Chapter 1022: Originally Illusory, How Can One Talk of Transcendence?

Facing the sudden uninvited guest Kong Ding, Haotian Immortal Emperor's expression tightened slightly. He slowly brought the sky-rending axe before him and said coldly:

"Evil monk of the Buddhist sect, you actually dare to interfere with My great task. You truly deserve ten thousand deaths!"

As He spoke, killing intent erupted from His eyes, and a terrifying Aura of destruction filled the heavens and earth. The sky-rending axe, like a streak of light, sliced through the Void Realm, crossing layers of time and space to slash toward Kong Ding.

Facing Haotian Immortal Emperor's terrifying strike, Kong Ding's expression remained as calm as ever, and he spoke indifferently:

"Amitabha. All conditioned phenomena are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow; like dew or a flash of lightning. All dharmas are empty, and all living beings lack self-nature. From whence does the distinction between righteous and evil arise?"

As he spoke, Buddhist light shone brilliantly around him, and a huge phantom of a Buddha emerged. Thirty-six layers of Buddhist Fortune Halos were stacked upon each other, emitting a sense of upright solemnity and all-encompassing compassion.

"Amitabha."

Accompanied by a distant Buddhist chant, that Buddha formed the Acala Mudra. Infinite Buddhist light erupted from between its palms, actively meeting the sky-rending axe slashed by Haotian Immortal Emperor.

On the other side, Wu Miaozhen also recovered from her previous shock. At this moment, her Divine Power had recovered slightly, and she naturally would not let an ally who clearly came to help face Haotian Immortal Emperor's attack alone.

"Thank you, Great Master Kong Ding, for your righteous intervention. This Palace will lend you a hand!"

With a sharp cry, she held her divine sword, and the Power Of Faith within the Divine Domain converged once more. The authority of the deity and the Buddhist light complemented each other, erupting with terrifying power.

Rumble!!!

Powerful energy fluctuations erupted, causing the entire Void Realm to tremble. Even though most of these two opposing forces canceled each other out, they still produced an earth-shattering shockwave storm.

When the aftermath subsided, the opposing sides were actually evenly matched.

"What an evil monk!"

Haotian Immortal Emperor's face was grim. He hadn't expected this young bald man who appeared out of nowhere to be powerful to such a degree, not even slightly inferior to Wu Miaozhen under the blessing of the Divine Domain.

In a one-on-one fight, Haotian Immortal Emperor naturally had the confidence to suppress Kong Ding and Wu Miaozhen one by one. But once these two enemies joined forces, they had enough qualifications to stand as equals against Him. He feared the situation would fall into a long, drawn-out struggle…

In that case, it would completely deviate from His original intention of taking down the Yuan Realm in a short time and then wiping out the Human Race.

Could it be… that He really had to use that move?

For a moment, Haotian Immortal Emperor was somewhat hesitant, seemingly weighing some pros and cons.

Meanwhile, the huge commotion here immediately attracted the attention of the main battlefield. The Immortal Realm camp, which was confronting the Yuan Realm side, was also constantly observing the battle between Western Mother Divine Venerable and Haotian Immortal Emperor.

Everyone knew that the battle between these two Supreme figures was the key factor in determining the course of the war.

Of course, concern was one thing, but no one had the courage to truly approach that battlefield, which could be called a forbidden zone.

Whether it was Haotian Immortal Emperor, who had reached the Creation Realm, or Western Mother Divine Venerable, who was fighting on her home turf, the strength they displayed far exceeded that of ordinary Daluo Realm experts.

Rashly interfering in a battle of this level would be a suicidal act from any perspective. Not only would it fail to affect the battle, but one would also be crushed into nothingness by the aftermath of the struggle.

Therefore, after the main battlefield temporarily calmed down, both camps focused their attention on watching the battle, waiting for the highest combat powers of both sides to decide the winner.

However, when Kong Ding appeared, not only were the people of the Yuan Realm shocked, but the Immortal Realm army opposite them also showed looks of horror, subconsciously turning their gazes toward the Buddhist sect…

What was the situation?

The new Immortal Emperor was fighting to the death with the enemy and was on the verge of victory, when a bald man with unfathomable strength suddenly appeared and forcefully turned the situation around.

Soon, many Immortals of the Immortal Court side recognized the identity of this uninvited guest and immediately began to discuss fervently:

"I remember now! This monk is the traitor who incited the internal strife in Lingshan, Kong Ding!"

"To be able to block a strike from Your Majesty, isn't this monk a bit too strong?"

"The Buddhist sect calls this guy the 'enemy of the buddha' and even issued a heavy reward. Now that the main culprit has appeared publicly, it's time to come out and clean house…"

Brief chaos also occurred in the Buddhist camp. The many Arhats and Bodhisattvas who had been sent to assist the Immortal Court looked at Kong Ding with quite complex gazes—some were excited and shocked, some were inexplicably conflicted, and some were full of hostility…

Just then, a melodious and clear Buddhist chant sounded from the depths of the camp:

"Amitabha!"

Hearing this voice, the noisy atmosphere surrounding the Buddhist camp immediately subsided. Each of them composed their expressions and bowed most respectfully toward that tent:

"We welcome the Buddha Lord, the World-Honored One."

Amidst the chanting, a Buddha wearing a gold-threaded cassock, with a solemn and dignified appearance and a square face with large ears, stepped through the air. He was none other than the current Buddha Lord of Lingshan.

At this moment, this World-Honored One of the Buddhist sect looked expressionlessly at Kong Ding, who was opposing Haotian Immortal Emperor, and said indifferently:

"This scoundrel Kong Ding has rebelled against the teachings and committed grave sins. Now he has even colluded with the Yuan Realm rebels, attempting to subvert the Buddhist Orthodoxy. He is truly the number one traitor of our Buddhist sect."

"Now that he has revealed himself, there is no reason for this Venerable One to turn a blind eye. Please follow this Venerable One to suppress the enemy of the buddha and rectify the conduct of our Buddhist sect."

"We respectfully obey the Buddha Lord's decree."

Hearing this, the monks answered in unison and, led by the Buddha Lord, swarmed toward Kong Ding in a grand manner.

On the other side, the many Ghostly Creatures of the Northern Nether Ghost Prison, as well as a group of Yao Immortals from the Yao Kingdom of the Immortal Realm, also boldly joined the fray under the leadership of the Ghost Emperor and the four Yao Race Ancestral Saints. Clearly, they intended to use their numerical advantage to grind down the two enemies standing before Haotian Immortal Emperor.

Seeing this scene, the Immortal Court side also began to grow restless. Even those 'auxiliary forces' had run off to assist their own Immortal Emperor; if they, the direct descendants, remained indifferent, it would be far too unseemly.

For a time, many loyal subordinates of Haotian Immortal Emperor left the camp one after another and rejoined the battle, without even asking for instructions.

Realizing that the situation had completely spiraled out of control, Ji Fan and Duanmu Xi exchanged a glance and immediately gave up their plan to continue stopping them. Instead, they barely managed to keep a portion of the Immortal Court's combat power behind on the pretext of preventing a surprise attack. This was already the limit of what they could do.

After all, it was clearly the moment of the final decisive battle. If they forcibly ordered a ceasefire, they would likely be immediately besieged by Haotian Immortal Emperor's confidants.

The situation was now very clear: the Immortal Realm side intended to capture the leader to catch the bandits, making Wu Miaozhen and Kong Ding their primary targets.

Once these two strongest combatants were defeated under the siege, the Yuan Realm would be completely finished…

Seeing herself surrounded, Wu Miaozhen clearly realized this as well. She was just about to mobilize all the divine officials under her command to fight to the death with the enemy using the World-Protecting Array when she saw Kong Ding, not far away, suddenly smile slightly. He looked at the surrounding Buddhist monks with a gaze almost full of pity and said:

"I was once like all of you, day and night reciting those vast Buddhist classics in the temple, trying to comprehend the true meaning of transcendence and obtain the legendary ultimate Nirvana."

"Unfortunately, that method only delivers oneself and not others; it ultimately falls into the Hinayana… It wasn't until I comprehended the Mahayana Buddhism bestowed by the Chief Helmsman that I finally understood that I had taken the wrong path before."

"The so-called sea of suffering in the Mortal World is but a false thing created by the people of the world. Since it is originally illusory, how can one talk of transcendence?"

Kong Ding's voice was neither fast nor slow, yet it seemed to possess a certain magic. His entire body was bathed in vast Buddhist light, which not only blocked all attacks from Haotian Immortal Emperor but also caused those aggressive Buddhist cultivators to involuntarily stop their steps, their faces showing hints of doubt and shock.

Originally illusory, how can one talk of transcendence…

Seeing this scene, the Buddha Lord had a faint, ominous premonition. He immediately snorted coldly and scolded:

"enemy of the buddha, cease your deluding words! This Venerable One shall send you to Futu Hell to reflect properly!"

As he spoke, this World-Honored One of Lingshan joined Haotian Immortal Emperor in the slaughter of Kong Ding.

Facing two incomparably powerful enemies, Kong Ding shook his head slightly, his expression carrying a touch of the vicissitudes of one who has seen through the ways of the world:

"Today, This Humble Monk shall let you all witness what true Mahayana Buddhism is…"