Chapter 272: Old Friendships

"Long time no see, Chief. Your nose has not only not diminished since those days, but has become even sharper."

Upon hearing this, the Ha-Ha Monk showed no surprise; he simply raised his sleeve brazenly, wiped the grease from his face, and let out a slow laugh.

Under Zhou Ji's piercing gaze, he ceased hiding anything; suddenly, a crisp sound like a melon hitting the ground emanated from his body, followed by a vicious blood mark rising from his chest and slowly spreading up to his neck.

Its tragic, sorrowful radiance was like a blood-red sun manifesting from within the Ha-Ha Monk, instantly illuminating the surrounding sea frontier!

"The Flaying and Slaughter Blood Pool Great Hell... indeed, this is that heavy treasure of the Xuehe Sect..."

Zhou Ji's voice grew slightly solemn, and a trace of heavy and solemn expression flowed onto his dog-like face.

This happened the moment the blood mark appeared.

Yin winds rose from all directions, blood light filled the sky, and killing intent drifted densely, making one shudder with fear!

In just a brief instant, this world seemed dragged into the Senluo Hell!

From the void, faint sounds of scolding and bitter curses rose shrilly, lingering endlessly; the clear blue waves beneath their feet seemed to transform into a boundless sea of blood, where countless flayed evil ghosts and bone-flaying yin spirits loomed indistinctly, densely packed, endless to the eye!

Within mere breaths, the phantom of a scarlet red city manifested again, standing tall above the blood sea, its height unknown whether several tens of millions of zhang, touching the clouds and connecting to the heavens.

Within the red city, one could see coarse stone grinding disks, flame wheel carts, oil pools and frying pans, vicious scorpions and black centipedes, knives, saws, pestles, and mortars—various horrific scenes that shocked the heart and startled the eyes.

And a faceless divine being, wearing a tall crown and a mottled blood-stained robe, held the red city in his hands and stood upon the blood sea, erect between heaven and earth, majestic in divine power and unstoppable in momentum!

Although the face of this blood-robed divine being was merely a blank expanse, lacking any facial features.

Yet when he bent down.

Both the Ha-Ha Monk and Zhou Ji could perceive an evil, filthy gaze, as if from an infinite distance, looking coldly upon them and fixing itself on their bodies.

It made one wish to go mad and insane, birthing countless depraved thoughts within the brain!

"It wasn't Laozi who caused this trouble; why stare so hard? Are you looking at your own ancestral tablets?"

Zhou Ji rolled his eyes inwardly, cursed silently, and bared his teeth at the faceless divine being.

At this moment, the Ha-Ha Monk let out a deep sigh, held his tin staff while chanting true mantras, and instantly a wheel of pure, clean halo flew forth from behind his head, emitting an auspicious light that shone down upon his body.

Once this light sprinkled over him, the vicious blood mark on the Ha-Ha Monk's neck slowly vanished, hidden without a trace, temporarily suppressed.

And as the blood mark faded, the blood sea, yin ghosts, red city, and that faceless divine being also disappeared in an instant, scattering like bubbles and shadows, never to be seen again.

Zhou Ji and the Ha-Ha Monk likewise emerged from that terrifying illusion, their minds returning to the present world...

"The Flaying and Slaughter Blood Pool Great Hell; this treasure is truly formidable... If not for the ten thousand years I spent in the Trapped Long Dong, during which I finally cultivated the True Body of the Fanlun Bright King, having it smash down upon me a few times would likely have left me gasping my last breaths by now, let alone possessing the strength to reminisce with you."

The world before their eyes remained bright and clear, like the Candle Dragon holding fire as it traversed the long sky, its radiance illuminating ten thousand li.

The sea breeze blew Xu Xu, gently brushing against their faces.

After a moment of silence, the Ha-Ha Monk sighed, looked at Zhou Ji beside him, and said solemnly:

"Chief, I came to seek you today truly out of necessity; having meditated on Zen for half my life, more than half my old friends have already withered away, and now being in a region like Xudu Xudu Tianyu, I am unfamiliar with both the people and the land.

Thinking it over, the only one who can aid me is you, Chief!"

Hearing these words, Zhou Ji's face turned dark; after a long pause, he bared his teeth and said:

"These words sound heartfelt, but coming from the mouth of you bald thief, they all sound like scheming?

Aid you? How exactly do you want me to aid you? By giving my life to help you?"

After the events just now.

How could Zhou Ji not know.

That mad monk who had recently caused an uproar in the upper echelons of Xudu Xudu Tianyu, sparking widespread discussion among everyone, was none other than the Ha-Ha Monk standing before him!

And long before ten thousand years ago, when Zhou Ji had not yet been subdued by Daoist Master Master Tongxuan and was roaming the cosmic void with several fierce criminals of high magic power, raiding homes and plundering.

The Ha-Ha Monk was already acquainted with Zhou Ji.

He was even one of that very group of fierce criminals.

Zhou Ji knew this monk had always rebelled against scriptures and departed from the Dao; matters like indulging in wine and women, or insulting Buddhas and cursing ancestors, he had committed more than once.

He was truly an outlier within the Great Reincarnation Temple, leaving people dumbfounded.

If not for this, given Zhou Ji's ferocious and stubborn temperament in years past, it would have been difficult for any friendship to exist between him and the Ha-Ha Monk.

And at that time.

With the help of several brothers and his own superior methods, Zhou Ji's group was renowned far and wide.

Not to mention the Earth Lands or the Realm Voids; even within some Xudu Xudu Tianyu, they were considered to possess a fearsome and illustrious might!

It was only until they carelessly provoked the Yu Yuchen Sect, and Zhou Ji was subdued by Daoist Master Master Tongxuan, that the group of fierce criminals finally scattered like birds and beasts, causing no further turmoil.

After Zhou Ji became Master Tongxuan's mount, the Ha-Ha Monk did come to Xudu Xudu Tianyu once, and due to matters involving disciples under his sect, he unexpectedly clashed with Fuchan Fuchan Laozu Fire Mist, ultimately employing ruthless methods to beat Fuchan Fuchan Laozu Fire Mist to death, preventing even her primordial spirit from escaping.

However, although he came to Xudu Xudu Tianyu.

The Ha-Ha Monk did not manage to discuss with Zhou Ji any good method to free Zhou Ji from his sea of bitterness.

Although he intended to bring forth the Great Reincarnation Temple behind him to beg for leniency from the Yu Yuchen Sect.

Before he could even reach the Xiaoming Great Marsh, he was startled by a clear qi that pierced straight through the sun, towered high into the clouded Milky Way, and suppressed the divine saints of all four directions.

In shock and terror.

He had no choice but to turn back and leave, not daring to utter a single word.

As for the various events thereafter, they marked the arrival of the Ha-Ha Monk's own calamity.

Unable to save Zhou Ji, and seeing the position of Abbot of the Great Reincarnation Temple vacant, he was summoned by his elders; the Ha-Ha Monk thus returned to the temple with great enthusiasm, hoping to contend for the prestigious title.

Yet upon going there, not only did he fail to sit firmly upon the lotus throne, but he was instead plotted against and imprisoned in the Trapped Long Dong for ten thousand years, suffering endless pain and torment every day.

It was only when the great disciple of Yong Yong Wangfu Wugou Light Buddha brought a dharma edict that he was finally released and saw the light of day again...

"What exactly is this dog-bald monk trying to do by stirring up wind and clouds in Xudu Xudu Tianyu, making so many enemies?"

At this moment, meeting the Ha-Ha Monk's gaze, Zhou Ji was also slightly puzzled:

"You have abducted disciples everywhere, offending countless powers, and have been chased from Xi Su Zhou all the way to the East Sea; what is this all for?"

The Thunder Court and those external Daoist immortals are one thing, but how could the Bapailiu Sect be taken lightly?

Your Great Wheel Temple is also considered a Buddhist pure land—how could you not understand this principle?

The Laughing Monk said nothing in reply, only clenched his five fingers into a fist, raised it to brow level, and gently released it into the air.

Instantly, forty or fifty people tumbled down like dumplings, cramming the once relatively spacious reef to bursting.

Zhou Ji's gaze flickered; he scanned back and forth several times, recognized the faces of these people, and couldn't help shaking his head in sigh.

"Your deal this time is a mighty one!"

If this were back in the old days, just these hostages alone would have made me, Old Zhou, consider stepping down and yielding the leader's seat."

……

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(End of Chapter)