Chapter 363 - Wentian's Magic Power

Before long, the hall in front of the Devil Repressing Tower had drawn countless independent cultivators. Everyone looked up, staring at the pillar of moonlight aiming at the apex of the tower. The extraordinary treasure must be hidden here, they thought. One of them yelled, “The extraordinary treasure is inside! Let’s overturn the tower!”

The crowd pulled out their flying swords and magic treasures and started striking the tower. However, the tower didn’t move in the slightest. Someone noticed the eighteen statues of Arhat under the tower and cried, “Eighteen Arhats! Push them over first!”

They started destroying the eighteen statues of Arhat, with twenty to thirty people targeting a figure each. The monks rushed over in a panic. Master Xuanji’s expression took a disastrous turn. “Stop, all of you! You’ll cause a great disaster!”

However, everyone was so focused on the extraordinary treasure that his warning couldn’t reach them at all. It was at this moment that two silhouettes descended from the sky—Yi Tong and None-flower Dust. Master Xuanji pointed at them, speechless. “You! YOU!”

Yi Tong chuckled. He imbued his voice with energy and yelled at the tower, “Brother Xiao, are you inside?”

Inside the tower, Xiao Chen immediately knew that Brother Yi had come to save him. Overjoyed, he yelled back, “I’m here!” He quickly understood what was going on when as he recalled all that clamor about some extraordinary treasure hidden in the tower. He yelled, “Brother Yi, I found so many ancient cultivation methods and strange, extraordinary treasures! Come in quick and give me a hand!”

The morale of the group of demons inside got a boost after so many helpers came from outside. They started putting all their effort into directing their collective demonic energy at the stone wall. The only exception was the Koo-chee beast, which continued to blink its large eyes. “Koo-chee… Wuu… Koo-chee…”

When the independent cultivators outside heard that there were indeed treasures inside the tower, their efforts doubled. Many of them even relayed the information to other cultivators under the mountain via Faraway-voice Transfer. In no time at all, more people made their way to the Devil Repressing Tower on flying swords.

Yi Tong laughed cheerfully. “Of course! Brother Xiao, keep calm! I’ll be there shortly! Oh, but let’s get this straight. Whoever who snatches the treasure gets to keep it! No arguments about it!” he said, all while blocking Master Xuanji’s Mace of Exorcism with one palm.

The hall fell into a complete state of chaos. Seven or eight statues of Arhat had already fallen. The Devil Repressing Tower continued to rock and looked as if it was going to collapse at any time. It was right at this moment that a wizened sigh came from the distance. “Since you came here on your accord, you should leave on your accord as well…”

Toward the end of his sentence, a storm swept the place and sent countless independent cultivators flying. What greeted them was the sight of a thin, bearded old monk dressed in plain clothes, strolling toward them. In an instant, a powerful aura shocked everyone present to the core and stupefied them into not daring to take any reckless action. The cultivators flying over from all directions were stagnant in the air. As if frozen by an incorporeal force, they could move no longer.

Master Xuanji composed himself before yelling, “Senior Quechen!”

It was the monk sweeping the grounds, Zen Master Quechen. He sighed and flicked his sleeves at the quaking Devil Repressing Tower. “Quiet,” he muttered, and the tower moved no more. Inside the tower, Xiao Chen and the other demons were forced backward by more than ten feet. The force even sent some of the weaker demons flying.

Outside the tower, Zen Master Quechen looked at Yi Tong and None-flower Dust. “The Spirit Silence Room and the Human Realm don’t meddle in each other’s affairs. Your unannounced presence here today truly makes things difficult for me…”

“Report!” a little monk suddenly cried, running over in a panic. “Bad news, Master! The crowd is forcing its way into the Dharma Hall and Pavilion of Scriptures…”

Master Xuanji turned pale. Both of those places contained a library of the monastery’s most profound cultivation methods. If they were uncovered by outsiders tonight and used as blackmailing material in the future, how could Wuyin Monastery stand tall anymore? Inside the Pavilion of Scriptures were numerous classics, the only one left of their kind in this world. If they were damaged tonight, their loss would be unmeasurable!

Zen Master Quechen sighed. “Forget it. Take the disciples with you and leave this to me.”

Master Xuanji bowed and led all the disciples to the front of the mountain without another word. Zen Master Quechen once again turned to look at Yi Tong and None-flower Dust. “Do you two plan on leaving on your own, or do you plan on a long stay in the monastery?”

His aura was so dominant that it rendered Yi Tong and None-flower Dust speechless. Xiao Chen’s voice erupted from within the tower. “Brother Yi, are you alright?!”

“I’m fine! Don’t worry about me!” Yi Tong replied with great difficulty. He started casting a spell with both hands. The purple-golden gourd hanging around his waist rose up the air and began expanding in size.

Zen Master Quechen’s expression changed, but he was one step too late in stopping it. “Thump!” The gourd exploded, giving rise to the incessant wailing of demons and a sudden storm. Dark clouds gathered, covering the moon, and an overwhelming Devil Qi soon enveloped a range of ten miles. One could faintly hear an overcast voice saying, “The wailing of eight thousand devils quakes the Three Realms and sends hundreds of thousands of Gods and Buddhas running for the Western Paradise!”

Under the weight of such potent Devil Qi, everyone had a hard time breathing. Both Nascent Soul Realm and Nirvana Realm cultivators could feel a force that was unprecedented in its magnitude. This Devil Qi was as powerful as it was upright and was not contaminated by the slightest hint of evil influence.

The vicious devils imprisoned under the Devil Repressing Tower were shaken to the core. They had been howling and wailing without care earlier, but they were now as quiet as officials who were meeting their sovereign. That deranged devil on the third floor was silent, too afraid to declare himself the Devil King.

Outside the tower, Zen Master Quechen’s face was drenched in cold sweat. He rapidly recited a spell so that a layer of golden glow coated his body, helping him ward off this powerful Devil Qi. Yi Tong looked pale but continued to cast spells nonetheless. Suddenly, a gloomy voice once again came from inside the gourd. “Glorious Blaze of the Five Aggregates!”

When five streams of black fog swirled and charged at Zen Master Quechen, his expression fell. He swiftly chanted, “Four Elements of Vanity!” A layer of Great Dharma mystic arts immediately covered his body.

However, when those five streams of black fog struck him, his face turned a frightening shade of white and his forehead became beaded with sweat. His entire body seemed to have become ignited with the fire of karma.

The Glorious Blaze of the Five Aggregates was the last and the worst hardship out of the eight sufferings in life as prescribed in Buddhism. The Five Aggregates, also known as the Five Skandhas, included form, sensation, perception, mental formation, and consciousness. Once one clings onto these five aggregates, one would burn by the fire of passion and experience seven hardships before reincarnation: growing old, dying of illness, condemnation, hatred, regret, separation from loved ones, now getting what is wanted. All of these could sink one in the sea of suffering forever. To followers of Buddha, this was an incredibly harmful matter.

This skill was indeed an attack designed to pull the Buddhist cultivators into the dark side. In terms of malevolence, it was second to none.

Yi Tong immediately cried, “Brother None-flower, quick! I’m keeping this monk occupied!”

None-flower Dust said no more. He swiftly cast a magic spell and conjured a light beam directed at the second floor of the tower. He yelled to the crowd behind him, “The extraordinary treasure is inside! What are you waiting for?”

While some of the independent cultivators still didn’t dare to move, the others threw all caution to the wind and started charging ahead.

Inside the tower, Xiao Chen noticed that a gap was about to open up in the mystic domain. He immediately yelled, “Everyone, all together now! Focus your power!”

The demons, both powerful and weak, focused their demonic energy on the stone wall under the leadership of Xiao Chen, Nightshade King, and the Old Demon of the Black Mountain. Moments later, a mass of primal chaos the size of a bowl appeared. The demons cried, “It’s open! It’s open! Just a little bit more!”

Outside the tower, sweat was raining down Zen Master Quechen’s face. His entire body felt like it was set on karmic fire. For all the profound Dharma skills he possessed, he could do nothing with them when restrained by the magic power in Yi Tong’s gourd. Suddenly, he moved his hands and conjured a string of golden prayer beads out of thin air. He swung the beads at the tower, and the bowl-sized primal chaos on the second floor was immediately sealed.

None-flower Dust and the rest could feel their strength getting sapped. The demons were startled when they saw the primal chaos they opened after much difficulty close up again. Xiao Chen said, “Don’t panic! Once again!”

The demons unleashed their full power, and fifteen minutes later, a bowl-sized mass of primal chaos once again appeared on the stone wall. Outside the tower, it was evident that None-flower Dust and the others were almost running out of strength. Yi Tong’s overexertion was particularly severe, and his face was a frightening shade of white. With his current cultivation, he couldn’t yet fully control the gourd’s magic power.

Finally, thirty minutes later, the primal chaos on the wall stone was fully open. The opening was about five feet tall. The demons immediately filled in and charged out of the tower. The Old Demon of the Black Mountain grinned. “Thank you, Little Brother!” His body shrank and transformed into a black mist. Then, along with Nightshade King, he flew outside as well.

The loss of two great powers in the collective demonic energy placed an immense burden on Xiao Chen. The primal chaos gradually shrank until it was only one foot tall. Knowing that he couldn’t hold on for much longer, he cried, “Brother Koo-chee, run out now!”

“Koo-chee! Koo-chee!” The Koo-chee shook its head. It jumped onto his shoulder, wanting to leave this place with him.

Clenching his teeth, Xiao Chen used all of his strength to transform into a white light and charged into the primal chaos. The primal chaos closed in the next second. Fortunately, both he and the Koo-chee beast had successfully made it out. Now that he was in the outside world, he felt as if he was reborn again. But when he took in what was going on, he cried out in alarm, “Brother Yi!”

None-flower Dust stopped using his power when he saw that Xiao Chen was out, safe and sound. Yi Tong replied, “Leave first! I’ll stall this old monk and follow shortly!”

“Brother Yi!”

“Koo-chee! Koo-chee!” The Koo-chee beast kept shaking its head.

None-flower Dust swiftly made his way over to Xiao Chen and tugged on his hand. “Let’s go!” He rose up the sky and disappeared along the horizon.

Yi Tong chuckled after seeing his two friends made a safe escape. “Master Quechen, I’m not going to stay here for long after all. Farewell!” He put away his gourd, transformed into a purple light, and disappeared to go after Xiao Chen and None-flower Dust.

Inside the Zen Temple, it took a long time for Zen Master Quechen to calm down. His face, however, remained pale and unsightly. His forehead was beaded with sweat. Master Xuanji and the others were only finally arriving outside the temple.

“The Dharma Hall and Pavilion of Scriptures are fine! Are you alright, Senior Quechen?”

Zen Master Quechen eased his breathing while staring in the direction that those three had run away in. He said solemnly, “Devil King Wentian’s magic power is indeed extraordinary.”

The little monks were speechless. Master Xuanji sighed and replied, “It’s true that we couldn’t have kept him for long anyway. Fortunately, the devils under the tower are still imprisoned, especially the one on the ninth floor. Sigh, these two…”

…

Xiao Chen and his two friends were already a thousand miles away from Huai Prefecture early the next morning. The three of them traveled side-by-side with the rising sun as their backdrop. The official roads were lined with thick, lush trees and fragrant, exotic flowers. Butterflies fluttered among the cluster of flowers, and the faraway sound of running water could be heard. The young leaves of the weeping willows swayed gently in the wind. Peach blossoms trees bloomed magnificently, indicating it was early to mid-April. The beauty of nature had wonderfully showcased the wonders of spring.

Xiao Chen breathed in the fresh air of the outside world and felt the breeze, carrying a hint of floral fragrance, hitting his face. It brought him incomparable joy. Following him was the Koo-chee beast, filled with curiosity about this new world. Sometimes, it would roll about in the bushes. Sometimes, it would frolic with the butterflies. Seeing this made Yi Tong smile and comment, “This little thing is quite clever. It seems to be very influential.”

Xiao Chen looked at the beast, rolling under the bushes and chuckled. “Yeah. It’s all thanks to Brother Koo-chee that I wasn’t completely gloomy in the past year.”

None-flower Dust shook his feathered fan and said slowly, “Seven thousand years ago, the Demon King of the previous Era accidentally destroyed the entire Demon Realm when using his Primordial Power. Later on, the King himself went missing…”

The three of them were conversing when twelve silhouettes appeared out of thin air and stood in front of them.