Within the State Leaf Garden. Black and white streams of light rushed through the void, identical in power, identical in speed, identical in cultivation.

Bore and Mohe, the brothers, fought a life-and-death battle in the emptiness. Every clash of their innate supreme treasures, the Demon-Subduing Pestles, unleashed a dazzling lotus-shaped radiance that caused the entire Twin Tree Garden to tremble.

If the core energy of the Twin Tree Garden were not provided by the Seven Treasures Marvelous Tree, a battle between Bore and Mohe of this intensity would have caused the garden to collapse long ago.

The Life-and-Death Buddha stood between the two Bodhi trees, hands clasped, coldly gazing up at the two streams of light darting across the sky.

The speed was terrifying; even with the Life-and-Death Buddha’s cultivation, capturing the forms of Bore and Mohe within the streams of light was difficult. Their power was also frighteningly immense. The Life-and-Death Buddha could feel from the violent fluctuations of the Twin Tree Garden space that the physical strength of either brother surpassed his own tenfold.

Coupled with their formidable cultivation and the power of Heavenly Dao rules derived from the innate Great Sages of another realm, if he were to confront them directly, even though the Life-and-Death Buddha was already a being of the Hongmeng level, he was not confident he could subdue a united Bore and Mohe.

“Fortunately, Bore is still my good child!”

The Life-and-Death Buddha smiled faintly, shaking his head gently.

The brothers’ reactions were precisely within his grasp. Mohe’s impulsive temper was just that. He held no respect or affection for his biological father. He valued the bond with the brothers he had shared life and death with for over ten thousand years far more. Lifting the Demon-Subduing Pestle to smash down upon his own father, who was designing to manipulate him, was his natural response.

And Bore? He was filial to his parents, affectionate toward his brother, and loyal to his friends. But when the interests of his parents and brothers stood in opposition to those of his friends, he was forced to face a painful choice. Undeniably, whichever side he chose would deeply hurt the other.

For such a stubborn person, once he could not make a decision, self-destruction would be his only recourse.

Fortunately, the methods of a Sage were wondrous and infinite; another thread had been laid in advance… Bore and Mohe’s mother bore the entire original sin of the Roman race alone, and was currently suffering in hell. This compelled Bore so that even committing suicide was impossible; he had to make a choice… did he choose to rescue his birth mother, or uphold the interests of his brother?

While his mother suffered in hell, Bore could never bring himself to destroy himself to escape this dilemma.

And Mohe would certainly choose to uphold his brother’s interests, which naturally led Bore to choose the side of the Life-and-Death Buddha. In Bore’s view, it was fair and reasonable that one brother chose the brother and the other chose the parents, so he would not have much ideological resistance to siding with the Life-and-Death Buddha and defending his interests.

Such exquisite calculation, the calculation of a Sage!

The Life-and-Death Buddha sighed deeply. Setting aside their cultivation and magical power, just in terms of scheme, he was far, far inferior to the Sage. A Sage was a Sage, after all. Who could escape such a calculation?

And the calculation of the two Buddhist Saints was clearly a notch above that of the Three Pure Ones!

The Three Pure Ones only calculated control over the Heavenly Court and the three Sage positions. What the two Buddhist Saints calculated was hardly such illusory things?

After a few cold laughs, the Life-and-Death Buddha’s entire attention returned to the battling brothers. This time, the Life-and-Death Buddha’s expression turned grim again. Bore was clearly at a disadvantage against Mohe, being forced to retreat repeatedly by the infinitely murderous Mohe!

Bore inherited the vital energy of the Life-and-Death Buddha, while Mohe inherited the aura of death. In previous conflicts, Bore focused on providing support from the side, using his vital energy to bolster his comrade’s fight. Mohe, however, focused more on charging to the front line; his killing intent was heavier. When the brothers fought, each of Bore’s moves leaned more towards defense, as did his perfected Stillness of Mind Buddha Light—like Mount Sumeru shielding him, no matter how fiercely the wind and rain battered him. His true body remained unmoved.

Mohe, however, was steeped in slaughter. Even fighting his own brother, with murderous intent surging, he paid no heed to propriety, unleashing only his most devastating moves. While Bore cultivated the Stillness of Mind Buddha Light, Mohe—who seemed lazy, only focused on regulating the small nun’s breathing day by day—had also cultivated the World-Ending Bright King Buddha Flame, which he grasped with singular focus.

The crimson Buddha Flame enveloped Mohe in a lotus shape, making him burn fiercely like a great torch. His Demon-Subduing Pestle had also absorbed the power of the World-Ending Bright King Buddha Flame, turning entirely crimson and emitting ten thousand rays of intense light, resembling a pure shadow that transformed into countless beams of laser light shooting wildly across the sky. Each strike could shatter stars and reduce the earth to nothingness.

One strike, two strikes. Bore’s Stillness of Mind Buddha Light protected him, merely causing ripples.

One hundred strikes, two hundred strikes. Bore’s figure trembled faintly; the Stillness of Mind Buddha Light was hammered into a ten-thousand-zhang tall mallet, and his body began to fall back.

One thousand strikes, two thousand strikes. The Stillness of Mind Buddha Light was already like a candle in a storm, its overall structure beginning to shake. Bore sweated profusely; Mohe’s frenzied attacks came from all directions. The crimson lasers generated by the World-Ending Bright King Buddha Flame were endless, beating Bore’s protective Buddha Light into large patches that sprayed out, scattering into countless points of golden light.

Ten thousand strikes, twenty thousand strikes. In an instant, Mohe unleashed nearly a million full-power attacks. Bore’s protective Buddha Light was already shattered into fragments, with only a thin layer, scarcely three inches thick, barely shielding his body. Under Mohe’s savage assault, Bore lost his footing and was forced back repeatedly by the terrifying impact.

After nearly a million full-power bombardments, Mohe was drenched in sweat, his pores wide open, streams of crimson fire erupting from his body along with the sweat, shooting far out with sharp hisses like high-pressure steam whistles.

Wielding the heavy Demon-Subduing Pestle with all his might, Mohe’s two arms had swollen to more than double their usual size. His muscles bulged, and grotesque, twisted sinews twitched violently beneath his skin. Mohe, reveling in the carnage, had his attack power surge by more than threefold compared to usual.

Mohe was the type of fierce warrior whose combat strength soared the more blood he shed. But Mohe, whose state of mind was placid like stagnant water, was always constrained by his own realm and magical power; his combat strength did not increase significantly during battle.

With identical cultivation and realm, when Mohe’s combat strength nearly tripled in his frenzy, Bore found it difficult.

Suddenly, Mohe lunged before Bore and smashed down like a whirlwind nearly ten thousand times, heavily shattering Bore’s protective Buddha Light. Then, he pressed a palm against Bore’s face. A bolt of lightning brewed briefly in his palm, transforming into a terrifying thunderclap several miles in diameter that roared out, blasting Bore’s face into pulverized flesh and sending a row of teeth flying.

Bore spewed blood from his seven orifices, blasted backward by the lightning. He crashed against the edge of the Twin Tree Garden’s small space before being bounced back by the spatial barrier.

Gasping for breath and spitting blood, Bore roared, “Mohe! You—”

Mohe fiercely interrupted Bore’s words, roaring back, “No nonsense! I will absolutely not allow my elder brother to betray my brothers! If you want to do what that old immortal told you, you’ll have to step over my corpse! Or, I’ll kill you, then slit my own throat to join you.”

Bore shouted fiercely, “Listen to me—”

Mohe rushed to Bore’s side and smashed the Demon-Subduing Pestle into Bore’s waist, shattering his bones so severely he nearly passed out. Mohe growled, “No more talk! If we want to save our nominal mother, we do it with our own strength! We have no right to harm our friends and brothers to save our mother!”

Bore gasped, “There’s no time—”

Mohe stomped down on Bore’s head, driving it deep into the earth. He maniacally trampled Bore’s head, roaring hoarsely, “No time? What do you mean, no time? That old immortal is clearly fooling us! Do you have to believe him? If you don’t go, how would you know there’s no time?”

Seeing Bore defeated, the Life-and-Death Buddha instantly transformed into a clear breeze and lunged at Mohe, lightly brushing Mohe’s back with the Seven Treasures Marvelous Tree.

The figure of Venerable Zhunti reappeared on the Seven Treasures Marvelous Tree, almost equivalent to Venerable Zhunti himself delivering a sneak attack from behind. A flash of seven-colored Buddha light vanished, and Mohe’s body jerked violently. His vision went dark, and he was knocked unconscious by the Seven Treasures Marvelous Tree.

However, Mohe was at the peak of his murderous intent and fighting spirit. The Seven Treasures Marvelous Tree stunned his consciousness, but his body reacted almost instinctively. He swung the Demon-Subduing Pestle at random, imbued with a crimson World-Ending Bright King Buddha Flame, sweeping viciously behind him. The Life-and-Death Buddha, who was sneak-attacking and pleased with himself, was struck silently by the Demon-Subduing Pestle on his waist.

A silent blow, yet it contained an incomparably powerful, subtle internal force. The hidden energy erupted like a volcanic explosion. The Life-and-Death Buddha let out only a shrill scream as his body was snapped in half by the Demon-Subduing Pestle. Fragments of limbs, blood, and internal organs sprayed out for dozens of miles. The World-Ending Bright King Buddha Flame surged up with a whoosh, burning the Life-and-Death Buddha’s fragmented body to a mess. This single strike nearly killed the Life-and-Death Buddha on the spot.

Buddhist chants soared to the heavens. The two elder monks, Langyue and Biyue, hurriedly manifested, scrambling to lift a white jade urn inlaid with seven-treasure glass, sprinkling the spiritual spring within onto the Life-and-Death Buddha’s body.

The spiritual spring, composed of pearls strung together, dripped down. Each drop carried seven-colored Buddha light and emitted a strange fragrance that wafted everywhere.

The World-Ending Bright King Buddha Flame was instantly extinguished by the spiritual spring. The Life-and-Death Buddha’s body, broken in two, was nourished by the spring and healed completely in the time it took an incense stick to burn.

The Life-and-Death Buddha stood up, casually grabbed a handful of spiritual spring, and touched it to Bore’s face, completely erasing the residual lightning energy that was still faintly crackling there, but he left his nearly pulverized face untreated.

After examining Bore’s terribly mangled face for a moment, the Life-and-Death Buddha said with satisfaction, “Very good, this injury is perfect. Come, let’s hurry and discuss how to handle this matter properly and smoothly!”

Sighing deeply, the Life-and-Death Buddha comforted the constantly trembling Bore, “With the dignity of a Sage, how could I trouble a group of juniors? Rest assured, there is no malice in this trip, only endless fortune. It will also accumulate merit and save your mother from the inescapable hell, wouldn't that be good?”

Chuckling, he pulled up Bore’s left hand and used the Seven Treasures Marvelous Tree to dip into the spiritual spring, gently inscribing the character “Mí” (, spell/charm) on his palm, followed by a few Buddhist seals nearby. Then, he grabbed Bore and pushed him out of the Twin Tree Garden.

“Bore, go quickly and return. Father is waiting for you there!”

The Life-and-Death Buddha’s divine magic and Buddhist arts were extraordinary. With a push of his palm, Bore’s face abruptly darkened and brightened, and he instantly appeared outside the South Heaven Gate.

Bore lowered his head and took a deep breath. The character “Mí” in his palm released a faint stream of warm energy that circulated throughout his body. Bore raised his sleeve to cover his severely injured face and hurried, head down, into the South Heaven Gate.

Given the relationship between the Bore and Mohe brothers and Gu Xichen, they held high positions in the current Heavenly Court. The countless Heavenly Soldiers and Generals guarding the Heavenly Court were strictly hierarchical and observant of discipline. Bore charged into the South Heaven Gate with such haste, ascending straight to the Thirty-Three Heavens. All Heavenly Soldiers and Generals along the way only swept Bore with their divine sense, confirmed his identity, and no one came forward to question why he looked so battered.

Blood dripped from his shattered face, splattering along the ground, following Bore all the way up to the Lingxiao Treasure Hall in the Thirty-Three Heavens.

Inside the solemn and majestic Lingxiao Treasure Hall, Fuya?Ming, with a stern expression, was dealing with a stack of official documents.

Compared to the Heavenly Court of ancient times, the affairs of the current Heavenly Court were much lighter. Now, the Nine Nether Dao held sole dominance in the cultivation world, and Gu Xichen controlled the Heavenly Court, his power sufficient to sweep across the Three Realms. With no great demons or devils causing trouble, the Heavenly Court enjoyed a leisurely and carefree existence.

The documents Fuya?Ming needed to personally handle were merely the activities of the Nine Nether Dao disciples like Xin Long’er spreading the faith in the lower realms: which world had gained a few more planetary believers, requiring the Heavenly Court’s departments of Wind, Rain, Thunder, and Lightning to dispatch Heavenly Soldiers and officials to garrison and guard those planets, ensure favorable weather and no natural disasters, and thus strengthen the believers’ faith.

Although these matters were tedious, handling them was easy because fixed procedures existed for following. Once Fuya?Ming had processed the documents one by one, the immortals in the various departments of the Heavenly Court would naturally act according to the orders.

How many immortals to station on each planet, how many Heavenly Soldiers and Generals to deploy, how many members of the Nine Nether Dao to develop on this planet, how many loyal adherents to cultivate—all these matters had established fixed statutes, making the operation exceedingly simple.

Casually dismissing the documents before her, just as Fuya?Ming was about to declare the end of the morning court, Bore rushed in, covering his face. Before he could speak, he suddenly vomited several mouthfuls of blood, splattering a large area on the floor.

Fuya?Ming and the assembled immortals and deities in the Lingxiao Treasure Hall were greatly alarmed. Fuya?Ming slammed heavily on the front desk, shouting fiercely, “Bore, how did you get this injured? Where is Mohe?”

Bore tightened his left hand. The character “Mí” in his palm emitted a faint golden light, instantly enveloping the entire Lingxiao Treasure Hall with a strange aura.

Because his face was shattered, Bore’s speech was slurred and indistinct. He vaguely stated that he and Mohe were traveling in the mortal realm and accidentally entered the ancient battlefield where the Demon Incarnate Longgen was sealed. They were suddenly attacked by a group of strange creatures left over from antiquity. Many of Bore and Mohe’s disciples were killed or wounded; Mohe stayed behind to cover the retreat, allowing Bore to escape to seek reinforcements.

Originally, Bore and Mohe could have easily escaped the battlefield, but they had to stay behind to protect their disciples.

Bore was severely wounded during the breakout, and Mohe was also injured. His current condition was unknown.

Fuya?Ming became furious upon hearing this.

She inherently possessed the nature of an Empress, and over these ten thousand years, her decisiveness in warfare had forged in her a domineering aura millions of times more potent than Gu Xichen’s.

Upon seeing Bore so gravely injured, Fuya?Ming’s rage immediately flared up. Hearing that the incident occurred on an ancient battlefield, and learning that the strange creatures numbered only just over a hundred, each possessing the cultivation of an Upper-Grade Daluo Jinxian, Fuya?Ming sneered coldly, immediately dispatching a contingent of 1,080,000 Heavenly Soldiers, along with a group of powerful cultivators to accompany them. The massive force strode out of the South Heaven Gate.

If Bore had not possessed the character “Mí” in his hand, Fuya?Ming would have had only a fifty percent chance of mobilizing herself personally. But with the addition of the “Mí” character, Fuya?Ming decisively led the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals away from the Heavenly Court, following Bore’s guidance toward the ancient battlefield.

A full day and night passed after the entire contingent departed the South Heaven Gate, before Huangpao Fawang, Mohe’s trusted subordinate, lazily rode a cloud to the South Heaven Gate to report that Mohe had suddenly vanished on a small planet.

In the view of Huangpao Fawang and his group, Mohe’s sudden disappearance probably meant he was once again playing tricks on the small nun Qingyin, so they hadn't taken it too seriously. Only after Mohe failed to return for over a day did they come to the Heavenly Court to report the matter, operating under the principle of caution.

But which of the generals and immortals in the Heavenly Court were not cunning, seasoned veterans?

As soon as they heard Huangpao Fawang’s report, they knew that the Bore and Mohe brothers were acting separately. Mohe was traveling the world with the small nun Qingyin, while Bore was clearly in seclusion in a secret chamber in the capital of the Yafik Empire in the Spiral Star Domain. How could the brothers possibly have reunited at that ancient battlefield?

Immediately, the four brothers of Mo Liqing hastily gathered a large contingent of Heavenly Soldiers and pursued the aura left by the immortals accompanying Fuya?Ming. Then, the Four Heavenly Masters of the Tongming Hall rushed to the Peach Orchard to report the matter to Gu Xichen.

Gu Xichen, who was in secluded meditation, was startled. He instantly extended his divine sense to scan the Three Realms, his expression instantly changing. His figure vanished from the Peach Orchard.

But it was too late.

In the mortal realm, in the ancient battlefield star domain where the Demon Incarnate Longgen was sealed, Fuya?Ming led a large contingent of Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, guided by Bore, to a strange place where the entire space was distorted by immense force. On the way, they had spent nearly a day and night; this speed was only achievable because Fuya?Ming was driving the Indra Thunder God Chariot, extorted from Indra.

This was a spherical space nearly a million light-years in diameter, densely packed with countless stars. The immense gravitational pull of the planets tugged at each other, filling the space with uncomfortable, strange force fields.

However, as soon as Fuya?Ming entered this space, she keenly sensed that the gravity of those stars was not the primary cause of the space’s abnormal distortion. Another force permeated this space, and the aura occasionally released by this force was so ancient that in its presence, Fuya?Ming felt like a mayfly living and dying in a single morning. Then, she unexpectedly saw an elf from the primordial chaos.

It was an ancient power, so profoundly distant and old it was hard to comprehend.

Even with Gu Xichen’s help, Fuya?Ming’s cultivation had one foot planted in the Hongmeng realm, yet she was still overwhelmed by the faint aura released by this power. Under the suppression of this aura, Fuya?Ming could only exert a minuscule fraction of her strength, less than one-tenth of her full capacity.

If someone of Fuya?Ming’s cultivation could only exert such little power, then the 1,080,000 Heavenly Soldiers and Generals accompanying her—the vast majority couldn't even summon the strength to fly. Even several hundred elite immortals handpicked by Fuya?Ming had pale faces, barely retaining a sliver of self-defense capability.

“Bore, where is this place? Why is it so bizarre?”

Fuya?Ming instinctively sensed the strangeness of this void.

But as soon as Bore brought Fuya?Ming and the others into this star field, he instantly used all his strength to fly forward at top speed. His wings unfurled behind him, transforming into a streak of white spiritual light that shot forward rapidly. At his speed, he escaped the main group in the blink of an eye, flying far ahead.

The physical bodies of the Bore and Mohe brothers originated from innate Great Sages of another realm, granting them unparalleled flight speed that was terrifyingly fast. Fuya?Ming was momentarily distracted, and Bore had already fled far away; even if Fuya?Ming attacked with an innate supreme treasure, it couldn’t reach him.

“Bore, what are you doing?”

Fuya?Ming instinctively sensed something was wrong and shouted harshly. But Bore flew forward heedlessly, soon vanishing into the vast void.

With the resounding chime of a Buddhist chant, spheres of Buddha-light erupted from all directions. Trillions of Buddhist cultivators materialized from every conceivable angle, surging forth in waves to completely encircle the massive army of the Heavenly Court led by Fuya?Ming. Simultaneously, all the Buddhist cultivators recited the Jieyin Mantra and the Zhunti Mantra, their combined spiritual power coalescing into a blinding, golden, radiant net that enveloped the entire void. Fuya?Ming felt an endless, crushing pressure descend upon her, yet she found herself utterly incapable of resisting.

Her power had already been diminished by ninety-nine percent by this strange void, yet these countless Buddhist cultivators seemed entirely unaffected by its dampening effects. They focused all their strength to unleash the Golden Net Subduing Demons divine ability, transforming the Zen power and cultivation of every practitioner into an invisible shackle that bound Fuya?Ming. Even with her heaven-reaching means, how could she possibly struggle free?

A flash of Buddha-light glittered in the distance, and the Life-and-Death Buddha appeared, carrying the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree. Beside him walked Prajna, whose face had been completely restored.

Though described as walking slowly, it took only a few breaths of time for the Life-and-Death Buddha to arrive within a hundred meters of Fuya?Ming.

He deeply clasped his palms together and bowed toward Fuya?Ming. The Life-and-Death Buddha spoke in a resonant voice, "This humble monk, the Life-and-Death Buddha, greets the Buddha Ancestor."

Fuya?Ming let out a mocking laugh. She shook her head and stated coolly, "I am no Buddha Ancestor."

The Life-and-Death Buddha said calmly, "You are the Buddha Ancestor. The Sages Jieyin and Zhunti have issued a decree establishing the Buddha Ancestor as the Lord of all Buddhist Pure Lands across the Myriad Heavens worlds, set to replace the incumbent Buddha Amitabha and rule over countless Buddhist nations and disciples across the myriad heavens. We shall naturally submit beneath the Buddha Ancestor's seat."

Clenching her fists tightly, Fuya?Ming struggled to mobilize the power within her body, which was suppressed to the point of utter stillness. She reprimanded him in a low voice, "Oh? If I am the Buddha Ancestor, then what Buddhist title did those two Sages bestow upon me?"

The Life-and-Death Buddha respectfully circled Fuya?Ming's imperial chariot three times before returning to his original spot and clasping his hands in greeting. "Sages Jieyin and Zhunti have conferred upon the Buddha Ancestor the title of the Greatly Mighty, Greatly Wise, Greatly Enlightened, Pure of Nature, Pure of Virtue, Pure of the Dao, Imperial Revered King Buddha, to replace Amitabha, ruling over untold Buddhist nations, commanding countless Buddhist disciples, enacting boundless compassion, accumulating immeasurable merit, and saving all sentient beings."

Fuya?Ming trembled with rage, shouting fiercely, "Who permitted them to name me Buddha Ancestor?"

A figure emerged from behind the Life-and-Death Buddha—it was the Old Nun Wuxing, who had forcibly abducted Fuya?Ming long ago to the Snow Mountain of the Unattached Joy Paradise in Boronilomi. The old nun respectfully bowed to Fuya?Ming and spoke deferentially, "The Buddha Ancestor is fated to be connected to Buddhism. Among the Three Corpses avatars of the Buddha Ancestor, one manifests as the Golden Body Bodhisattva. Achieving the merit of the Buddha Ancestor is only proper!"

Fuya?Ming fell silent. Upon seeing the Old Nun Wuxing, she knew that long, long ago, she and Gu Xechen had fallen into someone's scheme.

She had cultivated Buddhist divine abilities; if she had only practiced Buddhist techniques, it would have been one thing—Gu Xechen had studied Buddhist techniques too. But the fatal element was that Fuya?Ming had also severed one of her Three Corpses primordial spirits based on Buddhist techniques—that three-zhang-six-foot-tall Golden Body Bodhisattva clone.

Given the nature of those two Buddhist Sages, they would loudly proclaim "fated connection to the Buddha" and forcefully convert anyone or anything related to them, even if the matter had nothing to do with them. How much more so when it concerned Fuya?Ming, who possessed profound Buddhist mastery and had severed her Three Corpses, one of which was a Golden Body Bodhisattva?

There was simply no arguing against that logic.

Staring coldly at the Old Nun Wuxing, Fuya?Ming sneered, "You set this trap a long time ago, didn't you?"

The Old Nun Wuxing performed a respectful bow, responding with extreme subservience, "What the Buddha Ancestor says is too much for this humble nun to bear. What is this poor nun? How dare I set a trap for the Buddha Ancestor?"

Glancing cautiously at Fuya?Ming, clearly fearful of future retaliation, the Old Nun Wuxing disregarded the Life-and-Death Buddha standing nearby and spoke with utmost deference, "Everything, everything, this humble nun merely acted under the command of the Tathagata Life-and-Death Buddha." The face of the Life-and-Death Buddha suddenly grew extremely grim. He shot the Old Nun Wuxing a look of intense malice, his expression suggesting an immediate urge to strangle her. However, he ultimately suppressed the fire in his heart and, likewise speaking cautiously to Fuya?Ming, forced a smile, "Impossible, impossible. Everything, everything, was done simply following the orders of our two Sages!"

Staring coldly at the Life-and-Death Buddha and the Old Nun Wuxing, Fuya?Ming asked mildly, "Tell me, why did you lure me here? What is your objective?"

As she spoke, Fuya?Ming crushed a string of red coral beads on her wrist. This was an alarm talisman made by Gu Xechen; if she encountered a problem she couldn't solve, crushing the beads would instantly alert him. With Gu Xechen's current cultivation, as long as Fuya?Ming remained within the Three Realms, he would arrive immediately upon the bead’s shattering.

However, the surrounding countless Buddhist cultivators simultaneously chanted a Buddhist name, and massive Buddhist power surged rapidly. The Life-and-Death Buddha lightly swept the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree, and the wisp of energy leaking from the crushed red coral bead was instantly brushed away by multicolored Buddha-light.

The Life-and-Death Buddha chuckled lightly, "The Evil Dragon Saint Lord is already a Saint. If he were to arrive, none of us could withstand a single finger-strike from him. Therefore, Buddha Ancestor, cease all thoughts of signaling for help. With the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree of Sage Zhunti here, unless the Evil Dragon Saint Lord comes in person, no message can be sent out in the slightest."

Fuya?Ming's heart clenched, then exploded into fury. A cyan torrent rushed out from above her head; the Azure Lotus Celestial Banner rolled up a vast expanse of cyan chaotic storms, rustling loudly as it shielded the million Heavenly Soldiers and Generals she had brought.

But her cultivation was severely suppressed by this void; less than one part of her strength out of one hundred could be used. Furthermore, she was constrained by the Buddhist formation woven by billions of Buddhist cultivators. As soon as Fuya?Ming activated the Azure Lotus Celestial Banner, she felt her internal power struggling to replenish itself, and the range of the cyan torrent rapidly shrunk, compressing to the vicinity of her own body in the blink of an eye.

The Life-and-Death Buddha laughed loudly. He stopped talking idly with Fuya?Ming and casually pulled out a talisman carved from tri-colored jade, three feet and six inches long and four inches wide. He channeled a stream of Buddha-light into the talisman.

The void abruptly shook, and the phantoms of two Daoists flashed briefly across the surface of the talisman before vanishing. However, two incomparably vast auras soared skyward. The jade talisman in the Life-and-Death Buddha's palm instantly flew out, spinning rapidly in the void until it transformed into a colossal Buddha statue, ten thousand li tall, enveloped entirely in golden light.

This seated statue chanted Buddhist scriptures, its left hand guarded before its dantian, its right hand lightly waving, shooting out a beam of bright light. Behind the statue, forty-two layers of external and internal radiant wheels suddenly appeared, each layer densely divided into countless smaller Buddha figures... [The text here becomes garbled/unclear in the original, describing innumerable small Buddha statues holding mudras and chanting scriptures in unison with the giant Buddha.]

The countless Buddhist cultivators from the Back-Flying Great Snow Mountain all sat cross-legged. Following the synchronized chanting of the scriptures by the myriad Buddha statues in the sky, they poured their power, without reservation, into the statue, causing the forty-two radiant wheels behind the ten-thousand-li-tall statue to shine ever more brilliantly.

Gradually, as these Buddhist cultivators continued to inject their power, the golden light emitted from within this massive statue became so dazzling that it was impossible to look at directly. Slowly, a Golden Poluo Flower appeared in the statue’s right palm. As its faintly golden petals shimmered almost imperceptibly, several droplets of crystal-clear, seven-colored water, carrying a faint scent of sandalwood, cascaded down.

Accompanied by the grand sound of the scriptures, the droplets of water scattered and transformed into a vast mist that sprinkled over the million Heavenly Soldiers and Generals and the hundreds of elite Immortal Officials at the Great Overarching Golden Immortal level that Fuya?Ming had brought.

As these Immortals and Heavenly Soldiers were touched by the mist, their bodies violently convulsed, and they were immediately engulfed in seven-colored Buddhist flames. They cried out in panic, but they only had enough strength left to shout; enveloped by the flames, they could not even move a finger.

Fuya?Ming watched in alarm as the Immortals and Heavenly Soldiers she brought were consumed. Even her hundred or so personal maids were engulfed by the raging Buddhist flames. A faint glaze of crystal light flowed across their surfaces, and a type of power distinctly different from the Daoist magic they cultivated began to slowly circulate within their bodies.

Time passed minute by minute. After a quarter of an hour under the seven-colored flames, a Heavenly Soldier of the Golden Immortal rank, the weakest among them, suddenly roared toward the heavens. He abruptly sat down cross-legged and began chanting the Zhunti Mantra and Jieyin Mantra along with the countless other cultivators.

A faint halo of Buddha-light subtly wound around the back of the soldier's head. This soldier's entire Daoist magic had been transformed into pure Buddhist Zen power. All the Daoist classics in his mind were forgotten; all that remained were the few secret Buddhist methods that had just appeared. Even his yearning for the Dao had been completely eroded; his entire mind now yearned only for the boundless wonders of Buddhism, transforming him into the most devout Buddhist believer.

This Heavenly Soldier was the first... Then, one after another, Heavenly Soldiers and Generals chanted Buddhist names and sat down cross-legged. Pure Buddhist power fluctuations emanated from their bodies, surrounded by halos of Buddha-light—they had clearly been forcibly converted from Daoist Immortals into Buddhist cultivators.

Eventually, the hundreds of Great Overarching Golden Immortals and the hundred or so personal maids surrounding Fuya?Ming also sighed deeply. Amidst the Sanskrit chant, they sat down cross-legged, having been forcibly converted into the most devout Buddhist cultivators.

When the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, disguised as a maid with Great Overarching Golden Immortal cultivation, who had been specially arranged by Gu Xechen beside Fuya?Ming, also sat down chanting scriptures devoutly, the long hair on the heads of these Heavenly Soldiers, Immortals, and maids all dissipated in a puff of smoke. Over a million shaven heads appeared out of nowhere, each reflecting the golden light emanating from the giant Buddha statue suspended in the void, creating a magnificent spectacle of mutual brilliance.

Fuya?Ming groaned weakly, "The Great Jieyin Buddha-light!" The Life-and-Death Buddha chuckled softly and nodded. "This is the Three Thousand Worlds Ten Thousand Ages Samsara Dust-Severing Jieyin Divine Light, refined through the dedicated practice of the two Sages. Regardless of which world one is in, or how many lifetimes one has undergone in reincarnation, as long as there is a single wisp of Buddha-nature in one's core being, one will be converted into a disciple of our Buddhist sect. This kind of miraculous divine art, Buddha Ancestor, you will naturally be able to wield effortlessly in the future."

The Old Nun Wuxing nearby stated respectfully, "In the future, the Greatly Mighty, Greatly Wise, Greatly Enlightened, Pure of Nature, Pure of Virtue, Pure of the Dao, Imperial Revered King Buddha will oversee boundless Buddhist lands and command countless disciples. This Jieyin Divine Light is precisely the vital divine light for the Buddha Ancestor to convert sentient beings and expand our Buddhist school; it will naturally be readily available, without any difficulty."

Fuya?Ming's eyes twitched with anger. Gritting her teeth, she said no more, merely using the Azure Lotus Celestial Banner to shield herself. She drew out the One Qi Coalesced Seven Treasures Sword and brought it down in a strike aimed directly at the Life-and-Death Buddha.

With this one sword strike, wind, rain, thunder, lightning, earth, water, fire, and the celestial sound and demonic sound all erupted. The power of seven great laws burst forth simultaneously, transforming into a seven-colored torrent that shot downward. The Old Nun Wuxing, merely hearing a subtle, strange sound emanating from the Seven Treasures Sword, instantly spat blood and retreated rapidly. Her primordial spirit was disoriented by the celestial sound, almost allowing the hidden inner demons to devour her life-spirit.

The Life-and-Death Buddha was unhurried. He waved the branch of the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree and declared loudly, "The Buddha Ancestor is destined to return to position today. Please, Buddha Ancestor, refrain from unnecessary resistance!"

With a single sweep of the seven-colored Buddha-light, the Seven Treasures Sword was instantly wiped away without a trace. The Life-and-Death Buddha's cultivation was inherently deeper and stronger than Fuya?Ming's, and Fuya?Ming's power was now suppressed by ninety-nine percent. Moreover, the branch of the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree held restrictions secretly placed by Daoist Zhunti beforehand. How could Fuya?Ming's Seven Treasures Sword escape the grasp of the Life-and-Death Buddha?

The Seven Treasures Sword was seized, and Fuya?Ming's expression instantly changed. She cursed in anger, and the several Innate Supreme Treasures gifted by Gu Xechen flew into the air.

However, her power was severely weakened; although the Innate Supreme Treasures possessed boundless might, she could hardly command them now.

The ten-thousand-li-tall golden Buddha statue in the void simply reached down. A golden torrent shot out, sweeping up the Innate Supreme Treasures Fuya?Ming had summoned, and incidentally seizing the Azure Lotus Celestial Banner she used to expand her defensive area.

Seeing Fuya?Ming lose ground, a few of her personal maids, who had been forcibly converted into Buddhist cultivators, suddenly stood up and shouted fiercely, "How dare you, you—"

Seeing that these maids could actually break free from the mental control of the Jieyin Divine Light, the Life-and-Death Buddha let out a heavy snort.

The giant Buddha statue in the void casually pressed down with a palm strike, instantly battering the maids until they spat blood. Their souls injured, these maids immediately slumped back onto the ground in a daze, rolling their eyes back while chanting Buddhist scriptures and mantras.

Fuya?Ming watched the Life-and-Death Buddha with cold eyes, then suddenly sneered, "Fine. You are powerful today. I will swallow this offense for now. But if I am ever truly forced into becoming this so-called Buddha Ancestor in the future, I swear I will kill you!"

The Life-and-Death Buddha's face instantly turned pitch black—it was an extremely ugly sight.

He gave a bitter smile, shook his head, and sighed toward the heavens.

The Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree swept out again, and Fuya?Ming's chariot seat was instantly shattered into dust.

Countless Buddhist cultivators simultaneously chanted a name and prostrated themselves, their heavenly spirits shattering. Streams of leaf-shaped lights emerged—these Buddhist cultivators had self-detonated their heavenly spirits, ejecting the innate Sarira (relics) they had painstakingly condensed over countless years. They all flew toward the giant Buddha statue suspended in the void.

The statue recited scriptures, opened its massive mouth, and swallowed the Sarira of the trillions of Buddhist cultivators from the Back-Flying Great Snow Mountain. In that moment, the light surrounding its body blazed brilliantly.

It roared a Buddhist chant toward the sky and punched out, instantly tearing open a pitch-black hole in the void, tens of thousands of light-years in diameter. A massive influx of Primordial Chaos energy spewed forth from the black hole, nearly blowing the severely weakened Fuya?Ming away.

The Life-and-Death Buddha glanced triumphantly at the enormous black hole and laughed toward the heavens, "Buddha Ancestor, please embark! The two Sages await you in that universe, ready to enthrone the Buddha Ancestor!"

After a moment of contemplation, the Life-and-Death Buddha nodded. The Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree waved again near him.

Cooperating perfectly, the giant Buddha statue in the void casually grabbed. With a flash of seven-colored Buddha-light, the many disciples Fuya?Ming had left on the Yafik Planet suddenly appeared out of the void, looking dazed and confused. The Life-and-Death Buddha laughed smugly, "How can the Buddha Ancestor journey to another domain without trusted attendants by her side? They are also of our Buddhist lineage; it would be a waste to leave them here!"

Laughing three times heartily, the Life-and-Death Buddha had the few maids beside Fuya?Ming forcibly support her as they rushed toward the black hole.

Seeing this, the disciples of Fuya?Ming, including Mahāmāyūrī and the Sunlight Bodhisattva, roared in anger and charged forward, brandishing their weapons.

However, the giant Buddha statue in the void casually pressed down with a palm strike, knocking the heart-venerated disciples of Fuya?Ming until they spat blood and fainted. The Life-and-Death Buddha commanded the Old Nun Wuxing and a few other Buddhist cultivators who had not sacrificed their innate Sarira to capture them using the Sumeru Mustard Seed divine ability.

Just as Fuya?Ming was about to enter the black hole, a faint light flashed in the distance, and the furious Gu Xechen suddenly appeared. Seeing that the Life-and-Death Buddha and the others were abducting so many people into the black hole, Gu Xechen roared in anger and casually reached out to seize the Life-and-Death Buddha.

The Life-and-Death Buddha was instantly alarmed, feeling his entire body tighten. All his magical powers and divine abilities were utterly locked down. Gu Xechen had merely made a casual grab, yet the Life-and-Death Buddha nearly had his cultivation stripped away, reducing him to a mere mortal.

The surrounding void surged, and the ten-thousand-li-tall Buddha statue dimmed momentarily. Innumerable streams of golden light circulated and shot out, nearly being shattered by the residual force of Gu Xechen's grab.

The Life-and-Death Buddha was terrified beyond measure. Gu Xechen was already a Saint, an unrivaled existence in the Three Realms. He had been trying to abduct his wife, planning to forcibly drag her to an alien universe. One could only imagine what fate awaited him if he fell into Gu Xechen's hands—being torn to pieces would be the easy outcome.

Of course, the Life-and-Death Buddha felt that his actions of forcefully luring and kidnapping another man's wife were not wrong at all; rather, he believed he was offering Fuya?Ming an immense opportunity—becoming the Buddha Ancestor! What a marvelous opportunity that most people could never encounter!

But even believing he was doing good, the Life-and-Death Buddha absolutely did not wish to waste time arguing the matter with the enraged Gu Xechen.

Seeing Gu Xechen's grabbing hand, faintly shimmering with light, approaching him and about to snatch him and his group, the Life-and-Death Buddha suddenly shouted in a shrill voice, "Master, Martial Uncle, save me!"

A streak of emerald spiritual light shot out from the black hole, and a hand, carved from jade and utterly flawless, materialized out of thin air within that light. This massive hand flicked a finger casually, precisely meeting the claw-strike Gu Xechen had thrown.

When the finger power met the claw force, Gu Xechen's body trembled. His Daoist robe instantly turned to ash, and all the hair on his head snapped off at the root, scattering wildly. A stream of blood erupted from Gu Xechen's mouth. He felt an irresistible, vast power assault him—a terrifying force utterly different from the Heavenly Dao rules of this universe, yet so pure, so immense, so infinitely profound.

With just this single clash, all the power within Gu Xechen became chaotic, and he immediately spat out a mouthful of reverse blood.

His body sank, and Gu Xechen staggered backward seven steps, each step spanning hundreds of millions of light-years. By the time he finally steadied himself, he was already countless miles away from the ancient battlefield.

In that instant, the jade-carved hand gave a gentle wave, and the giant Buddha statue, having absorbed the Sarira of billions of Buddhist cultivators, was drawn into the pitch-black hole. Subsequently, the Life-and-Death Buddha and the others poured in, surrounding and escorting Fuya?Ming as they too entered.

Gu Xechen, growing anxious, spat out another mouthful of blood.

In the midst of this chaos, Gu Xechen frantically shot his divine sense toward the black hole. He condensed all the comprehension of the Heavenly Dao he possessed, along with all the rules of the chaotic Heavenly Dao from other universes taught to him by the Chaos Bell spirit, into a small bead of willpower, instantly implanting it into the core of Fuya?Ming's brow.

Having accomplished this, Gu Xechen took a step, instantly returning to the location where he had just battled the giant hand.

The jade-carved hand, enveloped by the emerald spiritual light, was retreating back into the black hole. Gu Xechen, unwilling to let them escape, forcibly activated the Wheel of Balance within his body, drawing upon the Balance Law of this universe.

The void shook, and an invisible, colorless, immense force roared downward, transforming into a fearsome blade radiating surging malevolence. It slashed fiercely across that giant hand.

With one strike, the five fingers of the hand were cleanly severed, and golden blood sprayed forth wildly.

A cry of pain echoed as the hand rapidly retracted. The five severed fingers instantly exploded, transforming into a cloud of emerald mist, which, along with the spurting golden blood, formed a hazy barrier of light that instantly sealed the black hole completely shut. Gu Xechen was horrified. He punched with all his might toward the sealed black hole, but a ray of light shot out from the void, batting him back a great distance. He could not shake the seal in the slightest!

Gu Xechen slowly rose, his face grim, staring coldly at the sealed void.

"Good, very good! You are Zhunti! I recognize your aura!"

"Zhunti, Jieyin, you have abducted my wife. We shall settle this score!"

With a thought, this ancient battlefield, along with the surrounding thirty thousand star systems, was instantly pulverized and annihilated.

The Wrath of a Saint, brought to such a pass!

For more novels, visit storyread.net.