The Buddha

In the night, deep within a dense thicket, Li Huowang lay wrapped in a blanket, silently keeping watch.

The night was cold without a campfire, especially considering it was only March.

But at this moment, he dared not light a fire, fearing that the glow in the dark might attract the monks' pursuit.

By the faint light of the moon, Li Huowang reached into his cloak and pulled out the Dao bell.

The powerful pill that Dan Yangzi had given him, which had once granted him enormous abilities, was almost used up, and now this bell was the only thing he had left.

But when he thought of the way the abbot had held it so easily, Li Huowang felt a surge of intense frustration.

The other side wanted to deal with him, and yet he could only run—this feeling was unbearable.

"This chaotic, strange world... Everything here is ruled by strength. If I want to stand here, I must become strong enough!"

"Even someone like Dan Yangzi could grow this powerful. Why can't I? No matter how bizarre this world's cultivation methods are, I must get it."

"I need to protect myself, and I need to protect those I care about. If I can't get it, I'll steal. If I can't steal, I'll rob. If I can't rob, I'll use underhanded methods!" Li Huowang's expression gradually twisted into one of ferocity.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Li Huowang froze, his hand reaching up to touch the back of his neck, as if contemplating something.

"Nam-mo... He-lo-da-na... Do-lo-ye-ye..."

The silence of the woods was broken by an ethereal chanting.

Almost instinctively, Li Huowang leapt to his feet, scanning the surroundings quickly.

But the area was pitch black; he couldn't see anything, and the simple traps he'd set earlier had shown no sign of activation.

"Nam-mo... A-li-ye... Bo-lu-jie-di... Shuo-bo-luo-ye." The ethereal chanting came again from the darkness, this time closer.

"Quick! Everyone get up! Move! Scatter and run, don't worry about the donkey cart! Fool! Do what I taught you before!"

At Li Huowang's command, Bai Lingmiao instinctively started to follow, but was immediately thrown over the shoulder by Fool, who charged eastward with her.

Li Huowang leapt over the thicket, returning to the road, gritting his teeth as he dashed forward. No matter what, those monks were after him. If he couldn't escape, there was no need for others to die with him.

As he ran through the darkness, the chanting continued to follow relentlessly, and soon, the smell of incense from a temple reached his nostrils.

Suddenly, Li Huowang stopped. His pupils constricted as he gazed at the road ahead, where many red points, as small as flies, quivered faintly.

"Pu-tuo-ye... Pu-tuo-ye... Mi-ti-li-ye... Na-lo-jin-chi..." The chanting grew louder.

At last, the thing in the darkness slowly began to emerge. It was a Buddha, colossal, with a tall body and extremely thin legs—a giant Buddha with a bloated belly.

The red points Li Huowang had seen in the dark were actually incense sticks lodged into the Buddha's body. These incense sticks, embedded into the Buddha's flesh, shook as the Buddha's massive body swayed.

The towering Buddha, surrounded by white smoke, should have seemed otherworldly, but in the dim, remote forest path, it had a completely different presence.

There wasn't just one Buddha, but seven. They stood side by side, swaying as they walked toward Li Huowang.

They shuffled with a simple, repetitive step, swaying left and right. Their forms were human-like, yet not quite human, their expressions a strange mix of smiles and frowns, anger and mirth.

When they were fully exposed to the moonlight, Li Huowang recognized the one in the front. He knew that Buddha—it was Jian Dun's face.

"Amitabha, donor, your heart is not calm," the Buddha said.

Li Huowang looked up at the towering Buddha, at least four meters tall. "So, you're not pretending anymore? You're all just worshipers of these monsters!"

"Donor, I do not understand what you are saying. Please come with us back to the temple. The karma of Dan Yangzi is on you, and if you leave with it, great trouble will fall upon you. All the people of this world will suffer," Jian Dun said.

With that, Jian Dun clasped his hands together with great force. A sound of flesh tearing followed, and hands without skin began to sway out from behind him.

In an instant, like a peacock spreading its feathers, the seven Buddhas transformed into seven terrifying, monstrous thousand-handed flesh Buddhas.

"Clink! Clink! Clink!" As Li Huowang shook the Dao bell violently, the surrounding environment began to warp. The branches of the trees twisted and formed into You Laoye, the ghostly figure.

However, despite the chaotic distortions around them, the Buddhas remained unmoved, standing like rocks.

Li Huowang dug up some dirt from the ground and stuffed it into his mouth. "Xiao Gan Kun!" You Laoye, leaving a trail of afterimages, rushed toward the Buddha.

"Ha!" The enormous Buddha's palm slammed down, sending dust flying.

But You Laoye, being incorporeal, completely ignored the attack, diving out from the back of the palm and charging directly toward the Buddha's massive face.

As You Laoye completely entered one Buddha's head, the towering figure began to wobble. Its gigantic hands swung like swatting flies.

But this had no effect. Soon, the massive Buddha crashed to the ground, and its facial features began to melt. Its body, which should have been unaffected, distorted as well.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The remaining six Buddhas quickly formed a circle, back to back, and slammed into the ground with great force. Then they clasped their hands together and began chanting a difficult, unfamiliar sutra.

"Ru-lai A-do-luo... San-mo... San-bu-ti..."

As the chanting began, Li Huowang saw that something was wrong with You Laoye. The lines that formed its body began to twitch uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Li Huowang shook the Dao bell even harder. "Ji-Jian! Lao-Kao-Kong!"

Hearing that Li Huowang was willing to offer more of his lifespan, You Laoye struggled to maintain its form, charging at one of the Buddhas.

With a tremor, another Buddha fell to the ground. However, that was all You Laoye could do.

In the booming chanting, You Laoye fell from mid-air to the ground.

Seeing that You Laoye was no longer useful, Li Huowang stopped shaking the bell. But as everything around him returned to normal, the You Laoye on the ground didn't dissipate.

The lines on its body began to lose their original color, turning into a pink, fleshy tone. What had always been formless, now had been given a physical body by the chanting of the Buddhas.

With a physical form, You Laoye now looked like a large knot of writhing earthworms, slowly crawling across the ground.

A giant hand with the swastika symbol on its palm came crashing down.

"Smack!" You Laoye's body instantly turned into a pile of mush.

The giant hand, now smeared with You Laoye's flesh, slowly lifted, clasping its hands together. The remaining five thousand-handed Buddhas staggered forward and arranged themselves in front of Li Huowang.

"Amitabha, donor, please follow us back," they said, one by one.