Wayfarer

Chapter 595: A Mess in Dayin's Capital

Xiao Nanfeng transformed back to his True Yin body as he flew toward Dayin's capital. A silver moon hung in the sky as a blizzard began to form. Countless people in Dayin raised their heads in surprise.

"Xiao Nanfeng? He's back again?"

"Isn't the Immortal Emperor searching for him? I heard that he's done for now! How can he have the guts to return?"

"Is that really Xiao Nanfeng?"

Many were astounded by the sight of him.

The officials of Dayin, in particular, were taken by surprise. They knew that Xiao Nanfeng was responsible for kidnapping Yin Tianci and Mo Shanhe, and the Immortal Emperor himself was trying to take him down. Did he have a death wish?

"Everyone from Dayin, listen up! Yin Shenhua's attempted assassination of me has been deemed a rebellion by the Heavenly Emperor himself. The eighteen Martial Aspects of the Eastern Quadrant have been sent out to capture Yin Shenhua and bring him back to the Imperial Court. Now, show yourself, Yin Shenhua!" Xiao Nanfeng hollered.

Xiao Nanfeng's proclamation shocked the people of Dayin's capital.

"What's going on? How could His Majesty have become a criminal?"

"This must be a joke. It's all nonsense, isn't it?"

"Is Xiao Nanfeng here to capture the Immortal Emperor?"

Countless people gaped in surprise, as did the officials of the city. One immediately shouted, "Xiao Nanfeng, if you continue talking nonsense, we'll arrest you!"

"I am a Martial Aspect of the Imperial Court and a representative thereof! I'm here to arrest Yin Shenhua. Whoever dares go against me shall be considered an accomplice!" Xiao Nanfeng retorted.

"Take him down!" someone shouted.

A group of golden-armored cultivators rose into the air and struck at Xiao Nanfeng.

Xiao Nanfeng didn't make a move. The black lotus behind him manifested in the form of the Past Buddha, sending a palm forward and slamming the golden-armored cultivators toward the ground at multiple times the rate at which they had flown up. They spat out mouthfuls of blood as they struck the ground, plumes of dust rising all around them.

"Does the Immortal Emperor intend to hide against a summons—a warrant!—from the Imperial Court? Yin Shenhua, how much more cowardly can you get?" Xiao Nanfeng demanded.

The citizens of Dayin's capital glanced at each other in worry.

"Xiao Nanfeng, don't get too cocky!" someone called out.

Although the citizens of Dayin's capital were hardly all loyal to their king, many did seem protective of Yin Shenhua. It was only natural that they would speak up as Xiao Nanfeng trampled on his dignity.

"Yin Shenhua, if you're not going to show yourself, then we'll be heading in!" Xiao Nanfeng reined in his silver moon and flew toward the dragon-headed mountain.

"Insolence! Is Dayin's capital a place you can enter at will? Activate the defensive formation!" someone within the city shouted.

A golden barrier spun into existence, leaving Xiao Nanfeng and the black lotus stranded on the outside.

Just then, the Past Buddha clasped its hands together. Death chants resounded across the void as the formation trembled violently. A 卍 rune appeared before them. Xiao Nanfeng and the black lotus stepped into the barrier via the 卍 rune.

"They know how to get in through the defensive formation!" someone exclaimed.

Death chants continued to resound as another group of cultivators shot into the air. Struck by the death chants, however, they suddenly clutched their heads in pain. They weren't able to get close to Xiao Nanfeng and the black lotus at all.

Xiao Nanfeng and the black lotus headed straight for the Thunderclap Hall. Although some strong cultivators remained behind in Dayin's capital and were able to forge onwards despite the death chants, they were far weaker than the black lotus. The Past Buddha sent them all flying with a fist.

There were all manner of formations surrounding the palace, but the black lotus seemed to be particularly familiar with them. Deft manipulation disabled the formations.

Just as Xiao Nanfeng and the black lotus were about to reach the Thunderclap Hall, a Buddhist chant rose up.

"Amitabha. Who might you be to dare barge into the Thunderclap Hall?"

The Buddhist chants formed a bulwark of golden waves that rose into the air and countered the death chants. A different source of death chants came from the void and began to neutralize the black lotus' death chants.

Quite a few monks had appeared out of nowhere in front of the entrance to the Thunderclap Hall. The one in the lead radiated with golden light and clearly possessed incredible strength. His aura was palpable.

"One Buddha and three bodhisattvas—and they're powerful ones, too," the black lotus said.

"The strongest cultivators of Dayin are all in Yongding. There are but a scant few left to protect Dayin's capital. Senior, I'm counting on you."

"Very well." The black lotus nodded.

The black lotus, still in the guise of the Past Buddha, clasped its hands together as black fog roiled.

"A mere Golden Immortal dares impersonate the Past Buddha and make a ruckus in Dayin's capital? Since you've come, you might as well stay," the Buddha declared.

The Buddha and three bodhisattvas all struck with their palms. The fourfold attack rose into the air, striking and attempting to dispel the black fog around the black lotus. However, the black fog suddenly swelled as it was struck, expanding until it had encapsulated the Thunderclap Hall.

"Something's wrong!" the Buddha shouted.

Within the black fog, some incredible relic had obliterated their attacks and was heading straight for them.

"Be careful. Flee!" the Buddha shouted.

The relic shone with incredible light as it struck them.

Two of the bodhisattvas were barely in the range and were able to escape, but the Buddha and remaining bodhisattva had been targeted by the relic and had no time to do so.

They found themselves fully suppressed.

"Buddha Ananda!" the two fleeing Buddhas cried out.

"An imperial seal? Is this Xiao Nanfeng's imperial seal? Break!" the Buddha roared.

The Buddha fought for purchase against the Divine Seal of Dazheng, but the seal was simply too strong. The power of an imperial seal depended on the quantity of fortune it contained, and Dazheng's now had a fifth of Dayin's fortune in it, a staggering sum.

The incredible quantity of fortune within the seal, along with the remarkable material out of which the seal had been forged, resulted in its absolute power of suppression.

The entire dragon-headed mountain began to shake violently from the force of the suppression, preventing the Buddha and bodhisattva from escaping.

"Assist me! Dayin's fortune is in his imperial seal, and there's too much of it. Hurry!"

The two bodhisattvas who had fled blanched as they rushed back into the black fog.

However, the moment they returned, the black lotus struck, blocking the two bodhisattvas' attacks. Thanks to all the cursed effigies it had devoured recently, the black lotus was growing stronger and stronger. It was now able to fight on equal footing with two bodhisattvas.

A flaming storm formed within the black fog, then spread to all the floating islands around. The entire capital seemed to be quaking.

The strongest cultivators of Dayin's capital were all away. Ordinary cultivators tried to enter the domain of black fog, but they were completely unable to do so. The blazing fires and howling gales at its outskirts were sufficient to deter them.

"Don't eat me! No!"

A bodhisattva managed only an aborted shout before the black lotus swallowed it whole.

The other bodhisattva blanched as it tried to flee.

"Do you think you'll still be able to leave? Get back here!" the black lotus commanded.

A huge golden palm extended out of the black fog and caught the bodhisattva in its grip.

"Who are you? The ancestral Buddha will never forgive you!" the bodhisattva roared.

"Don't worry. I intend to make Yin Shenhua pay. He won't be able to escape, either," the black lotus replied coolly.

"Don't eat me! No!"

With a sudden gulp, the black lotus swallowed a second bodhisattva.

"What now?" the final bodhisattva shouted, suppressed by Xiao Nanfeng's imperial seal.

"Self-destruct, hurry!" the Buddha shouted. "We need to break free of Xiao Nanfeng's suppression!"

"But—"

"If you don't do anything, we'll be swallowed up. If I self-destruct, you won't be able to take them on. Why don't you self-destruct and give me the opportunity to deal with them? Hurry!" the Buddha roared.

The bodhisattva had no choice. "Explode!"

"Seal!" Xiao Nanfeng countered.

The entire dragon-headed mountain shook violently.

Xiao Nanfeng expended a generous heaping of fortune to prevent the Buddha's escape.

The violent rumbling continued for a moment. By the time the smoke cleared, the Buddha was still trapped underneath the seal.

"What's this seal made of? How can it be able to transmit so much fortune so quickly?" the Buddha roared.

Xiao Nanfeng ignored the Buddha. To the black lotus, he said, "Senior, I'm running out of fortune. Hurry!"

"Got it."

The black lotus reverted to its original form, though now many times larger in size. Its underside was like a black hole, one that devoured Xiao Nanfeng, the Divine Seal of Dazheng, and the Buddha trapped underneath all at once.

Xiao Nanfeng had to continue to channel the strength of the Divine Seal of Dazheng to seal the Buddha, and he would be occupied until the Buddha was devoured as well.

Finally, as all the fortune drained from the Divine Seal of Dazheng, the Buddha found himself freed. The seal lost its power of suppression as Xiao Nanfeng and the seal were sent flying.

Having regained his freedom at the last moment, the Buddha attacked. "Die, Xiao Nanfeng!"

Suddenly, however, the black lotus spat out Xiao Nanfeng and his seal. He returned to the real world, saved right in the nick of time.

Meanwhile, the Buddha remained trapped in the interior of the black lotus, struggling furiously and attacking the black lotus from within, intent on destroying the black lotus' body. Even so, the black lotus continued to trap him.

The black fog continued to persist as the black lotus' aura blocked countless Dayin cultivators from drawing near. However, given that it had to dedicate its attention to the Buddha it had trapped, it likely wouldn't be able to protect Xiao Nanfeng for long.

Without any hesitation, Xiao Nanfeng retrieved his Immortal's Destruction and activated it. A large quantity of golden chains emerged and dove into the dragon-headed mountain, preparing to excavate the superior draconic vein that lay within.

A dragon howled from deep underneath the mountain.

"Xiao Nanfeng's destroying Dayin's foundations! Stop him!" Dayin cultivators roared from outside.

The dragon-headed mountain collapsed as a resplendent dragon, thirty kilometers long, was dragged out from deep underground. It landed beside Xiao Nanfeng.

The superior draconic vein roared. The roar resounded across heaven and earth, and a wave of draconic might emanated from it.