red colors, carved with human bones and severed limbs, and adorned with various fierce and terrifying images. Written on its main gate in three massive characters filled with slaughter and resentment were:
“Asura Temple.”
The “Asura King” Luo Hou, with hands larger than ordinary men’s, held a black jade box and walked to the edge of the endless abyss, chanting sinister scriptures while throwing the box downward.
Suddenly, the black mist violently churned, like boiling water, bubbling and gurgling.
It abruptly split apart, and a two-zhang-tall black monster climbed up the cliffside rapidly. Its face was half monkey-like, half skeletal, with two broken black wings on its back.
This monster had four legs and three arms, exuding an aura of evil, corruption, and ferocity so intense that even the “Asura King” Luo Hou instinctively took a few steps back. The surroundings turned pitch-black, as if unknowingly transformed into an abyssal sea.
The monster coldly glanced at Luo Hou, its deep red pupils filled with ruthless cruelty. It determined its direction, and with its four legs, it darted away, covering thousands of miles in mere breaths, quickly arriving beside “Great Asura” Meng Nan.
Meng Nan had already manifested his Dharma body, with three heads and six arms, his skin dark blue-black, his eyes spewing flames, exhaling black mist, appearing wrathful and naked, with only a black cloth wrapped around his waist.
With six arms, he wielded a knife and a sword, a black lotus and a dark flame pearl, as well as a blood-red long spear. Merely standing there, his fierce and wrathful aura dyed the sands and yellow dust of the vast Gobi desert crimson!
…
In the vast Gobi Desert, an external expert from the Eastern Sea, whose greed had not yet compelled him to depart, witnessed only a colossal hand descending, swirling with five colors—green, yellow, red, white, and black. It approached from a distance, instantly shattering his protective secret treasure, breaking through his defensive techniques, plunging his vision into darkness before he lost consciousness.
The “Tai Li” radiating five-colored light casually flung the external expert toward the Demon Lord trailing behind, speaking with detached, almost contemptuous indifference: “Sate your hunger first. More will follow.”
(Note: “妖尊” is translated as “Demon Lord” to convey the hierarchical supernatural authority, while maintaining the original’s dismissive tone. The phrasing “radiating five-colored light” dynamically captures 光’s active emission. The translation preserves the causal cruelty through “flung” and the prophetic threat in “More will follow.”)
As the words fell, Tai Li suddenly turned his head toward the fish sea, lightly laughing: “Faster than expected.”
His body suddenly expanded, transforming into a peacock several zhang tall, with vibrant plumage and five faint tail feathers in green, yellow, red, white, and black, appearing extremely heavy.
“All of you, enter the Tianhai Source first. Do not interfere recklessly,” Tai Li declared, lifting his head with a proud cry as he summoned the other demon kings. With wings spread wide, he soared toward the Fish Sea.
Not far away, a massive white tiger soared into the sky, enveloped in hurricanes and golden energy, moving slightly faster than the Peacock Demon King!
From the southeast of the fish sea, dark clouds gathered, heavy rain poured, the wind howled, thunder roared, and lightning flashed as a single-horned Kuiniu rode along thunderous dragons!
The three great Demon Kings of the Demon Race were launching a joint attack!
…
Chong He, wearing a Taoist crown, sent Qu Jiuniang, Yan Wuwu, and others out of the Buddha light-covered area, then stepped on auspicious clouds, drifting toward the fish sea.
At a seemingly distant location, a refined man stood in midair, with a long beard and surrounded by purple qi. This was none other than “Purple Qi Haoran” Cui Qinghe, who had not yet manifested his Dharma body.
On another side, an elderly man sat cross-legged, his aura fluctuating, seeming both present and absent, as if existing between reality and illusion. This was clearly “Sword Mad” He Qi, whose features resembled He Jiu’s, but with his heroic spirit restrained, his hair white, and his face free of wrinkles.
Chong He pretended not to be associated with them, lightly nodding as a greeting, and focused on the “Angry-Eyed Vajra” striving to break the formation’s core, as well as the white-haired, feather-robed figure beside him without any sign of life.
As for the Great Asura and the four-legged, three-armed monster beside him, Chong He had already anticipated and was not surprised.
At that moment, the three demon kings arrived, confronting him across the lake.
“Amitabha, Master Chong He, humans and demons are irreconcilable. We should unite to repel the Demon Kings before discussing the compilation of the Divine Palm’s general principles.” Before Chong He could even process this thought, Kong Wen’s voice rang in his ears.
Kong Wen held a nine-ringed tin staff, his white eyebrows fluttering, exuding an aura of purity and transcendence as he approached from a distance.
A faint smile appeared on Chong He’s baby-soft, rosy face: “Master Kong Wen, truly humble and compassionate, not clinging to treasures but prioritizing the welfare of all beings.”
At this time, all factions feared arriving too late, with the general principles not yet revealed, maintaining mutual restraint, yet conflict was on the verge of erupting at any moment.
A battle of Dharma bodies seemed poised to erupt at any moment!
…
Master Lu pulled Meng Qi through the void, and soon, the two arrived before Lotus Platform Mountain.
“Old man has a certain rapport with the monk Kong Hui. I should be able to persuade him to cooperate in rescuing the monk Kong Wen,” Master Lu gazed toward the yellow walls and black tiles atop the mountain.
Meng Qi furrowed his brows: “Senior, there’s no need for such trouble. This matter is of utmost importance. Before rescuing Abbot Kong Wen, we must not alert anyone. Hmm, I know that Master Kong Hui has a hidden injury that flares up daily at noon. Perhaps we can use that to sneak in?”
Master Lu nodded slightly, his expression focused: “If that’s the case, then there should be no problem.”
They waited until noon, when Master Lu, using sword qi to carry Meng Qi, took a single step, bypassing all obstacles, directly appearing before the massive red rock at the back of the mountain.
Meng Qi, familiar with the place, opened and closed the door with practiced ease. At the fork in the road, Master Lu sighed, gently pointing his right finger. The Shaolin elder before them, wearing a red robe, fell into a deep sleep before even noticing the intruders.
So powerful… Meng Qi inwardly marveled.
“Sentiment, righteousness, goodness, and benevolence, do not enter this gate”—eight characters still shimmered with glazed radiance, sealing the stone door.
Master Lu stood before the door, eyes half-closed, his breath becoming ethereal, as if no longer present.
Who knows how long passed before he opened his eyes, whispering softly: “Found it.”
He drew his sword. Meng Qi saw only a blinding white light, vaguely perceiving the true tearing of the void, glimpsing both darkness and brilliance coexisting.
When his vision returned, Meng Qi found himself standing before the stone door once more, but the eight characters of “Sentiment, righteousness, goodness, and benevolence, do not enter this gate” no longer exuded any Buddhist aura.
Without a word, Master Lu once again took Meng Qi’s hand, directly passing through the Pure Land, bypassing the previous layers of formations, arriving at the sixth level, as if all the obstacles Meng Qi had previously encountered were mere dust.
“This seems a bit too easy…” Meng Qi mentally wiped away a nonexistent cold sweat.
“Amitabha, thank you, Master Lu,” Kong Wen’s voice transmitted from within the formation.
Master Lu calmly replied: “Mutual support and protection is only right.”
His unsheathed sword, glowing with pure metal essence, casually slashed toward the formation.
Crack!
Meng Qi couldn’t even perceive the sword light, only hearing a crisp sound, but countless things cracked open simultaneously—an entanglement-causality formation, a falling-into-world formation, six items suppressing the formation’s core, and three ancient talismans used by Han Guang to trap Kong Wen. They seemed to split at once, their sounds merging into one.
“Simple, direct, and overwhelming…” These three words naturally arose in Meng Qi’s mind!
Of course, this didn’t mean Master Lu was overpowering Kong Wen. Destroying a formation from the outside was vastly different from breaking it from within. Moreover, over the years, Kong Wen had significantly weakened the formation.
What shocked Meng Qi was that Master Lu didn’t even seem to be exerting his full strength!
“Amitabha, thank you, Master Lu,” Kong Wen, his white eyebrows hanging on both sides, slowly stepped out after a brief pause.
Master Lu transmitted his voice to Meng Qi: “It’s real.”
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