Chapter 167 — The Decisive Battle
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 4 of 6
The golden orb flashed with dazzling brilliance and slowly advanced. Under the urging of this solemn and majestic Buddhist power, the black qi upon the Buddha's countenance on the Great Compassion Golden Wheel gradually faded and began to return to normal. The Beast Sovereign, too, seemed to sense something, and his expression shifted slightly.
Just as the golden orb finally came into contact with the Great Compassion Golden Wheel, the golden light suddenly drew inward, and the entire treasure wheel seemed to turn transparent, as though a ray of sunset glow had at last burst forth. Buddhist power, flowing like liquid, poured out from within like a long-dormant volcano, flickering with countless golden rays and the dazzling true words of all the Buddhas.
In an instant, the entire sky became a golden ocean; golden brilliance surged across heaven and earth until no other color could be seen. In such a resplendent sea of light, it seemed no demon or fiend could possibly survive.
Save for—a single finger, dimly glimpsed!
In that world swallowed by boundless Buddha-light, deep within the golden glow, there was still a wisp of black qi, fine as smoke and dust, drifting lightly upward, flickering in and out of being, now visible, now not. It spiraled to the front of the Great Compassion Golden Wheel and gently touched upon the Buddha's countenance—upon the brow of that kind and compassionate face.
That single touch was like a grain in the vast ocean, like a mustard seed within Mount Sumeru—so utterly insignificant compared to the Buddha-light filling the sky. Yet Reverend Pu Cheng's face drained in an instant, his whole countenance turning ashen, like dead embers.
And so, all present saw that within the splendor, heaven and earth suddenly quaked, the Buddha-light convulsed, and that monk who looked so like an immortal spat out a great mouthful of blood with a retching cry, staining red the treasure wheel before him.
The wild wind quietly died away; the chaotic world grew still, and the golden light gently dissolved in wavering drifts. Reverend Pu Cheng's lips trembled faintly, his body seeming to stagger as he stepped back, but Fa Cheng and the others had already rushed up to support him.
Reverend Pu Cheng smiled faintly and bitterly, and facing the void ahead, joined his palms and said, "Benefactor, your dharma-power is mighty indeed—truly such as I have never seen in all my life. I am in awe, in awe!"
Upon Heaven-Reaching Peak of Mount Canglan, countless righteous disciples broke into an uproar.
In midair, the golden light receded and the black qi was reborn, as though leaping forth from the void. With a shrill cry, that colossal demonic beast reappeared—and truly, it was hard to fathom how a body so immense had gone utterly unseen during such a fierce contest of magic, and now came so vividly to life once more.
And atop its head, that figure whose presence made every righteous cultivator under heaven turn pale with dread looked even paler now, and upon that cold face there showed for the first time a faint hint of weariness. Yet his eyes remained cold as ever. Still, when his gaze fell upon Reverend Pu Cheng's figure, he was at last slightly moved, and gave a cold snort.
"The cultivation arts of the Central Plains truly do possess their extraordinary qualities."
Reverend Pu Cheng shook his head slightly. He had meant to offer a few words of persuasion, but seeing the other's expression, he knew it would be useless, and so, supported by Fa Cheng and the others, he withdrew.
Of the three great leaders of the righteous path, two had now suffered setbacks at the hands of this mysterious and uncanny demon. For a time, every face upon Heaven-Reaching Peak turned pale. And on the beast-demons' side, ten thousand beasts roared in unison, their ferocity and momentum surging high.