Chapter 489 : Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake
Chapter 489: Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake
【Ang Xiao】 reacted with remarkable swiftness.
More importantly, as a True Lord of the Holy Sect, he shared a crucial trait with Lü Yang: exceptional decisiveness and swift execution whenever action was needed.
‘This can’t go on any longer!’
With that thought, 【Ang Xiao】 immediately altered the plan he had previously set. Originally, he intended to turn Chong Guang into a stepping stone for his further advancement.
‘Eliminate Hong Yun, the final hidden danger, then after Chong Guang fails in Seeking Golden Fruition, use the 【Obstruction of Knowledge and View】 to secretly store away the Dao Karma born from his death. Wait for the storm to pass, and then use Chong Guang’s Dao Karma to lure out the 【Overturning Lamp Fire】, ultimately dragging this Fruitional Rank into the Netherworld.’
The entire plan was meticulously crafted.
If Lü Yang were to learn of it, he would instantly understand that 【Ang Xiao】’s actions in his ninth lifetime had strictly followed this script.
However, no plan is ever without flaw.
Thus, in the middle of execution, 【Ang Xiao】 had encountered variables. For example, he had not expected Chong Guang to reach the critical point of Seeking Golden Fruition.
In his plan, Chong Guang was supposed to pursue Fruition smoothly and then abruptly die without stirring any waves. Yet, Chong Guang had relied on sheer will and talent to force 【Ang Xiao】 into revealing his identity and confronting the True Lords of the world—only then did he succeed in seizing Chong Guang’s Dao Karma.
What happened afterward need not be mentioned.
Disputes overseas, Feixue’s schemes—【Ang Xiao】 had faced numerous surprises, yet he weathered them all thanks to deep foundations and hidden cards.
Plans often failed to keep up with change; this was the way of the world.
【Ang Xiao】 understood this well, which was why his plans always included high fault tolerance, allowing him to revise and adjust for unforeseen events at any time.
But this time, the surprise was far too great.
“I can sense it. The 【Obstruction of Knowledge and View】 I left on the Holy Sect’s side has suddenly been broken. The name and information I had hidden are likely exposed.”
“In other words, the 【Overturning Lamp Fire】 is out of the question.”
The more 【Ang Xiao】 thought, the grimmer his expression grew: “Moreover, the opponent is deliberately severing my perception of the current world. If this continues, I’ll be completely passive.”
That must not happen.
To lag behind is to be struck. Surrendering the initiative meant things would become dangerously unmanageable. One misstep could render countless years of scheming utterly void!
At that thought, 【Ang Xiao】’s will stirred.
It had been five thousand years since he attained Late Golden Core and concealed himself in the Netherworld. During that time, he had prepared many hidden cards.
Among them, three were key.
The first, naturally, was the 【Body Outside the Worldly Law】—allowing him to forcibly interfere with the mortal realm in times of need, unleashing power far beyond that of a mid-stage Golden Core.
The second was Suohuan.
Be it the 【Blessed Land of the Spirit Ruins】 or the 『Myriad Spirits Returning to the Void Dao Scripture』, both were bait to lure 【Long Flowing Water】 into the Netherworld—of paramount importance.
Yet, compared to the third card, the first two were insignificant—for the third was the labor of his painstaking effort.
In the next instant, 【Ang Xiao】’s consciousness traversed the Netherworld—
Straight into Jiangxi.
At the same moment, in the Pure Land of Jiangxi, countless phantom temples faintly rose, lifting up Buddha Light. Truly, it was a holy land where the Thunderous Voice preached Dharma—a Grand Hall of Merit, unblemished by myriad calamities.
Yet deep within the temple phantoms, beneath the surface of Buddha Light, lay a surreal and bizarre scene—groves of meditative forests, countless temples divided distinctly, each with a unique appearance. These groves were the Dao fields of the many Bodhisattvas of the Pure Land.
Among them, one grove appeared most peculiar.
From afar, it resembled an enormous golden Buddha statue!
He sat cross-legged, with full palms outstretched, in which stood mountains and rivers, countless temples, each inhabited by practicing monks.
And not just the palms—
His hair, skin, seven orifices, even his internal organs—each part of the golden Buddha’s body seemed to be a temple, a vast Buddhist kingdom unto itself!
This was the 【Meditation Grove of the Unique Image】.
Its master was known as the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】—the most low-profile and least-known Bodhisattva in all of the vast Pure Land.
Just then, this colossal golden Buddha stirred. Though he did not move, radiant Buddha Light suddenly rippled behind his head, transforming into circle after circle of tranquil aureoles—wheels of wisdom and Dharma—rotating as if calculating something, or perhaps summoning someone.
This change naturally drew the attention of the Bodhisattvas.
“Dragon and Snake... What is he doing?”
“Unclear. Since he offered his body to the Buddha and nurtured myriad temples with his Dharma form to establish this 【Meditation Grove of the Unique Image】, he has not spoken in years.”
“Pay him no mind.”
“He is but a heretic. For years he sought the 【Sand Within the Earth】 in vain. Now that he’s established a grove, perhaps it is the World-Honored One’s blessing and he’s gained some insight.”
“Indeed.”
The outer Bodhisattvas’ discussion did not affect the heart of the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】. He silently gazed upon his Sea of Consciousness.
Only one question remained in his heart:
‘Who am I?’
In the next instant, a voice surfaced from within: ‘You are me.’
Countless sealed memories emerged in his mind, bringing sudden clarity. Simultaneously, a silhouette shrouded in smoke appeared in his Sea of Consciousness.
【Ang Xiao】!
He stood with hands clasped behind his back, carefully observing the state of the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】, seemingly assessing something. Only after a long pause did he nod:
“Not bad. Very good.”
“It seems the seal of the 【Obstruction of Knowledge and View】 has not been broken... This card can still be used. Or rather, has the mastermind yet to discover him?”
Indeed, the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】 was his third trump card!
A True Lord of the Heretical Path—yet not ordinary, for the Fruitional Rank he achieved aligned perfectly with the imagery of the 【Sand Within the Earth】.
What was Coiling of Dragon and Snake?
Built from accumulated waves, passed by surging tides—the palace of coiled dragon and snake, a land of shifting valleys and mountains—this was the very imagery of the 【Sand Within the Earth】. One of the five Fruitional Ranks solely claimed by 【Ang Xiao】!
If it had been a true 【Sand Within the Earth】 True Lord, he would have been named the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Dragon and Snake】.
Yet, it was a Fruitional Rank of the Heretical Path, only symbolically resonating with the 【Sand Within the Earth】. Thus, “Coiling” (隐) was changed to “Shadow” (影), hence the title: 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】.
‘Back then, I split off a soul fragment, reincarnated from the Netherworld into Jiangxi, climbed step by step, and finally attained a Heretical Fruitional Rank stored in the Pure Land—becoming the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】—all for the sake of using him to draw the 【Sand Within the Earth】 into the Netherworld, a tremendous risk...’
At the thought, 【Ang Xiao】 still felt a trace of lingering fear.
Due to the Pure Land’s peculiar nature, he would never activate this card lightly, unless it was the final moment.
‘Time waits for no one.’
【Ang Xiao】 scrutinized the state of the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】. This being had cultivated deeply in the Pure Land for years and had long been assimilated into the collective will of the World-Honored One.
Yet since 【Ang Xiao】 dared let him enter the Pure Land, he naturally had countermeasures.
Upon the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】, he had planted the most potent 【Obstruction of Knowledge and View】 ever known, pouring in nearly all the mystic power of his Fruitional Rank.
Its effect was simple:
At this moment, although the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】 remained connected to the collective unity of the World-Honored One, he had inexplicably forgotten that he was one with the World-Honored One.
Instead, he remembered himself as 【Ang Xiao】.
A double negative yielding a positive.
The result unexpectedly granted the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】 a degree of autonomy—a world-shaking miracle achievable only by the 【Great Forest Wood】!
After all, the higher one’s cultivation, the harsher the unity with the World-Honored One.
Especially at the Golden Core level, where one becomes but a facet of the World-Honored One—separation, in theory, should be impossible. Yet 【Ang Xiao】 had succeeded!
At this moment, the 【Bodhisattva of Coiling Shadows of Dragon and Snake】 had been unknowingly and undetectably stolen away by 【Ang Xiao】. Though it wouldn’t be long before the World-Honored One sensed something amiss and cast his gaze to settle all accounts...
Before that happened, 【Ang Xiao】 was confident that his plan would already be complete!