Mythology

Chapter 396 The Buddhist tradition is really good.

The morning chill at Jiepai Pass was bone-chilling.

As soon as the sunlight began to spill over the city walls, a thin layer of frost covered the various passes.

The frost color was not the usual pure white, but rather tinged with rust red, like congealed blood foam, or like deliberately splashed incense ash.

A dozen or so ragged mortals huddled in a corner.

They were emaciated, with sunken eyes and cracked lips that revealed smiles, as they frantically smeared ash all over their bodies.

You can faintly hear mortals repeating the name "Cundi".

There are signs that a sage is about to descend.

It was not Yuanshi Tianzun or Tongtian Jiaozhu, but Zhunti Daoren. The frost was caused by this. Mortals who are not careful will be affected and eventually become walking corpses.

Meanwhile, faint noises were also heard coming from underground at Jiepai Pass.

bang bang.

The flesh-and-blood Taoist temple crawled slowly, constantly shedding bits of flesh and bone as it moved, leaving a sticky trail in the tunnel.

On the surface, the Blood and Flesh Taoist Temple is on the verge of collapse.

After abandoning the Ten Absolute Cities, the ten sons of the Yang family were unable to unleash their full strength. Four of them have already died, and it was only with the help of Bixiao's Five-Colored Divine Light that they were able to barely carve out a path.

The Blood and Flesh Taoist Temple could only dart around aimlessly within the Jiepai Pass area.

They were willing to risk their lives just to buy Yang He time, to live even a little longer.

suddenly.

The eaves of the Blood and Flesh Taoist Temple rose slightly, and the copper bells hanging from the eaves opened their eyes, staring at the deep, boundless darkness behind them.

Yang Sanlang stood at the window, his face extremely solemn: "Ninth Brother, that old thief Duobao will never let us go. You take Miss Bixiao and escape. I will hold them off for a while."

"No, Daoist Duobao is far beyond your capabilities. The reason you haven't completely wiped him out is purely for another purpose..."

During the argument, the statues in the Taoist temple suddenly began to glow faintly, a message from Yang He that informed the group, though they were all puzzled.

The message was very simple: instruct them to dispose of the body.

That's right.

Not only should they discard some of the corpses of the Three Corpses Taoists to attract the attention of the Treasure-Gathering Taoists, but they should also find an opportunity to send the Yin energy that constitutes the Yin-Controlling Ghost Immortal to the neighborhood near Lingjiu Mountain.

Yang Sanlang was very puzzled, but after confirming that it was Yang He, he immediately chose to carry it out.

Before long, the Three Corpse Taoist's limbs were thrown into the darkness.

Immediately afterwards, a rustling sound came from behind. Not long after the Blood and Flesh Taoist Temple left, a figure with an unusually awkward gait emerged.

After practicing the Garbhadhatu Mandala initiation of Esoteric Buddhism, Daoist Duobao's appearance underwent a dramatic change.

His body was covered with numerous arms, each holding an object made from his own flesh and bones, such as kapala bowls, human bone rosaries, and gangling bone horns.

When Daoist Duobao saw Yang He's remains, he couldn't help but show surprise.

"Could it be that Yang He is already confident in dealing with Daoist Ran Deng? Otherwise, why would he be in such a hurry to take his avatar away? Interesting."

He could sense that the ten sons of the Yang family, who were derived from the Ten Deadly Formations, were devoted to Yang He.

It is absolutely impossible for him to damage Yang He's body in order to save his own life.

"Such a person with great fortune, who has not yet become an immortal, is able to go toe-to-toe with Daoist Ran Deng. Could Daoist Ran Deng really be going to die at Yang He's hands?"

Just as Daoist Duobao was about to unleash his Yin energy to chase after the Blood and Flesh Temple, he suddenly froze, stopping abruptly in place.

A golden light appeared between his brows, and the few moments of delay allowed the Blood and Flesh Taoist Temple to escape.

"The Sage Zhunti?"

Duobao Daoist was completely astonished. The golden light clearly came from Zhunti Daoist, but why would Zhunti Daoist protect Yang He? Could it be that the so-called Immaculate Buddha was more in line with the Buddha's attainment than Dipankara Buddha?

"The goddess Nuwa, the Primordial Heavenly Lord, the Supreme Lord Laozi, and now even the Daoist Zhunti are involved. How can this be explained by mere luck?"

He hesitated for a moment, but did not tell the Taoist Ran Deng what he meant.

Since Buddhism also approves of Yang He, why should I get involved in this mess?

Let's just watch the show.

"Moreover, Daoist Zhunti will soon descend upon the Immortal Slaughtering Formation. Even if Yang He's Daoist temple is to be destroyed, it will have to wait until the sage appears before it can be destroyed."

.........

Outside Lingjiu Mountain, a dozen ascetic monks arrived, their feet glistening with morning dew.

Despite the calluses on their feet, they still devoutly kissed every inch of the ground, while the leading old monk gently tapped his copper bowl.

The same voice echoed in the minds of all the monks.

Lingjiu Mountain offers eternal bliss.

Abbot Fashan waited for a long time in front of the temple on Lingjiu Mountain. He was wearing a kasaya, had a kind face, and his eyes swept over the ascetic monks one by one.

"You have all come from afar, and you are all people who have a karmic connection with the Buddha."

Fashan put his hands together and said, “There are many temples on Lingjiu Mountain, each with its own method of cultivation. Today, I will assign places for you all.”

"You will enter the Great Compassion Temple and practice the Dharma of Compassion."

"You will enter the Vajra Monastery to study the path of subduing demons."

The ascetic monks respectfully accepted the order and each followed the novice monk who was leading the way.

Fashan was in a hurry, and there seemed to be a hint of fear between his brows. He did not linger on the outskirts of Lingjiu Mountain and immediately returned to his residence.

No one noticed that a faint wisp of yin energy followed them, then disappeared into the fallen leaves, carried by the wind, and fell into Lingjiu Mountain.

"hey-hey."

Yang He chose to play the role of the Imperial Ghost Immortal.

It is said that the Imperial Ghost Immortal is difficult to advance beyond the True Immortal level, but the difficulty of becoming an Immortal is still far lower than that of a Corpse Immortal, and its whereabouts are also more concealed.

Yang He sensed the small world of the Immaculate Ghost Buddha and passed through the gaps in the wall bricks. "Lingjiu Mountain hasn't experienced any internal strife yet; at least on the surface, it remains calm. I wonder if the previous arrangements have been effective."

He didn't think it would be useless; even if Daoist Ran Deng was caught off guard, he would still have to work on it for a while.

The Green Ox Head was also the medium through which Laozi descended.

The monks, under the influence of the Green Ox Head, would follow his every command, making it impossible for the Taoist Ran Deng to detect them easily.

They are probably also waiting for the guardian deity to lose control.

After many twists and turns, Yang He quickly found the temple belonging to the Immaculate Ghost Buddha. Because of its small size, it was empty, with only a few novice monks cleaning it every now and then.

"What a wonderful place, perfect for seclusion."

"Even if there is no internal strife on Mount Lingjiu, it is still the best choice for becoming an immortal."

The Taoist Ran Deng would never have imagined that a corner of his own temple had become Yang He's little world, and that he could even eventually separate the temple from Lingjiu Mountain.

Yang Hegang was attached to a Buddha statue in the temple and was preparing to go into seclusion for cultivation.

Hearing footsteps outside, he looked out.

Shan walked by quickly with three novices, his expression revealing barely concealed panic.

With a thought, Yang He secretly sent out his Yin energy to follow Shan.

Liao Shan led the three into a secluded path. The surrounding trees were dense, and even the chirping of insects had disappeared in the shade.

The three monks seemed to sense something was wrong, and their attitude began to waver: "Abbot, we're going to..."

Before he finished speaking, Liao Shan drew the ring knife hidden in his sleeve.

His face contorted in an instant, and with a practiced slash, the three monks were decapitated before they could even scream.

Blood splattered on Shan's face, but he showed a relieved smile.

Liao Shan dragged the three corpses into an abandoned temple next door. When he pushed open the wooden door, he heard chilling gasps coming from inside.

Yang He's yin energy seeped in through the crack in the door, and he couldn't help but feel a chill upon seeing the scene before him.

In the center of the temple, the body of the Great Burning Heaven had swelled to the point that it almost burst through the roof, its skin covered with cracks, revealing the writhing flesh beneath.

Its abdomen was split open into a huge maw, greedily devouring the corpse that Shan had thrown in.

Click, click.

The sound of bones being crushed was exceptionally clear in the silent temple.

As the Great Burning Heaven's body intensified with its feeding, it would sometimes sprout additional arms and sometimes additional eyes, completely obscuring its Buddha-like appearance.

Yang He scanned the temple, his gaze landing on the dense Sanskrit inscriptions on the walls and floor.

The Sanskrit inscriptions were clearly drawn from ground human bones, and several kapala tablets were hanging from the eaves in the corner, making the temple's eerie atmosphere indistinguishable from that of Vulture Peak.

This ensures that the commotion caused by the Great Burning Heaven will not lead to rejection by the Daoist temple.

Yang He guessed that Daoist Ran Deng was probably waiting for the guardian deity to take shape, and would probably meditate for a few days until he had completely mastered the Twenty-Four Heavens.

Once they leave the pass, the Blood and Flesh Taoist Temple will certainly be difficult to preserve.

"Huh? Is this a Buddhist magic circle?"

Those guardian deities probably had a natural Buddhist lineage, which made Yang He very envious, because Buddhist formations and stake-driving techniques were similar in principle, which struck a chord with him.

Liao Shan knelt before Da Fentian and accepted the infusion of Yin energy from the latter.

The Great Burning Heaven made some nonsensical promises of immortality.

Yang He subconsciously copied Sanskrit, and after gaining a certain foundation, he unknowingly touched the threshold of magic arrays.

The purpose of this magic array is to conceal one's aura, but Yang He felt it was...

The magic circle is alive.

Sanskrit characters form the flesh, and human bones and kapala (a type of Buddhist prayer wheel) form the soul, giving the magic array a certain spirituality.

"The Heavenly Demon is likely preparing to cause a big disturbance, and the Great King of the Rhinoceros will also launch an attack."

"I now have two choices."

Yang He narrowed his eyes, "Either cooperate and cause trouble, knocking that old schemer unconscious with one blow, or silently attempt to become a True Immortal."

He immediately abandoned the idea of ​​shutting himself away in silence.

"I'm afraid I won't be able to get promoted in one go, which will allow that old schemer to find out what's wrong with me."

"Why don't we give it a try first?"

After making up his mind, Yang He channeled his Yin energy through Lingjiu Mountain, eventually entering an abandoned temple where he retrieved the materials.

Considering the possibility of killing living people, the Yin Ghost Immortal carried a lot of heads with him.

He ground it into powder and drew it around the temple.

Perhaps he does have a talent for this.

The magic array was well-formed, and an invisible Buddhist light enveloped the temple, silencing any ripples in the surrounding yin energy, making it as still as a stubborn rock in a rushing river.

Yang He's consciousness was then drawn into another stream of yin energy, and he made another arrangement, mimicking the cat's actions.

Instead of staying in the temple of the Immaculate Ghost Buddha, he openly went into seclusion on Vulture Peak, absorbing the Yin energy from the outside world to restore his cultivation.

A day later, Yang He's cultivation had returned to its peak.

In the Yuanjue Cave at the center of the temple, Buddha's light was faintly visible, indicating that Daoist Ran Deng was about to emerge from seclusion.

Before the Taoist Ran Deng could appear, the outer temples were engulfed in flames, and the unseeing corpse of Liao Shan was hung at the entrance of the temple.

The deaths of hundreds of monks were clearly a provocation by the Heavenly Demon against the Taoist Ran Deng.

The Demon Rebellion has officially begun.

(End of this chapter)