Chapter 513 – Do You Even Deserve to Challenge Me?
"All right, you want to challenge me, don't you? Then come at me right now. But don't say I didn't warn you—this is the Western Heaven. That means you have no backup here. Understand?"
The Buddha Tathāgata fixed his gaze on Ye Tian. If Ye Tian were to back down now, it would give him a way out of this confrontation. But Ye Tian didn't retreat; he knew exactly why he had come here today.
If he couldn't redeem himself today, Ye Tian feared he would lose the will to continue cultivating in the future.
"I'm ready. Bring it on!"
In an instant, a golden spinning wheel appeared around Ye Tian's body. This massive wheel shimmered with flickering flames, and although the flames were subtle, they radiated immense power.
"Ninefold Solar Wheel!"
Boom!
A surge of overwhelming force surged toward Tathāgata!
"So strong!"
"Tathāgata Divine Palm!"
Without hesitation, Tathāgata unleashed the Tathāgata Divine Palm toward the vast force coming at him. At that moment, two immense powers clashed head-on.
"Aahhh!"
The entire Western Heaven trembled from the impact. The shockwaves spread for thousands of miles, felt even in the farthest reaches.
From the sidelines, the Bodhisattva Guanyin watched their clash in astonishment. With the way they were fighting, she feared every structure in the area would be leveled.
"Stop this at once!"
Seeing things spiraling out of control, Guanyin called out, "If you insist on fighting, don't do it here. Find another place. If you're willing to listen to me, then go fight in the Eastern Heaven instead."
"The Eastern Heaven?"
Unlike the Western Heaven, the Eastern Heaven didn't have as many buildings—mostly towering mountains. That was exactly why Guanyin suggested it.
It was a classic case of 'not my problem, not my concern.' As long as they left the Western Heaven, it didn't matter if they destroyed a few mountains.
Tathāgata agreed with her logic. If he lost the battle here, it would be a public humiliation. But if they fought somewhere remote and he lost, no one would know.
Soon, the two of them arrived in the Eastern Heaven. Towering mountains filled the landscape, and beyond that, there was nothing else.
This place was perfect for their duel. Tathāgata smiled as he looked at Ye Tian and said, "Now that we're alone here, is there really any point in continuing this fight? Don't you think it's meaningless?"
"Tathāgata, I came here today just to settle a score. Last time, you and Guanyin schemed against me. Don't think I'll just let that go. That's not how things work with me."
"I admit I was wrong last time. But don't forget—you weren't entirely blameless either."
"Oh? You think I was in the wrong too? Then tell me—what exactly did I do wrong?"
As far as he was concerned, he hadn't done anything wrong. Ever since arriving in this world, aside from participating in a few Golden List Livestreams, he hadn't done much at all. Yet Tathāgata and Guanyin had relentlessly gone after him. Why?
Ye Tian truly couldn't understand it. Was it simply that his existence threatened their interests?
But when he thought about it more carefully, that didn't make sense either. Even if he had ranked first on several Golden Lists, they had also benefited greatly. And yet, they still used the Book of Time and Space to banish him to another world. That had truly crossed the line.
He hadn't planned to return so soon, but now that he had—he was here to reclaim his dignity.
"Tathāgata, spare me the chatter. If I hadn't been lucky, I wouldn't have returned at all. You used the Book of Time and Space to exile me to another dimension. You really thought I'd never come back, didn't you?"
"Fine. If you think I was wrong, then I'll apologize right now. I know you're not the petty type—you're generous and magnanimous. Since I'm apologizing now, why don't we let bygones be bygones? What do you say?"
"Oh? You think an apology is enough to settle this?" Ye Tian sneered. "Let me tell you—it's not that simple. If you really want to resolve this, then kneel before me and beg for mercy. Maybe then I'll let it go. If not, I won't stop until I've made you pay."
Tathāgata was clearly shocked by his demand. "You want me to kneel and apologize to you? That's not possible. I am the Buddha Tathāgata. How could I possibly kneel before you? If word of this got out, how would I ever show my face again?"
Ye Tian chuckled coldly. "There's no one else here, is there, Tathāgata? If you don't want me to keep making trouble for you, then just do what I said. If you obey, we're done. But if you don't, I'll keep coming after you. And as for what'll happen to the Western Heaven after that—I make no promises."
"Are you threatening me?"
"Take it however you like. Call it a threat if you want. But what can you do about it? You know full well that you're no match for me. So maybe you should really think about whether what I'm saying makes sense."
"Hmm…"
Tathāgata knew all too well he wasn't Ye Tian's equal. If they fought now, he would almost certainly lose.
So he gave a bitter smile and said, "I know I'm not as strong as you. But if I fight with everything I've got, it'll be a battle of mutual destruction. Is that what you want—for both of us to lose everything?"
"A battle of mutual destruction? Do you even have that kind of power?"
With that, Ye Tian launched his next attack, charging at Tathāgata. A sharp sword aura, powerful enough to slice the heavens, slashed straight toward him.
You once tried to kill me—so don't blame me for showing no mercy now.