Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The low-pitched Buddha chants contained a magnificent universe within it. A curved rainbow raises up at the pagoda. It was a Buddhist ray that only enlightened monks with great morality would possess. Furthermore, this rainbow shaped Buddhist ray had a sense of detachment and seemed unusual.
Over ten years ago, Shen Lian fell and was trapped in the Blood Sea. It was a Buddhist ray that liberated the lost souls of the Blood Sea. It triggered a fluctuation and Shen Lian took that opportunity to escape. The master of the Buddhist ray then could be the same person who uttered the Buddhist chants.
Shen Lian looked at the bright golden path and longed for it. In fact, anyone who saw it would feel the same too.
Despite longing for it, Shen Lian’s feet did not move.
“Don’t you want to meet me?” The Buddhist chant appeared in Shen Lian’s mind and it did not seem like it went through the physical world.
The image of a monk popped up in Shen Lian’s mind. The monk was young and handsome and was slightly more charismatic than Baoyue the Venerable.
Shen Lian was aware that this was not something as simple as a projection of thoughts, it should be related to the legendary mind shifting of the Buddhist sects.
Shen Lian was not taken aback and was able to skillfully visualize Lingbao Tianzun. People who were of the level of a Daoist Master would possess their very own unique breath. It suddenly alerted the monk and Shen Lian used his divine thoughts to form a sword and slashed towards the monk. The image of the monk disappeared and left no traces behind.
A gust of wind breezed through the pagoda and the sounds of bells ringing could be heard. Apparently, wind chimes were hung on the pagoda. As the wind chimes rang, Shen Lian could hear the sound of thousands of arhats chanting in his mind. He was affected by it and the Lingbao Tianzun that he visualized crumbled along with his state of mind.
Lingbao Tianzun was a great existence that attained detachment. Whoever who was able to kick Shen Lian out of the state of concentration where he visualized Lingbao Tianzun was definitely someone powerful with the means of Taiyi or Mahasattva.
Shen Lian smiled, “Today is not a good day. I will return next time for another visit.”
At the same time, his impression towards Dajue Temple had fallen a little. Obviously, this so-called Mahayana Sutra was a bait to attract the deep unfathomable monk to come out.
If Shen Lian arrived at the other side of the Blood Sea, it would have triggered the same situation.
He was more willing to meet this figure of the level of Mahasattva but it had to be under his own initiative. If he cannot dictate his own fate, there was no point in being a celestial or a saint.
Once he made up his mind, Shen Lian receded without any hesitation. But regardless of how quick his steps were, the bright golden path would still be at least three inches away from him.
“The sea of suffering is boundless, the shore is just right ahead of you. There is no need for you to be stubborn.” The monk’s voice could be heard. It did not sound tempting but no matter how hard Shen Lian tried to turn back, the bright golden path, the mountain, and the pagoda were still ahead of him.
Shen Lian wanted to laugh at himself. He wondered if Emperor Xia found out that he was trapped, would he regret losing the golden opportunity to kill him or would Emperor Xia be glad that he did not follow along and thus, did not have to deal with this mysterious monk.
He wanted to laugh, but he did not laugh and instead had a composed expression. He said, “If one is self-contained, why would they seek something externally? The more I try to free myself, the more constraint it would be. You said it was the shore ahead of me, and I am sure it is not the shore. So why would I go?”
“Very good indeed. You have a great understanding of the laws of Buddhism. That shows that you are fated with Buddha and that is exactly why I cannot let you leave.” The monk sounded delightful and was not one bit annoyed by Shen Lian’s refusal.
Shen Lian could tell that the monk was sincere and genuine but so what? If he was the one who decided to visit the monk, he would have done it even if the world was against him. But this time, it was not him who made the conscious decision and thus, he would never proceed.
It may sound stubborn but it was Shen Lian’s determination to not be affected by external distractions.
However, if he refused to go forward, he needs to have an escape plan. The supernatural power of the monk looked somewhat similar to Heng’e’s Milky Way and it probably was one of the supernatural powers of the Buddhist Kingdom on the Palm. It was indeed true that arriving at the cultivation state of Taiyi did not necessarily mean that one would be unmatchable. Techniques that used the Dao of Space was still something Shen Lian was not capable of applying even if he understood the principles behind it.
Fortunately, he did not need to apply the techniques. He just had to figure a way out to overcome it.
The monk’s techniques were not as flawless and impeccable as Heng’e’s Milky Way.
Shen Lian’s Taixu Strategy was a supreme method and not many ordinary celestials were comparable to it. He had mastered the ‘Interpromotion and Interrestraint’ of the four states and the ‘restrict’ state had the beauty of seeing through thousands of methods. Moreover, he was in good form and his eyesight was almost on par with the legendary clairvoyance sight.
He was able to see through the weakness of the monk’s power.
At that very moment, a bloodied cloud appeared on top of the Blood Sea. There were twelve people standing on the cloud and each of them looked extraordinary. Among them, one had a horsetail whisk on his hand and had an air of Dao around him. It was clear that he was beyond the remaining eleven.
The Daoist with the horsetail whisk was the only one without the sword. The rest had a sword and was oozing with killing aura. Even if the grudges of the Blood Sea was over the top, the lost souls did not dare to go near to the bloodied cloud.
The Daoist who was leading the pact looked at the shore of the Blood Sea and saw Shen Lian. He was extremely moved and said, “Junior Apprentice-Brother Chen was right! Junior Apprentice-Brother Shen is indeed here!”
The eleven people behind him had solemn faces. They were all in different body shapes and sizes but it was clear that they cultivated the same Dao incantation and swordsmanship. Their divine Qi was interconnected although they did not do it on purpose.
One of them said, “Senior Uncle-Master, why did the Chief Uncle-Master not notice us despite his cultivation level?”
“You are right. Looks like Junior Apprentice-Brother Shen is in trouble. There is only one monk in the Blood Sea that is capable of making things difficult for him. Apprentice-Nephew, I know now why your master sent us here. Looks like he had predicted this scenario. Come, let us form our formation,” the Daoist answered calmly.
He swung his horsetail whisk and the eleven swordsmen stood apart. Their sword aura dashed up the clouds as their murderous thoughts surged. It then condensed to form a bright red colored Tongtian Sword Cloud.
The sword cloud condensed and the surroundings waves of blood started to surge. It then stood still and eleven sword gleams flew and blended into the sword cloud.
The Daoist started to chant as he swung his horsetail whisk. He swung it downwards and then the sword cloud charged towards Shen Lian’s direction.
A sizzling sound could be heard across the void as a golden dragon leaped out and bit the sword cloud.
The Daoist snorted, “It was indeed the monk’s Dawei Heavenly Dragon.”
He tossed the horsetail whisk and it expanded once it came in contact with the wind. In a speed quicker than the sword cloud, it released dashes of silk and tied up the golden dragon. The sword cloud then traveled past the dragon like a fish and arrived above Shen Lian.
The Buddhist ray then shattered and Shen Lian looked up to the sky and noticed the sword cloud. He did not have the time to be surprised by the familiarity of the Qi of sword as he released a breath towards the sword cloud.
