CHAPTER 743: 618 PURPLE-GREEN DOULUO THUNDER

Vajra Giant Spirit God Palm, once unleashed, the heavens would shatter and the earth would split!

Li Ning and Atong were not bloodthirsty and cruel, but they knew that in order to entangle Shi Pi the Elder and Shi Sheng, they had no choice but to use their big moves. Petty fighting would be effortlessly neutralized by them, rendering it useless.

As expected, Shi Sheng and Shi Pi the Elder had to switch to defensive moves against the attacks.

Shi Sheng interlaced his ten fingers and waved them, creating dozens of sword Qi that formed a sword net ablaze with a large amount of Five Elements Spiritual Fire, which met head-on with the Golden Buddha Palm that Atong had sent forward. With a booming sound, the Buddha Palm shattered into golden Buddha Light, mixed with the Five Elements Spiritual Fire, burning into a colorful flame.

Shi Pi the Elder, on the other hand, used the Five Elements Divine Peak to intercept Li Ning’s strike.

Looking again at Chen Yan, he had already been swept away by Zhu Youmu’s Buddha Light, escaping swiftly towards the southwest.

Shi Pi the Elder, unwilling to let it go, roared like a tiger, waving his horsetail whisk, unleashing a heaven-covering Demon Fire Golden Saber that bathed Tian Dou in red. Like a tidal wave, it pursued Zhu Youmu from behind.

Li Ning and Atong, shining with Buddha Light, teleported to the front, and together, they struck out another Vajra Giant Spirit God Palm to block Shi Pi the Elder.

The three of them were exceedingly fast with their Buddha Light Escape Skill, and Shi Pi the Elder, facing both Buddha Palms alone, saw that the three monks were now far away.

Shi Pi the Elder, unable to contain his fury and about to give chase again, sensed that down in the valley below, Atan Vapi, Zhao Changsu, and the Golden God Monarch were peeking up at them.

Shi Pi the Elder, who had been dueling earlier with Shi Sheng, knew that the three had already emerged and were watching from a distance, each filled with fear.

Atan Vapi and the Golden God Monarch both discovered, horrified, that Shi Pi the Elder’s mana had greatly increased compared to their memories!

They all knew the Asura techniques to some extent, and could instantly gauge the depth of others’ skills. Shi Pi the Elder, handling everything with such ease, felt unfathomably powerful to them... they stood no chance of winning.

Atan Vapi finally understood the true extent of Shi Pi the Elder’s mercy when, in the past, she had caused trouble on Divine Sword Peak. She had known that Shi Pi the Elder had been suppressed by the Seven Treasures Golden Banner during his battle with the two ladies from the Xie Family and had thought that only four levels of his effort had been suppressed. After sustaining heavy injuries and his Dao Level falling, she believed that her own cultivation technique had greatly improved over the years, and together with the Golden God Monarch and Zhao Changsu, they would be able to manage.

Now it seemed that back then, Shi Pi the Elder must have been suppressed by at least six or seven levels of the Seven Treasures Golden Banner. It was unknown whether he had fully recovered, but the strength he had suddenly displayed was truly terrifying!

The three didn’t dare to act rashly, and not even Atan Vapi suggested that they take advantage of Shi Pi the Elder’s duel with Shi Sheng to launch a surprise attack; they were genuinely terrified.

After witnessing the sudden intervention of the three monks, followed by Shi Pi the Elder’s raging anger, the three exchanged glances and quickly reached a consensus—to get out of there fast!

They turned and walked into the Earth Dao, but just as they took a step, a sinister voice from Shi Pi the Elder transmitted from behind them, "Where do you think you’re going?"

The three were so frightened that they shivered, simultaneously turning back stiffly to see Shi Pi the Elder standing behind them, face red with fury.

The Golden God Monarch reacted the fastest, immediately running over and kneeling down: "Sect Hierarch Brother! Oh, Sect Hierarch Brother! I’ve followed your advice all these years... I’m so grateful to you, you told me not to come out, staying underground and could not rise to see the sunlight. I’ve been well for so many years, without any disaster or calamity, and I’ve always wanted to go to Divine Sword Peak to thank you. I just didn’t dare to emerge and face the sun..."

Shi Pi the Elder snorted coldly and then looked towards Zhao Changsu.

Zhao Changsu hastily came over, fanning himself and chuckling, "Shi Pi Daoist friend, it’s been many years..."

"Rubbish!" Shi Pi the Elder snapped his horsetail whisk, and a streak of Demon Light flew towards Zhao Changsu.

Zhao Changsu hurriedly tried to block it with his fan, but the Demon Light was as heavy as a mountain, growing heavier and heavier. He exclaimed in a panic, "Sect Hierarch Shi Pi, what is the meaning of this?"

"You dare call me Daoist friend? Kneel before you speak to me!" Shi Pi the Elder lashed out with his horsetail whisk again, and the weight of the Demon Light instantly increased more than tenfold.

Zhao Changsu knew that the angry elder might kill him if they continued to argue, so he didn’t dare release his powerful Divine Demon skills, instead dropping to his knees while still smiling, "What’s the rush, Sect Hierarch? If you say kneel, then I’ll kneel... No need for such harsh words..."

Shi Pi the Elder spoke harshly, "Bai Mei Monk’s three stubborn disciples have taken away someone I want. Now, I am going to Stone Tiger Mountain in Yunnan to take him back. You will come with me and each of you will deal with one of those disciples. If you can bring him back unharmed, there will be a reward; if you fail to bring him back, I will flay and dismantle you, extracting your Primordial Spirits to refine into Divine Demons!"

The Golden God Monarch didn’t wait for Shi Pi the Elder to finish speaking before blurting out, "Sect Hierarch Brother, what you’ve said... Just now, I wanted to go help too, but those three monks ran too fast, and I was worried my shallow Dao and weak power would impede your execution of the Asura Divine Skill, I..."

"Shut up!" Shi Pi the Elder waved his hand, casting two streaks of Demon Light, one entering the Golden God Monarch’s head, and the other flying towards Zhao Changsu. Zhao Changsu wanted to block it with his fan again, but the Demon Light Shi Pi the Elder had released earlier wrapped around his fan. Delayed just a moment, the Demon Light also entered his head.

Both knew that at this moment, they were under the effect of the Sect’s most formidable Asura Possession Great Technique. They would obey Shi Pi the Elder’s words lest the elder get annoyed and use the Demon to force them to self-mutilate their bodies or die outright, their Primordial Spirits manipulated like puppets on strings. Unless Shi Pi the Elder took mercy and voluntarily released them, they would forever be his puppet slaves with no chance of liberation, even in death or rebirth.

But now they had no choice but to keep on smiling and showing loyalty to avoid angering Shi Pi the Elder.

Shi Pi the Elder took the two and turned to leave. From the beginning to the end, he acted as if he had never seen Atan Vapi at all.

Atong remained stiff in place as if a immobilizing spell had been cast on her, not "coming back to life" until the three had gone far away. She was then drenched in cold sweat from fright.

Shi Pi the Elder, along with two subordinates, hurried to Stone Tiger Mountain, only to find that Shi Sheng was already there.

Shi Sheng’s approach to the situation was different; his first reaction was to immediately seek help, come over and have a big fight, relying on martial force to snatch the person back.

Shi Sheng preferred courtesy before action, coming to the gates to demand the return of the person.

He was met by Atong, who said, "We just followed the Elder Brother to invite Daoist Chen Yan as a guest, without any ill intent."

Shi Sheng said, "Where did it look like you were inviting a guest just now?"

He requested to meet Chen Yan in person, which Atong said the Elder Brother did not allow, then he asked to visit Zen Master Bai Mei, to which Atong replied that the Zen Master had left the mountain several months ago and had since vanished without a trace, whereabouts unknown.

After "courtesy" was done, what remained was "force."

Shi Sheng directly attacked Atong, with a massive sword net engulfing him in an instant.

In his previous life, Atong was Wei Bagong, whose disciple Lie Baduo was a Sect Leader level figure, with the Red-haired Ancestor among his juniors and Elder Kuzhu as his friend... It was the accumulation of cultivation over many lives; he was already capable of reaching Nirvana.

Of course, just like in the Mysterious Sect, there are divisions such as Golden Immortal, Heavenly Immortal, and even among Heavenly Immortals who ascend, the fruits of their cultivation are not the same.

Similarly, in Buddhism, there is rebirth into the Western Paradise, but it is also divided into nine grades based on each person’s merit and cultivation.

An old rural lady, reciting the Buddha’s name with undistracted concentration, might be reborn in Nirvana in her next life, but this is not the same as Zen Master Tian Meng, who started practicing Buddhism from the Eastern Han Dynasty and attained enlightenment over a thousand or two thousand years.

For the highest level of rebirth, at the moment of passing, not only Amitabha Buddha, The Bodhisattva Guanyin, and Mahasthamaprapta would all arrive, but numerous Buddhas from Nirvana, Arhats, and Monks who listen to Buddha’s teachings, as well as the Good Gods from Heavenly realms who believe in Buddhism... all would come to guide the soul. Guanyin would bring a Vajra Platform to the cultivator, who would ride it and in a moment, arrive in Nirvana, manifesting directly from a lotus in the pond...

If the Divine Monks and Nuns of the Shushan World were to pass away, they would mostly be of this rank.

As for the lowest grade of rebirth, those destined for Hell are only saved at the last moment by the guidance of a great monk teaching them to recite Buddha’s name, letting go of the butcher’s knife, and managing ten continuous and pure recitations—all invoking Amitabha Buddha—can also be reborn, but without anyone to receive them, only a Golden Lotus takes them away. Upon reaching the Western Paradise, they must still go through twelve great calamities before the lotus blooms and they are reborn.

The differences in treatment and achievements between these higher and lower grades are even more significant than those between Golden Immortals and Independent Immortals.

Atong was also capable of rebirth, and Shi Sheng could ascended, but the real disparity in their mana was quite significant.

He was enveloped by Shi Sheng’s Spirit Stone Sword Net, on the verge of being torn to pieces, his mind racing desperately, immediately bringing his hands together in prayer, his body radiating the Great Sandalwood Buddha Light.

The sword net sliced through the Great Sandalwood Buddha Light, shattering it. Even the smaller Sandalwood Buddha Light clinging to his body was cut into fragments, severing directly across Atong’s flesh.

"Namaste, Amitabha Buddha!" Atong’s meditation was extraordinary, sitting amid thorns and flames, his mind not even slightly disturbed, the Buddha Light shone back, his whole body immediately turning to gold as if cast from it.

"Whoosh whoosh..." sword qi whirled around his body, cutting his robes to shreds, but after passing through the two layers of Buddha Light which acted as shields, their impetus was greatly diminished, leaving only some scratches on Atong’s Purple Gold Body.

Shi Sheng pointed his finger, and the sword qi exploded, producing red, green, yellow, white, and other Five-Colored spiritual flames, instantly turning into a big fiery ball engulfing Atong.

He pointed at the flaming ball, fiercely scorching Atong, "Let’s see if that Dharma Body of yours is made of true gold or false gold, and whether or not it can withstand the fire!"

Atong slowly rose, his body golden, sitting cross-legged, aware that he could not compete with Shi Sheng in Daoist power. If he countered, he would immediately reveal vulnerabilities, and if he allowed anger to arise, his Buddha Light would weaken. Therefore, he put life and death aside, closing his eyes and bringing his hands together in prayer, simply reciting Buddha’s name.

His many lifetimes of meditation practice and profound concentration kept him in a single-minded state of clarity, producing a sphere of Buddha Light from within, gradually pushing away the Five Elements Spiritual Fire.

Shi Sheng laughed, "The little monk indeed has some ability to withstand the trial by fire! Just that you Buddhists treat the physical body as a bag of skin, calling us seekers of immortality corpse-keepers, why then refine your bag of skin into a Golden Body? We Daoists consider the body as a dwelling, while you monks claim it all to be empty, renouncing wealth but making your dwelling splendid golden, more luxurious than the palaces of kings in the mortal world, how very different. Let’s see how you fare with my Thunder Fire Refinement!"

He pointed his finger, and Heavenly Thunder descended from the sky, striking the fiery ball.

This thunder was Purple and Blue Duoluo Divine Thunder, created by Feiyang.

Others’ thunderbolts were single swift strikes that appeared and disappeared.

His thunder, however, was created by combining his own True Qi with the Spiritual Energy of heaven and earth. As long as the mana was sufficient, the thunderbolt’s power would keep flowing down incessantly.

"Crack crack crack..." The relentless thunderbolts turned Atong into a five-colored flame-spewing ball of lightning!