Zunti vs. Patriarch Styx

Xuanqing steadied himself, gazing at the somewhat slight figure ahead, his heart filled with countless emotions.

There was nothing he could do now. In a battle of this level, any rash move would only make him a burden.

At the same time, Xuanqing could not help being drawn to such immense power.

If he could cultivate to such a realm in the future, then when the next Tribulation came, perhaps he too would be able to influence its course.

Then, watching the Blood Sea churn beneath his feet, he turned to Jieyin Daoist beside him and could not help asking, "Senior Jieyin... Uncle-Master, Uncle-Master Zunti... can he really handle this alone?"

In his perception, Patriarch Styx's strike was practically capable of smashing this stretch of heaven and earth back into Chaos.

Yet Zunti had to face it alone.

A faint, inscrutable smile appeared on Jieyin Daoist's face.

He shook his head and spoke slowly.

"No matter."

"Before attending the lecture at Purple Cloud Palace, if we faced this move of Daoist Styx's, my junior brother and I would have needed to join forces with all our strength to have a ninety-percent chance of success."

Jieyin paused, and a flash of confidence crossed his eyes.

"But now, times have changed. My junior brother alone is enough."

Xuanqing's heart jolted.

He knew the key lay in that strand of Primordial Purple Qi!

The boost brought by the Foundation of Sagehood was far more terrifying than he had imagined!

In the instant they spoke, the battle ahead had already reached its most critical moment.

The blood lotus condensed by Patriarch Styx had gathered its momentum to its peak.

"Go!"

At Patriarch Styx's command, that enormous crimson lotus broke free from the canopy of the sky, drifting slowly toward Zunti with boundless intent to slaughter and destroy.

It was not fast, but it had locked down every inch of space around Zunti. There was nowhere to evade—he could only meet it head-on!

Facing this heaven-shaking strike, the smile vanished from Zunti's face, replaced by solemn dignity.

He held one hand before his chest, while the other supported the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree.

Closing his eyes, he began to chant a mantra.

"The bodhi was never a tree; the bright mirror was never a stand."

"Originally, there is not a single thing—where, then, could dust alight?"

As he chanted, the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree in his hand began to bloom with an unprecedented radiance.

Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, violet.

Seven-Colored Divine Light surged into the heavens, weaving behind him into the phantom of an enormous precious tree.

That tree seemed laden with three thousand worlds, and within every world, billions of believers devoutly chanted sutras and prayed.

A vast, pure, peaceful chorus of Zen chants resounded through heaven and earth, forming a stark contrast with the cries of slaughter and lamentation brought by the blood lotus.

"Swish!"

Zunti abruptly opened his eyes, divine light bursting from them.

He raised the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree high and gave the slowly descending crimson lotus a light sweep!

The Seven-Colored Divine Light was like warm sunlight.

And the blood lotus, condensed from the very origin of the entire Blood Sea, was like piled snow.

Sunlight fell upon snow.

The slaughterous, filthy aura surrounding the blood lotus gave off a sizzle, sending up plumes of green smoke beneath the illumination of the Seven-Colored Divine Light.

For the first time, the blood lotus's descent came to a halt!

"How is this possible?!"

For the first time, an expression of horror appeared on Patriarch Styx's enormous face.

His strike contained the very origin of his Dao of Slaughter, supremely fierce and evil.

Yet Zunti's divine art seemed to be the nemesis of his Dao!

"Daoist Styx, your Dao is attached to appearances."

Zunti's voice drifted over.

"All phenomena are but illusion; only my true suchness remains unmoved."

"Today, I shall let you witness the Western Lands'... Dao of Great Purity and Great Quiescent Extinction!"

As his words fell, the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree in Zunti's hand swept out once more!

The Seven-Colored Divine Light gathered into a vast, surging torrent, mighty and unstoppable!

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That enormous blood-red lotus began to tremble violently beneath the torrent of divine light.

The worlds of sea of corpses and blood upon its petals shattered and vanished one after another.

At last, a muffled bang rang out.

The entire blood lotus completely collapsed, turning into Blood Fiend Qi that fell into the Nether Blood Sea and dissipated between heaven and earth.

The Seven-Colored Divine Light did not lose any of its momentum, sweeping straight toward Patriarch Styx's true body.

Patriarch Styx let out a muffled grunt. His enormous head was struck by the divine light, and his body swayed as he was actually forced back several miles before steadying himself.

The blood-red canopy above his head also cracked apart inch by inch.

The difference in strength was clear at a glance!

Zunti had won this exchange!

Peace returned to heaven and earth once more.

The Blood Sea still churned, but it no longer possessed its previous violent fury.

Patriarch Styx fell silent.

His blood-red eyes stared fixedly at Zunti, his gaze complicated.

Only after a long while did he force out several words through clenched teeth.

"What a... Great Purity, Great Nirvana Dao!"

"Zunti, you won."

Having said that, his enormous head no longer spared the three of them another glance and slowly sank into the vortex of the Blood Sea.

That terrifying pressure that had stirred heaven and earth vanished without a trace along with it.

Only one icy sentence echoed over the Blood Sea.

"Get lost."

Zunti resumed his usual grinning, frivolous manner and cupped his hands in a salute toward the Blood Sea.

"Thank you, Daoist Styx, for seeing this through."

Then he turned and came to Xuanqing and Jieyin Daoist's side, smiling. "Senior Brother, nephew, this matter is settled. It is time for us to leave as well."

Xuanqing was still immersed in that world-destroying yet profoundly mysterious battle. Only upon hearing this did he come back to himself, hurriedly bowing from afar in the direction of the Blood Sea.

No matter what, this great figure had kept his promise in the end.

The three did not linger, transforming into three streaks of light and flying toward the western horizon.

After flying an unknown distance, until he could no longer sense that bloody, slaughterous aura, Xuanqing finally slowed down.

He turned and solemnly bowed to Zunti and Jieyin Daoist, who were traveling alongside him.

"Regarding today's matter, thank you both, Martial Uncles, for coming to my aid. Xuanqing shall remember this kindness in his heart."

These words came from the bottom of his heart. Had these two not appeared so suddenly, even if he had not died today, Patriarch Styx would likely have skinned him alive.

"Ah, nephew, why be so polite?" Zunti waved his hand with a cheerful smile, utterly unconcerned.

"Your Master and we both came from Purple Cloud Palace, so we ought to support one another. That fellow Styx was being unreasonable—how could we possibly stand by and do nothing?"

Jieyin Daoist beside him also nodded slightly, indicating his agreement with his Junior Brother.

Xuanqing understood perfectly well.

We ought to support one another? If those words had come from the Three Pure Ones, he would have believed them. But coming from the future Two Sages of the West, he would not believe a single word.

These two never got up early unless there was profit to be made.

Still, regardless of what they were plotting, the fact remained that they had saved him. This Karma would have to be repaid eventually.

Xuanqing secretly considered that, so long as their request was not excessive and lay within his capabilities, there would be no harm in lending them a hand.

The thought passed through his mind, but his expression remained unchanged. Following Zunti's lead, he raised the question he had long wanted to ask.

"What you say is true, Martial Uncles. However, there is one matter this junior does not understand, and I hope you can enlighten me."

"Oh? Speak freely, nephew." Zunti appeared highly interested.

Xuanqing organized his thoughts before asking, "This junior observed that the Asura are born fond of battle, their killing intent awe-inspiring. They do not seem to be a benevolent race. Why, then, did Senior Styx create such a race?"

"This junior has long resided in the Kunlun Mountains and knows little of affairs beyond them. Your Mount Sumeru is not far from here, so you must know something of this matter."

Because Patriarch Styx had actually created the Asura before Nüwa created humankind.

Xuanqing was deeply puzzled and had no idea why.

Hopefully, the two of them could give him an answer.

Zunti and Jieyin Daoist exchanged a glance.

Then Zunti gave a cough.

"What you do not know, nephew, is that this is a long story. Its origins lie after the Dao Ancestor's Third Sermon," Zunti began slowly.

"The Dao Ancestor apportioned the sage positions and bestowed Primordial Purple Qi. Yet the final wisp of the foundation of the Great Dao fled into the void, its whereabouts unknown."

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