Chapter 439
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: Unknown
Chapter Title: Severing the Karmic Ties
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Before the words had even faded, Lu Yang reacted.
*He’s misunderstood!*
This caught Lu Yang completely off guard. He never imagined what train of thought led Soaring Empyrean to mistake him for Hongyun.
But that didn’t stop Lu Yang from responding.
His expression shifted, flickering between light and shadow. After a long moment, he let out a heavy sigh and looked at Soaring Empyrean.
“How did you see through it, Senior?”
“Simple.”
Soaring Empyrean smiled at the sight.
“Everything in the world has its causes and origins. How could there be a great cultivator who pops up out of nowhere?”
“Back then, when Chongguang took the World True Lords away, you weren’t among them. With the True Lord’s reincarnation methods, you should have long since challenged Covered Lamp Fire again. I even prepared countless measures waiting for you—only for you to vanish like smoke, silent for thirty years.”
“I almost thought you were dead.”
“And wouldn’t you know it, the dao friend who played chess with me at South Heaven Gate also disappeared mysteriously from this world alongside you, Hongyun.”
“Until years later, when that dao friend reemerged out of the blue.”
“A visitor from beyond the heavens. How intriguing.”
At this point, Soaring Empyrean’s expression brimmed with interest.
“Though Dao Friend hid it well, we’ve clashed many times. I know you inside and out.”
“Dao Friend’s metal nature might fool others.”
“But to me? It can’t be concealed!”
Soaring Empyrean spoke with absolute certainty. Lu Yang narrowed his eyes slightly, understanding dawning in his mind.
*So that’s it. It’s Hongyun’s metal nature that gave it away.*
Soaring Empyrean had sensed Hongyun’s metal nature!
If the rest was mere circumstantial evidence, the metal nature was ironclad proof. After all, who could guess that Hongyun had just reincarnated when Lu Yang blocked his spirit spring and slew him outright?
With that realization, Lu Yang simply shut his mouth.
The more said, the more mistakes.
At a time like this, the best move was to stay silent and play the aloof expert!
On the other side, seeing no response from Lu Yang, Soaring Empyrean shook his head.
“Why fear me like a tiger, Dao Friend? There are no conflicts between us anymore.”
“After all, it seems you’ve given up on Covered Lamp Fire and turned to seek fruits from beyond the heavens instead. Were you lurking in the Sword Pavilion earlier because you’re interested in the Sword Dao Fruit Position? I underestimated you before, Dao Friend. Your decisiveness to abandon and choose anew befits a favored child of heaven. It’s a shame your luck always falls short.”
In an instant, everything clicked for Lu Yang.
From Soaring Empyrean’s words, he keenly picked up on one key point:
*He thinks I’m after the Sword Dao Fruit Position... but says my luck is bad. So he doesn’t believe the Sword Dao Fruit Position can actually be attained?*
*Why not?*
Lu Yang chose his words carefully. After a long pause, he murmured lowly,
“Do you think I can’t claim the Sword Dao Fruit Position, Senior?”
Soaring Empyrean didn’t suspect a thing and chuckled lightly.
“How? The Pure Land is bound for chaos today. That so-called Sword Dao Fruit Position? Nothing but a moon in the water!”
Lu Yang’s mind raced as he replied gravely,
“The Pure Land has schemed for years, and Perfected Being Demon-Quelling is already in their trap. To me, the Sword Dao Fruit Position is all but assured. How could it be a mere illusion?”
He even let a touch of reluctance flicker across his face at just the right moment.
This performance only solidified Soaring Empyrean’s assumptions, convincing him that “Hongyun” simply refused to accept his judgment.
At the same time, Soaring Empyrean pondered inwardly:
*The Pure Land’s dharma prince clearly harbors ill intent. Partnering with him leads nowhere. But this Hongyun... he’s far more capable than I thought. A lone wanderer, easy to control, and no clash over paths anymore. Pulling him to my side could prove quite useful.*
With that thought, Soaring Empyrean smiled.
“If the World Honored One oversaw it personally, there’d be no surprises. But the dharma prince isn’t the World Honored One. The Pure Land is far too naive.”
Lu Yang’s brows lifted slightly.
“Naive?”
“Indeed.”
Soaring Empyrean shook his head, uttering words that even surprised Lu Yang.
“The Pure Land gravely underestimates that Perfected Being Demon-Quelling.”
Underestimates Perfected Being Demon-Quelling?
What did that mean?
Lu Yang’s sword dao avatar was right beside Perfected Being Demon-Quelling at this moment, fully aware of his dire straits—truly surrounded on all sides.
He could still turn the tables?
Faced with Lu Yang’s bewilderment, Soaring Empyrean merely chuckled.
As a fellow member of the Saint Sect, he understood those so-called “good old boys” best. The better the reputation, the more ruthless the strike—they were definitely plotting something sinister!
“Boom!”
In the Pure Land, within the Victorious Will Generating Brilliance Precious Monastery, Guangming Dharma Prince rose abruptly to his feet. Behind him, the towering golden Buddha statue slowly unfurled its palm.
In that instant, myriad golden lights bloomed from the plump Buddha palm, manifesting countless visions: the Heavenly Capital Jade Citadel, dragon-coiled golden city, ministers offering counsel, clashing spears and iron horses. Truly, the myriad states of the red dust, the divine kingdom of man, all cradled in the Buddha’s palm, endlessly shifting forms.
*Hiss!*
Seeing this, Lu Yang felt as if struck hard. His mind sea churned with massive waves, an unstoppable greed surging from his heart like a spring:
*It’s Rampart Soil!*
The one and only fruit position confined to a single land in the modern world, the core of the Pure Land’s Grounded Buddha Kingdom—now held in Guangming’s palm!
*To think it’s like this.*
At such close range, with Lu Yang’s current cultivation, he could glimpse some details. At least he now understood how the Pure Land had contained Rampart Soil.
*Rampart Soil is a cornerstone of nation-founding, controlling hearts while bound by them. The Pure Land used the unified faith of countless release cultivators to forcibly lock Rampart Soil in place in Jiangxi lands. Under these conditions, no one but a release cultivator can claim it.*
*...But why now?*
Watching Guangming Dharma Prince suddenly produce Rampart Soil, feeling the vast power radiating outward, Lu Yang instantly sensed the shift.
*Why reveal Rampart Soil at this moment? To activate the Grounded Buddha Kingdom?*
*Has his intuition spotted something amiss, fearing prolonged delays?*
The thought struck him, and Lu Yang glanced to his side.
Then, the ever-silent Perfected Being Demon-Quelling since entering the Pure Land finally rose slowly and spoke his first words:
“Hear my sword cry.”
Only then did Lu Yang realize the words weren’t for Guangming Dharma Prince or the other monks—they were for him.
That single phrase intensified the unease brewing in Guangming Dharma Prince’s heart.
Something was off!
How could this be?
“Clang clang!”
The next instant, crisp sword cries rang from Perfected Being Demon-Quelling’s body, growing fiercer until they drowned out the resounding bell tolls echoing through the Pure Land!
“Are you about to unleash slaughter?”
Guangming Dharma Prince froze for a moment, then relaxed with a breath— this was within his expectations. No matter how many Demon-Quelling killed, it didn’t matter.
Yet Perfected Being Demon-Quelling shook his head.
“I’m not here to kill today.”
[Non-Killing Sword] unsheathed.
Perfected Being Demon-Quelling gazed calmly at Guangming Dharma Prince and said softly,
“The Pure Land’s release cultivators are of one mind and heart, all puppets of the World Honored One. You are, and so were my old friends. I’ve come to save you all.”
“Save us?”
Guangming Dharma Prince was stunned.
Then he saw a sword light expand from Perfected Being Demon-Quelling as center, swiftly spreading outward. Yet not a single person perished in its path.
“This sword... severs karma, not lives!”
“Crack!”
The crisp sounds rang out endlessly.
They were the sounds of “connections” being severed. Guangming Dharma Prince jerked his head up, staring in horror at the Victorious Will Generating Brilliance Dharani Heaven Worldly Manifestation behind him.
In this moment, the link between him and his dharma image was cut!
Not just him—every arhat, novice, and monk present had some profound connection severed, their faces filling with bewilderment.
In this instant, the release cultivators—who once shared identical expressions, movements, and thoughts in perfect unity—suddenly brimmed with a thousand different emotions: terror, rage, fear, relief. The pure land of Buddhism transformed in a flash into a roiling sea of mortal dust!