Chapter 439: Amitabha Buddha and Mara

A thick deathly aura intertwined with the distorting power of the void, winding above the shattered starry sky into a rather abstract scene.

Mu Yi also understood why, in a starry war involving several factions, they would use these newly ascended immortals as vanguards.

Because Li Jing is there as the stabilizing divine needle, he can serve as the Heavenly Court's Marshal of the Three Armies, and his ability is truly beyond words.

Perhaps his personal strength isn't that great, but when leading the Heavenly Court Army, Li Jing is overwhelmingly strong.

Several gods like great angels fled in disarray under Li Jing's blade, and several factions were trampled flat by the Heavenly Court Army.

Wherever they passed, only pure destruction remained; all enemies fled at the sight, their strength reaching an incomprehensible level.

Li Jing even bestowed the Great Army Cloud upon these vanguards, letting them fight stronger deities to gain experience.

This time, they were said to be acting as vanguards.

Actually, it was to let them preliminarily feel the intensity of Jiuzhou on the external battlefield, and also let them experience true war.

Even though they were immortal bodies, they still suffered heavy injuries under the endless enemy onslaught.

Even Mu Yi was worn out from successive deity self-detonations, left battered and weary, with his divine realm half-ruined.

Wherever the Heavenly Court Army passed, no force could resist.

Some slower deities were directly blasted by the army, unable to even flee.

After a single sweep, the factions across the starry sky were basically uprooted.

And the Heavenly Court Army also halted its advance.

They began rebuilding the ritual anew, preparing to summon the Emperor to conclude.

The entire starry sky had been left shattered by the great melee; rather than let this world's beings live and die on their own, it would be better to drag them into Jiuzhou, have the Emperor initiate the creation of heaven and earth, reenact the world, and let these beings escape into reincarnation.

This would be far better than letting the remaining beings be sacrificed to evil gods, their souls scattered.

Although Jiuzhou's conduct is not exactly benevolent, it never claims benevolence for itself; its style is simply overbearing.

"Lord Mu, in this campaign you have earned much merit; this old man and Heavenly King Li will surely petition for your rewards!" Venus Star God said with a smiling gaze to Mu Yi.

"Thank you, Venus Star God!"

Mu Yi naturally understood that he had gained considerable merit by following the army, feeling deep gratitude toward Venus Star God for inviting him—this is what a benefactor is!

Looking at Mu Yi, Venus Star God showed a troubled expression.

"By rights, Lord Mu, your affair is not something I should meddle in……

"Please enlighten me, Venus Star God!" Mu Yi said, puzzled but still asking honestly.

"I have heard that Lord Mu will participate in Guan Sheng Dijun's tribulation?"

Venus Star God finally asked, for he truly did not wish to see Mu Yi, an immortal with a bright future, drawn into that bottomless vortex.

"Yes, Guan Sheng Dijun has shown me great kindness; I must surely repay him."

"Ah, Lord Mu is loyal and righteous; this is essentially a good thing……

Venus Star God shook his head; upon hearing Mu Yi say that, he knew he could not persuade him.

But now that the matter was out in the open, Venus Star God simply offered Mu Yi some advice.

Regarding Guan Sheng Dijun's affair, Venus Star God naturally knew how deep the waters ran—not only did a great world involve its orthodoxy and various native immortals, but more importantly, it also involved other Emperors.

But deep as the waters may be, Venus Star God didn't mind; he was the left and right hand of the Great Heavenly Venerable, so even if someone had objections, they could do nothing to him.

At his level, aside from breaking through to the Emperor realm, there was nothing else worth worrying about.

At His level, He had basically lost the vast majority of material desires.

So He was willing to advise Mu Yi simply because He found Mu Yi pleasing to the eye, with no other reason.

"Lord Mu, you are entangled with too much karma; merely helping Guan Sheng Dijun, on the surface no one would target you for it, but……

Looking at Mu Yi, Venus Star God shook his head.

The thick mist that had previously blanketed the battlefield had already explained many things.

"You bear the Chi You inheritance and carry great karma; sooner or later, someone may seize the opportunity to target you!"

"Guan Sheng Dijun's ascension to Emperor is itself defying heaven; the Buddhist Sect will not stand by while he severs ties with them, Lord Mu, since you cannot extricate yourself, you must be utterly cautious!"

"Thank you, Venus Star God!" Mu Yi again sincerely thanked this elder.

The other party had already spoken quite clearly, and he naturally understood.

The Ancient Myriad Races and the Buddhist Sect Spirit Mountain—these two are undoubtedly obstacles that cannot be avoided during one's tribulation; having been drawn into this vortex, he must face these two colossal entities.

This made Mu Yi feel a bit heavy-hearted.

At this moment, the starry sky suddenly fell silent, the whole world lowly trembling, and involuntarily, everyone's gaze turned toward the far end of the heavens.

"The Emperor has come; follow me to greet him—I don't know which Emperor it is!" Venus Star God suddenly lifted his head to look into the void.

The next instant, light burst forth, exploding the starry sky and blasting a huge hole straight through the world's barrier!

A passage straight to the void, chaos raging, the wind of nothingness blowing, erasing everything around; the black starry sky, in just a moment, shifted toward a deep, murky hue.

Then a figure emerged from the passage, Venus Star God's smile froze, and then he fell to Li Jing's side.

Mu Yi's face also showed a strange expression; he hadn't expected the arrival to be this person.

Above the starry sky, layers of light surged; suddenly, countless voices chanted sutras in unison, the light condensed into golden lotuses that blossomed and fell, instantly turning the war‑scarred starry sky into a solemn pure land.

Countless Buddhas and arhats appeared and faded within the light, continually shifting between compassionate and solemn forms.

And at the horizon, someone barefoot stepped upon a golden lotus, walking slowly forward, brows lowered, eyes originally filled with boundless compassion.

With his movements, the world trembled; in an instant he stood before the crowd, slowly raising his eyes to survey everyone.

Whether it was an illusion or not, Mu Yi noticed the Buddha's gaze linger on him for a moment before drifting away.

"Greetings to Amitabha Buddha!" Heavenly King Li and Venus Star God, together with the others, bowed to the newcomer.

The newcomer was none other than Amitabha Buddha of the Western Pure Land, one of the Buddhas of the Three Ages, who oversees the Western Pure Land.

"Sent by the Great Heavenly Venerable, I have come specially to lend the Heavenly Court Army a hand."

"You have all done well; afterwards it will be…… "

The Infinite Light Buddha's words were not yet finished when he suddenly raised his palm and pressed down toward the void.

Under that palm, a golden Buddha palm covered the ten-thousand-li starry sky; the targeted spot instantly collapsed, the space within the void completely collapsed, revealing a huge figure.

Its appearance was exactly the same as the Infinite Light Buddha's, but the aura it emitted was incredibly evil, utterly different from the faintly compassionate aura of the Infinite Light Buddha.

The black lotus beneath it welled up endless light, weaving an illusory world; the illusory world rapidly changed, evolving into various manifestations of the Heavenly Path, Human Path, Hell Path, Hungry Ghost Path, Asura Path, and Animal Realm.

Mara?!

So that's how it is!

The Infinite Light Buddha saw the opponent, blinked slightly, then reacted.

No wonder the Great Heavenly Venerable didn't send other Emperor Lords but specifically called his name—it turns out Mara is here.

In dealing with Mara, aside from the Four Sovereigns and other Emperor Lords, only their Buddhist Sect could handle it better.

After all, Mara's greatest difficulty is not his strength, but the lingering inner demon that haunts one after fighting him; without great willpower, one cannot endure it.

"Demon Buddha Mara, no wonder it's someone from the Buddhist Sect!" Venus Star also realized at that moment.

"Everyone, please leave; this place will soon become chaos. I hope you all depart quickly!" the Infinite Light Buddha murmured.

The Heavenly Court army was guided by Jiuzhou's light and then fled toward Jiuzhou.

"Stay!" Mara's bland voice actually caused Mu Yi to see endless illusions flickering before his eyes.

The next moment, time-space stopped here, and the huge escape light also solidified at this instant.

"Retreat!" Li Jing shouted angrily.

In the frozen light, the Great Army Cloud solidified, and the solidified space suddenly split open countless black cracks.

Transcending life and death, also transcending space and time, it is a realm completely unknowable and intangible.

Facing such a terrifying opponent, the previously mighty divine army now had only just enough strength to preserve itself.

"Infinite Light Buddha!"

A Buddha chant rang out, space collapsed inward, time turned into turbulent flow.

With the collapsed black hole as its core, space shattered layer by layer.

Taking the solidified moment as a guide, the river of time used it as a fulcrum, and the starry sky began to extinguish.

Mu Yi watched in astonishment as everything in the starry sky underwent change.

In an instant, all abnormalities disappeared.

Buddha light covered the army above, then enabling them to continue escaping.

At the final moment of departure, all Mu Yi could see was the whole world collapsing, merging into boundless chaos.

Only two figures remained unmoving amidst the myriad phenomena.

Knowing they had returned to the expeditionary army's departure point, Mu Yi finally came to his senses.

"Venus Star, that..."

"That is a battle at the Emperor Lord level; we can no longer participate!" Venus Star also furrowed his brows.

He hadn't expected that this expedition would be so perilous.

Who would have thought that such a powerful being as Demon Buddha Mara lurked in the starry sky.

Fortunately, the army still had some resistance after gathering strength; otherwise they would all have become dust from the clash of two Emperor Lord–level powerhouses.

Now thinking about it, no wonder that world became so chaotic; it must have been infected by Demon Buddha Mara's demonic aura.

"Since the Great Heavenly Venerable entrusted the Infinite Light Buddha, he must have already decided, but this is of great importance; I will go see the Great Heavenly Venerable and present this matter!"

Venus Star said, then mounted auspicious clouds and rushed toward the Hall of Soaring Clouds.

Mu Yi let out a breath; Jiuzhou is Jiuzhou—any ordinary matter, when developed to the end, becomes thrilling.

But this trip, their purpose should also be considered achieved?

Mu Yi didn't know, but his gains from this trip were not few; on the chaotic battlefield, besides those self-detonated deities, he scooped up the souls of the other suppressed deities, earning a bountiful harvest.

Even if he repaired the divine kingdom, there should still be a large portion left for cultivation.

Moreover, the bodies of those deities contain immense power, making them the most suitable material for constructing a divine kingdom.

Just after Mu Yi, following Li Jing's instructions, disbanded and left to return to the main world.

The comprehensive network's notification sounded.

"Calculating battle results..."

"Your battle's base evaluation is: Legend"

"Killing enemy camp deities increases evaluation."

"Killing enemy camp deities increases evaluation."

"Assisting Venus Star in killing enemy camp true gods greatly increases evaluation."

"Combining the above evaluations, your evaluation for this battle is: Holy (+4), currently calculating evaluation..."

"Based on your outstanding performance in the battle, you will receive the following benefits:"

"1、Universal Experience Reward"

"(Based on your kill count, each Legend creature kill will give you at least 10000 points of Universal Experience Reward, and as you kill stronger opponents, you can obtain more Universal Experience Reward from it.)"

"2、Jiuzhou Faction Reputation"

"(Based on your battle performance, the reputation of all related factions in this battle has slightly increased; the Heavenly Court faction reputation has slightly increased.)"

"3、Spacetime Fragment Gift:"

"This spacetime fragment is not a completely virtual world; it is a spacetime fragment born under the influence of a special existence."

"Therefore, you may choose one deity from the current related factions (at least friendly or above) to give you feedback."

"Current targets: Venus Star, Pagoda-bearing Heavenly King"

PS: Please note, this feedback has a certain connection to the will selection of that deity.

4、War Campaign Chest (Sacred)

(Based on player campaign evaluation settlement, targeted wishes can be made; the specific value will be estimated by the comprehensive network after opening the chest.)

It seems that because Mu Yi did not go to claim the Heavenly Court's reward last time, the Heavenly Court also modified the reward distribution, beginning to give direct distribution to the comprehensive network, which turned out to be convenient for many.

However, unexpectedly for Mu Yi, this time the awarded campaign chest is actually a chest that allows targeted wishes, meaning he can make wishes according to his needs.

Although it differs somewhat from what he originally expected, in this plane he has already reaped enough.

He casually selected the target of the spacetime gift as Taibai Jinxing; moments later, an ancient-looking long sword appeared in Mu Yi's hand.

"This..."

Mu Yi widened his eyes, feeling the terrifying power within.

"It contains a strike with thirty percent of my power, bestowed upon Mu Tianjun as a defensive object!" Taibai Jinxing's words traveled along the sword into Mu Yi's ears.

Mu Yi, lost in thought, put the sword away; although it only has thirty percent power, a single glance can blast to death some weak deities, needless to say.

Recalling Taibai Jinxing and what he had said, Mu Yi thought of many things, but he said nothing.

Many things are merely understandable intuitively, not expressible in words.