Chapter 780: Great Heavenly Demon Xuanzang

Twin palms collided in midair, shattering with a boom.

The surging "mad winds and giant waves" turned the surrounding immortals and arhats into withered leaves dancing in a gale, in danger of being torn apart at any moment.

Tang Luo smiled and struck out with another palm.

The Tathagata Divine Palm appeared again, blocking the Great Hand Seal.

This time, it was not merely a single golden palm; behind the Tathagata Divine Palm emerged a complete arm, a golden kasaya.

Immeasurably vast, a golden Great Buddha standing between heaven and earth appeared.

Behind its head, a halo formed from a white cloud.

Tang Luo's lips curled with a wanton, arrogant smile; the Great Hand Seal pushed forward, violent power surging.

The Tathagata's towering golden body, standing tall between heaven and earth, did not retreat, but cracks appeared atop the golden palm.

In the next breath, it shattered with a boom!

The Nirvana Glazed Great Hand Seal slammed onto the Tathagata golden body's head.

That golden Buddha head, like the palm, cracked apart — only the shattered golden body did not collapse and dissipate just like that.

On the contrary, after the golden body shattered it directly formed a massive Tathagata composed entirely of "white clouds," continuing to raise its hand and strike at Tang Luo.

Tang Luo unleashed the Great Hand Seal once more, meeting force with force.

The Tathagata Divine Palm made of white clouds was smashed by the Great Hand Seal, instantly recondensing, descending on Tang Luo with the weight of heaven.

Tang Luo raised his left hand, bracing the Tathagata Divine Palm, not retreating a single step, his body not even swaying.

He curled his five fingers, about to crush the giant palm above his head. He had only just exerted force when the giant palm shattered on its own, enveloping Tang Luo's surroundings.

This white-cloud body was quite profound; in power it was in no way inferior to the golden body, yet it was utterly unaffected by force.

Hitting it was like striking into real clouds and mist, unable to inflict much real damage.

White mist filled Tang Luo's surroundings; tremendous power crushed in from all directions, intending to grind him in its palm into a ball of meat paste.

Tearing his hands to both sides, Tang Luo ripped the palm apart, soaring above the white-cloud body, striking out with a palm.

It was likewise the Nirvana Glazed Great Hand Seal, but not projected outward.

In Tang Luo's palm, a black void appeared, rotating, forming a black vortex that attracted and devoured everything.

"Tathagata! Come up here and die!"

An arrogant, provocative voice resounded through the clouds.

Great Hand Seal · Modified · Mockery.

Mockery can be used on the Rebirth Transcendence Finger; naturally it can also fuse with the Great Hand Seal to produce an effect.

Its lethality is inferior to the Rebirth Transcendence Finger, but its coverage is larger, more suited for group attacks.

Also suited for dealing with this kind of colossus that dissipates on its own no matter how you hit it.

The Tathagata's white-cloud body showed no sign of anger, but its giant palms stirred boundless surging power, striking at Tang Luo.

Proving the "Mockery Great Hand Seal" was quite effective.

The two sides clashed; the white-cloud giant palm shattered again, but this time the white clouds did not disperse and recondense — instead they vaguely maintained a crippled palm shape.

Massive cracks spread along the palm to the torso, tearing the huge white-cloud body into five fragments.

Tang Luo's left hand likewise extended, clenching into a fist and punching out.

Executing Thousand Hands Cannot Defend.

The sky was filled with palm shadows and fist force, utterly pulverizing the Tathagata's body.

And this was only the beginning.

The instant the white-cloud body vanished, in the western sky the Tathagata golden body appeared again, a golden halo behind its head radiating endless sharpness.

In the north, black Xuan-water waves surged, a water body manifesting, a halo of dark water forming behind its head.

In the south, flames towered to the heavens, a fire body burning heaven and earth, a halo of flame distorting space, emitting explosive cracks.

In the east, a green-wood body, an incomparably lush canopy swaying behind it, emitting a "rustling" sound.

"Does the Tathagata know the Five Elements Bodies?" Tang Luo muttered.

Although he had treated the Tathagata as a hypothetical enemy for a very long time.

But as for what the Tathagata specifically knows, honestly, Tang Luo wasn't too clear.

Sun Wukong had experienced the "Tathagata Divine Palm's" loving care, but that was it.

The Tathagata's duel with him hardly counted as a battle.

The real battle was just that final palm.

Reluctant as he was to admit it, the Sun Wukong of that time was completely defeated; his final struggle and resistance were pressed back by a single "Om Mani Padme Hum."

This world is built upon Sun Wukong; just from this point, everything in the world is Sun Wukong's "imagination."

But how could things be that simple?

Sun Wukong has fought the Tathagata after all; his "dream world" holds certain reference value.

Moreover, the formation of this world clearly involved an outsider's meddling to bring it about.

As of now, no clues can be discerned.

But as the overlord of this world — the Tathagata — if he had nothing special, Tang Luo wouldn't believe it even if beaten to death.

This battle was imperative for Tang Luo.

Absolutely not just to beat up the Tathagata for a foundation for the future.

Among the Five Elements, the metal, wood, water, and fire bodies — one hand held vertically at the chest, one palm striking out, heaven and earth were both replaced by the Tathagata's palm.

Facing such a terrifying offensive, Tang Luo took out Xuan Bian; the short staff transformed into a long halberd.

A strike straight at the heavens!

After the last mission, Tang Luo and Zhu Bajie discussed and modified Xuan Bian.

He canceled many flashy forms that actually served much the same purpose.

Now Xuan Bian had only four forms: sword, Fangtian Huaji, umbrella, and bow.

The Fangtian Huaji pierced the vault of heaven, shattering the Tathagata's Divine Palm.

Simultaneously casting the Rebirth Salvation Finger, Tang Luo destroyed the Tathagata's Golden Body with a single finger.

When the Fire Body vanished, the final Earth Body slowly appeared, bringing a pressure like the great earth rolling back to envelop everything, far surpassing the other bodies.

The Heavenly Court deities and Buddhist Arhats and Bodhisattvas had already retreated to an extremely distant place.

The battlefield of Tang Luo and the Tathagata spread to the Heavenly Court's magnificent palaces.

Including the South Heaven Gate and the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, all had ceased to exist.

The Jade Emperor wept inwardly; when that demon monkey Sun Wukong wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace back then, the battle losses weren't this severe.

If this keeps up, I'm afraid even the Heavenly Court will be beaten out of existence.

He sent for the Tathagata Buddha from the West — this was not the result he wanted.

One might say: worthy of being the demon monkey's master; his cultivation is unfathomable, and even the Buddha cannot take him down for the moment?

Just as the Jade Emperor wept blood inwardly, the area near the Heavenly Court suddenly fell quiet, and the power faintly leaking from both sides' battle completely disappeared.

"Is it over?"

"Did the Buddha win?"

The deities looked at each other, but the Bodhisattvas and Arhats of Great Thunderclap Temple reacted faster, mounting golden light and flying that way.

The crowd of deities immediately followed.

Barely drawing near, all "people" stopped.

Above the partially ruined Heavenly Court, the ethereal clouds and mist that created a fairyland atmosphere vanished completely.

An enormous void appeared, surrounded by dense cracks spreading outward, as if "Heaven" itself had been punched through and was about to shatter.

Hmm... not "as if."

Rather, the reality is exactly this: Tang Luo and the Tathagata fighting all-out would cause irreversible severe damage to this world.

It would even utterly destroy this world.

Yet this is not a true dream — breaking it doesn't mean waking from the dream.

Heaven knows what effect it would have on Sun Wukong, so Tang Luo chose to hold back.

The Tathagata also held back — perhaps sensing a true calamity of annihilation.

Within the void, the Tathagata still maintained the "True Buddha Statue" form of a six-zhang Golden Body.

"Can you tell me where Sun Wukong is now?" Tang Luo said.

"The demon monkey undergoes tempering in the mortal world; we will not interfere, nor do we know where he is at this moment." The Tathagata said.

"So you're all useless then?" Tang Luo gave a light laugh.

Hearing these threatening words, the six-zhang Golden Body still showed no expression, only its voice came: "The Six Paths of Reincarnation are managed by the Underworld..."

The Tathagata's meaning was that they indeed did not know, but through the Underworld's "Reincarnation System," Sun Wukong could be located.

Tang Sanzang and Sun Wukong's reincarnations also followed the normal route.

"What about the other pilgrims?" Tang Luo asked.

The Tathagata, as always without moving his lips, transmitted several locations.

Zhu Bajie was at Gao Laozhuang, Sha Wujing at Flowing Sand River, Little White Dragon at Eagle Sorrow Gorge — not the slightest difference from their original locations.

"Good." Tang Luo said, "See you at Spirit Mountain next time."

He turned and left, passing through the crowd of deities, even smiling at them — a smile that made the Jade Emperor and the rest terrified.

Patriarch Bodhi, terrifying indeed!

"Buddha..."

After Tang Luo left, the Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and deities approached.

The Jade Emperor looked at the ruined Heavenly Court and said: "Buddha, why not keep this villain? Releasing the tiger back to the mountain, there will surely be great trouble later."

The Tathagata sighed lightly, said nothing more, but a crack suddenly emerged atop the six-zhang Golden Body's head, then "flowed" downward and spread like water.

In an instant it covered most of the body.

All the deities were utterly shocked.

West Heaven's Great Thunderclap Temple, the Tathagata Buddha, the supreme guardian of heaven and earth.

In the clash just now with Patriarch Bodhi the Devil, he was actually injured to this extent?

"This devil is my Buddhism's great enemy, my great tribulation." The Buddha said.

"Just who is he..." The Jade Emperor's voice trembled.

"He has many names: Sixth Brahma Heaven Lord, Papiyan, Mara, Paranirmita Vasavartin, Bodhisattva Vimalaprabha... Now calling himself 'Xuan Zang,' he is the Great Heavenly Devil Xuan Zang." The Buddha "said."

"Th-this, what to do?" The Jade Emperor's face was pale with dread.

The surrounding deities, Arhats, and Bodhisattvas were the same.

Heavenly Devil Xuan Zang — he is the enemy of all beings!

"All has its fixed number; Xuan Zang is not invincible. He personally raised his lifelong nemesis; the departed will eventually return." The Tathagata Buddha finally moved, pressing his palms together before him.

"Amitabha."

With a Buddha's name, the cracks on the six-zhang Golden Body erupted again, turning to dust and scattering on the wind.

"Buddha!"

"World-Honored One!"

The Arhats and Bodhisattvas were all grief-stricken to the extreme.

The Jade Emperor looked up at the void that showed no sign of healing — is darkness about to descend?

What did the Buddha leave behind before his parinirvana mean?

Did he personally cultivate his lifelong enemy, only for the departed to return?

Could it be… that the key to dealing with this great demon, this great calamity, lies in his disciple Sun Wukong?

So, did the Buddha originally preserve his life so that Tripitaka (distinct from the Heavenly Demon Xuanzang) would willingly stake his life and fall into samsara together with the demon monkey?

Tang Luo is unaware of what happened in the Heavenly Court.

Even if he were aware, he would not care.

You have schemes and tricks; I see through your schemes and tricks—do you see through my seeing through your schemes and tricks?

You're joking.

If you have the mental energy and stamina for this nested scheming war, you might as well just punch him straight in the face—it would be direct and clean.

Real men settle things one-on-one with fists.

Only effeminate men play tricks.

That's right—it's absolutely not because Tang Luo lacks sufficient wisdom.