Battle of the True Lords
The sky suddenly collapsed.
It was neither the gathering of dark clouds nor the arrival of night.
Rather, it is a more fundamental "existence" that has been forcibly altered and distorted.
The void that originally flowed with fierce winds and faint spiritual energy.
At this moment, it is permeated and covered by a pure, heavy "nothingness".
That "nothingness" is not emptiness.
Rather, it is the ultimate annihilation that devours all light, heat, sound, color, and even the concept of "existence" itself.
The four paths, which originally occupied the four directions and each manifested Pure Land, a Buddha Kingdom, a wrathful form of a Wisdom King, and a powerful and majestic Divine Ability of a dragon and elephant, were all magnificent and imposing, their power reaching for thousands of miles. However, under the cover of this silent and desolate sky, they were like snowflakes thrown into boiling oil, their edges beginning to melt and peel away silently.
The Buddha's light dimmed, the chanting became muffled, and the majestic and sacred aura was being eroded and dissolved by a slow but irresistible force of "nothingness".
Amidst the silence, a figure in black robes slowly stepped out.
He possessed neither dazzling light nor imposing pressure, as if he were merely a piece cut from the deepest darkness of night. Yet, as he moved, he carried an Return to Nothingness Daoist aura that silenced all laws and caused all phenomena to vanish. He was Wudao Extreme Dharma True Lord.
He merely stood in the void, and the pervasive "nothingness" domain caused the Buddhist light barrier jointly set up by the four Bodhisattvas to groan under its unbearable weight, cracking inch by inch.
The Movement Method of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva, towering to the heavens and with muscles bulging like dragon veins, was the first to feel an overwhelming pressure.
He abruptly raised his head, his gaze fixed on the solitary figure in black robes in the void. His massive maw opened and closed, his voice like the roar of millions of dragons and elephants, yet tinged with an undisguised sense of dread. "You—are almost at the Middle Realm Perfection?!"
Upon hearing this, the remaining three Bodhisattvas all trembled slightly.
Reaching the Middle Realm Perfection signifies touching the threshold of the ultimate Xuanhuang realm.
Wudao this wicked scoundrel have gotten himself to this point so quietly?
Upon hearing this, the Wudao Extreme Dharma True Lord slowly curved his lips into a very faint smile, a smile that was icy cold and devoid of any warmth.
Only indifference that sees through everything and controls the whole situation.
His gaze swept over the four bodhisattva statues, their auras churning endlessly. His voice was calm, yet each word was like ancient ice falling to the ground. "Otherwise, how dare I lure you into my trap?"
The instant the word "urn" was uttered, the desolate Dao Domain that permeated heaven and earth suddenly collapsed and condensed, transforming into four seemingly ethereal wisps of smoke.
In reality, it is the "Threads of Return to Nothingness," heavier than the stars of eternity.
Ignoring the barriers of time and space, he pierced straight at the Four Great Bodhisattvas!
"How dare you, you devil!"
The Dragon Elephant Prajna Bodhisattva roared, his six arms forming the "Dragon Elephant Suppressing Hell Seal," and behind him emerged the illusory image of an ancient dragon and elephant carrying the blue sky. Its long trunk curled up the Mount Sumeru Mountain Shadow, and with the purest power, it fiercely crashed into the black silk!
"Burn away all evil!"
The Wrathful Wisdom King Bodhisattva's body was engulfed in blazing Red Lotus Karmic Fire, transforming into the true form of the Destruction King with eight arms and twenty-four heads. Holding Law Artifact such as the Vajra, the Karma-Slaying Sword, and the Demon-Subduing Rope, he unleashed a raging inferno of killing flames, which transformed into a furious red dragon!
"May Buddha be solemn!"
The Jeweled Tree Adornment Bodhisattva, with the illusory image of a Seven Treasures Wondrous Tree that reached the heavens and the earth. Its branches were like crystal, and its leaves were like gold and jade. Thousands of jeweled curtains of light hung down, flowing with the eternal Buddha light of protection and guardianship. Wherever the light reached, the void itself became Pure Land, attempting to isolate it from the erosion of annihilation.
"Pure and undefiled!"
The World-Purifying White Lotus Bodhisattva stands on a white lotus, holding a pure vase in her hand. A point of white light emanates from between her brows, transforming into a slowly rotating purifying white lotus. As the lotus petals drift down, they shower down a rain of purifying light, which purifies everything in its path, leaving no trace of defilement. She seeks to use the ultimate power of purification to eliminate the Daoist principle of "Return to Nothingness."
Four immense and vast forces of True Lord level, each with a distinct nature, collided violently with the four strands of annihilating black silk!
"Boom-Crack-Buzz-Whoosh"
A terrifying scene, indescribable in words, unfolded in an instant!
At the heart of the collision, the churning earth, fire, wind, water, and chaotic currents were revealed.
Time is disordered here. Sometimes, one can see the phantom of the dragon and elephant collapsing and reforming countless times in a fraction of a second. At other times, it is almost absolutely frozen, and one can see every minute process of the garland of light hanging from the precious tree and the black threads of annihilation eroding and annihilating each other.
The Principle are lamenting, the Great Dao is trembling.
Where the power of the dragon and elephant suppressing the prison intertwined with the black silk, a tremor of "power" that reached straight to the Divine Soul was swallowed by "nothingness".
The Red Lotus Karmic Fire intertwined with black silk, and the raging flames that consumed all things revealed a deathly, ashen color.
The Pure Land of the Seven Treasures Wondrous Tree was imbued with the serene and tranquil Daoist aura, and fragments of crystalline Buddhist light peeled away like weathered murals.
The light rain sprinkled by the purifying white lotus fell on the black silk, like water droplets falling into boiling oil, triggering an even more violent backlash of annihilation, causing the white lotus petals to curl slightly.
The four Bodhisattvas each displayed their astonishing Divine Ability, yet they were all suppressed by the True Lord Wudao at the very beginning of their battle!
Those four strands of "Threads of Return to Nothingness" may seem faint, but they contain a terrifying Daoist charm that can bring all things to an end. Like a malignant tumor, they constantly erode and wear down the golden bodies, Buddha light, and Dao Foundation of the Bodhisattvas.
Just as the four Buddha statues shimmered with light, locked in a fierce struggle with the black silk of annihilation, and the aftershocks churned the vast void into a chaotic mess—a scene of world destruction—then the world was at its most devastated.
A tiny glimmer of light quietly appeared.
At first, it was as insignificant as dust, but then, Infinite Light light, endless heat, and limitless illumination spread out gently and firmly.
The source of light, the Great Sun Purple Ultimate True Lord manifests.
Barefoot, treading the void, a pure lotus of the Way naturally springs forth beneath one's feet.
He wore a simple white robe, had a gentle face, and exuded an aura of constant presence and supreme protection of this world.
He didn't look at the earth-shattering battle; instead, his gaze fell, piercing through all the chaos, and landed precisely on the deep blue figure below— Qi Yun.
The True Lord raised his hand, his index finger and thumb lightly touching, forming an ancient Law Seals.
A wisp of pure light, refined to the extreme and clear as crystal, flowed from his fingertips, transforming into a supple and eternal ribbon of light that ignored all obstacles and instantly enveloped Qi Yun.
The ribbons, one end to the other, slowly rotated, transforming into a perfectly round cocoon of light.
Within the cocoon, a self-contained, eternal Pure Land formed.
Time is constant, space is stable, impervious to all laws, and unapproachable to all evil.
Regardless of the collapse of the heavens and the shattering of the earth, the disintegration of Principle, and the transformation of everything into a chaotic abyss by annihilation and Buddha's light, within this cocoon of light, there is only absolute tranquility and peace.
Qi Yun within the cocoon, his Daoist robe still, his face calm as an ancient well, peacefully observing the ultimate battle that transcended the limits of mortal imagination.
After finishing his task, the Great Sun Purple Ultimate True Lord slowly raised his eyes and looked at the black-robed figure who was fighting against four opponents and whose Daoist aura of annihilation permeated all directions. His gentle eyes were calm and composed, showing only a clear understanding of everything.
The battle True Lord has brought calamity upon millions.
Without the protection of the Great Sun Purple Ultimate True Lord, Qi Yun might be annihilated by a casual strike from these powerful figures.
Within the cocoon of light, time seemed to stand still.
The terrifying impact of Daoist energy and the annihilation of Principle in the outside world, powerful enough to cause stars to fall and continents to sink, still appears magnificent and terrifying through the cocoon of light, but now separated by an eternal distance.
It's like watching a silent shadow puppet show.
Qi Yun stood with his hands behind his back, his deep gaze piercing through the cocoon of light and landing on the five entangled and colliding towering figures in the chaotic void.
The black silk threads of annihilation entangled the four bodhisattvas like a spider web, their Buddha-light shimmering as they displayed astonishing Divine Ability powers to struggle and hold them together.
The black robe of the True Lord Wudao remained the deepest and most stable core of that scene of destruction.
"In this battle," Qi Yun began slowly, his voice calm and devoid of much emotion, "Who do you think will win?"
The Great Sun Purple Ultimate True Lord stood quietly to the side, his gentle gaze also fixed on the battlefield. Upon hearing this, he answered calmly without the slightest hesitation, "It is naturally the True Lord Wudao who has won."
"Oh?" Qi Yun tilted his head slightly, a hint of inquiry flashing in his eyes. "So certain? The combined power of the four Bodhisattvas is indeed extraordinary."
"Though its momentum is great, its foundation is already shaken." The Great Sun Purple Ultimate True Lord shook his head slightly and gently swept his hand across the void in front of him.
In an instant, the scene within the cocoon of light shifted, no longer reflecting the chaotic battlefield outside, but instead revealing a more profound and fundamental "realm".
That is a projection of the All Wonders Heaven, a place where the Great Dao manifests, and a place where the True Lord's Dao Fruit resides.
In the center of the projection, a black lotus Dao Fruit, shaped like a piece of black jade with layers of deep petals, was quietly suspended.
It is not stationary, but slowly rotating.
With each rotation, wisps of dark Dao intent, signifying annihilation, Return to Nothingness, and the end, emanate like living things, heavy as ancient star remains, and cold as the eternal void.
Beneath this black lotus Dao Fruit, there is not nothing.
Seven tiny, yet exceptionally stable and resilient, brilliant lights, like seven invisible pillars supporting the sky, guarded and supported the black lotus in a mysterious formation, making its foundation incredibly solid and its position lofty and imposing, radiating a sense of pressure that surpassed ordinary Dao Fruit.
Slightly below the Black Lotus Dao Fruit, four Bodhisattva Fruition Status of varying shapes are being relentlessly crushed and eroded by the Black Lotus Dao Aura:
A golden phantom with three heads and six arms, its muscles coiled like a dragon, stands on Mount Sumeru and carries the blue sky on its shoulders, exuding pure power and a sense of suppression.
A blazing Red Lotus Karmic Fire, constantly burning and changing shape, within which faintly roared the wrathful form of a wrathful deity with eight arms and twenty-four heads, exuding an aura of slaughter and destruction.
A miniature Seven Treasures Wondrous Tree, its branches as clear as crystal, its leaves as glittering as gold and jade, hanging down like a veil of light, flowing with the Daoist charm of eternal protection and a solemn Pure Land.
A pure white lotus with twelve petals, slowly rotating, its heart radiating a gentle, purifying light that seems capable of cleansing away all impurities.
Under the crushing weight of the Black Lotus Dao Fruit's overwhelming, annihilating Dao aura, all four Bodhisattva Fruition Status showed varying degrees of trembling and unstable radiance!
"Did you see that?"
The voice of the Great Sun Purple Ultimate True Lord was calm, yet carried a firm conviction that revealed the essence of things.
"Above the True Lord, the fighting and combat are merely superficial; the real essence lies in the struggle for Fruition Status and the contest of superiority in the Dao."
The True Lord Wudao already has seven Great True Person supporting him to attain his Dao Fruition Status, making the foundation of his Black Lotus Dao Fruit extremely stable, and naturally placing him above these Bodhisattvas in rank.
They were unable to gain the upper hand in a direct confrontation.
The Fruition Status of upholding the Great Way is being continuously suppressed and eroded.
He pointed to the four radiant, crackling Bodhisattva Fruition Status in the projection. "If this continues, the Fruition Status will tremble or even escape, and the four Bodhisattvas will inevitably be defeated."
Qi Yun gazed at the clearly defined and obviously Fruition Status struggle in the projection of the All Wonders Heaven, remained silent for a moment, then slowly nodded and said in a low voice.
"So that's how it is. I just didn't expect that the True Lord Wudao already has seven Great True Person under his command—"
Within the Holy Sect, it has never been seen nor heard of.
So—it's hidden within the Divine Court?
Thinking of this, Qi Yun couldn't help but recall the True Person Southern Dipper who disappeared along with the Desolate Halberd True Lord after his departure.
Presumably, he was also a disciple of Desolate Halberd True Lord, which is why he was taken away as well.