Ci Nian glared at Li Yundong, his face contorted with fury. "You insolent fool! To suggest that the Nine Syllable Mantra created by our Patriarch, Master Hongfa, originated from your Daoist schools! That is utterly preposterous and shameless!"

Ju Zhizi also lashed out in anger, "How dare you! This is a grave insult to Mount Koya! You must pay the price for this!"

Li Yundong merely scoffed at their accusations and anger. He cupped his hands toward the assembled crowd. "Esteemed friends, I wonder how many of you have read the Baopuzi by Immortal Ge Hong?"

The cultivators from various sects burst into laughter. Some laughed out of sheer frustration and anger, shouting back at Li Yundong, "True Man Li, you certainly overestimate us! The Baopuzi is foundational reading for cultivation, second only to the Huangdi Neijing. How could we, as cultivators, possibly have never read it?"

Li Yundong smiled faintly. "Since everyone here is familiar with it, then you must recall a passage in the 'Deng She' chapter of the Baopuzi Inner Chapters, which states: 'When entering the mountains, one should know the Six Jia Secret Invocations. The invocation is: "Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Qian, Xing; one must always chant these secretly, and nothing can then obstruct you!" Do any of you recall this line?"

At this, one cultivator exclaimed in confusion, "Indeed, there is such a line. But True Man Li, what does this have to do with the Nine Syllable Mantra?"

Li Yundong chuckled. "When Master Hongfa of Japan traveled to our Great Continent of China, he brought back many classic texts. While studying in China, he was deeply influenced by Daoism and thus copied the Inner Chapters of Immortal Ge Hong’s Baopuzi. However, due to a momentary lapse of attention—perhaps his eye slipped or his hand strayed—he transcribed the line 'Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Qian, Xing' as 'Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Qian, Zai!' Consequently, upon returning home, by sheer chance, he haphazardly established what is known as the Esoteric Shingon Nine Syllable Mantra! It truly is a tale where truth is stranger than fiction!"

Li Yundong’s words provoked roars of laughter from the crowd, with some cultivators nearly falling over in their mirth.

They all knew Ge Hong’s original passage, but none had ever imagined that Li Yundong could twist it so convincingly into the origin of the Esoteric Nine Syllable Mantra.

Zhang Ling looked at Li Yundong, torn between exasperation and amusement, shaking his head. "Such boundless audacity. He dares to speak such nonsense—it’s absurd, truly absurd!"

Li Yundong’s speech caused a huge uproar of laughter, yet Ci Nian, Ju Zhizi, and the others were trembling with rage.

Ci Nian observed that Li Yundong’s claims were utterly wild and unbound, painting the founding master of their Mantra School, Master Hongfa, as a cultivator who was simply careless and lucky by mistake. What was most terrifying was that he cited specific sources, making his tale sound plausible enough that some people actually believed him!

Ci Nian roared, "Cultivators of the Great Continent of China must mind their words; some things simply cannot be uttered recklessly! You claim our Master Hongfa mistyped the Nine Syllable Mantra—do you have any proof of this error?"

Li Yundong countered with a smile, "No! But do you have proof that Master Hongfa didn't make a mistake when he copied it?"

When Li Yundong first suggested the Nine Syllable Mantra derived from the Baopuzi, some of the more seasoned cultivators had quietly shaken their heads, sensing impropriety. But once he spun this tale, even the most serious among them couldn't help but chuckle wryly, while the younger cultivators roared with laughter.

Not far off, Ruan Hongling leaned back, convulsing with laughter, gripping Ziyuan’s arm. She whispered, "Sister Ziyuan, Li Yundong is acting up again! I thought as his cultivation rose, he might settle down and act more like a great cultivator. But old habits die hard! I nearly died laughing last time at Tianlong Mountain when he demanded all the assembled cultivators hand over Ao Wushuang and the Human Yuan Golden Elixir. Now he’s pulling this same trick of making claims that are impossible to disprove!"

Ziyuan broke into a smile, chuckling softly. "This is the true nature of a great cultivator. Freedom of mind is the real Way; unbound by convention is the Immortal Path!"

Ruan Hongling giggled, "Is this sort of roguishness part of the Real Way and Immortal Path too? Sister Ziyuan, I suspect it’s because you hold him dear in your heart, so everything he says seems like the True Way, and everything he does seems like the Immortal Path, hee hee!"

Ziyuan shot Ruan Hongling a look of shyness mixed with annoyance, hissing softly, "Quiet! Is this the place for such talk?"

Ruan Hongling stuck out her tongue playfully. "Fine, I’ll talk about it when we get back!"

Ziyuan’s neck flushed crimson with anger. She turned her head away, refusing to look at Ruan Hongling, but when her gaze fell upon Li Yundong, her once calm and placid eyes could no longer remain still.

Hearing Li Yundong’s retort, even Ci Nian, despite his profound cultivation and steadfast composure, nearly had his nose crooked with fury. He exploded in anger, sweeping his sleeve out. "An ignorant child who only knows how to win arguments with slick words! Detestable!"

Ju Zhizi’s delicate eyebrows shot up, her eyes filled with killing intent as she barked at Li Yundong, "How dare you speak such reckless nonsense?"

Li Yundong met her aggression without yielding, coldly sneering, "And how dare you speak so carelessly, claiming the Great Continent of China has no masters?"

Ju Zhizi roared with angry laughter. "Ha! The cultivators in your Great Continent who claim to be masters are utterly fragile. Even your so-called number one, Ziyuan, is no match for me! How dare you claim to have masters?"

Li Yundong snorted. "Our Great Continent of China spans ten thousand miles; it is filled with hidden dragons and crouching tigers. Countless masters practice in seclusion. You defeat a few young upstarts and dare to be so arrogant? You are truly like the frog in the well boasting of the sky! If our Chinese cultivation sects truly sent forth their masters, a single finger would crush you all!"

The cultivators from the various sects, seeing Li Yundong defending them against the foreign insults without holding a grudge, felt both admiration and gratitude, and they began cheering loudly. "True Man Li, well said!"

Ju Zhizi sneered. "Then does defeating you prove that the Great Continent of China has no masters?"

Li Yundong scoffed dismissively. "Even if you defeated me, it wouldn't prove anything. Because our Great Continent is rich in talent, producing heroes generation after generation. I assure you there are hidden masters far stronger than I, who certainly would never claim the title of 'number one'! Furthermore, with your skill level, you cannot defeat me, let alone those truly great cultivators who seek nothing from the world!"

Ju Zhizi’s anger boiled over. She snorted and spat out, "Very well, I should like to see just how much stronger you are than I!"

With that, she snapped open her gold and silver fan and flung it before her. The countless vengeful spirits depicted on the fan began to stir, following the flowing black mist depicted on the surface. It was as if the fan was a gateway leading directly to the Netherworld, and the black mist acted as a guide, leading these ghosts and demons one by one off the surface of the fan.

Instantly, a hundred ghosts surged forth, filling the hall with an oppressive, chilling Yin energy, resounding with the shrieks of fierce specters and the wails of aggrieved souls—a sound that chilled the listeners to the bone.

Seeing Li Yundong dominate the verbal sparring, the cultivators felt vindicated, yet a wave of worry followed: Li Yundong’s prowess in combat magic was undeniably monstrous, but Ju Zhizi commanded power akin to a deity! No matter how strong Li Yundong was, how could he stand against a god?

Zhang Ling, Du Fei, and the other seasoned cultivators watched as Ju Zhizi continuously released hordes of monsters onto the field. They shouted warnings to Li Yundong. "True Man Li, strike at their core! You absolutely must not let her release all these ghosts!"

Ziyuan couldn't help but shout out, "Li Yundong, do not underestimate her!"

Li Yundong, however, seemed not to hear them. He tilted his head slightly toward Ju Zhizi, appearing as if he intentionally waited for her to unleash her full strength so that her defeat would be utterly convincing.

Seeing Li Yundong act so confidently arrogant, Ju Zhizi grew even more enraged. The sound of her chanting vibrated, making everything around them seem to tremble.

As Ju Zhizi chanted her mantra, not only did the vengeful spirits she had previously summoned grow more ferocious and terrifying, but the demons and monsters pouring from the fan also developed blazing red eyes. They stared in unison at Li Yundong, like a pack of devils ready to devour him at any moment!

Witnessing the sheer density of demons and monsters filling the space, the onlookers felt that even if they weren't fighting, they would be crushed to death by the mass alone!

The more timid among them might have already soiled themselves and lost all will to resist.

Ju Zhizi shouted aloud, waving her banner and pointing at Li Yundong, crying, "Die!"

In an instant, the motley collection of demons and monsters roared and lunged toward Li Yundong. Although the onlookers knew the creatures weren't attacking them, they couldn't help but turn pale with terror and stumble back several paces.

Even some self-proclaimed masters could not help but wonder: facing such an onslaught of demons, how would I possibly defend myself?

Li Yundong let out a scornful laugh. His hands blurred as he rapidly formed mudras, his fingers flying in near-invisible motion. He thrust his palms forward, delivering three successive Great Hand Seals with sharp pa-pa-pa sounds!

These three seals were the Vairocana Hand Seal, the Vajra Samaya Great Hand Seal, and the Akshobhya Root Seal!

Li Yundong launched these three seals forward, stopping them just in front of him. Golden light erupted from his palms as he struck the air once, causing one seal to hang suspended, gleaming brilliantly, forming a veritable wall of golden light!

The horde of ghosts summoned by Ju Zhizi instantly met this barrier of immensely potent Buddha power. They shrieked, dissolving into wisps of green smoke, melting away instantly as easily as snow under a scorching sun!

Ju Zhizi was utterly shocked. "Impossible! How can you break my Hundred Ghosts Night Parade!"

Li Yundong laughed loudly. "I possess the body of the Seven Treasures of Buddhist Dharma, coupled with the supreme power of Daoist Qiankun. The righteous energy of Heaven and Earth converges in my heart, and the divine power of Buddhism resides in my spiritual platform. Why should I fear your petty demons and ghosts? Forget a hundred ghosts; even if a thousand or ten thousand came, I would remain unshaken, like a great mountain buffeted by a gentle breeze!"

A terrifying glare flashed in Ju Zhizi’s eyes. She shrieked, "Insolent! How dare you be so arrogant!" With that, her long black hair shot suddenly upward, and she waved her banner again.

This time, however, what appeared before her were shimmering, golden Vajra Arhats. These Arhats held various postures; some clutched Vajra scepters, others wielded demon-subduing staves. All looked mighty and imposing, staring at Li Yundong with fierce killing intent.

Su Chan, watching with concern, gasped. "What is this? How can she summon both vengeful spirits and these Arhats?"

Ziyuan’s brow furrowed deeply, and she sucked in a sharp breath. "The power of the Ju lineage is divided into three stages. The first is summoning war souls, vengeful spirits, and hordes of ghosts to fight for her. The second, more advanced stage, is summoning the Vajra Arhats enshrined at Inner Koya to fight on her behalf. The highest level is directly inviting a deity to possess her, allowing her to fight personally!"

Su Chan asked anxiously, "Can Yundong win against this?"

Ziyuan had always possessed absolute confidence in Li Yundong, but even she felt a tremor of doubt now. Her expression grew tense. "I don't know. If it were the old Li Yundong, he would have no chance at all. But since he emerged from the Minor Thousand World, I truly don't know how strong he has become. So, I cannot say!"

Su Chan, Zhou Qin, Ziyuan, and the others watched the field with clenched fists, immense worry etched on their faces. The cultivators from all the surrounding sects also looked on with fear.

They watched as these Arhats chanted scriptures, making the small pavilion seem momentarily transformed into a Buddhist hall filled with the resounding echoes of sutras. Their weapons gleamed, and their bodies radiated the pure, majestic power of Dharma—the concentrated mental force and magical power of the successive high monks enshrined at Inner Koya for twelve hundred years!

Wei Qing of the Quanzhen Longmen sect stared wide-eyed at the scene. She stammered, "Li Yundong resisting a hundred ghosts was already outrageous. But... but how can he possibly withstand so many Vajra Arhats?"

Yue Sheng also inhaled sharply. "It’s understandable if one’s intent is righteous and firm, holding a mouthful of Primal Chaos Qi to resist the Yin energy. But these are the Dharma-protecting Vajras and divine Arhats of Buddhism! Such pure Buddhist power—how can one possibly fight against it?"

Du Fei stared at the scene, his expression stunned. He murmured, "This looks like the Buddhist Vajra Demon-Subduing Formation... Why would this Japanese woman know such a powerful technique? Must our Chinese cultivation world suffer such a crushing humiliation today?"