Chapter 1489: Xumi Mountain

Mount Sumeru, a name of immense grandeur, is the supreme immortal land of Buddhism, about which countless legends are told, leaving endless mysteries in the world.

This most ancient immortal mountain is renowned not only in the Beidou Star Domain but also boasts countless legends in other ancient star domains, representing the fundamental essence of Buddhism and holding profound significance.

Now, as Ye Fan led his army to its foot, he truly faced Mount Sumeru, clearly seeing its true form, and was deeply shaken.

Mount Sumeru was immensely vast, towering into the sky, majestic and boundless; it seemed capable of piercing the heavens and filling the oceans, spanning across all ages, eternally indestructible.

Standing before it, one felt profoundly insignificant, like an ant gazing up at the Milky Way, disproportionate and acutely aware of their own frailty.

"Legend has it that Mount Sumeru is eighty-four thousand yojana high," Dongfang Ye said, baring his teeth and wielding his large club. The savage felt like a mayfly facing a towering tree.

With one yojana being approximately thirteen thousand meters, Mount Sumeru's altitude would calculate to an astronomical figure, though its height was undoubtedly exaggerated.

The mountain's magnificent grandeur was clearly evident; it was arguably the greatest in the Beidou Star Domain, with no other ancient mountain more majestic, boundless, grand, and immense.

Mount Sumeru was merely the main peak; around it stood several other equally magnificent mountains, adorned with cascading silver waterfalls and endless chanting, all serving to make the central Sumeru appear even grander.

At the foot of the mountain, a body of water encircled it. From a distance, it seemed unremarkable, but upon closer inspection, it was surprising how vast this water expanse was, closely resembling an ocean.

"This must be the Seven Treasure Pond," Li Heishui said.

Buddhist scriptures record that within the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, there is a Seven Treasure Pond. This pond is natural, not man-made, hence its name, or also known as the Eight Merit Pond, as it is filled with Eight Merit Water.

The water quality is crystal clear and transparent, also known as Eight Taste Water or Eight Samadhi Water, possessing eight excellent qualities: clarity, coolness, sweetness, softness, moisture, tranquility, the ability to quench hunger and thirst, and the nourishment of all faculties.

The Eight Merit Water was highly precious. Every pilgrim yearned for it, as drinking it offered various wonders: it could remove defilement, purify the body, cleanse the mind, nourish the six sense organs, and ward off illness.

To ascend Mount Sumeru, one must first cross this Eight Merit Sea.

The Dragon Horse shouted, "Drink it all up! Let's see how he'll display his nobility and rarity then."

Saying this, it opened its large mouth, ready to swallow all the water, and also brought out a magic artifact to collect it.

However, the Eight Merit Sea emitted boundless Buddha light, and deafening bursts of Buddhist chants immediately blocked his spell; not a single drop of water could be drawn.

Everyone knew Mount Sumeru would be difficult to attack, but they hadn't expected even the water at its foot to be so extraordinary, acting like a formidable pass blocking their path.

The main mountain stood majestically and immensely in the center of the clear, transparent sea. Its grandeur was unsurpassed, and indistinctly, some magnificent temples could be seen situated on the mountain.

As for the Great Thunder Sound Temple, it was invisible, located on the mountain peak, eighty-four thousand yojana from the ground. Even with enhanced vision, it was obscured by the mountain itself.

"It's too vast. I feel an ocean-like power circulating on the mountain. I doubt I could penetrate the Buddhist power even if there were no defensive formations and I just attacked it like this," Yan Yixi sighed, his white robes fluttering.

The entire mountain glowed, enveloped by peaceful and pure spiritual energy, with large swathes of light emanating from it. It was no longer ordinary earth but resembled an ancient immortal land.

Layer upon layer of silver brilliance rose, and faint golden light flowed. This was the purest power of faith, imbued into the mountain, so dense it could not be dispelled.

This power was so vast it made everyone's minds tremble, utterly immeasurable. The entire mountain had long been deified, with every blade of grass and every tree possessing Buddhist nature, thoroughly nourished by the radiance.

This incredible sight was the culmination of hundreds of thousands of years of accumulated spiritual power from Buddhist followers across the entire universe, a result of prolonged accumulation over long ages.

In the depths of the universe, many ancient life-bearing lands upheld the lineage of Amitabha Buddha. Endless faith transcended the void, unaffected by distance, ultimately flowing entirely towards Mount Sumeru.

Compared to Mount Sumeru, the divine realm on the other shore was like a small sorcerer meeting a great one, vastly inferior. This was the true divine sea formed by the power of faith!

At this moment, waves of radiance surged, permeating the entire ancient mountain, making it appear solemn, sacred, and awe-inspiring.

Dong!

A grand bell chimed leisurely, its prolonged, heaven-shaking sound emanating from an ancient temple on Mount Sumeru. It was like a scripture entering the ear, profoundly awakening and making one alert.

"What a grand display of arrogance! Are the monks of Mount Sumeru warning us?" the Divine Silkworm Princess sneered, seemingly holding deep prejudice against Buddhism.

This was understandable, for the Victorious Fighting Buddha was originally her husband, who, upon entering Buddhism, never looked back. Various rumors circulated outside about this, the most outrageous and terrifying of which claimed that the Victorious Fighting Buddha might have become lost, having forsaken his true self.

"Amitabha Buddha. Esteemed patrons, why have you come here with such a great show of force? The Pure Land of Buddhism cannot endure such swords and shadows," an old monk said, appearing at the foot of Mount Sumeru and chanting a Buddhist name.

In response, Ye Fan immediately took out a precious bow, a magic artifact refined on the ancient human path. He drew out a sacred bone arrow, placed it on the bowstring, pulled it back into a full moon shape, and shot it directly.

Boom!

As if heaven and earth were crumbling, a sacred bone arrow directly tore through the fabric of space, seemingly capable of destroying all obstacles and shattering the void ahead.

The old monk's expression changed. With a flick of his wide sleeve, a vast power of faith cascaded down from Mount Sumeru, forming a waterfall that directly struck the sacred bone arrow, which burst with a pop and shattered into dust.

Everyone's expressions changed. Ye Fan's power was immense; the arrow he shot was powerful enough to threaten an initial-stage Great Saint, yet it was directly destroyed by the power of faith.

This place was truly terrifying. This boundless spiritual energy was vaster than the ocean, more profound than the starry sky, utterly incomparable!

"Patron, what is the meaning of this? Waging war in the Pure Land of Buddhism and shooting this old monk with an arrow is quite excessive," the old monk said.

Ye Fan said coldly, "I shot at your illusion. Buddha speaks of true nature, yet you, knowing full well why I came, still speak of swords and shadows and question us in return. I shall help you sever your distracting thoughts."

"Amitabha Buddha," the old monk chanted, repeatedly declaring his transgressions.

"Bald villain, stop chanting! Hand over my grandnephew, or we'll sweep away your Mount Sumeru!" Dongfang Ye roared, his upper body bare, his robust bronze muscles coiling like dragons and gleaming as he raised his wolf-tooth club.

"This humble monk knows his fault, having committed a thought of anger. I shall dissolve myself," the old monk said.

With a soft pop, his body shattered, turning into specks of mist that ultimately merged into Mount Sumeru.

Everyone was startled, then gasped in cold air. This was merely a false thought, a shadow born from Mount Sumeru's spiritual power, not the physical body of a true ancient Buddha.

This Mount Sumeru, formed by the convergence of countless Buddhist followers' spiritual power, was truly unfathomable.

Dong! A grand bell chimed leisurely. Its sound waves traveled for tens of thousands of miles, cleansing people's souls.

On the mountainside of Mount Sumeru, a shroud of mist dispersed, revealing an ancient temple. This was clearly not the Great Thunder Sound Temple, but merely a very important one within Buddhism.

A middle-aged monk stood before the temple gate, hands clasped in prayer. Chanting a Buddhist name, he said, "Esteemed patrons, please turn back. This place holds only monks and Buddha, not the person you seek."

"Monks do not lie! You are a Buddhist disciple, yet you speak nonsense. Huahua is right here on this mountain, so why do you say he isn't?" Ye Tong shouted.

He was full of youthful vigor, with a blazing sun manifesting within him. Every inch of his flesh glowed; his loud questioning possessed an astonishing aura, like a heavenly god descending to the mortal realm.

"Past empty names have all turned to smoke; here, there is only Buddha and reason," the middle-aged monk said.

Everyone could already see that this was a real person, with flesh and blood, not a pure spiritual manifestation.

"Stop spouting nonsense! Hand over Huahua. To convert someone into a slave – can this place still be called a place of only Buddha and reason?" Li Tian sneered.

"This Pure Land of Buddhism has no Huahua. Esteemed patron, please turn back," the middle-aged monk said with a calm expression.

"In that case, we shall break through the mountain gate and go up to search ourselves!" the Dragon Horse roared fiercely.

"Amitabha Buddha. This is a place of pure cultivation for monks. Esteemed ones, you are being impolite. Please depart," the middle-aged monk said, hands clasped in prayer.

Ye Fan spoke, "Buddha says that all living beings are equal, everyone has a Buddha nature, and all can become Buddhas. What difference is there between us and you? We can naturally ascend Mount Sumeru. Now, quickly make way!"

The middle-aged monk's expression froze, and he said, "You are clearly great devils, all coming with murderous intent, having lost your true nature. How can we let you enter?"

"What a joke! Who is truly the great devil? You suppressed my junior brother and turned him into a slave, and when we come to rescue him, you define us as devils? I think you are the one who has gone astray!" Ye Tong rebuked.

Just then, a young monk descended from Mount Sumeru's peak, dressed in moon-white monastic robes, appearing extraordinary and ethereal. He said, "Patron, you are mistaken. Buddha saves all beings, emphasizing compassion. To now guide that fated person into Buddhism is his good fortune; how can it be called suppression?"

"Buddha enlightened people from great earthly suffering, eliminating all misfortunes. But what you transform are people, suppressing them into slavery. The difference in realms before and after is too great; greed, anger, delusion, and so on are all present!"

Amitabha Buddha established the religion, founded Buddhism, gathered followers everywhere, and collected the power of faith. This was a great act of salvation, not by suppressing people's free will, but through mutual give and take.

He was saving a great era, bringing salvation to all beings and gaining the power of faith, but also ensuring that believers became spiritually invigorated, physically light and healthy, a mutually beneficial arrangement.

However, this 'salvation' targeting Huahua now was contrary to the original scriptures, having been completely distorted. It was purely brutal suppression and washing of the soul, causing him to lose his true self.

"If salvation is meant to stop conflict, then it's fine. But Huahua committed no evil; what concern is it of yours? Yet he was brutally suppressed. Today, if there is no explanation, we will overturn Mount Sumeru!" someone from Heaven's Village shouted, roaring like a lion.

"Esteemed patrons, your attachments are too deep, and you misinterpret the Buddha's meaning. Why bother? It is empty and silent; do not cling to appearances," the young monk said.

Clearly, his status was unusual, and his magic power was strong, carrying an air of calm and confidence.

Clang!

Suddenly, Ye Fan, who had been silent, moved. He drew out a dark red immortal sword and directly slashed it forward, immortal light sweeping for tens of miles. With a squelch, he sliced into the person, severing his head.

Mount Sumeru was formidable, with boundless power of faith flowing, but even it could not fully defend against this sudden strike from an Emperor's artifact.

"Empty and silent, why bother?" Ye Fan said indifferently.

Splatter!

The young monk's head turned into bloody paste, his body disintegrated, and he perished completely, filled with unwillingness.

"Everything that needed to be said has been said. You clearly coveted my disciple's Buddhist divine abilities, yet you continually spouted false words. Why not let me help you empty yourself of all attachments?" Ye Fan paused, then continued, "I also possess a method to alleviate great human suffering, and I intend to establish a religion in the Western Desert, to bring salvation to all beings, starting from Mount Sumeru."