Tongtian VS Zhunti (Part 2)

"Excellent, excellent. Fellow Daoist Tongtian truly speaks with refreshing frankness."

Before his words had even faded, Zhunti had already made his move.

With a thought, the divine power within him surged wildly into the Seven-Treasure Wondrous Tree. At once, seven-colored glazed light flowed across the tree, transforming into a dazzling sea of radiance that swept toward Tongtian.

Beneath that seemingly gentle glow lay an aura of slaughter capable of destroying heaven and earth. Wherever it passed, space twisted and collapsed inch by inch.

Tongtian snorted coldly, his body utterly unmoving. Facing the overwhelming seven-colored sea of light, he merely slowly raised his right hand, brought his index and middle fingers together, and casually pointed ahead.

"Clang—"

An invisible, formless sword cry suddenly exploded between heaven and earth, as though the first glimmer of sharpness since the creation of the world had awakened at that moment.

There were no earth-shaking phenomena, nor any blinding radiance. There was only sword intent—pure to the utmost, sharp to the utmost—erupting from Tongtian's fingertips.

That sword intent was like a divine sword capable of cleaving through the ages. It effortlessly tore apart the seven-colored sea of light and shot straight toward Zhunti's face.

"What fine means. It seems Fellow Daoist Tongtian gained greatly from the last sermon. As it happens, I too have gained some insight, and I hope to exchange a few moves with you."

As soon as Zhunti finished speaking, his aura abruptly changed.

He no longer held back. A resplendent golden wheel of merit suddenly rose behind his head, while the faint sound of countless Buddhist chants echoed through the void.

With a flicker of his body, an enormous Dharma body with eighteen arms and twenty-four heads appeared. Some hands held jeweled garlands and parasols, while others gripped divine vajras and precious files. The light of countless treasures interwove, protecting him without a single gap.

"Fellow Daoist Tongtian's sword Dao is indeed sharp. I wonder, though, whether it can sever the aspirations of all living beings."

As the words fell, Zhunti's twenty-four heads lowered slightly in unison, and his eighteen palms moved at once. In an instant, golden light blazed from his enormous Dharma body. The countless Buddhist chants transformed into tangible golden ripples that swept madly toward Tongtian.

Every ripple contained endless aspirations of sentient beings and wondrous Western arts. This power appeared compassionate and solemn, yet it was heavy as mountains and dense as the sea, carrying an irresistible intent to "save" others. It sought to forcibly suppress and assimilate Tongtian's sword intent.

Zhunti really is shameless. He's actually using such disgusting methods.

Below, Lei Xiao had just reunited with Bi Xiao, Yun Xiao, and Qiong Xiao when he could not help cursing inwardly.

He looked up to see golden ripples of Buddhist chants filling the sky, crashing down like raging waves with a suffocating weight.

He did not know whether Zhunti's attack could harm Tongtian, but he and the Three Xiao had encountered serious trouble.

This strike was an area attack, and he and the Three Xiao were all within its range.

Lei Xiao strongly suspected that Zhunti had done this on purpose.

The golden ripples of Buddhist chants rolled in from all directions. They possessed no sharp killing intent, yet they carried the most inescapable power of suppression and assimilation.

These Western aspirations of sentient beings had gathered the devout thoughts of countless trillions of Western creatures. They excelled at eroding the Dao hearts of immortal cultivators and twisting their paths of cultivation.

The Purple Firmament Origin Divine Thunder within Lei Xiao could suppress it, so he was unafraid. But the Three Xiao...

"Little Four, take Eldest Sister and Second Sister back."

Bi Xiao stepped forward. The Dragon-Phoenix Flute appeared in her hand and rose to her lips.

A sharp gleam flashed through Lei Xiao's eyes. He came to Yun Xiao and Bi Xiao's side and grabbed them both. Afraid that they would resist, he explained, "Eldest Sister, Second Sister, Third Sister's treasure is a high-grade innate spiritual treasure, and it restrains aspiration attacks. She can protect herself. You are injured, so I'll take you away first, lest Third Sister be distracted."

Yun Xiao's lovely face was slightly pale, her eyes filled with anxiety as she watched Bi Xiao standing alone before the tide of Buddhist chants. Her heart was full of worry. "But Third Sister is alone..."

"Trust me."

Lei Xiao said only those two words. Yun Xiao and Qiong Xiao exchanged glances, then both nodded slightly.

The next instant, Lei Xiao pulled Yun Xiao and Qiong Xiao as they fled into the distance. At the same time, the sound of a flute rose behind them.

A dragon's roar, vast and mighty, suppressed all falsehood; a phoenix's cry, clear and pure, steadied the Dao heart. One rigid and one gentle, two innate Dao rhythms interwove into a blue-white canopy of soundwaves that stretched across the void, forcefully blocking the golden ripples that filled the sky.

Golden Buddhist runes surged forward like a tide, one layer shattering as another emerged, endlessly battering the blue-white sound barrier. Each thread of that seemingly mild aspiration power carried an overbearing will to forcibly save and twist one's Dao heart, madly eroding Bi Xiao's defensive barrier.

The barrier shook violently, dense cracks rapidly spreading across its surface. Its blue-white spiritual radiance dimmed and weakened at a visible rate.

Bi Xiao stood alone in the center of the void, her azure robes whipped wildly by invisible Dao power. Her slender body bore the crushing force of that entire golden sea of suffering.

Her brows knit slightly, and her white teeth bit her lower lip. The immortal essence within her poured madly into the Dragon-Phoenix Flute like a breached flood, desperately sustaining the final barrier. She did not retreat half a step or yield an inch.

One breath, two breaths, three breaths...

"Zhunti, you are shameless! You're bullying the young with your seniority!"

Tongtian, as the main target of the attack, had also been struck. It took him a full ten breaths to awaken from the impact of the aspirations of sentient beings, after which he flew into a rage.

Tongtian's azure robes billowed, and fierce sword intent exploded around him, shattering every golden Buddhist rune clinging to his body.

Before his words had faded, Tongtian lightly stepped forward. His body instantly crossed layer upon layer of space, and with a flash of azure light, he arrived before Bi Xiao.

By then, Bi Xiao could barely hold on. The Dragon-Phoenix Flute's spiritual light had grown weak, and the soundwave barrier had completely collapsed. Countless strands of golden aspiration power wrapped around her limbs and body. Buddhist chants thundered beside her ears, her Dao heart teetered on the verge of collapse, and even her body began to sway.

Tongtian lightly swept his sleeve, and vast clear light surged forth like a tide.

In a single instant, the golden Buddhist runes that eroded the soul and assimilated the Dao foundation melted away like ice and snow, turning into specks of golden light and vanishing without a trace.

The suppressive force enveloping Bi Xiao disappeared completely. As the taut pressure suddenly lifted, her body went limp, and she nearly fell from the void. She quickly steadied herself and bowed to Tongtian.

"Master—"

Tongtian's gaze swept over Bi Xiao before shifting to Lei Xiao in the distance, who was retreating with Yun Xiao and Qiong Xiao. He nodded slightly. "You did well."

Yun Xiao and Qiong Xiao had been nearly exhausted. Had Lei Xiao not taken them away in time, they would likely have already been converted by Zhunti using the aspirations of sentient beings.

"What a pity. I did not expect them to possess another high-grade innate spiritual treasure."

Zhunti stood in midair, and a nearly imperceptible flash of greed and regret passed through the depths of his eyes.

He had calculated it all beforehand. He had originally intended only to use the aftershocks of their battle to conveniently convert the Three Xiao and Lei Xiao to the West. Who would have thought that Bi Xiao possessed a Dragon-Phoenix Flute capable of restraining the aspirations of sentient beings?

"Zhunti."

Tongtian looked at Zhunti with icy eyes. "Come with me and fight in the starry sky."

"Since Fellow Daoist Tongtian is in such high spirits, I shall naturally accompany you."

Zhunti pressed his palms together, still wearing that compassionate and solemn smile. Yet his body had already silently risen, flying toward the boundless starry sky above the nine heavens.

Tongtian snorted coldly and said no more. With one step, his body vanished from where he stood. He followed close behind, transforming into a streak of sword light that shot into the prehistoric starry sky.