Chapter 1221: Battle Bright King

As Han Tianjun faced Di Shitian Li Youran, his eyes betrayed profound shock. The terrifying weapons in Li Youran’s hands unleashed an unprecedented sharpness and lethality, cutting into his body as easily as a hot knife through tofu. It was like a master butcher dismembering an ox; his proudly constructed formations, facing Li Youran’s divine blades and axes, were effortlessly cut open, dismantled, and dismembered. In a mere instant, he was stripped bare of all his layered cube formations, his true body appearing before Li Youran.

He raised his hand to block, but as thousands of divine weapons rained down, Han Tianjun heard the sound of his bones exploding and his skull being cut open. He even heard the Grand Dao runes within his body being shattered. Li Youran was like a thousand-armed mad demon king, wielding thousands of divine weapons and sharp tools. He furiously smashed at Han Tianjun, flattening him, shattering him, treating him like a stubborn piece of iron that he was hammering flat and round.

The formation runes within Han Tianjun's body crackled and burst. He tried to restore his physical form, but no matter how he recovered, he was instantly smashed again. Moreover, the formation runes he could control dwindled, as Di Shitian Li Youran had utterly shattered them. His heart was filled with immense fear. He wanted to beg for mercy, to save his life, but at that moment, he couldn't utter a single word.

Qin Mu stood afar, quietly watching the scene unfold. Li Youran had already pounded a large pit into the ground, its bottom an incredibly smooth surface—a testament to a blacksmith’s fundamental skill. And Li Youran’s fundamental skills were indeed exceptional. Han Tianjun had been pounded into a piece of paper so thin it was almost without thickness, yet Li Youran continued to smash down furiously, his rage burning. In his violent fury, he possessed no Buddhist heart or nature, only boundless, profound wrath. He was the Wrathful King of Light.

After a long while, the heavy pounding finally ceased. Amidst the blazing wrathful flames of the King of Light, Li Youran raised his head, looking up at the sky, as two streams of fiery tears flowed from his eyes. As a King of Light, he should no longer be able to shed tears. Behind the flames, Qin Mu saw a celestial palace emerge, also consumed by raging wrath, the entire structure engulfed in fury. The Lingxiao Hall stood empty, yet at this moment, Di Shitian Li Youran's primordial spirit sat on the imperial throne, his face wrathful, but his gaze filled with sorrow.

He had not achieved emperorship through Buddhist teachings, but through wrath. On this day, the world lost a Buddha and gained an Emperor-level powerhouse.

Qin Mu walked forward. Di Shitian Li Youran slowly floated up from the pit and landed on the ground. The wrathful flames of the King of Light on him gradually subsided, no longer as vigorous, but they never extinguished. He did not revert to his former handsome appearance; his face remained somewhat ferocious.

"Are you Di Shitian now, or Li Youran?" Qin Mu asked. "Or rather, are you the Battle King of Light?"

"I..."

Li Youran dispelled his thousand arms and looked down at his hands, which still emanated the wrathful flames of the King of Light. They were no longer fair and delicate as before, but rough and covered in calluses. Then, he calmly raised his head, his voice somewhat rough: "I am the Battle King of Light."

Qin Mu sighed, "The Old Buddha imparted the Immeasurable Kalpa Sutra to you, hoping you would embrace Buddhist teachings and become a Buddha, for you possess a Buddhist heart and nature. He did not wish for you to transform that heart and nature into a body of wrathful fire."

"Buddhist teachings cannot save all sentient beings; it's difficult even for self-salvation." Li Youran walked towards the Ark of the Other Shore. "This form suits me better now," he said.

Qin Mu paused, startled, then stepped to follow him. He understood that the current Li Youran was no longer the dashing, handsome, and extremely talented Heavenly Craftsman Li Youran of the past. Nor was he Emperor Shitian Wangfo, who, clad in white, was graceful, handsome, and dignified, with elegant, witty, and subtly sharp conversation. Now, he was the Battle King of Light under Emperor Kaihuang's command. He was to pilot the Ark of the Other Shore, carrying his comrades to the Land of Tai Xu, to Wuyou Township—to fight, to seek revenge, and to fully unleash his wrathful flames as the King of Light. His heart held no love, only the drive for revenge and battle.

"When Great Brahma Heavenly King Buddha imparted the Immeasurable Kalpa Sutra to him, did he foresee this day?" Qin Mu stood on the Ark of the Other Shore, lost in thought, as the enormous warship gently jolted. Immensely large alchemy furnaces ignited, propelling the colossal vessel forward. "Li Youran transformed into Di Shitian, a result of Buddhist teachings, and Di Shitian transformed into the Battle King, a result of the Immeasurable Kalpa Sutra. Earlier, Di Shitian Li Youran repaired the Ark of the Other Shore in his dream, manifesting countless avatars. Han Tianjun's appearance, however, filled those myriad dream selves with nothing but anger and revenge."

Qin Mu watched the divine figure wreathed in flames, controlling the Ark of the Other Shore with the astrolabe. He thought to himself: "One dream, one world; one world is one kalpa. In his dream, only wrath and revenge remained. When he awoke, he became the Wrathful King of Light—or perhaps, he never truly awoke, nor did he wish to."

Great Brahma Heavenly King Buddha's Immeasurable Kalpa Sutra was truly wondrous, capable of influencing a person's state of mind and even their very form. Everyone who cultivated the Immeasurable Kalpa Sutra gained different insights. Di Shitian Li Youran, specifically, became the Battle King of Light during this dream journey, also achieving the Emperor's Throne realm. Great Brahma's cultivation of mind and wisdom were unfathomable, making it truly possible that he foresaw the future of Emperor Shitian Wangfo.

The Ark of the Other Shore gradually picked up speed. Suddenly, countless runes on the ship's surface illuminated one by one. These, however, were only a fraction of the vessel's total runes; countless more intricate runes lay hidden within its hull. This was also why the Heavenly Court, even after sealing the ship, was unable to fully repair the Ark of the Other Shore; not even Lady Yuanmu Shi Qiluo could recreate it. As all the Ark's runes illuminated, the ship suddenly dipped slightly and entered another space-time. That was Youdu.

Even with all the blueprints for the Ark of the Other Shore, Qin Mu couldn't help but marvel at the civilization of the Kaihuang era. Such a colossal ship had an incredibly complex construction; any single error would have rendered it impossible to launch. Yet, the Heavenly Craftsmen of that era managed to accomplish this seemingly impossible task flawlessly—a truly remarkable feat!

"Although Yankang has many Heavenly Craftsmen, their overall coordination is still inferior to Kaihuang's. When Yankang can forge such behemoths, it will possess the strength to contend with the Heavenly Court." He thought for a moment, "A direct fight with the Heavenly Court is impossible, but at least we'll be able to put up a decent fight."

Ahead, Fengdu was in sight. This world, formed from Earth Count's horn, had already departed the Heavenly Yin World and arrived in Youdu. By the time the Ark of the Other Shore reached Fengdu, this massive world had already shrunk countless times under the suppression of powerful beings like Emperor Yiyue, Martial Combat Heavenly Master, and Fisherman Heavenly Master. But even so, Fengdu remained exceptionally vast.

Fengdu flew over and settled onto the Ark of the Other Shore. When the Woodcutter Saint saw Qin Mu also on board, his face darkened, unsure if he disliked Qin Mu joining the journey to the Land of Tai Xu or if he simply remembered Qin Mu knocking him away.

"You're going to Tai Xu too?" The Woodcutter Saint snorted, his face grim, and asked, "What are you going to Tai Xu for?"

"I am a Celestial Venerable of the Heavenly Alliance," Qin Mu declared with righteous indignation. "Of course, I'm going to Tai Xu to help the Heavenly Court eliminate you rebels!"