Chapter 536: Exchange Student

"All you worthy ones, the sea of suffering is boundless; turn back now and reach the shore."

The nine-ringed staff swayed with each step; the monk's eyes glowed with compassion, and the brocade kasaya on his body shimmered with holy Buddhist light, dispelling the sinister demonic aura.

Su Lin held a Buddhist gesture, gazing at the myriad extraordinary beings before him—from Western werewolves, vampires, and witches to Eastern demons, ghosts, evil spirits, and zombies—this was practically a horror film set built on-site.

"I don't think any of you are good people. Why not sit down and listen to this monk preach some sutras?" Su Lin hesitated slightly, then looked earnestly at the others on the arena: "It might reduce your karmic debt—maybe next life you'll be reborn into a family that works four days a week and doesn't wake up at dawn."

"My girlfriend said a humanoid divine fruit from the Eastern Divine Realm arrived at Qiongqi Tower—eat it and gain immense magical power. It must be you." A tree spirit with a human face transformed into a golden-haired middle-aged man, emitting low chuckles.

From his perception, the opponent radiated abundant divine energy—he seemed to be a demigod?

"How come there's interdimensional plant romance?" Su Lin rubbed his cleanly shaven head, curious: "What's your girlfriend's background?"

The tree spirit licked his lips, then wrapped an arm around an old woman clad in dark red robes, her head adorned with a silver comb-shaped hairpin, hunched and frail with age.

The old woman blushed, lightly punching the tree spirit's chest: "Monk, come with us to Lanruo Temple later—you'll find out."

The old woman's mouth emitted a man's voice, and her gaze toward Su Lin flickered with greed; upon closer look, strange glimmers danced within her eyes.

"Huh?!" The tree spirit growled: "Don't I suffice? Now you want to add this monk too?"

Like dawn piercing the vast gloom, the nine-ringed staff struck with a tidal wave—piercing both their skulls at once.

A kick shattered the sound barrier; the shockwave swept the remnants of the tree spirit and the old tree demon aside like wind through clouds, leaving only two charred, writhing tree trunks, their roots twisting as they fled.

"Amitabha Buddha."

Su Lin pulled out a talisman, burned it into water, and dripped a few drops into his eyes: "You dare make this monk witness such revolting sights? You've grown tired of living."

Trees shouldn't—couldn't possibly—have such twisted tastes.

Don't let me encounter you two in any other world.

Su Lin recited a calming mantra to steady himself, then smiled at a woman in pink robes, exquisitely beautiful yet eerily alluring: "Dear worthy ones, please don't be alarmed—what just happened was an unexpected incident."

"I am Wan Wan. I've long heard of Master Tang Xuanzang's name, but today's meeting differs from the tales." Wan Wan smiled seductively, her gaze fixed on Su Lin's nine-ringed staff: "How, Master, will you guide us, the demonic path?"

"Naturally, by reason. I believe you, lady, would make an excellent bodhisattva at my Great Lei Yinsi."

Hearing Su Lin's words, Wan Wan's white robes fluttered in the wind, her bare jade feet glided forward, her long black hair shimmering as she pressed close beside him.

She let out a bell-like giggle, her breath carrying a faint, sweet fragrance.

Wan Wan extended a hand as white as Bai Yu to trace Su Lin's chin: "Master, you're quite amusing—not at all as stiff as the tales of the Journey to the West. Hss—Master, you're hurting me."

She saw Su Lin gripping her wrist, yet calmly revealed a mocking smile.

Slowly, the smile vanished from Wan Wan's face, for the scene around her changed.

Snow drifted endlessly; beside Yue Ma Bridge, desolation dyed the entire sky gray.

The tall, elegant, handsome man lifted his chin and said: "Didn't you say you loved only me? Then what of that monk?"

"Zi Ling?!" Wan Wan froze.

She watched him release her without hesitation, turn, and embrace a woman standing by the bridge for a long time—ethereal, noble, bearing a long sword, clad in pale green robes.

"I'd rather relive our endless entanglement a thousand times than see you love another." Xu Zi Ling and Shi Feixuan mounted the same steed, leaning against each other, flicking the reins.

"Live well, and I'll live well—in this chaotic, desire-ridden Wu Lin, may we each find peace."

"No!"

Suddenly, the sky shattered. When Wan Wan came to her senses, a sutra lay in her hands, and forgotten memories returned in fragments—along with the bitterness and regret.

Wan Wan looked up, surveying the surroundings; her gaze lingered on the monk's retreating back, now tinged with helplessness.

She had expected the Heavenly Demon Art to fail—but never imagined she'd be thrown into the Illusory Realm, forced to live a life so vividly real that even her self-identity was absorbed into it.

She looked at the sutra in her hand and saw three characters written upon it.

"The Women's Virtue Sutra?"

Su Lin chanted mantras—Great Vajra Dragon, Great Luo Dharma, World-Honored One, Earth Store, Prajna, all Buddhas, Prajna, Ba Ma Kong—unleashing Buddhist techniques in rapid succession, slaughtering without mercy, saving all beings.

Witchcraft, poison arts, curse spells, ghost techniques, dark arts, blood magic, ancient god's murmurs—all struck Su Lin and failed to pierce his defenses; instead, he retaliated with a flawless combo.

After all, this was a Demon Path Exchange Competition—suddenly, a monk preaching peace and harmony stomped right on the Demon Path's dignity.

'Tang Sanzang' was definitely a top-priority target.

"What is called the demonic path is merely a contemptuous label forcibly placed upon others by outsiders." A black-clad man with an unusually shaped face—wide and elongated—stepped forward fearlessly, declaring proudly:

"What is the righteous path? What is the demonic path? What is Buddha? What is demon?"

"The gods and Buddhas sit aloft, hypocritical to the core. Master Sanzang, you don't seem ignorant of worldly affairs or reason—why then judge us demonic merely by appearance and cultivation path?"

"If cultivation path defines it, then you, Sanzang, stir the six desires, disrupt others' minds and bodies, and slaughter with such ferocity—are you not demonic?"

A string of prayer beads flew out, shattering the surging demons and monsters. Those registered as contestants in Tiancheng were safe from death—but the undead, zombies, bloodline creatures summoned or refined vanished into ash, leaving not a single trace.

"Pardon, the heavenly vessel in human form."

"Sever, the six realms and four forms of life."

"Heart, hold killing without regret."

"Buddha, bear the sin and walk on."

Several Buddhist seals erupted; Su Lin, who had been slaughtering like a grass-cutter in a video game, suddenly turned his full attention to the black-robed man radiating both demonic and Buddhist light.

Buddha's Palm, First Form: Sole Sovereign of All

Su Lin's Buddhist light blazed, dispelling darkness, unleashing a strike brimming with countless cosmic truths; the black-robed man, undaunted, countered with a vast, radiant Buddhist seal.

Their seals collided—clearing the entire battlefield of all lesser foes; the reinforced Cave Heaven World trembled violently, showing signs of heaven cracking and earth splitting.

"Amitabha. You don't understand—what you just saw was the demonic seed left by Mara on my previous body, triggered now."

Su Lin shook his head: "I am a great virtuous monk. A trace of heavenly demon residue on me is only natural."

The black-clad man narrowed his eyes: "Mara."

"You little monk, do you know who you're facing?" A handsome man radiating terrifying blood aura, standing atop a sea of raging crimson blood, flew forward and laughed:

"The Buddha Wu Tian is right—those who call themselves righteous are often vile and despicable, nothing but hypocrites."

"You bald little monkey, having learned a few tricks, now play the hero slaying demons? Deep down, you dream of accumulating merit, hoping to become a Buddha and patriarch in this multiverse."

As they spoke, countless skulls rose from the blood sea, forming a skull head a kilometer tall, looking down upon Su Lin, while streams of crimson blood coalesced into numerous blood spirits, circling Su Lin and attempting to merge into his body.

Many beings stood aside, refraining from striking, instead watching coldly the monk who claimed he would liberate them.

"You've gone too far, You Quan."

Wu Tian waved his hand to stop the blood spirits, then spoke to Su Lin:

"Sanzang, here are true demons, and demons manufactured by others—even this so-called Demon Dao Exchange Assembly is merely a name forged by prejudice among some in the Tiancheng."

"Buddhist and Daoist teachings have no inherent good or evil. I see you harbor the vow to commit sins and take lives. If you truly wish it, why not come with me to Lingshan to cultivate?"

Wu Tian saw nothing strange about this Tang Sanzang; being strong was perfectly normal—just like the Merit Buddha from his own world—and he could not help but feel admiration for such talent.

Su Lin planted his nine-ringed staff into the ground and took a breath: "Why don't you come with me to Lingshan to cultivate instead? I'll make you the Buddha."

The profession of the Journey to the West pilgrim was truly a famed treasure across the heavens—wherever he went, employment conditions and difficulties never mattered; bosses just appeared out of nowhere.

Wu Tian smiled, clasping his hands behind his back as he circled Su Lin: "Then, Sanzang, could you answer my earlier question—on what grounds do you deem us Demon Dao?"

Su Lin seemed to be asking, yet immediately answered himself: "Isn't that simple?"

"What?" Wu Tian froze.

"Because I like it," Su Lin said, glancing at You Quan, whose lips seemed smeared with honey.

"I say you are demons, and you are demons. If I say you are righteous, you are righteous. Above and below heaven and earth, I alone am supreme."

Billions of Buddha light filled the entire sky; the entire You Quan Blood Sea paled beside it, like a candle competing with the bright moon.

Pure, transcendent white lotus petals unfolded one by one; tiny, brilliant, luminous fireflies emerged from the blooming lotus platform, gradually forming a colossal figure.

The Buddha's Form Without Form bore no sorrow or joy, yet its eyes brimmed with redemption. In an instant, the Buddha seal in its hand burst forth with boundless radiance, the aura of "I alone am supreme" spreading through heaven and earth.

One palm struck—binding all beings. You Quan, as if under a restriction, stood frozen in place, until a muffled boom rose from deep within the earth, and rolling black smoke and blood waves struggled to surge forth.

"You…" Wu Tian realized this Tang Sanzang was not quite right.

"Is this the level of skill you use to play at being a demon?"

The pure, transcendent white lotus was stained with a spreading patch of black; the Buddha's expressionless face curled into a faint smile. Fierce demonic energy swirled around Tang Sanzang; his eyes turned blood-red, and upon his brocade robe, a faint, shifting cloak appeared.

"Righteous Dao? Demon Dao? Buddha and demon—you dare to become demons? Hahaha!"

Su Lin exhaled faint black light from his nostrils, covering his entire body; extreme cold and madness surged toward Wu Tian, yet instantly a black lotus appeared beneath his feet.

Loading the stored Divine Tomb Summoning Demon Scripture and Ancient Techniques as body cultivation methods, manifesting all evil of this world, activating the Ashen Wings' Law of Destruction, releasing the Chaos Blood Curse from the fragments of the Primordial Light soul, using Numerical Authority to construct the divine body, then inversely cultivating the Buddha Palm.

"Laughable, trash!"

This time, unhidden malice hung like a dagger above the brow; in the instant You Quan felt a bone-chilling chill, the white lotus turned pitch-black—even more corrupt and profound than the black lotus beneath Wu Tian's feet.

The black lotus petals closed, forming within the Buddha's hands a Buddha realm impossible to peer into.

Within the pure white space, the blood sea surged; the wails of countless beings rose and fell with the waves.

Wu Tian watched as the mad monk, eyes entirely black with blood-red pupils, walked past him.

He stepped back two paces, yet that irresistibly sweet energy—like the sweetest in the world—urged him to forget his reason for remaining here.

Wu Tian clutched his chest, suppressing the wildly pounding Buddha heart, staring in horror as the "Tang Sanzang" held a skull pulled from the blood sea, laughing hysterically.

Malice. Killing intent.

Beneath the surface layer of evil karma, something even more terrifying lurked.

Wu Tian turned his head—and found only Bai Mang all around; all sounds vanished. He stared at Su Lin's mad figure, suppressing the urge to probe him.

Then, a black inverted ten-thousand-character symbol spun down from the heavens.

Like countless swarming gnats, countless writhing Buddhist sutra characters emerged from the void, transforming into countless demonic Buddhas chanting sutras, standing layer upon layer in the air.

As if the suppression had reached its limit, Wu Tian clearly sensed something within Su Lin was unbinding.

"I shall liberate you into Buddhahood," the "Tang Sanzang" walked into the blood sea, now calm after its boiling, tears of blood falling from his eyes as he softly whispered: "Say thank you."

You Quan, whose spirit had fallen into some unknown abyss, murmured: "Thank you…"

The inverted Buddha seal writhed into view; the chaotic ocean and gray mist swallowed the last trace of crimson.

Terror.

Descended.

"One good deed a day—merit has increased again."

Su Lin touched the brighter, purer merit halo behind his head and smiled warmly: "Come visit my Great Lei Yinsi sometime. Look for the Ye Zhetian Trading Company at the Qiongqi Tower."

Wu Tian took the card handed to him, glanced at the retreating blood sea, the white-robed monk You Quan now chanting sutras continuously, and found himself speechless.

"Young brother, you're Dan Chenzi, right? Your artifacts are all shattered—you need new ones."

Su Lin lightly tapped the eggshell-like space, simultaneously disabling the internal special effects plugins.

"Dan Chenzi thanks the Dharma Master for the rescue," Dan Chenzi bowed and said.

If only you wouldn't speak from so far away.

Su Lin shook his head and dissolved the temporary palm-Buddha-realm he had created.

It's always better to know more when traveling outside—more skills mean more paths; who knows when you might need one, like in this situation.

"My name is Sanzang. I heard you two are Cain and Abel?"

Su Lin waved to the only two remaining combatants outside—the vampires and werewolves.

"Get lost! I don't believe in Buddha!"

Blood bats darkened the sky, surging from all directions in vast numbers.

"Roar—!"

The two clashed; the shockwaves reduced heaven and earth to only black and white, all things frozen, as if petrified.

Looking up to the highest point, Cain drew a massive magical array that summoned a starry sky; with violent tremors, countless stars were pulled down toward this place.

The Ancestor of Werewolves leapt high into the air, swinging a monstrous claw from beneath the moonlight; its sharp claws tore long fissures through space.

"Amitabha—the highest form of greeting is to open with your ultimate move."

Su Lin scratched his head; though he didn't know the matching mechanism of the Yinglong Tower, he raised his right hand and pointed at the sky, shouting:

"Let there be light."

Yinglong Tower · Demon Path Exchange Competition Zone

A vast expanse of Bai Guang blinded many spectators, including Konstantin and Shang Yue, who had just arrived.

The staff member was about to approach the control panel when Bei Wu Zhenxian grabbed his shoulder.

The sound of shattering grew louder, until it emitted a piercing shriek.

At that very moment, the Yinglong Tower token in Bei Wu Zhenxian's hand flashed once; a vortex appeared in midair, and within the blinding Bai Guang, scattered starlight seeped out, spinning and compressing as it was drawn into the vortex.

About ten seconds later.

On the arena appeared over a hundred fallen competitors, with only a few remaining standing; as the final sliver of light and the shattered space were cleared away.

A handsome monk with six wings held a cross in one hand and a Bible in the other, speaking to the werewolf and vampire slumped on the ground.

"Say 'Amen' with me."

The werewolf and vampire clenched their teeth, refusing to speak.

"Amen."

The voice came from behind Su Lin; he turned his head and saw below the arena a neutral-gendered white woman with golden wavy hair, her wings spread, a smile on her lips, staring at him in astonishment.

"Who are you?"

Su Lin blinked.

Beside her, Konstantin reinserted the cigarette he had dropped into his mouth: "Fuck!"

The reversed cigarette burned a blister on his lips; Konstantin muttered a curse, but snapped back to awareness.

"Aren't you a Monk?!"

Konstantin threw away the cigarette, seemingly shattered: "How are you an angel?!"

"Didn't I already tell you? I studied abroad in the West."

Su Lin gave him a look of "you're easily shocked," then fell silent for a few seconds before saying: "I was the outstanding exchange student of my cohort."

(End of Chapter)