Chapter 142: Guang Ming
Northern Frontier, Divine Martial Sect.
In the deepest part of the sect, within a gloomy grand hall, a streak of rainbow light pierced through the sky and landed in the hall, finally transforming into a burly man who collapsed onto the ground.
“Pfft!”
As soon as True Person Huan Wu knelt down, he could not hold back and coughed up blood, yet his face was full of heartache as he used both hands to cover his mouth and forcibly swallowed the blood back down.
After all, this “blood” was actually the essence of his Dao Foundation.
Normally, even spitting out a single mouthful would require more than ten days to recover.
Now, however, it kept gushing out uncontrollably, showing just how severe his injuries were.
Not to mention, he had even abandoned his physical body and escaped with only his soul.
“Senior Brother!”
At that moment, a young man hurried out from within the hall, his face filled with anxiety.
Seeing True Person Huan Wu in such a state, he quickly stepped forward to support him.
“Junior Brother Xuan Wu… Medicine, medicine!”
True Person Huan Wu urged repeatedly.
The young man dared not delay, immediately retrieving a jade pill bottle and pouring out a small crimson pill.
In the next second, he activated it with his mana.
The broken pill fell onto True Person Huan Wu’s body.
In an instant, his organs regenerated, flesh and blood reformed, bones filled in, and he once again took the form of True Person Huan Wu!
With his soul entering the new body, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
His previously unstable Dao Foundation stabilized once more.
Though the newly formed body kept emitting cracking sounds as if it struggled to bear his soul, at least it could be used for now, and his soul wouldn’t be left without a vessel.
“As long as Senior Brother is alright…”
Seeing this, True Person Xuan Wu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Yet when he thought of the sect’s current situation, a wave of sorrow suddenly welled up in his heart.
“Senior Brother, why don’t we just leave?”
Though he was deeply attached to the Divine Martial Sect, True Person Xuan Wu still gritted his teeth and spoke these words, clearly expressing his intent to abandon the sect!
“No matter what, we are True Persons, not mere Qi Refining mortals.”
“If we abandon the sect’s legacy, take nothing with us, harbor no other thoughts, and flee overseas with single-minded focus, I doubt anyone would bother to chase us.”
True Person Xuan Wu’s words made True Person Huan Wu fall silent.
He was right.
If they truly abandoned the sect now, although the Divine Martial Sect would be doomed, the two of them would surely survive.
But how could he willingly accept that?
True Person Huan Wu was already over one hundred and fifty years old this year.
He had just barely refined his life-bound essence, waiting to borrow the sect’s merit and destiny to help him find a strand of Heavenly Star and Earth Fiend energy to forge his innate divine ability, allowing him to take his cultivation one step further.
Even if his three-hundred-year lifespan ended, he could more easily return to the Foundation Establishment Realm in his next life.
But if the sect fell?
First of all, the merit and destiny would be gone, and any hope of mid-Foundation Establishment in this life would be shattered.
Second, with no sect, who would guide his next incarnation?
If they fled overseas, they would become wandering ghosts with no ties to anything!
What Dao path could there be to talk about then?
Even his next reincarnation would have no prospects!
Thus, unless there was truly no other choice, True Person Huan Wu really did not plan to abandon the sect.
However, after his recent battle with Lü Yang, his heart felt ice-cold.
“That demon has gone all in.
It seems Jiangnan has truly given up on us…”
For a moment, True Person Huan Wu felt utterly lost.
Yet just then—
“Amitabha.”
A Buddhist chant sounded like a clear spring, washing over them and instantly easing the anxiety and fear in the two True Persons’ hearts.
However, it also greatly startled them both.
“Pure Land? Buddhist Cultivator?”
True Person Huan Wu raised his head, only to see a wisp of sandalwood fragrance filling the air.
When he came back to his senses, a boyish-looking youth with red lips and white teeth had already appeared in the grand hall.
“This humble monk, Fulong, greets the two benefactors.”
Fulong Arhat first put his palms together in a respectful gesture, then smiled and said, “Though the Sword Pavilion has no interest in the Northern Frontier, the Pure Land does not mind lending a hand.”
“Is this true?” True Person Huan Wu asked with sudden delight.
Of course it was a lie.
Fulong Arhat sneered inwardly, but his expression grew even more compassionate as he said, “Pure Land Buddhist cultivators do not speak falsehoods. This humble monk has come precisely to offer assistance to your esteemed sect.”
In truth, this was purely Fulong Arhat’s personal action, unrelated to the Pure Land.
It was just that in his recent karmic calculations, he had joyfully discovered that Lü Yang, who had stayed hidden in the Primordial Saint Sect for thirty years, had finally emerged.
Thus, he had rushed here without delay, hoping to seize this excellent opportunity to eliminate future troubles.
With this thought, Fulong Arhat took out an object from his kasaya robe.
It was a golden statue, dazzling and radiant.
When Fulong Arhat activated it with his mana, it immediately manifested a corporeal form and landed beside True Person Huan Wu.
“This treasure is called the 【Golden Body of Renunciation】, formed from the voluntary sacrifice of one of our temple’s disciples.”
“Compared to the body forged from pills that you use, this body is undoubtedly far more resilient. It should be enough to restore over eighty percent of your strength.”
“Many thanks, Holy Monk!”
True Person Huan Wu showed no hesitation.
He immediately released his soul again and merged with the 【Golden Body of Renunciation】.
His previously weakened aura began to rise once more.
Fulong Arhat nodded in satisfaction when he saw this, then turned his gaze toward Skeleton Mountain.
“He’s already sensed me.”
Fulong Arhat furrowed his brow slightly and muttered to himself, “This man’s talent is extraordinary. He has refined his life-bound essence in just thirty years. If I want to kill him, it won’t be easy.”
To be fair, with his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation, he had complete confidence in dealing with Lü Yang.
At the very least, he was certain he wouldn’t lose.
However, Foundation Establishment True Persons could sense karma and had the ability to avoid misfortune and seek fortune.
If Lü Yang chose not to fight him and fled upon hearing the news, Fulong Arhat actually wouldn’t have much of a solution.
Unless he could confine the battlefield to a single location.
Only by making Lü Yang unable to escape could he seize the chance to kill him.
The ideal outcome would be to convert Lü Yang, which would benefit him the most.
For this reason, he had made some preparations.
Whether they would work or not would depend on their respective tactics.
He believed Lü Yang was just as eager to get rid of him, and it would come down to whose schemes were superior.
While Fulong Arhat was deep in thought, elsewhere in the Divine Martial Sect, a sneaky-looking monk putting on a solemn facade was leisurely strolling around.
“Tell me, how did I end up becoming the Senior Brother of 【Fulong Temple】?”
Guang Ming had been enjoying himself quite a bit lately.
With Guang Hai and Guang Hui both having died tragically, he had saved the remaining Buddhist cultivators of the Pure Land, earning himself quite a bit of influence.
“Life is truly unpredictable~”
Guang Ming sighed with heartfelt emotion, but he had somewhat lost the motivation to continue cultivating.
After all, for Buddhist cultivators, reaching this stage was pretty much the end of the road.
Because 【Fulong Temple】 already had a master.
As long as Fulong Arhat remained alive, no matter how high his own cultivation rose, it would only serve to benefit Fulong Arhat.
Since that was the case, why bother with bitter cultivation every day?
It was time to enjoy life!
With this thought, a scene suddenly flashed in Guang Ming’s mind—the moment during the Dao-Seizing Battle when Lü Yang had slaughtered Guang Hai and the others in one fell swoop.
“Hiss!”
Guang Ming gasped sharply and spat in disgust, “Ptui ptui ptui! What rotten luck! Why did I suddenly think of that murderer? Quick, forget it, forget it!”
However, the more he tried to forget, the clearer that figure in his memory became.
In a daze, he seemed to have returned to the Dao-Seizing battlefield, trembling as he watched that person’s back.
He watched as Lü Yang turned around, smiled at him, and said:
“Guang Ming, my fellow Daoist, how have you been?”
No matter how far apart they were, a single thought could bridge the distance.
【Defining Closeness and Distance】!
“…Huh?”
Guang Ming snapped back to reality, only to find Lü Yang had actually turned to face him.
He rubbed his eyes and pinched his face.
Ouch, that hurt.
‘Oh my god!’
It was the real person!?
In the next moment, there was a thud as Guang Ming directly knelt on the ground, sobbing loudly, “High Immortal! This humble monk… this humble monk has missed you so much!”