Chapter 671: Counter Pursuit

The atmosphere at the scene suddenly turned quiet due to this subtle change.

Xuankong’er, who had flown a hundred meters away, withdrew her magical treasures and, with a gloomy expression, also fell silent.

The massive crack above Lingcheng had vanished, and the evil demons that had been slain transformed into negative, malevolent energy, which then dissipated under the purification of the Buddha’s light.

On Shui Miao’s side, everyone looked at one another, their expressions uneasy.

The original liquid of a late-stage magical treasure is a rare cosmic treasure. With it, Shui Miao could forge a late-stage magical treasure; with such a treasure, the Heavenly Court could hope to rise again; with it, Shui Miao could stand against Xuankong’er. But now, the late-stage magical treasure had been snatched away by the old monk. This was simply too frustrating to bear.

What made it worse was that the essence of the late-stage magical treasure had been obtained through a joint effort between Shui Miao and the old monk—it should at least have been shared equally.

But now, the old monk had taken it all, a bitter pill impossible to swallow!

“Shui Miao…”

Suddenly, Xuankong’er spoke coldly, “Did you see that? That’s the Buddha Land, that’s their true nature. What should have been yours was taken from you. Doesn’t that make you feel angry inside?”

Xuankong’er had just lost one late-stage magical treasure and knew his power was now insufficient to defeat everyone else, so he had to remain calm.

“Haha, are you trying to sow discord between us?” Shui Miao stepped forward with a slight smile and said, “Xuankong’er, we are not fools, and we won’t fall for your tricks. Weren’t you determined to kill me and conquer the Buddha Land to become an unrivaled overlord? What, have you lost confidence now? Or are you scared?”

Right now, their greatest enemy was still Xuankong’er. Shui Miao would not allow himself to be distracted by anger toward the Buddha Land.

“Hahahaha… Scared?”

Xuankong’er sneered a few times, suddenly vanished in a flash, but his voice echoed across the sky of Buddha Land, “Listen well, all of you! In just three days, I will return with the Wheel of Reincarnation. When that time comes, none of you will escape. You will all die!”

“The Wheel of Reincarnation!”

“This…”

“Oh no! Now we’re in trouble…”

At the mention of the Wheel of Reincarnation, everyone immediately tensed.

The news that the Wheel of Reincarnation was now in Xuankong’er’s hands had finally been confirmed.

If Xuankong’er truly managed to repair the Wheel of Reincarnation, the consequences would be unimaginable.

“Whoosh!”

The old monk, accompanied by a gust of wind, flew to Shui Miao’s side and directly produced half of the original liquid of the late-stage magical treasure, suspending it in front of Shui Miao: “Fellow Daoist, this portion of the liquid is rightfully yours. We shall split it equally. Also, would you help me forge a magical weapon?” He then produced the other half with a wave of his hand.

The liquid had already cooled and solidified, resembling two large stones.

“…”

Looking at the liquid, everyone felt a surge of desire.

This old fellow must have been unable to smelt the liquid, so he had no choice but to ask for help, and thus had agreed to split it. Seeing the two large chunks, Shui Miao’s mind stirred, and he nodded. He immediately channeled his spiritual energy, wrapped up his half of the liquid, and transported it to his spiritual planet. Then he bowed to the old monk and said, “Thank you, Senior Buddha Lord. But may I ask what kind of magical treasure you wish to forge? Whatever it is, if I can do it, I will do my utmost.”

Shui Miao was polite. Forging a weapon and possibly gaining more liquid—how could he pass up such a good opportunity?

“Of course it’s something you can do…” The old monk nodded, his expression serious as he continued directly, “Xuankong’er is a menace, hated by both immortals and Buddhas. Everyone wishes to see him dead. But he still possesses a late-stage magical treasure with astonishing defensive power. My Vajra Demon-Subduing Blade cannot kill him. Therefore, I need to forge a new blade, fusing my Vajra Demon-Subduing Blade with the original liquid of the late-stage magical treasure to enhance its destructive power.”

The old monk’s coldness was somewhat difficult to accept.

Logically, he should at least have greeted Emperor Wenchang and the others first.

Yet, the old monk seemed to ignore everyone completely, as if they weren’t even there.

“That’s a small matter. Leave it to me.” Without hesitation, Shui Miao immediately sat cross-legged, activated his spiritual flame to melt the liquid, and began forging the blade as the old monk had requested. Originally planning to get a bit more for himself, Shui Miao, considering their common enemy Xuankong’er, gave his all and successfully forged a new Vajra Demon-Subduing Blade for the old monk.

The blade was still the same blade.

But the blade’s edge had been entirely replaced with the liquid of the magical treasure.

Good steel should be used on the blade’s edge, let alone this magical treasure liquid!

“What a fine blade! Truly a fine blade! Now, it should be able to take Xuankong’er’s life!”

Late-stage magical treasures do not require awakening; once forged, they merge seamlessly with the user, even more convenient than ordinary magical treasures.

After some time, seeing the new Vajra Demon-Subduing Blade completed successfully, the old monk was visibly moved and praised it enthusiastically. Then, changing the topic, he turned to Shui Miao and said, “Fellow Daoist, Xuankong’er is a vicious fiend. You should forge your weapon quickly, and we shall go find him. We must eliminate him before he repairs the Wheel of Reincarnation, to prevent future troubles.”

“Agreed! That was also my intention.”

Shui Miao’s mind stirred, immediately sitting cross-legged to begin forging his own magical weapon using the liquid.

Emperor Tianyi and Emperor Wenchang exchanged glances, then stepped forward and bowed to the old monk, wanting to make acquaintance on the surface, but secretly hoping to learn more about the old monk’s background. However, before either of them could speak, the old monk bowed to everyone and said in advance, “I’m very sorry. There were heavy casualties in Lingcheng just now, and I must go check on the situation.”

With that, the old monk vanished in a flash.

That was simply too impolite!

Daoism and Buddhism were supposed to be one family. With the decline of the Heavenly Court, who would have thought that Buddhism would look down on them so much!

Emperor Tianyi and Emperor Wenchang looked at each other. Shuitianyi and Chongyuanzi approached as well. Chongyuanzi whispered in doubt, “Fellow Daoists, I’ve visited Xitian Lingcheng several times. Who exactly is this old monk? Why have I never seen him before? Could it be that the Buddha Land deliberately sent an unfamiliar face to deal with us?”

“That is indeed possible…” Emperor Tianyi nodded lightly, “With the Heavenly Court in chaos, all our good treasures are gone, and even the Jade Emperor and the Sage of Heavenly Secrets were puppets created by Xuankong’er. Our strength is weak, so it’s understandable that they look down on us.”

Sighing, Chongyuanzi couldn’t help but say, “If it weren’t for Shui Miao’s appearance, the Heavenly Court would still be under Xuankong’er’s control as puppets.”

At least now, despite everything, they had killed the puppets and restored order to the Heavenly Court.

After a pause, Chongyuanzi took out a brocade pouch and handed it to Emperor Wenchang, “Brother Daoist Wenchang, this pouch contains the souls of ancient immortals I’ve collected. I entrust it to you for safekeeping. The Heavenly Court must not fall into chaos again. I must return to take care of things.”

Indeed, there wasn’t much for Chongyuanzi to do by staying.

“Alright!”

Emperor Wenchang accepted the pouch, and everyone watched Chongyuanzi leave.

“Done!”

Before long, Shui Miao stood up, producing a magical pearl and three fine needles made from late-stage magical treasures!

Given the limited materials, this was all Shui Miao could do.

“Shui Miao, what’s this pearl for?”

Emperor Tianyi looked at the pearl, puzzled about its purpose.

“Haha, it’s still the Soul-Confusing Mirror, but I’ve added a Dream Demon Heart Technique into it. Its power has at least doubled. I believe it will have a particularly unique effect against Xuankong’er.”

Shui Miao grinned and summoned a piece of armor.

The armor looked ordinary, like a simple cloth vest. It was none other than the previously used brocade pouch, which Shui Miao had never been able to melt before. Today, he tried using his spiritual flame and succeeded. So, he decided to use black material to forge a protective vest.

“Senior, let’s depart!”

Now possessing a late-stage magical treasure, Shui Miao’s confidence soared, and he didn’t want to waste any time. He bowed toward Lingcheng and loudly called out.

“Alright! Fellow Daoist, this pearl will guide you to find Xuankong’er. Also, this talisman—once you spot Xuankong’er, activate it, and I will come immediately to assist you.”

The old monk’s voice came from afar.

A seven-colored pearl the size of a fist, with a pair of crimson-gold wings, flew from the direction of Lingcheng, and a yellow talisman descended from the sky, landing in Shui Miao’s hand.

The old monk wasn’t coming along… This surprised Shui Miao slightly. He always felt something was off about the Buddha Land, as if they were plotting something. For now, Shui Miao remained calm, simply acknowledging and agreeing. He then gathered everyone into his spiritual planet and followed the pearl, leaving Buddha Land and returning to the Immortal Realm.

The pearl flew swiftly, heading deep into the universe.

Shui Miao followed closely behind, secretly pondering some unique magical techniques.

If spiritual power could generate divine flames, then it should also be able to produce other elemental forces, such as divine water, divine earth, divine metal…

Through experimentation, Shui Miao indeed managed to summon various elemental forces of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements.

However, none of these forces were as powerful as the divine flame.

“Buzzzzzzzz…”

After flying for a while, the pearl hovered at the edge of a black hole spanning several miles in diameter, frantically flapping its wings to resist the powerful suction.

“This can’t be!”

Shui Miao was somewhat incredulous. A black hole could swallow everything—could someone really hide inside?

“Buzz…”

As Shui Miao was thinking, the pearl suddenly flew into the black hole and disappeared.

“If Xuankong’er can enter, so can I!”

Worried that the old monk might have ulterior motives, Shui Miao did not activate the talisman to summon him but instead flew straight into the black hole himself.

“Uh, such immense suction!”

As soon as he entered the black hole, Shui Miao was immediately pulled by the overwhelming force, losing his balance and spinning uncontrollably, plunging rapidly into the pitch-black abyss…