Chapter 431: Chapter 265: Heavenly Dao Declines, Humanity is Lost

Translator: 549690339

The breath of the living stirred the spirits and Grudge Ghosts freely floating in the black sea. They raised their heads together, roared towards the blood-red sky, greedy, urgent, yearning, and extended countless pale transparent arms or claws, intending to tear apart any living being descending into the black sea!

The number of spirits was in the tens of thousands, too many to count. They pushed each other, creating surges of monstrous waves that, within a moment, furiously swept towards the Taoist floating mid-air.

The Taoist, with white hair but a youthful face that betrayed no specific age, merely glanced down. Instantly, thunder and lightning flashed in the void, obliterating hundreds of thousands of spirits and Grudge Ghosts in the black sea, calming the towering monstrous waves.

Such divine power quieted the black sea, teeming with billions of spirits, for a moment. The sea area under the Taoist’s feet then became entirely calm, and even though new spirits and Grudge Ghosts continued to fill the space, none dared to harbor any greedy or thirsty thoughts towards the Taoist.

The Taoist gave the now calm black sea beneath his feet no more than a glance and shifted his gaze towards a young monk at the edge of the black sea. He remained silent.

At the first glance, the strength of the youthful monk in front of him seemed very weak. So weak that he could obliterate him with just a strand of his breath, able to make him disappear without a trace, and wouldn’t even allow his soul a chance to reincarnate.

But when he watched the young monk for a long time, this ostensibly weak monk who seemed to be unable to break free from the fetters of being an ordinary mortal, remained undisturbed in response to his gaze, as if his gaze were as ordinary as anyone else’s.

That aside, what truly made him feel wary was that before he appeared, the young monk had been waiting here, as if he knew in advance that he would appear here.

But how could that be possible?

His appearance here was merely a fleeting thought. If it weren’t for his cautious temperament, he would probably still be cultivating and seeking Enlightenment.

In the silence, the Taoist suddenly saw rays of Buddha’s light diffusing from the body of the young monk, a clear and mysterious aura gleaming in his eyes. The Taoist believed he had understood the foundation of the monk.

A Pure Land paradise could be seen with a Seven Jeweled Pool and Eight Merit Waters filling it. Golden sand covered the bottom of the pool, surrounding streets made from gold, silver, and treasures. There were also palaces and towers, decorated with gold, silver, agate, glaze, and coral snail.

Inside the jade buildings, there were Arhats and many Bodhisattvas. On the white jade lotus platform, countless Buddha figures were seated, exhibiting august and solemn dignity with golden light illuminating everywhere.

When the Taoist’s eyes peered into Lingshan Pure Land, many of the Buddhas sensed it and returned their gaze one after another. The Bodhisattvas, noticing the actions of the Buddhas also looked towards him.

“May I ask, venerable elder, where do you come from?”

The Taoist withdrew his gaze, no longer peering into the Lingshan Pure Land. The most terrifying thing was the unknown. Even though he, the Daojun, was no exception, once he understood the origin and the ins and outs of the other party, he was no longer afraid. He vaguely guessed the existence of the other party and began to consider.

It was just a representative sent out by a Lingshan Pure Land. His existence represented the attitude of the Buddhas of a Lingshan Pure Land and appeared here, probably guided by a Buddha.

The Destiny Seer Power of the Buddhist Gate, he had also heard of it. If there was a Buddha who could foresee his whimsical leaving from the Creation Boundary Mountain today, it would not be surprising.

“This humble monk comes from the Dragon Zen Temple in the West Xi Lan Continent!”

With a calm gaze, Fayuan watched the Daoist standing on the lotus throne. Even when the Daoist just stood there for a moment, many unusual phenomena emerged.

Five-colored clouds descended from the sky, golden lotuses blossomed in the void, orchids accompanied it, thousands of colorful clouds and numerous auspicious entities came forth, and the sacred and peaceful Taoist rhyme filled the air. Even the black sea at his feet started to fade its colors, seemingly turning into a clean sea.

“Dragon Zen Temple.”

Shenghe Daojun thought for a while. It seemed familiar to him but he had no impression. There are countless Taoism temples and Buddhist temples in this world. Although only a tiny fraction of them can withstand thousands of years, there are still quite a few.

While he didn’t remember much about the temple, he understood the meaning of its name. The Heavenly Dragons of Buddhism, though similar to the real dragons of the Four Oceans in appearance, were merely similar, only mudfish crawling insects taking the form of a dragon in reality.

How could the dragon scales and blood grown in the Dragon Pool compare with the dragon body cultivated through endless tribulations and hardships?

Of course, only the real dragons could disregard the Heavenly Dragons of Buddhism. For other creatures that were not part of the Dragon Clan, even at the same level, the Heavenly Dragons were terrifying and powerful beings.

However, no matter how ferocious they were, it did not change the position of the Heavenly Dragons within the Buddhist system. They were just role players, analogous to the Dharmapala and Jaspers, whose status could not be compared to Buddhas and even certain Bodhisattvas.

“May I ask what brings the elder here?”

Shenghe Daojun continued to inquire. Although he deduced his opposite could be a representative of a Lingshan Pure Land, it was just speculation. Perhaps the other party was the incarnation of a Buddha, although the young monk seemed easy to obliterate in his eyes. But this Daoist also had no intention of making a move. As once he did, he would have to deal with the cause and effect linked to a Buddha, which he found quite bothersome.

“To seek a benefactor for debate and to interpret the doctrines of Buddhism!”

Fayuan spoke. Here we have a little monk, who hasn’t even achieved the Fruit Position yet, seeking to debate doctrines with a Daoist of accomplished cultivation. It sounded absurd, yet, Shenghe Daojun, after hearing this, fell silent for a moment, then slowly nodded.