Chapter 432. The Third Great Power, the Child of the Present Buddha
When the Ji Clan's Holy Son uttered those words, nearly everyone present felt a jolt of alarm. Lu Yuan was the sole exception. Meanwhile, the Immortals from the many different clans and races were shaken. Whatever could make the Ji Clan's Holy Son speak that way had to be far from ordinary.
Just then, they finally remembered the rumor that had been circulating for so long—three great powers were said to be moving against Lu Yuan. So far, only the Eternals and the Ji Clan had shown themselves.
The third great power had never appeared. However, the words of the Ji Clan's Holy Son could only mean one thing...
As they were busy forming their own conclusions, the firmament suddenly trembled, and a powerful aura swept across them. They looked up to find beams of divine light bursting out in all directions in the distant sky.
Golden lotuses also bloomed one after another, creating a surreal sight. Those who had clapped their eyes on the golden lotuses ceased all movement and chatter; it was as if the golden lotuses concealed a charming and intoxicating world capable of captivating those witnessing it
Moments later, a wave of chanting pervaded the world. Each of the myriad chanting voices seemed capable of guiding just about anyone through any form of suffering.
After a while, a line of figures—nineteen figures to be exact—clad in a kasaya with their palms pressed together, appeared before everyone present. All nineteen figures had their eyes closed, and their faces seemed to be filled with compassion.
"They're from the Sukhāvatī Starfield. More specifically, they're the spiritual lineage of the Present Buddha! Those eighteen are Venerables, while that guy right there is the Child of Present Buddha!"
"They really are from the Sukhāvatī Starfield. So, those rumors were true."
"The Celestial Court and Lu Yuan are royally screwed..."
Voices full of disbelief echoed one after another. The newcomers were from the Sukhāvatī Starfield, a great power acknowledged across the universe as a top-two force that forever contended for first.
Moreover, the figures before them were just one of the spiritual lineages of the Sukhāvatī Starfield. Of course, they were still terrifying despite being just one of the Sukhāvatī Starfield's factions. There had once been an occasion when even a power as fearsome as the Eternals took a heavy beating at their hands.
They had heard the rumors, but none of them had actually expected the lineage members of the Present Buddha to appear here. Everyone present was thoroughly astonished.
They couldn't make sense of it. The Buddhists of the Sukhāvatī Starfield were known for being isolationists, so their involvement here did not make sense. In addition, no one had ever heard of any grievances between Lu Yuan and them.
Of course, dwelling on such questions served no purpose at this point. What mattered was that all three great powers, which were rumored to be planning on attacking Lu Yuan, had finally assembled.
"Amitābha. Benefactor Ji, you're too impatient. We have just arrived here," said the Child of the Present Buddha while standing at the helm of the group. His voice seemed to contain a certain characteristic. Those who heard him felt like calming down, agreeing with him, and then believing that everything was their fault.
When the eighteen Venerables behind him began chanting Buddhist scriptures, the bizarre feeling grew even stronger as more golden lotuses bloomed across the firmament.
Their arrival seemed to have transformed the battlefield into a paradise, where everyone sought peace and wished to lay down their weapons.
"Hmph." The Ji Clan's Holy Son coldly snorted but said nothing. For him, the Child of the Present Buddha's words did not matter. What mattered was that he had come here to help them deal with Lu Yuan.
The Eternals' Holy Son felt the same and let out a breath of relief. There was no helping it. The two of them had joined forces but still failed to bring down Lu Yuan, so of course, they needed reinforcements.
The Child of the Present Buddha also had no interest in saying anything. He looked up at Lu Yuan in the distance and chanted a Buddhist mantra before saying, "Benefactor, lay down your blade, and you'll become a Buddha."
The golden vital qi shrouding Lu Yuan, and the intense will to fight rushing out of him made even the air vibrate, so at the moment, he looked like a warlord whom no one would dare to approach.
When he heard the words of the Child of the Present Buddha, he chuckled. "You just told me to lay down my blade, but you said nothing to those two."
"My Celestial Court has never deliberately offended anyone," Lu Yuan added, "We have always stayed in Mount Tai. They're the ones who came seeking us out. They are the ones who must lay down their blades, not me."
For some reason, he found the Child of the Present Buddha disgusting. He was worlds apart from Xuanci, and it was proven by how the Child of the Present Buddha was acting as if he were on some moral high ground.
Lu Yuan truly despised such people.
"Amitābha. Must you truly insist on your actions, Benefactor?" The Child of the Present Buddha said. He didn't even reply to Lu Yuan's words as if he had already decided that the Celestial Court was at fault.
"If you're going to make a move, then spare me the nonsense. I'm happy to face you," Lu Yuan said. He had no intention of trading another word, so his golden vital qi erupted with renewed vigor.
At this point, he had ascertained that the Child of the Present Buddha was stronger than the two Holy Sons. The eighteen Venerables behind him were all Immortals as well.
No one would bring this many people along to break up a fight. Even so, Lu Yuan felt no fear whatsoever. In fact, he felt giddy at the fact that he could finally unleash his peak strength and see just how high the heights he had reached so far.
"Three major powers had actually decided to band together just to deal with a lone man from a world that has just awakened. Impressive," Jiang Ningxian remarked, her eyes burning with fury.
Even she could hardly stand to watch from the sidelines any longer. The arrival of the Child of the Present Buddha was one thing, but he had brought eighteen Immortals along with him. Such a line-up had thoroughly astonished everyone.
The Child of the Present Buddha shook his head. "This isn't what you think, Saintess. And this has nothing to do with the Jiang Clan."
With that, he took a single step forward. Golden lotuses bloomed beneath his feet, making him look like an enlightened Buddha. With the eighteen Venerables in tow, he walked right up before Lu Yuan.
The Child of the Present Buddha's actions were tantamount to disrespecting the Jiang Clan. Of all the forces out there, perhaps only the Sukhāvatī Starfield would dare behave that way toward the Jiang Clan.
The Jiang siblings were enraged. Setting aside the disrespect, they were furious at the fact that the three had decided to gang up on Lu Yuan. This was no longer a fight; it was going to be a straight-up bullying.
Unable to hold back, the two of them moved to step in, but Lu Yuan cast their gaze on them, signaling them not to interfere. He was going to handle all of them by himself.
Jiang Ningxian became anxious and wanted to say something, but she remained quiet in the end. Lu Yuan's gaze had told her that he had made up his mind long ago.
She stopped Jiang Haokong and told him not to act rashly.
Up in the sky, Lu Yuan turned to stare at his enemies once again. As always, his gaze remained as calm and unperturbed as ever.
"Despite facing the three of us at once, you're still so calm. I'll admit it; I'm impressed," the Ji Clan's Holy Son remarked. The panic that had filled his gaze before had disappeared, replaced by pure confidence. Since the Child of the Present Buddha was here, the scales of the battle were now in their favor.
"Stop the nonsense." Lu Yuan shook his head. "If you want to fight, then come at me!"