Reflecting on Kong Rui's celestial deductions, Zhang Huai's prognostications regarding the Qin Emperor's tomb, the more thought about it, the more perilous the situation seemed.

“So, you’re saying the Pure World Sound Buddha Venerable fully expects that deceased Qin Emperor to be resurrected?”

“The Future Buddha overestimates this disciple; I truly cannot determine anything definite regarding the Qin Emperor.”

Jingyin shook her head. “This Qin Emperor's tomb even possesses the capacity to suppress the Supremacy Realm, let alone Jingyin? The future has many tributaries, and I only glimpsed a fraction of them. However, I did see a clear omen of disaster, which is quite concerning. There is nothing our Buddhist sect requires within this Qin Emperor's tomb. Retreating now to prepare is merely a precaution against the unforeseen.”

Suppress the Supremacy Realm?

Zong Shou fell silent. Did this main mausoleum of the Qin Emperor truly contain such a prohibitionary law?

He sank into contemplation for a time before finally speaking again, “If the Qin Emperor is resurrected, how do you two plan to suppress him?”

“Should the Qin Emperor revive, even if he is not equivalent to a Saint Venerable of the Supremacy Realm, our abilities are limited—how could we possibly suppress him? However, since he is born from the power of corpse fiends and evil spirits, there is naturally a method to deal with it. What our Buddhist sect can do is only to weaken him to the best of our ability. If the Qin Emperor truly revives, others will have to worry about him.”

Guan Zizai chuckled, “Don't look at those Supremacy Realm Saint Venerables in the Cloud Realm as if they are currently unconcerned. Behind the scenes, they are already standing in strict readiness.”

Zong Shou mused that this was also true. A catastrophe of this magnitude, one that would affect the entirety of the Cloud Realm, would not only draw the attention of Zhu Zi and Qing Xuan but also put the Dao Sect of All Sentient Beings on high alert.

Yet, according to common sense, Yin Yu’s actions posed a massive threat to the few Supremacy Realm Saint Venerables in the world.

So why had no one moved to stop it from the very beginning?

Perhaps Zhu Zi and the Daoist Lord Qing Xuan were deliberately allowing it, possibly for the Twelve Bronze Men, or perhaps for some other scheme, seeking an opportunity to turn defeat into victory.

Then why the Dao Sect of All Sentient Beings? Was it truly because the Confucian and Daoist factions were balanced against each other, making them hesitate to intervene?

Or perhaps it was because Xi Zi had once entered the ancient Qin Emperor's tomb years ago.

Before coming here, he really should have had a thorough exchange with his Master, Xuan Shuang.

As he was deep in thought, Jingyin flicked out a tiny, rice-grain-sized black dot—so profoundly dark it distorted light and became invisible to the eye—which instantly traveled three thousand zhang away.

Immeasurable Beginning and End Divine Art?

Zong Shou recognized the immediate, special connection this held with his own Immeasurable Beginning and End Dharma Idol.

Back when Lin Xuan Shuang mischievously engineered his night of closeness with Jingyin, a unique spiritual link had formed between them.

This allowed his Black and White Dharma Idols to project into Jingyin's spirit, enabling her to borrow the Immeasurable Beginning and End Divine Art.

A slight upturn touched the corner of his lips; this Pure World Sound Buddha was indeed that Jingyin.

Indeed, a moment later, when the black light exploded, countless corpse fiend and evil forces were devoured by the darkness, engulfing the entire twenty-li radius. Then, in an instant, it transformed into a blazing white light, illuminating the minor world like a small sun.

When the white light dissipated, a full sixty-li stretch of land had been turned into pure ground, completely cleansed.

However, Jingyin’s forehead was beaded with fine sweat.

“To clear out the malevolent power, our Buddhist sect borrows the might of the Great Sun Buddha Venerable. Within a day, we can summon one hundred and eight Arhat-level high monks in the Cloud Realm. Chanting the Vairochana Mandala Sutra and the Great Sun Bright King Illuminating World Heart Sutra, we can spend three hundred and sixty-five days suppressing and sealing the resentful, evil power here, thus delaying the Qin Emperor’s resurrection by a century. However, this method has too many variables; a slight interference could lead to complete failure. The millions of troops and thousands of high-ranking corpse generals within the tomb remain a huge threat.”

At this point, Jingyin looked at Zong Shou with a mixture of expectation and strangeness.

“However, the optimal method for purification and restraint is undeniably the Immeasurable Beginning and End Divine Art! Borrowing the power of the Future Buddha, we can shorten the time to forty-nine days, and might even be able to suppress the corpse soldiers instead. If a Golden Body were to descend, that would be best.”

“Golden Body?”

Zong Shou frowned, but surprisingly, he did not feel much resistance.

The so-called Buddhist Golden Body is gathered from the sincere faith of devotees. He had executed such a feat once before in the Azure Spirit World.

But to condense a Golden Body, only his own willingness was required.

“It is not out of the question, but in the Cloud Realm, can a true Buddha Body truly be condensed?”

When matters are urgent, one must adapt to the circumstances. Given the severity of the current situation, there were no other choices left.

Though his temperament was somewhat perverse, he would not truly stand by and watch disaster strike, plunging the Cloud Realm into irredeemable ruin, just because of a minor personal sentiment. If one possesses the power to stop it but refrains due to selfish reasons, what difference is there between himself and that Primeval Emperor of the Great Shang?

Even if only for the sake of the billions of subjects under the Great Qian, he absolutely would not allow the ‘First Qin’ of ten millennia ago to reappear in the world.

However, if the condensed Golden Body only achieved the Divine Realm, similar to the Azure Spirit World, then it would be pointless.

He knew the Buddhist sect was widely propagating the Future Boundless Buddha in the Cloud Realm, preaching on his behalf.

But in just a few years, how many believers could there be in the Cloud Realm?

The Azure Spirit World was merely an exception. The people of that realm firmly believed the Future Boundless Buddha was the savior, the sole hope to lift them from suffering. Thus, the vast majority of believers were incomparably devout.

In the Cloud Realm, while the population was a hundred times that of the Azure Spirit Realm, and the spirituality of the believers far surpassed that of a Middle Thousand World, whether they could condense a Buddha Body with the power of the Saint Realm was truly uncertain.

Guan Zizai was overjoyed instead. “This only requires the Buddha Lord’s consent! Our Buddhist sect has propagated the Future Boundless Buddha across seventy-nine worlds previously; the faithful have already reached ten billion. Now, the Buddha Lord has means to channel our sect’s devotional power to the Cloud Realm. Although it is one in ten difficulties, temporarily gathering a Buddha Body is absolutely no problem.”

“Is that so? Amitabha?”

Zong Shou gave a soft ‘Mm,’ and without much hesitation, nodded slightly.

“Agreed! But it had best be done quickly—”

He understood that by uttering those words, he and the Buddhist sect were now bound by karma that could not be undone.

But this was not only to face the calamity of the Qin Emperor’s revival; he also needed more protective power before the ten times more perilous slaughter karma Jingyin mentioned arrived.

And condensing a Buddha Body was undoubtedly a way to rapidly increase his strength.

However, having borrowed the power of the Buddhist sect this time, he would require an equivalent repayment in the future to clear the karma.

But requesting that Buddha Lord’s aid this time was tantamount to saving his life!

This was genuine help in the midst of extreme need, and compounded by the counter-kill of Lu Wushuang in the Azure Spirit World previously, how could this debt ever be fully repaid?

Having karma was not an issue, but if his Dao Heart felt indebted, it would create an attachment.

He already had enough matters weighing on his mind. These lingering fragments in his Dao Heart—if utilized well, they could become the driving force and catalyst for his cultivation. But at times, they were a burden, a hindrance, causing his Dao Heart to become stained.

Zong Shou sighed softly, his gaze flickering as he asked, “I am the Emperor of the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty; I will never truly attain that Future Buddha position. How does your Buddhist doctrine explain this?”

He was also curious how the Buddhist sect planned to reconcile his status with their doctrines in the future. The current situation was certainly awkward.

“Not wishing to now does not mean one will not wish to later,” Guan Zizai smiled. “Not long ago, a Buddha Edict descended, stating that before the Future Buddha Venerable attains Buddhahood, he was the Emperor of the mortal world and the Celestial Realm, ruling over all the heavens—he is the Heavenly Emperor of Dìshìtiān…”

“Dìshìtiān?”

Zong Shou was startled, feeling an immensely bizarre sensation. He wondered, It can be interpreted like that?

※ ※ ※ ※

After discussing for roughly half an incense stick’s time, all matters were settled. After extracting a few drops of Zong Shou's vital blood, Guan Zizai and Jingyin bade farewell and departed. They knew that time was of the essence now; there could be no more delays.

However, before leaving, Zong Shou remembered something and suddenly spoke in a teasing tone.

“Pure World Sound Buddha, my Master has been thinking of you quite fondly lately. If you have time, you might visit her in the All Sentient Dome to reminisce.”

Then, there was a sharp crack sound. The ground beneath Jingyin’s feet, a full hundred li across, cracked and spread outwards. The spiritual energy in the air surged like a tide, and sharp gang power vibrated, creating a powerful force that made hearts pound.

Jingyin’s expression was dark as still water, her eyes blazing with irrepressible fury, the veins on her forehead throbbing faintly into the shape of the character ‘well’ (). Her previously cool and transcendent aura had vanished entirely.

Just as everyone stared at each other, and Guan Zizai covered his mouth, perhaps stifling a laugh, Jingyin calmed down. After taking several deep breaths, she turned her head.

Her expression returned to normal, and she smiled faintly. “This disciple only just emerged from reincarnation and has not yet coalesced a true body. It is moving that Sister Xuan Shuang misses me so much. However, Pure World Sound can only offer apologies; after rebirth, I have countless matters to attend to and temporarily have no free time to visit the All Sentient Dome. But please convey to the Buddha Venerable that I will certainly repay that day’s kindness in the future!”

With that, she wasted no more time, turned, and floated away, appearing as ethereal as an immortal, swiftly vanishing into the void.

Zong Shou pursed his lips, thinking that Jingyin’s smile was incredibly forced, giving him a chilling feeling.

But she was no longer the simple, blank-slate woman who could be teased at will like she was a year ago. It seemed she harbored deep resentment towards Master Xuan Shuang, and though he was the beneficiary, he was quite happy to watch Lin Xuan Shuang face retribution. The resentment accumulated from that incident was certainly not small.

Filled with anticipation, Zong Shou turned his gaze back toward Xian’an City.

Jingyin would require at least a day to complete the summoning and array setup, chanting the Future Boundless Prayer Sutra to gather the boundless Buddha power to illuminate the entire Qin Emperor’s tomb area.

After the Buddha Body was condensed, that would be the peak of his combat strength.

However, in this battle concerning the Qin Emperor’s tomb, he absolutely could not pin all his hopes entirely on the Buddhist sect.

He himself needed to have sufficient trump cards ready.

“I wonder why Xi Zi entered this Qin Emperor’s tomb back then? And did he leave anything behind?”

Zong Shou drew out the Spirit Refining Sword and smeared his own blood upon the blade.