Chapter 1428: Wei Xuanyin (I)

Lower Luo Plains.

The sky was dim and heavy. Sword light rose and fell in the gloom. A man in black stood quietly in the dark wind, holding a bronze sword.

Brilliant light still flowed along that bronze sword, as though it had only just cut down the dharma body of some Merciful Ones. The blade shone with dazzling radiance. Rolling sandstorms and drifting dust light swirled before him, while the sound of earth and stone splitting rang out on every side.

He held a patch of ground by himself, surrounded by clusters of black wind. Not far away, Daoist Master Zhusheng stood with his sword held crosswise, stabilizing the endlessly roaring purple-red light.

Kuiqi's expression remained calm and his gaze cold. On the other side, Ning Wan was even more silent.

The Supreme Yang Dao lineage had already committed all of its forces in this great battle.

Aside from Ning Wan herself, there were Tinglan of the Purple Smoke Blessed Land, Kuiqi and Houfu of Xiukui Dao Gate, Yushui of the Chen Family, Zhaojing of the Li Family, Zhusheng of Shahuang Kingdom, Daoist Master Luo of the southern border, Chehong of the Chunyi Dao, Kuangyu who was a friend of Hengxing, and even Ling Mei of the Sword Gate!

Even Zhugong, who had long since departed to the outer-sea, had hurried back. She now waited silently at Mount Xiaoshi to assist Tinglan.

If there were a next time, there would be no way to gather more people than this.

When the group first charged into this place, they had truly cut through like splitting bamboo and severely wounded Zhelu. But the Lower Luo region lay directly before Zhao State and was naturally the first place to receive reinforcements. The enemy had arrived almost at once.

Once they had come, they had come. Whether Kuiqi or Ning Wan, none of them had ever expected to seize an advantage in the north and leave unscathed. Yet the enemies who arrived one after another were far beyond expectation...

Most striking of all was the enormous golden body before them. It towered into the clouds and shone with dazzling brilliance. Four Purple Mansion Realm cultivators were suppressing it together, causing divine abilities to flash across the plain as light spread everywhere and dust billowed.

Cultivators of the Compassion Dao usually bore large bellies, but this golden body was quite different. It was hunched low and bent forward. Though the golden body itself was vast and magnificent, it resembled a stooped old man with his waist bent deeply. Upon its shoulders rested a towering golden mountain.

Lotus flowers covered the ground upon it; gold filled the mountain; eminent monks chanted scriptures; and disciples sought learning. Some sat cross-legged while others floated in the air. The mountain itself was immense, and the figures upon it were as small as ants. There were hundreds of thousands or even millions of them, as though the body carried an entire Buddhist kingdom upon its back. The sight was incomparably majestic.

This Buddhist kingdom connected upward to the world and extended into the boundless Buddhist land. Thousands upon thousands of rays of light descended from the sky, blessing the monks upon the mountain, and then gathering upon the Maha's dharma body that bore the mountain on its back, as though they were about to condense into substance.

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

This was the seventh-generation Maha of the Compassion Dao, Beigu.

His waist bent extremely low. The face that looked toward the earth was filled with guilt and unease. Yet another face grew from the Fengfu acupoint[1] behind the golden body's head, almost reaching down toward the neck. That face bore an expression of compassion and mercy, quietly gazing with a gentle smile at the golden mountain upon his back.

This man had become the most honored Maha of the Compassion Dao ever since Murong Xia achieved the ninth generation and connected with the Dharma Master, no longer leaving the Buddhist land. He was also the fastest cultivating Maha in history. Even Maha Jinlian, who was once famous for his extraordinary innate ability, advanced far more slowly than him.

His path was even more unusual. It was as though he nurtured a Buddhist land of his own, closely tied to the Compassion Dao. The radiance of that Buddhist land was extremely powerful and impossible to separate from him, granting him tremendous might.

He alone stood on the battlefield, yet forced the crowd to surround and attack him. Even after reinforcements arrived to break the encirclement, Ning Wan, Chehong, Houfu, and Yushui remained behind to continue the siege. Though Beigu’s dharma body trembled and golden blood spilled from his mouth, the two faces upon the head that hung so low it nearly struck the ground still bore expressions of compassion, mercy, guilt, and unease. Not a trace of emotion shifted.

"What a formidable Buddhist kingdom."

Houfu stared at the opponent, his expression grim. The wondrous object in his hand rose and connected to the brown spirit bag in the sky. Dense streams of Supreme Yang light poured from it, cascading down upon the treasure light covering the other party.

What he held was Xiukui Dao Gate's spirit treasure, the Supreme Yang Radiance Derivation Treasure Bag. It was both a spirit treasure and an artifact of the Supreme Yang Dao. It was exceedingly effective at dispelling evil and destroying demons. Even a Buddhist cultivator struck by that ray of light would feel as though burning coals had fallen upon their body, making it nearly impossible to resist.

Yet Maha Beigu stood bathed in the Supreme Yang light. Although the radiance clearly restrained him to some extent, his mana did not diminish as it normally would, nor were his divine abilities unraveling. There was no sign at all of evil being purged or demons destroyed.

This was an extremely embarrassing situation. Even Chehong beside them frowned slightly.

On the other side, Buddhist chants echoed through the sky. Ling Mei of the Sword Gate held the Frosty Absolute Sword, his expression cold. Before him stood three Maha, the sixth-generation Zhelu, the third-generation Daisi, and the first-generation Nuzi!

Among the northern forces, the most miserable without doubt was the sixth-generation Maha Zhelu, whose entire body was covered with eyes. He was riddled with wounds, and more than seventy percent of those eyes had been shattered. If not for joining forces with Daisi and Nuzi, with the Merciful Ones forming supporting formations, he likely would not have withstood Ling Mei's techniques.

Setting aside the battlefield filled with roaring sword qi, Daoist Master Kuiqi also faced tremendous pressure. Holding a dharma sword, he confronted a scowling man shrouded in profound yellow aura. This was Daoist Master Tuoba Ci of the Tuoba Family. He wore a tall crown and a wide belt over a gleaming feathered robe. His cultivation was likewise at the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion Realm. He held a halberd spirit artifact, and his divine abilities were refined and imposing.

The Tuoba Family had always fared the best among the imperial descendants. They had even preserved their grotto heaven, making them descendants of the Golden Core Realm lineage. Their Dao lineage was naturally not much weaker than Xiukui Dao Gate's. With two Merciful Ones assisting him from the side, he even held a faint advantage.

Daoist Master Zhusheng held the Jade True sword. Beside him stood a female cultivator dressed in pale blue, her face somewhat pale. She was Daoist Master Kuangyu, a friend of Hengxing. Together they fought against a devil cultivator who was surrounded by rolling white aura. It was impossible to tell which Dao lineage the devil cultivator belonged to...

Ning Wan glanced silently across the battlefield, taking everything in as she thought,

The Helian Family cultivators are not here... The other side clearly controls the situation with ease. Helian Wumeng is nowhere to be seen, and it is even possible that Helian Wujiang has arrived...

The forces at Timber Mountain should not have been able to stop Li Ximing. Yet no news had arrived for a long time, meaning someone must have intervened to assist them. The fact that no new enemies had come from the east meant Li Ximing had already done his utmost.

Ning Wan was not completely ignorant about the northern situation. Yet in terms of detailed intelligence, she could not compare with Kuiqi. Ever since Kuiqi deliberately sent Tinglan to deliver the Surging Yang Star Command Treasure Disk to Li Ximing and reassigned Daoist Master Luo, who should have gone to Mount Xiaoshi, Ning Wan had already sensed that Li Ximing's side would face immense pressure. She simply did not dare say it aloud. At this stage, which side would have less pressure?

At this point, she did not know what Kuiqi was thinking. She did not know what other cards the north still possessed. Nor did she understand how such precise intelligence had been personally delivered from the north into Kuiqi's hands. Perhaps someone in the north had secretly leaked it. Yet there was no path left to retreat!

Staying within the formation means waiting for death. These Purple Mansion Realm cultivators cannot guard here forever. The only path is to fight with everything we have!

But how easy could that be?

Before them, the golden body was crouched upon the ground with the golden mountain on its back. It did not move at all as the four surrounded it. Its great mouth opened and closed, releasing a calm and solemn voice like thunder.

"Benefactors! You have achieved divine ability, yet you lack innate wisdom and cannot enter the Buddhist land. My Dao does not wish to accumulate needless killing karma. I urge you to withdraw quickly, yield the Great Primordial Hidden Radiance Mountain, and return the property of our Buddhist land!"

The voice spread outward, carrying a pure and peaceful radiance that pushed away the gathered divine abilities. Chehong of Chunyi Dao Gate looked extremely displeased. The Supreme Yin radiance in his hand withdrew as hatred appeared on his face.

The Great Primordial Hidden Radiance Mountain was naturally Mount Tangdao. If it were lost, Jiangbei would fall as well. This was clearly a condition that could never be accepted. Daoist Master Yushui did not even respond. He simply swung his sword and struck the golden body.

1. Fengfu acupoint (风府穴) is a major acupuncture point located at the back of the head just below the skull at the base of the neck. In cultivation and traditional Chinese medicine, it is associated with the flow of vital energy between the brain and spine. ☜