West Cow Continent, outside Zhengyin Temple, before the Pudu River.
This river spanned ten thousand li, stretching all the way to the sea, and it also marked the boundary between Central Prefecture and West Cow Continent.
East of the Pudu River lay Central Prefecture; the other side was West Cow Continent.
What this great river was originally called, most people could no longer recall. They only knew that later, the Buddhist sect renamed it.
Looking across this great river from Wanfo Temple's position, the nearest sect was the Central Prefecture Buddhist lineage.
The meaning was clear—cross this river, and salvation is at hand.
Yet this great river surged with violent currents and concealed countless hidden rocks beneath its surface. Even large ships sometimes failed to cross safely, and capsizing incidents were commonplace. Over time, no ordinary mortal vessels ever plied these waters anymore.
If any boats remained, they belonged to cultivators—out for leisure, nothing more.
Though it was called the Pudu River, it could hardly deliver ordinary souls to salvation. Those who crossed it were, for the most part, no ordinary people.
"Bai Xuanling, why are you blocking me here?"
A Buddha gazed calmly at the white-robed woman standing motionless above the surging river.
Bai Xuanling replied in an even voice, "What do you mean, block you? Someone of your caliber isn't worth my time to block."
The Buddha was draped in a golden kasaya. Behind him, Arhats and Bodhisattvas displayed their divine powers, and a vast expanse of golden auspicious clouds stretched forth, blanketing the sky as though extending for ten thousand li.
Yet these ten thousand li of auspicious clouds were now blocked by a single person.
The Buddha's eyes narrowed slightly, his golden gaze fixing directly upon Bai Xuanling. "Zhengyin Dharma Temple is an orthodox Dharma temple under the Buddhist sect's jurisdiction. It is now under attack by demonic cultivators. If you have no intention of blocking us, then let us pass."
"Oh? Is that so?" Bai Xuanling drew a spirit treasure longsword, and her spiritual pressure surged outward. The originally violent, raging river was instantly calmed flat by her might alone.
She raised her sword, a hint of amusement in her voice. "Everyone in the world knows that I, Bai Xuanling, have always despised evil with every fiber of my being. Since there are demonic cultivators, I naturally must lend you a hand."
Bai Xuanling's seemingly helpful words made the Buddha opposite her fall into a brief silence.
For the Buddha, what mattered was not Zhengyin Dharma Temple itself, but what lay hidden beneath it.
Intelligence from that side had gone completely dark since the fighting began. No one knew the situation there. Perhaps word had already leaked, but that didn't mean he could lead Bai Xuanling over.
After all, at this very moment, Bai Xuanling standing here clearly meant she was with the group attacking Zhengyin Dharma Temple—she had come specifically to intercept him.
Even if he mindlessly agreed and crossed over first, if any problems arose later, the Buddha knew without even thinking that Bai Xuanling would certainly brand him a demonic cultivator and slash him twice before anything else.
What's more… for Tianyan Sect's Bai Xuanling to block him so openly and brazenly, this was absolutely no spur-of-the-moment decision. She had to have a detailed plan. At the very least, Tianyan Sect must have prepared for all-out war with the Buddhist sect.
And… it probably wasn't just Tianyan Sect. Xuanqing Heavenly Sect's recent movements had also been strange.
There had already been suspected intelligence that core disciples of Xuanqing Heavenly Sect had appeared near Wanfo Temple.
The Buddha's gaze remained calm, but the golden lotus beneath him had already begun to glow. "This is Buddhist territory, and what has occurred is our Buddhist sect's internal matter. We will resolve it ourselves. There is no need to trouble your esteemed sect."
With those words, the Buddha said no more. The golden lotus beneath him carried him toward Zhengyin Dharma Temple, ignoring Bai Xuanling who stood across the river's center.
But in the next instant, a cyan sword qi tore through heaven and earth, as though it would annihilate everything in existence. One slash sent the river water surging backward, revealing the riverbed.
The terrifying pressure lingered long after, and not a single drop of water dared encroach upon it.
The Buddha halted his golden lotus, feeling that pure sword resonance, feeling that pure destructive power.
Bai Xuanling had been absent from the world for quite some time. Many assumed her killing intent had consumed her heart, that she had lost her original mind, and that her cultivation should have declined. Yet watching this casual, effortless slash, one could only say—Bai Xuanling was truly worthy of her reputation.
At the very least, this one slash had lost none of her former brilliance.
Bai Xuanling's single strike reversed the river's flow. Compared to this threat-laden sword, her tone was exceedingly mild:
"The Eighteen Immortal Sects share the same breath and branches. Hasn't the Buddhist sect always loved to claim small advantages? Why the change of heart today? Or do you look down on me, Bai Xuanling?"
The Buddha looked at Bai Xuanling. His Buddha heart, calm for who knows how many years, could not entirely conceal its current turmoil.
This was clearly a planned move. The situation at Zhengyin Dharma Temple could only be more dire than here. Every extra second Bai Xuanling delayed him, the danger multiplied exponentially.
"Bai Xuanling, my Buddhist sect has spoken with you in good faith for quite some time. Your killing heart has consumed you, yet our Buddhist sect even took the initiative to invite you to the Great Thunder Sound Temple, willing to use Buddhist secret arts to cleanse your killing heart. You may not value our past goodwill, but you should not be doing this here."
The Buddha's words quickened. The golden lotus beneath him slowly condensed into a circular dharma wheel, which he held in his hand, its golden light radiant, simultaneously radiating waves of Buddhist might:
"If you block me again, do not blame me for what happens today. Another Buddha is already on the way. Regardless of whether you can win or not, with your killing heart alone, how long can you hold out? What's more, you are but one person."
Bai Xuanling chuckled softly, drew her sword and pointed it straight ahead, her tone still casual and light:
"Who doesn't know that I, Bai Xuanling, have always preferred to settle things with one person and one sword? As for whether I can or not…"
A savage grin appeared on Bai Xuanling's face—an expression she hadn't worn in a very long time. Her voice rose:
"Might as well try!"
As her words fell, in but a moment, those ten thousand li of auspicious clouds crashed toward the white-robed sword cultivator.
Compared to that sky-blanketing, ten-thousand-li expanse of golden auspicious clouds, the white-robed sword cultivator seemed almost fragile to the point of insignificance. Yet the instant they collided, a flash of cyan sword light blazed forth, the first to cleave those ten thousand li of auspicious clouds clean in two.
——————
Zhengyin Dharma Temple.
At this moment, only the Mahavira Hall remained standing under the protection of the dharma staff. Everything else was a scene of utter devastation, carved up like trenches, bearing no resemblance to its original form.
The Mahavira Hall still stood not because the dharma staff was so powerful, but because both Xu Jin and the young monk had deliberately held back in that direction.
Otherwise, the dharma staff alone could never have withstood the clash between two top-tier cultivators.
Xu Jin was at the Body Integration realm. The young monk had only just entered Body Integration, but his foundation was unsteady—he had clearly used certain shortcuts.
However… upon the young monk now rested a Mahayana-stage Buddha of the Buddhist sect.
Countless longswords washed toward the Buddhist golden body, forming an airtight azure sword net. Piercing cold light shuttled endlessly through, and terrifying aftershocks reverberated outward.
The Buddhist supreme golden body endured the longswords head-on. Those fully golden eyes shifted constantly, tracking Xu Jin's silhouette.
Even though both had deliberately avoided the Mahavira Hall, its protective barrier still couldn't withstand the full-force techniques of two cultivators at their level.
The seemingly deadlocked pair both exercised restraint within limits.
They were both waiting.
One was waiting for the Buddhist sect's reinforcements. The other was waiting for Yuan Kong… or perhaps, Bai Xuanling.
But the next moment—
The Faceless Buddha Statue within the Mahavira Hall suddenly lifted its gaze. Incalculable karmic power soared into the air, then condensed into solid form.
Both of them stopped. Their eyes turned toward the Buddha statue within the Mahavira Hall.
Xu Jin's gaze held anticipation, and simultaneously ten thousand swords merged into one, forming a single longsword pointed directly at the young monk.
The young monk's gaze wavered with uncertainty, looking at the Faceless Buddha Statue with an expression caught somewhere between joy and sorrow.
Both were waiting for the result.
The Faceless Buddha Statue raised its eyes to look at them both. The soaring karmic power transformed into a lotus, settling beneath the Faceless Buddha Statue.
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