Chapter 589: The Venerable Buddha

"Eastern Aspect, Xiao Nanfeng clearly took advantage of the commotion to cause the young master. Now, however, he's back here and being publicly acclaimed! I won't stand for this," the Martial Aspect of Violetfrost said.

The other Martial Aspects agreed, all infuriated by Xiao Nanfeng's actions.

Ao Canghai forcibly quashed his anger and turned to look at the Martial Aspect of Violetfrost. "And do you bear no culpability in Ao Shuai's death?"

"I—" The Martial Aspect of Violetfrost blanched, then continued, "I was overconfident, Eastern Aspect. I was responsible for bringing the young master into such a dangerous location to begin with."

Ao Canghai took a deep breath. "Forget it. We'll drop the matter here."

"Eastern Aspect, are we going to leave things as is? At this rate, Xiao Nanfeng's future can be nothing short of illustrious. His reward for the Martial Aspect mission he undertook is half of Dayin's tithe of fortune! Why should we give it all to him? He's already cultivating more than fast enough. If he were to receive such a boon..." the Martial Aspect of Violetfrost trailed off.

Ao Canghai narrowed his eyes. "And what would you have me do? Refuse him his reward? He's a rising star in the Sieve of Heaven, and everyone is paying attention to him. How do you expect to take him down?"

The Martial Aspect of Violetfrost dipped his head, frowning.

"Leave things be. Xiao Nanfeng might have reclaimed 60% of Dayin's fortune and even taken Mo Shanhe and Yin Tianci hostage, but he'll be the sole target of Yin Shenhua's wrath. Yin Shenhua won't be an easy foe to handle, and he won't be spared."

"But—"

"But what? Yin Shenhua is already starting to take on Xiao Nanfeng. Even if he didn't know where Taiqing Island was located at the moment, he was sure to have other tricks up his sleeve. Why did you insist on interfering? You could have simply watched on as spectators, but you chose to get your hands dirty instead. Are you fools?!" Ao Canghai thundered.

The Martial Aspect of Violetfrost blanched. He lowered his head and didn't dare to speak any further.

"Don't do anything. Don't meddle with anything. Let Yin Shenhua and Xiao Nanfeng deal with the grudges between themselves on their own. The higher Xiao Nanfeng's star rises, the more vengeful Yin Shenhua will become. We'll wait and see what happens," Ao Canghai commanded.

"Understood!" everyone replied.

"Dismissed!" Ao Canghai said.

The Martial Aspects departed from the hall, leaving only Ao Canghai and a coffin before him. He glanced again at his son within the coffin, his face fearsome with rage.

In one of the gardens of the Imperial Court up on Mt. Kunlun, the Heavenly Emperor Yu Fuli was fishing in idyllic peace. Xiao Nanfeng had requested an audience with Yu Fuli the moment he returned.

"Heavenly Emperor, this was my experience within the divine empire of Dayin," Xiao Nanfeng recounted what he had experienced during his stay there.

Yu Fuli gave him a faint smile. "Brave you are. Weren't you afraid of being assassinated by Yin Shenhua midway through?"

"I had no choice, Your Majesty. Coincidentally, I encountered Emperor Feng along the way and took advantage of their mutual enmity."

"You've done very well. I'm impressed you actually succeeded," Yu Fuli said.

"I had my subordinates bring Yin Tianci to the Imperial Court. Have you had the opportunity to investigate his body, Your Majesty? Is he the Future Buddha?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"He is, but not fully."

"Oh?" Xiao Nanfeng replied curiously.

"The Future Buddha has already been killed by Yin Shenhua. Yin Tianci bears only the guise of the Future Buddha."

"The guise?" Xiao Nanfeng seemed confused.

Just then, the black lotus flew out from Xiao Nanfeng's mindscape. "The revival of the Buddhas of Three Aspects was predicated on reincarnation. The Present Buddha reincarnated in the form of Yin Shenhua, whereas the Future Buddha reincarnated in the form of Yin Tianci. They could have coexisted, but Yin Shenhua decided to forge the Future Buddha into his own puppet. Yin Tianci should only have preserved the Future Buddha's propensity for goodness and evil; all his memories and consciousness would have been lost."

"Yin Shenhua would strike down even one of his accomplices?" Xiao Nanfeng exclaimed.

"What accomplices? They're just three conspirators, each with their own agendas," the black lotus said.

Yu Fuli cocked his head curiously. "Might I ask where you stand with regards to the Buddhas of Three Aspects?"

The black lotus fell silent for a moment. "Eighty thousand years ago, when Buddhist sects ruled the world, I served as the Venerable Buddha, with ten Buddha Emperors as my subordinates. My creed involved saving the world from suffering. That very year, I had sacrificed countless treasures and fortune to recover a golden lotus hood from the world away. As I attuned to it, three of my Buddha Emperors suddenly rebelled, bringing calamity and destruction to the world."

"Oh? And you were deposed then, too? With seven Buddha Emperors supporting you, how could you have lost to the Buddhas of Three Aspects?" Yu Fuli asked.

"The heavens struck ahead of schedule and assisted the three Buddhas," the black lotus replied.

"No wonder." Yu Fuli nodded.

"I had reached a crucial period in my attunement to the golden lotus hood when I was attacked from behind, then ultimately suppressed and killed. The ten Buddha Emperors fought and warred with each other, transforming into demons that roamed the world and feasted on the people whose suffering they were supposed to relieve. To heal their wounds and continue to fight, the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and arhats consumed people all over the world. It is no exaggeration to say that the resulting struggle decimated the human population."

Xiao Nanfeng sucked in a deep breath.

The human population, decimated—what manner of calamity was this?

"In the end, the three Buddhas secured victory. However, there was only a single golden lotus hood, and the Buddhas were poised to fight each other to determine an ultimate victor. The heavens interceded and split the golden lotus hood in three, allowing them to rule over the world for an era and transform into the Buddhas of Three Aspects."

"And so what? In the end, the heavens reaped them too," Yu Fuli said, shaking his head.

"Quite so. To the heavens, they're nothing more than pawns. Their revival in this era must have been planned as well. They might look as though they get along, but they're more than happy to scheme against one another."

Yu Fuli nodded. "Yin Tianci might be a shell, but he still possesses imprints of natural law left behind by the heavens. You can't claim his body for the moment, and won't be able to devour him anyway."

"Very well!"

"As for you, Xiao Nanfeng, you've created a mess for yourself from your time in Dayin. Have you planned how you'll deal with it?" Yu Fuli continued.

"I'd like to borrow troops from you, Your Majesty," Xiao Nanfeng replied.

"Oh?"

"I know you're busy dealing with the machinations of the heavens, Your Majesty, and can't step onto the battlefield yourself. Dealing with the Dayin empire won't require your presence, either. I simply ask for temporary command over the Martial Aspects of the Eastern Quadrant."

"Indeed?" Yu Fuli asked curiously.

"The divine empire of Dayin has already rebelled. It's only reasonable for the Imperial Court to send forces over to suppress it. Isn't that so?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"Have you any proof?" Yu Fuli asked.

"Isn't attempting to assassinate a Martial Aspect of the Imperial Court proof enough?"

"Ha! Very well." Yu Fuli smiled.

"Your Majesty, I humbly request that you protect my empire of Dazheng," Xiao Nanfeng continued.

"You make quite a few requests, don't you?"

"I serve as vanguard on the Imperial Court's battlefield, Your Majesty. I ask only that you guard me from the rear."

Yu Fuli stared at Xiao Nanfeng for some time, deep in thought. "Very well. Yongding shall be secured after the next session of court."

"I understand, Your Majesty. I shall provide evidence of Dayin's rebellion then."

Yu Fuli nodded. "You may go."

Xiao Nanfeng suddenly asked, "Your Majesty, is the princess doing well?"

Yu Fuli glanced at Xiao Nanfeng and smiled. "Don't worry. You'll see her shortly."

"Understood!" Xiao Nanfeng bowed and retreated.

The black lotus didn't stay to converse any longer with Yu Fuli, either. It flew into Xiao Nanfeng's mindscape and left with him.

After Xiao Nanfeng emerged from the palace, he rushed straight to the Hall of Martial Aspects.

Though there were still many eyes on him, he didn't mind them much. He couldn't relax just yet. The Heavenly Emperor's promise was only the start of the war to come. Time was tight, and he had to fight for every second.

He and a group of his purple-furred monsters landed on the plaza and handed a document to the officials in charge.

"These are the mission specifications and related documentation for the Martial Aspect mission I just finished. Please dispense the associated rewards immediately," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"Understood. Everything will be ready within half a day, Martial Aspect Xiao," the official said.

Xiao Nanfeng nodded. Before he departed, he saw the Martial Aspect of Violetfrost and other Martial Aspects close by.

They were glaring at him, their faces cold. Clearly, Ao Shuai's death wouldn't be something they could ignore.

However, he didn't care. He wasn't in the wrong. Even if they were to bring it all the way up to the Heavenly Emperor's purview, he could hardly be faulted for what he had done.

He headed back toward his own manor.

There, he marched toward the Yin-Yang Cauldron, where Chang Bing and a large group of the Earth division disciples awaited him.

"Division Leader, you're back!" Chang Bing exclaimed.

"You've worked hard," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"It's no trouble at all. We've advanced greatly thanks to what happened, Division Leader. However, what should we do with Yin Tianci?" Chang Bing asked.

"Continue to question him. Just leave him alive," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"Understood!" Chang Bing nodded.

"In half a day, Sage Blue Lion will be sent over. He's a Golden Immortal spirit, and I want his inner core. You can use his physical body for whatever you'd like," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"Sage Blue Lion? That legendary Immortal spirit who once devoured a hundred thousand citizens of a city?" Chang Bing's eyes lit up.

"Indeed. He's a vile menace who bears incredible karmic sin. Such a demon ought to be melted down into pills," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"Don't worry, Division Leader. We'll do our best!" Chang Bing's eyes lit up.

"All your cultivation has improved, hasn't it?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"We've been making pills all day long, Division Leader! Many of us have already broken through," Chang Bing replied excitedly.

"I'll have more demons for you to handle yet. Work hard and aim to reach the realm of Heaven Immortals soon."

"Understood!" Chang Bing replied.