Taiyi Dao Fruit

"Hmph! Playing tricks with me, old Sun."

Sun Wukong smashed the head of the Dharma Manifestation with a single swing, Jingu Bang stirred earth, water, fire, and wind, shattering every strand of Essence Qi and every thought forming the Dharma Manifestation.

"No Dao Fruit, merely controlling from afar, psh."

Sun Wukong spat, giving up on continuing to search for the Great Sun Tathagata Fruit. Then, he stretched his muscles and bones, experiencing an unprecedented sense of fulfillment.

"This feeling, indeed, has been long missed."

The crisp cracking sounds resonated from the spine Dragon to the limbs and bones, as Sun Wukong felt the unity of spirit and flesh, a look of ease on his face.

But in the next instant, he swept his gaze towards the Six Paths Roulette, looking at the manifested Six Venerable Dharma Forms, his Fire Eyes Golden Eyes slightly squinting, and said, "To think you'd choose to forsake the Great Sun Tathagata and assist the Awakened."

"Different paths, so we do not conspire together, that's all."

The six Dharma Forms spoke simultaneously, with a consistently calm tone, slowly and steadily saying, "The Buddha should not be like this."

"Seems aligned with the Awakened's thoughts," Sun Wukong responded, his eyes glowing golden, "Were you really suppressed for nearly two hundred years and constantly eroded?"

This similar ideology indeed made them seem like a group.

If Ksitigarbha was truly suppressed for years and his True Spirit eroded, would he aid the Awakened?

Though Buddhism teaches compassion, cause and effect are also a part of it. The karma cycle is relentless. Ksitigarbha is known for his compassion in delivering hell's salvation, but he's not a fool who only speaks of forgiveness.

If there's a cause and effect between the two, then even if he's not aligned with the Great Sun Tathagata, he shouldn't assist the Awakened.

"You're all in cahoots," Sun Wukong said.

Only this reason can explain Ksitigarbha's repeated vacillations.

If this is true, then Ksitigarbha has long since awakened?

"Let's discuss this later," Ksitigarbha said calmly, "Great Sage, after I help you fuse the Dao Fruit, you will no longer be constrained by 'Daoism Rules the World.' Now is the time for you to showcase your prowess."

Once the Dao Fruit is fully integrated, spirit and flesh become one, even if 'Daoism Rules the World' tries to suppress, it can only suppress the Dao Fruit Divine Skills, no longer reverting the Great Sage Equalling Heaven to a mere mole.

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong immediately looked up to the sky. At this moment, within the Buddha Land Space appeared another anomaly, shifting from the previous Buddha-Demon confrontation to a current Dao-Demon clash.

The Daoist Lord faced off against Karma Tathagata.

"I cannot easily leave the Yin World, so I must trouble the Great Sage," Ksitigarbha said.

"Very well, allowing old Sun to avenge himself."

Understanding that now was not the time for words, Sun Wukong somersaulted, riding the clouds straight into the sky.

...

...

Within the Buddha Land Space, the heavens shifted, anomalies abounded, the sky, earth, and seas... all things transformed, yet a pillar of Pure Light stood firm, unaffected by the ever-changing surroundings.

"Break!"

A soft shout, Yin Yang reversed, Taiji spun, realities and illusions shattered like glass, revealing a plain of red-gold hue and a standing Bodhi Tree.

At this time, the Awakened was seated cross-legged under the Bodhi Tree, eyes closed, manifesting an intangible shadow, gradually solidifying, forming the Tathagata Image.

Not far in front of the Daoist Lord, Karma Tathagata, in a black robe with a hood covering most of his face, revealed just a portion of his face and a few strands of white hair, was leisurely moving a black prayer bead with one hand.

Formless Devil Thoughts echoed around Karma Tathagata, stirring the mind, changing with the mental states of nearby living creatures.

The myriad desires and pursuits of living beings could all be satiated through these Devil Thoughts; however, when the Daoist Lord faced them directly, the Devil Thoughts receded of their own accord.

Yet Karma Tathagata did not retreat.

The ascent of the Awakened was also the ascent of Karma Tathagata, at this moment their interests aligned, no one more united than these two.

Therefore, Karma Tathagata would not retreat.

And this was enough to show determination.

Without many words, the Daoist Lord wielded the Yin Yang Qi like flowing water, transforming into a mighty river surging forward.

Time was of the essence; he had no leisure to delay with Karma Tathagata.

Karma Tathagata remained calmly standing, one hand behind him, as the other moved the prayer beads, manifesting a surging river of Yin Yang before him.

This too was a river of Yin Yang.

The vast Yin Yang Qi surged, two rivers collided, creating thousands of waves, ceaselessly oscillating Qi Mechanisms, rising and perishing. The two rivers were identical, even the trajectory of the Yin Yang Qi was precisely the same, with not a single variation in the waves created.

As if looking into a mirror.

The Daoist Lord observed, raising the Seven Stars Sword to disorder Yin Yang, confusing Heaven and Earth.

Across from him, Karma Tathagata slowly moved the prayer beads, equally confusing Yin Yang and displacing Heaven and Earth. He didn't even need a sword, unlike the Daoist Lord.

"Boom!"

The chaotic tides of Yin Yang clashed, the Yin Yang Qi swirled along chaotic trajectories, disturbing space, distorting the Buddha Land Space.

Still, there wasn't the slightest difference, not even in the chaos of inverting Yin Yang.

This was Karma Tathagata's Moluo Sword Manual!

Reality and illusion are no longer distinct, turning reality into illusion and illusion into reality, all following the intent of Karma Tathagata. He can replicate any move, even divine intent and True Qi, exactly alike. Because all of this is fake, anything impossible can exist.

For instance, Innate Qi was supposed to be mastered only by members of the Jiang family and women related to a certain Jiang Sikong, but Karma Tathagata can also visualize it.

Everything is created by the mind, so there is naturally no need to be constrained by essence.

Yet this falsehood can also be real.

If the Daoist Lord cannot block Karma Tathagata's "Inverting Yin and Yang," then he can experience the power of his own move. And because the Daoist Lord understands his own moves well, when he is harmed, the damage of "Inverting Yin and Yang" will manifest further.

Karma Tathagata might be the most versatile powerhouse in the world, even more than Jiang Li and the Heavenly Monarch.

However, there is one thing that Karma Tathagata cannot completely change, and that is the strength of his own power!

Three strands of Pure Qi emerge from his body, while the Yin Yang Qi fades at this moment, transforming into streams of light, coalescing into Taiji, and an imposing momentum descends, akin to "Daoism Rules the World" coming down from the Supreme Place.

Karma Tathagata's fingers paused on the prayer beads, and finally made a move, stepping forward and pushing his hand holding the prayer beads.

"Water Strike Three Thousand Miles."

Roaring black water surged, within which the form of Da Kun emerged, clearly appearing as the form of the third-grade Da Kun of the Dragon Palace.

Da Kun smacked the water, waves surged thousands of miles, the tidal wave looked like it was about to drown the Daoist Lord.

"Boom!"

Taiji smashed the massive wave with irresistible power. Though the Qi Mechanism seemed unremarkable, the mighty Dao Power crushed the Da Kun!

The Daoist Lord moved with Taiji, unstoppable, the supreme Dao Power pushing forward relentlessly.

With two Primordial Spirits in his body, the Daoist Lord could rival Jiang Li's strength; with three Primordial Spirits, in terms of power, he surpassed Jiang Li.

The earlier clash of swords proved it, where the sword and arm in Jiang Li's hand received the shock.

At this moment, the Daoist Lord forcefully advanced, an unstoppable momentum, while Karma Tathagata could not retreat.

A step back would allow the Daoist Lord to approach the Awakened directly.

At that moment, Karma Tathagata released both hands, his palms revealing Buddhist text, "Seven Buddhas' Sin Erasure."

The Awakened's ultimate move was used by Karma Tathagata, his thoughts forming shape, conjuring seven great Buddhas.

But unlike the Awakened's seven Buddhas, Karma Tathagata's seven Buddhas did not appear solemn, instead, demonic thoughts surged, the blue-black Buddha Image projecting a chaotic aura that stirred desires with the release of the palms.

Unlike seven Buddhas, they resembled seven evils or seven demons.

Taiji Yin Yang Dao Power shone supreme, the seven Buddhas turned demons, desires in turmoil.

The two collided head-on, in an instant, yet—

Reality and illusion intertwined.

"Thus have I heard." Karma Tathagata chanted slowly.

"Thus Have I Heard" is the Awakened's fourth-rank divine skill, capable of receiving and transmitting insights completely. The Awakened once used this divine skill to infuse cultivation insights into Jiang Li.

As a supreme being, the Awakened can deduce divine skills into methods and utterly make them his own.

What the Awakened knows, Karma Tathagata naturally knows too.

At this time, Karma Tathagata combined "Thus Have I Heard" with "Seven Buddhas' Sin Erasure," and infused an overwhelming thought into the Daoist Lord's mind.

The seven Buddhas turned illusion, striking the mind, demonic thoughts thundered, detonating in the mind, obliterating both the demonic thoughts and the Daoist Lord's thoughts.

Taiji struck the real, directly grinding towards Karma Tathagata's body, under the Dao Power all things return to illusion, annihilated by Yin and Yang.

Reality and illusion intertwined, each attacking their target.

In an instant, Karma Tathagata's form wavered, like rippling water, while the Daoist Lord's eyes reflected the changes in his mind, flashing with black light.

But simultaneously, the Daoist Lord's pupils transformed into Taiji, forcibly suppressing his mind, while Karma Tathagata turned real into illusion, trying to dissipate the Taiji Dao Power.

Karma Tathagata's figure further dissolved into illusion, as if an apparition, retreating into nothingness, but his right hand formed a palm strike, attacking once more from the illusion into the Daoist Lord's mind.

The Daoist Lord suppressed the chaos within, Yin Yang circulating around him, Dao Power enveloping him, as if he stood at the center of Yin and Yang, on the side of "reality," achieving the extreme, similarly pushing a palm strike, attacking illusion with reality.

Their palms represented two extremes, yet collided between reality and illusion, Karma Tathagata's image fluctuated to the extreme, abruptly withdrawing, twisting and leaping like lightning a few feet away.

Conversely, the Daoist Lord's form did not stop, Yin Yang Qi circulated around him, suddenly erupting in black lightning, striking the surrounding ground, leaving no trace of lightning, but revealing a sense of death.

Karma Tathagata used demonic thoughts as thunder, attacking the mind, but was forcefully expelled by the Daoist Lord.

In their clash, the Daoist Lord clearly held the upper hand.

His Daoist practice was exceedingly high, attacking illusion with reality, and was in Three Pure Ones Perfection, able to absorb Five Vile Qi and convert it to his own use, without any weaknesses.

Though Karma Tathagata's onslaught was fierce, it merely caused minor mental wounds to the Daoist Lord, without affecting his own power.

The Daoist Lord gained the upper hand, his sword moved Yin and Yang, Dao Power struck illusion, the seven Buddhas were shaky, he then pressed the advantage. But—

"I shall be before the Daoist Lord."

Jiang Li arrived. His figure suddenly appeared in front of the Daoist Lord, surrounded by Taiyin and Taiyang Qi, forming an illusory sun and moon.

Tianxuan and Gongsun Qingyue's Qi Mechanism connected with Jiang Li, but they were outside the Buddha Land Space.