Let the Battle Begin

"You old bald donkeys! Just wait! I've already informed my big brother, and he's an elder of the Righteous Essence Sect! He'll bring people to rescue me! When that happens, none of you will get away!"

Ao Dalong (Ao Big Dragon) was furious. Four Saint realm cultivators had formed a formation that sealed all his saintly energy, leaving him unable even to retrieve his weapons. Otherwise, he wouldn't be in such a sorry state.

The giant Buddha frowned at Ao Dalong's words. "You wretched beast stole a Buddhist sacred treasure. Even if an elder of the Righteous Essence Sect comes, we are in the right!"

Though he spoke confidently, he secretly transmitted a message to the other three: "Speed up. Convert him and bring him back directly, to avoid further trouble."

The Righteous Essence Sect—of course they knew of it. It had just become the foremost righteous sect in the Central Plains, its reputation in the Central Plains now rivaling that of their Western Regions' Great Thunderclap Monastery.

If they were monks from the Great Thunderclap Monastery, they wouldn't need to worry about conflict with the Righteous Essence Sect. But unfortunately, they were not.

With their cultivation levels, entering the Great Thunderclap Monastery would pose no problem, but they could only serve as elders there. By establishing their own sect, however, they could become supreme elders and rule their own temple. Of course, this also meant they couldn't use the Great Thunderclap Monastery's banner in their affairs.

As the saintly energy from the four men blazed brighter, an even more powerful pressure descended. Countless Buddhist chants pierced the ears, making Ao Dalong glare and snarl in fury.

"You damned bald donkeys! If you've got the guts, kill me! If you can't finish me off, I'll make sure to kill every last one of you!"

Ao Dalong stared intently at the men, etching their faces into his memory. These bald donkeys were now on his kill list.

The four Saint realm Buddhist cultivators said nothing, merely increasing their power continuously, striving to convert Ao Dalong completely from the inside out, twisting his heart into the shape they desired.

The holy Buddhist light seemed capable of purifying everything, distorting a person's inner self into whatever they wanted it to be.

Ao Dalong kept cursing wildly, trying to disrupt the progress of these monks.

Thus they continued for several days. Ao Dalong grew tired of shouting, and the light in his eyes began to fade.

It was as though he was truly being converted into a disciple of Buddhism.

A blurry figure appeared before him, vaguely like his big brother.

"Is this what humans call seeing your life flash before your eyes? Big brother, I wanted to achieve great deeds with you, but I never thought I'd go first..."

"Big Dragon! Wake up!"

Mo Tianxiao's shout exploded in Ao Dalong's mind. His soul imprint trembled violently, and his eyes snapped open. He widened them as large as a mountain-sized flood dragon's and said excitedly:

"Big brother!"

Good thing he held on until his big brother arrived, or it would have been too late.

Mo Tianxiao frowned, staring fiercely at the four bald heads. "Is this the way of Buddhism? Daring to rob one of my Righteous Essence Sect's people so blatantly?"

Though Ao Dalong had not officially joined the Righteous Essence Sect, that didn't stop Mo Tianxiao from using the sect's name to threaten these monks.

Upon hearing "Righteous Essence Sect," the four hesitated, but seeing that Mo Tianxiao was only at Tribulation Transcendence level, the leading giant golden Buddha made up his mind and secretly transmitted to the others to strengthen their power.

Even if it was the Righteous Essence Sect, so what? They had finally found a flood dragon, and one carrying a Buddhist treasure at that. On their turf, it was theirs.

The Righteous Essence Sect couldn't stretch its arm all the way to the Western Regions.

"Little girl, what do you mean by 'rob'? This wretched flood dragon possesses a major Buddhist relic. We did not execute him on the spot but instead let him convert to Buddhism—that is Heaven's mercy for life."

"Mercy my ass!"

Mo Tianxiao swept her gaze over the four men. With a flip of her hand, a purple talisman crackling with lightning appeared. With a "shu" sound, it shot toward one of the three lower-tier monks.

The flying talisman was activated, instantly flashing with blinding lightning and exploding. Purple thunder transformed into a furious dragon, surging toward the monk.

The monk had been dismissive at first, but when he felt the destructive aura of the lightning dragon, his hair stood on end and he cried out in shock: "Purple Dawn Divine Thunder?!"

He hadn't expected this Tribulation Transcendence woman to immediately use a Saint-grade talisman! How much did a single one cost?!

Without hesitation, the monk abandoned the formation and turned to confront the divine thunder. If struck by it, he would at least be severely injured.

With the formation missing one corner, it became precarious. Seizing the opportunity, Ao Dalong twisted his body and rammed into it with force. The formation cracked further, on the verge of shattering.

The golden giant Buddha above frowned. "Suppress him with full force!"

The remaining three monks struggled to maintain the formation, while the fourth monk continued to fight the lightning dragon, apparently able to hold it off for a while.

Mo Tianxiao stared at that monk, frowning slightly. "Still no match for Zhang Qingyu's Purple Dawn Divine Thunder."

This Saint-grade talisman was something she'd picked up at the Chaos Star Sea last time. Who knew it would come in handy here?

"Miss, I advise you not to meddle! Leave now, and we Buddhists will act as if nothing happened. If you continue to obstruct us, do not blame us for being rude!"

In response to the monk's warning, Mo Tianxiao flipped her hand, and the Five Elements Bowl appeared. "You think you represent Buddhism?"

"Go!"

She poured massive spiritual energy into the Five Elements Bowl. Though she couldn't fully unleash its power, at her current cultivation level, she could make the holy weapon exert most of its might.

The Five Elements Bowl was activated, immediately blazing with light. The five different colors rippled and transformed into five single-colored bowls. Among them, the gold and fire bowls shot toward the two remaining monks at the formation's base, hovering over them and unleashing endless holy might!

White and red light enveloped the two, hindering the flow of their saintly energy.

The wood, water, and earth bowls layered themselves threefold above the golden giant Buddha's head, expanding in size. Green, blue, and yellow light shone down, momentarily suppressing the surging Buddhist glow.

The three immediately sensed their saintly energy flow slowing down noticeably.

"A holy weapon?!"

The monks stared at Mo Tianxiao, greed flashing in their eyes.

A Saint-grade talisman and a holy weapon—this woman was incredibly wealthy!

"Drop the formation. I'll hold off this wretched flood dragon. You two capture the woman. She must not escape!"

The lead monk transmitted to the other two.

Anyone who could produce so many treasures at once must be more than just an elder of the Righteous Essence Sect. Such troublesome opponents, once they become enemies, absolutely cannot be let go!

"Yes!"

In the next instant, the two monks withdrew, ceasing to maintain the formation. They clasped their hands, radiating Buddhist light, and repelled the bowls hovering above them.

In the end, Mo Tianxiao was only at Tribulation Transcendence. Even wielding a holy weapon, she could not overpower Saint realm cultivators.

Meanwhile, the giant golden Buddha also abandoned the formation, grabbing the three bowls above his head. His face lit up with delight. "This bowl shares a destiny with Buddhism. Why not let it join our faith as well?"