Both men stopped their movements, waiting in silence for the faceless Buddha statue's answer.
"What is suppressed beneath the Buddha... is a Buddha."
A resonant voice tinged with disbelief echoed forth from within the faceless Buddha statue.
Xu Jin frowned slightly at these words, his expression showing a flicker of incredulity.
The young monk's golden light surged within his eyes at the words, rising like flames that seemed to spill forth from his very gaze.
The faceless Buddha statue turned its visage directly toward Xu Jin and hastily continued:
"But that Buddha is wreathed in blood qi, bizarre and grotesque. Countless chains bind him motionless, and the tidal wave of wish power exists solely to suppress his Sea of Consciousness and Buddha Kingdom!"
Xu Jin's brow eased, and he immediately called out in a clear voice, "Recall your divine sense at once!"
The young monk said nothing, only raising his hand slightly. The Nine Dragon Dharma Staff that had been cast away earlier transformed into a streak of golden rainbow light and returned to his grasp.
The barrier that had been protecting Orthodox Sound Dharma Temple also dissipated.
Without another word, the young monk gripped the Nine Dragon Dharma Staff, ignored Xu Jin whose sword tip was pointed directly at him, and instead raised the staff and brought it crashing down toward Yuan Kong, who stood before the giant Buddha.
At this point, further words were pointless.
As the young monk's Nine Dragon Dharma Staff smashed down, several golden dragons carrying the Buddha sect's might shot forth, streaking toward Yuan Kong as though traversing space itself.
Xu Jin was about to provide support—since Yuan Kong had seen it with his own eyes, he naturally should lend what help he could, as the most detailed intelligence would be with Yuan Kong.
"No need to worry about me."
A voice rang out from the faceless giant Buddha, and immediately behind it, a resplendent Buddha Kingdom materialized. But it was not golden Buddha light—rather, it was composed of countless threads of wish power.
The Buddha Kingdom behind the faceless Buddha did not contain benevolent-eyed Buddhas or compassionate Bodhisattvas.
Instead, there were Arhats with faces full of greed, Bodhisattvas with eerie and cunning expressions, and Buddhas whose smiles hovered between greatness and treachery, their faces radiating temptation.
Their expressions varied wildly, yet every one exuded an aura of beguilement.
The faceless Buddha reared up, its faded Buddha hand rising, and the Arhats from its Buddha Kingdom surged forth, charging toward the incoming golden dragons.
The Arhats, their faces twisted with greed, beheld the golden dragons with visible delight. One punched forward, then immediately bit down, as though savoring sweet nectar.
The young monk frowned at the sight. Those golden dragons were formless constructs—even if they couldn't prevail, they shouldn't be treated as food.
But he couldn't dwell on it, because Xu Jin's vast, oceanic sword light had already arrived before him.
The young monk's staff blazed with dazzling golden light. He didn't counterattack—only defended.
He shouted: "With methods like these, that faceless Buddha isn't being controlled by the Buddha Child right now. Your Buddha Child has already fallen under their influence!"
"If we don't deal with the great Buddha first, that Buddha Child will be reduced to fodder in moments. Subdue the great Buddha first, before he escapes!"
Xu Jin didn't slow down, as if entirely without concern. Cold light filled the sky without pause, each sword strike more ruthless than the last, the heavens awash with flashing blades that forced the young monk into a rather sorry state.
Yet his voice remained calm as he replied: "Escaping is your problem to solve. My only purpose is to determine what that thing truly is, and what your Buddha sect is really up to!"
The young monk's gaze hardened. A phantom Buddha manifested behind him, raising a palm that carried waves of Sanskrit chanting as it bore down on Xu Jin.
At the same time, he answered coldly: "What is the Buddha sect up to? You've seen it with your own eyes—we are suppressing an evil entity!"
A streak of deep azure light flashed past, and the Buddha palm dissolved into shimmering motes.
Xu Jin drew his sword and surged forward, his Spirit Treasure longsword blazing with renewed brilliance. In the next instant, it transformed into rainbow light and slammed down, sending the young monk crashing into the ground.
The tremendous force drove the monk deep into the earth, carving out a massive crater. The terrifying aftershock was absorbed by the ground, rippling outward like an earthquake.
Xu Jin raised his sword and descended, arriving before the great pit in the blink of an eye, his divine sense immediately locking onto the young monk within the billowing dust.
So what if a Mahayana Buddhist cultivator had possessed him?
If Xu Jin couldn't surpass his own master, couldn't he at least surpass a second-rate Buddha?
Moreover, this Buddha could only wield early Integration stage power at most. And with such a long-distance divine descent technique, there should naturally be side effects—whether it could even mobilize the full power of early Integration was questionable.
At this moment, the one at a disadvantage shouldn't be Xu Jin.
The situation was strange, and Bai Xuanling was likely under pressure as well. Best to deal with this troublesome monk first, then determine what exactly was going on with the faceless Buddha.
Xu Jin's Spirit Treasure longsword transformed into rainbow light, a single strike that sundered mountains and shattered the earth. The overwhelming pressure swept the dispersing dust clean away, and he brought the blade down upon the young monk who had just risen to his feet.
"Sigh..."
The young monk let out a soft exhale. Time seemed to stretch ever so slightly, golden light swirling in his eyes.
His body didn't move, but a golden hand emerged from behind him, catching Xu Jin's devastating strike.
BOOM!
Two forces of spiritual power clashed, their shockwaves washing outward in all directions.
Xu Jin's expression remained calm, but inwardly he felt things were turning dire. That golden hand manifesting from behind the young monk... it brought him a sense of crushing pressure.
The young monk lifted his gaze.
"Beneath Orthodox Sound Dharma Temple is sealed a Buddha who strayed onto a heretical path. His nature is vicious and evil—he twisted the orthodox Dharma and beguiled numerous Arhats and Bodhisattvas."
"Even Buddhist cultivators on the verge of attaining Buddhahood listened to his words and descended into the Avici Hell together."
"That Evil Buddha held a high position. He altered the Dharma and spread it widely, drawing many Buddhist cultivators into his heretical teachings."
"The pure land of Buddhist cultivation became foul and corrupted in an instant. Fortunately, the other Buddhas discovered it early."
"They debated the Dharma at the Great Thunderclap Temple. The Evil Buddha lost the debate, and in his fury, he sought to slaughter all within the Great Thunderclap Temple and dominate the so-called righteous path."
"In our Buddha's compassion, they merely joined forces to suppress the Evil Buddha within Orthodox Sound Dharma Temple, commanding him to reflect and awaken to true goodness, to shed his murderous nature."
"Those newly minted Buddhas who were beguiled by the Evil Buddha also chose to remain here voluntarily, guarding him as atonement for their sins."
"This matter is the absolute secret of the Buddhist sect, an internal affair. I don't believe there's any need to make it public, nor any need for you to make decisions about it, do you?"
Even as he spoke, the golden hand showed not the slightest retreat against Xu Jin's sword technique.
The young monk's gaze hardened further as he continued, "This Evil Buddha has been suppressed for nearly a thousand years. Do those figures in his Buddha Kingdom look like proper monks to you?"
"If this Evil Buddha escapes and spreads his heretical Dharma far and wide, how many lives will be lost? How many will be led down the wicked path?"
"I have shown restraint to both of you multiple times. We've even protected the Buddha Child."
"Are you truly willing to bring harm to this world for reasons unknown to you?"
"How difficult it is to capture a Buddha, I'm sure you understand. Right now, for the greater good, you should help me contain this Evil Buddha first."
Xu Jin's gaze was calm, and the force behind his sword didn't diminish. "Evil Buddha? What Dharma did this Evil Buddha teach that made the entire Buddhist sect treat it so seriously?"
Seeing that Xu Jin seemed to be softening, the young monk hastily spoke:
"That Evil Buddha twisted and altered the Buddhist teachings, preaching of external forces, and had the audacity to name his doctrine—the Mahayana Dharma."
...
[
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