The sun rose in the west!
Buddha had made his move.
The instant the Great Sun Tathagata rose, Liu Qi’an’s heart surged with a warning. If his sense of crisis was like an alarm bell, then the current ringing was both piercing and urgent, carrying a flavor of “desperate urgency.”
It urged him to flee for his life.
Since entering the realm of extraordinary cultivation, this was Liu Qi’an’s most “frenzied” crisis premonition.
Every cell in his body was roaring, urging him to flee—staying meant certain death.
But Liu Qi’an didn’t run. Instead, he charged a distance toward the mountain peak, like a moth rushing into flames.
During this process, he roared with all his might:
“Run!”
The Great Sun Tathagata manifestation!
First among the Nine Great Manifestations, power of the Supreme Grade.
No one needed Liu Qi’an’s warning. The moment the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation rose, every powerful cultivator felt impending doom.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox decisively withdrew her tails. She had originally intended to drag her nominal brother Asura back but discovered that both Garodruma and Asura had sat cross-legged—one summoning the Acala Wisdom King manifestation, the other manifesting the brilliant light wheel representing the Killing Bandit achievement behind his head, entering a meditation state.
Buddhist practitioners had ways to “avoid” the destructive power of the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation… As this thought flashed through the silver-haired demon beauty’s mind, she transformed into a white streak, darting toward the distance, toward Sun Xuanji and the others.
Zhao Shou, Li Miaozhen, and Daoist Master Jinlian rapidly flew toward Sun Xuanji.
While fleeing, Li Miaozhen tossed out the Pagoda treasure in Arantha’s direction.
Sun Xuanji stomped his foot, spreading a teleportation formation that enveloped all the powerful cultivators.
Only Shenshu, upon seeing the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation, neither fled nor feared, but instead fell into a frenzy, as if triggered by something.
His navel split open, transforming into a bloody maw, as he suddenly turned and roared toward the great sun at the mountaintop:
“Buddha!!”
The next moment, the blazing light of the Great Sun Tathagata’s manifestation enveloped everyone—Liu Qi’an, Shenshu, and the Buddhist Bodhisattvas.
…
Ten li away from Arantha, a circle of clear light suddenly appeared, followed by several charred figures within the formation.
These charred figures all fell to the ground like scorched corpses. No matter how fast the teleportation technique, it couldn’t outrace light.
They had still been briefly illuminated by the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation.
Only the silver-haired demon beauty barely maintained consciousness, not fainting.
But she was no longer silver-haired now—her entire body was charred black, her tails and fox ears were bare, her beautiful silver hair gone, her body covered in black-and-red burn marks.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox barely supported herself as her throat moved, spitting out a porcelain bottle.
All her magical instruments, including her storage pouch, had been burned to nothing. Only the bottle preserved in her stomach remained intact.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox pulled out the wooden stopper, tilted the bottle’s mouth, and took several pills to restore her energy.
After sitting cross-legged for more than ten seconds, she finally regained some strength.
Only then did the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox have the energy to check on her allies, seeing who lived and who died.
The charred form holding an engraving knife was Zhao Shou; the scholar’s cap on his head was covered in black ash as if just rescued from a great fire.
Zhao Shou’s breath was feeble, his life force weak.
The one of average height was Sun Xuanji. Although his white clothes had been burned to charcoal, this second disciple of the Observatory Chief’s ordinary temperament stood out like a chicken among cranes, making him instantly recognizable.
The Earth Sect’s Jinlian and Lanlian were easy to distinguish, given the great difference between male and female forms.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox first walked to Sun Xuanji, searching his body and retrieving his tattered storage artifact, gently tearing it open.
With a rushing sound, magical instruments and pills fell in heaps.
She first took several different healing medicines herself, then walked to Li Miaozhen’s side, pinching pills between her fingertips to feed them through her lips.
Shortly after, Li Miaozhen awoke, letting out a soft moan. With her powerful primordial spirit, she quickly assessed her physical condition: large-scale burns across her body, damaged internal organs, and a powerful force continuously consuming her life force.
“Do you have any clothes?”
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox asked.
Their clothes had been burned to tattered rags, barely covering their bodies. Of course, given their current charred state, there wasn’t any spring scenery to expose.
Li Miaozhen nodded, searching her chest area and finding the Earth Book fragment, taking out two sets of dresses, throwing one to the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox, and putting on the other herself.
Before long, under their treatment, Zhao Shou and the others finally regained consciousness.
Daoist Master Jinlian sat cross-legged, simultaneously digesting the medicine’s power while speaking in a deep voice:
“Hurry and heal, then return to check the situation.”
He then sighed:
“As expected…”
Their first plan had been to gather everyone’s strength to kill Garodruma while also probing the one inside Arantha.
In truth, none of them believed they could successfully kill Garodruma.
Sure enough, at the final moment, Buddha still intervened.
Li Miaozhen recalled the recent scene, repeatedly expressing her fear:
“So this is Supreme Grade power…”
Being illuminated by the Great Sun Tathagata for just an instant had nearly killed her. If they hadn’t discussed beforehand how to respond when the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation appeared, she would likely have died under the Buddhist light’s illumination.
Hearing this, Sun Xuanji and the others also felt lingering fear.
They knew that once Buddha acted, it would be a devastating strike.
But knowing was one thing; truly witnessing a Supreme Grade expert’s action was another.
Today, they realized that the distance between Supreme Grade and extraordinary cultivators was like the distance between humans and ants.
Zhao Shou was the most severely injured, having been backlashed by techniques and critically wounded by the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation. He now had no strength left to fight.
But Zhao Shou still actively participated in the discussion, saying:
“Did you notice that earlier, the Buddhist Bodhisattvas, including Asura, didn’t flee but sat in meditation where they were?”
Li Miaozhen and the others had noticed this phenomenon but couldn’t explain it.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox snorted:
“Under the Buddhist light’s illumination, all things turn to ash, only Buddha nature endures.”
Zhao Shou understood, “So Buddhist practitioners can survive within the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation?”
He seemed to have grasped a weakness of the Great Sun Tathagata.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox seemed to see through his thoughts, saying flatly:
“That’s the principle, but if Buddha doesn’t want you to live, even if you cultivated First Grade Bodhisattva, you might not survive within the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation. It all depends on Buddha’s will.”
Daoist Master Jinlian narrowed his eyes, saying:
“Does this mean that in the recent Great Sun Tathagata manifestation, Buddha’s will wasn’t involved, and it was just the manifestation’s inherent power? Otherwise, there’s no reason Asura could have survived.”
“And this also suggests that Buddha’s condition isn’t very good.”
After speaking, everyone looked toward Arantha while silently accelerating their absorption of the medicine.
The difficulty of attacking Arantha with a Supreme Grade expert present had been anticipated.
Once the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation appeared, gods and ghosts fled in terror.
The advantage they had worked so hard to gain was reduced to ashes under Buddha’s strike.
However, Buddha’s intervention had precisely verified their previous speculations.
…
On a plain far from Arantha, by a meandering stream, Rain Master Nalan Tianlu sat cross-legged by the river, blood light flickering around him.
He was also charred black, with large areas of carbonized skin, currently using the witch system’s “Blood Spirit Technique” to heal.
“Unable to kill Garodruma, I’ve failed Great Witch Doctor’s trust…”
Saren Agu’s advice had been—adapt to circumstances.
Openly help Buddhism kill Liu Qi’an, but if the death-omen-surrounded Garodruma’s life was in danger, then send him on his way.
Either way, the Witch God Sect would profit.
“I was already extremely far from Arantha but was still critically wounded by the Great Sun Tathagata manifestation. Buddha’s releasable power seems higher than the Witch God’s.”
“Those fellows like Zhao Shou fled so quickly. Shame that I’m severely wounded and can’t sneak over to profit from their misfortune.”
“Liu Qi’an is now unsupported, it would be a good chance to kill him, but who knows what other tricks they have…”
…
In a mountain stream somewhere on Arantha’s edge, the Pagoda treasure floated in mid-air. At its top sat a manifestation holding a jade bottle, slightly plump in build, showering golden light that contained a roasted bear.
Under the Medicine Master manifestation’s treatment, the roasted bear gradually shed its dead skin, growing tender red flesh, becoming a hairless iron-eating beast.
Then, the bean-sized eyes opened as they awoke.
The Bear King looked over himself, tearing off a slightly charred piece of meat and sniffing it, muttering:
“Smells good, can’t resist wanting to eat it…”
This was Liu Qi’an’s voice.
In the Pagoda treasure thrown by Li Miaozhen resided a strand of Liu Qi’an’s divine consciousness.
Her purpose in throwing out the Pagoda treasure was both to save the Bear King’s life and to send Liu Qi’an’s divine consciousness over, using the heart parasite’s power to control the Bear King and investigate the Chan Forest.
This was Liu Qi’an’s second plan.
The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox throwing the second-weakest Bear King toward Arantha had been laying the groundwork for the second plan.
Liu Qi’an’s main body remained to engage the First Grade Bodhisattva, while secretly using the heart parasite to control the Bear King to investigate the sealed grounds—openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the Chen Ford.
“Fortunately, the Pagoda treasure was there, otherwise the Bear King would likely have slept forever in Arantha, his body becoming one with the mountain,” Liu Qi’an said softly.
“Tower Spirit Elder, whether Bodhisattva Faji is in the Chan Forest will soon be clear.”
The Pagoda treasure hummed and shook, seemingly extremely excited. The Tower Spirit old monk’s slightly trembling voice entered Liu Qi’an’s ears:
“This poor monk has waited for this day for over three hundred years. Thank you, benefactor, for fulfilling this.”
This was what Liu Qi’an had promised it.
Back then, to persuade the Pagoda treasure to abandon its principles and oppose Buddhism, Liu Qi’an had promised to help it find Bodhisattva Faji.
A promise worth a thousand gold.
“I’m curious myself!”
Liu Qi’an waved his hand, supporting himself up and moving his clumsy bear body to climb quickly toward the Chan Forest Peak to the west.
The Chan Forest wasn’t on Arantha’s main peak but on a high peak to the south, where few people ventured and birds never flew.
Snow covered the peak’s top, the air was cold and clear. It didn’t take Liu Qi’an long to successfully reach the summit, where he saw an ancient temple.
The temple’s outer walls were continuous, its red paint mottled, its main gate long rotted—who knew how many years since anyone had visited.
According to Asura, the Chan Forest was where high monks through the ages went after achieving nirvana, and also Buddha’s meditation place.
Since five hundred years ago, when Buddha announced his meditation retreat, the Chan Forest had become Arantha’s forbidden ground. Apart from several Bodhisattvas, no one could come here.
If not for Arhat Du’e’s secret visit, the secret of Buddha having broken free from the seal might never have been discovered.
Of course, the same was true for the cry for help suspected to be from Bodhisattva Faji.
Passing through the courtyard gate, treading on accumulated snow, Liu Qi’an walked toward the depths of the Chan Forest. Along the way were burial pagodas twice the height of a person, weathered and covered in the mottling of years.
Bodhi trees were planted beside the burial pagodas.
According to Asura, the Bodhi trees in the Chan Forest were all descendants of that original mother tree.
Following the stone path “submerged” in soil, Liu Qi’an continued deeper. Soon, an ancient tree appeared ahead—not tall, but with branches and leaves spreading dozens of zhang, its trunk gnarled, hanging down numerous vines.
Beneath the tree lay thick layers of withered yellow leaves, emanating a slight musty smell.
The Bodhi Mother Tree!
Liu Qi’an’s gaze flashed, lingering on the pile of broken stones beside the mother tree.
The Confucian Saint’s seal was indeed broken… Liu Qi’an’s heart trembled.
Asura had already mentioned this, but seeing it personally was different.
He approached the Bodhi tree carrying the Pagoda treasure. The branches and leaves thick as umbrella canopies blocked the light, inexplicably giving rise to an eerie feeling.
At this moment, a faint cry for help reached his ears:
“Save me, save me…”