Senior Brother, Your Skills Are Far Inferior to What They Used to Be

The Buddhist faction arrived with massive fanfare, trailing golden lotuses and radiant morning clouds that stretched to the horizon.

As the glowing morning clouds drew near and slowly parted, Arhats and novice monks cleared the path just outside the layers of array formations. Auspicious clouds spilled outward, slowly revealing the true form of Runan's precious canopy.

Flanking Runan's precious canopy, much smaller Buddha canopies also gradually came into view.

An Arhat standing outside personally reached out to lift the canopy drape, revealing Runan, whose face was set in a solemn expression.

The drapes of the other Buddha canopies were similarly lifted, uncovering the true faces of the various Buddhas.

Their gazes all turned in unison toward the person seated at the head—Yuan Kong.

Runan scrutinized him repeatedly before sending out his divine sense to probe further.

Although the array formation could block divine senses, it was not the grand mountain-guarding array of the Eighteen Immortal Sects. Naturally, it could not completely isolate the divine sense of a top-tier Tribulation Transcendence cultivator.

Runan's divine sense pierced through the formation, reaching straight for Yuan Kong, but naturally, it wouldn't be that simple.

Huang Miao raised his gaze to look directly at Runan. A surge of sword intent flowed forth, directly severing Runan's probing divine sense.

Having done this, he coldly demanded:

"Junior, have you forgotten your manners?"

Runan slightly raised his eyes, temporarily halting his futile actions, and questioned in a calm tone:

"An illusory appearance can be both true and false."

Yuan Kong formed a Buddhist hand seal and looked calmly at Runan. With the array formation blocking the pressure, the pure oppressive aura of a top-tier cultivator was gone. At this moment, despite his noble and condescending appearance, Runan seemed to be nothing more than ordinary.

The uneasiness in his heart quickly faded, and he quietly observed this Honored Buddha, who held the highest status in the Buddhist faction.

Chu Xingchen stood beside Yuan Kong, watching his expression gradually calm down. He figured that Yuan Kong probably no longer needed his witty remarks to ease the tension.

Runan's gaze remained on Yuan Kong before sweeping over to Chu Xingchen by his side.

He did not press Chu Xingchen on why he had promised at the Pudu River not to get involved with the Evil Buddha, only to go back on his word and take him in now.

If they really had to argue about it, anyone could find a justification or an appropriate excuse.

But that would not solve any problems.

Runan looked at Chu Xingchen with a calm and gentle gaze, seemingly waiting for him to state his price.

Since ancient times, it was always profit, not reason, that drove people to make choices.

Some desired fame, so they abandoned all interests other than reputation; others pursued wealth, so they would abandon the fairness in their hearts.

Yuan Kong observed Runan's expression. No matter how noble his demeanor appeared, the mercenary calculation in his eyes was blatantly obvious. He turned his head to look at Chu Xingchen.

Noticing his gaze, Chu Xingchen looked back and asked via voice transmission:

"What's the matter?"

Yuan Kong replied honestly through voice transmission: "Can I improvise a little? I have a question I want to ask him."

Chu Xingchen chuckled lightly and nodded.

Yuan Kong hadn't expected Chu Xingchen to actually agree.

Though he had his own considerations for the proposal, Runan was, after all, an Honored Buddha of the Buddhist faction. His mastery of Buddhist philosophy of the mind had naturally reached the pinnacle. If Yuan Kong blindly followed Chu Xingchen's scripted answers, no matter how identical his appearance and aura were, his inner heart would be different.

He had, after all, genuinely studied Mahayana Buddhism and deeply pondered its principles.

Yuan Kong took a deep breath. Though he wanted to ask his questions, he would try his best not to let down Chu Xingchen's expectations. He looked toward Runan and said:

"Honored Buddha Runan."

Hearing this, Runan shifted his gaze to Yuan Kong. Looking at the aged face of the Radiant Buddha and hearing that calm address of 'Honored Buddha', he remained silent for a long time.

Yuan Kong performed a Buddhist salute and asked softly:

"Let us assume I am fake. However, I have a few questions I do not understand and wish to ask you. Regardless of whether Mahayana Buddhism is right or wrong, I will only speak of the confusions in my heart. Could you simply treat this as dispelling the doubts of a novice monk earnestly seeking the truth?"

Runan half-closed his eyes: "Ask away."

"The world is inherently mercenary, and all people calculate their gains and losses," Yuan Kong asked in a puzzled tone. "If one seeks only their own liberation, can that be considered a mercenary heart? Is such liberation true liberation?"

Runan replied calmly: "If one does not rely on external things and does not seek honor or disgrace, how can it be considered mercenary? How can it be considered false?"

Hearing this, Yuan Kong pressed further: "What if one has compassion in their heart and desires external things? What if one has a sense of shame in their heart and desires honor and disgrace?"

Runan pondered for a moment before answering again.

Chu Xingchen was not a Buddhist cultivator. He could roughly grasp the meaning of these idealistic concepts, but he hardly agreed with them.

The conversation between the two quickly seemed to hit its stride.

Yuan Kong seemed to have accumulated many unresolved questions along his journey. Now that he had encountered a true heavyweight of the Buddhist faction, he poured out all the doubts and frustrations in his heart, genuinely adopting the posture of an earnest student seeking knowledge.

Sometimes, he would even ask the most fundamental questions.

Amidst this exchange of questions and answers, the initially tense atmosphere slowly dissipated.

In Yuan Kong's eyes, it seemed that Runan was no longer the Honored Buddha, but simply a senior who had walked the path before him.

Runan's answers were not casual either; he replied earnestly and occasionally posed questions in return.

For a time, it felt as though this was an internal philosophical debate of the Buddhist faction.

Runan's expression also shifted from its initial coldness to a mild gentleness, though the wariness in his eyes gradually deepened.

Time flowed on, and the sun rose higher in the sky.

No one knew exactly how long this dialogue had lasted.

Yuan Kong had just received an answer from Runan and showed a hint of satisfaction on his face. Just as he was about to ask another question...

Wenliu, a Buddha seated in a canopy beside Runan, suddenly interrupted:

"Questioning like a child seeking knowledge, how could this truly be the Evil Buddha?"

The sudden remark cut their conversation short.

Runan's expression remained unchanged, betraying no extra emotion.

Yuan Kong, on the other hand, looked slightly disappointed at the interruption. He turned his gaze to Wenliu:

"You wish to know if I am real or fake?"

Wenliu raised an eyebrow and sneered coldly: "You are a fake to begin with. This is nothing but a petty trick."

Chu Xingchen glanced at Yuan Kong; the time had come.

Noticing Chu Xingchen's gaze, Yuan Kong chuckled lightly and shook his head. He pressed his palms together, and Buddhist light materialized around him. The drifting light then wafted outward, passing through the barrier.

A faint wisp of golden Buddhist light, carrying the profound aura of Buddhist principles, drifted out.

This nearly imperceptible wisp of aura was instantly caught by the many Buddhist Tribulation Transcendence cultivators gathered outside.

A myriad of expressions surfaced among the various Buddhas.

Some were secretly delighted, while others glared in anger. But in the next moment, everyone's gaze shifted to Runan.

Runan stared intently at Yuan Kong. After a long silence, he slowly spoke:

"Senior Brother, your abilities fall far short of what they were in the past."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's expressions shifted once again.

Wenliu's expression morphed from secret delight to sheer astonishment. Secretly recalling that wisp of Buddhist charm, he realized that it seemed to contain traces of Mahayana Buddhism...

He looked at Yuan Kong with doubt and alarm, while also casting a covert glance at Runan.

True Buddha Hua Wu glanced sideways at Runan, a subtle flicker passing through his eyes.

Observing Runan's expression, True Buddha Wenliu made a decision in his heart and coldly scolded:

"Evil Buddha! If you truly understand reason and possess a Buddha's heart, you should surrender at this moment! If you genuinely repent, there are tens of thousands of true scriptures for you to study, and the Honored Buddha would even be willing to impart grand dharma to you!"

Hearing this, Yuan Kong merely smiled:

"Those principles my junior brother and I just discussed were not meant for me to hear, nor were they meant for me to understand. They were meant for you to hear."

"You have listened to so much, yet you have not gained the slightest bit of enlightenment."

"And you call yourselves True Buddhas?"

Yuan Kong shifted his gaze to Runan and said, "Junior Brother, since you understand all the reasoning, do you truly not know whether this is right or wrong?"

Runan looked back at Yuan Kong and said in a cold voice, "I call you Senior Brother only out of remembrance for our past bonds. It is truly a pity that you have already strayed onto the demonic path."

"With demonic barriers clouding your heart, how can you possibly be right? This formation may have protected you, but how is this place any different from beneath Zhengyin Temple?"

"In the past, the grace of the Buddhist sect kept you safe, but today, your body and mind have both succumbed to the demonic."

"Do not blame me for vanquishing demons and eliminating evil!"

Runan then turned his gaze toward Chu Xingchen. "I give you three days to hand over the evil Buddha."

With those words, the ornate canopy descended, and the auspicious clouds churned.

A smile hung on Chu Xingchen's face, as if he were not the one being threatened at all.