Chapter 361: Ambush

As Li Hao and the others set off, Heavenly Prides from various Saint Lands across different realms also departed, heading towards the Heaven Origin Realm in the Upper Three Realms.

In addition to these participating Heavenly Prides, those who were eliminated in the selections and influential figures from various realms also immediately set out to attend this grandest gathering of Heavenly Prides in the Land of Saints.

Streaks of light from all realms converged upon the Heaven Origin Realm, like a rain of light.

Within the Sword Ancestor Saint Land.

The Sword Master's figure flickered, arriving at the Sword Saint Courtyard, and said calmly:

"I will personally escort these youngsters. It's been a while since I went out, you stay and watch over the Saint Land."

The Sword Saint was slightly surprised to hear this. This senior brother of his was usually reclusive and disliked joining such lively events. He was actually taking the initiative to go this time.

He pondered for a moment and didn't refuse, saying, "Then I'll trouble you, Senior Brother."

The Sword Master nodded slightly, then his figure vanished, returning to the Sword Tower.

"Old friend, I need you to accompany me on another trip. There might be some unexpected surprises this time. If the opportunity arises, deliver a sword strike for that child, it wouldn't be in vain for our shared fishing."

The Sword Master arrived before the Sword Tower, murmuring softly to himself.

The Sword Tower, entwined with chains, seemed to vibrate slightly. The dust on the countless cultivation manuals and secret techniques within also trembled.

Immediately, a phantom figure flew out from the Sword Tower, it was the sword spirit of the Sword Tower.

The phantom rapidly shrank, merging into the Sword Master's fingertip. Then, the Sword Master placed his hands behind his back and turned to leave.

…

Within the Buddhist Saint Land.

The Buddha Lord heard the words reported by the Bodhisattva at his seat, a hint of profound meaning in his compassionate Buddhist eyes:

"It seems the allure of the three Heaven and Earth treasures is indeed tempting to him. He actually dares to come."

Before his lotus platform, the Twin Buddha Sons' eyes brightened slightly, a hint of violent killing intent surfacing in their depths: "It's good that he's willing to come out, I was just afraid he'd stay hidden."

"That Thief Saint has invited the Mo Family Saint, attempting to conceal him with the reputation of a Supreme Saint. When the time comes, I will draw Yuan Zhou away, and you all lay in ambush!"

The Qing Deng Buddha spoke calmly.

As they were talking, the void suddenly rippled slightly. Immediately after, two auras descended upon the Buddhist Saint Land.

Although these two auras were concealed, both the Buddha Lord and the Qing Deng Buddha detected them immediately. Focusing their gaze, they saw that one of them was a familiar face, the Void Saint.

Besides him, there was even another Saint, the Yang Saint!

"They've set off."

The Void Saint met the Buddha Lord's gaze across the distance, then traversed into the Buddhist hall. His first words upon meeting were direct.

"They've split into two groups. I scouted outside the Thief Heaven Saint Land's void and discovered that the Lying Heaven Saint is also involved in this matter. She left the Saint Land with what appears to be a clone. She is proficient in deception and lies. If she is involved, she must be the mastermind behind the plan. Now there is a true one and a false one. I heard that the Buddhist sect possesses the Great Vehicle Supreme Truth Dharma, capable of distinguishing truth from falsehood. Can it be used to verify?"

Hearing the Void Saint's words, the Buddha Lord frowned slightly, saying:

"Although the Great Vehicle Supreme Truth Dharma can break through all illusions, that Lying Heaven Saint has survived the Three Calamities. I fear she can even deceive herself. If she has deceived herself, relying on this Dharma might lead us to be wrongly guided."

The Qing Deng Buddha's expression turned grave: "They know about the Great Vehicle Supreme Truth Dharma, this action is likely a precaution against it. The Lying Heaven Saint left alone with a clone?"

The Void Saint, hearing them say the Great Vehicle Supreme Truth Dharma was ineffective, couldn't help but reveal disappointment in his eyes. He was somewhat wary of the Lying Heaven Saint's way of lies, but still explained the situation.

Ever since Li Hao made a name for himself in the Battlefield of Heavens, he had sent his incarnation to lurk in the void outside the Thief Heaven Saint Land, seeking an opportunity. If he could find a chance for the young man to emerge alone, he would sacrifice the incarnation to kill him in one strike.

However, regrettably, the young man had never shown his face and remained in seclusion.

"They are so cautious and have even invited the Mo Family Saint to watch over them. They must have anticipated that we would scout. The Lying Heaven Saint might have predicted that her movements would be exposed. This action is deliberate, and what she took away is likely not her true body, but a clone!" The Buddha Lord pondered.

The Void Saint frowned, "I initially thought so too, but the Lying Heaven Saint is adept at deception. If she anticipated that we would anticipate this, she might reverse the strategy. Therefore, that might actually be her true body!"

"If she anticipated that we would anticipate and even anticipated that we would deduce she would use this to reverse the strategy, then it could still be a clone," the Yang Saint said.

The Qing Deng Buddha remained silent.

Truth and falsehood, it all depends on how one interprets it.

"The other apparent true body, traveling with Yuan Zhou and the Thief Saint, is so blatant, making people mistakenly believe it's false, when it is actually true. But they might also have calculated this, so it might still be false!" the Void Saint said.

He was naturally suspicious and disliked the Lying Heaven Saint the most.

"Since it's difficult to distinguish, we don't need to differentiate. Why don't we also split into two groups?"

The Buddha Lord suggested.

The Void Saint nodded upon hearing this, as this was also his intention. If the other side wanted them to guess the truth from falsehood, they could also split into two groups in response.

"Since the Void Saint believes that what the Lying Heaven Saint took is the true body, then I will go find the Lying Heaven Saint. You two go look for the Thief Saint."

The Buddha Lord said.

The Void Saint and Yang Saint exchanged glances, both discerning the Buddha Lord's intention – he was unwilling to clash with Yuan Zhou. After all, the Mo Family was behind him.

"I need to guard the Saint Land, I can only accompany the two of you with an incarnation,"

The Qing Deng Buddha then spoke, offering his incarnation to accompany the Void Saint and Yang Saint to meet Yuan Zhou, which could be considered the Buddhist sect's stance.

Hearing this, the expressions of the two improved slightly, and they nodded.

"There is also another matter I must explain to you all. Ordinary methods alone might not be able to kill that monstrous genius. He has cultivated the Ultimate Power Realm, and possesses divine blood within his body, having already transformed into a God race!"

The Void Saint suddenly said.

Hearing his words, the Buddha Lord's eyes flickered slightly, but he didn't show much surprise.

Only the Yang Saint was slightly stunned, astonished: "Ultimate Power Realm? How audacious! Could he be attempting to become a Saint through the extreme path? Wait, if that's the case, then when he went to the Battlefield of Heavens some time ago, wouldn't he have accumulated enough extreme path power already!"

Speaking of this, his eyes flickered. If he became a Saint through the extreme path, then it would be troublesome. At the very least, their ambush plan would fail.

But the advantage was that they could announce this matter and have a Supreme Saint take action. After all, they had sealed off one God race in the past, sealing off another wouldn't be impossible.

While the other party was still without foundation and hadn't yet passed the Three Calamities, sealing him away would be simple.

"There's no need to worry about this. He is overly ambitious. The incense offerings that the Azure Wave Realm has been providing him have not been cut off. He wants to cultivate both incense offerings and the extreme path simultaneously, likely wanting to fuse dual Saint paths, breaking the shackles of the unprecedented."

The Buddha Lord said calmly.

He had already seen that Li Hao had mastered the Ultimate Power Realm during the previous quota battle. The extreme path power within the Floating Life Demon Domain had dissipated greatly, so he knew it had been absorbed by Li Hao.

Therefore, he had been paying attention to the cities that provided incense offerings to Li Hao during this period, and found that the incense power had not been blocked.

If Li Hao chose to become a Saint through the extreme path, he would have to dissipate the incense offerings within his body and sever the incense path, otherwise the incense interference would make it difficult to achieve the extreme path.

Since the incense offerings continued as usual, it also indicated that the other party had not become a Saint through the extreme path, and was still not a Saint!

The Void Saint and Yang Saint glanced at the Buddha Lord, seeming to realize something, but said nothing. The Yang Saint breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that he hasn't become a Saint, that kid's talent is too terrifying. If I had known…"

Speaking of this, he stopped. Giving Li Hao a Saint imprint back then was to lure him to the Land of Saints and eliminate this monstrous genius of the Ji family bloodline.

But later, he discovered that the young man had severed his bloodline himself, seemingly breaking ties with the Ji family. Furthermore, Li Hao not only didn't die at the hands of the Void Saint, but instead caused a huge commotion in the Azure Wave Realm.

Including his recent fame in the Battlefield of Heavens, a hint of regret had begun to grow in his heart.

If he had taken that monstrous genius as a disciple and taught him under his wing, perhaps he would now be representing their Saint Land in battle, fighting for the small world's fortune!

Moreover, if he waited for the other party to become a Saint and remember this teacher-student relationship, it would also be a huge benefit.

Now, however, they had formed a deadly feud. If the other party didn't die, it felt like a thorn in his side, always uncomfortable.

"If he becomes a God race, if he disperses the divine blood, even if we kill the so-called main body, he can still transfer his Dao will and divine soul to other divine blood, achieving rebirth from a drop of blood!"

The Qing Deng Buddha frowned. With the Ultimate Power Realm cultivated and combined with the power of the three imperishable extreme realms, his life-saving ability could be called number one in all the heavens.

Back then, with the God race, they only sealed them away, waiting for them to completely decline before killing them.

"Even divine blood, if dispersed, will dissipate on its own if the time is too long, losing its divinity and unable to eternally preserve divine power,"

The Buddha Lord said.

If it weren't for the Ultimate Power Realm, and it was just rebirth from a drop of blood, then simply crushing the bones and scattering the ashes, completely obliterating and pulverizing it, would be enough.

But divine blood dispersed outside could still be preserved for a period of time, making killing the so-called main body useless.

Furthermore, divine blood has extremely strong vitality, making it difficult to completely pulverize in one go.

"Ten years ago, he escaped from my grasp, and just eked out a living in that void for ten years. I thought he was already dead, never expected him to have survived."

The Void Saint's expression was gloomy. Back then, he had been extremely cautious, using his incarnation to patrol that area for ten years, but the other party never appeared.

Good endurance, strong acting skills, and most importantly, terrifying strength. He was actually able to survive in the void for ten years in a divine blood state without perishing. Afterwards, upon reflection, he guessed that the other party had likely used divine blood to surround himself layer upon layer, wearing away the layers one by one to resist the void's erosion.

The Buddha Lord said softly: "It's alright, I have a divine ability called the Great Karma Technique. No matter where his divine blood is dispersed, as long as they are from the same source, it can be traced!"

This was a Saint Dao divine ability he had comprehended through thousands of lifetimes of cultivation, extremely terrifying, and one of his trump cards.

Hearing the Buddha Lord's words, the Void Saint's eyes narrowed slightly, and he nodded slightly:

"If we cannot kill him on the spot, sealing him away is also acceptable. We can just wait for the divine blood to decline and then completely destroy him!"

Although this process would be very long, possibly taking ten years, decades, but it would be enough.

Back then, sealing off that God race ancestor, several Supreme Saints joined forces and still spent hundreds of years to wear him down to death.

While they were talking, the Twin Buddha Sons' expressions were gloomy. He had the memories of the Human Realm Buddha Lord. If what the Void Saint said was true, then that young man had escaped into the void from the Void Saint Land for ten years. In that situation, it would be impossible to cultivate. Considering the other party's current age, he was probably not even 20 years old, yet he could force him to this point?

"Time is of the essence, let's set off!"

The Void Saint said.

The Buddha Lord nodded, and then they split into two groups. He used an incarnation to escort the Buddhist disciples to their destination, while his true body took the Twin Buddha Sons.

If the true body of the Lying Heaven Saint was with her, he would restrain the Lying Heaven Saint and hand her over to the Twin Buddha Sons to kill, letting him resolve his inner demons.

Clack!

On the Supreme Treasure Flying Boat, Li Hao took out a chessboard and played chess with Hong Yue.

As the pieces landed on the chessboard, Li Hao secured victory.

"Young Master's chess skills are soaring, it seems I can no longer keep up with you, Young Master."

Hong Yue saw the dead game on the board, slightly opened her mouth, and finally chuckled wryly.

Li Hao smiled slightly, saying, "It's just a pastime, no need to be concerned about winning or losing."

Hong Yue pouted slightly. You don't say that when you lose…

The flying boat swayed. Yuan Zhou and Feng Boping sat beside Li Hao. Seeing him still in such a leisurely mood, Feng Boping was used to it, but Yuan Zhou couldn't help but reveal a hint of surprise in his eyes.

One had to know that this journey might encounter Saint ambushes. For Dao Dharma Realm cultivators, even provoking a Saint's displeasure would cause sleepless nights, let alone facing an ambush. They would probably already be out of their minds with fear.

"Young friend truly has a fine interest."

Yuan Zhou chuckled lightly. He actually also had a fondness for chess, but seeing Li Hao playing chess with that woman, and their chess skills being so exquisite, even surpassing his own in many ways, he wisely didn't reveal his own interest.

Otherwise, it would be somewhat undignified for a dignified Saint to be easily defeated by two juniors. After all, he and Li Hao and this woman were only meeting for the first time, not yet familiar with each other.

"Peaceful times are all thanks to you two bearing the burden for me."

Li Hao smiled. Although he appeared carefree and casual, he knew in his heart that Old Feng had done many things for him.

However, he wasn't one for sentimentality and didn't like to show too much on the surface, keeping this kindness in his heart.

"That Buddhist sect and the Void Saint should have set off as well, I wonder how they will scheme."

Feng Boping said with a smile at this time. He had great faith in the Lying Heaven Saint's arrangements, a trust built over thousands of years with an old rival.

"Arguing truth and falsehood with the Lying Heaven Saint is just walking into a trap. The best result would be to not engage and also split into two groups," Yuan Zhou chuckled, saying softly.

Feng Boping nodded: "This is also in line with our previous expectations."

These expectations were what the Lying Heaven Saint had said. She even informed Feng Boping that it was highly likely the Buddhist sect would go to find her, and the Void Saint would come to Feng Boping's side to test the waters.

Li Hao also knew their arrangements and plans. The Twin Buddha Sons might also make a move, not waiting until the stage of the Supreme Heavenly Pride battle to openly and fairly compete with him.

The outcome of some chess games, the decisive moves, are often determined outside the chessboard.

"Come, continue."

Li Hao beckoned Hong Yue for another game. This travel time could also accumulate chess path experience. Although the experience gained from winning against Hong Yue was greatly reduced now, it was still hundreds and thousands of times stronger than the sporadic experience gained from playing against others.

On the other side of the void.

The Lying Heaven Saint led her dark side clone, rapidly traversing through the void. Her expression was calm, revealing a confidence of having everything under control.

Suddenly, a golden light appeared in the void ahead, it was a bright and pure Buddhist light.

The Lying Heaven Saint's lips curled up, but a solemn expression appeared in her eyes, saying:

"Buddha Lord?"

The Buddha Lord stepped out from the Buddhist light, accompanied by the Twin Buddha Sons. He smiled faintly, "Lying Heaven Saint, long time no see, why have you also taken to meddling in other people's affairs?"

"Long time no see, you still like to 'redeem all living beings' in the name of Buddha, I see."

The Lying Heaven Saint pursed her lips, a hint of contempt in her smile.

The Buddha Lord lightly chanted a Buddhist invocation, knowing that there was no need to say more to the other party. After all, she was full of lies, truth and falsehood were indistinguishable. His robes fluttered, and he directly unleashed his Saint Dao Dharma Idol. A towering Buddha body stood in the void outside this small world.

(End of Chapter)