Chapter 65: Supreme Power
Xiao Wangsun's carriage, along with Li Jindou, hurtled through the air before slamming into a mountainside. The carriage shattered on impact, and the four extraordinary horses pulling it were reduced to dust.
The coachman attempted to turn himself into stone to survive the collision, but the Evil Bodhisattva’s power overwhelmed him, leaving his petrified form shattered.
Inside the wreckage, Li Jindou stifled the blood rising in his throat. He heard the sound of porcelain cracking and looked down—his legs, already partially petrified, were now completely broken.
A wave of despair washed over him. Without his legs, his standing in the Li family would plummet, and protecting Li Tianqing’s mother and son might become impossible.
“Why am I even thinking about this? Tianqing and I will probably both die here on Qianyang Mountain,” he thought bitterly.
Gritting his teeth, he pushed off the ground with his hands and leapt into the air. The Six Yin Jade Wheels swirled around his body, growing more ferocious with every spin.
Ahead, the Evil Bodhisattva clutched Jin Hongying’s fiery sword energy. With a series of sharp cracks, the force of the sword merged into one concentrated blow, only to be crushed in the demon’s grasp.
Meanwhile, Madam Sha wielded the Ram-Horn Celestial Lamp, shining its light on the demon’s soul. Her divine manifestation merged with her spirit, chanting the Taishang Eight Trigrams Protective Talisman.
With a heavy stomp, she created a pathway of green stone that rippled outward like a river, attempting to drag the Evil Bodhisattva into the underworld.
“Come, wreak havoc in the underworld with me!” The path extended to the demon’s feet. Madam Sha poured all her strength into the spell, her face contorted with strain. Blood seeped from her nose and eyes as she bellowed, “Come down to the underworld!”
Half of the Evil Bodhisattva’s massive body sank into the spectral realm. Pale, skeletal hands emerged from the shadows, clawing at the path and reaching for both combatants.
The scene was terrifying, even for the demon. It stomped with colossal force, shattering the stone path.
Madam Sha coughed blood and collapsed, completely drained.
“Shhhck!”
A cold flash pierced through the Evil Bodhisattva’s chest, emerging from its heart before curving upward toward its forehead. It was Brolga Sword, a weapon famed for striking vital points.
Xiao Wangsun had imbued the blade with his soul, merging man and weapon to maximize its lethality. Yet just as the sword was about to pierce the demon’s brow, an invisible force halted its advance.
One of the Evil Bodhisattva’s faces glared at the blade, freezing it midair. Slowly, the sword began to twist and warp under the demon’s power.
“You fused your spirit with this sword?” the demon sneered, another face locking its gaze on Xiao Wangsun.
Xiao Wangsun’s body twisted unnaturally, mirroring the sword’s contortions. His bones creaked and his face flushed as blood rushed to his head.
“Your sword pierced my heart, but that only gives me the chance to crush you along with it!”
The Evil Bodhisattva’s chest pulsated as flesh and veins reconnected, repairing its wound.
With a violent motion, it wrenched the sword’s blade, twisting it further. Xiao Wangsun’s body convulsed, blood dripping from his mouth.
Suddenly, six glowing jade wheels sliced toward the demon. Li Jindou, pouring every ounce of his strength into the attack, aimed to save Xiao Wangsun.
The demon raised its six free arms, catching the spinning wheels with ease. With a series of muffled cracks, the wheels shattered, their fragments scattering like stars.
“How many more can you conjure?” the demon taunted.
Li Jindou laughed maniacally as countless new wheels formed around him, each one spinning faster than the last. “Try stopping them all!”
The Evil Bodhisattva frowned at the overwhelming number of jade wheels, but its irritation turned to cruelty as one of its eyes flashed toward Li Jindou. The elder’s body froze midair, turning into porcelain before plummeting to the ground.
He would have shattered on impact if not for Jin Hongying, who transformed into a red blur and caught him. The effort was immense, and she collapsed under the weight of the porcelain figure, reverting to her human form.
Before she could rise, the demon’s gaze fell on her. A wave of porcelain spread across her body, freezing her mid-motion.
Madam Sha, still holding the Ram-Horn Celestial Lamp, struggled to her feet. The Evil Bodhisattva’s gaze turned to her next, and she too transformed into a porcelain figure, frozen in place.
“Now, only you remain,” the demon said, focusing on Xiao Wangsun.
It twisted Brolga Sword further, savoring the sight of Xiao Wangsun’s anguish.
Suddenly, the demon sensed an approaching danger—a feeling so intense it transported it back to the moment of its capture thousands of years ago.
Golden light filled half the sky, blinding the demon. The brilliance seared its eyes, causing black tears to stream down its faces.
“What… what is this?” it roared, panic rising.
Emerging from the light was a towering figure wreathed in divine energy. The Evil Bodhisattva roared and prepared to crush Xiao Wangsun, but an unseen force immobilized it.
It swung its eight arms wildly, unleashing devastating blows capable of leveling mountains. But no matter how fiercely it struck, the golden light around it absorbed the impact and reformed, trapping it further.
Within the light, talismans materialized—first simple fire and water symbols, then the more intricate formations of Five Peaks Mountain, Eight Trigrams Furnace, Nine Palaces, and beyond.
Finally, the figures of 1,200 divine deities descended, their forms shaped by the convergence of symbols, talismans, and incantations.
The Evil Bodhisattva writhed as the divine forces shattered its body repeatedly. Though it regenerated, the relentless assault left it reduced to a quivering mass of blood and fragmented porcelain.
From within the golden light, Xiao Wangsun murmured, “Supreme power… I haven’t seen this since Xijing.”
The Evil Bodhisattva’s screams filled the air. It realized that it was powerless against the Supreme Array and would soon be completely obliterated.
In its despair, it whispered, “So I am nothing but an ant.”
Yet, even as it was being destroyed, it detected a weakness in its attacker. Its voice turned mocking. “Chen Yindu! You’re no better than me! You suppress your desires, deny your nature… but you are no different from me! You are a living corpse, a demon!”
The golden light flickered. The divine figures began to twist, their serene expressions warping into grotesque, monstrous forms.
“Chen Yindu is faltering!” Xiao Wangsun thought, his heart sinking.
“Yes!” the demon cackled. “Embrace your desires! Relinquish control, and become like me!”
As the Evil Bodhisattva continued to diminish, its glee remained unabated. The divine array faltered further, and for a moment, it seemed as though the battle might turn.
But then Chen Yindu’s voice cut through the chaos, calm and resolute: “Kill my grandson? Over my dead body!”
With a roar, he stomped down, driving the demon into the underworld.
The Evil Bodhisattva was obliterated, but the force unleashed by Chen Yindu created a new Demonic Domain, its darkness spreading further across the land.
As the black mist encroached, Chen Yindu’s rationality flickered. Turning to Xiao Wangsun, his expression twisted.
“Chen Yindu…” Xiao Wangsun whispered, his hands trembling.
In the distance, the serpent spirit Xuan Shan raised an umbrella, suppressing Chen Yindu’s burgeoning madness.
“You cannot remain among the living,” Xuan Shan said gravely.
Chen Yindu nodded reluctantly. “Give me a few days… to say goodbye.”