More Spoils?

"Even more spoils?" Wei Yuan looked at the three clusters of sickly green flames floating within the central grand hall of the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing. Within the flames rested a demon-subduing vajra, a sutra scroll, and a single palm-leaf scripture. These three artifacts were not meant for combat; rather, they were gateways leading to three other realms. Seeing such immense gains, Wei Yuan abandoned all desire to chase Baoxing. He reached out directly, drawing the three realm artifacts toward himself. Yet at that very moment, Wei Yuan felt a sudden premonition and looked up. The sky vanished in an instant, and the entire grotto-heaven turned ethereal and illusory. Deep within the distant Void Heaven, a light suddenly flared—a light emitted from a single fingertip! That finger was separated from him by an infinite distance, seemingly situated on the other shore. Yet it reached across the entire Void Heaven and tapped downward, giving birth to a single point of light in this world. In an instant, that pinpoint of light transformed into a vast sea of radiance, flooding heaven and earth and submerging the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing where Wei Yuan stood. In a flash, flakes of white ash drifted away from Wei Yuan's body. Under the brilliance of that light, even his dharma body could not endure; layer upon layer burned away, turning into calamity ash. This was not ordinary light, but the physical manifestation of mutual repulsion and clash between Yin and Yang. Caught within the supreme power of Yin and Yang, all things were torn apart and annihilated. Even Wei Yuan's dharma body was powerless to resist. Fortunately, his body was remarkably robust; though it was peeled away like an onion layer by layer, it would take a long time before the damage reached his foundation. Yet every sentient being in the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing instantly turned into nothingness, vanishing without a trace. Not even the tens of millions of mirage demons Wei Yuan had just released were spared. All creations of living beings—including the grand hall, the dharma altars, and every scripture and magical treasure—also dissolved into nothingness. It was not mere obliteration; they were erased into absolute void. Above Wei Yuan's head, the three-faced human head manifested once more. This time, an additional eye opened between the brows of the central face. Where six gazes had once illuminated heaven and earth, the opening of this seventh eye now cast light upon the turning of time and the wheel of life and death. Wherever this seventh gaze passed, every definite, settled object blurred, casting multiple overlapping shadows. Some of these afterimages belonged to the past, while others belonged to the future. It was only that Wei Yuan's dharmic power and cultivation were not yet profound enough; the past and future he could perceive were not far off, separated from the present by merely a few breaths of time. Yet even a difference of a few breaths was the power of time itself. The Pupils of the Six Realms were now imbued with the profound mysteries of past and future. Under the sweep of all seven gazes, vast blanks appeared within the sea of light formed by the rising and falling of Yin and Yang. Wei Yuan finally saw clearly: those people, temples, and structures that had vanished into thin air had actually had all their karmic ties erased. Karma was, in essence, the connection between one thing and another. Once a thing lost all karmic ties, in the eyes of this world it was not merely dead, but thoroughly erased—as if it had never existed. Perhaps it still existed somewhere, but it could only be in another world, one completely detached from this realm. Setting aside the minuscule odds of that happening, being violently ejected from this realm exerted a temporal tearing force that not even Wei Yuan could withstand unless he were a True Immortal, let alone ordinary mortals who had not even reached Scenery Command. Thus, every sentient being and creation within the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing had been wiped out by that single finger. What Wei Yuan now faced was a dead, lifeless realm whose heavenly Great Daos had shattered, leaving it an utterly dead rock. Given time, once the lingering resonance of the Great Dao faded, it would turn into a truly desolate world, just like the world where Wei Yuan had been born. Wei Yuan accelerated the flow of his Dao power, sweeping his seven gazes rapidly across the expanse to carve out a pocket of safety amidst the radiant sea. The surging tide of annihilation gradually ebbed, and the Void Heaven returned to its original state. Yet the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing before Wei Yuan had been reduced to an ash-gray wasteland, its original appearance unrecognizable. *How ruthless!* Wei Yuan narrowed his eyes. Flesh and blood regrew over his exposed skeleton, covering his frame once more. He opened his hand, revealing a single palm-leaf scripture. In that split second just now, he had managed to snatch away one realm treasure. Wei Yuan placed the palm-leaf scripture into the Splendor of the Many Realms and began to analyze the directional karmic threads contained within. A moment later, he grasped the coordinates of yet another Buddhist realm. Time was of the essence; he could not give Baoxing the chance to seal off the realms. Wei Yuan put the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing behind him, but the moment he took a step forward, he froze. Looking down, he saw tendrils of pitch-black muck clinging to his feet, as though he had just dragged them from a quagmire dripping with sludge. The mud could not be shaken off, adhering tenaciously to his body—foul, stench-ridden, and burning with invisible karmic fire. The Pure Land truly possessed supreme arts. They had dumped the karmic weight of the violent deaths of countless hundreds of millions of living beings in the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing squarely onto Wei Yuan. That accusation—"all these people died because of you"—had now materialized into reality. Wei Yuan's eyes darkened. He had not anticipated this move; it was indeed formidable. Yet he hesitated for only a fraction of an instant before taking that step. A few strides later, Wei Yuan traversed the Void Heaven and descended into another realm. The moment he crossed over, the palm-leaf scripture in his hand crumbled to ash. This realm was even smaller than the Heaven of Sorrow and Longing. All around lay a grayish-black desolation, with only the center glowing with warm Buddhist light. A temple stood there, housing several hundred monks who sat in meditation, chanting sutras. Buddhist light steadily radiated from the temple, illuminating this dead world. Devotees could be seen reclaiming land and building houses within the realm, while other monks sat cross-legged at the edge of the light, some meditating, some reciting scriptures, and others contemplating their sacred meanings. No matter what they were doing, a ring of Buddhist light lay beneath each of them, expanding at an excruciatingly slow pace. The reclaimed fields and newly built homes likewise glowed with faint Buddhist light. Wherever the light touched, it dispelled the darkness, generating faint traces of vitality. These sparks of life converged, gathering into greater vitality, until tender shoots of green visibly sprouted beside the monks' feet, growing stubbornly. The moment Wei Yuan appeared, lightning flashed and thunder roared across the realm. Howling winds surged as countless colossal, indescribable entities emerged from the darkness, looming low and glaring at the small temple at the center of the realm. The monks in the temple immediately fell into chaos. Several elderly monks rushed out of the halls, their faces turning deathly pale upon seeing the massive, grotesque entities in the sky. "How can there still be outer demons?" "The outer demons have awakened!" "Quick, inform the Bodhisattva!" The gathered monks chanted in unison, but their voices were ragged and discordant, many trembling visibly. Yet no matter how fervently they chanted, the statue of Bodhisattva Baoxing inside the temple remained completely still, and the four guardian Arhats flanking it were nothing more than painted clay and carved wood. Wei Yuan did not act immediately. Instead, he observed the immense fiends around him with curiosity, while they stared back at him. In terms of sheer size, the smallest among these monstrosities was several hundred li across. Each stood as a cosmic manifestation between heaven and earth, a spectacular and terrifying sight. Two of these entities were recorded in the ancient texts of the Palace of Grand Beginning as famous demons of Dao attainment throughout history. They were typically encountered when elevating one's mindscape world to enter the Immortal Heaven, posing a catastrophic tribulation for cultivators. Though the other fiends were not recorded in the archives, judging by their imagery and realm, they were by no means inferior to the two recorded outer demons. These outer demons were present in their true bodies; even True Immortals would have to treat them with utmost caution. Moreover, when exceptionally brilliant Scenery Command cultivators tempered their mindscape worlds, they could occasionally encounter avatars of such outer demons. Even though those avatars were lesser manifestations, crossing paths with them spelled unspeakable peril. To have several outer demons of the sort encountered only during immortal ascension tribulations appear simultaneously in this place instantly made Wei Yuan feel the danger. Just then, one of the outer demons transmitted a thought: "My lord, there are so many of us here. How are we to divide this tiny realm?" Wei Yuan was taken aback, then found the situation utterly bizarre. He was not acquainted with these outer demons! Another outer demon, sporting multiple wings on its back, spoke: "Did my lord not summon us here to share a feast? But with so little flesh and blood, how could it ever be enough to go around?" Wei Yuan was even more bewildered. When had he ever summoned them? This was clearly their first time meeting. These outer demons possessed power equivalent to immortals. When their thoughts transmitted, they brought rolling thunder, their residual force engraving deep marks upon the world. This was because their power was far too terrifying, and having lingered in the Void Heaven for so long, they had forgotten how to restrain themselves. Thoughts raced through Wei Yuan's mind, and he finally responded, "It is all mine. None will be shared!" The outer demons froze, clamoring with questions. In an instant, countless bolts of lightning flashed across the sky, weaving together like a massive net that draped over more than half the heavens! Such earth-shattering might sent many devotees below collapsing to the ground in terror. One particularly irascible outer demon roared, and sheets of heavenly fire manifested across the firmament, rapidly driving up the realm's temperature. It snarled, "You summoned us here merely to have us run in vain? Are you toying with us?" The auras of the outer demons grew increasingly violent, on the verge of erupting into hostility. Wei Yuan glanced down at the monks and devotees below, and his own aura began to climb steadily. Chilling sword qi manifested around him, complemented by the power of the Pure Land. If these outer demons refused to back down, Wei Yuan would not hesitate to fight. The outer demons' presence surged higher, stirring tempestuous waves through the Void Heaven. They were eager to strike, yet ultimately held back, roaring in discontent: "We shall let this morsel of meat pass. But hereafter, my lord, you will find it hard to summon us again." "When did I ever want to summon you?" Wei Yuan had no idea what they were talking about, but he kept his sword qi suspended high and maintained the three-faced head, fully prepared for battle. After roaring for a while longer, the outer demons finally departed grudgingly, leaving the sky of this realm clear once more. Wei Yuan breathed a sigh of relief. Had a fight truly broken out, he had no confidence in defeating multiple outer demons at once, let alone preserving the realm below. It was fortunate that the demons had retreated on their own—though not out of weakness, but rather, it seemed, out of deference to his status as 'my lord.' Carrying his bewilderment, Wei Yuan slowly descended and landed on the temple's courtyard. Upon seeing Wei Yuan, the presiding abbot turned pale and stammered, "Y-You... you actually colluded with outer demons to invade our Buddha land! Today shall be the day this old monk martyrs himself for the Dao! I'll take you down with me!" With that, the old monk lunged forward, aiming his head straight at Wei Yuan! In that split second, Wei Yuan had hundreds of ways to stop him. However, having just risked his life to preserve this realm only to have filthy accusations hurled at him out of nowhere, Wei Yuan naturally felt disgruntled. Without making a move, he allowed the old monk to lunge at empty air, wanting to see what the old fellow intended to do next. The old monk passed straight through Wei Yuan's afterimage. For some inexplicable reason, he tripped on the perfectly level courtyard flagstones and took a hard tumble. The fall was severe; his forehead struck the ground, and he instantly went limp. In the blink of an eye, a pool of golden blood spread out from beneath his head. Wei Yuan narrowed his eyes. Sure enough, another wisp of pitch-black, viscous vapor attached itself to his body. That hidden enemy had struck once again.