Laughing, Axel raised his right hand toward Tathagata and gave him a thumbs up.
Golden blood stained his body, yet the mocking grin on his face never faded. Tathagata watched him silently, his palm resting against his face as he frowned slightly.
Beside him, Old Pig let out a long breath and burst into laughter.
"Great Sage Brother, you nearly scared me to death just now! I thought both of us were about to get trapped by that giant hand again!
Back then, my senior brother was pinned beneath a mountain for five hundred years. I thought we'd end up the same way!
But your divine powers are insane, hahaha! That slap of yours was far worse than the Scorpion Demon's poison sting. That sting only made Old Tathagata itch like he got bitten by a mosquito.
But you? You practically shattered his golden body like a cracked nail!"
The moment he finished speaking, Old Pig turned and fled without hesitation.
He had already seen Axel's strength firsthand, but what Axel could endure, he absolutely could not. If he stayed any longer, he would be the next one crushed to death.
Even after Axel absorbed most of Tathagata's palm strike, the remaining shockwaves had nearly pulverized him.
A black wind instantly carried Old Pig across the battlefield. He landed beside Yang Jian and Nezha before leaning against the Bull Demon King with visible relief.
Seeing him arrive, the Bull Demon King laughed loudly and smacked him on the head.
"You damn pig, you've got some skill after all. You actually managed to subdue a Bodhisattva."
Old Pig snorted.
"Subdue her? Sooner or later, I'm going to butcher her.
These Bodhisattvas have cultivated for countless years. Their golden bodies and Dharma forms are overflowing with spiritual essence. Every single one of them is greedy beyond belief.
Buddhism keeps preaching that suffering in this life builds blessings for the next. They tell everyone to endure pain, endure hardship, endure humiliation.
But look at this rotten world. Suffering doesn't make you noble. Devouring others does.
Yet those hypocrites preach suffering while secretly feeding on everyone beneath them. Shameless bastards.
Compared to Western Heaven, even the Celestial Court looks more straightforward.
At least the Celestial Court doesn't pretend to be righteous. Here, if they want to eat you, they'll say it openly.
How many celestial officials and star lords haven't died multiple times already? They're all surviving by consuming flesh and spiritual essence while the Celestial Court keeps them on a leash.
The Court takes people's destinies, refines their flesh into golden pills, then uses those pills to control them. One pill strengthens you, another extends your life, and before long, nobody dares rebel."
Nezha spat onto the ground before glaring at Tathagata with open hatred.
The surrounding celestial officials and star lords fell silent.
Just like the old wolf from Black Wind Mountain, many who returned from death had to consume the blood of their own kind just to survive. Some eventually lost the will to live entirely.
Even the Bull Demon King was no exception.
Everyone resurrected from death needed massive amounts of spiritual essence to prolong their lives.
The celestial officials were the same. Most had already died several times and had become dependent on spiritual essence.
Nezha himself understood it better than most.
Originally, he could have achieved a perfect rebirth through the incense offerings of countless worshippers. But Li Jing destroyed his temple, forcing him into a lotus root body instead.
Every year, Nezha had to wander mountains and rivers, absorbing the essence of plants and demon spirits simply to maintain his existence.
Meanwhile, the Celestial Court monopolized the most efficient methods of cultivation and alchemy.
A single golden pill could equal thousands of years of ordinary cultivation. That alone was enough to control countless immortals.
As for Spirit Mountain, they took a different path.
They spread Buddhist Dharma everywhere, suppressing people's desires and planting Heart Worms within them.
The strong parasitized mountains and rivers. The weak parasitized spiritual objects.
Either way, Spirit Mountain continuously absorbed spiritual essence from the world while strengthening their own followers.
Whether it was the insect from Yellow Wind Ridge or the giant stone guardian behind Flower Fruit Mountain, both had Buddhist seals implanted within them, draining their power while keeping them under control.
The Celestial Court refined and farmed demons through formations.
Spirit Mountain planted Buddhist influence throughout the world like parasites.
Nezha's words had torn away the final veil hiding both factions.
Even the two Bodhisattvas behind Tathagata lowered their heads slightly.
At that moment, Tathagata sighed softly.
"The Great God of the Three Altars and Seas has his own understanding of the Three Realms.
But tell me, why do you believe the current Three Realms are worse than the past?
In ancient times, there was no order. The strong devoured the weak openly. The chaos back then was far greater than it is now.
Everyone longs for immortality, yet who truly understands the suffering that comes with endless life?
If you destroy the Celestial Court and burn Spirit Mountain to the ground, can you guarantee future generations will abandon the pursuit of immortality?
And if we disappear, what guarantees do you have that your successors will not become worse than us?
Perhaps you are heroes willing to die for your beliefs.
But after your deaths, what then?"
Tathagata slowly shook his head before raising one hand to his chest.
"Amitabha."
His voice echoed throughout heaven and earth.
"Every living being is bound by greed, anger, ignorance, love, hatred, and obsession.
Buddhas are no exception. Daoist sages are no exception.
I cannot achieve Bodhi, and others cannot attain true freedom.
So tell me, after destroying the current order of the Three Realms, are you truly certain the next one will be better?
Perhaps what Eastern Heaven and Western Heaven maintain now is already the best possible outcome."
As his words ended, Tathagata extended his palm toward Axel.
This time, there was no massive golden body.
Just a single palm.
But the moment it appeared, Axel saw countless worlds unfold before his eyes.
Within Tathagata's palm existed three thousand Buddhist kingdoms.
Boundless Buddhist light illuminated every corner of those worlds while endless chants echoed through the heavens.
Everything appeared sacred and righteous.
Yet Axel saw the truth immediately.
Every monk chanting within those kingdoms was being drained of spiritual essence by Tathagata himself.
Whoosh!
Axel vanished instantly.
Everyone's expressions changed.
Tathagata calmly withdrew his hand and smiled at Yang Jian and the others.
"True Monarch Axel carries too much darkness within his heart. Let him listen to Buddhist scripture for a while.
As for the rest of you, most of you possess merit. Why continue resisting?"
As he spoke, Tathagata formed a flower-pinching gesture and reached toward Yang Jian.
Yang Jian immediately raised his Three Pointed Double Edged Lance.
"Scatter! Stall him until Big Brother escapes the Palm-Sized Buddhist Kingdom!"
"Understood!"
"Hahaha! Leave it to me!" the Bull Demon King roared.
"Old Pig, run!" Nezha shouted. "Take the race preserving bag, kill that Bodhisattva, and pour her blood across the mountain!"
The moment his words fell, Nezha charged forward with his Fire Tipped Spear alongside Yang Jian and the Bull Demon King.
The three of them attacked Tathagata's fingers together.
Old Pig stared at their backs in silence.
His mouth twitched slightly as his eyes reddened.
"Why is it always you idiots trying to be heroes?
Don't you understand? The one who survives, the one left behind to remember everything, suffers the longest.
Can't I be the hero just once?
I'm tired of burning incense at your graves..."
Before he could finish speaking, Axel suddenly appeared directly in front of Tathagata's descending fingers.
Everyone froze.
The next instant, Axel threw his fist forward.
Boom!!!
His punch slammed directly into Tathagata's fingers before Yang Jian and the others could even reach him.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Axel's entire right arm exploded into pieces.
At the same time, countless cracks spread across Tathagata's golden fingers as Tathagata's expression finally twisted.
===
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