Chapter 506

The earth shook and mountains trembled; the ghost palanquin and such were damaged once more, and everything around turned into a chaos.

Only the area around the ruined temple remained intact.

"It still works, huh." Zhu Bajie said, "If it works, it doesn't count as being obstinate."

"... Obstinate and unenlightened." Ksitigarbha's voice came from within the ruined temple.

The surrounding scene shifted; darkness enveloped them, and from the darkness came the sound of metal striking metal. One by one, little ghosts no more than a meter tall, with iron-blue skin, shaped like monkeys, and wearing tattered rags at their waists, appeared.

In their hands they held black iron tongs, constantly opening and closing.

That sound came from the iron tongs.

"The Tongue-Ripping Hell?"

Ao Yulie shook and transformed, taking on his true dragon form and flying into the air. He opened his mouth and spat; thunderbolts of ten thousand jun erupted from his mouth, falling into the oncoming swarm of tongue-ripping little ghosts.

A large patch of tongue-ripping little ghosts was instantly vaporized by the thunder, leaving not a trace behind.

But more little ghosts emerged from the darkness, filling the gap Ao Yulie had just blasted open.

Ao Yulie's true dragon form circled, continuing to climb higher. Black dark clouds emerged from his body, completely covering him.

Only scales and claws were faintly visible.

The dark clouds kept expanding; their edges had already merged into the surrounding darkness.

Blinding lightning flickered within the dark clouds; heavenly thunder rolled.

Occasionally illuminating the visible area as bright as day.

A raindrop fell from the sky, landing on a tongue-ripping little ghost, instantly piercing through it. The corpse fell to the ground and dissipated, vanishing.

Soon, bean-sized raindrops fell one after another, covering the "space between heaven and earth" in an instant.

Before their eyes was nothing but a vast white expanse; massive raindrops connected heaven and earth, forming a white "curtain."

A torrential rain descended.

It completely covered the area around the ruined temple, leaving only the temple's small area, incomparably calm, "impenetrable by ten thousand dharmas."

The tongue-ripping little ghosts continuously vanished in the torrential rain, and continuously appeared, yet their numbers grew ever greater.

"These are weaker than evil ghosts, but..." Zhu Bajie thought to himself, "their 'rebirth' speed is far too much faster."

He somewhat suspected whether these tongue-ripping little ghosts might be the prototypes of evil ghosts.

The simple torrential rain soon could no longer block the little ghosts struggling forward to gather; some ghosts rushed out of the rain curtain, only to be slapped back by Xiaotian Dog with a single paw.

More and more little ghosts appeared, and Xiaotian Dog's movements grew faster and faster, turning into a residual shadow shuttling everywhere around.

Plugging leaks and filling gaps, leaving no opening.

Suddenly, a pair of scissors appeared in midair; raindrops fell on it, making a "ding ding dang dang" sound.

It could not be destroyed for the time being.

A large number of scissors appeared, forming an iron curtain blocking the rain.

The Scissors Hell!

Large numbers of tongue-ripping little ghosts got free and charged at Tang Luo and the others.

Just as the little ghosts neared the group, a black substance welled up from the ground, viscous and heavy — Gui Water Yin Thunder!

Silently, Zhu Bajie had already laid down a grand formation.

The instant the tongue-ripping little ghosts stepped in, they vanished one after another.

"Huu—"

The howling of wild wind rose loudly; the gale swept up, forming tangible black dragons that roared as they charged into the scissor iron curtain to do battle.

Before long, the black dragons were shredded, but the iron curtain formed by the scissors had also been smashed into disarray, and the rain curtain formed once more.

The tongue-ripping little ghosts no longer charged mindlessly, but slowly gathered together.

They formed a "mound of earth"; even under the rain curtain's scouring, its height gradually kept rising.

One could see that the current rain curtain was no longer as dense as before; the spaces and gaps between drops were clearly visible.

Not like before, when it was a vast white expanse.

From a solid sheet it had turned into a sparse curtain.

"Roar!"

A dragon's roar came from the cloud layer; a bolt of heavenly thunder fell, blasting onto the "mound of earth" formed by the tongue-ripping little ghosts.

Large numbers of tongue-ripping little ghosts were reduced to ash; the remaining ones simply fused into a clump, shockingly forming a large tree.

The branches on the great tree, each and every one, were sharp as knives; raindrops fell on them, making a "ding ding dang dang" sound, unable to harm them in the slightest.

The sky-full of raindrops abruptly vanished; formless wind formed black dragons, crashing onto the "Iron Tree."

They could only make the Iron Tree sway slightly, unable to stop it from continuing to grow.

The dark clouds in the sky instantly vanished; Ao Yulie turned into a streak of light and fell back near the ruined temple, panting heavily.

That had already been his limit just now — and a double limit at that, under the empowerment of Boundless Dharma and the Eye-Opening Blessing.

On the gradually growing Iron Tree, a suction force began to emanate, trying to suck people in and hang them on it.

Before the suction force could make Ao Yulie and the others lose control, a giant Nine-Toothed Rake carrying a sheet of flame swept in horizontally.

It landed on the Iron Tree.

"Clang!"

A deafening boom, enough to shatter eardrums; the earth shook, and the Iron Tree was knocked flying by a single rake strike, bringing up an incomparably huge root system that split apart in midair.

Turning into mirrors one after another, suspended in midair.

In the mirror surfaces, the reflections of Zhu Bajie and the others appeared; every mirror showed a different appearance.

Greed, anger, delusion, arrogance, doubt — the five poisons assail the heart.

Xiaotian Dog's eyes turned blood-red; the black flames on his body flared wildly, burning his whole form. He leaped up, crashing into the mirrors.

The mirror remained intact; Xiaotian Quan fell back down, landing heavily, as if he had struck himself.

"This thing..."

Ao Yulie's expression was grave; this Hell of the Sinful Mirror would not be easily resolved by violence — one must abide by one's true heart, not be stirred by emotion, to break it.

"Too noisy."

Tang Luo, who had not moved, raised his right hand and grasped the void; a great hand-seal flashed around the mirrors, and all the mirrors shattered in response, returning to darkness.

"... Alright, just that the dog didn't hit hard enough." Ao Yulie thought to himself, wiping the sweat from his face.

The Steamer Hell exerted a bit of effect.

The uneffected portion was suppressed by the Gui Water Yin Thunder Milky Way Grand Array laid down by Zhu Bajie.

"The Dharma is boundless."

Tang Luo pressed his palms together and chanted the Buddha's name once more; at the same time, the Merit Jade Lotus flickered with radiance.

Everyone's spirits soared anew, feeling invincible.

You've been enhanced; keep up the destruction.

Zhu Bajie and the others now appear to be passively defending, but there is no doubt they are also wearing down Ksitigarbha's power.

The hundreds of chaotic rake-strikes just now were clearly not what Ksitigarbha wished to see.

With the empowerment complete, Tang Luo turned, looked toward the ruined temple, mounted the steps, and entered once more.

Ksitigarbha still sat cross-legged on the cushion, but on the ground, among the severed limbs Tang Luo had tossed down, one arm was already gone.

It was precisely the one discovered in the small wooden cabin, covered in blood and filth.

The remaining severed limbs lay properly on the planks, their positions not having shifted at all.

"Holy Monk, why not let go and be free and at ease? Why must you block me?" Ksitigarbha looked at Tang Luo and said.

"Because there is merit." Tang Luo said.

"... Mere merit, how could it bind the Holy Monk's true heart?"

"My true heart is precisely to earn the power of merit." Tang Luo said, "Only with the power of merit can I heal faster; only by healing can my strength recover and rise; only with strength can I do as I please!"

Having spoken, he punched out.

Ksitigarbha's only left hand rose, catching Tang Luo's fist.

Not the slightest sound, nor any wild power leaking out; the ruined temple was utterly still.

"Holy Monk's sin, a sin beyond forgiveness." Ksitigarbha looked at Tang Luo and said.

"Is that so? Then come convert me!" Tang Luo laughed, and a whip-kick lashed out.

Typical bullying of Ksitigarbha for having only one hand.

With no alternative, Ksitigarbha could only take the kick on the face, his head tilting back slightly.

However, he still appeared uninjured; not even a red mark on his nose.

"Holy Monk, no matter how great your strength, you cannot injure me in the slightest." Ksitigarbha said to Tang Luo, his tone calm, as if stating a fact.

Only, that hidden emotion was like a volcano about to erupt.

Tang Luo took out Xuanbian: "Just right, Bajie helped me refine a weapon; never had a chance to use it — I'll practice on you first."

"..."

Xuanbian became a sword; Tang Luo swung a stroke, the keen blade landing on Ksitigarbha's neck.

Ksitigarbha did not move a muscle, merely watching Tang Luo.

Xuanbian transformed again; a giant hammer appeared, sweeping horizontally at Ksitigarbha's head.

Ksitigarbha's body trembled slightly; he looked at Tang Luo as his head was smashed squarely by a hammer-blow.

"Comfortable being a sandbag?" Tang Luo asked; Xuanbian became a spear, a thrust stabbed out, cold light flashing — Ksitigarbha shifted back half a meter.

"Unwilling to counterattack, or unable to?"

Ksitigarbha closed his eyes again, single hand held upright before his chest, speaking no further.

Tang Luo did not care; holding Xuanbian-as-axe with both hands, he raised it high and brought it down — in an instant countless axe-shadows formed, all landing on Ksitigarbha's body.

The next breath, the axe afterimages turned into sharp swords; sword-light flickered, interspersed with spear, hammer, shield, axe.

Wielding Xuanbian to execute the Thousand Hands Cannot Defend.

Void ripples; ten thousand weapons form a burial mound, to entomb Ksitigarbha within.

Facing this scene, Ksitigarbha displayed remarkably powerful defense and restraint; he "lowered his brows and softened his eyes," treating the attacks as nothing, even his robes remaining intact.

"Interesting." Tang Luo chuckled — could his attacks not even break the defense?

No, just now was already Tang Luo's maximum no-injury output, with no holding back.

Taking Tang Luo's attacks on the face — even the King Ksitigarbha could not regard it lightly; there must be a secret.

Tang Luo made a bow-drawing motion.

At zero distance aimed at Ksitigarbha's head, the index finger of the drawing hand extended; transparent flame emerged from the fingertip, forming an arrow.

"Your demonic thought once burned me with Karma Fire." Tang Luo said, "Do you know this?"

Ksitigarbha opened his eyes: "I once severed the thought, yet let it escape — many thanks, Holy Monk..."

"No need for thanks; returning an arrow, we're even." Tang Luo released.

The Glazed Arrow pierced through Ksitigarbha's eye, exited the back of his skull, landed on the planks, spread out, and instantly set the entire ruined temple ablaze.

Ksitigarbha's body leaned back, then slowly righted itself; in the eye-socket pierced by the Glazed Arrow, translucent flame was slowly burning.

"Feel the power?" Tang Luo issued an invitation, "Stand up, come fight."

Ksitigarbha shook his head slightly, closed his mouth and said nothing.

Tang Luo stowed Xuanbian, placed a hand on Ksitigarbha's shoulder; the Glazed Flame instantly ignited, turning Ksitigarbha into a human torch.

Stepping back two paces, Tang Luo watched the burning ruined temple and the Bodhisattva, a trace of grim smile on his face.

The temple, the Bodhisattva, and the surrounding area were engulfed in roaring, semi-transparent flames, making Tang Luo appear like a Buddha's enemy.