The Mirror Legacy

Chapter 1412: Stabilizing The Mountain (I)

A pair of golden hammers has arrived instead!

Li Ximing lightly flicked his sleeve and drew two golden objects from the sky filled with pink radiance. They were the pair of golden hammers that had belonged to the Buddhist cultivator earlier. Each was nearly half his body in size.

Although the pair of hammers was large, their quality was clearly inferior and far less impressive than the kasaya he had seized earlier. Li Ximing did not understand Buddhist arts, but he could still judge their quality. He stored them away with a flip of his hand.

The pain is killing us!

With Li Ximing suppressing them using the heavenly gate and scorching them with a breath of True Fire, the two Merciful Ones below had no mind left to care about their senior brothers or sisters. The Profound Fire of the Three Phases’ Guard was a Purple Mansion Realm spiritual flame, and the Heaven-Venerating Gate had reached perfection. They were locked in suffering.

They are already suppressed. There is no rush to kill them, and I cannot let them become too desperate. It would not be ideal if they are forced to abandon their dharma bodies and commit suicide to return to the Buddhist land, thought Li Ximing.

So he deliberately alternated between light and heavy pressure, pretending his divine ability was unstable. Although the flames remained fierce, the suppression of the heavenly gate above their heads gradually weakened, which filled them with unexpected delight.

After all, the two had a rather low status among the Merciful Ones. If they returned to the Buddhist land without their dharma bodies, no one would help them. They would have to seize the bodies of subordinate Master Monks and refine them themselves, which would be an enormous loss!

Although the Boundless Water-Fire was formidable, once the Upper-Minister Vessel finished releasing the flames, it had already flown into the hands of Daoist Master Tinglan in the distance. It had not arrived before them yet, so there was still time to react.

Kill ourselves immediately? Better to delay a little…

Thus, even though they knew the Daoist Masters above them were very likely holding back, they still cooperated by silently pushing against the heavenly gate, waiting for something to change that might give them a chance to escape.

Li Ximing raised his brows and looked around.

The entire mountain range was already covered in all kinds of radiance. Daoist Master Kuiqi led the charge, his black cords whipping through the air. He had driven a bronze sword straight into the head of a golden body, pinning it in place. In his other hand he held a small bell that no one had ever seen before, its light bursting outward as it hovered like a ghost behind another Merciful One.

The strongest Merciful One stepped upon several golden rings, Boundless Water-Fire blazing over his body as he blocked the way with an ugly expression. His originally smooth and flawless golden body was now covered with black spots, and several feathers had even grown beneath his arms.

I’ve no idea what art he has been struck by, thought Tinglan.

Tinglan’s injuries had not yet fully healed, so she mainly restrained the enemy using the Purple Throne Serene Spirit Pavilion. Ning Wan had lost the Frosty Absolute Sword and could no longer hold her own alone. Aside from Kuiqi, the one with the most overwhelming presence was naturally Houfu.

The Daoist’s robes fluttered as he raised both hands and pressed them down upon a golden body. Above him hung a gray bag-shaped spirit artifact, its mouth wide open. It released waves of Supreme Yang radiance like raging wind; the brilliance was dazzling and soul-stirring as it poured between the mountains like a blazing waterfall.

Beneath this radiance were two Merciful Ones, suppressed by the Supreme Yang until they were utterly disoriented. Flames would not rise and wind could not be ridden. Although their lives were not in immediate danger, they clearly seemed to be waiting helplessly for death.

Li Ximing had seen this thing before at the Peacock Sea; it was the same item that had forced Yuguang[1] to retreat. Yet his perspective now was far different from before. Seeing it again, he sighed inwardly, This bag is undoubtedly a spirit treasure of the Supreme Yang Dao lineage. Truly extravagant. Who knows how many transformations such a powerful external treasure possesses.

To put it bluntly, this spirit treasure bag alone made it so that Houfu did not need to make a move. It was enough to give a Purple Mansion Realm devil cultivator or an Eastern Sea Daoist Master serious trouble. It was likely no worse than Tinglan’s life-preserving Purple Throne Serene Spirit Pavilion. No wonder he dared to guard a region at such a young age.

Li Ximing watched for a moment when suddenly the Upper-Minister Vessel in the sky vanished. The great void beside him echoed softly, and the purple-robed Tinglan silently appeared beside the heavenly gate, smiling faintly at him.

Li Ximing paused slightly in surprise and swept out his spiritual sense. He thought to himself, Her true body is clearly still on the Purple Throne Serene Spirit Pavilion! It is the Migration Command Token…

He understood instantly. The heavenly gate trembled and suddenly lifted slightly, revealing a narrow gap. Radiant Light flickered and fierce flames blazed below, but the two golden bodies were overjoyed and rushed outward.

Tinglan revealed the Upper-Minister Vessel in her hand. Tilting the mouth of the vessel, blue and azure twin flames immediately surged inward.

What a brilliant technique! Li Ximing exclaimed inwardly.

The clone created by the Migration Command Token naturally possessed no divine abilities. Yet compared with ordinary clones, its brilliance lay in the fact that it was almost equivalent to the true body. It even possessed a second range of spiritual sense. Thus, though it had no divine abilities, it could still activate spirit artifacts!

Tinglan’s cultivation was also profound. Whether through some divine ability, spell art, or clever use of a spirit artifact, this clone had appeared completely silently. Now as the blazing Boundless Water-Fire poured in, the two Merciful Ones inside were stunned for a moment.

Li Ximing finally found his opportunity. Transforming into light, he rushed inside and drew the axe in a sweeping strike!

Boom!

The first Merciful One was struck full in the face by Boundless Water-Fire, and then the light of the Brilliant Yang King’s Axe. His golden body was nothing extraordinary. It might withstand ordinary divine abilities or spell arts, but after being scorched by True Fire and spiritual flames, how could it endure such a blow?

The entire dharma body shattered piece by piece. Beginning with the hardest skull, it collapsed and broke into fragments of glazed gold and stone that fluttered through the air.

Pink radiance surged, but did not rise to the sky as the phenomenon of his fall was blocked by the heavenly gate. Li Ximing had already turned around, his gaze falling on the surviving Merciful One on the other side whose face was filled with shock.

The light of Light Splitting[2] flickered. Tinglan did not continue attacking. Her clone vanished and moved toward another location.

There was a reason. These Merciful Ones were already like frightened birds. If several of them fell in succession, the one who had avoided the Boundless Water-Fire yet remained entangled would certainly kill themself immediately to escape.

Destroying their dharma bodies alone was already a great gain and would cause immense losses to the Emptiness Dao. But if one more could be killed, would that not eliminate another future threat?

The other three in the sky also acted in perfect coordination. For a moment, radiant light burst everywhere and pink brilliance filled the heavens. When Li Ximing withdrew his divine ability and rose into the air, the True Fire below had refined the ground into molten gold and stone.

Clearly those phenomena had been suppressed and unable to spread violently. They had been condensed by the True Fire and fused into the earth. Now that the pressure was gone, pink light drifted outward.

He rode forward on Radiant Light. Flower petals in the sky mixed with fine snow as they fell in profusion, reaching their most magnificent moment. Snow drifted down as the three heads were forced down like low hills. Their expressions were a mixture of shock, fury, and unwillingness. Their brows were twisted fiercely and their eyes were wide open as they lay silently in the snow.

“Truly a great victory…” Li Ximing raised his brows as he looked on.

At least for Li Ximing, this great victory perfectly served the interests of Moongaze Lake. As for who had truly won or lost in the conflict between the Supreme Yang Dao lineage and the northern and southern factions, or which side had suffered more, that was a matter of perspective.

Daoist Master Kuiqi stepped across the sky and arrived. His expression was solemn. Though flower rain filled the heavens, his thoughts seemed heavy and he showed little joy as he said softly, “Tinglan… it seems the Prime Magnetism here has stabilized.”

Daoist Master Tinglan stood in purple robes, gazing at Mount Tangdao within the falling snow. The entire mountain was filled with broken walls and collapsed ruins. Shattered statues were scattered everywhere.

She sighed, “There was no other choice. Since this place has been retaken, it is our duty to hold it.”

Li Ximing landed near Ning Wan and heard Daoist Master Kuiqi speak softly, “Fellow Daoist Hengxing!”

The great void rippled, and a vast red radiance surged forth. A woman in simple ancient robes appeared, holding an umbrella in her arms. Her expression was calm as she said, “Congratulations to you all!”

Hengxing…

This person was none other than Daoist Master Hengxing of the Hengzhu Dao.

1. The peacock Merciful One that first appeared in Chapter 1238. ☜

2. One of the techniques of Brilliant Yang King’s Axe. ☜