The person on the statue had a dignified expression and a smile on his face. His left and right hands each formed a seal. They were the Dharma Seal and the Flower Grasping Seal. They were famous hand seals of the Buddhist Sect.
With one seal, the tongue bloomed like a golden lotus. His mouth flowed like a river, and flowers bloomed everywhere.
The first seal was pinching a flower, smiling while pinching a flower, laughing at the world of mortals, looking at the prosperity of the world.
There was nothing wrong with everything except the face of this Bodhisattva statue. After Xiao Chen saw it clearly, he only sneered. This face was not the face of Manjushri Bodhisattva at all.
Instead, it was the face of the Bloody Monk, Zhuang Zhenghe. Xiao Chen had a very good memory. He had a deep impression of this loose cultivator who had chased him around in the Heavenly Ruin Wasteland.
What a good strategy, using the extensive foundation laid by the Little Thunder Temple to directly absorb the power of faith for his own use.
Xiao Chen gently pushed off the ground and flew to the beam. Then, he looked down. Xiao Chen slowly opened his Heavenly Eye and saw that every time the worshippers kowtowed, a formless green energy would come out of their bodies.
Like moths to a flame, they flew toward the golden statue.
In Xiao Chen's eyes, the smile on the statue's face became more and more sinister, like a monster that ate human brains.
Xiao Chen entered deep thought. Then, he stretched out his hand and made a suction. Strands of green energy flew into his hand; they were all the power of faith.
Taking a deep breath, Zhang Xuan immediately felt refreshed. His entire body felt so comfortable that his bones were about to soften.
At the same time, many voices appeared in his mind. Some were praying for children, some were praying for safety, and some were praying for health. They were all prayers from believers.
Xiao Chen thought to himself as he closed his eyes and digested the faith energy. This faith energy could not be directly converted into cultivation. It required a secret technique.
Just as Xiao Chen was about to close his Heavenly Eye, he suddenly noticed something strange. There was a black sea of bitterness behind the golden statue.
Every time it absorbed a bit of faith power, a drop of black bitter water would fall into it.
Xiao Chen stood there blankly for a moment before realization dawned on him. A trace of anger appeared on his face. They had removed all the information from the prayers in the Power of Faith, leaving only the purest Power of Faith.
Faith is mutual. I believe in you, worship you, burn incense, pray to Buddha, and pray to Bodhisattva. You have to listen to my prayers. Even if you don't satisfy everyone's prayers, you have to choose the more urgent ones and satisfy them.
But now, this group of people had completely treated the prayers of mortals as garbage and impurities, only leaving behind the power of faith that was useful to them.
He acted like a bandit, plundering and brainwashing people, but he was a dignified and righteous existence.
Xiao Chen looked at those devout believers pouring in. Just thinking about it made him feel sorrowful and ironic.
Xiao Chen closed his Heavenly Eye, and all the mysterious phenomena vanished. The scene before him changed back to that of a great hall filled with people and incense. It was solemn and dignified.
Xiao Chen was certain that Zhuang Zhenghe was the mastermind behind Black Flame Island. Otherwise, all the temples on the mountain would not have statues of him.
Now, Xiao Chen had to figure out another problem. Why did the Xue Monk send people to keep an eye on Heavenly Star Island?
After sorting out his emotions, Xiao Chen silently flew out, heading in the direction of Black Flame City. The largest temple in the entire Black Flame Island, Enlightened Sense Temple, was there. The incense there was flourishing, and there were more than a hundred times more worshippers than here.
The majestic city walls entered Xiao Chen's eyes. The city gates were heavily guarded, all of them bald cultivators in monk robes. Xiao Chen could sense at least two grandmaster-level Martial Sages on the city walls.
Using the Foundation Returning Art to hide his cultivation, Xiao Chen successfully entered the city. After asking around, he found out where Enlightened Sense Temple was.
The magnificence of the temple was somewhat flabbergasting. After climbing more than a thousand steps and following the crowd, Xiao Chen entered Enlightened Sense Temple. This time, the center of the temple was not the Manjushri Bodhisattva but the golden statue of the Amitabha Buddha.
There were eight Bodhisattvas on the left and right, thirty-two Wisdom Kings on two sides, and one hundred and eight arhats with exaggerated ferocious expressions. They were erected everywhere in the temple for people to worship.
Of course, these were not real Buddha statues; they were just fake Buddhas with different appearances.
Without needing to open his Heavenly Eye, Xiao Chen could imagine how dense the power of faith was in this place.
The Amitabha Buddha statue in the center already gave off an indistinct Buddhist light with the naked eye. It looked even more dignified, inspiring reverence and worship.
When Xiao Chen saw this scene, his heart sank. The Bloody Monk, Zhuang Zhenghe, was not the leader of this mysterious Buddhist faction.
The true leader should be the true Amitabha Buddha statue in the center. Zhuang Zhenghe was just one of the eight Bodhisattvas under him.
"Benefactor, since you have entered Enlightened Sense Temple, why are you standing outside the hall?"
An old monk with a dignified appearance walked out of the hall, walking over to Xiao Chen with a benevolent expression.
When Xiao Chen sized up the old monk, he felt startled. This old monk's strength was not simple.
This old monk already possessed the strength of a Small Perfection Blue Robed Emperor. There were more than a thousand Buddhist lights on his body, and there was even a golden sea of bitterness behind him. As the old monk stood in the hall, he gave Xiao Chen an unfathomable feeling.
After arriving here, Xiao Chen already sensed that this faction was not simple. He did not want to alert the old monk, so he said calmly, "It's nothing. I just heard from a friend that the Buddhist sects on Black Flame Island are rising, so I came to join in the fun. I was shocked by the Buddha statue in the hall and have yet to recover my wits. "
The old monk smiled and said, "That is not the case. This old monk feels that Benefactor's killing Qi is too strong, and your sins are too heavy. Hence, you do not dare to face the Western Buddhas. Actually, as long as you take one step forward, you can repent and be saved, cleansing yourself of all your sins. "
Xiao Chen raised his eyebrows and said meaningfully, "If I take this step, I probably won't be able to turn back."
There were other mysteries in this hall. Xiao Chen was not so careless that he would not enter rashly.
The old monk pointed to the many ordinary people kneeling in worship of the Buddha statue in the hall. He asked, "Benefactor, why do you say that? Don't you see that these believers all have peaceful expressions?"
Xiao Chen retorted indifferently, "What does it have to do with me? I have never thought of cleansing myself of all my sins of killing."
The old monk's smile did not diminish. He said, "It looks like Benefactor has many worries in your heart. How about entering the hall and discussing it with this old monk? Perhaps I can give you some pointers."
Xiao Chen's expression did not change as he replied calmly, "Another day, then. I am somewhat tired today."
After saying that, the old monk took his leave. He did not try to keep Xiao Chen. He said, "Merciful Buddha," and sent him off with his eyes.
When Xiao Chen was far away, the old monk's smile immediately vanished. He called over a young novice monk and said, "Send someone to keep an eye on him. Inform the Manjushri Bodhisattva that the Blue Dragon King, Xiao Chen, is here."
After leaving the hall, Xiao Chen's footsteps became increasingly hurried. He knew that he had exposed himself to the old monk.
The waters of this Black Flame Island were much deeper than he had imagined. Xiao Chen had been somewhat rash in entering this island.
After leaving the city gates, Xiao Chen soared into the air and quickly flew out of the island. He felt somewhat strange on this Black Flame Island; he did not feel very safe.
Just as Xiao Chen was about to leave the island, a large Buddhist light suddenly appeared in front of him, spreading throughout the sky. Boundless Buddhist chanting resounded in all directions, filled with chanting.
The clouds churned, and a huge Buddha statue blocked Xiao Chen's path. It was the Manjushri Bodhisattva's Golden Dharmic Body.
The Golden Dharmic Body blocking Xiao Chen's path was like a tall mountain. Xiao Chen looked as insignificant as an ant.
"Benefactor Xiao, we meet again." When the huge Dharmic Body spoke, its voice was loud and rumbling. Every syllable could shake one's heart, reaching deep into one's heart.
Xiao Chen smiled and said, "Zhuang Zhenghe, it has been two or three years since we last met. Instead of being some bloody monk, you came to be a bodhisattva. You truly rose to the heavens in one step. This is truly a great shock."
Zhuang Zhenghe smiled and said, "No matter what, I cannot compare to Benefactor Xiao Chen. At such a young age, your name already filled the entire Kunlun Realm. The title of Blue Dragon King has even spread throughout the entire oceanic world."
Xiao Chen did not wish to speak nonsense. He said directly, "The grudges between us are just a small matter. Tell me the truth. Why did you send people to my Heavenly Star Island?"
The Dharmic Body replied solemnly, "Naturally, it is to open a forum and give lectures to spread the teachings of my Buddhist Sect, to save everyone from the purgatory of food and lust, to convert to my Buddha."
Xiao Chen said coldly, "It looks like there is no way to resolve this grudge."
The Dharmic Body smiled and said, "That is not so. My Buddha is benevolent. As long as you have a heart for Buddha, this bodhisattva can personally purify you, turning you into my Buddha's protector."
Xiao Chen did not want to fight with this person on Black Flame Island. Without saying anything more, his figure flashed, preparing to charge over.
Zhuang Zhenghe smiled coldly. The Dharmic Body revealed a sinister smile on its solemn face. "I did not go looking for you, but you delivered yourself to me. It is too late to leave now!"
The mountain-like Dharmic Body smashed down with a palm strike. Strands of pure power of faith flowed out of the Manjushri Bodhisattva statues covering the entire Black Flame Island, heading for the Dharmic Body in the air.
This caused rings of Buddhist light to flicker behind this Dharmic Body. These lights shone with many colors. Its might instantly reached the level of a Consummation Blue Robed Emperor.
As the huge palm descended, Xiao Chen had nowhere to dodge or hide. When the palm strike arrived, it knocked Xiao Chen back and smashed into a mountain peak.
"Bang!"
Amid the shattered mountain peak, Xiao Chen materialized the Blue Dragon Battle Armor and shot it out. As he looked at the Dharmic Body in the sky, he entered deep thought.
The Heavenly Laws in this palm strike were incredibly dense. In his heart, Xiao Chen compared this to a Consummation Blue Robed Emperor that he had met in the past. However, in terms of the density of Heavenly Laws, they were already equal.
However, in terms of purity, this Dharmic Body was far from the Eastern Sea Divine Dragon Palace expert by Leng Shaofan's side.
If that Eastern Sea Divine Dragon Palace expert landed a palm strike on Xiao Chen, he would lose five percent of his strength. If he received another palm strike, Xiao Chen would not even be able to flee.
The Dharmic Body before Xiao Chen was just an empty shell. It was sufficient, but it was far from precise.
This should be the drawback of using the power of faith to cultivate. Otherwise, such a speed would be too heaven-defying.
Right now, Zhuang Zhenghe's cultivation was ridiculously higher than Xiao Chen's. However, in terms of true combat prowess, Zhuang Zhenghe might not be able to defeat Xiao Chen by much.
Xiao Chen stretched his legs, and popping sounds came from his body. The patterns on the Blue Dragon Battle Armor gave off a dazzling light. Then, he said indifferently, "Zhuang Zhenghe, you are too naive to think that you can stop me like this."
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