Chapter 1050: I Alone Am Invincible
Mad Sword was Bai Jianzhen's sword dao. Perhaps she was not the most invincible in the younger generation, but she was certainly incomparable with regard to the sword. She was at the apex, an unsurpassable supreme existence.
In the past, the Mortal King had lost to this Mad Sword Dao and was cornered by her.
"Buzz—" Li Qiye's Buddhist light soared even higher. The Buddhist light turned into Buddhist swords of endless length. They carried a peaceful and gentle aura.
If Bai Jianzhen's Mad Sword was a raging storm in the middle of an ocean, then Li Qiye's Buddhist Sword was a sea of Buddhism. They were two polar opposites. One was furious and the other tranquil.
"Boom!" The two oceans of swords collided. The furious swords quickly entered the Buddhist sea. Upon receiving this blow, the Buddhist sea generated a huge tidal wave.
The tranquil Buddhist sea was agitated by the stormy sea. However, it also affected the other side.
Despite its furious nature, the Mad Sword Dao was shaken by the calmness of the surroundings. It gradually melted under the Buddhist sea's serenity and gained the same peacefulness.
Bai Jianzhen was shocked after seeing this. Her dao of the sword emphasized fury. Once unleashed, it was unstoppable until everything was destroyed. If the Mad Sword became calm, then it would cease to be the Mad Sword.
Bai Jianzhen's sword intent rose even higher and unleashed shockwaves throughout the sky. This endless sword intent resembled thousands of waterfalls rushing to the sky in order to empower the Mad Sword.
"Merciful Buddha, Excellent, Excellent." Li Qiye chanted his dharma. His Buddhist intent instantly engulfed her sword intent, causing it to slow down.
Bai Jianzhen saw that the situation wasn't good and turned around to leave. At this time, losing was not shameful to her at all. Her departure was extremely fast and there was no trace of her remaining after a split second.
"Bang!" Without Bai Jianzhen's support, the raging sea of swords instantly moldered, no longer capable of stopping Li Qiye's Buddhist swords.
"Not bad." Li Qiye voiced his praise, but he didn't give chase.
This battle had finally ended. Whether it was the ambush from a God-Monarch or the final battle of the younger generation, everything ended.
Jikong Wudi, Heavenly Emperor Lin… all the supreme geniuses had lost. Even their combined efforts couldn't defeat Evil Buddha.
"Is he the number one of the younger generation now?" The crowd was silent for a long time while they looked at Evil Buddha. In their eyes, it was impossible for the other geniuses to beat Evil Buddha unless they were able to become Emperor Candidates.
"Maybe, just maybe, one person can take him on." Someone thought of a different invincible master and murmured: "South Emperor, he might be able to."
After hearing this, the crowd recalled the tales of South Emperor. Maybe only someone like him would be able to oppose Evil Buddha.
Li Qiye withdrew his Buddhist light and became ordinary once more, transforming from a Buddhist Lord into a mortal. Who would have thought that this normal looking guy was able to sweep through all enemies?
"Anyone else want to try for this lotus?" Li Qiye leisurely glanced at the crowd. However, both those nearby and the spectators on the horizon were quiet.
No one dared to utter a word, they only kept on staring at him. At this point, who would dare to try him? Even a God-Monarch with an imperial weapon had died miserably. Others naturally couldn't match up to him.
"Such a good lotus yet no one wants it, I guess I have to take it then." Li Qiye cheerfully smirked and collected the lotus.
Even if others wanted to, they didn't dare to compete with him. Maybe there was a little hope for someone of the Godking level, but not them.
The only one who stayed behind among his opponents was Bing Yuxia. She stood there and stared at him from start to finish. She was certain of her speculation and knew who this Evil Buddha was.
"What now, girl? You still don't want to leave?" Li Qiye smiled at Bing Yuxia who was staring at him: "Should I send you off?"
She angrily glared at Li Qiye before turning around to go back to her chariot. With beauties on both sides, she said: "Ladies, time to leave." With that, her chariot disappeared into the horizon.
Li Qiye glanced at the large lake for a bit but didn't linger behind. He slowly walked towards the Buddhist City instead.
Many spectators dispersed after seeing him leave. There were also those who stayed behind to wait for the opening of the Lesser Deva World.
"When can we actually go to the lesser world?" A junior lost his patience while looking at the tranquil lake.
A paragon that had lived for several generations spoke: "Who knows? It depends on how long Spirit Mountain takes to remove the seal. It might take a while this time since Evil Buddha channeled the power of the plateau. That might have had a great impact on Spirit Mountain."
"Evil Buddha is back." Someone shouted right when Li Qiye appeared in the Buddhist City. The entire city erupted into a clamor.
Those who saw him took the long way around; no one dared to come close. He was someone who was feared by all people and even made devils nervous.
It was not an exaggerated response to the killing of a God-Monarch and defeating all geniuses. In the eyes of many, no one except the South Emperor could compete with him among the younger generation.
He was the center of attention after entering the city. Both young and old and even a few God-Monarchs hiding behind the curtains had their eyes on him.
Someone curiously asked: "Will Evil Buddha fight South Emperor?"
This was the question on everyone's minds. In fact, it could even be said that the crowd wanted nothing more than for this to happen. It would be a good thing regardless of who won.
"Jikong Wudi's group all lost." A pedestrian murmured. Everyone knew that this group was the most promising to compete for the Heaven's Will. However, they lost completely. Even Jikong Wudi, Heavenly Emperor Lin, and Zhan Shi fighting together couldn't hurt Evil Buddha in the slightest, it was an utter defeat.
"I wonder how strong Evil Buddha truly is?" In fact, paragons from the previous generation with keen insight wondered: "If he leaves the Buddhist Funeral Plateau, will he still be invincible?"
The insightful in the crowd all saw that Evil Buddha had never revealed his true power. From beginning to end, he only borrowed power from the plateau!
In this way, his true strength was a mystery. Many people wanted to unravel it, but they didn't dare to do so.
"Hmph, if he leaves the plateau, he probably isn't a match for Deity's group. He is only unbeatable by relying on the plateau." A few youths stated.
All of the young geniuses had many supporters who unavoidably felt indignant after seeing them lose.
In just one night, the entire city was talking about Evil Buddha. Even after such a great battle, no one knew anything about him, including his identity and real strength.
Because of this, rumors about Evil Buddha started circulating. Some said that Evil Buddha was born in an imperial lineage. Upon birth, a bright Buddhist phenomenon emerged, so he started practicing Buddhism at a young age while keeping his hair. Others said that he cultivated the legendary Heavenly Buddhist Scripture, which is why he is so invincible and never met his match during the Buddhist debates at Spirit Mountain. A more ridiculous version claimed that before even coming into this world, he was a Buddhist embryo. This made him destined to become the only Buddhist Emperor since the start of time… 1
Rumors spread everywhere overnight and became more outrageous by the minute. However, they were nothing more than figments of the gossipers' imagination.
"Boom!" On this night, a Buddhist light erupted above Spirit Mountain. A golden grand dao from the mountain paved the way straight to the Buddhist City.
At this moment, one person walked onto the path. It was a Vajra with a huge Buddhist Kingdom behind him. Inside the kingdom were millions and millions of sacred monks. There were also Buddhist Lords, Bodhisattvas, and other Vajras… All of the living beings there worshiped Buddhism.
The leading Vajra's appearance filled the entire plateau with chants. They were all reciting scriptures for him.
His appearance caused countless stupas to rise. One could easily see that he had accomplished countless acts of kindness in his life. 2
The Vajra was carrying a huge Buddhist pestle. This pestle on his back seemed to have endless weight, capable of crushing the sky and suppressing all evil.
Each of his steps caused the entire plateau to quake, as if it couldn't bear his weight.
This Vajra coming out shocked countless people in the plateau. Even Godkings had serious expressions on their faces.
Different word than Di Shi. This one is much more literal. ↩ To understand this sentence, one has to know the idiom it is based on. The idiom is “Saving a life is a holier deed than to build a stupa of seven stories.” My interpretation is that instead of worshipping Buddha himself, be a better person, be kind to others. ↩Chapter 1051: Vaisravana Vajra
The people inside the Buddhist City were startled to see this Vajra approaching. Both Buddhist worshipers and mortals dropped to the floor in worship.
"Who is that?" Someone murmured while looking at the Vajra. Not to mention the younger generation, even many of the older paragons didn't know who it was.
"Vaisravana Vajra, the legendary guardian Vajra of Spirit Mountain." An old God-Monarch recognized him and spoke: "Even though the guardian protector of Buddhism is Skanda Vajra, no one has seen him before. However, Vaisravana Vajra is indeed the guardian of the mountain." 1
"Is he unbeatable?" The junior of this old God-Monarch saw the presence of the Vajra and was in awe.
"Very powerful." The monarch muttered: "Rumor has it that before this Vajra came to Spirit Mountain, he had no match in the entire nine worlds. Some even speculated that he was able to assail an Immortal Emperor. However, no one knew the details. After joining Spirit Mountain, he never took action again, but he was still ranked top among the mountain's protectors. The common belief outside is that this Vajra is the most powerful in terms of strength in the mountain! The eighteen Vajras combined might not necessarily be able to defeat him."
Eventually, everyone saw the Vajra approach Li Qiye's abode.
"He wants to see Evil Buddha…" Someone exclaimed after seeing the Vajra's destination.
Even though everyone saw the Vajra going there, none of them dared to approach to spy on the meeting.
Another murmured: "All along, I heard that the Vajras and Bodhisattvas in Spirit Mountain won't leave it. But now, the strongest Vajra actually left, this is insane."
"Maybe Evil Buddha made too big of a commotion by borrowing the power of Spirit Mountain. This enraged them, so Vaisravana Vajra is coming down to take him in to avoid further trouble." Someone was really looking forward to it.
In fact, many people wanted this to happen. It would be great if Spirit Mountain could imprison Evil Buddha. This would allow the crowd to finally breathe easy.
Li Qiye still sat there quietly after Vaisravana appeared in his room. He only gave a quick glance to the vajra who was carrying his ceremonial weapon.
Li Qiye smiled lightly and said: "What now, does Spirit Mountain want to move against me?" He was still carefree in the face of the strongest Vajra.
"Sacred Teacher already has control over the power of the plateau, Vaisravana is not a match for you." The Vajra placed his palms together and bowed: "I came at midnight without an invitation, I hope Sacred Teacher can understand."
Li Qiye remained seated in the master chair and spoke: "I understand, so tell me why the Radiant Bodhisattva sent you here."
"Sacred Teacher, you are taking control of our plateau's power." Even the Vajra that had jumped out of this mundane world couldn't help but smile wryly at this time.
"I can't be blamed for that." Li Qiye smiled: "If the Bodhisattva thinks I am abusing the plateau's power, then there's nothing I can do about it. One thought to become Buddha, another to become Devil — this issue does not lie with me, it is ingrained in your plateau. I am not forcefully taking your plateau's power, for this is the fundamental principle of Spirit Mountain. I have become Buddha, so this place accepts me."
"Since I have such a great power in my grasp, I would be a fool not to use it." Li Qiye continued: "If your Spirit Mountain or the Buddhist Kingdom wants to complain, then go find Di Shi or that broken pot. Of course, whether you all can see them or not is a different matter."
"We dare not complain." The Vajra replied: "The Bodhisattva only hopes that Sacred Teacher will refrain from using the power of the plateau so trivially. When you do so, you gather the force in its entirety. This makes the millions of monks here worry that you are forcefully stripping them of their faith."
"I see what the Bodhisattva is trying to say." Li Qiye smiled: "Well, I'm afraid I can't comply. When I challenged your temples, I was only using them to sharpen my dharma, to perfect my transformation into Buddha. I don't have anything I want from Spirit Mountain." He paused for a bit to look at the Vajra and gently shook his head: "But now, your Spirit Mountain wants something from me. Since I never took anything from you, you can't ask me to stop using the power of the plateau."
Li Qiye couldn't help but chuckle before starting his next point: "After defeating those juniors who aren't too shabby, I trust that the big shots behind them are coming. I want to try to use the real power of the plateau at least once. Today was only using a butcher's blade to kill a chicken, sigh, it was not satisfying at all."
"I actually hope for Emperor Assailants to come so that I can use the chance to kill those who are blind." With that, Li Qiye narrowed his eyes and revealed a gentle smile.
If Jikong Wudi's group heard this, who knows if they would feel lucky or sad that Evil Buddha only used so little power to defeat them.
If Li Qiye truly channeled the power of the plateau, then not to mention Jikong Wudi's group, even giants capable of assailing Immortal Emperors would be slaughtered.
The power of the plateau was beyond their imagination. Only Immortal Emperors would know of its limit. Otherwise, Immortal Emperor Hao Hai wouldn't have stopped coming to the plateau for all those generations.
After hearing this, Vaisravana pondered for a moment before asking: "What does Sacred Teacher want?"
Li Qiye finally revealed a true smile and said: "What I want is very simple, that thing in the other space. If your Spirit Mountain gives it to me, then I can guarantee not to use the power of the plateau again from now on."
Even though Vaisravana had severed his ties with the mundane world, he still had to sigh softly. If Spirit Mountain didn't give something up, this guy definitely would not stop.
He understood that the Sacred Teacher was only playing around with this power against the numerous experts. He simply didn't care about defeating the enemies or borrowing the plateau’s power, his intent was actually on that other item.
Li Qiye dismissively said: "I am someone who has always been merciful, don't you think? If I really wanted to rob that item from you guys, I would have done so long ago. After all, since I am such a sentimental and considerate person and your Spirit Mountain took in several old generals and sages of mine, I didn't flip your mountain over just for the item."
He looked at the Vajra and continued: "I'm quite reasonable as well. Even though I have some grudges with your Nihility Temple, I have never directed it at your Spirit Mountain. Of course, although I won't go bother you all, I will be more than happy to slaughter all of those Immortal Emperor's generals and invincible Godkings if they are without eyes and come to provoke me in the near future."
"The power of the Buddhist Funeral Plateau… this is good. Let the world witness the invincible might of the plateau, the strength of our Buddhism. What do you think, Vaisravana?" Li Qiye leisurely smiled.
"The Bodhisattva has anticipated Sacred Teacher's wish." Eventually, Vaisravana spoke helplessly: "So, he has sent me here to hand it over to Sacred Teacher so that you can go to that place. However, whether you can obtain that other thing or not has nothing to do with Spirit Mountain." With that, he handed a Buddhist container over to Li Qiye.
Li Qiye opened it for a look and then closed it before smiling: "It is still the Radiant Bodhisattva who understands me the most. He is truly extraordinary with peerless wisdom. If he didn't join Spirit Mountain to become a monk at your plateau, I would have wanted to groom him into an Immortal Emperor."
Vaisravana didn't know what to say. Being watched over by an existence like this Sacred Teacher was the same as being a fish on the chopping block. He was a hawk who would not let go until he spotted and caught the rabbit.
"Your Spirit Mountain can rest easy, I am a man of my word." Li Qiye put the box away and smiled: "I have taken your item, so from today onward, I shall not use your Buddhist Funeral Plateau's power."
"Thank you, Sacred Teacher." The Vajra formed a mudra and bowed towards Li Qiye.
Li Qiye smilingly said: "You all can relax now. Tell those other monks to keep chanting in peace. Something like today won't happen again, no one will try to strip them of their faith."
The Vajra didn't say anything else. He bowed again and left.
Meanwhile, the people in the city were all watching Evil Buddha's place; they were looking forward to an earth-shattering fight between Vaisravana Vajra and him.
Unfortunately, such a battle did not happen. They only watched the Vajra leave with no discernible change in his calm demeanor.
They didn't know what actually happened in there. They only felt that it was a shame that no battle had taken place.
However, on the second day, many temples in the plateau received a message. From now on, there would be no more absorption of the Buddhist affinity in this area. The countless monks here could continue their days as usual while chanting and meditating.
"Is it true?" Many cultivators heard this news as well. One person curiously asked: "Does that mean Evil Buddha won't be able to use the power of the Buddhist Funeral Plateau anymore?"
While many were quite skeptical of this news, another rumor quickly spread in a short amount of time.
"Evil Buddha has quietly left the Buddhist City, and no one is certain of his direction." No one knew who the first was to receive this message, but it traveled across the city like wildfire.
Vaisravana is one of the Four Heavenly Kings, not a Vajra. The author is using the names/titles of these figures and adding Vajra to them. His prefix means "All-hearing" — the Heavenly King that can listen to the entire world. ↩Chapter 1052: Venerable Ninesword
"Evil Buddha left the city?" The crowd crazily celebrated after hearing this message.
"Evil Buddha has really left the city!" People were able to breathe easy after this news was confirmed.
"Haha, it looks like he was banished by Spirit Mountain." Thinking about the visit of the Vajra last night in addition to the news sent to all the temples at the plateau, the cultivators in the city unanimously thought that Evil Buddha had been banished.
"Borrowing external force will never end well. The only correct path of cultivation is to rely on oneself." Some laughed gloatingly: "Evil Buddha is smart. After losing the power of the plateau, he should be a nice turtle and shrink his head into his shell, or else he won't survive past tomorrow."
People then tried to figure out Evil Buddha's destination. They had all kinds of different thoughts. Some believed that with his banishment, his combat prowess must have weakened a lot. If they could use this opportunity to kill him, they would become famous right away. Of course, others were also looking for him with different intents.
His departure was a huge relief, even for people like Jikong Wudi. He used his own strength to fight against the world, fortifying his existence as a shadow that loomed over their minds.
Even though many people were searching for his whereabouts, he seemed to have evaporated into thin air after leaving the city. No one knew where he went.
"Haha, at least he knows his own circumstances, running away like a dog with his tail tucked between his leg." Someone sneered.
"If someone reports the whereabouts of Evil Buddha, the reward is one Virtuous Paragon weapon. Take his head and it will be a God-Monarch's treasure." While the crowd was excited, the Soaring Heavenly Saintess suddenly showed up and sent out this bounty.
The crowd glanced at each other. Back during the competition for the Buddhist lotus, the saintess ran away like a dog that had lost its owner, not daring to show her face.
But now, after hearing about his banishment by Spirit Mountain, she suddenly put such a high bounty on his head! Many were quite surprised by her choice of action and became tempted. After all, a treasure from a God-Monarch was too much to pass up. Plus, Evil Buddha should be much weaker now, taking his head might not be a difficult matter.
Of course, some were dismissive of her as well. When Evil Buddha was at his zenith like the sun at noon, she ran away while pissing her pants and hid in her rat hole without uttering a single word.
Now that Evil Buddha had lost his advantage, she came here prancing around. They didn't like such wretched behavior.
Regardless of the opinion of others, the saintess had to do this. When she tried to establish her authority and show off her might, Evil Buddha completely annihilated her. If she didn't kill him, it would be too detrimental to her wish of becoming the future representative of the Soaring Immortal Sect in the Mortal Emperor World. Her aspiration would become a fool's wish. Thus, no matter the price, she must take his head.
Therefore, after several days without any news of Evil Buddha, she raised the bounty: "Those who have information about Evil Buddha's whereabouts will be rewarded with two Virtuous Paragon's Life Treasures. Those who bring his head will receive a God-Monarch's treasure as well as a set of ancient armor!"
This increase in rewards made even more people search for Evil Buddha; even more desired the treasures now.
In the eyes of many experts, Evil Buddha wouldn't have run if he still had the power of the plateau. This was the best time to take his head.
"A bunch of naive fools." South Emperor, who was still staying behind at the plateau, heard this news and laughed: "They don't even know the kind of behemoths they are facing. It looks like some people want to be massacred."
Jikong Wudi's group only smiled after seeing the saintess make her move. Even though they wanted to defeat Evil Buddha as well, they still maintained a graceful bearing befitting their status. To do something like what the saintess was doing was a huge disgrace and would be an affront to their reputation as geniuses!
"Thud, thud, thud…" A very strange sound came from the Buddhist City. It was as if someone was knocking on the sky with a particular rhythm.
After a while, someone finally saw a person walking from the horizon. He walked very slowly like an eighty year old man floundering about.
In fact, this newcomer looked just like an old man, at least from the perspective of a mortal.
This wizened man had winter-white hair and a bamboo branch in his hand. He slowly came from the horizon while seemingly struggling with all of his might due to his staggering.
However, contrary to his appearance, the old man was walking extremely fast. In fact, each of his steps spanned ten thousand miles.
"Who is that man?" Many saw this old man approaching from the distance. After each step, he would knock with the bamboo branch in his hand as if he was afraid of falling down from the sky. They were quite puzzled by this.
No one could recognize this old man, yet they didn't dare to look down on him either.
Eventually, many saw Zhan Shi personally go out to welcome this old man into his abode.
"Old Immortal, rumored to be the strongest and oldest ancestor of the Rampaging Divine Mountain." An ancient God-Monarch guessed his identity after seeing Zhan Shi going out to see him.
"Legend states that the Rampaging Divine Mountain was created by Immortal Emperor Jiao Heng. Who knows if this is true or not? But if it is, then their oldest and most powerful ancestor must be very terrifying." A Virtuous Paragon turned serious after speaking.
Zhan Shi came from the Rampaging Divine Mountain located in the Western Desolate Wasteland. It was a very mysterious lineage with numerous myths surrounding it. Some believed that this place was created by Immortal Emperor Jiao Heng, but few actually knew the truth.
"This old geezer came as well." South Emperor saw this oldest ancestor from the mountain and smiled: "I wonder how much he actually learned from his ancestor. However, it is all for naught. If he actually obtained Immortal Emperor Jiao Heng's legacy, then it would be worth seeing. Alas, his ancestor was only an old servant of the emperor."
South Emperor was one of the very few who knew about the Rampaging Divine Mountain's origin. It was not created by Immortal Emperor Jiao Heng, but his old servant instead. Of course, this old servant had been personally taught by the emperor before.
"Screchh!" An eagle's cry echoed across the nine firmaments. After the Old Immortal from the divine mountain came to the Buddhist City, the cry of this eagle disturbed everyone. They all went outside to take a look.
A gigantic Demon King was flying at swift speeds. Its wings blotted out the sun, causing the region to be drowned in darkness. A beastly aura assaulted everyone in the sky, giving the sensation that millions of Heavenly Eagles were soaring closer.
"Another big shot is coming." Many people couldn't sit still after seeing this Demon King flying towards the Buddhist City. Virtuous Paragons and eternal existences recognized this Demon King and were quite shocked.
"Heavenly Eagle Demon King…" An ancestor was aghast after sensing the murderous and powerful aura from the Demon King and murmured: "This is a vanguard from Immortal Emperor Ta Kong's legion! Which one of Immortal Emperor Ta Kong's generals is coming?"
The spectators were shocked after hearing this and had to take deep breaths. People knew that the Space Trample Mountain was Jikong Wudi's backing, and it was quite powerful. Jikong Wudi didn't let people down either. With an aptitude that consisted of three saint level constitutions, he was destined to become a deity of this generation.
Today, an unparalleled character finally arrived to the dismay of the crowd.
"Venerable Ninesword is coming." A God-Monarch behind the scenes knew the Space Trample Mountain very well and spoke: "The Heavenly Eagle Demon King is a great demon below the venerable as well as his scouting vanguard. His arrival means that the venerable is coming as well."
Sure enough, not long after the Heavenly Eagle Demon King came to the Buddhist City, a rumbling sound came from the distance. A chariot soared through the sky.
This chariot was not luxurious and instead was quite simple and old. There were no superfluous decorations for it was laden with battle scars from swords and broken arrows. Without a doubt, it had seen many battlefields.
An old man was sitting on the chariot with nine divine swords on his back. Even though he didn't emit a heaven-shattering aura and had his eyes closed, people knew that the moment he opened his eyes, the world would have to change its color.
Even Virtuous Paragons quivered after seeing this old man. An expert's intuition told them that this old man ahead was extremely frightening and mighty.
"Venerable Ninesword, an invincible general under Immortal Emperor Ta Kong." An ancestor murmured with an aghast expression.
The city became silent right away. First, Old Immortal came, and now it was Venerable Ninesword's turn. Which other powerful existences were about to arrive and shock the crowd? As for the cultivators with humble backgrounds, they were clever enough to hide without saying a word.
Chapter 1053: Broken Metal
They saw Jikong Wudi personally go greet Venerable Ninesword. It was a very simple ceremony, but people were still shaken all the same.
An ancestor from the previous generation had seen the venerable in action before. He murmured in dejection: "Venerable Ninesword… When all nine blades come out, they will destroy the world. Who will be able to stop him?"
Everyone knew that every imperial lineage had their own power and resources. It could even be said that the majority of them had buried generals to keep them alive until now.
But the more shocking thing was still the Space Trample Mountain. Because Immortal Emperor Ta Kong was the most recent emperor, he was too close to the contemporary times. Many ancestors still recognized his generals or had even seen them sweep through this world.
Therefore, the generals that remained in this world were truly stirring. Moreover, these generals were younger than those of any other imperial lineage.
"Old Immortal from the Rampage Divine Mountain and Venerable Ninesword from the Space Trample Mountain, why did these two giants come?" A junior was confused about their sudden appearance.
"To protect the dao…" The older generation clearly understood: "The path towards Immortal Emperor will be increasingly brutal, so the most powerful dao protectors behind Jikong Wudi's group are all coming into being."
After hearing this, the crowd recalled the fight several days ago when Evil Buddha swept through all the geniuses. Against a heaven-defying existence like him, ordinary dao protectors wouldn't do since he could easily kill even God-Monarchs!
They understood that Jikong Wudi's group felt threatened. Against opponents like Evil Buddha and South Emperor, their current dao protectors would most likely only die in a confrontation. Only existences like Venerable Ninesword would be able to handle them.
"I heard the Jewel Pillar Mortal King's dao protector is also here. I'm told that after the last time this dao protector saved him from Bai Jianzhen, he had not appeared again. This time, he is finally here at the Buddhist City." A well-informed bystander heard this news very quickly.
This dao protector had always been very mysterious. No one knew his origin and some even speculated that he wasn't from the Jewel Pillar School. Aside from the Mortal King himself, no one had seen his face.
Someone curiously asked: "The dao protectors of Zhan Shi, Jikong Wudi, and the Mortal King are all here, what about the others?"
An ancestor who had a good relationship with the sacred ground answered: "I heard an extremely mighty ancestor from the Sword God Sacred Ground came as well, but rumor has it that Bai Jianzhen denied her ancestor's protection."
"I still feel that Heavenly Emperor Lin is in the worst position." A big shot commented: "In my opinion, among the younger generation, Heavenly Emperor Lin has the weakest background but was able to reach the same height as the rest of the group. It makes sense to say that he is even more remarkable than them."
No one denied this claim. Everyone knew that Heavenly Emperor Lin came from a mortal family with a literary background. Even with this, he still surged forward without the aid of a powerful master. In the end, he was not inferior to Jikong Wudi's group. Everyone admired him for overcoming his humble background.
"Sigh, I'm afraid Heavenly Emperor Lin will always be at a disadvantage in the future battle for the Heaven's Will. The rest of the group has such powerful backings and dao protectors, only Lin is alone. What is he going to do in order to keep up?" Someone felt that it was unfair for Heavenly Emperor Lin.
The crowd nodded in agreement and felt sorry for Lin.
Meanwhile, Li Qiye had disappeared and no one could find him. This wasn't strange at all because he had entered a different timespace.
In this realm was a vast emptiness. There was nothing besides time and space, let alone any living creature. Eventually, he stopped before this void and looked towards the distance. There was a piece of broken steel far away.
It was neither black nor gray. Strangely enough, its color was quite difficult to discern and had no semblance to the shade of metal. It could even be said that this wasn't a piece of metal at all.
Li Qiye chuckled and murmured while looking at this broken metal: "It is too wasteful to not make something out of this great item. If the monks from Spirit Mountain won't do it, you can come with me instead."
The broken steel quietly remained there in space without any reaction. Li Qiye slowly approached. Once he was close enough, a sudden blast resounded. A sea of blood gushed out and engulfed the world. It instantly blotted out this spatial realm. Inside this sea of blood were countless corpses.
This all seemed too real and captivating. Anyone who saw this scene would be frightened out of their mind.
Li Qiye simply narrowed his eyes at this sight. He focused his mind and the sea of blood quickly disappeared along with the corpses. At this time, there appeared the verdant lushness of trees shouldering the sky. Green vegetation was everywhere, painting a picture of paradise.
But the next moment, Li Qiye changed his thoughts and the thick forest disappeared. A Buddhist light soared for countless miles. A majestic Buddha emerged in space with incredible tangibility.
Li Qiye smiled and shifted his mind again. Next, endless universal laws rushed upward. They frantically intertwined yet that frenzy had a type of order. However, they were too profound and mysterious. The process went on for a while before the laws couldn't continue any longer. With a pop, they all shattered…
"You are still far too lacking compared to that broken pot. A failure is still a failure, can't compare to the real one." Li Qiye leisurely taunted.
Alas, the broken metal was still motionless. It had no reaction after failing.
"One thought to become Buddha, another to become Devil." Li Qiye smiled: "Even if you are only a failed creation, you are still peerless and I happen to need you."
With that, he opened his fate palace and the World Seal flew out. In the blink of an eye, it turned into the Bright Flame Cauldron. After opening, an endless imperial flame poured out.
Li Qiye controlled the cauldron and used this flame to melt the metal. However, despite the raging fire, there was no change to the metal.
Keep in mind that his World Seal had copied the Bright Flame Cauldron. Although there was a certain gap between it and the real deal, its power was still quite formidable. This type of imperial flame could incinerate a great power at a moment's notice.
But now, this fire failed to melt the metal.
Li Qiye shouted: "Open—" The cauldron changed and an endless imperial might ravaged this space. Li Qiye had finally unleashed a Heavenly Annihilation — the Karmic Imperial Flame!
The raging power of this karmic flame was quite terrifying and capable of burning through space and time. Just a little bit of this fiery essence could destroy an entire country.
However, the metal didn't undergo a great change even after being struck by this annihilation. After being burned for a long time, it only began to turn red.
"Incredible, definitely tough enough. Of course, this is exactly what I want." Li Qiye murmured to himself: "There might not be a flame in this world that can melt you. But coincidentally enough, I have just the thing."
With that, he took out the green lamp. The quaint lamp had a wavering black flame that seemed as if it would go out at any time.
"Go!" Li Qiye shouted and used his Resplendent Break to activate the lamp.
"Boom!" The black flame incinerated all things. With this ultimate attack, even time was burnt to a crisp. Everything in this space was destroyed. Nothing could stop this lamp’s black flame. Even if immortals existed in the heavens, this black flame would still burn them to ashes.
This attack was really too powerful, even Godkings would be annihilated.
Finally, under the heat of the constantly scorching flame, the piece of metal began to melt. Li Qiye channeled his merit law and all four Inner Physiques emerged at the same time — Hell Suppressing, Soaring Immortal, Sky Destroyer, and Void Imperfection.
At the same time, he opened his palace while singing an immortal scripture. The most profound law in this world surfaced while the strands of laws inside the broken metal were being melted down.
Li Qiye channeled his supreme art to refine this metal. In this zone, there was no sun and moon, so one couldn't tell the time. Eventually, the metal was completely refined by Li Qiye.
Finally, he opened all of his palaces. With a loud explosion, a kingdom appeared behind him with endless blood energy as if it was the most powerful kingdom in this world.
Such vast blood energy did not come from Li Qiye but rather the pool of blood from the Blood Primal Ground and the kingdom of blood of the Blood-devil Tribe.
Li Qiye murmured: "This the perfect stuff to feed you."
The pool of blood came from the legendary Blood Progenitor while the kingdom of blood was made by Immortal Emperors. Li Qiye required a lot of effort to refine these two types of blood. This was the perfect opportunity to use them.
After refining it well, he polished it again using the runes from the Physique Scripture in another ritual.