Chapter 188: Chapter 181: Dharma Guardian Vajra
A faint Buddha Light gradually emanated from his body. A smile touched Qi Yun’s lips.
’Just as I thought. As long as I suppress all traces of Demonic Techniques within me, I can completely nullify the suppression in this Shiyi Realm.’
’And it seems that because my physical body was once baptized by Buddhist Merit, my affinity for the Buddha’s Will even grants me some kind of enhancement.’
Slowly forming several hand signs, Qi Yun made a single-handed seal and pressed it toward the ground.
HUMMM—!!!
The ground trembled slightly. Four dazzling golden Magic Patterns flared to life, rapidly spreading in four directions and searing themselves into the earth like brands!
ROAR!
Four deafening tiger roars, tinged with the resonance of a Buddhist Sect’s lion roar, tore through the sky.
Amidst a blinding flash of golden light, four colossal figures rose from the ground!
They were the Tiger-Walking Sandalwood: tiger-headed, human-bodied beings with knotted muscles, each carrying a heavy Precepts Saber on its back!
But what was different from before was that at the very instant these four Dharma Guardian Dao Soldiers appeared...
...the layer of Buddha Light naturally emanating from Qi Yun seemed drawn by a power of the same origin.
It suddenly split into four condensed, golden streams of Flowing Light that, as if alive, accurately sank into the foreheads of the four Tiger-Walking Sandalwood!
HUMMM—!
The four massive bodies of the Tiger-Walking Sandalwood trembled in unison. Their surfaces, originally a mix of wood and metallic luster, were instantly coated in a faint golden radiance, making them appear even more like the Vajra Immortal!
The four heavy Precepts Sabers on their backs, once dull and lightless, suddenly burst into flames with a WHOOSH, igniting with intense, pure golden Buddha Fire!
The flames danced, emitting a vast Buddha’s Will that could incinerate all evil and shatter illusions. freeweɓnøvel.com
It seared the surrounding air, causing it to warp slightly!
’Hm? Did they evolve?’ A flash of pleasant surprise crossed Qi Yun’s eyes.
He hadn’t expected that the pure Buddha’s Will of this place would not only refrain from rejecting the Tiger-Walking Sandalwood he summoned by mixing the Wood Element Command Skill with Vajra Intent...
...but instead, due to the Buddhist Sect foundation inherent in their nature, it had caused an unexpected, beneficial transformation, doubling their power!
’It seems this trip is going extremely smoothly!’ Qi Yun chuckled, his confidence growing.
His gaze turned to the distant, intense battle between Zhu Qing and Shi Xin.
Those two obviously knew a great deal about the Burning Karma Valley. He would have to capture them... no, invite them down for a nice, long chat.
With a flick of a spell sign, he locked onto his targets.
DONG!
DONG!
DONG!
DONG!
The four Tiger-Walking Sandalwood, now enhanced by the Buddha Fire, began to move. Their steps were as heavy as war drums, making the ground tremble slightly.
They left afterimages as they charged forward, ignoring the residual bloody Evil Qi from the Eight Gates Ultimate Evil Stake. Wherever the Buddha Fire passed, the bloody Evil Qi melted like snow, as they ferociously pounced into the fray!
"What is that thing?!"
"A Buddhist Sect guardian? Why haven’t we seen it before?!"
Zhu Qing and Shi Xin were startled. They felt the pure, searing pressure of the Buddhist Sect’s might washing over them, along with the terrifying sense of oppression from the four colossal figures, and their faces tightened.
Their Demon Techniques were already suppressed in this place, making them difficult to use.
Now, facing these Buddhist Sect guardians that completely countered their attribute, they naturally felt the strain.
"ROAR!"
One Tiger-Walking Sandalwood took the lead, heading straight for Zhu Qing, who was controlling the Eight Gates Ultimate Evil Stake.
Its Precepts Saber, wreathed in golden Buddha Fire, whistled through the air with a sonic boom as it brought the blade down in a simple, brutal vertical chop!
Before the blade even arrived, the searing Buddha Fire caused Zhu Qing’s Protective True Essence to fluctuate violently, emitting a SIZZLING sound.
Zhu Qing’s brow furrowed, and he hastily recalled two Black Rods to block the attack.
CLANG—!!!
Amidst the deafening clang of metal, sparks mixed with Buddha Fire and shattered bloody Evil Qi flew everywhere!
Zhu Qing felt an irresistible force slam into him. The web of his hand split open, and he nearly lost his grip on the two Black Rods.
He was sent flying backward, his blood and qi in turmoil.
’So strong?’
In mid-air, Zhu Qing’s expression changed slightly. Although he wasn’t a Body Cultivator, having reached the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, his body had been nourished for years by the Five Internal Qi and was far from ordinary.
But after taking just one blow, his entire arm was riddled with hairline fractures.
’A strike like that would have turned even Refined Steel into mush.’ fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
Meanwhile, Shi Xin was faring slightly better. His Body Skill was agile, and he attempted to use exquisite Restrictions to interfere with the other two Tiger-Walking Sandalwood.
He then quickly shot out several beams of Spiritual Light, trying to form a "Spirit-Binding Lock."
However, the eyes of the two Tiger-Walking Sandalwood burned with a faint golden Buddha Light. Facing the incoming chains of Spiritual Light, they didn’t dodge, simply slashing out horizontally with their Buddha Fire-wreathed Precepts Sabers!
SHIING!
The chains of Spiritual Light were as easily cut and incinerated as if they were made of paper!
When the Spiritual Light landed on their bodies, which were suffused with the essence of Vajra Immortal, it failed to even cause a ripple before being obliterated by the dense Buddha Power.
’Dammit! The Buddha’s Will here enhances them too much! My Restrictions are less than ten percent effective!’ Shi Xin’s face turned pale as he cursed his luck internally.
The third and fourth Tiger-Walking Sandalwood had already closed in, their massive tiger paws descending with the force of ten thousand jun, like golden millstones grinding down!
The wind from their palms howled, wreathed in Buddha Fire, sealing off all avenues of escape.
Shi Xin had no choice but to raise a White Bone Treasure Mirror as he retreated rapidly.
BOOM!
The paw struck the mirror’s surface with a dull, tremendous thud.
The Treasure Mirror’s Spiritual Light dimmed instantly, and fine cracks even appeared on its surface.
The immense force traveled through the mirror, jarring Shi Xin’s internal organs. A sweet taste rose in his throat, and he almost coughed up blood.
The four Tiger-Walking Sandalwood were like four tireless, infinitely strong Buddhist Vajra. Here on Milo Mountain, they were like fish in water.
Their attacks were wide and powerful—fists, palms, and sabers. Every blow was heavy and forceful, the Buddha Fire raging, forcing Zhu Qing and Shi Xin into a pathetic defense, constantly on the verge of disaster.
Zhu Qing’s Demonic Techniques were severely countered by the Buddha Fire; any approaching Evil Qi was instantly purified.
Shi Xin’s Restriction methods were greatly diminished in this environment of dense Buddha Power, losing all their subtlety.
The longer they fought, the more terrified and frustrated they became.
It wasn’t that they couldn’t defeat these Daoist Soldiers, but that this Milo Mountain was no ordinary place.
If they revealed too much Demonic Qi, they would immediately attract those utterly terrifying Dharma Guardian Vajras.
Unable to use their magical abilities, they had to rely solely on physical combat.
Naturally, they were no match for these tireless, unfeeling Daoist Soldiers.
Both Zhu Qing and Shi Xin were quick-witted individuals.
Seeing the four Tiger-Walking Sandalwood growing stronger and fiercer in this place while they themselves were suppressed by the Buddha Realm, they knew they would suffer a great loss if the fight dragged on. The thought of retreat immediately sprang to mind.
A single glance was all it took for them to know what the other was thinking.
Almost simultaneously, they both feinted an attack, their True Essence erupting as they prepared to use their respective Escape Techniques to flee.
"Trying to leave?"
Qi Yun, who had been hiding in the shadows like a predator watching its prey, would not let them get their wish.
’If they both run, who am I going to ask about the secrets of Burning Karma Valley?’
His hand signs changed unhurriedly. A green glint flashed in Qi Yun’s eyes as his Divine Sense locked onto the aura surrounding the two men.
Wood Element Command Skill—Dragon-Binding Shackles!
HUMMM—!
In the void, vast Wood Element Primordial Qi instantly converged, carrying a heavy, binding Daoist Intent.
The next moment, two huge, ancient, and heavy wooden yokes, entwined with the phantoms of azure dragons, materialized out of thin air.
Carrying the weight of ten thousand jun, capable of suppressing space and sealing True Essence, they descended straight toward the fleeing Zhu Qing and Shi Xin!
The crushing suppressive force made the surrounding air feel viscous.
Zhu Qing and Shi Xin felt their bodies sink as their fleeing figures abruptly paused.
It was as if they had been plunged into an invisible mire, their speed drastically reduced!
BOOM—!!!
A deafening explosion!
Zhu Qing reacted with extreme speed. Gritting his teeth, he let out a sharp cry and forced his eight Black Rods from the Eight Gates Ultimate Evil Stake upward to meet the attack. The bloody Evil Qi collided violently with the azure light of the wooden yokes!
The Black Rods trembled violently, humming as if on the verge of breaking.
Although he managed to hold back the wooden yokes, the backlash caused a sweet taste to rise in Zhu Qing’s throat, and a trickle of blood escaped the corner of his mouth.
But on the other side, a cunning glint flashed in Shi Xin’s eyes. His body suddenly dropped low, and he burrowed into the ground, abandoning Zhu Qing to escape on his own.
"Looks like you’ve been abandoned."
A faint voice sounded in front of Zhu Qing.
A hazy, flickering figure stood with hands tucked in its sleeves, a faint smile on its indistinct face.
"Heh heh, is that so?" Far from despair, Zhu Qing’s face twisted into a strange, cold sneer.
"I wouldn’t be so sure!"
Before his words had faded, he stopped suppressing and restraining the Demonic Qi within him, which was so vehemently rejected by the Buddha Realm!
BOOM!!!
A monstrous, baleful Demonic Qi, like a volcano suppressed for ten thousand years, suddenly erupted from Zhu Qing’s body.
Inky-black demonic light shot into the sky, instantly spreading out and clashing violently with the serene Dao Rhyme of the surrounding Buddha Realm.
CRACK! CRACK!
Under the impact of this pure, powerful Demonic Qi, the two Dragon-Binding Shackles shattered like fragile glass, dissolving into a shower of azure light motes.
But in the next instant—
—a golden afterimage, moving faster than Divine Sense could track, appeared before Zhu Qing as if by teleportation.
BANG!!!
A sickeningly dull thud of flesh on flesh resounded!
Qi Yun didn’t even see what happened.
Zhu Qing was sent flying backward like a broken kite, a fountain of blood spraying from his mouth, arcing through the air in a startling crimson line that splattered more than eight feet away!
His entire face looked as if it had been hit head-on by a speeding mountain, instantly deforming and twisting. His nasal bone collapsed, his cheekbones shattered.
Shards of white bone could even be seen piercing through his skin. In a wretched state, he crashed heavily to the ground, his condition unknown.
At almost the same time!
PFFT!
Elsewhere, the nearby ground rippled like water, and a pathetic figure was forcibly "squeezed" out of the earth.
It was Shi Xin, who had used the Earth Escape Technique to try and flee alone.
He was in an even more miserable state than Zhu Qing. His chest was visibly caved in, and on his back, a perfectly clear fist print was visible through his torn clothes.
Without so much as a grunt, he fell like a sack of broken bones not far from Zhu Qing, his aura instantly weakening to an extreme degree.
On the battlefield, a new figure had appeared at some unknown time.
It was a... Copper Man.
It stood about eight feet tall, a pure and restrained Buddha Light flowing around its body. Its face was carved into a wrathful, majestic expression, and its pupils were like two burning golden lamps, emitting a pressure that shook one’s Heart and Spirit.
It just stood there silently, yet it seemed to suppress Heaven and Earth itself.
With a single blow, it had beaten Zhu Qing and Shi Xin, both at the Peak of Qi Refining, half to death.
The Copper Man’s emotionless golden eyes slowly turned to Qi Yun, the only one still standing.
A low, deep Buddhist chant, as if echoing across millennia, slowly sounded from its mouth, reverberating through the silent mountain hollow:
"My Buddha shows Compassion—"
The voice held not a shred of killing intent, yet it was filled with unquestionable majesty and power.
The next instant!
A gust of wind swept forward, and the Copper Man was before Qi Yun.
Those eyes, like blazing suns, looked down upon the young Daoist.
...