The Prodigies War

The big black bird said through voice transmission, “Let’s settle the matter at hand first, and I’ll tell you about it in detail later. But you can rest assured that the original Ancient Buddha Son isn’t much stronger than the clone.”

Lin Xun nodded.

He then looked at the audience and registered the shock, trance, apprehension…on their faces as well.

“You can all leave,” he said.

Hearing this, the majority of them collectively heaved a sigh of relief.

While being trapped inside this isolated world, they couldn’t help but worry that Lin Xun would vent his anger at the drop of a hat.

Apparently, although he was known as a Demon God, he wasn’t someone who killed innocent people indiscriminately.

“Many thanks, Fellow Daoist Lin.”

“Congratulations for turning the tide and exterminating all of your enemies. From now on, no one in the Upper Nine Realms will dare to underestimate you, Fellow Daoist Lin.”

“Like the unchanging green mountains and rivers, I hope we’ll last until the day we meet again. Please take care, Fellow Daoist Lin!”

Amidst the cacophony of praises and farewells, the cultivators in the area left one after another, but their minds still had yet to calm down.

Today’s battle had been full of twists and turns. It was foreseeable that before long, it would cause a sensation in the entire Upper Nine Realms!

“Brother Lin, I am Ye Mohe. There are only a few years left before the Supreme Realm closes. I sure hope that we can have a spar before that,” shouted the distant Ye Mohe as he left.

“It would be my honor,” Lin Xun casually agreed and cupped his fist.

Ye Mohe turned to leave with a smile.

Today’s battle had allowed him to witness Lin Xun’s fighting power and ignited his competitive spirit, so he took the initiative to set up a duel in advance.

“Lin Xun, don’t be complacent just yet. Underworld Son might have been strong, but he was still nothing special. If there’s an opportunity in the future, I will personally let you see what it means to be the strongest!” declared the Little Golden Winged Dapeng King coldly before transforming into a golden-winged roc and leaving with the wind.

Lin Xun frowned.

Luo Jia laughed, “Don’t pay him any attention. He is a descendant of the pure-blooded Golden Winged Dapeng Lineage and has had his ancestral blood in him awakened, so he’s quite a brat. He just said that because he refuses to yield to your strength, it’s nothing malicious.”

Lin Xun made no comment to this.

Soon, everyone else left, leaving behind only a devastated land as the result of the battle.

“Let’s head up the mountain.” Lin Xun looked at his group of friends with a heartfelt smile and invited them to join him on Kongzhe Mountain.

……

The Underworld army led by Underworld Son had set out with an overbearing momentum, seeking to exterminate Lin Xun and wipe out Kongzhe Mountain.

But the result had been him being tightly dominated by Lin Xun, leaving only a wisp of his soul to flee in fear, so the mighty combined forces of the Underworld had crumbled without a fight!

The news spread at an incredible speed throughout the Upper Nine Realms, triggering waves upon waves of sensations.

On top of that, the news that Ancient Buddha Son had not only reappeared but had also been utterly defeated by Lin Xun was also spreading, throwing the Upper Nine Realms into an uproar!

“With the outcome of this battle, Demon God Lin can already be considered an overlord of apex giants among his generation!”

“I wonder how high he can be on the Genius Gold Rankings now…”

“The Underworld is bound to collapse…”

“After four years of silence, he has once again made himself known as soon as he emerged. Who in the Upper Nine Realms can suppress Lin Xun’s rising momentum from now on?”

All sorts of similar discussions and clamor could be heard across the Upper Nine Realms, and as time passed, the news of what had taken place before Kongzhe Mountain kept spreading without any signs of dying down.

……

Kongzhe Mountain, Green Mulberry Peak.

Bamboo trees flourished, and clear streams gurgled.

Lin Xun, Ji Xingyao, Mo Tianhe, Luo Jia, Yue Jianming, and the others were sitting on the ground with divine wine, fruits and vegetables, and aeth tea in front of them.

They were enjoying the treats while chatting and catching up. The atmosphere was cordial and comfortable.

The sky was clear, the clouds were misty, the nearby bamboo forest rustled, and the streams were singing a crystal-clear melody. On the quiet and unassuming mountain, the group of cultivators who shared the same values gathered with nothing but coziness and joy filling their hearts.

“Jianming, I heard that you’ve been running around for me all these past few years. This is a toast to you!” Lin Xun raised his cup with a laugh.

Ever since he had parted ways with Yue Jianming in the West Infinity World, Lin Xun hadn’t seen him in many years prior to this.

Seeing that Yue Jianming had stepped into the second longevity tribulation Supreme King stage, he couldn’t help but get emotional.

“Cheers!” Yue Jianming was straightforward to drain his cup in one go.

Lin Xun had saved his life, and he would never forget such kindness!

“Miss Luo Jia, thanks for coming this time too!” Lin Xun once again raised his cup.

He was also amazed by her growth.

The heir to Miluo Palace in the Earth Emperor World was like an orchid, wise and refined. Together, they had participated in the Dao Lantern Festival and crossed the Boundary River.

And now, Luo Jia already possessed the strength of a third longevity tribulation Supreme King. Not forgetting the fact she belonged to the Celestial Phoenix Clan, both her talent and her heritage were extraordinary.

Lin Xun certainly wasn’t the only one who had made great progress in the past several years. Everyone else had found their own fortunes and opportunities as well.

When old friends were reunited, they naturally would drink to their heart’s content!

As they reminisced over cups upon cups of wine, they sighed and marveled and laughed joyously.

Eventually, even Lin Xun felt tipsy.

It had been a long, long time since he had been this relaxed…

Late into the night, everyone bid goodbye to Lin Xun and left. Each had their own quests and path to embark on. Upon seeing that Lin Xun was unharmed, there was no need for them to stay any longer.

Lin Xun didn’t stop them.

This was how the path of cultivation was.

The brilliant starlight formed a silver river, covering the bamboo forest in a layer of a dream-like veil with its misty glow.

The night was deep.

Inside a bamboo house built by Lin Xun himself, the big black bird lay drunkenly on a chair, mumbling, “Aii, how lucky would life be if I could be free and relaxed like this every day?”

Lin Xun was sitting nearby in meditation.

Today’s vicious fight had left him heavily wounded and consumed. While his external injuries had completely recovered, his energy was still depleted and in dire need of replenishment.

“Don’t you want to know about the details of Ancient Buddha Son? I’ll tell you,” said the big black bird abruptly.

It then flapped its wings and rose from the chair. The drunken look had vanished from its eyes, looking as sober as snow.

“In the ancient era, the Earth Treasury Temple produced a true Saint King whose Buddist title was ‘Good and Evil Cleansing Buddha King.’ With supreme wisdom and great perseverance, he created a dao art called the Good and Evil Transcension Sutra. It was truly a wondrous creation, truly so…

“Ancient Buddha Son was the final disciple of the Good and Evil Cleansing Buddha King. He was personally sealed away by his master in a secret realm of the Earth Treasury Temple for closed-door cultivation, and only emerged for the first time recently.

“Ancient Buddha Son was born intelligent and with a Buddha bone, to which his master had once commented: ‘His innate talent is far superior to mine. When he steps into the Saint stage, his accomplishments will be above mine.’

“So, you can imagine how heaven-defying his aptitude is. But that’s not important. The important thing here is that the inheritance Ancient Buddha Son is cultivating is precisely his master’s Good and Evil Transcension Sutra!”

Lin Xun meditated while listening, and his state of mind had remained unruffled until the name Good and Evil Transcension Sutra set off ripples in his heart.

He had seen records of some mysteries about this inheritance in the Great Treasury Silent Scripture left behind by Saint Monk Duji.

The big black bird continued, “The most miraculous part of this sutra is that it lets one cultivate a clone with the same cultivation as them, but the original holds good in their heart and cultivates good deeds, while the clone holds evil and cultivates evil deeds.

“Good and evil are two completely opposite paths, but they all lead to the same end once the cultivator cultivates this inheritance to perfection, where the original and the clone can completely fuse into one and mold a holy Buddha crystal body with incredible power.”

Speaking of this, the big black bird suddenly sneered.

“However, Ancient Buddha Son is even more ambitious as he wants to reverse good and evil. He has made it so that the original holds the evil while his clone holds the good in order to transcend from the Good and Evil Transcension Sutra created by his master, and to pave a path of his own.

“Unfortunately, despite being superbly gifted, he has never been able to reach the Saint stage after all, not knowing that it’s impossible for him to succeed based on his talent alone. And now, he currently is unable to distinguish between good and evil anymore and has completely gone astray!”

Lin Xun frowned, “Gone astray?”

“Yes, astray. However, Ancient Buddha Son has great luck, otherwise, theoretically something would have happened with this kind of cultivation.” The big black bird suddenly sighed. “But who would have thought that he’d find a heaven-defying fortune in the Upper Nine Realms that allows him to make up for his own shortcomings and step onto a completely different path in one fell swoop?!”

Lin Xun was also speechless when he heard this.

Immediately, he identified a problem. “Don’t tell me his clone that I defeated today cultivated the good deeds?”

The big black bird nodded. “That’s right.”

Lin Xun’s expression became strange. Someone so cruel, black-hearted, shameless, and acts without scruples like that actually practices the good side? That’s just absurd!

“You’re biased,” the big black bird reminded Lin Xun. “The good and evil in his heart doesn’t necessarily have to be the good and evil that you understand. Everyone has different insights on what good and evil are. As in the case of Ancient Buddha Son’s clone, he probably views eradicating you as doing a good deed.”

This explanation sounded like utter nonsense, but Lin Xun actually understood it. He then asked, “So to speak, his evil-practicing original is even more sinister than his clone?”

The big black bird nodded. “Indeed, but not by too much. He needs to maintain a balance between good and evil in order to keep his original’s mind clear. It would be a calamity for him if either the original or the clone gets much more powerful than the other.”

“Alright. Then do you know where his original self is?” asked Lin Xun.

“Stupa Brahma Land!” the big black bird stressed every word.

This immediately brought Lin Xun’s memory back to a few days ago, after Yu Lingkong had resolved his heart demon. Before he had left, he had told Lin Xun to check out Stupa Brahma Land if he wanted to find Ancient Buddha Son!

Lin Xun had learned from Ji Xingyao that Stupa Brahma Land was located in the Root Mountain Realm and was an extremely dangerous forbidden land.

Rumors had it that the place was home to a three-thousand-story pagoda made of bones!