Chapter 497: Victory

"Come in."

Somewhere in the Aether Realm, the void was stabilized by Stone Aether, forming a magnificent and radiant stone palace.

For some reason, Leonis gazed at the rugged stone pillars and murals… and couldn't shake the feeling of unspeakable cruelty within them.

At the end of the stone palace sat a woman.

She appeared to be in her twenties or thirties, at the peak of maturity and beauty, her figure full and voluptuous; she had not shaved her head but wore a peculiar cockade hat.

Over her body was draped a crimson robe covered entirely in ancient scriptures.

A sense of mystery, profundity, and malevolence radiated from her.

The bald female warrior led Leonis into the hall and barked, "Having seen the Dharma King, why do you not pay homage?"

'The Dharma King of the Heart Sect?'

'If I still had my original power, I'd be nothing but an ant.'

'But now?'

Leonis bowed deeply and knelt: "Leonis… pays homage to the Dharma King."

"Hmm…"

The Fire King opened his eyes, as if just returning from a state of transcendence, and regarded Leo with a strange expression: "Leo... you have a special connection with our Secret Sect; if you wish to become extraordinary, would you like to join the Secret Sect?"

'Damn!'

Leonis's mind raced: 'But if what she says is true—that the Esoteric Sect has already unified the hidden world… then to achieve transcendence, I have no choice but to join.'

'This isn't so bad after all… maybe it's even lucky? Destined? How could I possibly be destined to the Esoteric Sect?'

But at this moment, he had no real choice—he bowed again: "Thank you, Dharma King."

"Good! Come forward."

The Dharma King commanded, and the bald woman beside her immediately presented a pale white bone bowl, seemingly filled with clear water.

Intense Aether energy dispersed from the water.

"Since you are destined to the Esoteric Sect and have seen me, you shall receive the supreme precept—I, the Dharma King, shall personally perform the 'Secret Initiation' upon you."

The Dharma King rose, and her terrifying aura forced Leonis to kneel involuntarily.

Before the Heart Sect Dharma King, he couldn't even escape the dream and awaken instantly.

'Damn! The Deep Sea's prophecy has already been used—I have no more chances.'

Leonis could only kneel, watching as the Dharma King dipped a finger into the water and sprinkled a few drops upon his head.

Then, a palm descended upon him…

……

Inside a cramped, stuffy dorm room.

On the bed.

Leonis slept deeply, his eyelids twitching violently, as if caught in a nightmare.

Suddenly!

"Phew…"

Leonis sat bolt upright, staring at his hands: "I… hahaha… I've done it!"

After being granted the Esoteric Sect's precepts, countless teachings of Esoteric martial arts naturally surfaced in his mind.

Merely by slightly channeling Aether energy to nourish his body, the chronic lung ailment vanished instantly.

"Esoteric martial arts… are these the path to transcendence in this world?"

Leonis felt immense confidence: "I will ascend to the pinnacle of transcendence in this world! What can that little worm possibly do against me?"

After learning some Esoteric martial arts and absorbing a few esoteric fundamentals, Leonis lost all interest in other paths to transcendence.

Those paths advanced too slowly—and worse, their destructive power was pitifully weak!

"The master of the Esoteric Sect… is my rightful position."

"I've heard the most supreme martial arts of the Esoteric Sect are all recorded in the Mahāvairocana Sutra—containing not only the pinnacle techniques of the Six Sects, but also forbidden chapters revealing the secrets of replacing deities and becoming a god oneself!"

The more Leonis thought about it, the brighter his eyes grew: "With the aid of my divine tool… I will become a god!"

……

Years later.

The Aether Realm.

Leonis had shaved his head, sporting a short buzzcut, wearing the cockade hat and a crimson robe.

Now, having undergone multiple initiations and offerings, he had fully assumed the appearance of an Esoteric Sect master.

No!

Though outwardly still just an Esoteric Sect master, his true power had already reached the level of a Dharma King.

"I've poured countless efforts into reaching this position…"

"And through my divine tool, I've deceived other Dharma Kings to gain this opportunity—I must see the Mahāvairocana Sutra and uncover its secret to godhood!"

Leonis's gaze was resolute.

The path to transcendence in this world is utterly treacherous!

Especially becoming a god!

It's a one-rabbit-one-hole system: no new gods can arise until the six existing gods perish.

And the six gods are all primordial deities—there is no possibility for mortals to ascend to godhood!

The only hope lies in the secrets left behind by the former master of the Esoteric Sect!

In truth, this merely proves the disparity between their divine tools.

Even Fang Xing, relying solely on his stat panel, could reach the ultimate pinnacle of this world—and even surpass it.

But this creator's divine tool is clearly far inferior, unable to break through. 'That little worm still hasn't found it—perhaps he hasn't awakened the mystery of the womb yet?'

This was another thing that annoyed Leonis.

The two rivals in this fate struggle couldn't sense each other's positions unless they met face-to-face—they couldn't even recognize each other otherwise.

'But… once I become a god, how will you escape?'

Leonis's mind churned with thoughts, yet his face radiated devout piety as he prostrated himself step by step, ascending to the highest peak of the Great Snow Mountain—the Esoteric Sect's main stronghold in the Aether Realm.

At the summit of the Great Snow Mountain lay a celestial lake.

Legend says the Mahāvairocana Sutra rises from within this lake.

To obtain the Mahāvairocana Sutra, even the six Dharma Kings were powerless—it required the rightful heir of the Esoteric Sect's master, along with a series of trials.

But Leonis, through his Deep Sea divine tool, had long secretly discovered a shortcut.

Now, he swiftly laid out a series of Aether-charged offerings, arranging a mysterious ritual:

"Let us invoke the Master of the Esoteric Sect—may He send His guardian dragon down from the heavens…"

"Dragon!"

"Dragon of mountains, rivers, and countless souls… heed my call, rise from the celestial lake and lift forth the sutra!"

……

Leonis's Aether surged wildly, pulsing like a living rhythm.

As he chanted, the celestial lake atop the Great Snow Mountain in the Aether Realm boiled violently, and a scripture was lifted from the water by some unseen force.

"Ha! Finally! The Mahāvairocana Sutra… I only need to glance at it—just one look…"

Leonis gazed at the Mahāvairocana Sutra—it appeared worn and tattered, an ancient yellowed text.

It radiated a twisted, malevolent aura, as if bound in human skin.

As his fingers brushed the cover, the legendary Mahāvairocana Sutra, said to contain all secrets, burst open with a thunderous roar!

And then…

Leonis's vision brightened—he beheld the eternal sun, forever positioned above the six pure lights of the Aether Realm, shining eternally across infinite time and space!

At that moment…

That sun—seemingly pure white, yet crimson, as if containing every color in existence—suddenly opened a single eye!

In that instant of mutual gaze, Leonis felt an overwhelming surge of dread.

It was the warning of the Fate Struggle technique!

"No!"

His face twisted in agony, blood streaming from his eyes like tears.

"Surprised? Shocked?"

Fang Xing's playful voice echoed from the Imperishable Body: "As long as we compete fairly, I'll always be ahead of you—because I've got a cheat!"

"Damn you, worm… even if I die, I'll drag you down with me!"

Leonis frantically tore at his crimson robe, calling out to the Deep Sea.

He had invested so much power—and hidden a final gambit within his divine tool, one capable of mutual annihilation.

But the next moment, the Deep Sea appeared—a bubble burst, revealing new text:

【Foolish man, deceived by foolishness!】

【Surprised? Shocked?】

Fang Xing's voice continued: "From the moment you entered the Aether Realm, you've been under my watch… and as for being drawn into the Esoteric Sect, and undergoing multiple initiations—did you really think… who was truly presiding over them?"

Leonis suddenly froze in horror!

"You… broke through my hidden gambit during the first initiation?"

"During that first initiation, I only altered part of your divine tool's rules—enough to prevent you from discovering the world's greatest truth… until you walked the Esoteric path, and underwent further initiations and offerings, you became, inside and out, entirely my creation."

Fang Xing laughed heartily: "Lei Ousi… if you've studied the Great Sun Sutra, why not become a Buddha at once?"

"Become a Buddha!"

"Become a Buddha!"

"Become a Buddha!"

At that moment, the entire Great Snow Mountain was filled with Buddhist chants and sutra recitations; heavenly flowers rained down, and golden lotuses sprang from the earth.

A strange fragrance spread everywhere, and countless snow lotuses of Mount Tian erupted in bloom.

But upon closer inspection, one would see that the roots of these snow lotuses were all anchored upon piles of gleaming white bones!

This Great Snow Mountain had buried countless white bones—no one knew how many.

"Become a Buddha? No! I will not become a Buddha!"

Lei Ousi screamed, tearing off his rooster-comb hat; countless prayer beads scattered everywhere, yet it did nothing to help him.

Behind him, a sixteen-headed, eighty-eight-armed Dakini emerged, her palms pale as jade, her face terrifyingly grotesque—with ox heads, pig heads, goat heads…

At that moment, each of those hands seized Lei Ousi and cried out in ecstatic delight: "Lord… become a Buddha! Become a Buddha!"

Beneath the caresses of those hands, Lei Ousi's essence and blood dried up, turning him into a desiccated corpse.

Above his head, all things coalesced into a single beam of rainbow light!

Within that rainbow light, even his flesh dissolved into dust!

This was—Rainbow Body Transformation!

Almost the entire Aether Realm could see this radiant beam of transformation!

It shot straight up to the ninth heavens, like a white rainbow piercing the sun, drilling into that imperishable celestial body.

Upon the imperishable celestial body, a mouth seemed to split open—it swallowed once, and the rainbow light vanished…

"Mmm…"

After truly consuming Lei Ousi, the Creator, Fang Xing let out a satisfied sigh, feeling a sense of perfect fulfillment.

This decades-long "Secret Art of Life Struggle" had finally reached its conclusion—and he had won in the end!

"Had I not sensed the secrets within you… and your means of mutual destruction, requiring a gradual approach, perhaps I could have done it years earlier."

"But whether a few years sooner or later makes no difference…"

"Now that I have devoured all of the Creator's essence and crushed every last contingency, only then is true perfection achieved…"

Second chapter update later

(End of chapter)