Chapter 437: The Secret of the Demon-Suppressing True Person

Great Long River.

Lü Yang had long been curious about this mighty river that divided the four regions—east, west, south, and north—but had never seen it with his own eyes until now.

Looking out into the distance, on this side lay Jiangnan, and on that side Jiangxi. Yet what separated the two was not seawater, but waves upon waves of annihilating light—【Two Rites Light of Creation and Destruction】—surging endlessly, as though capable of swallowing everything. Even a Qi Refining disciple would be vaporized the instant they drew near!

‘What Great Long River? It’s clearly a sea of outer-heaven light.’

In that instant, Lü Yang recalled the scene he had witnessed upon returning before—this wretched place was, in truth, a patchwork of five Heaven Realms!

‘But clearly it wasn’t fully merged.’

‘Otherwise I wouldn’t have seen through the seams. This so-called Great Long River is the very rift between the five Heaven Realms—a mark of their failure to fuse into one.’

Just then, the Demon-Suppressing True Person spoke.

“Once we pass this place, ahead lies the Pure Land of Jiangxi. I’ll have to trouble you to accompany me there, and afterward… I must also trouble you to bring my relics back from the Pure Land.”

Hearing that, Lü Yang fell silent.

“Master, why must you go to the Pure Land?”

He had long held that question in his heart. Strictly speaking, the Demon-Suppressing True Person had no real enmity with the Pure Land—it was, after all, one of the righteous paths.

And yet, judging by his bearing, the Demon-Suppressing True Person seemed to be walking to his own death. But if that were truly so—did he not have the certainty to attain the 【Sword Dao Fruitional Rank】? Otherwise, what was there to fear? He could simply become a True Lord, take up his sword, and strike down the world—who could stand before him?

“Curious, are you?”

The Demon-Suppressing True Person chuckled softly. “It’s nothing that can’t be spoken of. This is my tribulation. I go to the Pure Land to end it.”

‘Tribulation?’ Lü Yang pondered inwardly.

The Demon-Suppressing True Person continued,

“Since childhood, my foundation was deep, and I was young and proud. In my first life, I formed my foundation with ease, set my sights upon the Great Dao, and swore I would one day become a True Lord of the Heavens.”

At this point, a shadow flickered in his eyes. “Later… due to certain events, I was forced to switch to the Sword Path. I was resentful, unwilling, yet dared not show it. Determined to achieve greatness in sword arts as well, I descended the mountain to temper myself and forge a supreme Sword Intent.”

As he spoke, the Demon-Suppressing True Person stepped into the Great Long River.

He did not employ any divine arts or spells—only let a wisp of 【All-Slaughtering Sword Intent】 unfurl, and immediately the once-turbulent river split open, forming a clear passage.

Lü Yang hurried to follow.

“It was during that time of wandering that I met a mortal—a mere schoolteacher in a common country of Jiangnan.”

“At the time, I was struck with awe.”

“For a mortal, who should have been as insignificant as grass, I found within him Sword Intent—a mortal who had cultivated Sword Intent!”

Those words stunned Lü Yang.

His first thought—impossible! A mortal cultivating Sword Intent? That was like hitching a pony to pull a war chariot—if he somehow succeeded, he would only explode!

In other words—

‘Something’s off! No—something’s wrong!’

Having been beaten senseless in this twisted world too many times, Lü Yang had developed a healthy paranoia—anything beyond reason was worth suspecting!

‘It’s surely a trap!’

His expression shifted slightly, though the Demon-Suppressing True Person noticed and smiled. “You’re far more cautious than I was. Back then, I thought nothing of it.”

“That mortal had just condensed his Sword Intent when, unable to withstand its pressure, his mortal body began to fail. Others thought him gravely ill, about to die. I stepped in and saved him. We spoke at length and soon became friends.”

“And the Sword Intent he had condensed—was 【No Killing】.”

At that, a trace of nostalgia glimmered in the Demon-Suppressing True Person’s eyes. “Back then, because my Dao path had been severed and resentment filled my chest, I forged 【All-Slay】.”

“Yet 【All-Slay】 was far too fierce.”

“Its very name means to slay all—foe and self alike. Each time I used it, it wounded me as well. So that friend advised me never to use it again.”

“As an alternative, he passed on to me 【No Killing】.”

Lü Yang’s brows twitched. Everyone knew a Sword Intent was the embodiment of a swordsman’s obsession—utterly unique. How could one be given to another?

The Demon-Suppressing True Person saw his confusion and laughed. “At that time, I sought only to become the world’s foremost swordsman. Someone offered me a second Sword Intent—why would I refuse such an obvious boon? Of course I accepted gladly. And indeed, it helped me greatly thereafter.”

【No Killing】 and 【All-Slay】—

Two Sword Intents, opposite extremes yet mutually tempering, each the whetstone of the other. The longer they clashed, the sharper they became!

“Whenever I encountered injustice, 【All-Slay】 would stir.”

“So I would use 【No Killing】 to suppress it. Thus, 【No Killing】 grew stronger, while 【All-Slay】 gained tempered depth.”

A blade’s edge is forged through grinding.

A Sword Intent refined this way—who in the world could compare? Eight-tenths of the Demon-Suppressing True Person’s fame as the world’s foremost swordsman came from this very duality!

Yet in all things, what is borrowed must one day be repaid.

The 【No Killing Sword Intent】, taken from another and nurtured so long by the Demon-Suppressing True Person, was like a crop of mature leeks—surely someone would come to harvest it.

At this, Lü Yang ventured a guess. “That mortal… came from the Pure Land?”

“Correct.”

The Demon-Suppressing True Person nodded. “To be precise, he was a Bodhisattva—one without a manifested Dharma-image, born for my sake, descending solely because of me.”

As he finished, he drew from his storage bag the severed head of Buddha Maiden Jingguan. “As for her—she brought calamity upon Jiangnan and perished beneath my sword. Perhaps that too was intentional. That one from the Pure Land wished to test my mettle—to see whether I met his standard.”

“Amitābha.”

In the Demon-Suppressing True Person’s hand, Buddha Maiden Jingguan’s countenance was serene as she chanted a Buddhist mantra: “This poor nun once said, the donor possesses awakening—he should enter our Pure Land.”

“This…”

Lü Yang frowned deeply. “Ancestor—will you simply stand by and watch this?”

Where’s the Sword Pavilion Ancestor? Come save him! This concerns the 【Sword Dao Fruitional Rank】—get here now!

‘Young friend, you are attached to appearances.’

Buddha Maiden Jingguan smiled faintly. “Do you think we seek to plunder, to snatch the fruit from the tiger’s mouth and offend the Sword Pavilion?”

Wasn’t that exactly what they were doing?

“Quite the opposite.”

She explained gently, “Consider, young friend—without 【No Killing】, how could the donor’s 【All-Slay】 have been tempered to its present height?”

“The World-Honored One’s acts ever bring mutual benefit.”

“The 【Sword Dao Fruitional Rank】 governs slaughter; its root is 【All-Slay】. 【No Killing】, gifted by the World-Honored One, is an external force—merely an impurity.”

“This time, when the donor comes to our Pure Land, he shall offer himself as a sacrifice to the sword. Of the two Sword Intents, we of the Pure Land will take not a fragment of 【All-Slay】—only reclaim the once-given 【No Killing】. We will then reshape his golden body and make him a Guardian Arhat of the Pure Land, destined for future Bodhisattva fruition.”

“No one shall be harmed.”

“In this way, the Sword Pavilion gains advantage, we of the Pure Land gain great merit, and the donor attains enlightenment—enjoying eternal bliss.”

“Is that not a joy to all?”

Her pleasant laughter echoed over the Great Long River—yet it chilled Lü Yang to the bone.

‘Joy to all? They’ve pre-ordered his life and his afterlife—devouring him whole without leaving even a crumb!’

He had to admit—every time he thought he’d grasped the bottom line of this damned world, its mighty beings proved that they had none at all.

They had no bottom line whatsoever!

“Boom!”

Suddenly, a thunderous sound rolled from beyond the river. Lü Yang looked up to find that the Demon-Suppressing True Person had already led him across the waters—into the realm of Jiangxi.

Before their eyes—endless Buddha light.

“Amitābha.”

On the shore stood an old monk, smiling kindly, palms joined. Behind him crowded a throng of mortals, each face radiant with devotion.

“Thump!”

The next instant, all monks knelt and bowed deeply, chanting in unison:

“Welcome, Guardian Arhat Weituo Who Suppresses Demons, who has traversed countless kalpas, illuminated wisdom of past lives, and now returns to the World of Glazed Light!”

“Good indeed!”

“Good indeed!”