The Buddhist faction arrived with tremendous momentum, golden lotuses blooming continuously, rosy light and morning clouds stretching endlessly.
As the Buddhist light and auspicious clouds drew near, they slowly dispersed. Beyond the multiple layers of formations, Arhats and novice monks cleared the way. The auspicious clouds parted, and Runan's precious canopy gradually revealed its true form.
To the left and right of Runan's canopy, Buddha canopies of much smaller scale and grandeur also slowly came into view.
Outside the canopies, Arhats personally reached up and lifted the coverings, revealing the solemn-faced Runan within.
The other Buddha canopies were also raised, and all the Buddhas revealed their true faces.
Their gazes all turned simultaneously toward the figure on the main seat — Yuankong.
Runan's eyes studied the figure again and again, then he sent out his divine sense to probe.
Although the formations had the effect of blocking divine sense, this was after all not the protective grand formation of the Eighteen Immortal Sects, so it naturally couldn't completely shut out the divine sense of a top-tier Tribulation Transcendence cultivator.
Runan's divine sense pushed through, heading straight for Yuankong — but it wasn't that easy.
Huang Miao raised his gaze and stared directly at Runan. A streak of sword intent surged forth, cleanly severing Runan's probing divine sense.
Having done this, he coldly demanded:
"Junior, have you forgotten even basic courtesy?"
Runan's eyes lifted slightly. He temporarily ceased his futile probing and asked in a calm tone:
"Appearance transformed, true or false — which is it?"
Yuankong formed a Buddhist seal with his hands and gazed calmly at Runan. The formation blocked the oppressive aura, and without that overwhelming pressure from a top-tier cultivator, Runan — sitting high and looking down with an air of nobility — seemed rather ordinary after all.
The unease in his heart faded quickly. He quietly observed this Honored Buddha, the highest authority of the Buddhist sect.
Chu Xingchen stood at Yuankong's side, watching the gradually calming expression on Yuankong's face. It seemed Yuankong no longer needed his quips to ease his nerves.
Runan's gaze also rested on Yuankong, then swept to Chu Xingchen beside him.
He didn't press the issue of Chu Xingchen promising at Pudu River not to interfere with the Evil Buddha, only to go back on his word and take in the Evil Buddha now.
If it truly came down to it, anyone could find justification, anyone could find a reasonable excuse.
But that wouldn't solve anything.
Runan's gaze settled on Chu Xingchen, calm and gentle, as if waiting for Chu Xingchen to name his price.
From ancient times to the present, what made people make choices was always profit, not principle.
Some craved reputation, so they sacrificed everything but reputation. Some pursued wealth, so they abandoned their sense of fairness.
Yuankong observed Runan's expression. No matter how noble his bearing, the mercantile look in his eyes was all too obvious. He turned his gaze to Chu Xingchen.
Chu Xingchen noticed and sent a voice transmission: "What is it?"
Yuankong honestly transmitted back: "Can I freestyle a bit? I have some questions I want to ask him."
Chu Xingchen smiled lightly and nodded.
Yuankong hadn't expected Chu Xingchen to actually agree.
Although his suggestion had its own reasoning — Runan was, after all, the Buddhist sect's Honored Buddha, and Buddhist mind cultivation was naturally at its peak. If he merely followed Chu Xingchen's answers, no matter how convincing the appearance or how similar the aura, the heart within would be different.
He had, after all, genuinely studied the Mahayana Buddhist Teachings and deeply contemplated their principles.
Yuankong took a deep breath. He wanted to ask, but he also wouldn't let Chu Xingchen down. He turned his gaze to Runan and said:
"Honored Buddha Runan."
Runan's eyes shifted to Yuankong at the sound. He looked at the aged face of the Radiant Buddha, listened to that calm address of "Honored Buddha," and remained silent for a long time.
Yuankong performed a Buddhist salutation and asked softly:
"Even if I am false, I have a few questions I don't understand. Whether the Mahayana Buddhist Teachings are right or wrong, I only wish to ask about what troubles my mind. Consider it answering the doubts of a sincere novice monk, if you would."
Runan's eyes half-closed. "Ask."
"The world is inherently mercantile, and everyone weighs gains and losses." Yuankong's tone carried a note of puzzlement. "Seeking only one's own liberation — can that be called free of mercantile thinking? Is such liberation truly liberation?"
Runan answered calmly: "Relying on nothing external, seeking neither glory nor disgrace — where is the mercantile thinking? Where is the falsehood?"
Yuankong pressed further: "But if the heart holds compassion and desires external things, if the heart feels shame and seeks glory and disgrace — then what?"
Runan contemplated for a moment before answering again.
Chu Xingchen was not a Buddhist cultivator. He could roughly follow this idealist philosophical discussion, though he didn't agree with much of it.
The exchange between the two quickly seemed to reach a rhythm.
Yuankong had accumulated many unanswered questions along his journey. Now, face to face with a true heavyweight of the Buddhist sect, he poured out all his confusion and frustration, genuinely adopting the posture of a sincere student.
Sometimes he even asked the most fundamental questions.
Through this back-and-forth, the originally tense atmosphere gradually dissipated.
In Yuankong's eyes, it seemed the Honored Buddha Runan no longer existed — he had simply encountered a senior who had walked this path before him.
Runan's answers were not careless either. He answered earnestly, sometimes posing counter-questions.
For a time, the scene felt like an internal Buddhist mind-cultivation dialogue.
Runan's expression shifted from its initial coldness to warmth, but the wariness in his eyes gradually deepened.
Time passed. The sun climbed higher.
No one knew exactly how long that conversation had lasted.
Yuankong had just received an answer from Runan, a look of satisfaction appearing on his face. He was about to ask another question when—
Wenliu Buddha, sitting within the canopy beside Runan, interrupted:
"Your questions are like a child seeking lessons — how could you truly be the Evil Buddha?"
The sudden words broke the flow of their dialogue.
Runan's expression remained unchanged, showing no additional reaction.
Yuankong, interrupted, looked somewhat regretful. He turned his gaze to Wenliu Buddha, who had spoken:
"You want to know if I'm real or fake?"
Wenliu raised his brow and said coldly, "You're fake to begin with. Just a petty trick."
Chu Xingchen glanced at Yuankong — the time has come.
Yuankong felt Chu Xingchen's gaze. He smiled lightly and shook his head, then pressed his palms together. Buddhist light appeared around him, and the floating Buddhist radiance on his body drifted outward toward the barrier.
A thin wisp of Buddhist golden light, carrying the essence of Buddhist principle, wafted out.
That nearly imperceptible breath was instantly detected by the many Buddhist Tribulation Transcendence cultivators at the entrance.
Various expressions appeared among the Buddhas.
Some were secretly pleased, others glared fiercely — but the next moment, everyone's gaze turned to Runan.
Runan's eyes locked onto Yuankong. After a long silence, he slowly spoke:
"Senior Brother, your skills have fallen far from their prime."
The moment those words came out, everyone's expressions shifted again.
Wenliu's face changed from secret delight to astonishment. He silently recalled that wisp of Buddhist essence and realized there did seem to be traces of the Mahayana Buddhist Teachings within it…
He stared at Yuankong with suspicion, and also cast a covert glance at Runan.
Huawu True Buddha turned to look at Runan, a subtle movement in his eyes.
Wenliu True Buddha studied Runan's expression and made his decision. He coldly rebuked:
"Evil Buddha, if you truly understand the Buddhist heart, then surrender now. If you sincerely repent, there are ten thousand true scriptures to read, and the Honored Buddha would be willing to accept your Great Dharma!"
Hearing this, Yuankong simply laughed:
"The principles my junior brother and I discussed — they weren't spoken for my benefit, nor for my understanding. They were spoken for all of you to hear."
"You listened to all of it, yet not a single realization."
"A True Buddha, are you?"
Yuankong turned his gaze to Runan:
"Junior Brother, since you understand the principles — right or wrong, do you truly not understand?"
Runan stared at Yuankong and said coldly:
"I call you Senior Brother only out of remembrance for old times. It's a pity you've already entered the path of demons and devils."
"A heart filled with demonic barriers — how can that be right? This formation protects you, but how is this place any different from beneath Zhengyin Dharma Temple?"
"In the past, the Buddhist sect's grace kept you safe. Today, your body and mind are both consumed by demons."
"Don't blame me any further. It's time to suppress demons and vanquish evil!"
Runan's gaze shifted to Chu Xingchen:
"Three days. Return the Evil Buddha to me."
With that, the canopy descended and the auspicious clouds churned.
Chu Xingchen wore a smile, as if the threat hadn't been directed at him at all.
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