The white-haired old monk, Bodhi Venerable, had streams of black aura flashing across his face, his expression alternating between ferocity and benevolence.

As the black aura seeped deeper, scenes from his past flashed before his eyes like a spinning lantern.

The hardships of seeking enlightenment in his youth, the joy of initiation, the decisive ruthlessness in dealing with outsiders, and the viciousness in struggles with fellow disciples.

Unconsciously, he had already stained his hands with blood, including the lives of many innocent people.

"So I have already walked the Demon Path, yet was unaware."

Bodhi recalled a past event, when he was wandering in the mortal world and was warmly received by a household. Later, he inadvertently discovered that the wife of the household was a fox demon.

The fox demon had married a human and bore a child. Bodhi was about to apprehend her when the fox demon knelt and begged for mercy, claiming she had harmed no one and had married the human out of gratitude.

Bodhi declared that the union between humans and demons defied the natural order. He then killed the fox demon and imprisoned the fox demon's child.

"Do you understand now? You claimed I ruined your Taoist Realm, but did it truly need ruining? One increase, one loss, one flaw—it transformed you unconsciously into a demon. Thus, I was not the cause; it is your own doing."

"No, once I ascend to Buddhahood, all will be well. The Western Pure Land must have a seat for me!"

Bodhi's hair turned black, his eyes turned blood-red, and he emitted an overwhelming aura of murderous intent.

A sinister black cloud gathered above the temple.

In an instant, all the disciples were alarmed.

A mocking voice echoed in Bodhi's mind:

"The Western Pure Land? Stop dreaming—demons have their own Pure Land, their own savior. Remember, all of this stems from your own choices."

The voice was stern, like a sharp reprimand.

Bodhi completely gave up.

At that moment, he fully transformed into a Great Demon.

A new air of arrogance enveloped him, making him appear much younger.

Bodhi kneeled toward the void and asked, "What is the Demon King's name?"

"...Destructive Black Lotus—Wutian!"

Song Lin pondered briefly before uttering this name.

Initially, he had planned to use Bhagavan, but Bhagavan as a Demon King name was already taken. To avoid complications, he looked for names from some literary works.

"Wutian"—limitless and lawless—this name exuded dominance.

"Go and find someone—Guu Yuchan."

Bodhi summoned Guu Yuchan. When the young man entered, he instantly grasped the situation.

He sensed the aura of the Heavenly Court.

"One of us. Wutian Buddha Ancestor has instructed me to align myself with you."

"Wutian Buddha Ancestor?"

Guu Yuchan pondered for a moment and saw a pitch-black lotus bloom in Bodhi's palm.

The lotus, despite being black, was nearly identical in size to the Taiyi Jinhua Palace.

It was said that Wutian Buddha Ancestor was a manifestation of the Heavenly Emperor.

"Very well, Bodhi Taoist, I am Donghua Heavenly Court's Thunder Department True Monarch,"

Guu Yuchan cupped his hands respectfully.

With the protection of Bodhi Ancestor, Guu Yuchan became even bolder in cultivating talents.

Over time, the number of cultivators practicing the Taiyi Jinhua Scripture reached three thousand.

Including external cultivators, the total surpassed ten million.

Once mobilized, they were sure to overturn heaven and earth.

Besides the cultivators, Song Lin's Destructive Black Lotus also recruited many monks.

He was surprised by how many demons there were in this place. Many who appeared solemn and virtuous were inwardly so vile.

Practitioners of Buddhism easily fell into extremism, especially those with shallow foundations.

Some were not purely evil but ignorantly so.

Bodhi represented a kind of righteous evil—unconcerned with good or bad, knowing only to kill demons.

There was another kind: the evil of adherence to precepts, where monks, bound by rules against approaching women, would refuse to save drowning women.

Then there was sacrificial evil, where devotees would impoverish themselves, abandon their families, and donate everything in the name of worshiping Buddha.

Every villain had their punishment and fate.

As Song Lin said, if one's heart bears no demon, how could one be turned into a demon?

Thus, the influence of Wutian Buddha Ancestor spread rapidly throughout the Lingwei Realm.

The reason for restraint was the timing wasn't yet right.

Song Lin had no intention of capturing this realm—it would be useless even if he did.

The top of the Central Heavenly Court was occupied by the Great Sun World Venerable.

This person was at least at the True Immortal Realm above the Heavenly Immortal level.

With Song Lin's cultivation, he stood no chance against a True Immortal.

What he intended to do was cause chaos here, wear the realm down in dealing with it, and leave hooks for future endeavors when he gained strength.

When a Heavenly Court ascends, it should be able to conceal its world's location.

Almost all Heavenly Courts followed this practice.

They wouldn't recklessly float in the void, as the Great Thousand World housed myriad forces, and presenting themselves in the void was akin to placing a piece of plump meat before ravenous wolves.

Thus, most Heavenly Courts had methods for hiding; Song Lin had learned such magic skills from the Yinn Shang World, but concealing an entire universe required the level of the Heavenly Heavenly Court.

Song Lin's plan was to teach these people a harsh lesson during ascension, allow his cultivators to reap substantial benefits, and then leave.

Turning Buddha into a demon was also a way to perfect the Black Lotus.

There were five years until the Upper Pure Demon Tribulation.

In the present Heavenly Court,

the immortals gathered at the Palace of the Polestar.

The Civil Academy immortals led by Heavenly Mechanism, the Military Academy immortals led by Chiyou, along with various deities from the departments, mountains, rivers, Yin Gods, and Earth Deities.

Among the assembly were the Demon Emperor Xiezhi and the Yin Emperor, Emperor Yuanbo, who presided over the Death River.

The Red Flame Divine Phoenix, once the Nine Yang Star Domain's demonic leader, a Harmonization 50% master, was now the Heavenly Court's Emperor Zhusheng.

The two governed the forces of life and death in the universe.

"Currently, all cultivators above Qi Refinement across the Heavenly Court's thirty-six star domains total over twelve million. All Taoist Soldiers are twenty times this number. The total population of all stars is more than fifty billion, with eighty billion indigenous..."

All the immortals listened attentively to Shi Yinhua's report.

Centuries of peace had brought tremendous development to the mortal world, increasing the population size several times over.

This is not a large number; in total, it might only amount to a typical military force of a Medium Thousand Heavenly Court.

But in a defensive stance, leveraging natural advantages could enable one to counter hundreds or thousands.

Cosmic wars differ from mortal dynasties' conflicts, which typically last months or decades.

Within the cosmic dimension, this timeframe multiplies by two or three zeros.

Such wars encompass countless smaller battles, involving multiple civilizations, leading to the rise and fall of countless peoples. Generations endure consecutive years of warfare, to the point where it becomes a perceived norm and part of creation's history.

Only through higher-dimensional perspectives can the true nature of such histories be discerned.

"Additionally," Shi Yinhua waved, releasing a ray of golden light, which formed into a vivid image.

"This is the void eighty million light-years away. This area has been pitch black for tens of thousands of years: the stars are dead, the space desolate. However, I have discovered traces of past life habitation above."

"Normal. Ancient Great Demons often hide in deep space."

Not everyone is granted the conditions of Donghua Heavenly Court.

The Upper Pure Demon Tribulation has introduced changes to the Dao, affecting corresponding cultivators.

Instant annihilation or sudden transformations from human to demon are commonplace.

This is why, theoretically, Primordial Spirit Stage cultivators can live forever, but very few achieve it.

Because of war and demon tribulations.

Hiding is futile—cultivators are like fish in a tank; if the tank suffers, the fish can't escape far.

At this moment, amidst the empty master seat, Song Lin's figure gradually materialized.

The immortals were startled—Song Lin, the long-absent Eastern King, had returned.

"Greetings, Eastern King."

Though Song Lin had formally adopted the title Shenxiao Heavenly Emperor, in routine meetings, the immortals preferred calling him Eastern King.

Eastern King felt more endearing.

"Is the array ready?"

"Almost."

"Good, let us begin now."

The immortals returned to their seats and revealed their respective dharma images.

Divine Thoughts drifted to their territories in preparation for array deployment.

Three months passed.

On the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, during the Double Ninth Festival, when the world's Yang energy was at its peak.

Boom!

This day, a golden ray shot out from the Palace of the Polestar.

The golden light rapidly expanded, splitting into tens of thousands of threads that spread outward, enveloping the entire world like a massive net.

The threads connected the heavens and earth, ranging from the Nine Heavens above to the Netherworld below.

From the stars to the Death River below the underworld—no matter the type of being within the Three Realms, all could see this spectacle.

For a moment, the depths of the universe surged with countless powerful presences that witnessed this event unfold.

At this instant, endless dark currents surged.

Boom!

Ordinarily, to completely unify a Small Thousand World, one must rule at least eighty percent of it before the Heavenly Court gains the energy to ascend.

Yet Song Lin, possessing the Nine Tripods, could ascend directly.

The energy of the Nine Tripods collectively surpassed even a Small Thousand World, and the growth of the Eight Sceneries World depended on them.

The problem lay in not knowing how to utilize them effectively beforehand.

The golden light pervaded the world, visible day or night.

In the void, Song Lin sat in meditation.

Kunlun gradually rose, ascending to a certain dimension in the void.

Ascension isn't floating but more akin to dividing the fish tank into three layers, with mutual disconnection.

From this point forward, the Heavenly Court, Netherworld, and Mortal World were definitively separated into the Three Realms.

Mortal beings would no longer be able to see the Heavenly Court.

Time slipped by, drawing closer to the Upper Pure Demon Tribulation.

Various factions sharpened their resolve, and the coming storm approached.

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