"Benefactor Xiao, how have you been?"
When Yuan Zhen saw Xiao Chen, he smiled faintly, showing a relaxed expression. There was an indescribable Buddha-nature on him. It was neither good nor evil, and it was extremely strange.
Xiao Chen had just heard the others call him the Revered One of the World. This was an incredible title.
It was rumored that the first ancestor of Buddhism was born. He pointed to the heavens and drew the earth, saying that he was the only supreme being in the world.
This simple form of address showed Yuan Zhen's ambition.
Xiao Chen asked softly, "Should I call you Yuan Zhen or the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva?"
Yuan Zhen pressed his palms together and smiled benevolently. "Benefactor Xiao, it is better to address me as Yuan Zhen. I prefer you to call me Yuan Zhen, but in your eyes, it's all the same no matter what you call me. "
Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes slightly. He found Yuan Zhen somewhat unfathomable.
Looking up, at the back of the Heavenly Strength Hall, in the depths of the myriad of overlapping auspicious signs. The Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's Transcendence Golden Body was hidden within. Its face was benevolent, and its heart was filled with compassion.
Suddenly, Xiao Chen understood. So that's how it was.
The Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva had already merged with Yuan Zhen. However, the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva existed in Yuan Zhen's form. The two had not truly merged yet.
Hence, Yuan Zhen's consciousness remained.
He was right. The one standing before Xiao Chen was indeed Yuan Zhen and not the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva.
Xiao Chen said softly, "If you had a choice, would you still bear the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's karma? According to his plan, when the Buddhist epoch is established, your memories of Yuan Zhen will disappear. "
Yuan Zhen's expression changed slightly. Unexpectedly, Xiao Chen saw through his relationship with the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva.
When the Buddhist Epoch arrived, the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva would truly awaken. At that time, the dominant position would change.
Yuan Zhen withdrew his smile. After some thought, he said, "Most of the time, there is actually no choice."
"Maybe."
Xiao Chen didn't refute the other party. From his point of view, he could choose at any time.
But he also understood that the others had no choice.
"There seem to be many Hidden Spirit Temple esteemed monks in your Buddhist nation?"
Xiao Chen changed the topic and asked casually.
Yuan Zhen smiled and said, "You have pretty good eyes. Indeed, after the Kāśyapa Buddha's golden body was destroyed, the Kāśyapa Buddha's body was destroyed. Many Martial Uncles abandoned the darkness for the light and joined me in creating a new Buddhism. "
"But, even if you want to create a new Buddhist school, there's no need for you to make a move against these commoners, no?"
Xiao Chen pointed at the believers kneeling at the foot of the ten thousand steps.
Yuan Zhen argued, "What's wrong? Didn't you see the smiles on their faces? In my Buddhist Kingdom, you only need to worship devoutly every day, and you won't have to worry about food or clothing. What's so bad about that? Right now, the Yanwu Dynasty is hell on earth, filled with the flames of war. I am doing good deeds to accumulate virtue. "
"If you want to argue, I won't argue with you."
Yuan Zhen's expression slowly turned serious. He said seriously, "Xiao Chen, what if I told you that the Kāśyapa Buddha used this method to establish the Buddhist sect back then, would you believe me? The epoch changed, and chaos arose everywhere. Extraordinary times naturally required extraordinary methods. If I did not use such methods, how could I establish the Buddhist Kingdom in such a short time?
"I know you want to say that these believers do not have any thoughts or intelligence, like the walking dead. However, this has always been the case in this world. The strong can be merciful. When the Buddhist Epoch starts, the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva will return the power of faith, and there will be no need to do this. "
Xiao Chen felt slightly stunned. Then, he thought of the three black mountains behind Spirit Vulture Mountain, the boundless Demonic Domain filled with sin.
Yuan Zhen's words should be true.
However, so what?
Hence, Xiao Chen did not feel any pity for the Hidden Spirit Temple's destruction.
A temple built on boundless sin should not have a reason to exist, no matter how glorious it was.
"You're on your own. You should understand that these words of self-consolation can only deceive yourself."
Xiao Chen felt very uncomfortable staying here.
After investigating Yuan Zhen and the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's situation, Xiao Chen did not want to linger, so he turned and left.
"Did I say you could leave?"
Yuan Zhen snorted coldly and sent a palm strike at Xiao Chen. The entire Buddhist Kingdom's ninety thousand arhats, eight thousand vajras, and three hundred bodhisattvas all chanted scriptures at the same time.
This caused countless ancient Buddhist sect scriptures to surround Yuan Zhen's palm strike. The entire Divine Kingdom started circulating in his palm.
Xiao Chen's expression did not change. He turned around and sent a palm strike in retaliation.
"Boom!"
The instant the two palms clashed, the vast and boundless Buddhist Kingdom shook intensely.
Images of countless ancient arhats and bodhisattvas appeared in the sky amid thousands of Auspicious Signs.
The Dao of Life and Death cycled endlessly around Xiao Chen, producing an unending stream of reincarnation power.
Xiao Chen resisted the pressure of the entire Buddhist Kingdom by himself.
"Saber!"
Xiao Chen shouted, and an eternal, inextinguishable saber light that surpassed the epoch shot out from his body.
The saber light soared into the clouds and tore a crack in the Buddhist Kingdom's barrier in the sky.
Yuan Zhen showed shock on his face as he got knocked back.
Then, he watched helplessly as Xiao Chen soared into the air and left the Divine Kingdom before the crack mended.
"World Venerate."
Right after Xiao Chen left, many Buddhist sect Sovereign Emperors appeared in the surroundings with grave expressions.
"World Venerate, why did you not bring out the Golden Buddha Body and directly suppress him? With Xiao Chen dead, we will have one less strong enemy! "
Yuan Zhen said indifferently, "I feel that he is not as simple as a 9-Vein Sovereign Emperor. The Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's Golden Body is not complete yet. We cannot take the risk."
The two were testing each other, probing each other's limits.
While Xiao Chen wanted to figure out Yuan Zhen and the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's strength, Yuan Zhen thought the same. However, Yuan Zhen could not figure out the other party's strength with just one palm strike.
After leaving the Buddhist Kingdom, Xiao Chen hovered in the air and looked down at the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's Golden Body.
Yuan Zhen remained silent and observed for a long time, not leaving.
He wanted to destroy this Buddhist Kingdom in one go. However, he felt that there was no need in the end.
The Buddhist Kingdom was established because the epoch was about to end. Order collapsed, and the natural laws no longer existed.
It was like a dynasty on the verge of destruction. The emperor lost his suppression of the feudal lords. Outstanding talents fought each other, and chaos descended.
This was not a problem that could be solved by killing one or two feudal lords.
The current situation was even more complicated and terrifying than that. The Holy Lord, who controlled the entire epoch, had already lost control of the various factions. The Righteous Dao was no longer righteous, and the Demonic Dao was even more demonic. The entire world was on the verge of collapse, on the verge of collapse.
Xiao Chen withdrew his gaze and stood up to leave.
Not long later, Xiao Chen sensed two figures rapidly approaching him.
"Big Brother."
It was the little monk Yan Chen and the Heavenly Book Scholar.
Xiao Chen asked in confusion, "Why are the two of you here?"
"Let's leave this place first. This is the evil Buddha's territory. Even Faux Gods do not dare to barge in."
The Heavenly Book Scholar looked at the Buddhist Kingdom fearfully.
After a while, Xiao Chen understood that Yan Chen and the Heavenly Book Scholar sensed a battle in the Buddhist Kingdom.
They came to check and discovered that it was Xiao Chen, so they rushed over.
"Whoosh!"
Far away from Yuan Zhen's Buddhist Kingdom, the three landed. When Xiao Chen saw the little monk Yan Chen, he felt rather happy.
"Big Brother, my master passed away," Yan Chen said sullenly, showing grief on his face.
"Big Brother, my master passed away."
Venerable Xu Yun?
This senior had left a very good impression on Xiao Chen. Xiao Chen felt deep respect for him.
How did he die?
The Heavenly Book Scholar explained, "Back when we were still in the Ancient Yan Emperor Tomb during the succession race, Senior Xu Yun chased after the traitor, Xu Ming, who was Yuan Zhen's master. In the end, that Xu Ming had planned this. He lured Venerable Xu Ye to the Kāśyapa Buddha's golden body. Then, he died together, destroying the Kāśyapa Buddha's golden body, resulting in today's situation. "
That was how the Kāśyapa Buddha's golden body was destroyed. This Xu Ming schemed and was very ruthless.
No wonder Xiao Chen did not see him in the Buddhist Kingdom. It turned out that he was already dead.
"Where are Abbot Xu Ye and Senior Pan Huang?"
Xiao Chen asked.
Yan Chen answered, "The abbot and Senior Pan Huang are at Spirit Vulture Mountain, leading the remaining martial uncles to suppress the sin in Spirit Vulture Mountain. Right now, I am in charge of the Hidden Spirit Temple. The abbot and his martial uncle told me to assist the Yan Emperor and not lower my head to the evil Buddha. "
Unexpectedly, Yan Chen would have a day where he could stand on his own.
Given Yan Chen's character, he probably did not like this responsibility. However, with the epoch changing, the Buddhist sects no longer had anyone to lead them aside from him.
Xiao Chen said softly, "Before I came, I saw that the entire Yanwu Dynasty was covered in smoke. The situation does not seem very optimistic."
"We have to persevere, right?"
The Heavenly Book Scholar smiled and said, "If even we give up, there will be no hope for this land at all."
Yan Chen showed a determined expression as he said through clenched teeth, "Big Brother, there is no need to worry. When the reinforcements from the other three Buddhist temples arrive, the evil Buddha will not be able to be so arrogant."
Aside from the Hidden Spirit Temple, the Buddhist sects had three other Buddhist temples, all of them Holy Lands.
It looks like the situation is not that bad. Xiao Chen said, "Help me send my regards to Ninth Brother. I still have things to do and cannot stay to help him for now."
After taking his leave of the two, Xiao Chen headed for the Golden Crow Empire.
Xiao Chen passed through the Desolate Sea and arrived at the Blue Dragon's old land, stopping at the small village that Xiao Chen once led.
The small village no longer existed.
In its place was a flourishing city. A towering tree stood outside the city, covering the sky and sun.
A youth formed hand seals under the tree, using Spiritual Energy to nourish the tree's roots.
This youth was none other than Sang, the Propping Mulberry Tree.
"Wait here first."
Sang did not feel surprised to see Xiao Chen land. He gave him a casual glance before continuing to focus on nourishing the Propping Mulberry Tree.
Many years had passed since they parted. The sapling from back then.
After so many years, the sapling from back then had already grown into a towering tree, protecting the city behind it like a guardian deity.
Xiao Chen was not in a rush. He waited quietly at the side.
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