[Tianhuang], Western Lands.
On the vast continent, two figures stood in the middle of the sea of clouds. Perfect circular light circulated around them, reflecting layers of scenes, as if countless sentient beings relied on their shelter.
It was the World Honored One and Xiu Zhen.
At this moment, the World Honored One was pitching his [Mahayana True Enlightenment Fundamental Sutra] to Xiu Zhen, his face full of compassionate smiles, looking as if he would never harm him.
"Fellow Daoist, how can you still not trust me."
"As everyone knows, I am a good friend to lower-realm cultivators. As long as you cultivate this sutra, you won't have to worry about the Investiture of the Gods Method forcefully altering your foundation."
"Hmm..."
At this point, seeing that although Xiu Zhen was somewhat hesitant, he was clearly tempted, the World Honored One hurried to strike while the iron was hot. "Could it be that Fellow Daoist is worried about being controlled by me?"
"I am already clear about Fellow Daoist's origins. Since you are closely related to me, how could you not understand 'One Mind'? If it were a lower-realm cultivator who hadn't forged a Primordial Spirit, there might be some risk. But Fellow Daoist has long achieved a Primordial Spirit, so 'One Mind' has absolutely no binding force on you. Why worry then?"
This statement was not unreasonable.
With the achievement of a Primordial Spirit, the [Self] alone is supreme. A mere 'One Mind' naturally couldn't affect him, and he might even influence it in reverse.
Thinking of this, Xiu Zhen nodded slightly.
"Since that's the case..."
Right at this moment.
The World Honored One, who was still smiling, suddenly froze. Then, he only felt a loud boom in his ear. Subconsciously looking up, he gazed in the direction of the Netherworld.
This is... The World Honored One opened his mouth.
Someone joined 'One Mind'?
A Primordial Spirit cultivator?
...Oh no!
The next second, the World Honored One felt an abundant emotion surging through the connection of 'One Mind,' making him unable to help but cover his mouth and groan.
'One Mind,' ultimately, was a set of methods used to assimilate lower-realm cultivators. It was a method he specifically researched back then in order to ascend to Paramita. At the time, the Grotto-Heaven Method was dominant. He used the method of finding people to affiliate with to collect the Five Elements Dao Fruits, but he didn't want to hand over the key to seeking the Dao to others.
Thus, he developed this Dharma method.
With 'One Mind', no matter who it was or which Dao Fruit they mastered, in the end, it was all the [Self]. Naturally, there would be no distinction, and no need to worry about accidents.
However, regardless.
This thing was ultimately only meant for weak cultivator. Its foundation was still his Primordial Spirit cultivation. Once the other party also forged a Primordial Spirit, it would become very troublesome.
Xiu Zhen was an exception because he himself was pieced together from the World Honored One's evil consciousness and Du Xuan's good consciousness. Even if he merged into 'One Mind,' it wouldn't be a problem; the World Honored One even had a certain degree of confidence in using this to enhance his own Primordial Spirit cultivation. However, a truly foreign Primordial Spirit was different.
"Alas... I never expected that I am actually an incarnation of the World Honored One..."
A melodious voice came through 'One Mind'. The corners of the World Honored One's eyes twitched slightly. Immediately, thunderous Dao resonance burst from his mouth, blocking the other party's divine sense without hesitation.
"...Get lost!"
The Buddha light that originally encompassed everything suddenly went berserk, forcefully repelling the divine sense shock from 'One Mind'. I don't have an incarnation like you.
Don't try to latch onto me!
At the same time, Lu Yang, who voluntarily joined 'One Mind', encountered the same problem. In a trance, he seemed to see a vast ocean.
Myriad sentient beings, countless Buddhist cultivators were all within it.
Rumble!
Facing the impact of 'One Mind', Lu Yang held his Primordial Spirit steady, like a pillar in midstream, forcefully holding his ground without being assimilated into one by the Buddha light within.
One didn't want it, and the other didn't want to give it.
The two hit it off instantly, surprisingly reaching a delicate balance. Although Lu Yang joined 'One Mind,' he was not assimilated by the World Honored One's mind.
Thus, the drawbacks disappeared.
Only the benefits remained—at this moment, the karma of the World Honored One surprisingly surfaced on Lu Yang's body. From a karmic level, he was now the World Honored One!
"Good, good, good..."
Seeing this, Sisui couldn't help clapping his hands and laughing. "What a clever method! Taking a different approach. Although there is no Light of Wisdom, the comprehension is actually still there."
Dao Tianqi also praised:
"If Senior Brother Heaven-Mending were here, he would definitely get along very well with Fellow Daoist."
Hearing this, Lu Yang hastily waved his hand in refusal, then said seriously, "Is it okay now? Fellow Daoist, try to see if you can temporarily lend your Light of Wisdom to me."
"I'll try..."
Dao Tianqi didn't drag his feet either, forming a hand seal and pointing. In an instant, Lu Yang felt a familiar sensation return, and his brain began operating at divine speed.
A dazzling Light of Wisdom erupted in the depths of his eyes!
I lack nothing now!
In a flash, the Qi Refining bottleneck that had troubled him for over a month was accomplished in one fell swoop. The seemingly insurmountable chasm had seemingly vanished out of thin air!
Seeing this, Sisui raised an eyebrow. He did a quick deduction, then felt relieved. "Miraculous. Fellow Daoist's spirit and Qi body were originally incompatible, making it extremely difficult to achieve the integration of the three treasures in Qi Refining.
But now, after borrowing Beast Taming's Light of Wisdom, it seems to have filled that sliver of flaw. The incompatibility has disappeared; only then could it be this smooth."
After speaking, he frowned again:
"However, once the Light of Wisdom dissipates, I'm afraid Fellow Daoist will revert back to normal. This is a method that treats the symptoms but not the root cause... But it is completely usable for the time being."
On the other side, Lu Yang also felt this profoundly.
The Light of Wisdom is truly unique.
This thing is somewhat like the ID card of cultivators in the Light Sea. Only with this can one comprehend the Great Dao; without it, cultivation is like looking at flowers through a fog...
More importantly, it could fill his hardware defect as a transmigrator!
Why was this so?
If the Light of Wisdom was a profound wonder created by that upper-realm Deity Transformation, then why did it have such a peculiar function? Could that person also have been a transmigrator?
Intuition told Lu Yang that the Light of Wisdom was exceedingly important to him. If he wanted to continue ascending, he had to solve the hardware problem of being a transmigrator.
Time is tight, continue cultivating!
Thinking of this, Lu Yang didn't waste any time. He simply brought the mountain of jade slips that Sisui had taken out to the Netherworld and began reading rapidly.
Almost simultaneously.
"Hmm?"
Dao Tianqi, whose eyes were originally bright, suddenly felt his head grow heavy. His previously sharp thoughts suddenly stagnated, almost causing him to drool.
He became stupid again.
On the other side, Sisui showed a look of admiration. "It won't take a thousand years. At this rate, he will be able to learn everything in at most a year."
"And he doesn't even need me to teach him."
At this point, Sisui felt a bit regretful, but he quickly became enthusiastic again: "Looking at it this way, he should be able to handle it if I increase the difficulty."
"Very good."
Just as Sisui was preparing to rewrite his educational plan for Lu Yang, suddenly, an indescribable omen surged into his heart for no reason.
Not only him, but the World Honored One, Dao Tianqi, Xiu Zhen, and Sword Lord, Cang Hao, and Myriad Laws in the external Light Sea, and even Lu Yang, who was originally studying, were all awakened by this inexplicable omen. After coming to their senses, they looked toward the obscure void above their heads, yet couldn't articulate exactly what had happened.
"This is..."
A Primordial Spirit's premonition, sensing danger to avoid it.
Restricted by their stature, the other Dao Lords didn't sense it very clearly, and it vanished in a flash. Only Sisui clearly and intuitively saw the source of the omen.
The firmament of [Tianhuang].
Sisui was seen walking out of the Netherworld, arriving at this place, and looking up into the distance. The smile originally on his face gradually faded, ultimately leaving a touch of gloom.
...The Final Tribulation?