Chapter 359 – East Sea Turmoil, Dragon Blood Like Rain, Two of Ten Sects Depart

Western Divine Province, Little Thunderclap Temple.

“Fellow Daoists, ahead lies our temple’s Little Thunderclap,” a venerable monk from Thunderclap Temple gestured forward, addressing the cultivators from Azure Cloud Sect and other sects accompanying him.

Even without his guidance, Lu Chen and the others had already noticed the faint Buddhist radiance emanating from the distance. However, contrary to their expectations—where they assumed Little Thunderclap would be besieged by Immortal Fiends and in grave danger—the reality was entirely different.

Though they had encountered some mutated demons and Buddhist cultivators upon entering the Western Divine Province, their numbers were sparse, even pitifully few. Most notably, these beings seemed to be fleeing something, scrambling en masse out of the Western Divine Province. This sparked a growing suspicion in Lu Chen and the others, which was fully confirmed upon their arrival at Little Thunderclap.

Though the temple lay in ruins, a scene of devastation, the pure Buddhist light surrounding it and the multitude of monks within indicated that Little Thunderclap was far better off than they had imagined. It appeared to have already weathered the crisis.

The monk who had previously sought aid from Azure Cloud Sect was overjoyed at the sight. He had prepared for the worst—the complete destruction of Little Thunderclap—and resolved to lead others in avenging his brethren. Yet the actual situation was much improved. Recalling how his golden body had been shattered and his foundation damaged, he couldn’t help but wonder: How had Little Thunderclap, teetering on the brink of collapse, managed to turn the tide and survive?

Lu Chen and the others shared similar questions. Bearing these doubts, they proceeded into Little Thunderclap. A venerable monk greeted them, initially tense but relieved to recognize cultivators from several major sects of the Central Province.

Lu Chen and his companions inquired about the events that had transpired. When they learned that Juechen had Awakened his past wisdom, incarnated as the true Buddha Yama, and purged the Black Lotus Sect followers, everyone—including Lu Chen—was astounded. After all, a true Buddha was no ordinary existence. Reincarnated Immortals or Buddhas were rare, let alone a reincarnated true Buddha. Undeniably, Little Thunderclap was blessed with immense Luck to have such a reincarnation descend upon them. Without it, the temple would likely have been obliterated.

Curious, they asked about the whereabouts of the true Buddha Yama. Upon hearing that he had tracked the Black Lotus Sect’s traces and ventured into their world, excitement swept through the group. A true Buddha was one of the pinnacle powers of the Major Thousand Worlds, among the strongest beings aside from a few Great Luo existences. Though Yama was alone, they believed he alone could cleanse the world of those Sky Demons.This was the absolute trust that cultivators had accumulated over tens of thousands of years toward True Immortals and genuine Buddhas.

Yet unlike the excited crowd, Lu Chen felt no exhilaration. Instead, his expression turned grave.

He understood clearly that the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms were unlike any other realm. If it were any other Major or Minor Thousand Worlds, a descended True Buddha could effortlessly sweep through everything. However, the Ancient Fiend World was a place capable of rivaling the Thirty-Three Heavens. Relying solely on Yama alone would certainly yield no favorable outcome.

Thus, Lu Chen immediately inquired where Yama had entered the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms. The disciples of Little Thunderclap Temple, lost in their boundless reverence for Yama, failed to notice the change in Lu Chen’s expression and excitedly pointed out the direction of the Nine Realms Gate.

Upon learning Yama’s destination, Lu Chen swiftly mounted his sword and flew off. When he arrived at the location of the Nine Realms Gate, his expression grew even more solemn. Although the gate remained closed, it had not vanished from the Western Divine Province. This situation could only mean two possibilities: either the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms were gradually merging with the Azure Cloud World where Lu Chen resided, or some entity was actively sustaining this phenomenon. Neither scenario boded well, as it implied that the Black Lotus Sect behind the gate could return at any moment.

Yet, at present, Lu Chen had no particularly effective countermeasures. Given his current cultivation level, he could neither close the Nine Realms Gate nor enter it. If the threat were merely Immortal Fiends at the Transformation Soul Stage, he would have no fear. However, if adversaries at the Great Vehicle Stage or even genuine Ancient Fiends emerged, his current strength would be utterly insufficient.

Gazing at the tightly shut Nine Realms Gate, Lu Chen could only murmur inwardly, “I hope Buddha Yama can retreat unscathed…”

After confirming there was truly nothing he could do, Lu Chen returned to Little Thunderclap Temple. He chose not to share his concerns with the temple’s disciples, for even if he voiced them, it was uncertain whether they could alter the current situation. Moreover, he lacked concrete evidence to substantiate his claims. Since speaking out would change nothing, he decided to suppress his worries for the time being. At the very least, this would help maintain everyone’s composure. After all, if they learned that even a True Buddha like Yama might face danger, what could they—who had not yet achieved Ascension—possibly do? It would only breed unnecessary anxiety.

In a short span, both Little Thunderclap Temple and Martial God Mountain had come under attack, casting a shadow over the hearts of all major schools in the Central Province. If even the Ten Great Sects faced such dire, existential threats, how could the lesser schools, far inferior to them, hope to endure? More critically, this did not mean only Martial God Mountain and Little Thunderclap Temple had been targeted. Their prominence simply made them more noticeable. Other minor sects, and even the remaining Ten Great Sects, might well be confronting similar crises without having reported them in time. If this were true, the situation would be perilous indeed.

Fortunately, from the current perspective, the Central Province still seemed to hold a significant advantage. They had, after all, repelled two assaults from the Ancient Fiends in succession and directly eliminated two descended Ancient Fiend avatars—though these were merely manifested forms of the Ancient Fiends.Yet the fall of these avatars would still cause considerable impact on Gu Xian’s true form.

Without several millennia, those ancient immortals could not easily recover.

This allowed the sects of Central Province to relax slightly amidst their worries.

After all, judging by the current situation.

They still held significant chances of victory.

Because up to this point, they had not yet actively sought assistance from the Thirty-Three Heavens.

And this remained their ultimate trump card.

However, the situation was not truly as simple as they imagined.

At the East Sea Gate, one of the ten great sects.

“Hehehe… So this is a true dragon? I find it rather unimpressive.”

Above the sea, a man dressed in red, seated atop a coffin, looked mockingly into the distance.

On the sea surface, a massive true dragon was besieged by over a hundred corpse fiends.

The weakest among these corpse fiends were Earth Corpse Immortals with Nascent Soul cultivation.

Among them were several Celestial Corpse Immortals comparable to the Deity Transformation Stage.

The besieged true dragon, Ao Yao, patriarch of the East Sea Gate, was now in a miserable state.

His body was densely covered with wounds.

Many were severe injuries deep enough to reveal bone.

Under normal circumstances, Ao Yao, with cultivation comparable to the Great Vehicle Stage, would have no difficulty dealing with hundreds of Earth Corpse Immortals and several Celestial Corpse Immortals.

But unfortunately, he had been wounded by several traitorous clansmen, damaging his Foundation.

Thus, he now had to not only fight off the numerous fearless corpse fiends surrounding him.

But also constantly suppress the Corpse Qi within his body.

This Corpse Qi had been secretly released into the Dragon Abyss by those traitors.

As Ao Yao needed to utilize the Dragon Abyss to suppress the Heavenly Tribulation.

He had, to some extent, become one with the East Sea Gate’s Dragon Abyss.

Originally, as a crucial site of the East Sea Gate.

The Dragon Abyss was not easily accessible to outsiders, nor could its conditions be easily discerned.

Naturally, there was no way to scheme against Ao Yao.

But it just so happens that those two who betrayed the East Sea Gate were both Elders of the East Sea Gate at the Deity Transformation Stage.

They could freely enter and exit the Dragon Abyss.

Thus, Ao Yao was gradually and secretly ensnared by their schemes.

Absorbing large amounts of Corpse Qi.

Before being activated, this Corpse Qi was difficult to detect.

But once someone triggered it using specific methods.

The erupting Corpse Qi would continuously damage the host body.

And accelerate their corpse transformation.

Ao Yao now faced precisely this situation.

If that were all, even if outmatched, Ao Yao would not be in such dire straits.

After all, while the Corpse Qi was troublesome, for a true dragon comparable to the Great Vehicle Stage.

It could be quickly resolved with focused purification.

But the cultivators of the Corpse Fiend Cave naturally would not grant Ao Yao such time.

Even the corpse fiends currently besieging him were specially selected.

Generally, refining corpse fiends was an intricate process.

Thus, even though corpse fiends felt no pain and feared no death.

The Corpse Fiend Cave cultivators controlling them would not let their hard-refined corpse fiends die in vain.

Yet the current corpse fiends seemed specifically sent for Ao Yao to kill.

Not only did they not evade Ao Yao’s attacks, but they repeatedly took the initiative to intercept his spells and Divine Abilities.

Clearly presenting themselves as sacrifices.

This was undoubtedly highly peculiar.

Initially, Ao Yao did not perceive anything amiss.

Only after slaying some corpse fiends did Ao Yao suddenly realize their intention.That was their intention—to use the Corpse Qi released upon the death of these Corpse Fiends to accelerate the infection of the Corpse Qi within Ao Yao’s body.

This was an overt scheme.

Ao Yao could not simply ignore these Corpse Fiends.

But neither could he recklessly slaughter them.

He had to slowly eliminate the surrounding Corpse Fiends while ensuring the Corpse Qi within him did not worsen.

Yet by doing so, his cultivation was undoubtedly constrained.

At this point, Ao Yao felt as if he had been completely seen through.

It was clear that these suddenly appearing individuals, who called themselves from the Corpse Fiend Cave, had long investigated his situation and devised a strategy specifically for him.

Everything now was a trap meticulously set for him.

Yet, at this moment, Ao Yao could see no possible way to break the deadlock.

After all, he could not simply leave.

Without him, the East Sea Gate alone would be utterly incapable of holding off these Corpse Fiends.

For a time, Ao Yao found himself trapped in a dilemma.

The situation was increasingly spiraling toward the worst possible outcome.

His only hope now was to see if any of his clansmen could break through the encirclement and report the situation here to other Sects.

Perhaps guessing Ao Yao’s thoughts, the red-robed Cultivator sitting on the coffin in the distance suddenly spoke with a laugh.

“You don’t actually think those few little snakes you sent out could escape my Dharma Eye, do you?”

As he spoke, the red-robed Cultivator clapped his hands.

With a surge of energy, four Dragon corpses with vacant eyes slowly emerged from the Void Realm.

Seeing these four Dragon corpses, Ao Yao’s eyes blazed with fury.

For these were none other than the East Sea Gate Disciples who had previously managed to break through the encirclement.

It seemed now that not only the East Sea Gate but the entire East Sea had fallen under the control of these individuals.

As a result, these four Disciples had not gotten far before being captured by the Corpse Fiend Cave and refined into Dragon corpses to be manipulated at will.

The sight of his clansmen’s corpses being desecrated enraged Ao Yao completely, stripping away all his remaining reservations.

“Roar!”

With a furious roar, Ao Yao ceased to care about the Corpse Qi emanating from the Corpse Fiends and began a frenzied slaughter.

He broke through the Corpse Fiends’ encirclement, charging directly toward the red-robed Cultivator of the Corpse Fiend Cave.

His demeanor was one of desperate, all-out confrontation.

Yet, faced with the enraged Ao Yao, the red-robed Cultivator showed no fear. Instead, he let out a pleased laugh, as if he had been waiting for this very moment.

Snap…

The red-robed Cultivator stood up, and the coffin he had been sitting on slowly opened.

Then, a unique Corpse Fiend, half of its body covered in white bones, gradually sat up from within the coffin.

This half-corpse, half-skeleton being was the legendary Indestructible Bone—an existence above even the Celestial Corpse Immortal.

Although suppressed by the power of the Heavenly Dao, this Indestructible Bone only possessed the cultivation of the Great Vehicle Stage.

Yet its powerful Physical Body and near-indestructible nature made it the undisputed top-tier existence within the Great Vehicle Stage.

Staring at the Indestructible Bone, Ao Yao’s pupils contracted instantly.

From this Indestructible Bone, he sensed an intense threat.

But by now, there was no turning back.

Before long, the Dragon and the Corpse were locked in fierce combat.

Yet, against an enemy’s meticulously laid killing trap, despite Ao Yao’s myriad techniques, he ultimately failed to break free from this inescapable fate.Amid a shower of blood rain, a headless dragon corpse crashed heavily into the East Sea, staining the entire sea surface crimson.

Ao Yao, the True Dragon of the Great Vehicle Stage, had fallen.

Without Ao Yao, the remaining disciples of the East Sea Gate stood no chance against the well-prepared Corpse Fiend Cave.

Soon, the entire East Sea Gate, and even the whole East Sea, fell into the hands of the Corpse Fiend Cave.

Including the previously conquered Martial God Mountain, two of the Central Province’s Ten Great Sects had now been eliminated…

(End of Chapter)