The twin swords clashed with the golden body of Ksitigarbha. At first, the swords seemed to be blocked, but then they cut in again. The Styx Ancestor sneered, and the twin swords emitted a red light, which immediately stained the golden body.
That red light was the unique Netherworld Blood Qi of the Styx Technique, also known as Demonic Qi. Although the Buddhist Light cultivated by Buddhist techniques could restrain the Netherworld Blood Qi, things have two sides; they are mutually reinforcing and mutually restraining. Conversely, the Demonic Qi could also restrain this Buddhist Light.
The moment the red light touched the golden body, it destroyed its essence like a virus. Ksitigarbha roared, spat out a mouthful of blood, and unleashed several beams of Buddhist light from his hands, briefly stopping the Styx Ancestor. He quickly withdrew the golden body, only to find that one arm of the golden body had already been tainted. Ksitigarbha unleashed several beams of Buddhist light on it but could not control it, so he had no choice but to remove that arm.
As a seasoned warrior, the Styx Ancestor knew how to seize opportunities. Seeing that Ksitigarbha was utterly incompetent, still concerned about his golden body during the battle, the Styx Ancestor was somewhat helpless. However, for the sake of the Blood Sea, he could not afford to worry about much else. He cut off the Buddha light emitted by Ksitigarbha and then slashed at Ksitigarbha with his sword.
Just as Ksitigarbha was about to be struck down, a sudden burst of golden light filled the sky, followed by the lingering sound of Buddhist chants. Golden lotuses began to fall. One of the golden lotuses caught the twin swords in the hands of the Styx Ancestor. Ksitigarbha was overjoyed at this sight. He bowed and said, "This humble monk Ksitigarbha pays respects to the Original Teacher Shakyamuni Buddha and all Buddhas!"
Twenty-one Buddhas VS Styx
Meanwhile, Ksitigarbha was fighting with the Styx River, but he was no match for the Styx River. Just when it seemed that Ksitigarbha was about to fall into the Styx River's hands, he was suddenly blocked by a golden lotus. Upon seeing this, Ksitigarbha was overjoyed and bowed, saying, "This humble monk Ksitigarbha pays respects to the original teacher Shakyamuni Buddha and all the Buddhas!"
It was the Tathagata leading the Buddhist army! Behind the Tathagata were the Seven Ancient Buddhas, headed by Dipankara Buddha, Maitreya Buddha, the Three Bodies of Buddha, and the Three Thousand Buddhas, headed by the Eighteen Arhats. Bhaisajyaguru Buddha was the lord of the Eastern Pure Land of Lapis Lazuli and disliked being involved in worldly affairs, so he stayed in the Western Buddhist stronghold; Vairocana Buddha had just entered Buddhism, so he did not come.
This attack on the Hell of Reincarnation is a step in Buddhism's eastward expansion, which the Buddha could not afford to ignore. Furthermore, the Buddha promised Haotian that he would obtain that drop of ancestral witch's blood, so he brought almost all of Buddhism's forces to show his sincerity.
The Buddha clasped his hands together and said, "Namo Amitabha Buddha, greetings to the Styx Ancestor!" Although the Buddha was the most revered of his religion, his seniority was not as high as that of the Styx Ancestor!
Tathagata then said, "Ancestor, you are a listener of the Dao in Zixiao Palace. It is beneath your dignity to deal with Ksitigarbha!" Styx coldly snorted, "Since you know my identity, why don't you call Jieyin and Zhunti to come here?" Styx Ancestor had listened to the Dao in Zixiao Palace with the Three Pure Ones, Jieyin and Zhunti, and others in the past. Tathagata's previous incarnation, Duobao, was a second-generation disciple of the Jie Sect. Therefore, Styx Ancestor seized the opportunity to say that Tathagata's seniority was insufficient.
Tathagata was no ordinary being; he momentarily lost his composure, but quickly regained his senses and said, "The two Buddhas attained the status of saints millions of years ago. How can you lightly step forward now? I will handle this matter for you!" He was referring to Styx's inability to attain sainthood despite having attained enlightenment for countless eons, and was giving Styx a sarcastic remark.
Below the level of a sage, all are but ants. For countless eons, Styx has lived hidden in this Netherworld Blood Sea, unable to attain the immortal body of a sage. How could this not be a source of pain for Styx?
Having cultivated for countless eons, the Styx's self-cultivation was naturally superb. He sneered, "What a fine combination of 'two Buddhas,' and 'this Buddha acting on your behalf.' I wonder what the Supreme Saint Tongtian, the Master of the Shangqing Sect in the Biyou Palace on Golden Turtle Island, would think of your words?" Tongtian had never wronged the Buddha's former incarnation, Duobao, even knowing Duobao was about to join Buddhism, he still gave him the Immortal Slaughtering Formation Diagram. The matter of the Intercepting Sect—wasn't it a knot in the Buddha's heart?
A glint of light flashed in Tathagata's eyes as he said, "Ancestor, given our current situation, further words are pointless. Let's settle this with a fight! I still advise you to stop defying the heavens, lest your eons of arduous cultivation turn to nothing!" In the primordial world, the strong are revered. We've only ever heard of people being killed by fighting, not being killed by insults. Tathagata was so confident precisely because he saw that Buddhism's strength far surpassed that of the Netherworld Sect.
Styx laughed instead of getting angry, and said, "That's right. Since our two sects are going to fight, why talk about following or defying Heaven? Today, your Buddhism has come to my doorstep. How can I let you off so easily?" Tathagata said, "I have long heard of your great skills, Ancestor. Today, I, the Buddha, will ask you for a few moves." After saying that, he stepped forward alone.
Styx remained silent, holding the Abyssal Yuantu Twin Swords upside down with both hands. His face was grave. Today was a matter of life and death for the Netherworld Sect, so Styx had to go all out and could no longer worry about conserving his strength.
Behind the Tathagata, three thousand Buddhas, led by Dipankara Bodhisattva, chanted Buddhist scriptures in unison with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to deliver the souls of the dead, saying: "Those with heavy evil karma cannot immediately learn meditation and wisdom. They should first cultivate the method of repentance. Why? Because this person's past evil habits are fierce." In an instant, golden light filled the sky of the cycle of reincarnation and hell, and those Netherworld Cult members who could not escape were immediately transported to the West. The two great disciples of the Netherworld Cult, Asura and Brahma, hurriedly summoned their magical treasures, Naihe Kui and the Asura Axe. These two items were treasures nurtured by the sea of blood, worthy of being called the Six Treasures of the Sea of Blood, and their power was extraordinary.
On the Buddhist side, there were three Quasi-Saints—Dipankara, Maitreya, and Ksitigarbha—along with a host of Golden Immortal masters, including the Three Bodies of Buddha and the Six Ancient Buddhas; each was an extraordinary individual. The Asura and Brahma of the Netherworld Cult, while possessing considerable cultivation at the Great Luo Golden Immortal level, only numbered two. How could they possibly be a match for Buddhism? Suddenly, screams of agony echoed from the direction of the Netherworld Cult, indicating that many had already been converted by the Buddhist followers!
Fortunately, the Netherworld Cult had over 100,000 members, giving them a numerical advantage. Furthermore, the location was close to the Netherworld Blood Sea, allowing the cult members to absorb the malevolent energy within for their own use. Therefore, they were able to hold their own against the Buddhist followers.
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