The Battle in Journey to the West
Chapter 198 - 193: Enlightenment Dao Unleashed, Defeats Veda

Chapter 198: Chapter 193: Enlightenment Dao Unleashed, Defeats Veda

The Enlightened One thought of leading Guan Yu to the Great Emperor Zhenwu to form a good bond. However, during the attempt to lure Wisdom Bodhisattva away he had thought it was almost certain, but to his surprise, while chanting halfway, a huge Demon-Subduing Pestle came crashing down!

Startled, the Enlightened One hurriedly stopped, and the Seven Stars Sword burst out from his back, hanging in the air and releasing a majestic Sword Qi. The Demon-Subduing Pestle hit it, causing a loud bang and sparks to fly in all directions, forcing the Enlightened One to stagger back several steps. Upon a closer look, he saw a Bodhisattva standing on the clouds in general’s armor, glaring at him furiously.

The Enlightened One couldn’t help but think to himself, "Laozi isn’t even angry, yet you’re glaring at me like that? Damn it, it’s always a dead bald donkey that jumps out and messes up my plans at the last moment! Looks like I really don’t mix well with these bald donkeys! This one seems to be Virudhaka Bodhisattva from the Buddhist sect, formidable in mana."

The Enlightened One felt very upset with the Buddhist sect’s people thwarting him everywhere—truly infuriating!

Guan Yu, having had his senses awakened by the Sutra for Crossing Sentient Beings, was much more clear-headed and no longer wailing like before.

Virudhaka Bodhisattva, holding the Demon-Subduing Pestle, said, "This Guan Yun Chang is a person destined to be with our Buddhist sect. He should be taken to the Western Heaven and be enshrined as Ganlan Bodhisattva, to enjoy the incense offerings from Buddhist disciples! You Taoist, so ignorant of what’s good for you, where do you intend to lead him?"

The Enlightened One sneered and cursed, "You people from the Buddhist sect really do have incredibly thick skins. Everything is fated with your Buddhist sect. I am also fated with your Buddhist sect; do you want to take me to the Western Heaven too?"

Virudhaka Bodhisattva said with a smile, "Namo Amitabha Buddha! If the Taoist friend wishes to convert to Buddhism, naturally he can go to Western Heaven."

The Enlightened One cursed loudly, "Such shamelessness, utter shamelessness! Take this!"

Thinking quickly in his heart, he figured he had to kill Virudhaka Bodhisattva swiftly to lead Guan Yu away, lest Wisdom Bodhisattva arrived later and another argument ensued, which would be rather troublesome! How could the prey he almost had in his grasp fly away so easily? The Enlightened One charged straight at Virudhaka Bodhisattva.

Virudhaka Bodhisattva’s mana was not weak; among the Bodhisattvas, he ranked in the forefront and was at the Indestructible Realm of Daluo Golden Immortals with great divine skills and few rivals!

The Enlightened One attacked with his sword, and Virudhaka Bodhisattva raised the Demon-Subduing Pestle to fend off the onslaught. Both sides were ferocious, their eyes blazing, locked in fierce combat.

"Great Strength Vajra Finger!" Virudhaka Bodhisattva roared, like a lion’s roar, his five fingers jabbing out simultaneously, each resembling a mighty Heavenly Pillar.

The Enlightened One danced out Sword Flowers with the Seven Stars Sword, which scattered all over the sky. As they descended, they shielded his entire body. The five fingers struck, blasting away much of the Sword Flowers, resulting in a draw in this exchange of blows.

"Indeed, the combat abilities of those in the Buddhist sect tend to be higher, unlike the incompetent Ao Kuang. It must be because these individuals frequently combat evil demons and heretics, which is why their battle prowess is higher than others. I must not be negligent, lest I capsize in a ditch!" the Enlightened One thought to himself as he resumed his fierce battle with Virudhaka Bodhisattva.

The two fought back and forth, clashing over a hundred rounds in a blink, with neither side gaining the upper hand.

Guan Yu regained clarity and thought to himself: "No matter which side is fated, I’ll go with whoever has the ability to lead me. That’s good enough for me!"

As a martial artist, he naturally revered martial strength. The Enlightened One and Virudhaka Bodhisattva were in the thick of their fight, and he found it rather enthralling. This divine combat was far more spectacular than mere mortals fighting!

Exhibiting his swordsmanship, the Enlightened One moved like a White Ape, leaping and striking unexpectedly, forcing Virudhaka Bodhisattva to retreat a mile or two.

"Subduing Demon Seal of the Earth!" Virudhaka Bodhisattva secured the Demon-Subduing Pestle in midair and formed a Dharma Seal with both hands, striking down at the Enlightened One.

This strike seemed as if the earth itself had flipped over, its power was terrifying, unparalleled. The Seal oppressed the air as it rolled in, crushing it to the point of fracturing the void, creating cracks as intricate as a spider’s web. However, they were quickly repaired by the laws of Heavenly Dao. Only a battle between Saints could cause vast swaths of the void to shatter, even destroying worlds. Hence their battles often required Magical Treasures to stabilize the void or were strictly limited to sparring.

Seeing the Dharma Seal approach like a deluge, the Enlightened One quickly formed a spell with his hands and chanted a spell, clapping them together to unleash a massive thundercloud.

The Dharma Seal ground to a halt upon the thundercloud, its explosive lightning causing the Seal to tremble and almost shatter.

"Chi!"

With a stab of his sword, the Enlightened One struck like a comet hitting the moon. A flash of the sword light shattered the Great Seal completely.

Virudhaka Bodhisattva thought to himself: "This rogue is the same Wild Daoist who dared to cause havoc in the Western Heaven last time. Not weak at all! His divine skills are orderly, enough to break my Subduing Demon Seal of the Earth in one blow. He’s not an easy opponent. It seems I must use my trump card against him!"

What was Virudhaka Bodhisattva’s trump card? It was one of Duobao Tathagata’s Shariras! During the Great War in the Middle Ancient Times, many participated, but not Virudhaka Bodhisattva; thus, Duobao Tathagata’s Sharira had always been in his possession. Of course, he did not know that Tathagata had already performed Swap Heaven and Earth. Even if he did, he would probably have been directly taken over by Tathagata’s Secret Technique. Didn’t even the formidable Kong Xuan become a lackey and puppet for Tathagata after being taken over?

Very few were aware of such a significant change in the Buddhist sect, and with so many from their ranks gone, the sect had nearly emptied, so it wasn’t surprising that Virudhaka Bodhisattva was unaware. The current Tathagata was only more cunning and ruthless than before. The main difference was that accompanying deities like Guanyin, Manjushri, Samantabhadra, and others couldn’t even tell. Plus, the Buddhist sect’s Swap Heaven and Earth—such a matter would hardly be believed by anyone if spoken of.

"Sword Leading Immortal Flight!" The Enlightened One unleashed an ultimate Sword technique, the grand move of the Sword Ancestor Song Lun.

He seemed to evolve a Heavenly Immortal on his sword blade, his Sword Intent ephemeral and elusive, his speed unparalleled, like lightning and thunder. With one swing, the void itself cracked, so swift it allowed no time to think or dodge!

Virudhaka Bodhisattva was shocked and quickly recited a spell, emitting a golden light from his body. Enlightenment Dao’s sword thrust at his chest was blocked by a Sanskrit character that suddenly emerged. Although it was obstructed, the sword swiftly shattered the character and stabbed at Virudhaka Bodhisattva’s chest. With a clang, the sword scraped across the armor, sparking a flurry of sparks, like molten steel grinding against iron.

"Scram!" Virudhaka Bodhisattva roared, shaking Enlightenment Dao’s Primordial Spirit. The Demon-Subduing Pestle struck down upon his head.

Enlightenment Dao twisted his body to the side, dodging the Demon-Subduing Pestle, stepping on the void, retreating rapidly. Virudhaka Bodhisattva’s armor bore a sword mark, but there was no bleeding.

Virudhaka Bodhisattva fumed, "You actually managed to breach my Gold Sand Battle Armor! Your sword might be formidable, but I wonder if it can withstand my Many Treasures Relic!"

Virudhaka Bodhisattva’s armor, cast from Ganges Sand Gold and taking a millennium to forge, boasted tremendous defense. However, the sword in Enlightenment Dao’s hands was crafted by Laozi, and he had employed Sword Ancestor Song Lun’s Slaying Sword technique. Although it did not kill Virudhaka Bodhisattva, it ripped a huge tear through his Gold Sand Battle Armor. Now, it would take who knows how long to refine once more, infuriating him greatly.

As Virudhaka Bodhisattva was cursing, a Golden Core suddenly struck him unawares, breaking his bones and snapping his tendons, sending him plummeting from the sky like a kite with its string cut.

"You would be better off using your divine powers than wasting time talking!" Enlightenment Dao chuckled.

He quietly cast the Golden Sand Pill, striking Virudhaka Bodhisattva’s chest when he least expected it. Although the Gold Sand Battle Armor absorbed much of the force, preventing his physical body from bursting, he was still left with broken bones and spitting fresh blood, his Primordial Spirit dazed.

Taiyi Pure Gold is incredibly heavy, isn’t it? The size of a fingertip weighs tens of jin, and a Golden Sand Pill refined from an entire mountain could overwhelm even the Great Mighty Celestial Dragon Bodhisattva unprepared - they couldn’t withstand it.

Virudhaka Bodhisattva was struck down into Jade Spring Mountain by Enlightenment Dao’s Golden Sand Pill, breaking many bones and mangling his flesh beyond recognition. However, he recited a spell and instantly healed, demonstrating the prowess of the Indestructible Realm. As long as the core was unharmed, he could recover quickly. Nevertheless, this blow also injured his Primordial Spirit; the force was too great and left his spirit somewhat damaged.

"Suppress him!" Without giving him a chance to rise, Enlightenment Dao spewed a Stele from his mouth, recited a spell, and pointed downwards.

"Boom!"

The Swallowing Dragon Stele plummeted, terrifying Virudhaka Bodhisattva to the point of nearly losing his soul. In a panic, he raised the Many Treasures Relic, and suddenly, a massive Buddha appeared in the void, surrounded by various Magical Treasures aloft in the air.

The Swallowing Dragon Stele crashed onto the Buddha, emitting a thunderous explosion. The golden Buddha trembled, cracks appearing all over its body.

"Take this!"

Enlightenment Dao threw another Golden Sand Pill, shattering the Buddha to pieces upon impact. Both the Swallowing Dragon Stele and the Golden Sand Pill charged directly towards Virudhaka Bodhisattva.

"My life is over!" Virudhaka Bodhisattva couldn’t help but scream. If suppressed by this blow, he would be left maimed if not dead.

Rushing the invocation of the Many Treasures Relic, he had not been able to unleash its full power before being shattered by Enlightenment Dao’s thunderous method. Now at a disadvantage, how could he endure the combined suppression from the two Magical Treasures?

"Hold, evildoer! Do not harm the life of my fellow disciple!" It was Wisdom Bodhisattva returning to the fray. A golden Flying Sword sped towards Enlightenment Dao, aiming for the center of his brow. Should this sword pierce through, it would shatter the Primordial Spirit within his head.

Enlightenment Dao hurriedly lifted the Seven Stars Sword, twisted a Sword technique, and struck. The two swords collided, sending the Flying Sword flying. However, he realized the golden Flying Sword lacked true power; it was all for show and probably couldn’t even penetrate his flesh!

"Damn, fooled by that bald trickster! He hastily launched that sword without much power!" Enlightenment Dao couldn’t help but curse aloud.

He raised his sword to block the Flying Sword sent by Wisdom Bodhisattva, giving Virudhaka Bodhisattva below a chance to catch his breath. He emerged from the ground, evading the crushing Swallowing Dragon Stele and Golden Sand Pill.

"Tai Chi generates Two Instruments!"

"Two Instruments generate Four Symbols!"

"Four Symbols generate Bagua!"

Just as Virudhaka Bodhisattva leaped out from beneath Jade Spring Mountain, he sensed something amiss. Three divine sounds rang in his ears, like a vast bell, and three punches enveloped him. Each carried the evolution of the cosmos and the principles of Yin and Yang Integration, frightening in their power!

Enlightenment Dao was overjoyed; it must be Zhang Junshi arriving, likely under Great Emperor Zhenwu’s orders to guide Guan Yu.

The fate of Virudhaka Bodhisattva remains unknown, stay tuned for the next Chapter. (To be continued. If you enjoy this story, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest encouragement. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)