Paying the Debt
Having figured out the path he wanted to take, Qi Yun no longer lingered on this great battle.
He slightly raised his eyes, gazing at the towering figures in the sky that were slowly fading away.
The True Lord's decree has been issued.
Those above the Great True Person are not permitted to interfere in this battle.
This is a comprehensive restriction, an ironclad rule established by all the True Lord of this realm.
No one can outsmart the True Lord.
No one can use underhanded tactics without being detected.
That will only bring misfortune upon yourself.
Qi Yun withdrew his gaze and stood with his hands behind his back.
His deep blue Daoist robe remained motionless in the fierce wind, with only the hem fluttering slightly, just like his State of Mind at that moment.
Calm as still water, without a ripple or a wave.
He turned around.
Take a step forward.
That step landed in the void, and there were no unusual phenomena underfoot, only a very faint spatial ripple that quietly spread out.
But it was this one step—
The deep blue figure had already disappeared into the sky.
Only a faint wisp of Daoist charm remained, slowly swirling above the clouds.
True Person Sansi watched the disappearing figure, and slowly released his right hand from the hilt of his sword.
He didn't speak.
He simply lowered his eyes slightly, turned around, and took a step forward as well.
The figure in green robes transformed into a beam of sword light and vanished into the void.
Lady Jiuli closed her phoenix eyes slightly, and the flickering flames slowly subsided.
She gently raised her hand, and the nine crimson-gold phoenixes behind her flapped their wings in unison, carrying the magnificent phoenix carriage into the void.
The light in True Person Zַhuanlun's eerie green eyes flickered uncertainly.
He gazed in the direction where Qi Yun had disappeared, and at the slowly dissipating Daoist aura, remaining silent for a long time.
Then, his dry lips twitched slightly.
It seemed like he wanted to say something.
In the end, however, nothing was said.
The gray mist that enveloped him swirled gently.
The hunched figure, along with the gray mist, vanished into the void.
The three princes of the Dragon Palace exchanged glances.
A complex light flashed in the Eastern Sea's dragon eyes, which were as blue as the blazing sun.
North Sea's deep blue eyes remained as cold and aloof as ever.
The arrogant smile that had been playing on the South Sea's lips had long since vanished.
Neither of them spoke.
They simply turned around and transformed into three dragon shadows of different colors, disappearing into the horizon.
Those who cultivate to the level of Great True Person can understand many things at a glance.
No further explanation is needed.
Above the clouds, utter silence reigned.
Only the battlefield below, still boiling over, continues to cook up this eternal catastrophe with countless lives lost.
The uppermost level of the Great Void Mirror Heaven.
This place is devoid of light and darkness, silent and still, with only a pool of dark, inky water lying quietly in the center of the cave.
That is the Daoist temple of the Wudao Extreme Dharma True Lord.
Qi Yun did not go there.
He simply stood with his hands behind his back, atop the Mirror Heaven, looking down at the layers upon layers of crystal mirrors below.
Countless scenes were reflected in those mirrors.
There were disciples in seclusion, True Person discussing the Dao, artifact cultivators refining Law Artifact tools, and talisman cultivators practicing Cultivation Method.
There he was sitting quietly in that Green Mountain Daoist Temple, guarding his fundamental Dao Lineage Dharma Body.
Qi Yun's gaze lingered on the Daoist temple for a moment.
A faint, almost imperceptible warmth flickered deep within those cyan-gold eyes.
He then looked away.
Raise your hand.
He flipped his palm over.
An object, roughly the size of a palm and with a deep, dark bronze hue, appeared out of thin air.
It has six smooth, mirror-like surfaces, each engraved with countless ancient and intricate seal characters.
Those seal characters are now slowly flowing, radiating a deep and ancient light.
[Six Realms Heaven].
Its sole purpose is to traverse the cosmic barrier and cross realms.
Qi Yun held the bronze cube, feeling the cool yet heavy touch in his palm.
That was the aura of something from beyond the realm.
That was the aura of countless realms.
That was the place he was heading to.
"A Century's Journey----"
Qi Yun murmured to himself, his voice slowly echoing across the silent, Mirror Heaven.
That was his agreement with the Wealth Connects to the Divine.
Back then, in the Spirit Mountain Sacred Realm, amidst the perilous situation bathed in Buddhist light and surrounded by enemies, he paid five times the price to secure a chance to break free.
If he cannot repay this debt within a century.
The Wealth Connects to the Divine will then take away his Primordial True Body.
That is the foundation of all his Dao Path, and the basis upon which he is able to differentiate his Dharma Body and govern all dharmas.
If it's taken away, everything will be over.
Now, he can't get involved in the battle between good and evil.
I'll take advantage of this free time to travel outside the region.
Capture a few Great True Person.
The debt has been paid off.
Qi Yun closed his eyes slightly.
With a thought, deep within the Purple Mansion, the Nether Youquan Dharma Body, seated cross-legged on the Blood Sea Lotus Platform, slowly opened its blood-red eyes.
"My true self?"
The voice of the Youquan echoed in my mind, tinged with a hint of doubt.
Qi Yun did not answer.
It was simply a matter of transmitting that thought.
Youquan remained silent for a moment.
Then, a knowing glint flashed in those blood-red eyes.
"Understood."
The voice carried a hint of amusement and anticipation.
Arresting people outside the territory—interesting.
Where does this master intend to begin?
Qi Yun did not answer immediately.
He simply opened his eyes slowly, gazing at the higher, more distant existence in the the Unseen.
Looking in the direction where countless realms and heavens reside.
a long time.
A faint smile slowly crept onto his lips.
The smile was faint, so faint that it was almost imperceptible.
"The realms beyond are boundless, and the heavens and realms are countless."
He spoke softly, his voice not loud, yet it was like the first sound of the Dao at the beginning of time, slowly echoing across this silent Mirror Heaven: "But the Great True Person is, after all, the Great True Person."
"Regardless of which realm, regardless of what path one cultivates."
"Upon reaching that level, one's aura will merge with heaven and earth, resonating with the principles of the Dao."
"Compared to other cultivators, they are actually quite easy to find."
After saying that, he said no more.
He simply held the [Six Realms Heaven] and tossed it lightly.
The bronze cube flew out of his hand and hovered in the air in front of him.
A faint blue light slowly emanated from the cube.
The light was initially extremely faint, so faint that it was almost imperceptible.
But the instant it lit up, countless ancient seal characters bloomed simultaneously!
Like countless stars, they ignited simultaneously on that small bronze block, which was only a foot square!
The light shot into the sky, piercing straight into the heavens above, into that higher and more distant the Unseen!
Wherever the light touched, the void began to tremble, began to distort, began to—
Tear!
A dark blue portal slowly took shape from the torn void.
The gate was over a hundred feet high and several tens of feet wide, with its edges flowing with an indescribable chaotic color.
Qi Yun stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the dark blue portal that was slowly taking shape.
a long time.
He took a step.
With one step, the deep blue figure disappeared into the portal.
Behind them, the dark blue portal slowly closed, as if it had never existed.
Only in that void remained a faint, elusive trace of Qi Yun's Daoist aura.
That wisp of Daoist charm flowed slowly across this silent, Mirror Heaven, lingering for a long time.
The dark blue portal slowly closed.
Qi Yun's figure completely disappeared into that chaotic void.
In that very instant—
Overseas, in the far west.
Deep within that hidden Pure Land, perpetually shrouded in the golden light of endless vows, several figures seated cross-legged on lotus platforms simultaneously opened their eyes.
In those eyes, there was a flowing light of Buddha, and an intertwining of cause and effect.
He's gone.
A deep, resonant sound, like that of an ancient bell, slowly echoed through the Pure Land.
That was the voice of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva.
Beside him, the three faces of the Wrathful Wisdom King Bodhisattva simultaneously displayed ferocious smiles.
"The True Lord's decree applies only to the Xuanhuang Home Realm."
"Outside the territory—this is not subject to the ban."
As soon as he finished speaking, several pairs of eyes met at the same time.
In that instant, no words were needed; our hearts were already connected.
The next instant, "BOOM!!!"
Several beams of Buddhist light shot into the sky simultaneously!
The Buddha's light was dazzling and intense, instantly tearing apart the golden light of vows that enveloped the Pure Land, and shooting straight into the sky above, into that higher and more distant existence in the the Unseen!
Within each ray of Buddha's light, a majestic figure sits cross-legged.
The Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva was surrounded by seven-colored Buddhist light, and the ancient dragon and elephant phantom behind him raised its head and roared.
The Wrathful Wisdom King Bodhisattva has three heads and six arms, his body engulfed in blue flames that burn the sky, and each of his six arms holds a magical Law Artifact subduing evil.
The Jeweled Tree Adornment Bodhisattva, with the illusory shadow of the towering Bodhi tree behind him swaying and showering down immeasurable rain of wisdom.
The World-Purifying White Lotus Bodhisattva stands beneath a ten-thousand-foot-tall World-Purifying White Lotus in full bloom, its petals unfurling as if to encompass the entire world.
Four Bodhisattvas, four beams of Buddha light, crashed straight into the void!
Heading towards that deep blue figure that had already departed.
They gave chase!
The Buddha's light dissipated.
The void slowly healed.
The golden light of vows that enveloped the Pure Land gradually returned to its original state.
Everything was as if nothing had happened.
But right there in this void that had just regained its peace—
A faint, almost imperceptible ripple of crimson light spread out quietly.
The ripples were so fine, as fine as a trace left by a breeze on the water's surface.
But it was in that instant when that ripple spread out—
Without warning, a figure slowly emerged from the ripples.
He wore a long, blood-red robe, the color so deep it resembled dried, congealed blood, or a boiling Blood Sea.
His face was exceptionally handsome, with slanted eyebrows, a high nose bridge, and a faint, cold, and sinister smile on his thin lips.
Youquan.
He stood there with his hands behind his back, high above the sky, before the newly healed void.
Those bloodshot eyes gazed in the direction where the four beams of Buddhist light had disappeared.
Hehehehe!!!
A chilling yet exhilarating laugh burst forth from his throat!
Wherever the laughter passed, the newly healed void began to show signs of cracking again!
"The Mantis Stalks the Cicada"
He paused, the crimson vortex slowly rotating. "Ambush from behind?"
He shook his head slightly, a hint of mockery creeping into his wicked smile, "But what's behind this shrew—"
He slowly raised his head, looking in the direction where the four beams of Buddhist light disappeared, looking towards the vast and boundless outer realm, looking towards the direction where the aura of his true self, which he knew better than anyone else, was located.
He uttered each word slowly and deliberately: "And the eagles too—"
After saying that, he said no more.
With just a gentle flick of his sleeve.
That crimson figure, like ink seeping into water, suddenly transformed into a wisp of viscous blood mist.
Blood mist surged silently.
Then it headed straight towards the depths of that Pure Land, to the place where the four Bodhisattvas had just left the original site of the Buddhist sect.
They sped away!