Chapter 2466: Master of the Buddha Mountain
The Fate Temple Master revealed a faint smile, then spoke: "Master Divine Artificer, renowned across the Nine Heavens for countless ages, is naturally the most suitable referee for this arranged battle."
The Divine Artificer glanced at the crowd, a smile on his face, then strolled out and ascended to a high viewing platform. His three disciples stood respectfully before him, at the lower positions.
"Very well, I shall not decline this honor." The Divine Artificer appeared to be merely a youth, yet his voice carried an aged and seasoned tone, which struck many as rather peculiar. For the vast majority present, they had never laid eyes on this mysterious foremost master of artifact forging in the Nine Heavens.
"Let the five combatants from each side step forward first. Once they have stepped out, no substitutions will be permitted." The Divine Artificer announced. Both sides nodded in agreement. From the Fate Temple's side, the agreed-upon five were Lin Feng, Kong Ming, Chu Chunqiu, Hou Qinglin, and Zhou Rongman.
From the Six Divine Temples Alliance, five figures also stepped forward. As the crowd beheld these five silhouettes, their pupils involuntarily contracted.
From the Demon Divine Temple, Heavenly Heart Demon Saint had stepped into the Great Accomplishment Saint King realm over a hundred thousand years ago. Apart from being unable to fuse two special types of great-circle origin power, he had perfected everything else required. At this Great Accomplishment realm, the chosen combatant was indeed Heavenly Heart Demon Saint.
"Lin Feng, your opponent is Heavenly Heart Demon Saint. His strength is formidable—he can control a person's heart, distinguishing good from evil, and sway their thoughts. By fusing the great circle of the demonic path with the great circle of illusion arts, he has created the Heart-Severing Sacred Art, which possesses terrifying power. This battle will be extremely perilous." The Prophet's voice drifted into Lin Feng's ears, causing Lin Feng to gaze warily at the demonic figure across from him.
Additionally, Chu Chunqiu and Kong Ming's opponents were respectively Earth Void Saint King from the Void Divine Temple and Qiong Xie Saint King, a fearsome figure from the Flame Temple.
Zhou Rongman and Hou Qinglin's opponents were Indestructible Saint King from the Radiant Gold Temple and a saint unknown to anyone. Although this person was only a Half-step Saint, since he had been chosen to fight, he must possess astonishing talent and should not be an obscure figure. Yet none present could recognize him; they only saw that he had emerged from the Ice and Snow Divine Temple, making him very mysterious.
However, one thing was clear: on the Fate Temple's side, all the combatants were rising talents with astonishing gifts, all very young. On the other side were seasoned Saint King figures—some had gained great fame many years ago and had rarely shown themselves in the world since. Only the one from the Ice and Snow Divine Temple remained deeply enigmatic.
Heavenly Heart Demon Saint, Earth Void Saint King, Qiong Xie Saint King, and Indestructible Saint King could be considered the pinnacle existences of their respective realms within the Six Divine Temples Alliance. Having sent them out, it seemed the Fate Temple's chances of victory were slim. Especially for Lin Feng, who had only been given two years—he simply lacked the power to contend with Heavenly Heart Demon Saint.
"The battle ends when one side concedes defeat. If one side refuses to admit defeat, the outcome will be death. What do you all think?" The Divine Artificer's gaze swept over the crowd, interrupting their thoughts.
"The Fate Temple has no objections." The Fate Temple Master replied.
"We have no objections either." The Void Temple Master responded.
"For this arranged battle, although the Fate Temple is the host and the Six Divine Temples are guests, the Six Divine Temples have the advantage of selecting from six temples. Therefore, let the Six Divine Temples send out their combatants first, and the Fate Temple will choose opponents of the same cultivation level to face them. How does that sound?" The Divine Artificer spoke again. The Fate Temple naturally had no objections, while the Void Temple Master fell silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "Agreed."
"It seems the Void Temple Master is very confident." The crowd thought to themselves. In this battle, the Fate Temple was indeed at a considerable disadvantage. The other side was an alliance of six divine temples, each combatant being a top-tier existence from their respective temples—how formidable they were! The Fate Temple's side clearly lacked experience and was younger. However, since the Fate Temple had chosen them to fight, they must have had their reasons.
"Since you're all so straightforward, let us begin." The Divine Artificer said with a smile, a hint of amusement showing on his youthful face. Instantly, everyone's gaze turned to the Void Temple Master.
"First battle, Qiong Xie, you will fight." The Void Temple Master announced. Qiong Xie Saint King stepped forward and ascended the battle platform.
"Kong Ming, you will take this battle." The Fate Temple Master assigned Kong Ming to respond.
"Yes." Kong Ming pressed his palms together, his form drifting lightly as he arrived opposite Qiong Xie. His expression was calm as he said clearly, "Please enlighten me."
"Chi..." Qiong Xie said nothing, directly pointing a finger into the void. Instantly, it seemed a divine finger appeared in the sky, radiating flame sacred light. Countless flame fingers shot out simultaneously, as if a myriad of fingers moved in unison, threatening to shatter the heavens. Flames instantly engulfed the entire battle platform. The Divine Artificer waved his hand, and a phantom light enveloped the platform.
Kong Ming continuously chanted Sanskrit sounds from his mouth. Huge ancient characters materialized, giving rise to countless ancient Buddhas. Palm seals struck out, annihilating everything.
"Kill!" Qiong Xie spat out a cold syllable, using the heavenly dao as a guide. Suddenly, countless flame fingers appeared in the sky, stabbing directly at the ancient Buddha palm seals, crushing everything, and simultaneously attacking Kong Ming. Once this finger was unleashed, no one could survive.
"Buddha blocking the path, kill the Buddha!"
The crowd saw that around each Buddha, infinite flame fingers appeared, piercing their bodies, causing flames to erupt from within, burning them to destruction. At the same time, the endless flame fingers, like fire dragons, pounced toward Kong Ming.
Yet Kong Ming remained as calm as ever. The Sanskrit sounds resonated through heaven and earth, like the chorus of ten thousand Buddhas. On Kong Ming's body, an enormous Buddha statue appeared. This statue had four faces, facing the four directions, continuously spitting out Buddhist notes from its mouths, blasting toward the void. All forces that pressed toward him were annihilated, unable to approach his body. Simultaneously, strands of sound directly entered Qiong Xie's eardrums, causing countless illusions to appear in his mind. All dharmas were empty; his mind was filled entirely with Buddhist statues.
Qiong Xie guarded his inner heart, a pure flame appearing in his mind, illuminating it and resisting the Buddhist sounds.
At the same time, outside, the endless flames of heaven and earth frantically condensed in Qiong Xie's hand, forming a single point of fire. This point of fire gradually turned transparent, becoming clearer and clearer. The approaching Buddhist seal techniques were destroyed in an instant, vanishing like smoke.
"What is that?" The crowd's pupils contracted as they stared at that point of fire. It was too terrifying, shaking their very souls.
"To be destroyed by this Heavenly Dao Pure Flame is your honor." Qiong Xie said to Kong Ming, then took a step forward. The void seemed to freeze. He pointed downward. Ahead, a glimmer of light appeared. This glimmer was everything; even the ten thousand Buddhas would dim before it.
Buddhist seals rained down furiously, but the pure flame was eternal, like an undying fire. This single point of flame possessed the power to incinerate the heavens and destroy the earth.
"There's no stopping it. Everything will be destroyed." The crowd's hearts trembled. Even the Fate Temple's members stiffened. Would Kong Ming be annihilated under this point of flame?
Just as the Heavenly Dao Pure Flame approached Kong Ming, he slowly raised his head to look at Qiong Xie. At that moment, Qiong Xie suddenly revealed deep fear—fear from the depths of his soul. The Heavenly Dao Pure Flame in his hand wavered and trembled.
"Ah..." A roar of agony escaped Qiong Xie's mouth. The crowd saw the flame in his hand suddenly scatter. In the sky, an enormous, boundless Buddhist five-finger mountain pressed down. With a thunderous boom, Qiong Xie's body turned directly to ashes.
"Impossible!" The Flame Temple's experts stiffened. How could this be? How could Qiong Xie lose?
Even the Fate Temple's people were stunned. Then, the Fate Temple Master's eyes flashed with sharp light. So, the scene he had seen when the Wheel of Fate turned in the past was correct.
"This battle is to repay the Fate Temple's kindness." Kong Ming said slowly. The Fate Temple Master nodded slightly and said calmly, "Kong Ming, whether you stay or leave, the Fate Temple will not hinder you. Follow your own heart."
Kong Ming turned around, bowed slightly to the Fate Temple Master, and said, "Thank you, Master. In this life, I will never be an enemy of the Fate Temple."
With that, Kong Ming's body flickered, and he drifted away. Before leaving, he cast a glance at Lin Feng. The Fate Temple Master sighed inwardly. Though he was a man of severed emotions, why did he still have feelings?
Lin Feng watched the look in Kong Ming's eyes before he left, as if understanding something. He knew who Kong Ming was.
"The Buddha Mountain, with its ten thousand steps and countless trials—one of them is his story, isn't it? When the demon appears, it makes one utterly despair. He cultivated Buddhism, then demonic arts, achieving great enlightenment. He no longer believes in Buddha or demon. Even if you are a Buddha, he will make you fall into the demonic path." Lin Feng murmured to himself. A lifetime of Buddhist cultivation, yet he used others to cultivate the demonic path.
Kong Ming—the Master of the Buddha Mountain in the Holy City Central Continent.