Yi Chen's gaze slowly shifted along the path ahead, detecting the activation of supernatural powers. He saw a silver-white thread that appeared intermittently across the terrain in front of him, encasing the entire area he was in with an irregular pattern.
Within and beyond the line, it was as though there were two completely different worlds.
"Fuck, it's the spatial Dao."
By now, Yi Chen was no novice. His heart tightened at this strange phenomenon, knowing full well that he had fallen into a trap.
He cursed inwardly but maintained a composed exterior and called out loudly, "Which senior is jesting with Li San? If I have offended you, Li San offers apologies."
As soon as he spoke, the space suddenly twisted, and a towering monk clad in a fiery red kasaya, robust like a stupa, slowly appeared.
A crystal on his forehead, resembling an eye, was emitting a strange light.
A feeling of being seen through surged in Yi Chen's heart.
"Why continue with the deception, Taoist Yi? You really made this poor monk work hard to find you."
Jue Xin, the Monk Who Cuts Down Evil, looked at the tall Daoist in front of him, feeling a surge of irritation. This one was exceedingly good at hiding. With the support of the information from the Yan Family Head and relying on his celestial eye relic, he had searched through numerous suspicious places and used spatial evasive techniques to cover most of the Jiangnan Circuit, finally locating Yi Chen here.
"Motherf... Ahem, boundless is the heavenly grace; to have a high monk from the Buddhist sect grace us with his presence. May I know what instructions the master has for this humble Taoist?"
Upon hearing this, Yi Chen fell silent for a few seconds, then dropped his disguise to reveal his true face, forcing a grim smile on his lips.
An ominous premonition flashed through his mind.
He had been too careless.
In truth, he had always been cautious of both the Dao Sect and the Buddhist sect, hence he disguised himself as a destitute, alcoholic, bottom-tier cultivator wandering around to gather intelligence on the situation.
He originally thought the crisis would come either from a master of the Yan Family or from a True Monarch of Zhang Longyi's lineage in the Dao Sect. Compared to these two forces, the Buddhist sect seemed less of an immediate threat, given that the most motivated to act against him were these two houses.
He never imagined that it would be the Buddhist sect, with its reputable monks, that would catch him red-handed.
"This poor monk is the Monk Who Cuts Down Evil, Jue Xin, from the Great Weide Heavenly Dragon Temple."
"Taoist Yi, you have committed numerous misdeeds, the gods and people are enraged. Along the way, you have killed many fellow Daoists, destroyed our Buddhist Han Shan temple, and have committed many more atrocities. Have you anything to say in your defense?"
Jue Xin's voice boomed like a great bell, reverberating between heaven and earth. However, the curious thing was that the people watching the live broadcast from not far away acted as if nothing was happening, neither seeing nor hearing, as if completely oblivious to the events unfolding before them.
"No." Yi Chen shook his head expressionlessly.
"Oh? Why? Do you admit to these charges?"
This reason clearly took the Monk Who Cuts Down Evil by surprise.
From the intelligence he received, Yi Chengzi was cunning and skilled in sophistry; he had expected the man to defend himself but instead received such an answer.
"Why bother with more words, master? Those who wrongfully accuse me know better than anyone else of my innocence."
"What's the point in arguing, then? What I want to ask is, the one who impersonated me and went on a killing spree in Qianzhou Mansion, annihilating a family clan, was that the doing of the Buddhist sect?" Yi Chen's face was cold, and his brows furrowed deeply.
Frankly, because of the Buddhist disciples Shen Hui and the insane monk Kong Xiang, he had a rather favorable impression of the Buddhist sect, which also influenced his judgement about them to some extent.
After hearing this, even Jue Xin couldn't help but flush red.
Personally, he had no ill will towards Yi Chen and even appreciated some of his actions and demeanor.
But for the greater good of the Buddhist sect, he could no longer consider personal niceties.
Just as True Monarch Heavenly Dragon had said, in order to establish a Buddhist realm on earth, one must not be overly meticulous in major undertakings and should not be petty in big matters. Sometimes it is necessary to pay a price and do things against one's nature.
"Amitabha, the intelligence available to us came mostly from the Yan Family Head to our temple; my Great Weide Heavenly Dragon Temple was not informed."
The volume in Jue Xin's voice had unintentionally dropped three degrees, no longer as resonant as before.
"Thank you, master, for your honesty. I will take my leave first." Yi Chen gave a slight bow to Jue Xin, performing a salutation, and in the blink of an eye, a silver long-halberd appeared in his hands.
Pure Yang Holy Seal, Heavens Opening Light!
The divine light returned.
A colossal platinum figure of a Daoist, eighteen meters tall, appeared beneath the sky.
Seven white orbs of light began to rise and swirl around the body of the Daoist.
The long-halberd cut through the sky, radiating bright silver light.
"Master, I have walked on thin ice, lived a life on the run my entire life. What do you think, can I make it to the other side, escape this time?"
Suddenly, a thick fog of blood burst forth from around Yi Chen's body.
Yi Chen lifted his head, looking at Jue Xin who was now levitating in mid-air, with small trickles of blood at the corners of his eyes.
A smile with a hint of cruelty and madness spread across his lips.
The moment he made his move, he directly activated the Soul Ignition Technique to its limit, a fifty-year lifespan violently burning away. His supernatural ability acquired from his third breakthrough due to his agility attribute, the Shadow Ability, was also triggered.
At this moment, he felt as if he were back in Fengyun County on the day he faced True Person Yan.
Now he was much stronger than before, but the opponent he faced today was far more terrifying than the mere fragment of soul he confronted back then.
"Overlord Raises Halberd!"