Chapter 696: Great Ming King of Dragon-Slaying and Tiger-Taming

Shen Yi had previously told Lady Qinghua about his current awkward predicament.

Unless he truly abandoned everything, stopped fighting and grabbing, found a place of idle clouds and wild cranes to become a reclusive immortal avoiding calamity, then the only path left was to fish in troubled waters.

Judging by the current trend, it seemed the entire mortal world had been dragged into this.

Leaving aside the question of what point there was in cultivating all the way only to grow old alone in a desolate mountain.

Even if it were truly feasible.

He himself could resolve the troubles on his body, exit Hongze, kill Princess Ziling, and slay the Green Phoenix; the opportunity to withdraw intact today actually owed much to the kindness of others.

If he retreated now, surely no one would protect Hongze anymore.

Between the lands of Shenzhou, General Yan Lanting had once helped repel the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva but now lay heavily injured and recovering; his main force, General Wushan, still lay here. If he left, the nine prefectures of Dananzhou would be left with only Ye Lan to watch over them.

As for Master Zhikong's grace in transmitting the Dharma, helping him ascend to the Seventh Rank, and concealing the matter of the Dragon and Tiger Great Scripture, what he received in return was becoming a black-furred beast under the Bodhisattva's seat.

Under these various factors, the seclusion that sounded so free and easy appeared both boring and despicable.

When he had nothing at all, he still dared to extend that arm before the Dog Demon; now that his cultivation had reached the Taiyi Zhenxian and Great Luo Han levels, bearing the Fourth-Rank Celestial Official Leopard Seal, having fought his way here and finally gained some confidence, was he to retract that arm under such circumstances?

Did this mean that once barefoot ones put on shoes, they lost all their courage?

Shen Yi, knowing the Bodhisattva was nearby, had meditated for a long time within the Void Realm; even though Divine General Qi Feng had not yet arrived, he ultimately chose to step out.

Since he was unwilling to retire and had chosen to fish in troubled waters, he might as well take off the shoes on his feet.

He might as well join every faction, checking and balancing each other; as long as he was not embarrassed, the embarrassment would belong to others.

Shen Yi possessed this self-awareness.

Whether it was the Void Jin Dan Dao Fruit or the Three Thousand Tribulations' Dragon-Slaying and Tiger-Taming Fruit Seat, all were excellent seedlings that this group of gods, Buddhas, and Immortal Venerables would absolutely not abandon.

Indeed, after hearing Shen Yi's rather arrogant and unyielding words, the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva did not become angry.

He sat seated on the lotus throne, eyes closed in deep thought.

The Bodhisattva was not thinking about whether to accept this Luo Han of the Three Thousand Tribulations; for existences like them who had reached the pinnacle of heaven and earth, what identity they once held among their subordinates or whether they harbored hidden thoughts was simply unimportant.

Because no matter what, the other party lacked the ability to defy.

He was thinking about what kind of identity to give the other party.

"Produce the Fruit Seat and come up to receive the investiture."

After a long while, the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva opened his eyes, acknowledging Shen Yi's words, and slowly raised one palm.

"Disciple pays respects to the Bodhisattva."

Shen Yi finally turned his body, pressed his palms together without the slightest hesitation; a ray of Jin Guang rose from the lotus throne within his body, surged out from the top of his Golden Body, and condensed in mid-air into an amber-colored sphere covered in obscure symbols.

The Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva carefully examined the symbols on the Fruit Seat; obviously, he could read this Fruit Seat.

Moments later, his expression became much more serious, and his voice returned to being deep and resonant: "Today, this Seat shall lead you into our Great Teaching and bestow upon you the title: Great Ming King of Dragon-Slaying and Tiger-Taming."

The two words "Ming King" refer to the Buddha's wrath.

"Dragon-Slaying and Tiger-Taming" is the name of this Fruit Seat.

This title had nothing to do with the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva from start to finish.

Shen Yi's previous actions had caused this Bodhisattva to feel a degree of wariness; he did not worry about the other party biting the master, for even the fiercest beast could not break free from the chains forged by his supreme methods; what he worried about was whether this person's nature would cause trouble for him outside.

Now, instead of accepting him as a disciple protecting the path under his seat, he was admitting him into the sect in the name of the Puti Sect.

If there were merit, it would be the merit of himself, the introducer; if mistakes were made, there would be an explanation then, unrelated to himself.

"Disciple thanks the Venerable One for the bestowal."

Shen Yi slightly raised his eyes, gazing at the brilliant light points quietly falling from the palm raised by the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva, merging into his own Fruit Seat.

At the same time.

The Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva was also carefully observing the changes in Shen Yi's expression.

How could any cultivator tolerate their hard-earned results being touched at will by others; developing a heart of resistance was inevitable.

But it depended on the degree; if the resistance was too great, it could only mean extreme stubbornness, in which case the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva would have to reconsider whether the falling chain was not thick enough, needing to bind more, even wrapping around the four limbs, to make it obediently listen.

Unless necessary, he was unwilling to do this.

After all, if tied too tightly, the other party lost the ability to fully display their skills; what was the point of taking them into the sect then? It would lose the original intent.

But what the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva did not expect was that Shen Yi was terrifyingly calm, as if he had prepared for this long ago; not only did he not resist, but he showed not even a trace of dissatisfaction.

When those brilliant light points completely merged into the Dragon-Slaying and Tiger-Taming Fruit Seat.

Shen Yi's body suddenly underwent a change; on the solid back of his Golden Body, where muscle lines resembled rolling mountains, four traces suddenly swelled up in an instant, like a earth-dragon raising its head.

Puchi—

Hands forcibly drilled out from the ruptured skin; the four protrusions shot out together, transforming into four strong arms!

Shen Yi's body twitched slightly until those four arms were fully grown.

On the left and right, the heads of Dragon and Tiger; four arms born on the back.

He gently exhaled a breath; his originally majestic Dharma Body directly transformed into the form of three heads and six arms. The four arms raised, palms loosely clenched, truly taking on the appearance of a Ming King representing Buddha's wrath.

"Excellent! Excellent!"

The Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva surveyed his work with satisfaction.

Most cultivators in this world do so for self-preservation, but those who voluntarily appear before him and willingly don shackles are certainly not doing so merely to survive.

The other party had ambition, and it was immense!

Entering the Puti Sect was to participate in the Great Calamity and fight for that supreme opportunity.

Without such spirit, how could one fight against the various heavenly geniuses?

Such a Ming King was more precious than ten wolf demons!

"..."

Shen Yi said nothing, carefully feeling the changes in his Dharma Body.

He did not like putting on chains; it was simply that when there are many mosquitoes, one doesn't itch, and when there are many debts, one doesn't worry.

The mark left by Shenxu Laozu was already within his body, so he had no fear of adding another mark from an outsider.

Even if we take a step back, this is actually a good thing.

Originally, he would have to face a Great Luo Immortal Venerable alone; now, a Bodhisattva has joined the fray to cause trouble. After all, he only has one body, and he cannot defeat either of them, so it is better to let these two third-rank experts fight over it slowly.

What Shen Yi cared about more was the meaning behind this change itself.

Compared to the direct realm boost of over seven hundred calamities given by Shenxu Laozu, these four arms were clearly related to calamity power, carrying the same aura, yet they were not a simple cultivation change, but more akin to the existence of a "divine ability."

After sensing for a long time, Shen Yi suddenly froze, finally realizing.

What the other party had given him was not calamity power, but a portion of the profound mysteries of the third-rank Bodhisattva fruit position!

Even if it was only a trivial thread, it was something incomparable to the Great Luo Han fruit position.

"Understood?"

The Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva smiled indifferently and withdrew his palm: "Your Buddha-nature is excellent; no wonder you could deduce such an Luo Han Dharma-Image."

The shackles he had placed on the other party were themselves a devastating weapon that never failed; of course, if the other party developed rebellious thoughts, these four arms could not only kill enemies but, when necessary, would also turn against the wearer himself.

Such seeds sown back then all shared a common flaw: no matter how the other party grew, whether to a thousand calamities or three thousand calamities, they were previously scattered cultivators with only one Great Scripture to practice, lacking many methods compared to other heavenly geniuses.

Especially in the Puti Sect, elders liked to bestow some profound methods upon their juniors.

The Sanxian Sect, on the other hand, preferred to prepare some magical treasures for their disciples to protect themselves.

This Dragon-Suppressing and Tiger-Taming Great Ming King of ours, if he relied on his profound cultivation to act recklessly outside, would inevitably suffer a great loss.

As the guide, the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva naturally had to prepare some similar things for the other party; otherwise, it would make himself look too poor, and it would waste such a promising seedling.

"This seat is returning to the Yaohui Sect to heal; since you are now a Ming King, do as you please."

The Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva lightly pulled that black dog and cast a meaningful glance at the General Wushan on the ground: "This includes this court official as well."

This was the composure of a great sect; even knowing you had relations with the imperial court, there was no need to question further.

A cultivator who voluntarily faced a calamity, if he still could not see the trend of the Divine Dynasty about to collapse, then he was not qualified to be this Ming King.

"Thank you, Venerable One."

Shen Yi said no more, clasped his hands in a bow, turned around, and took the unconscious General Wushan; the massive body with three heads and six arms soared straight into the air, darting toward the direction of Xishan Prefecture!

Such a decisive and clean action had a different reason.

He was worried he might not be able to resist looking at that black dog with lifeless eyes, thereby revealing the killing intent in his eyes.

After the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva fought with General Yan, he was in a wounded state, and the injury was not light; otherwise, there would be no need to dispatch a Great Luo Han to stage a self-harm drama and seize the imperial qi of the entire Jin Guang Prefecture.

But this Bodhisattva had no intention of concealing his injuries at all.

Having ascended to the third rank and plucked the Bodhisattva fruit position, all mortal things became mere ants, and it was difficult to harm him even slightly.

If Shen Yi had previously had the thought of unleashing everything to try and forcibly kill a Bodhisattva while he was injured, after personally experiencing the trace of third-rank aura represented by the four arms, that thought was quickly extinguished.

There was absolutely no chance of victory.

To save Master Zhikong, the current him was still far too lacking.

"No need to come."

Shen Yi's spirit moved slightly and sent a message.

Far outside the Eight Extremities Valley.

Lady Qinghua's anxious steps suddenly stopped; beside her, General Qi Feng looked over in confusion: "What's wrong? Wasn't there an urgent matter?"

Under normal circumstances, a True God rarely moved for private matters; only seeing that Qian Qing was truly excellent and had just cleared his name did he agree to follow the other party on this trip to see what the situation was.

"Thank you, General; it has already been resolved."

Lady Qinghua bowed seriously, a shock quietly sweeping through her eyes.

She had always believed her master would one day stand at the peak of this world, yet even so, upon learning that the other party had truly alone rescued a Divine Dynasty official under a Bodhisattva, she still felt somewhat dazed.

Only by standing high does one realize one's own insignificance.

From a Nanyang wild demon to a Great Immortal General about to assume the fourth-rank official seal, as Lady Qinghua's understanding of the third rank deepened, she became even clearer about the terror of these existences.

Yet even when facing a Bodhisattva, in her master's words, it could only be met with a light, casual "It's fine."

Looking across the world, who else could possess such boldness and ability?

Jin Guang Prefecture Office.

A group of flowing lights returned from Xishan Prefecture, swept down from the sky, and quickly stepped into the main hall.

"You say he has returned?"

Feng Xi stood at the very front, asking first; beside her was the silent Yang Mingli, and behind her followed a full six titled Generals.

Facing such a formation, the Demon-Slaying Official's voice lowered a few degrees, timidly saying: "He has returned; my lord General Wushan is seriously wounded and is lying in the prefecture office now."

Previously, due to resentment, he had said many angry words when going to report the news, but according to the message just received, a bit of shame inevitably arose in his heart.

"Heh."

Hearing this, Yang Mingli's face darkened and he couldn't help but sneer.

Almost all his dissatisfaction with Yan Lanting was written on his face.

General Wushan was an old man of the Demon-Slaying Bureau; where had there been any problems over these years? Since the split, in such a short time, he had almost lost his life.

That old thing should really come over and take a look; to fight over a momentary temper, he had to cut down the ape demon of the Yu Chi Immortal Gate halfway, and see exactly what kind of chaos it would cause.

"Where is he, and how did he come back?"

Feng Xi ignored her colleague's resentment and followed the Demon-Slaying Official into the hall.

"It was... it was General Nanyang who personally brought my lord General Wushan back," the Demon-Slaying Official stammered.

Hearing this, Feng Xi's steps paused slightly.

She had already understood the entire course of events; with years of experience governing Da Nanzhou, she could easily distinguish that this was an ambush designed by the Puti Sect specifically targeting General Wushan.

To kill a Taiyi Zhenxian, the formation prepared by those monks must have been absolutely foolproof.

Even Feng Xi no longer held much hope for General Wushan's return; the only reason she was still willing to set out to search was that she couldn't let go of that last "what if."

And now you're telling her that the one who broke the deadlock is that young cultivator who only recently received the Nanyang title?

Feng Xi walked slowly into the room, looking at the fat man on the bed whose eyes were tightly shut yet whose face was still full of terror.

With her eyesight, she saw at a glance the vigorous Jin Guang within his body—clearly he had already crossed hands with people from the Puti Sect.

Strangely, that Jin Guang was being suppressed by a powerful medicinal force, dissolving at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"He's taken a pill?"

She glanced sideways at the Zhan Yao officer beside her; such pure medicinal force meant that immortal pill's grade was no low thing—even Zhan Yao Si might have had to requisition it from the Imperial Capital.

"Also a Nanyang General…"

That Zhan Yao officer, beyond relief, already wished he could find a hole to crawl into.

Earlier he had still thought these two young titled generals had harmed his own lord, but now it seemed that, knowing full well it was a trap, the man had left the Divine Dynasty alone and successfully brought General Wushan back—setting aside how much strength that required, just this kind of boldness alone—how could he possibly be the sort of person he himself had described?

All the people of Zhan Yao Si filed into the room, exchanging glances, each seeing the doubt in the others' eyes.

They had all heard the Zhan Yao officer's earlier words.

Even Yang Mingli slowly knit his brows, temporarily setting aside the dissatisfaction in his heart, growing ever more curious about the matter.

Under the gaze of everyone present.

That big, burly fat man suddenly opened his eyes, beads of sweat the size of soybeans breaking out across his forehead, his face full of shock, his voice hoarse yet exceptionally loud:

"It's you!"

That sentence made everyone in the room turn their gazes in unison.

And after a brief return to his senses, Wushan abruptly sat up, frantically patting himself all over, his second sentence being: "I'm actually still alive, damn it?"

He raised his head and saw the many colleagues and superiors, their faces full of complicated expressions.

(End of this chapter)