plumnovel Chapter 287 A Great Victory, Dragons Compete for the World
Chapter 287 A Great Victory, Dragons Compete for the World
"Ugh!"
When the Buddha Sheng Guan saw Zhang Xiaolian's celestial spirit form in his dream, he knew that he would have little chance of winning this battle.
Firstly, those present were merely incarnations of the Buddha Shengguan, formed through the combined faith of the stupa and the 30,000 Brahma soldiers. The stupa was still under their protection, while the Brahma soldiers had either fled or died.
Secondly, the Pure Land is too far from this place, so the control over the Earth God Vajra is not as perfect. There is no need to worry about overwhelming the opponent, but once they encounter an equal opponent, they will all become weaknesses.
Thirdly, it is said that Li Hui is the candidate supported by the Golden Toad Great Sage in the Dragon Competition. Although the Golden Toad Great Sage cannot personally participate, he still has an avatar of the God of Wealth.
As a result, the Buddha of Victory quickly abandoned his intention to extinguish the fire and instead gave an instruction to the believers among the Brahma soldiers:
"The weather is unpredictable, and there are ambushes on all sides. The town can no longer hold out. Everyone must evacuate as soon as possible!"
Others could only see Li Hui's troops in the mountains and forests, but the Buddha of Victory saw through the Earth God Vajra the troops ambushed in other places. Tonight, they had no choice but to sacrifice the small for the big!
Although the soldiers didn't understand, they were very obedient and quickly began to carry out the retreat plan.
At the same time, the true form of the Bodhisattva flew rapidly from the west, and before it had even reached ten miles from the important town, it suddenly stopped.
"The evil guests from the West are renowned for their wickedness, their invasion of the Central Plains is monstrous, and the calamity of countless slaughters has finally arrived, beginning with the Immortal Elder of the Departing Fire!"
A figure in red appeared out of thin air, with white hair and beard, holding a palm-leaf fan. If it weren't for the boundless divine fire spreading from his body, he would really look like a wealthy old man holding a fan to cool off.
"So, you think I, the Immortal Lord of Blazing Fire, am someone to be trifled with?"
The words of the Immortal Lord of Li Huo were too domineering, comparing himself to a calamity of death, which angered the Bodhisattva of Supreme Victory.
In an instant, Shusheng was surrounded by divine power, and then he took out an oil lamp from his bosom.
"The remains of a great being serve as lamps, the pure land of crystal forms the base, the heart of the relics is illuminated by divine fire, and Brahma from the formless realm descends to earth!"
The Bodhisattva Shusheng himself was only a top-tier divine general, and was no match for the invincible immortal lord, the Immortal Lord Li Huo. The reason why the Bodhisattva Shusheng was confident in fighting the Immortal Lord Li Huo was the colorless divine lamp of the realm bestowed by the Brahma Emperor.
Wherever the light shines, everything around seems to come to a standstill; this is the realm of boundless emptiness, boundless consciousness, the realm of nothingness, the realm of neither thought nor non-thought.
The soaring divine fire behind the Immortal Lord of Fire seemed to have lost its target and began to scatter aimlessly.
"The Formless Realm?"
Immortal Lord Li Huo's expression hardened, and he waved the fan in his hand. The divine fire, which should have been moving with the wind, fell to the ground like leaves.
Upon seeing this scene, the Bodhisattva smiled and said, "The divine fire has destroyed everything on the ground. Immortal Lord, you must be prepared to accept these consequences!"
Buddhist teachings emphasize cause and effect, while Taoist teachings speak of predestined relationships. If divine fire were to fall to the ground and burn everything, it might create additional calamity energy out of thin air.
With a swift movement of his feet, the Immortal Lord of Li Huo rushed downwards like a soaring swan, absorbing countless divine flames the size of fallen leaves into his body before they landed, much like swallows returning to their nests.
At this moment, the Bodhisattva of Supreme Victory did not take the opportunity to leave, but instead condensed a giant Buddha hand with the light of the colorless realm.
"Brahma's Divine Palm!"
With the aid of the Dharma treasures, the supreme Bodhisattva's combat power is no less than that of an ordinary great being.
"Humph!"
How could the God of Fire, who personally entered the tribulation, not have any trump cards up his sleeve?
"Nine Dragons Departing from the Fire Cover!"
In an instant, a series of dragon roars rang out, and as fire dragons spiraled upwards, a magnificent divine fire shield appeared around the Fire God.
"It's actually the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover!" Many spectators were shocked.
It should be noted that this item was crafted by the Phoenix Clan using the dragon souls of nine Dragon Lords during the great battle between the dragons and phoenixes. Even powerful beings would find it difficult to break through in a short time.
The spectators immediately reached a consensus: "The Colorless Realm Light Lamp versus the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Shield—it seems these two are simply competing to see who can last the longest!"
Some immediately concluded: "The range of the Colorless Realm Light Lamp is too vast, while the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover is concentrated in one place. If the Supreme Bodhisattva has no further tricks up his sleeve, this battle will probably end with the Supreme Bodhisattva exhausting his magical power first!"
The Colorless Realm Light Lamp contains the remains and relics of a powerful being, while the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover contains the souls of nine dragons. When they are used for the first time, the contest between the two will definitely be about whose magical power can last longer.
Just as the battlefield reached a stalemate, deafening battle cries came from the direction of the important town.
Just as the Brahma soldiers were about to retreat, Li Hui led tens of thousands of soldiers to attack. As for the strategic pass that occupied the terrain, it had already been breached from the inside by the monsters attacking from all sides.
Li Hui descended from the sky on his tiger king and led his army toward the important town. Along the way, he encountered some Brahma soldiers who showed no fighting spirit. He quickly passed through the town and headed toward the Brahma soldiers who were fleeing to the west.
Tiger King is the invincible demon king of the White Rock Mountains. Years ago, he entered the Golden Cave Immortal Realm to seek the tempering of his body with the power of the Qi and Evil. Now he has entered the world to break through to the level of the God of Strength with the power of the Qi and Evil.
At the same time, a force of soldiers stormed in from the northwest, directly blocking the retreat of the Brahma army. The one who came was none other than Yuan Puyue, the son of the Duke of Zhenguo.
"Reinforcements have arrived! We are determined to achieve a great victory tonight!"
After witnessing the battle between the Bodhisattva of Supreme Victory and the Immortal Lord of Li Huo, Li Hui knew that the Duke of Zhenguo's forces had arrived as promised, and the battle to annihilate the Brahma soldiers was practically a certainty.
However, Li Hui still unconsciously turned around and looked at the figure who was fighting against the Buddha of Shengguan.
Tianling's every move exuded earth-shattering power, while the Earth God Vajra desperately resisted with Buddhist light, even shattering the white clouds in the sky into wisps of smoke. "Sun Goddess... Moon Fairy... Dreamy Tianling, why do you resemble that old friend so much?"
Li Hui once harbored feelings of love for Zhang Xiaolian, but Zhang Xiaolian mysteriously passed away after being pursued by the Human Emperor, leaving Li Hui with nothing but resentment and regret.
"kill!"
"Any Brahma soldier who resists will be killed without exception!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
A burst of battle shouts pulled Li Hui back to reality. He shook his head and looked firmly at the battlefield ahead.
Compared to romantic love, achieving great deeds and even engaging in fierce competition are Li Hui's greatest pursuits. Besides, that old friend could not possibly be the three people in front of him...
"Alas!" sighed the Buddha of Shengguan.
Seeing that the Brahma soldiers could not escape, he stood up for the first time. The Earth God Vajra self-destructed and rushed into the sky, while he flew westward.
With the intervention of the Buddha of Victorious Observation, the Bodhisattva of Supreme Victory, who was originally entangled in the battle, finally got a chance to catch his breath. However, he dared not stay any longer and immediately fled westward.
At that time, the imperial court received a report of a great victory in the western frontier. Li Hui's troops and Yuan Shizi had jointly besieged a key town of the Brahma army, killing 12,000 Brahma soldiers and capturing 15,000.
Not long after, Yuan Shizi followed the clues and found the hiding place of the Fanbing and the South China Sea island chain. He destroyed more than 20 ships of various sizes in one fell swoop, rendering the Fanbing in the South China Sea immobile and frightening the pro-war faction in the South China Sea island chain.
In response, the South China Sea Islands personally sent a letter of pleas for peace and distanced themselves from the Brahmin Army.
The court was overjoyed and immediately drafted the reward plan, but then encountered a major problem.
Li Hui could still be promoted a couple more times, but Yuan Gong and his son had already made numerous contributions and there was no room for further promotion.
After all, Lord Yuan had long since retired to the second line, and it was always Lord Yuan's heir, Pu Yu, who took the lead and made many contributions.
An official immediately suggested, "The heir of Lord Yuan is so elegant and refined, why not emulate the example of two nobles from one family?"
The phrase "two dukes in one family" refers to the appointment of Yuan Puyue as the Duke of Zhenguo, while the title of General Yuan could be left to other heirs.
The Emperor adopted the suggestion, but he harbored great apprehension towards the Yuan family and immediately summoned Yuan's heir, Puyu, to the capital.
Ordinary people thought that the Emperor was preparing to bestow generous rewards, but some people saw through the clues. The Emperor was preparing to use Yuan Puyu as a hostage to control the army under Yuan Gong in the south!
This speculation is not unfounded; in addition to existing examples, it is also related to folk legends.
It is said that Yuan Gong and Yuan Puyu have successively received dragon energy and are already showing signs of dragons. It is not unusual for a family to have two dukes; the two are very likely to become the future emperors!
Knowing the dangers in the capital, the Yuan family realized that Yuan Puyue was likely gone for good and would inevitably face further pressure from the court to reduce the power of the princes.
"The moment the island chain in the South China Sea sought peace, they turned on us like a hunting dog after the rabbit is killed; the imperial court didn't even bother to put on a show anymore!"
"With an army of 200,000 under his command, how could Lord Yuan stand idly by and watch the imperial court summon the heir apparent to be imprisoned?"
"The emperor has lost his virtue, and the people are full of resentment... If a new emperor is to be born, why can't it be my Yuan family?"
Not long after, Yuan Gong raised the banner of rebellion and, under the name of the Prince of Fu, led his troops northward.
Prince Fu was the late emperor's younger brother. Although his entire family was wiped out for helping the crown prince vie for the throne, some of his bloodline remained in secret, and he was called Little Prince Fu by Lord Yuan!
Both the Marquis of Zhenbei and the Marquis of Xichuan condemned Yuan Gong's rebellion, but because both were fighting against foreign tribes on the border, they had no intention of sending troops to "serve the emperor".
Marquis Zhenbei and Marquis Xichuan secretly envied Lord Yuan. If they could resolve the troubles around them, they would definitely begin the struggle for power.
Li Hui, however, did not make any unnecessary moves and chose to continue expanding his army. Thanks to Li Hui's many victories and abundant resources, as well as the captured Brahma soldiers he had recruited, he soon had 30,000 soldiers.
As autumn turned to winter, the battle between the imperial court and the Duke of Zhenguo reached a stalemate, clearly demonstrating that the imperial army was not to be underestimated.
Just when people thought the two sides would continue to fight for months or even years, a contingent of imperial troops suddenly turned against them and helped Yuan Gong open the pass.
At this moment, what lay before Yuan Gong was an endless plain. In just two or three days, he could quickly march his army to the outskirts of the capital!
The court officials were greatly alarmed and immediately petitioned the emperor to abandon the capital and flee south of the mountains, so that they could wait for the troops to return to their aid.
At first, the Emperor was unmoved, but when Yuan Gong's army marched a hundred miles away and he saw countless officials and common people fleeing the capital in a panic, the Emperor felt fear.
The Emperor quickly decided to flee the capital, but before he even reached the south of the mountain, he was ambushed by the remnants of the Prince of Fu's forces.
At this point, the Emperor passed away.
The world cannot be without a ruler for even a day; the great struggle for supremacy has officially begun. (End of Chapter)