Chapter 833: The True Buddha Appears

The Bodhi Sect has three patriarchs.

The Buddha of the Past governs the West Zhou, the Buddha of the Future holds court in the South Zhou, and the Buddha who wields the Present Buddha, residing on Mount Sumeru in the East Zhou, is none other than this very one.

Even with the gathering of the Seventy-Two Caves of Immortals, none directly moved to tear open the boundary barrier of Eastern Sumeru.

Xuanweizi performed a meticulous bow, then extended his hand and tossed forward a formal invitation.

No matter how calm his expression, merely glancing at the vast array behind him was enough to make the monks of Sumeru tremble with fear.

Altogether, there were only about thirty or so Great Free Bodhisattvas within Eastern Sumeru, including those who had lain dormant for years.

If a true fight broke out, whether the Present Buddha or the other two True Buddhas, none would dare to interfere in the affairs of juniors—how could their own great sects bear to be pinned down and beaten senseless?

“Don’t hesitate. Step forward. We are in the right.”

Xuanweizi gave Shen Yi a slight nod of the chin, the posture of a patriarch rallying his clan to confront another’s door after his own child had been wronged.

Behind him, the immortals all wore cold smirks, rolling up their sleeves, utterly devoid of any lofty transcendental bearing.

All were Great Luo Immortals of the Second Rank, having not fought in many years; coupled with their immortal, indestructible abilities, they acted without restraint—today, if these bald monks uttered even one wrong word, several of them would be sent into deep slumber.

“Disciple obeys.”

Shen Yi showed not the slightest guilt, stepping straight out from the crowd, leaving Li Shan gaping in astonishment, his heart now fully convinced that Grand Void Senior Brother had received direct orders from the elders, hence his decisive action.

Fortunately, his own performance these past months had not been poor—he had accumulated several monk lives, including two of the top disciples of the One Mountain sect who had reached the pinnacle of the Ninety-Nine Transformations; though not matching the Vanguard Commander Grand Void Senior Brother, he had not shamed his master.

Thinking of this, Li Shan’s spine straightened a little more.

Soon, the boundary barrier of Eastern Sumeru slowly opened, and two Great Free Bodhisattvas replaced the guiding novices, granting the Seventy-Two Caves Immortals full due respect.

“This way, all the immortals.”

“...”

The group of immortals walked grimly into Eastern Sumeru; even as they arrived in the East Zhou, they had already sent jade slips to numerous disciples, and as time passed, streams of light surged from all directions, swelling their ranks further.

This was a negotiation encompassing the majority of the leadership of both sects, capable of influencing the entire course of the Great Calamity.

A vast temple lit by bright lamps, a golden-hued long hall—such a magnificent scene carried a heavy, twilight air.

Including the two who led them, twenty-seven Great Free Bodhisattvas from Eastern Sumeru appeared, sitting solemnly on the left, with rows of Bodhisattvas standing behind them, nearly filling half the hall.

Yet the moment the Seventy-Two Caves Immortals all sat down, the monks still felt immense pressure.

Xuanweizi said nothing, simply closing his eyes and feigning sleep.

In the packed golden hall, silence fell so profound a pin could be heard dropping.

They sat like this for three days.

As more figures entered the hall one by one, the Three Immortal Sect disciples took their place on the right, but clearly, aside from waiting for their own disciples, Xuanweizi was truly waiting for the monks from the other two Sumeru Mountains in the West and South.

“More than sixty have arrived, one after another.”

This primordial Great Luo Immortal, who had sworn an immortal vow, slowly opened his eyes and swept them over the group of seated monks opposite—he referred to these as Great Free Bodhisattvas; the third-rank bald ones couldn’t even fit inside the hall and had to remain below the mountain.

“Don’t say I’m bullying you.”

Xuanweizi rose slowly, first glancing at Chi Yunzi, then flicking his eyes toward Shen Yi, before speaking coolly: “The Great Calamity established by your patriarchs, we naturally abide by; but the longstanding agreement was that when disciples enter the calamity, Golden Immortals and Great Free Bodhisattvas must not interfere in mortal affairs.”

“You first killed my Chi Yun Senior Brother’s disciple, then stealthily hid in the clouds, intending to harm my sect’s first disciple, Grand Void. The former has witnesses and evidence; the latter we witnessed with our own eyes.”

“Want to try denying it?”

Xuanweizi’s lips curled slightly as he gazed coldly at the lotus-headed figure in the opposing crowd.

At this gaze, Great Free Lotus Pearl Bodhisattva slowly clenched his hands resting on his knees, staring fixedly at the table before him, expression blank, offering no reply.

He had not taken a great vow; he lacked the standing to confront Xuanweizi.

“Tsk. Seems you’ve admitted it.” Xuanweizi shook his head, exhaling a light breath: “Then please offer some explanation. Otherwise...”

Before he finished speaking, the Seventy-Two Caves Immortals all rose.

Among them, Chi Yunzi’s gaze grew dark as he stared at the spiritual treasure in his hand, gently stroking it.

At that moment, the immortals noticed something amiss.

The monks opposite, especially those from Eastern Sumeru, showed no sign of guilt—instead, each bore a trace of indignation.

“Old monk wishes to give the immortals an explanation.”

After a long silence, a Great Vow titan on the left rose—Great Free Snow Mountain Bodhisattva, highly revered within Eastern Sumeru.

He looked at Xuanweizi, his expression weary: “But old monk cannot understand—why, when you remember these grievances so clearly, do you forget that this dispute was instigated by your Three Immortal Sect?”

“You speak nonsense!”

Several hot-tempered immortals nearly shouted back.

The previously silent hall erupted into chaos; both sides argued back and forth, each clinging to their own version, making ears ache.

Shen Yi stood calmly in place, as if nothing were amiss.

“Enough.”

Snow Mountain Bodhisattva waved his hand, flicking out a sheet of paper bearing the names of many Bodhisattvas and Arhats: “Since we cannot agree, let us tally the losses.”

“You mentioned Chi Yun Cave’s Chu Xi—then look at this: within less than three months of arriving in our East Zhou, he injured and killed four Bodhisattvas and over twenty Arhats. As you claim, our sect was at fault first—old monk asks you: are your immortal lives so precious they outweigh our disciples by multiples?”

“...”

Xuanweizi fell silent for a moment, then spoke slowly: “Our disciples’ lives are no more precious than yours, but you erred first—paying a higher price is only natural.”

Before the monks could respond, the third-rank Bodhisattvas erupted in outrage, refusing to accept blame.

Snow Mountain Bodhisattva glanced over them casually, silencing their clamor, then turned again to Xuanweizi and the young man beside him.

“Fine. You make a reasonable point.” He nodded.

“Then look at this.”

Snow Mountain Bodhisattva flicked his sleeve again, releasing a thick stack of scrolls: “Here are over a thousand lives.”

The thud made Xuanweizi’s expression falter slightly.

Before the immortals could react, Snow Mountain Bodhisattva’s gaze turned cold, and he sneered, voice hoarse: “These are the glorious achievements of your much-maligned first disciple, left on his very first day in Eastern Sumeru.”

The voice was not loud, yet the hall fell silent once more.

The Three Immortal Sect disciples stared at their noses, pretending not to hear.

The Golden Immortals were momentarily speechless; their initial righteous fury had dimmed.

“...”

Xuanweizi silently turned to Shen Yi, opened his mouth, but saw the boy gazing at him innocently.

He gritted his teeth—he had indeed said not to hold back, but... not like this.

“My sect’s disciples have suffered heavy casualties in your East Zhou, persecuted by elders. Grand Void, as our first disciple, moved out of loyalty to his brethren, his anger overwhelming him—his excessive force is understandable.”

Though his heart seethed, Xuanweizi had to maintain composure before outsiders; yet his words lacked conviction.

“So it was loyalty to his brethren, anger overwhelming him.”

Snow Mountain Bodhisattva nodded slightly, then pulled out a map, tracing his finger across nearly twenty prefectures, where light shimmered, marking them as Three Immortal Sect domains.

He smiled without warmth: “Old monk finds it hard to believe.”

“Hiss...”

Many Golden Immortals drew in sharp breaths, glancing back at their disciples in shock.

How had they not known their own juniors had such audacity—nearly pushed straight through Eastern Sumeru under the Present Buddha’s very gaze?

Lingxuzi nearly fainted—he had suspected something, wondering why Eastern Sumeru had singled out Shen Yi for a siege.

Of course—this boy still treated his own words as wind.

Wretched brat!

“Cough, cough.” Li Shan, now fully aware of the situation, quickly turned his face away, avoiding his master’s gaze.

The other disciples forced smiles, swallowing nervously, guilt evident.

With Grand Void Senior Brother leading, they had felt no restraint.

“In just a few months, half our Eastern Sumeru disciples have died or been injured!”

Snow Mountain Bodhisattva suddenly snapped: “I know Brother Lotus Pearl’s actions broke protocol, but if we old ones merely watch, your immortals may well exterminate our Bodhi Sect!”

“Are my Three Immortal Sect disciples made of iron? Tell me—how many of my senior brothers and sisters who arrived first in the East Zhou still live?”

The Golden Immortals were silenced, but the disciples below shouted first—only they knew how much their peers had suffered.

Hearing this, both sides’ second-rank masters furrowed their brows.

Without comparing accounts, they had not realized—so great a cost had already been paid for this Great Calamity.

If this continued, a generational collapse loomed.

Even Xuanweizi felt a pang of dread.

The process had been too swift—in just a few years, these complacent Golden Immortals had been utterly unprepared.

The patriarchs’ Great Calamity had once seemed to them a grand spectacle, but with these disciples dying, more figures like Chi Yun Senior Brother would inevitably arise.

How... how had it come to this?

“Cease hostilities?”

Xuanweizi fell silent for a long while, then finally looked across.

Snow Mountain Bodhisattva said nothing, but his meaning was clear.

Shen Yi watched the scene quietly—his greatest fear had come true: his reckless provocation, his relentless killing, had finally alarmed both sides.

In the end, negotiations would still prevail.

But he was not panicked—what happened next depended on whether his efforts these past weeks would bear fruit.

Indeed, upon hearing those four words, the Three Immortal Sect disciples all froze—though none dared defy their elders, their reluctance was unmistakable.

Cease hostilities meant abandoning the hard-won gains they had bitten into, retreating once more to the overcrowded North Zhou, where a lifetime of struggle might yield no path forward.

Their elders, as second-rank immortals, were immortal—no need to worry.

But we ourselves…

In contrast, the three Bodhisattvas from the Bodhi Sect all began breathing heavily, and an endless tide of resentment surged instantly throughout the mountains, inside and out.

East Sumeru has lost nearly half its disciples—these were brothers and sisters, companions who had cultivated with us since we were young novices, and now they lie dead in the East Continent—just like that?

“Why?!”

Someone, gritting their teeth, let out a low roar.

Instantly, that cry rose like a tidal wave, echoing throughout all of East Sumeru.

They did nothing wrong. The Three Immortal Sect guards the North Continent for itself—it has nothing to do with others. If you crave the dharma sites of the other three continents, you could have sent a formal invitation and negotiated peacefully.

The Bodhi Sect never intended to monopolize all three continents.

But this silent, sudden, brutal strike—what kind of conduct is this? Which cultivator could endure such malice?!

The clamor rose like thunder, even causing the Snow Mountain Bodhisattva to change expression.

He slowly turned his head to look.

As a Great Free Bodhisattva who had made great vows, he could easily suppress these disciples—but don’t forget, these are the very lifeline of East Sumeru’s future.

Put bluntly, even if East Sumeru secures enough incense dharma sites after the great calamity ends, won’t it still need people to spread the Dharma and maintain them?

“Hah! You’re all getting resentful?!”

Seeing this, the Three Immortal Sect disciples would not back down; seizing the moment, they hurled insults back, hoping to shatter the peace talks and remain in the East Continent.

Whether Great Free Bodhisattva or Primordial Great Luo Golden Immortal, these once lofty titans all felt, for the first time, an unfamiliar taste in their hearts.

This grand drama… seems to be slipping out of control.

At that moment, a deep, resonant Buddhist chant drifted from deep within East Sumeru, carrying the power to soothe hearts and suppress inner demons, forcibly calming the area.

Everyone involuntarily looked toward the heavens.

The next instant, Huang Yun scattered, and Buddhist light radiated everywhere; beneath the blinding halo, a crimson kasaya adorned with precious jewels slowly emerged.

Its broad, mountain-like form sat cross-legged upon a lotus throne.

Its crown of flesh bumps, its smiling lips—yet it radiated an aura of unspoken authority.

Beneath it, the immortal Bodhisattvas became mere mortals.

“Disciples pay homage to the Joyful True Buddha!”

All the monks, including the Snow Mountain Bodhisattva, knelt and bowed en masse.

Xuanwei Zi hesitated, then led the many Three Immortal Sect disciples in bowing deeply: “We pay homage to the True Buddha.”

Damned it—we’ve made too much noise; we’ve truly drawn out these old monks.

Today, the Three Immortal Sect is going to suffer a heavy loss.

(End of Chapter)