Heaven-Defying Rebel Sage
Chapter 248: Lost the lady and lost the soldiers too

Chapter 248: Lost the lady and lost the soldiers too

Yuan Hong’s iron rod clashed with Nether River’s twin Divine Swords, emitting a series of earth-shaking sounds. The Asura Blood Sea boiled, raising blood waves hundreds of feet high, and both sides fought fervently to the point of bloodshot eyes.

Although Nether River’s twin Divine Swords were Innate, Yuan Hong’s Heaven-reaching Rod, personally forged by Goddess Nuwa, had slain countless Chaos Heaven Demons. The blood of these Chaos Heaven Demons greatly aided in artifact refining. Drenched in the battle blood of countless Chaos Heaven Demons, the Heaven-reaching Rod was naturally unparalleled in its durability.

"Be as immovable as the earth, silent as Ksitigarbha!" Ksitigarbha King pressed his palms together, shouted loudly, and unleashed a killing move.

Now that Ksitigarbha King had attained Buddhahood, his cultivation level had improved slightly. If he could sever the karma connected to his grand vow, he could advance further.

While chanting "Ksitigarbha Sutra," Ksitigarbha King erupted with an immensely heavy aura, as if the sky had fallen upon one’s shoulders, making it hard to breathe.

A massive Great Hand Seal materialized, carrying this unparalleled heavy aura, and pressed towards Nether River.

Nether River roared, pushed Yuan Hong back, and vibrated his twin swords. The essence of slaughter and slaughter Qi burst forth, making one’s body tremble as if plunged into an icy cavern. Those with a slightly lower cultivation level who came in contact with this intense slaughter Qi would instantly turn into profound ice.

"Om!"

The Great Hand Seal and endless slaughter Qi intertwined, clashing fiercely, and emitted ear-piercing sounds, extremely sharp. The sound waves spread, making the blood waves of the Asura Blood Sea boil even more, continuously churning. Truly, when deities fight, mortals suffer; when the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer.

Nether River roared repeatedly as he burned his Primordial Spirit Thoughts to unleash his greatest combat power. Ultimately, Ksitigarbha King was no match; the Great Hand Seal was worn down by the slaughter Qi. Blood trickled from the corner of Ksitigarbha King’s mouth. Before he could catch his breath, he saw Nether River’s endless slaughter Qi surge violently towards him.

Under normal circumstances, Ksitigarbha King would have had to pay a great price to withstand it, but with Yuan Hong present, he extended his arms, grasped the force of the universe in the void, shaped it into Primordial Divine Thunders, and shot them out. They exploded furiously, with the force of the universe becoming more turbulent, scattering all of Nether River’s slaughter Qi. Then a colossal Divine Thunder fell, utterly dispersing Nether River’s slaughter Qi.

"You damned monkey, always ruining my plans!" Nether River, seeing he was about to severely injure Ksitigarbha King, was thwarted by Yuan Hong and was furious.

Yuan Hong chuckled: "You just don’t have your old abilities anymore. If you had those 480 million Blood God Children, maybe then we wouldn’t be a match for you. Heh, heh!"

Hearing Yuan Hong poke at his sore spot, Nether River was even more enraged. He kicked the Karmic Fire Lotus Platform beneath his feet and immediately vanished.

Yuan Hong was alert, felt the wind behind his head, turned around and swung his staff, shouting: "Aha!"

"Bang!"

Yuan Hong turned and swung his staff, directly knocking the incoming Karmic Fire Lotus Platform flying. Had it hit, it would have caused serious injury.

At this moment, Nether River only felt his Primordial Spirit grow increasingly dizzy. The period for bursting combat power by burning Primordial Spirit Thoughts was ending, which would leave him extremely weak. Nevertheless, he was unwilling to accept this turn of events, especially as he lost the Xuan Yuan Water Control Flag—how could he not be infuriated? But continuing to fight would surely lead to greater losses.

Nether River weighed his options, retrieved his magical treasure, and plunged into the Asura Blood Sea, disappearing without a trace.

Yuan Hong burst out laughing: "Haha! Nether River, the old freak, come out and fight again; why run away?"

Ksitigarbha King could not help but laugh, "It seems his time limit for the burst strength from burning his Primordial Spirit Thoughts has reached. If he continues to fight, he will definitely suffer greatly!"

Yuan Hong said, "So it is."

The four Primordial Golden Immortals joined forces, and Nether River suffered a great loss this time not only by having the Xuan Yuan Control Water Flag taken from him but also by burning his Primordial Spirit Thoughts to unleash power, yet only managing to slightly injure Ksitigarbha King. This was the second great loss since he lost 480 million Blood God Child avatars.

Ksitigarbha King asked, "How come you two are here?"

Wu Zhiqi laughed and said, "It was Wukong who asked the two of us to come. He said you would be here by now, taking advantage of your fight with Nether River. We used the Dropping Treasure Money to strike his Xuan Yuan Control Water Flag and took the opportunity to snatch it away."

Ksitigarbha King could not help but clap his hands and laugh, "Brilliant, brilliant! Wukong truly has great schemes. This time, Nether River has indeed suffered a great loss, losing both his wife and his troops. Suppressing the Asura Blood Sea for these thousand years, I can finally have some peace, without having to duel with Nether River every day."

Yuan Hong laughed, "Are you going to guard this place for a thousand years?"

Ksitigarbha King nodded and said, "In the past, in order to deceive Tathagata, I made the grand vow ’Until Hell is empty, I shall not become a Buddha.’ Even now, this vow remains unfulfilled, and I have become a Buddha, or rather, this grand vow can fundamentally never be fulfilled as there are always people dying, how can Hell ever be empty? Thus, I am bound by this karma because of this grand vow, and coming here to guard the Asura Blood Sea is exactly to resolve such karma."

Yuan Hong and Wu Zhiqi listened and could not help but nod slightly, saying, "This Nether River is indeed evil, practicing a path not tolerated by the world. However, Ksitigarbha Buddha guarding over the Asura Blood Sea is indeed accumulating merit for all beings."

Ksitigarbha King smiled and said, "Now that this matter is resolved, you two can go about your business, no need to accompany me here."

Wu Zhiqi, scratching his ears and cheeks, said, "Grandma’s, I certainly won’t accompany you! Guarding this godforsaken place for a thousand years would simply cost me my old life. Let’s go, let’s go, Comrade Yuan, let’s quickly return to Water Curtain Cave. Give me that Xuan Yuan Control Water Flag, let me properly refine it, and then let’s have a good drink. Hehe!"

Yuan Hong bowed to Ksitigarbha King, saying, "Then we shall leave, Ksitigarbha Buddha, take care."

Ksitigarbha King brought his palms together and said, "Until we meet again another day."

Once Yuan Hong and Wu Zhiqi had left, Ksitigarbha King sat down cross-legged and began to slowly recite the "Ksitigarbha Fundamental Vow Sutra," with Buddha’s Light shining everywhere.

As for Nether River, when he returned to the Asura Blood Sea, he was so enraged that the Three Corpse Gods jumped violently. Having burned his own Primordial Spirit Thoughts, it might take him hundreds or thousands of years to recover, and moreover, he lost the Xuan Yuan Control Water Flag, this Magical Treasure. This was simply worse than Zhou Yu from the Three Kingdoms Period, losing both his wife and his troops!

Yuan Hong was on the verge of shouting, "Nether River’s brilliant plan secures the world, losing both Magical Treasure and damaging himself."

Perhaps, Nether River would have spit out three liters of blood on the spot, enraged to the point of his Primordial Spirit exploding.

"Grandma’s, when have I, the old ancestor, ever suffered such a huge loss? To be ridiculed by two mere monkeys! Aooo aooo aooo, it drives me mad!" Nether River could not help but bellow towards the sky, his voice causing the waves of the Asura Blood Sea to churn violently.

Once Nether River calmed down, he broke out in a cold sweat, pondering to himself, "Could it be that the end of my days is near? First, the destruction of 480 million Blood God Children, and then the loss of such a Magical Treasure as the Xuan Yuan Control Water Flag. Isn’t this perhaps a sign that my fortunes are waning?"

To find out what happens next, please listen to the following episode. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to visit qidian.com to vote, and provide your support with monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)