Angry Buddha Lotus

Deep within the virtual forest constructed by the Spirit Ascension Platform, the atmosphere was eerily calm.

Tang Wulin walked through the shadowy woods. The Soul Beasts around him seemed to sense some kind of pressure stemming from the very level of his existence and scattered out of his way. Even the normally savage Demon Vine Snakes and Shadow Leopards lay trembling on the ground as he passed, as though confronted by their natural predator, not daring to make a sound.

Within this special demiplane, Tang Wulin's understanding of "life" reached unprecedented heights.

He discovered that here, he could do more than absorb the spiritual energy released by dead Soul Beasts to increase the age of his Soul Rings. He could even directly touch these life-forms composed of spiritual energy and sense the pathways of their life force.

A Wind Demon Wolf lurking in the canopy suddenly lunged down, its sharp claws aimed straight at Tang Wulin's head.

Tang Wulin neither dodged nor retreated. He merely raised his right hand casually, a faint green-gold glow rising from his palm.

Life Drain!

There was no violent collision. The instant the Wind Demon Wolf's body touched his palm, its once-raging life force poured into Tang Wulin like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea. Before the wolf could even scream, it dissolved into specks of light in midair and vanished between heaven and earth. That pure spiritual energy was absorbed directly by the Soul Spirit within Tang Wulin.

"So that's it... Here, I am the master of life."

Feeling the power surging through his body, Tang Wulin understood. If he could take, he could naturally give as well. He tried injecting a thread of Soul Power into a withered virtual plant beside his foot, and it regained its vitality at a speed visible to the naked eye.

This meant that if a companion was injured within the Spirit Ascension Platform, he could nourish them with his own life force. In extreme circumstances, he could even use it to prolong their life!

Just then, a deafening roar rang out in the distance. A Guardian Demon Ape with a full thousand years of cultivation had been disturbed. It beat its chest furiously and charged toward Tang Wulin, brandishing an enormous stone hammer and smashing ancient trees to pieces along its path.

Alarms blared inside the monitoring room.

"Oh no! It's a thousand-year guardian beast! Tang Wulin, run!" a staff member cried.

Yet Wu Changkong stood before the screen, staring fixedly at the scene without a word.

Facing the imposing behemoth, Tang Wulin remained calm. He neither summoned his Martial Soul nor took a single step back. He simply stood there quietly and extended his right hand, aiming his palm at the raging ape.

"Quiet down."

As his soft words fell, a terrifying suction force erupted.

The seemingly unstoppable thousand-year ape suddenly let out a shrill scream when it was still ten meters from Tang Wulin. Its massive body shriveled at a speed visible to the naked eye as all its spiritual energy and life force were forcibly extracted, becoming a torrent that poured into Tang Wulin.

Just three seconds.

The thousand-year Guardian Demon Ape became a dried corpse and crashed to the ground before dissolving into a skyful of light.

Tang Wulin slowly withdrew his hand. Green light swirled around him, and his aura was even more substantial than before. He glanced at the place where the ape had vanished, his gaze indifferent.

Within this Spirit Ascension Platform, he was invincible as long as he had a single breath left. Whether plundering or creating, the cycle of life and death lay within a single thought of his.

Deep within the Spirit Ascension Platform lay a bitterly cold region where elemental forces surged.

Gu Yue, the black-haired girl with purple eyes, hovered in midair. Her expression was cold and proud as Wind Blades and fireballs danced alternately between her slender fingers, instantly shredding several hundred-year Ice Wolves that lunged at her into nothingness. Her control over the elements was exquisite. Her long black hair streamed freely in the gale, and the cold light of the frozen plains reflected in her purple eyes. She looked like a proud queen of the elements.

However, the peace of this region was soon shattered.

Rumble—

The ground began to quake violently, and a suffocating chill spread from deep within the glacier. Then an enormous creature slowly emerged from the mist.

It was a snow-white Crystal Bear, resembling a polar bear but far larger. An enormous azure crystal was embedded in the center of its forehead, while its arms and paws were covered in blue crystals as translucent as ice. Those crystals refracted an eerie light, as though holding the crushing pressure of the deep sea. Every step it took froze a thick layer of ice across the ground.

Hovering in midair, Gu Yue narrowed her purple eyes slightly.

A thousand years of cultivation.

Although it was only a thousand-year beast, the aura this Crystal Bear emitted made her heart tremble.

"Roar—!"

The Crystal Bear gave a deep roar and lashed out with a claw. The blue crystals at its claw tips flashed with cold light as the strike slashed straight at Gu Yue, carrying a fierce wind that tore through the air.

Gu Yue swiftly formed seals with both hands. A thick earthen wall rose instantly, then gained a coating of ice crystals.

Crack!

The earthen wall crumbled to dust upon contact, and the tremendous force made Gu Yue sway slightly. She felt a bone-piercing, sinister chill trying to invade her body through her Soul Power. Had she not reacted swiftly and severed the connection, her arm would probably have frozen already.

Such powerful defenses, such overwhelming strength! Gu Yue was horrified.

Although this Crystal Bear's attack power was not as incomparably overbearing as that of the legendary Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, it absolutely could not be underestimated. It probably possessed only half the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's power, but combined with its indestructible azure crystal defenses, it was practically a moving fortress!

She rapidly assessed the situation. Although this Crystal Bear had only a thousand years of cultivation, its special mutated constitution gave it defenses comparable to those of a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast. Moreover, its azure crystals seemed to possess an extreme cold attribute. Anyone struck would rapidly freeze and crystallize.

I can't fight it head-on!

Gu Yue made her decision immediately. Though her elemental attacks were spectacular, they lacked the ultimate penetrating power needed to break through its defenses in a single strike. Against such a thick-skinned monster with absurd defenses, any flashy tricks were futile.

"Roar!"

The Crystal Bear closed in again. The blue crystal on its forehead suddenly lit up, and a bitterly cold aura locked onto Gu Yue.

"Ice Explosion!"

Gu Yue dared not linger. Silver light flashed beneath her feet, and she became a streak of light as she rapidly retreated. She needed to find reinforcements or discover this monster's weakness. Until then, all she could do was run.

Behind her, the place where she had just stood instantly froze into an enormous blue ice crystal.

Gu Yue gritted her teeth. Her long black hair streamed in the wind, and a trace of unwillingness flashed through her purple eyes, though calmness prevailed. Without looking back, she raced deeper into the forest at full speed.

Behind her, the enormous white Crystal Bear pursued with heavy, unhurried steps, as though toying with its prey.

Inside the monitoring room.

"Is that... a mutated Ice Crystal Bear?" The staff member's voice trembled as they stared at the enormous white figure on the screen. "How could something like that appear here? Its defenses are enough to crush every Soul Beast of the same level!"

Wu Changkong stared fixedly at the screen, his expression terrifyingly grim. Even he found that Crystal Bear's defenses troublesome.

Gu Yue, don't let it catch you, Wu Changkong silently prayed.

Within the forest, the fleeing girl and her pursuer rapidly disappeared into the distance. Gu Yue's long black hair streamed in the wind. Though her gaze remained calm, she was frantically calculating escape routes.

Even Tang Wulin's Golden Dragon Body probably couldn't smash through this monster... The thought flashed through Gu Yue's mind, and she gave a bitter smile. Looks like I can only hope that guy senses my aura.

Tang Wulin took a deep breath. Blue Silver Grass spread beneath his feet, and his first Soul Skill—Life Domain—instantly unfolded.

A green halo rapidly spread outward with him at its center, leaving every fluctuation of life within the forest exposed to his senses. He had originally intended to check for older Soul Beasts nearby to replenish himself. Yet the instant his spiritual power swept outward, his expression abruptly changed.

Three thousand meters to the southwest, a familiar fluctuation of purple Soul Power was moving rapidly. Close behind it followed a powerful aura—heavy, cold, and intensely oppressive.

It's Gu Yue! Something's hunting her!

"Damn it!" Tang Wulin had no time to think. The Golden Dragon King Bloodline within him erupted instantly, the muscles in his legs bulging as he became a golden bolt of lightning and charged in that direction.

Boom—!

Gu Yue unleashed another Wind Blade, trying to slow the behemoth behind her. Yet when it struck the white Crystal Bear's azure crystal armor, it produced only a few insignificant sparks.

This mutated Ice Crystal Bear's defenses were simply outrageous.

"Roar!" The Crystal Bear roared angrily, smashed a boulder blocking its path with one swipe, and continued closing in with heavy steps.

"It's no use..." Gu Yue panted, her long black hair somewhat disheveled and a trace of despair flashing through her purple eyes. She and Tang Wulin had attempted several joint attacks. Although they had driven the enormous creature back repeatedly and rattled it until its head spun, they could not break through its defenses at all. It was like scratching an itch for it.

"Gu Yue! What exactly is going on with this monster? Does it have a weakness? Will anything unusual happen when it dies?" Tang Wulin's figure rushed to Gu Yue's side like the wind, and he questioned her in a low voice.

A spark of hope flashed through Gu Yue's eyes when she saw Tang Wulin arrive, but she immediately cried urgently, "It's no use! It's a mutated variety of Crystal Bear. When it dies, the energy crystals inside its body instantly destabilize and cause a massive explosion! It's powerful enough to destroy everything around it!"

An explosion?

Inspiration flashed through Tang Wulin's mind.

He remembered that in the mysterious Heavens Void Hall deep within his Sea of Consciousness, a senior named Xiao Yan had once demonstrated an extraordinarily overbearing combat technique while he slept and tempered his mind.

Angry Buddha Lotus!

It was a move that fused Heavenly Flames according to specific rules, triggering a terrifying collision of energy. Although Tang Wulin had no Heavenly Flames, he did have a Green Lotus Core Flame seed left by Xiao Yan within his body—a pure source of fire-attribute energy.

Since the Crystal Bear would explode after death, why not detonate the energy inside it while it was still alive?

"Gu Yue, do you trust me?" Tang Wulin suddenly turned, staring at her with burning intensity.

Gu Yue froze for a moment. Looking into Tang Wulin's resolute eyes, she instinctively nodded. "I do."

"Good!" Tang Wulin shouted. "Send your Soul Power flames into my hands! This move is incredibly powerful. Whether we survive will be up to heaven. If you can dodge it, run!"

Gu Yue did not hesitate in the slightest. She knew Tang Wulin would not shoot without a target. She swiftly thrust both hands forward, and the scorching fireball gathered in her palms instantly became a stream of fire that poured into Tang Wulin's palm.

At the same time, brilliant green light blazed in Tang Wulin's left palm as he forcibly activated the long-dormant Green Lotus Core Flame seed. Dusky green flames leaped into the air, carrying an eerie, violent aura.

Two utterly different flames converged between Tang Wulin's hands.

There was no rejection. Under the control of Tang Wulin's powerful spiritual force, they began to rotate and merge along a profound trajectory. The green flames wrapped around Gu Yue's orange-yellow Soul Power flames, layer upon layer, finally forming a green lotus of breathtaking beauty. At its center, a golden point flickered like a flower's stamen—the essence of Gu Yue's flames.

"Go!"

Cradling this flower of destruction in both hands, Tang Wulin shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow. Rather than retreating, he charged straight at the roaring Crystal Bear lunging toward him.

"Roar—!"

The Crystal Bear swung its enormous paw, trying to smash this reckless ant who did not know the difference between life and death.

Yet Tang Wulin's speed had reached its utmost limit. Using the Blue Silver Grass's Entanglement, he twisted strangely sideways at the last instant, evaded the fatal blow, and forcefully pressed the green lotus against the Crystal Bear's hard chest with both hands!

"Explode!"

BOOM—!!!

Time seemed to stop at that moment.

Then a storm of energy capable of destroying heaven and earth erupted around the two of them, instantly sweeping through the entire valley.

The green fire lotus exploded. Its terrifying heat and impact instantly penetrated the crystal defenses the Crystal Bear took such pride in, directly detonating the already unstable energy crystals within its body.

"Aah—!"

Tang Wulin felt an irresistible force crash toward him. He instinctively shielded Gu Yue behind him, then was swallowed by the towering waves of flame.

Gu Yue's eyes widened as she stared at the back of the boy being consumed by flames before her. She tried to unleash a Soul Skill to defend herself, but that force was too overwhelming. Her consciousness plunged into darkness in an instant.

An enormous mushroom cloud rose, reducing everything within several li to nothingness.

At the center of that terrifying explosion, two figures were hurled away like kites with severed strings, their survival unknown. Even the sky of the Spirit Ascension Platform was dyed an eerie greenish yellow by that energy.