Chapter 280: Kill Them to Their Heart's Content!

Outside the Four Seas Gate lies the Overturned Sea.

It is said this place was not originally a sea, but a great island, resembling land, until it became a battlefield for a True Lord of the Outer Seas during the last Great Calamity of a thousand years.

The result was naturally the sky tilting and the earth overturning; this magnificent island-land sank, and the ten thousand cultivators and over a hundred lineages upon it were utterly annihilated, giving rise to the name 【Overturned Sea】. Because it lies near the Four Seas Gate, the residence of True Lords, few eyeless demons dare approach.

Yet now, the scene has changed once more.

This is because the 【Overturned Sea】 now boasts a divine mountain rising from the sea, its Yuan Magnetic Divine Light illuminating the blue sky, causing the Five Elements to become chaotic wherever it passes.

At this moment, just outside the Divine Mountain.

One sees cloud whales cleaving the waves, carrying rolling demonic qi that gathers into a sky-filling dark cloud, slowly advancing to surround the entire Divine Mountain in the center.

Immediately after, the cloud whales open their mouths.

Troops of shrimp soldiers and crab generals, each wielding law-enforcing artifacts, and sea demons form arrays and arrange themselves, spreading out across the sea, making the sea surface as flat as level ground wherever they pass.

Within the ranks of the demon soldiers stands a woman in light armor, outlining a graceful figure, her head held high. From her thousand strands of black hair sprout a pair of tender dragon horns, radiating the brilliance of her innate divine ability, clearly becoming the center of this sky-filling demon army, her golden eyes burning like fire and illuminating the surrounding seas.

It is none other than the Dragon King 【Sui Ling】.

Her cultivation is no better than Sui Ying's, only mid-stage Foundation Establishment, having condensed one innate divine ability, yet she is well aware of this and has long prepared her methods.

Now, gazing at the sky-filling demon soldiers around her, Sui Ling narrows her eyes in satisfaction.

'It was not in vain that I trained diligently in ordinary times; only now have I assembled the soldiers and generals required for the 【Heavenly Demon Sea-Subduing Great Array】. This is the perfect chance to display my prowess!'

Although Sui Ling intends to avenge Sui Ying, she is clear that her own cultivation is inferior to Sui Ying's, so this time she has deployed all her assets: a full four hundred and ninety thousand demon soldiers forming an array, with her at the center. She is confident that unless a Great True Person arrives personally, she can suppress them.

'Pity my prestige is still insufficient.'

'If my eldest brother had personally written the dharma decree, widely summoning the demons of the palace to gather a hundred thousand, even if a Great True Person came, we would still have the strength to fight!'

Beyond this, Sui Ling harbors other schemes in her heart.

This expedition is not merely to avenge Sui Ying; she also intends to make a name for herself, gain the Dragon Lord's favor, and advance further within the Long Gong.

Just then, a demon soldier suddenly reports: 'Your Highness, a group of Buddhist cultivators has arrived outside the array, claiming they wish to enter the mountain.'

Hearing this, Sui Ling is momentarily stunned: 'Buddhist cultivators? What are they here for? Have they come again to convert my Long Gong disciples to the Pure Land to become those so-called Dharma-Protecting Heavenly Dragons?'

With this thought, Sui Ling immediately opens the array gate.

In a short while, twenty-four monks with compassionate faces are seen walking in, the leader possessing a pair of Bai Mei, wearing a gold-and-jeweled kasaya.

'Amitabha!'

Upon seeing Sui Ling, the lead old monk immediately joins his palms, chants a Buddha's name, then smiles lightly: 'This poor monk is Hui Ku; I pay my respects to benefactor Sui Ling.'

'No need for ceremony.' Sui Ling waves her hand, staring straight at the old monk, and discovers he is merely at the peak of mid-stage Foundation Establishment, which immediately calms her considerably.

'He is not a Pure Land Venerable of the Great True Person level; I doubt he can stir up any waves.'

Thinking thus, Sui Ling becomes much more composed and says in a deep voice: 'Venerable one has traveled far; what is your purpose? Could it be also for this Divine Mountain?'

'No.'

Hui Ku shakes his head: 'We have come here in obedience to the Bodhisattva's dharma decree to respectfully invite 【Guangli Heavenly Dragon Luo Han】 to return to his position. This person, benefactor, you must not kill.'

'... What?'

Hearing this, Sui Ling calculates with her fingers, her face immediately turning angry: 'What 【Guangli Heavenly Dragon Luo Han】? It is clearly that True Person of the Holy Sect, Duanmu Yuan Tu, who killed Sui Ying!'

'Do you intend to stop me from avenging my brother?'

'Amitabha.' Hui Ku smiles: 'When will the cycle of vengeance end? Benefactor, you are attached to appearances. Do you also wish to accompany us to the Pure Land to cleanse your soul?'

These words instantly calm Sui Ling, and she hears Hui Ku's implied meaning: this is clearly a demand for her to obediently cooperate, capture Duanmu Yuan Tu, and hand him over to their Pure Land. If she is not sensible, she will likely have to go to the Pure Land herself to become that Dharma-Protecting Heavenly Dragon!

'... Very well.'

Thinking thus, Sui Ling's tone weakens considerably: 'Since the Pure Land wants him, let it be. Later, you Venerable ones may act on your own.'

After all, entering the Pure Land is a fate worse than death; that counts as revenge.

Hui Ku then nods in satisfaction.

Immediately after, the twenty-four monks take their positions at one corner of the array; among them, twenty-one are at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, possessing the status of Dharma-Protecting Vajras.

Besides Hui Ku, there are also two Luo Han at early-stage Foundation Establishment.

At this moment, one Luo Han approaches Hui Ku's side and whispers: 'Senior brother, surely we will not truly have to fight that Duanmu Yuan Tu?'

Lu Yang is now famous throughout the interior lands.

Especially when he publicly surpassed Ye Guyue; at that time, Hui Ku even witnessed it with his own eyes, and the memory remains vivid to this day, knowing full well how formidable this great demon is.

However, even so, facing the Luo Han's unconfident inquiry, Hui Ku remains calm: 'Rest assured. This time, the dharma decree was issued personally by the Bodhisattva; all sides have already negotiated. Do you think Duanmu Yuan Tu is still the same as before, protected by a Great Lord of the Heavens? He is now a plucked phoenix, worse than a chicken!'

'Without the True Lord as his backing, who can he rely on?'

'Just wait for him to walk into our trap; let these demons hold them outside while we reap the benefits!'

After Hui Ku finishes speaking, a look of pride appears on his face, after all, he had cultivated relationships with several Venerables in the Pure Land to secure this excellent opportunity to earn merit.

Meanwhile, outside the 【Overturned Sea】.

Lu Yang and Suo Huan arrive riding their flight lights, but stop far away, gazing at the demon clouds filling the sky and reaching the horizon in the distance; both furrow their brows slightly.

Immediately after, Suo Huan takes out the 【Void Heaven Mirror】.

The mirror faces the distant demon clouds; brilliant light emerges, instantly illuminating the scene within. Besides the demonic qi, that dazzling Buddhist light of the cultivators is also extremely grating to the eyes.

'Indeed, the Four Seas Gate...'

Seeing this, Lu Yang shakes his head, feeling the situation is far worse than anticipated; previously thinking of using his Dharma Body to infiltrate is clearly impossible now.

'Besides that, there are also Buddhist cultivators.' Suo Huan's expression also shifts; then, looking at Lu Yang, he says helplessly: 'I fear they have come for Daoist Friend.'

'Daoist Friend has it hard indeed.'

Hearing this, Lu Yang stands with hands clasped, also smiling bitterly:

'This broken place... damn it, one simply cannot hide here! Why force me?'

For some reason, he suddenly recalls the earliest few lifetimes, the experience of first confronting the Mender of Heaven Peak Master, drawing his sword to sever the heavens, only to be pressed to death by a single finger.

'Is Heaven's will truly impossible to defy?'

"But how did Master Chongguang endure it back then?"

In an instant, the last conversation he once had with Master Chongguang at the Cave Yang Blessed Land rushed to his mind; at the time, he felt little, but now the sentiment ran deep:

"A person must rely on themselves!"

Lu Yang's thoughts raced; first he closed his eyes, then opened them again, a fierce, chilling killing intent suddenly appearing in his gaze as he looked far toward the Shenshan of Yuan Ci.

"Yes, I can only rely on myself! I am now a discarded pawn; only by using my own strength to cut through all obstacles, achieving the peak of the mid-stage Foundation Establishment, then utilizing the divine wonders of the 'Holding the Dharma' within the Tribulation Wave to seize the third innate divine ability early, and assuming the false position of a True Person, can I hope to break the current predicament and regain the True Lord's favor."

To this day, whether it is him or Suo Huan, there is no retreat left.

The only thing left to do is move forward.

"So be it."

With this thought, Lu Yang looked again at the towering demonic qi and dazzling Buddhist light in the distance, baring his teeth in a cold sneer: "Perfect; I shall kill them all without distinguishing black from white, and do so with gusto!"

(End of this chapter)