Four beams of divine radiance suddenly tore out of the void!
So brilliant and fierce was their light that they resembled four golden suns plunging down at once, illuminating the stretch of heaven and earth before Wuzhuang Temple, which moments ago had still been shrouded in dust and the stench of blood.
Buddha light surged, and faint Buddhist chants echoed.
Four figures manifested in the air before Wuzhuang Temple almost simultaneously.
The man at their head was round-bodied, his face like a full moon, his great belly protruding. His trademark smile hung on his face, but now there was an indescribable stiffness to it.
It was Maitreya Buddha.
Beside him, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva held his palms together, his expression as solemn as iron. Buddha light flowed ceaselessly around him, while exceedingly complicated emotions surged through his compassionate eyes.
Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva and Medicine Tathagata stood to either side, both wearing solemn expressions, their auras as deep as abysses. Clearly, they had already driven their magical power to its utmost.
The four stood shoulder to shoulder, their Buddha light interweaving, their imposing presence vast and mighty, enveloping the whole expanse of heaven and earth in solemn golden radiance.
To Sanzang, who had just struggled to his feet in the Deep Pit, this sight was nothing less than sweet rain after a long drought.
His face, which had just been twisted by agony and humiliation, suddenly lit up with wild delight.
Mixed into that delight were long-suppressed venom and satisfaction, as though a poisonous snake that had lain hidden for ages had finally seen its prey fall into the trap.
Sanzang staggered two steps forward, his body smeared with blood and filth, his tattered kasaya snapping in the wind.
Though he was gravely wounded and his aura feeble, he now held his back ramrod