Chapter 1371: Buddha Covers His Face, Unable to Bear Witness to the Suffering of the People

"The Tathagata perceives the thoughts within the hearts of all sentient beings, and knows them as they truly are."This is the Divine Sense of Knowing Others' Hearts.It is the supreme divine ability of the Buddhist Sect.And Guan Yan spent five hundred and thirty-seven years researching the Dragon God.How terrifying are those four words: "knows them as they truly are"?All along, the Dragon God's greatest efforts were focused on how to capture Yuheng and how to control Yuheng. Everything concerning Guan Yan, or even the entirety of the Senhai Source Realm, including the World Will, was not even considered.Even the seizure of the divine hilt, even the slowing of the speed at which the World Will was devoured, were merely tricks on the surface to deceive the eye.He did not wish to be too ostentatious, to cause too much commotion, and attract other competitors.This included why He painstakingly concocted the Dragon God's Investiture Task, and created such things as Dragon God Emissaries, even managing to bestow some rewards from time to time. All of this was to conceal the matter of occupying the Yuheng Star.This was the sole focus.The fallback plans laid over a long period were so numerous that He Himself could hardly remember them all. How could a young monk like Guan Yan, who was merely in the Inner Prefecture realm upon first entering the Senhai Source Realm, be taken to heart by Him?All the stalemates and deadlocks were intentional. When the time came, He would reveal His true strength and naturally sweep all before Him like a destructive gale.But what was unexpected was...It seemed all of His fallback plans were countered.Even some methods that had not yet been activated were snuffed out a step in advance.Capturing the Yuheng Star was too great a undertaking, and He had invested too much effort in it.Now He turned back to casually eliminate Guan Yan.But from beside the Yuheng Star, to the Source Sea of the Senhai Source Realm, and then to the Forest of Hanging Skulls... there was not a single place where He could gain the upper hand!What kind of opponent was this?The Dragon God, only at this moment, truly faced this monk standing upon the World Divine Tree."Who exactly are you?"He began to suspect whether this entire situation was a pre-arranged trap. Had His Yuheng Star been noticed long ago?"Who am I?"Guan Yan stood at the peak of the divine tree, displaying his power without reservation, pressing the Dragon God down in almost every level of struggle."Had it not been for you, for your Dragon God's Investiture, for your perverse actions. By now, I would likely have achieved the Vajra Body..."He looked down at the Dragon God from above, his right hand clenched into a fist: "And now I am merely, a person who in this life will not achieve Buddhahood."A punch fell!His fist was so tiny, yet when it descended, it was so immense.The fist spanned a vast distance.Even... there was a faint sensation of expanding in sync with the distant Yuheng Star.The dragon head was directly sent flying by a punch, yet the dragon tail was still held fast by the World Divine Tree, unable to fly too far.Great humiliation.This was great humiliation!The Dragon God was so enraged that golden flames ignited in His eyes, and the golden flames boiled into... the shape of a throne.At the same time.At the Tree Altar in the Divine Shade land, light emerged from beneath the wood grain on the altar. The emitted light extended infinitely, casting towards the celestial dome.And the wood grain on the altar, when reflected and magnified in the celestial dome, formed the shape of a throne, suspended in the void, radiating light!In the distance were the golden flames from the burning bookstore, with densely packed people of the Senhai Holy Race gathered together in prayer.The Dragon God's Investiture shone in the night sky, but not a single person of the entire Senhai Holy Race, from the priests down, looked at it again.This was also not important.Simultaneous with the anomaly at the Tree Altar, in the depths of this universe, a vast divine seat also manifested in the void.The divine seat appeared precisely beneath the expanding Yuheng Star, as if Yuheng was taking its seat!The Dragon God's Investiture was never just a simple ritual. It connected the Seven Star Tower secret realm, linked the Senhai Source Realm and the present world, and was even the Dragon God's countless attempts to approach the Yuheng Star over the past ages.What Jiang Wang and Su Qiyun had once seen...Yuheng had once sat on the divine seat!The root of the World Divine Tree, which was nailed to the Dragon God's tail and had already spread towards the midsection of the dragon's body, suddenly stopped its invasion.Then it broke inch by inch!The Vajra body shattered the emerald patterns, and the Dragon God roared towards the sky.The entire World Divine Tree, thousands of zhang tall, violently shook.At this moment, He, relying on the "Dragon God's Investiture," borrowed the power of the Yuheng Star... He could actually achieve this level!If left unopposed, controlling the Yuheng Star would only be a matter of time.For the ancient Senhai Holy Race, the "Dragon God's Investiture" was a miracle.For the so-called Dragon God Emissaries, the "Dragon God's Investiture" was the process of revealing divine oracles.But in this cosmic void, the "Dragon God's Investiture" was actually a ritual to shake the Yuheng Star.Borrowing the power of the Yuheng Star while also further controlling it!Just at this moment, Guan Yan sat down.When he sat down, there was still nothing beneath him. As he settled, infinite starlight condensed, also forming a brilliant throne, just enough to support him.This throne appeared far less magnificent than the Dragon God's Throne, and certainly not as vast.But just by standing there, it established an invisible connection with the Yuheng Star.This was the Yuheng Divine Seat!Guan Yan had also never neglected the research and utilization of the Yuheng Star. He knew very well where the true battlefield lay; how could he ignore Yuheng?This included borrowing Yuheng's star power, descending upon the Star and Moon Plain, and communicating with Jiang Wang multiple times. This included directly relying on Yuheng's star power to confront the mysterious strongman of the Equality Nation... all were manifestations of his touching Yuheng.Just as on the divine path, he came from behind. In the exploration of the Yuheng Star, he was also not inferior to the Dragon God.Guan Yan, clad in a moon-white monk's robe, sat upon the starlit Yuheng Divine Seat, adding much majesty.With this single act of sitting, the shaking of the World Divine Tree ceased once more!The Dragon God and Guan Yan both borrowed the power of the Yuheng Star, but their methods were not the same.The Dragon God was uplifting the Yuheng Star, inviting Yuheng to take its seat. On Guan Yan's side, he guided Yuheng's starlight, allowing Yuheng to invite him to take his seat!These two paths were determined by the strengths of the two sides at that time. Guan Yan's weakness then meant he could not lift Yuheng; he could only carefully guide it, starting small and building up. What he had reaped by now was surprisingly evenly matched.If a metaphor were to be used, the Dragon God was hiding a beautiful woman in a golden house, seeking a return from the Yuheng Star... while Guan Yan was living off the Yuheng Star.This comparison made the Dragon God almost vomit blood in vexation. He had exerted more power but received less in return, especially since Guan Yan's Yuheng Divine Seat was clearly inspired by His Dragon God's Investiture.How could He tolerate a thief trampling on the head of the rightful owner?Of course, more importantly... even with the power to summon the Yuheng Star's energy, He could not overturn this monk!Looking at Guan Yan on the Yuheng Divine Seat, the Dragon God's voice boomed like a drum—"I originally did not wish for this, but what can be done?"Those golden-yellow dragon eyes closed for the first time.The void seemed to tremble!No, what trembled was the World Divine Tree, the divine hilt of the Senhai Source Realm.In the Source Sea of the Senhai Source Realm, the True Dragon Primordial Spirit, currently engaged in a struggle with Guan Yan's split spirit, suddenly flicked its tail, shot up into the air, and left the Source Sea.But of course, He did not give up the struggle.Because immediately following, vast golden waves surged upwards, breaking free from the Source Sea, and departing with this True Dragon Primordial Spirit.The Dragon God, at this moment, chose to drain the World Source Sea!Unlike the act of slaughtering the living beings of the Senhai Source Realm to gradually control it, His actions now were directly destroying the foundation of the Senhai Source Realm's existence! It could almost be said to be the sin of world destruction, an evil act that incurs the wrath of both gods and men, hence He said He did not wish for this.But at this time, for the sake of ultimate victory, He did not care.Terrifying power descended upon the void, and the True Dragon Primordial Spirit returned to its position.The Dragon God opened His eyes, and His aura was no longer the same!Although the universe was vast, He was vaguely the only one.Although the stars were great, all their light was gathered by Him.The vast World Source power that He had taken away condensed in the void into a golden-armored divine being, thousands of zhang tall, and with just one grasp, it seized the World Divine Tree!Pulling it up inch by inch from where it pierced the dragon's tail!No matter how much power Guan Yan poured in, no matter how much he suppressed, he could not stop the World Divine Tree from leaving.The Dragon God was surprisingly calm at this moment, merely looking up, watching the increasingly distant Yuheng Divine Seat, and Guan Yan, with his palms clasped, upon the divine seat.That look seemed to ask—What will you do?To drain the World Source power, this naturally required unimaginable great power. But Guan Yan could also do it at this time. Because the World Will of the Senhai Source Realm had surrendered everything to him. To oppose World Source power with World Source power was the clearest method...But how could he do that?If the World Source Sea were completely drained, the entire Senhai Source Realm would collapse immediately.Not only could he not do this, but he had to mobilize the World Source power he controlled to repair the Senhai Source Realm at the first possible moment.This led to...In the battlefield in the depths of this void, he was isolated and without aid.The Dragon God waited quietly for a while, not seeing the scene of the Senhai Source Realm's collapse, not waiting for Guan Yan's split spirit to arrive with the other half of the world source, and not even waiting for Guan Yan's split spirit—it remained in the Senhai Source Realm to make amends.What He waited for was the golden-armored divine being, who finally pulled the World Divine Tree to its limit.Upon the peak of the tree, Guan Yan still sat.Golden dragon blood dripped into the void. The roots of the World Divine Tree were already entangled with flesh and blood. When forcefully separated, it was skin-piercing pain.But there was no pain in the Dragon God's eyes.He looked at Guan Yan with a hint of inexplicable melancholy: "A strongman like you would actually make such a choice... I feel great regret."By this time, He had recognized Guan Yan's strength. To exhibit such performance in a struggle with Him, this person was naturally an undoubted strongman.He had already prepared Himself to fight against Guan Yan, who held the other half of the Senhai Source Realm's world source power... That would undoubtedly be a glorious collision.In His calculations, the collapse of the Senhai Source Realm had two benefits: one was to interrupt the constant revival of the swallow and the absorption of His divine power, and the other was to end Guan Yan's power of faith.The sin of world destruction, He and Guan Yan would share.And the outcome after the Senhai Source Realm's collapse was clearly very unfavorable to Guan Yan. So, this matter, for Him, brought more benefits.What He did not expect was... Guan Yan did not choose that.In such an intense battle, in the struggle for the cosmic stars, Guan Yan's split spirit chose to remain in the Senhai Source Realm, not taking away a single bit of source power.Was this worth it?For such a monotonous world, for those weak ants on that world?"You will die today, I will remember your name!" the Dragon God said.The golden-armored divine being, thousands of zhang tall, pulled forcefully, and the entire World Divine Tree was uprooted, separating from the dragon's body!The wound left by the World Divine Tree was a bloody mess, so hideous... but He had gained freedom!Body free, heart free, spirit free, will free.A true dragon should soar in the universe.The Dragon God roared, transforming into tens of thousands of zhang.His breath was like heavenly thunder, His dragon body stretching endlessly out of sight.One claw tip rested on the colossal Dragon God's Throne. The other claw landed on the infinitely expanding Yuheng Star.He thus rested one claw on each side, exuding a majesty that seemed to control everything.Divine light shone for ten thousand zhang, brilliant and dazzling.He seemed to be the ruler of this void, the only true god at this time and place.And before Him, appearing even smaller than an ant...Was Guan Yan.This monk, Shen Xiu, in a moon-white robe, sat upon that Yuheng Divine Seat. A single tear fell from the corner of his eye, dropping into the endless void.Rumble!After all, they were opponents who had fought for over five hundred years. After all, he had forced Him to this point.The Dragon God couldn't help but ask: "Why do you shed tears?"Guan Yan softly said: "I have some regrets.""When a man is about to die, regrets are unavoidable!" the Dragon God said: "Your mistake lies in not understanding the celestial cycle, not revering the true dragon!""And you?"The Dragon God was somewhat curious: "This Seat?"Guan Yan did not look at the Senhai Source Realm. Heaven knew how much he wanted to take one more look.But he merely raised his head, gazing at the vast and magnificent Dragon God: "A true dragon like you, an existence of innate great power... do you have any regrets, before you die?"The Dragon God's golden vertical pupils narrowed.He only saw Guan Yan, seated on the Yuheng Divine Seat, his right hand still resting on the armrest, but his left hand covering his face.The Buddha covers His face, unable to bear the sight of sentient beings!At the same time, jade-like light began to emanate from him.The "jade" of "perishing together like jade and stone"!Cultivating diligently for over five hundred years, he had finally pioneered the path of True Spirit cultivation, and finally condensed this True Spirit body.However, at this moment, it was burning!Burning the body with jade flames, not daring to ask about the afterlife.Some regrets... asked no more.His hand covering his face was suddenly removed, and he abruptly stood up from the Yuheng Divine Seat.With this stand, he became a ten-thousand zhang Jade Buddha.His body was like white jade, his essence like white jade.His spirit was like white jade, his virtue was like white jade.The massive jade-colored Buddha stood firm in the void, gripping the Dragon God's two dragon horns with both hands, holding them firmly in place!"Ah!"Guan Yan, who had always been gentle and composed, at this moment glared and roared in anger. He braced against the Dragon God's body of tens of thousands of zhang, actually pushing Him backward! Continuously pushing Him deeper into the void!His steps pressed upon the void, rumbling in waves, emitting a muffled thunderous roar.He pushed forward!And the Dragon God constantly retreated.As powerful as the Dragon God was, surging with divine power, He angrily pressed His horns against him. One claw gripping the Dragon God's Throne, the other claw resting on the Yuheng Star. Engaging in the most primitive and fierce collision with that Jade Buddha.Terrifying forces collided, with no outward manifestation, but almost annihilating everything around them. Divine abilities, wills, primordial spirits, Dao principles... colliding within inches!However, the distance between the dragon claws and the Yuheng Star was still growing.That Dragon God's Throne was also moved by Him.This portion of the void where the Yuheng Star was temporarily locked had been sealed by the Dragon God beforehand with a secret great array of the dragon race. Otherwise, causing such a large commotion, even in the depths of the void, could not guarantee that no strongmen would see and intervene.And Guan Yan's current action was clearly to ram Him out of this portion of the void, to break the great array that confined the Yuheng Star. He intended to push Him into the truly unobstructed universe, and engage in a life-and-death battle with Him.No, it was to exchange death for death with Him.By burning his spiritual body and becoming a Jade Buddha, Guan Yan had already resolved to die.How could the Dragon God allow him to have his way!The dragon horns still pressed against the Jade Buddha's large hands.As the dragon body of tens of thousands of zhang retreated, the golden-armored divine being formed from half of the Senhai Source Realm's world source power suddenly leaped up, transforming into a brilliant golden Guan dao, and chopped down towards Guan Yan.But just at this moment, the World Divine Tree that he had casually thrown away suddenly flew back, transforming into a vast azure python, tightly binding this golden-armored divine being.It was the World Will of the Senhai Source Realm!This indescribable existence, after the Senhai Source Realm had briefly stabilized, manipulated the World Divine Tree and struck at this critical moment.He used the World Divine Tree as a giant python to bind His own world source that had been plundered by the Dragon God.The Dragon God let out a long roar as He retreated. The golden-armored divine being, formed from the world source, completely exploded, severely injuring the azure python transformed from the World Divine Tree.With this single blow, almost more than half of the world source was lost.But endless golden waves surged, landing upon the dragon's body.The remaining world source was all absorbed by the Dragon God.For a time, the golden scales were brilliant, His state was fully restored, even surpassing His peak, and He, in turn, pushed back the Jade Buddha transformed by Guan Yan by three steps!"How can borrowed strength last long?" the Dragon God roared: "The gifts bestowed by fate must eventually be repaid!"Guan Yan stomped heavily in the void, almost causing ripples in the void itself, before finally managing to halt his steps.He said with all his might: "You and I... must both repay!"But...Retreat again!Retreat after retreat!He simply could not resist the Dragon God at this moment.And how long could this Jade Buddha body last?Thirty breaths? Fifty breaths?Guan Yan had no answer in his heart. He only knew that he had to persevere, to persevere further.Absolutely not... absolutely could not retreat any further!"Ah!"He stopped his steps with a roar, once again bracing against the Dragon God.The gigantic jade-colored Buddha and the golden divine dragon thus stood opposed in the void, forming a silent painting.The Dragon God's golden vertical pupils gazed at him, looking at this monk with such a divine countenance...For some unknown reason, He wanted to sigh.In His long life, He had never seen such a monk, such a person.Even though He was his opponent, He felt amazed.If all humans were like this, it seemed the dragon race's defeat and retreat to the vast sea back then was not unjust!However...This was His era."It ends here," He said.As calm as a concluding remark after the dust had settled.It ends here... does it?Cracks gradually appeared on the Jade Buddha's body.Guan Yan glared, but his spirit gradually faded.In his lifetime, he had rarely shown such anger, such a distorted expression.No matter what, no matter the situation, he could face it, he could resolve it.But...Does it end here?Was the struggle of five hundred and thirty-seven years merely an illusion, ultimately only achieving the Dragon God's awakening from a grand dream? Did the bitter struggle of those long years ultimately fail to see the blooming of flowers?Does it end here?Just at this moment, a clear and bright voice suddenly resounded in the void.To be precise, it resounded upon that infinitely expanding Yuheng Star."At five years old, I aspired to cultivate!"A point of starlight rose from the lightless Yuheng Star.That point of starlight also shone into Guan Yan's eyes."At nineteen, I was crowned before reaching maturity and crowned the world!"Innumerable points of starlight, like fireflies, flew out from Yuheng.Guan Yan could hear whose voice it was, and feel whose light it was!"Journeying for ten thousand miles, drawing my sword because of a promise!"Starlight gathered, forming a silhouette."Traveling far to the Maze Realm, to establish human speech!"Starlight vaguely gathered into form, resembling a building.This is...The Starlight Sacred Tower!Who is it that, at this time and place, erects a star tower?Today, there is no second choice.This is Jiang Qingyang's Starlight Sacred Tower!That young man who, because of his cry for help, abandoned everything in the present world and resolutely came to this distant world.In this endless void, outside this Yuheng Star, a tall building rises majestically!Although it is only a silhouette, it already possesses endless radiance.That radiance is brilliant, resolute, forged step by step, standing firmly on the ground.That young man who was once so lost, that young man who carried heavy burdens and walked with difficulty, now actually spreads his Dao in this endless universe!In the void, a heavenly staircase, following some mysterious connection, came across time and space.Beneath the brilliant golden heavenly staircase was a young figure in a green robe, holding a sword, striding forward.Since ancient times, those who erected star towers were always far away in the present world, first anchoring a star point in the distant celestial dome, continuously transmitting power, accumulating starlight, and then gradually erecting the star tower.Of course, there were also those who achieved perfection overnight, directly sensing the connection from afar and erecting the star tower in an instant.But never had it been heard of anyone whose true form was near at hand when erecting the Starlight Sacred Tower!It was almost face-to-face, personally building the star tower in the celestial dome!There was simply no need for any anchoring; the person was right in front of the star tower, how could there be any fear of getting lost?What made the Dragon God's eyes twitch even more was that the divine power that constructed this heavenly staircase originated from Him Himself!Or more precisely, it came from the divine power "borrowed" by the swallow.That useless lowly creature actually defected to the enemy!At this time, the swallow was flying in front of that person, its movements incredibly agile.Guan Yan was pleasantly surprised, the Dragon God was furious and shocked.But for Jiang Wang...When half of the World Source Sea was drained by the Dragon God, the entire Senhai Source Realm instantly became riddled with holes.The connection between the Yuheng Star and the Senhai Source Realm had never been so clearly revealed before people.In the Dragon God's "Origin Divine Temple," he saw some information and understood some truths. But more importantly... in that place, he happened to witness the moment when the world crack was torn open.Guan Yan's swift action of repairing the world with his split spirit prevented the extinction of living beings in the Senhai Source Realm.Jiang Wang also thus preserved his life, and safely "saw" the universe within the Senhai Source Realm.This was not the kind of seeing where one looks up at the celestial dome in the present world, but rather looking up at the truth of the universe through a gap opened in a world.And with the swallow by his side, the swallow was able to sense the Dragon God in the distant void, clearly knowing the current location where the Yuheng Star was confined.The secret realm reward that Jiang Wang obtained after winning the first place in the Seven Star Tower secret realm and passing through the Tian Shu world happened to be the method of establishing the Four Sacred Towers using the Big Dipper as a beacon.This is the supreme profound technique "Seven Star Sacred Tower."The Big Dipper consists of seven stars: Tian Shu, Tian Xuan, Tian Ji, Tian Quan, Yuheng, Kai Yang, and Yao Guang.All of this happened naturally.So he erected the tower in Senhai.Although this star tower was only a雏形, the moment it appeared, it was already changing something.The Seven Star Sacred Tower was originally a supreme secret method connecting the seven stars.Generally speaking, even with a profound method for star towers using the seven stars as beacons, the erected star tower would only be within the range of the celestial dome influenced by a certain cosmic star.But the Yuheng Star was captured by the Dragon God at this time, confined in this part of the void, and Jiang Wang happened to step onto the divine staircase and come here.This Starlight Sacred Tower was directly upon the Yuheng Star!Its nature was comparable to that of the Senhai Source Realm to the Yuheng Star; once completed, it would have a direct connection.If the Yuheng Star had been struggling between the Dragon God and Guan Yan before, now it was unhesitatingly leaning towards Guan Yan.Neither Jiang Wang nor the Starlight Sacred Tower he erected was significant in the battle between the Dragon God and Guan Yan.But in the struggle for the Yuheng Star between the two sides, a crucial weight was added!The Dragon God's Throne, which attempted to uplift the Yuheng Star, was almost immediately repelled by the Yuheng Star.And the Yuheng Divine Seat, from which Guan Yan had already departed, shone with brilliant light!The Yuheng Divine Seat flowed with jade-colored Buddhist light, and the entire Yuheng Star, connected with it, was now soaked in jade light.Supported by the Yuheng Star, the cracks on Guan Yan's Jade Buddha body began to heal.Infinite great power poured into his body, and he even directly knocked down the Dragon God's body of tens of thousands of zhang with a single grab!Rumble!The dragon head slammed heavily into the void, smashing out void cracks!