Your Spell Version is Too Low!

Hearing Qi Yun’s emotionless, purely inquisitive words, the Crown Prince of Nanyin understood perfectly.

The man before him was the type who wouldn’t act without a clear reward—or even one who, upon seeing the reward, would first check for traps.

Without a tangible, substantial benefit on the table, no amount of eloquent promises or sworn oaths would truly move him.

The hem of his grey monastic robe fluttered gently in the pure, consecrated wind that flowed across the Celestial Tier.

He then began to speak, his voice transmitted at an even lower pitch, yet every word was crystal clear, cutting straight to the heart of the matter:

"Fellow Daoist, have you ever wondered why my father, the Emperor, who presided over the vast Nanyin empire and enjoyed the supreme glory of a mortal ruler, would suddenly abdicate thirty years ago without any warning to join the Buddhist Sect?"

The question seemed unrelated to the cooperation at hand, but it was like a key poised to unlock the door to a much deeper secret.

Qi Yun’s eyes shifted slightly, but his pace remained steady. He sent a reply via voice transmission, his tone as casual as if discussing the weather:

"Oh? Could there be more to the story?

"I had always assumed His Majesty possessed deep spiritual roots and, upon achieving sudden enlightenment, saw through the illusions of mortal power, thus making such a resolute and courageous decision."

"Hah."

A soft, inscrutable sneer escaped the Crown Prince of Nanyin’s lips, laced with profound sarcasm and... an indescribable chill.

"Spiritual roots? Enlightenment?"

He shook his head, his plain face betraying no emotion.

"In the end, it was all for a single scroll of scripture."

"A single scroll?" Qi Yun’s eyes twitched.

"Yes."

The Crown Prince of Nanyin’s voice grew low, as if he were revealing a long-forbidden secret.

"A copy of the *Heart Sutra*... personally transcribed by the World Honored One and imbued with the true essence of his supreme Buddhist Skill."

’The World Honored One!’

’Personally transcribed!’

The words combined like a clap of thunder, exploding in the depths of Qi Yun’s Heart Lake!

The World Honored One was the originator of the Buddhist Dao. Rumor had it he had long since transcended this realm, his very existence a legend.

A scripture he had personally transcribed... its value was simply immeasurable.

"The World Honored One was the founder of the Buddhist Dao, and one of the few Supreme Beings clearly recorded in the Profound Yellow Origin Realm to have surpassed those Above the True Monarch,"

the Crown Prince of Nanyin continued, his tone tinged with the detached air of someone who has grasped a fundamental truth.

"A work in his own hand, especially a scripture like the *Heart Sutra* that points directly to the core of Buddhist Skill, would very likely contain residual... Dao Rhyme, epiphanies, and even... a path to that higher Realm!"

"However, ever since this scripture was secretly unearthed by the Overseas Buddhist Cultivators, it has been tightly hidden away, sealed by several Bodhisattvas using their combined Supreme Divine Techniques and Wish Power.

Its exact location, the method of its concealment, and even how to break the seal are all top-secret.

"No one outside of those few Bodhisattvas could possibly know."

Hearing this, the scattered insights in Qi Yun’s mind suddenly connected like a string of pearls, forming a clear and shocking picture.

’Why did the Nanyin Emperor suddenly announce his abdication to join the Buddhist Sect?’

’Why were the Overseas Buddhist Cultivators able to migrate east so smoothly, establishing an Earthly Buddha Country in Nanyin while all the True Monarchs collectively acquiesced, even tacitly supported them?’

’Why was this World Honored One’s Zen Assembly being conducted with such pomp and mystery, drawing the eyes of the entire Profound Yellow Realm?’

’Everything... it all pointed to that one scroll—the *Heart Sutra*!’

"So..." Qi Yun’s voice deepened, tinged with dawning comprehension.

"The Nanyin Emperor’s resolute abdication and entry into the Buddhist Sect wasn’t for the sake of any Buddhist cultivation... it was to gain their trust, to get a chance... to access that scripture!"

"And the True Monarchs’ acquiescence to the Buddhist Cultivators’ eastern migration, their silent approval of Nanyin’s transformation into a Buddha Country...

"Their true target was also the *Heart Sutra*, which might hold the secret to the realm Above the True Monarch!"

A flicker of profound mockery crossed the Crown Prince of Nanyin’s otherwise impassive face.

"Exactly. For the True Monarchs, who already stand at the pinnacle of this world with long lives but a path to advancement that has reached its end, what could possibly be more alluring than the chance to touch a higher Realm?"

"Never mind a single Nanyin Dynasty; even if they had to hand over the entire Fertile Land of the Central Plains and its hundreds of millions of people, it would be, in their eyes, a trivial price to pay for that one sliver of hope."

He paused, the mockery in his voice thickening, now laced with a bone-deep chill.

"Of course..."

"That includes my... foolish father, the Emperor."

At these words, Qi Yun’s steps faltered almost imperceptibly.

For the first time, he turned his head in surprise, carefully scrutinizing the ordinary-looking, placid "Grey-clothed Arhat" beside him.

’For the sake of the ethereal secret of what lies Above the True Monarch, for a scroll that might contain supreme and profound truths...’

’To abandon a dynasty that has been passed down for millennia?’

’To subject hundreds of millions of citizens to a restructuring of their faith, a spiritual "realignment"?’

’To relegate oneself to being a pawn in a larger game, a piece that could be discarded at any moment?’

Qi Yun suddenly felt that he needed to re-evaluate this former Crown Prince.

’To be able to so calmly—even mockingly—point out the "foolishness" of his own father’s actions... the coldness of this Crown Prince’s heart, the clarity of his insight, the sheer scale of his ambitions...’

’They probably went far beyond simply "restoring his dynasty."’

Their eyes met in mid-air for a brief moment.

Qi Yun’s eyes held scrutiny and surprise.

In the eyes of the Crown Prince of Nanyin, however, there was only a bottomless calm, and beneath it, a dark ambition that could swallow mountains and rivers.

At the end of the Celestial Tier, the golden-roofed silhouette of Little Leiyin Temple was now faintly visible amidst the churning Seven Treasures Auspicious Cloud and the blazing Buddha Light.

The bells for the Zen Assembly were about to toll.

...

Upon setting foot on the final step—a colossal stair a thousand zhang wide, carved from a single piece of Flawless Mutton Fat Jade—the world before them opened up.

All the ascending Arhats, regardless of their mental state, involuntarily held their breath, their eyes filled with shock and boundless reverence.

Little Leiyin Temple!

It was inlaid into the very void at the summit of Spirit Mountain!

Below, a roiling sea of clouds formed from the Seven Treasures, condensed from pure Wish Power and Buddha Light, supported the incredibly magnificent architectural complex.

The entire temple was forged from the Seven Treasures of Buddhism and even more indescribable, miraculous materials that radiated the light of the Great Dao.

Every inch of it flowed with a gentle yet eternal luster, faintly resonating with the immense Wish Power of the entire Spirit Mountain Sacred Realm and the Nanyin Buddha Country below.

Its sheer scale surpassed all mortal comprehension.

The Main Hall was tens of thousands of zhang tall, piercing the heavens. Nine tiers of gilded roofs were stacked one atop another. From the eaves of each roof hung Relics and Vajra Bells as large as suns, moons, and stars. They moved without wind, emitting an eternal, wondrous sound that purified the Divine Soul and suppressed Heart Demons.

Above the highest roof, wheels of seven-colored Buddha Light spun slowly. Within them, illusory figures from innumerable Buddha Countries and billions of Bodhisattvas and Arhats flickered in and out of view, manifesting the supreme and wondrous state of the Buddhist Sect.

The four walls of the hall were adorned with countless giant, lotus-shaped windows.

Surrounding the temple stood eight Coiled Dragon Golden Pillars that touched both heaven and earth. Wrapped around their shafts were the majestic Dharma Aspects of the Eight Celestial Dragons!

In front of the temple lay a vast, boundless Golden Plaza. Its surface was as smooth as a mirror, reflecting the celestial phenomena of the vault above and the temple’s own brilliance. It even faintly displayed miniature light-and-shadow projections of the three thousand Grand Thousand worlds.

At the plaza’s edge stood one hundred and eight enormous Golden Body statues of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Arhats. They were all different in form, yet each was majestic and solemn, radiating a pressure as vast as the ocean and a power of deliverance that inspired instant piety and swept away all distracting thoughts.

This was the ultimate sanctum, built over thirty years by the Overseas Buddhist Cultivators, forged from an immeasurable amount of Wish Power!

VMMMM—!!!

A deep, resonant vibration, like the tolling of a great bell, suddenly echoed in the depths of every Arhat’s Purple Mansion Sea of Consciousness!

Immediately after, directly in front of Little Leiyin Temple.

Brilliant Buddha Light erupted simultaneously from six directions—East, South, West, North, Above, and Below!

The Buddha Light from the East was an azure-lapis hue, crystal clear and translucent, containing endless vitality and the wisdom of liberation. Within the light, the phantom of a colossal Bodhi Treasure Tree blotted out the sky. Beneath it, a Buddha appeared to be holding up a flower as Kashyapa smiled.

The Buddha Light from the South was a fiery, gilded gold, scorching and domineering, possessing the supreme might to incinerate all afflictions and subjugate all Outer Daos. Within it floated the phantom of a three-headed, six-armed Vidyārāja, treading upon a flaming lotus throne and wielding various Demon-Slaying Magical Artifacts.

The Buddha Light from the West was a flawless, pure white, sacred and solemn, flowing with the compassionate Wish Power of infinite life and Infinite Light, Guiding all living beings to Paradise. Within the light manifested the Bodhisattva Dharma Aspect of a compassionate figure with eyes cast downward, holding a Purification Bottle and a willow branch.

The Buddha Light from the North was a profound, heavy black, as solid as a mountain, radiating the steadfast will to suppress all demons, guard the true teachings, and remain Vajra Indestructible. Faintly visible within the light was the towering silhouette of a Vajra Warrior, holding a Vajra Pestle and clad in armor.

The Buddha Light from Above was a shifting, seven-colored hue, unpredictable and ever-changing, as if it contained the Ten Thousand Laws and manifested all of creation. It held the supreme Buddhist truth of wondrous, infinite existence and the non-duality of the void. Within the light, countless scenes flickered, as though innumerable Buddha’s Pure Lands were undergoing the Cycle of Life and Death.

The Buddha Light from Below was a dark, foundational gold, incomparably dense. It was like the earth supporting all creation, or the Nine Netherworld receiving the fruits of karma. It carried the profound Dao Rhyme of Reincarnation, of nirvanic extinction, of deliverance from all suffering. Within the light, the wheel of the six paths of reincarnation seemed to be slowly turning.

Then, the six streams of Buddha Light rapidly converged and coalesced.

In that frozen, empty space, six figures manifested!

Six Buddhist Cultivation Bodhisattvas!

The six Bodhisattvas, one in each of the six directions, watched the Arhats below, who looked like a swarm of golden ants. Their gazes were serene, yet seemed to pierce through all illusion.

There were no words, no movements.

But an intangible, indisputable will had already permeated the entire plaza:

The World Honored One’s Zen Assembly is about to begin.

All who hold an invitation shall await the decree.

Those who move without authorization...

...shall be erased!

The entire area before Little Leiyin Temple fell into a dead silence, one filled with the absolute solemnity of supreme majesty.

The Buddha Light remained brilliant, the Brahma Chanting echoed eternally.

But the air had frozen, as solid as Ten Thousand Years Profound Ice.

...

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