The Dao-Demon Conflict

"Let me see your Vajra Body again."

Lu Tian's figure suddenly surged, instantly transforming into an angry Vajra form.

Zhunti observed the entire process with a focused gaze, then suddenly broke into a smile.

"Your spirit transformation technique is still rather crude, and the conversion efficiency is too slow."

"Why not draw in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth during the spirit transformation? This can both accelerate the conversion and enhance the power of your Vajra Body."

"Remember, the spirit transformation process must be swift..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhunti actually entered a state of deep meditation to comprehend the Dao.

Lu Tian and his fellow disciples, along with Jieyin, waited in attendance.

The vast years of the Great Desolation passed slowly, and in the blink of an eye, ten years had gone by.

For cultivators, this was but the snap of a finger.

Ten years later, ten thousand feet of purple energy suddenly appeared in the sky above the Western Teachings, and magnificent clouds dyed the nine heavens.

Two brilliant golden lights separated from the purple clouds, entering the heavenly spirits of Zhunti and Lu Tian respectively!

Lu Tian's body trembled violently, and then his face revealed uncontrollable joy!

These brilliant golden lights were actually Heavenly Dao Merit!

Heavenly Dao Merit!

As Lu Tian sensed the golden light merging into his body, an irrepressible joy surged in his heart.

Although the merit he obtained was only one or two tenths of Zhunti's, it was still a great opportunity for him!

This was the power of merit!

So-called merit was, in fact, the recognition of the Great Desolation's Heavenly Dao. Any action beneficial to the evolution of heaven and earth could earn the bestowal of the Heavenly Dao.

Merit could eliminate karmic obstacles, boost cultivation, break through bottlenecks, temper magical treasures, comprehend the Great Dao...

It could be called the ultimate treasure of the Great Desolation, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it the primordial power of heaven and earth!

Just look at the current Six Sages of the Great Desolation—the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti. Which of them didn't rely on merit to achieve enlightenment? This showed its profound mystery!

Even the esteemed status of a Sage could not resist the allure of merit.

Lu Tian never expected that he would actually receive this gift from the Heavenly Dao!

Upon reflection, he hadn't seemed to accomplish any great deeds.

But as he felt the merit golden light flowing within his body, he instantly understood the cause and effect.

It turned out to be all because of that physical spirit transformation technique.

This technique had led Zhunti to enlightenment and made the cultivation system of the Western Teachings more complete.

As a traveler from another world, Lu Tian saw things more clearly.

The West was originally a place of abundant spiritual energy and exceptional beauty, and it should have shone alongside the East.

Since the East could nurture peerless heroes like the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, the Wu and Yao tribes, and possess ten great spiritual roots and numerous high-grade Innate Spiritual Treasures, the West should have been no less.

In the original state of the Great Desolation, the East and West should have been equal.

However, the Dao-Demon Conflict shattered the mountains and rivers of the West, and countless creations were lost. The spiritual items, rare treasures, and peerless talents that should have been born all turned into bubbles.

The unique cultivation system of the West also vanished along with it.

Jieyin and Zhunti, as leaders of the West, ultimately had no choice but to convert to the Mystic Gate.

Since the Dao-Demon War was won, the cause of the West's decline naturally fell upon Hongjun's shoulders.

Now that Hongjun had merged with the Dao, he was doing his best to revitalize the West's destiny.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be the flourishing state of Buddhism in the Journey to the West in later generations.

The current Western Teachings were still a branch of the Mystic Gate, and the Buddhist system was still in its nascent stages.

Lu Tian's perfection of the Western cultivation methods was an act that complied with the Heavenly Dao, thus he received the reward of merit.

This was truly unexpected; it was a heaven-sent opportunity!

No wonder the great powers of Buddhism in later generations all had Golden Wheels of Merit above their heads; it was for this reason!

Lu Tian suddenly saw the light!

Those Buddhas and Bodhisattvas almost all had a brilliant Golden Wheel of Merit suspended behind their heads, astonishingly extravagant!

One must know that even disciples of the Heavenly Origin Sect, who were honored as True Immortals of Fortune and Virtue, did not all possess merit.

Looking across the three teachings of the East, those who truly possessed great merit were few and far between.

Indeed, the Eastern territories had long been divided, unlike the West, which offered such generous returns for starting from scratch.

Revitalizing the West was also strengthening the foundation of the Great Desolation, and the Heavenly Dao would certainly be happy to see it succeed...

Lu Tian's thoughts churned, and he instantly understood many crucial points.

The great powers of the East were as numerous as clouds, but the structure of interests had long been solidified.

Looking at the West, although the Dao lineage was once overthrown, if the foundation could be rebuilt, it would naturally be able to gain the most generous share.

Lu Tian happily collected the merit within his body and cupped his hands in greeting to his senior brothers.

This time, he had made a fortune, and his senior brothers' eyes were almost spitting with jealousy.

Hoo—

Zhunti exhaled a turbid breath and awoke from his profound enlightenment.

This small gain has expanded the cultivation methods of the West to a new realm, which is truly fortunate.

Although his tone was calm, the disciples were overjoyed and congratulated him one after another:

"Congratulations, Master!"

"Master's cultivation has advanced, which is truly a blessing for the West!"

"Master's divine powers are boundless!"

Zhunti waved his hand with a smile: "It's all thanks to your junior brother. Although his aptitude is ordinary, his comprehension is unmatched in this world. This method of transforming the physical body into spiritual energy has solved many difficult problems."

As he spoke, he flicked his sleeve, and several streams of spiritual light entered the bodies of the disciples.

"From now on, the Bodhisattva Golden Body and the Ancient Buddha Dharma Form can all be transformed into your true form, and your cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds."

"In addition, this method of transforming spiritual energy has been improved by me—"

"First, the transformation can be completed in an instant. If you are unable to cope during combat, you can immediately transform your spiritual energy into form, and all attacks will turn into bubbles, which can be called a wonderful escape technique."

"Of course, this is an auxiliary technique, not omnipotent."

Lu Tian raised an eyebrow in his heart: This sounds like the elemental transformation setting from a certain manga in my previous life.

"Second, when you reshape your Dharma body, you can absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and the strength of the newly forged Dharma body will increase by more than three times compared to before."

"Heh!"

All the disciples present were shocked.

A three-fold increase in strength, coupled with an invincible evasion divine ability, this spiritual energy transformation is terrifying?

When everyone looked at Lu Tian again, their eyes had completely changed—this divine skill in its nascent form was actually created by this young man!

"Junior brother's comprehension... it's simply going to break through the heavens!"

Mahasthamaprapta exclaimed in surprise, then immediately realized his mistake—talking about defying the heavens in front of a Sage was truly reckless!

Zhunti, however, smiled leisurely: "Your junior brother's comprehension reminds me of the time when my senior brother and I first founded the West."

Zhunti didn't care about this at all and instead sighed.

As soon as he said this, all the disciples of the Western Teachings in the hall were dumbfounded!

"Junior... Junior brother's comprehension is comparable to Master's?"

"This evaluation is too high!"

"The transformation of the physical body into spiritual energy is indeed an earth-shattering feat..."

Everyone was speechless with shock, not knowing how to respond!

Comprehension comparable to a Sage, how many people in the Primordial World could receive such an honor?!

Lu Tian didn't say much.

He knew very well that with the system's blessing, his comprehension had indeed reached the Sage level.

The reason why his comprehension speed and depth were not as good as Master Zhunti's was simply because his realm and vision were still lacking, and his understanding of the Dao was also different.

Zhunti looked at Lu Tian and nodded with satisfaction.

"Lu Tian, this time you created the method of transforming the physical body into spiritual energy, which not only advanced my Western Teachings' Dao lineage further but also earned me Heavenly Dao Merit."

"Although the Western Teachings lack resources, I am not a stingy person. This treasure was bestowed by the Dao Ancestor, and I will give it to you today. I hope you will cultivate diligently and not waste this item."

With that, Zhunti took out a divine scepter that shone with golden light and handed it to Lu Tian.

It was the High-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure—the Vajra Scepter!

Lu Tian knew that there was no need to decline at this time and respectfully accepted it.

This scepter was extraordinary. In the future, during the Investiture of the Gods, Zhunti had used this item to strike Tongtian Jiaozhu, causing him to lose face!

Zhunti nodded slightly and continued:

"Your comprehension is extraordinary. You will soon master the improved method of transforming the physical body into spiritual energy that I have modified, and other secret techniques of the Western Teachings will not be difficult for you."

"I previously said that I would teach you the first secret technique of the Western Teachings when your Vajra Body was perfected or you reached the Taiyi Golden Immortal stage."

"At that time, I was worried that you would be too eager for success. Now that you have improved the Vajra Body, it is very different from before."

"With your comprehension, you are qualified to learn this technique. Why don't I teach it to you now?"

These words made Lu Tian's spirits soar.

The first secret technique of the Western Teachings!

Since Jieyin and Zhunti held it in such high regard, this technique must be extraordinary!

He couldn't help but be curious, what exactly was the Western Teachings' foremost secret technique?

Mentioning the Western Teachings' foremost secret technique, Zhunti's eyes flashed with a hint of pride.

"Looking across all the Sages' orthodoxies, our Western Teachings' secret technique can be called peerless!"

"This technique is named... the Dream Path Enlightenment Method!"

The Dream Path Enlightenment Method!

Upon hearing the name, longing appeared in the eyes of everyone present.

They had not yet been taught this technique by their master!

Lu Tian also suddenly understood; so it was this divine ability.

This technique would surely become renowned throughout the Great Desolation in the future!

This art could allow cultivators to experience reincarnation within dreams, fully comprehending the entire process of cultivation and enlightenment, and pre-emptively grasp the profundities of higher realms.

Whether it was comprehending the laws of heaven and earth, cultivating and seeking enlightenment, or creating secret arts, all could be deduced and verified through this method, making it the Western Teachings' ultimate secret technique.

Hearing Zhunti's explanation, Lu Tian's mind trembled violently!

If it were truly as he said, this divine ability was simply stealing the creations of heaven and earth. Enlightenment in dreams was merely the foundation; its true profundity lay in simulating breakthroughs to higher realms within dreams, allowing one to pre-emptively experience higher levels.

Even more astonishing was that the cultivation and creation of secret arts could also be completed in dreams. In ordinary cultivation, whether it was practicing secret arts, creating one's own techniques, or breaking through realms, it was extremely perilous. A slight mistake could lead to the destruction of one's Dao Foundation, or even the annihilation of body and soul.

But in dreams, any mistake would be like waking from a dream; one could repeatedly try until successful, and then implement it in reality. This was especially true for realm breakthroughs—the tribulation in reality was unpredictable, but in dreams, one could repeatedly practice until fully confident before breaking through.

No wonder the Western Teachings, despite having few disciples with inferior talent, would later surpass the cultivators of the East. It turned out they had this heaven-defying secret art to assist them!

Could this dream realm truly be so miraculous, perhaps capable of completely replicating the Great Desolation world? Lu Tian couldn't help but blurt out the question. The profundity of this art had far surpassed his imagination. Although it couldn't directly increase combat power, its benefit to cultivation could be considered the greatest in the Great Desolation.

"Completely replicating it is naturally impossible," Zhunti shook his head. "This technique was stumbled upon by my senior brother and me. Even if your comprehension is extraordinary, if your current realm is insufficient, explaining its profound mysteries in detail would be futile."

Lu Tian nodded in understanding. Even with the potential of a Sage, knowing too much when one's cultivation is insufficient could be detrimental.

"Cultivating this technique relies entirely on comprehension; otherwise, one can only compensate with cultivation," Jieyin admonished solemnly. "You are the first in my teachings to receive this technique; do not disappoint our expectations."

Lu Tian respectfully bowed: "I will not fail the high hopes of you two masters."

Jieyin and Zhunti exchanged nods, a look of gratification flashing in their eyes.

This secret technique was created by them through a fortunate coincidence, but they had never found an opportunity to pass it on. Now, they had finally found a successor, and both were overjoyed.

"Lu Tian, enter the dream."

Jieyin and Zhunti whispered in unison. The two Sages jointly activated a profound incantation, and a stream of light entered Lu Tian's forehead.

Instantly, the world spun, and Lu Tian felt his true spirit detach from his body, traversing the boundary between reality and illusion, falling into a state of chaotic obscurity. In just a moment, he sank into a deep, unconscious slumber.

Unaware of how much time had passed, Lu Tian suddenly felt his spiritual platform clear.

"Disciple has woken up?"

"You woke up earlier than we anticipated."

The voices of the two Sages sounded in his ears. Lu Tian opened his eyes, finding himself still in the pure land of Spiritual Mountain, but the figures of Pharmacist, Maitreya, and other fellow disciples were nowhere to be seen.

"Senior brothers..." Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly became alert.