Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

Chapter 938: Chapter 933: Bhagavat, a Good Friend of Lower Cultivators

The boundless grid permeated the dim universe, emitting a faint light that flickered uncertainly. It intertwined and overlapped, an inseparable and chaotic tangle.

Yet, in such a place, a blazing sun suddenly barged into Lü Yang’s field of vision. Blistering white light flowed over his robes, then disintegrated, scattering into a misty myriad of colorful rays. The colorful light merged into the Great Net of Karma Links below, reflecting the faces of billions of monks.

”Was this the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata?” he wondered.

Lü Yang thought, ”No, it is the Bhagavat!”

His teeth chattered slightly as he immediately clenched his jaw. ”At the very least, the person appearing before me right now is absolutely the Bhagavat’s true consciousness!”

There was only one basis for this judgment. ”Emperor Muni—this is the Bhagavat’s True Name. In my previous life, when Ang Xiao finally sought verification from the Netherworld, he used this exact name to draw a response from the Bhagavat! If this were merely a lowly clone, how could it dare to use the Bhagavat’s True Name?”

He forcefully suppressed the urge to restart.

It wasn’t that he was reluctant to restart; it was primarily because he hadn’t detected any corruption in his Perfect Dao Heart. It was still functioning perfectly normally. This was quite a delicate situation. After all, the Bhagavat’s corrupting influence was obvious to all, and the Star Palace had suffered greatly from it. Yet now, with the Bhagavat standing right in front of him, he actually felt nothing?

Either he was already beyond saving, or the Bhagavat genuinely hadn’t made a move against him. If it were the former, he would have been doomed long ago, and the Centome would have inevitably been discovered by the Bhagavat. Since it hadn’t... it meant it must be the latter.

At this moment, Lü Yang’s mind raced with countless swarming thoughts, but he suppressed them all. Then, making a grand show of reverence, he threw himself heavily to his knees and bowed. ”I, the Lower Cultivator Master of Tribulation, am fortunate to meet...”

”RUMBLE!”

Before Lü Yang could finish his sentence, a clap of thunder interrupted him. He then discovered, to his astonishment, that he was actually unable to utter the word ”Bhagavat.”

He looked up to see the man who called himself ”Emperor Muni” smiling faintly. The man shook his head. ”I am the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata, not the person you, Daoist, are thinking of in your heart... At least not right now. If I truly were that person, I would inevitably be discovered by the others.”

At these words, Lü Yang immediately narrowed his eyes.

He was now one hundred percent certain that the person before him was the Bhagavat, and not those Tathagata Bodies from before. However, the Bhagavat was indeed correct about one thing. The Master of Dao was simply too strong. Residing high upon the Other Shore, even a mere cast of his gaze could cause the mortal world to stop turning. Such a commotion would certainly draw the attention of the other Masters of Dao.

Yet the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata before him did not give off that kind of feeling. However, he had used the Bhagavat’s True Name. A name held extraordinary significance for an existence like a Master of Dao, so it was impossible for this not to be his true body. Why would this be?

Lü Yang had, after all, been thoroughly tempered in the Stain Sect. Having recovered from the terror of suddenly being cornered by the Bhagavat, he quickly thought of an answer.

He thought, ”Is the Bhagavat... traveling incognito this time, descending in secret? Hiding it from the other Masters of Dao? To see me?”

The moment this thought arose, everything prior could be entirely explained—the Bhagavat wasn’t here to kill him. Did he genuinely just want to come over and talk?

Even so, Lü Yang didn’t dare to relax in the slightest. He kept his head bowed and remained silent as he pondered, ”I understand now. No wonder there is no Mighty Power. The Bhagavat used the granting of his own True Name to allow his true consciousness to secretly borrow the Golden Body of the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata and descend to the Lower Realm.”

This was something only the Bhagavat could accomplish. Firstly, it should be because the Bhagavat did not stand high enough. His Cultivation was the weakest among the four Masters of Dao, making it easier for him to descend to the Current World compared to the other three. Secondly, it was because of Unity. The Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata was originally his Enlightened Body. By granting his True Name to graft the karmic links and temporarily commandeer the body, it wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.

So the question was... As a mere ant who wasn’t even a Great Perfected Lord, what on earth did the Bhagavat want to talk to him about, so much so that he would hide it from the other Masters of Dao and secretly descend to the Lower Realm to find him?

Just then, a voice floated down from above.

”Good, very good.”

Lü Yang kept his head lowered and said nothing, but the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata’s next words made his head spin, nearly causing him to faint on the spot.

”You have quite the ambition, Daoist.

”If I hadn’t consolidated various karmic links and observed the Variable from afar, I’m afraid I wouldn’t have known about such a thing... The collapse of the Netherworld and the overturning of the Other Shore. That truly is a massive tribulation.”

Lü Yang thought, ”How is this possible...”

At this moment, this was the only thought left in Lü Yang’s mind. The overwhelming sense of disbelief and incredulity threatened to surface on his face.

He thought in shock, ”Has the Plan for the Collapse of the Other Shore been exposed!?”

What a joke! Although he had already been gathering the necessary conditions, up until now, he had only been thinking about it in his mind. He had never told an outsider! Even to the Primordial Celestial Demon, he had only given a rough description. He had kept the specific methods and means strictly confidential, yet now the Bhagavat had directly voiced them, as if he had grasped them long ago!

Lü Yang nearly shattered his teeth from clenching them so hard. He felt that although the other party’s words fell casually upon his ears, they resounded like a Giant Bell, leaving his head buzzing. However, a final shred of rationality allowed him to forcefully stabilize his Heart Spirit. Keeping a rigid face, he tilted his head and put on an innocent expression.

”Hahaha!”

The Bhagavat suddenly burst into loud laughter. ”As expected of a Holy Sect Disciple! That expression is entirely natural. Had it been someone unaware of your background, you really might have fooled them!”

Lü Yang thought, ”Background? What background?”

Hearing this, a doubt suddenly sprang up in Lü Yang’s heart. ”Speaking of which, in the eyes of a Master of Dao, what exactly is my origin supposed to be right now?”

His foundation was tied to the Centome. To a Perfected Lord of the Golden Core, they couldn’t calculate anything meaningful and could only assume he had severed his karmic links. But to a Master of Dao, what was he? There had to be a reasonable explanation, otherwise the Master of Dao would have slapped him to death long ago. It was just that on this issue, he had always previously attributed the reason to the omnipotent Centome—assuming it was just a cheat code if questioned—and had never delved deeper into it.

”This Lower Cultivator... this Lower Cultivator truly does not know...”

”It is better that you do not know.”

The Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata smiled and shook his head. ”Ang Xiao, Tingyou, Fei Xue, and you, Daoist... Ignorance is a blessing. Knowing would only ruin the beauty of it.”

”What does this mean?” he wondered.

Lü Yang grew even more bewildered but didn’t dare overthink it, choosing simply to carve those words deeply into his heart. Seeing this, the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata continued softly,

”You can set your mind entirely at ease, Daoist.

”Since I have come to see you at this time, naturally I am not here to harm you... Rather, it is the exact opposite. I am highly interested in your plan to overturn the Other Shore.”

At this point, the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata looked at Lü Yang with a benevolent expression. He even extended a hand on his own accord to help him up from the ground. ”You were born too late, Daoist, so you are unaware of my reputation from back then. When I was in the Stain Sect, I was famously fond of dealing with Lower Cultivators.

”The good friend of Lower Cultivators—that was me.

”Take Ang Xiao, for example. He received my grace back in the day. If I hadn’t encouraged him back then, do you think he would have achieved what he has today?”

Lü Yang thought, ”Is that true?”

Lü Yang didn’t believe a word of it in his heart, yet he immediately squeezed out an expression of worship, admiration, and reverence. The sight of it made even the Bhagavat’s eyes twitch slightly.

Alas, the First Saint had truly corrupted the sect’s atmosphere.

Lü Yang thought, ”Did he see through me?”

Under the Vajra Realm Great Sun Tathagata’s gaze, Lü Yang’s expression remained completely unchanged. With a tranquil look in his eyes, he simply met the other’s stare.

Indeed, Lü Yang had figured it out.

He thought, ”Although his entrance was terrifying and he revealed some secrets to appear exceedingly unruffled, in reality... the Bhagavat is likely here to seek cooperation this time!”

In an instant, boundless courage flooded into Lü Yang’s soul.

He thought, ”I absolutely cannot let him bluff me!

”If I get bluffed, this cooperation will turn into him using me for free! I must hold my ground. As long as I can pry a little something out of the Bhagavat’s hands, even dying would be worth it!”