Chapter 24: The Merit Lotus Blooms, the Merit Lotus Pond Dharma Realm is Formed

He stealthily returned to within the borders of Qing Lei Jun.

Chen Daoxuan glanced toward the direction of Iron Sword Sect.

It might have been a sudden whim, or it might have been because he had set foot upon the Merit Path and brushed against Cause and Effect.

After he had slain that aging Nascent Soul cultivator, he had felt that this was not the end; a vague premonition told him that Iron Sword Sect would bring him some trouble.

It was precisely because of this premonition that he had infiltrated Iron Sword County, heading to Iron Sword Sect, preparing to secretly slay that other Nascent Soul cultivator.

But he was still a step too late.

As for forcibly breaking the grand formation and annihilating Iron Sword Sect, not to mention whether it could be done, even if it could, Chen Daoxuan would not do it.

Otherwise, the Merit backlash from merely annihilating Iron Sword Sect alone would be enough to give him a serious headache.

Add to that the retaliation from the great sect that was the source of Iron Sword Sect's lineage.

Once entangled in Cause and Effect, it could not be hidden no matter how hard he tried.

The loss would far outweigh the gain.

……

However, now that he had left Iron Sword County and returned to Qing Lei Jun, Chen Daoxuan sensed that the premonition in his heart was growing clearer and clearer.

"If I don't bother concealing myself, just teleport straight over and annihilate Iron Sword Sect, would that be better?"

With a thought, Chen Daoxuan dispelled this stray notion.

"Heh, this world of cultivating Merit, fortune, and Cause and Effect is truly troublesome—killing people and wiping out sects requires taking this and that into consideration."

……

After returning to Green Thunder Sect.

Chen Daoxuan went directly to the Merit Bamboo Forest Dharma Realm within Green Thunder Sect.

Merit Qi permeated the air.

Merit Thunder Bamboos—alternating between solid and ethereal, varying in shades of green and yellow, of differing heights, permeated with Merit Qi and flashing with thunder-light—were spread throughout the Dharma Realm.

Each and every one of these Merit Thunder Bamboos represented a disciple of Green Thunder Sect.

The majority of the Merit Thunder Bamboos were a mix of green and yellow, with withered yellow as the dominant color, and the Merit Qi they exuded was relatively sparse.

Only a few of the Merit Thunder Bamboos appeared lush and verdant, with green occupying most of their form.

As for those entirely verdant Merit Thunder Bamboos, there were only a scant three, completely enveloped by golden Merit Qi.

Besides these, there were over a hundred Merit Thunder Bamboos that possessed not a trace of green, not a trace of Merit Qi, entirely withered and yellow throughout, and even seemed on the verge of burning, threatening to spread to the entire Merit Dharma Realm.

And these over a hundred entirely withered and yellow Merit Thunder Bamboos represented cultivators of Green Thunder Sect who had not only failed to bring any Merit Qi to the sect, but had instead brought boundless Karmic Force.

One could say they were the complete opposite of Merit.

According to the records of the Green Thunder Scripture, these were called Karma Thunder Bamboos.

Seeing this, Chen Daoxuan shook his head slightly.

The reason this Merit Dharma Realm had fallen into such a state was not only because Green Thunder Sect had declined, causing those Merit Thunder Bamboos to be in poor condition.

It was more importantly because no cultivator who had set foot upon the Merit Path had come to take charge and tend to it.

If someone were managing the Merit Dharma Realm, at the very least those entirely withered and yellow Karma Thunder Bamboos that brought not a trace of Merit Qi but only Karmic Force would not have been left standing.

With a thought, the Merit Lotus Seed three inches above Chen Daoxuan's head resonated and merged with the bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm.

Merit Qi gathered and condensed into Merit Blades, which chopped down all those over a hundred withered and yellow Karma Thunder Bamboos.

Then Merit Qi gathered once more, condensing into Merit Fire, intending to burn all those over a hundred withered and yellow Karma Thunder Bamboos to ashes.

In that instant, Chen Daoxuan sensed the over a hundred Green Thunder Sect cultivators represented by those over a hundred withered and yellow Karma Thunder Bamboos.

Regarding this, Chen Daoxuan recorded their appearances, forms, and Auras, condensing them into an Inheritance Seal.

Following his will, the condensed Inheritance Seal transformed into a streak of green light, flew out of the Merit Dharma Realm, and landed before Qian Qianyun.

Chen Daoxuan's voice rang out in her ear.

"Zhangsun Qianyun, these over a hundred people have condensed Karma Thunder Bamboos within the Merit Dharma Realm. Go and deal with them."

"Yes, Green Ancestor!"

……

A little quarter of an hour later.

Once the over a hundred Karma Thunder Bamboos were all burned away, the Merit Qi permeating the entire Merit Dharma Realm directly decreased by roughly one-tenth.

Seeing this, Chen Daoxuan felt a twinge of heartache.

These were all his cultivation resources; although for him they were very little, merely mosquito meat, still, the more the better.

However, the Karma Thunder Bamboos had to be dealt with. If not handled in this manner, the Karmic Force they contained would not be dispelled and would instead merge into the Merit Dharma Realm, causing even greater harm.

……

Having dealt with the matter of those over a hundred Karma Thunder Bamboos along the way, Chen Daoxuan carefully examined this bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm once more.

But he did not see a single Merit Bamboo Fruit.

Chen Daoxuan understood that with the Merit Dharma Realm in decline, even if Merit Bamboo Fruits were produced, they would naturally transform into what was needed to restore the Merit Dharma Realm.

He arrived at the center of the Merit Dharma Realm.

He sat down cross-legged.

With a thought, Chen Daoxuan took control of his Merit Lotus Seed and continued to resonate and merge with this bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm.

Half an hour later.

The two sides seemed to have completely merged into one.

Seeing this, Chen Daoxuan activated the Merit Path's method for cultivating Merit Objects.

In an instant, a wisp of Merit emerged from that golden Merit Cloud with its missing corner, merging into the Merit Lotus Seed.

Then, within the short span of a quarter of an hour, this wisp of Merit was completely absorbed by the golden Merit Lotus Seed.

Compared to when it had just taken shape yesterday, it was over a hundred times faster.

This was due to its resonance and merging with the bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm, equivalent to the "digestion" capacity of the entire bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm being bestowed upon the Merit Lotus Seed.

……

It was merely digesting a wisp of merit.

The Merit Lotus Seed, as well as the illusory Merit Lotus Pond, both underwent subtle changes in appearance.

The golden Merit Lotus Seed showed signs of transforming into a bamboo shape, while the illusory Merit Lotus Pond seemed to be transforming into a bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm.

Chen Daoxuan paid no heed to these subtle changes.

Once the Merit Lotus bloomed and the Merit Lotus Pond Dharma Realm was formed, these influences would naturally vanish.

He continued to merge a wisp of merit into the Merit Lotus Seed.

……

In Chen Daoxuan's cultivation like this, eighty-nine quarter-hours passed in a flash.

As the eighty-ninth wisp of merit was completely digested.

Together with the wisp of merit digested yesterday, a total of ninety wisps of merit had been digested, and the Merit Lotus Seed, now the size of a fist, suddenly bloomed.

Amidst faint golden merit light, a Merit Golden Lotus the size of a head appeared, with one petal-tier and three petals in bloom.

It also caused the originally illusory Merit Lotus Pond to instantly become substantial.

And completely eliminated the influence of the bamboo forest Merit Dharma Realm.

……

The Merit Lotus Pond Dharma Realm was complete.

The entire Merit Lotus Pond Dharma Realm was ten zhang in radius.

That one-tier, three-petal Merit Golden Lotus stood quietly at the bottom of the pond.

Sensing the entirely withered Merit Lotus Pond Dharma Realm, Chen Daoxuan's mind stirred, and the Human Path Merit Cloud, missing one-thirtieth of its volume, fell into the lotus pond.

"Splash splash!"

Like a torrential downpour.

The remaining two thousand nine hundred wisps of merit, each wisp transforming into a myriad count, became one hundred twenty-nine thousand six hundred drops of Merit Water.

In an instant, they filled a small portion of the ten-zhang withered Merit Lotus Dharma Realm.

The one-tier, three-petal Merit Golden Lotus spread its petals, naturally absorbing the Merit Water to grow and nurture.