He finally understood the Jade Emperor’s sinister intentions; he absolutely couldn’t abandon this land, for once forsaken, the future of the Buddhist Sect would be bleak.

Yet, now the Buddhist Sect was thoroughly unwelcome on this land. How could he reverse this situation?

At this moment, he saw the lotus in his hand sway once again. The arrow that pierced the fog shot into the crowd and transformed into a Buddha standing among the people, reciting scriptures and spreading Buddhist Law.

In this Heaven and Earth, another path of reason suddenly emerged, making the vast net even more intricate.

The followers of the Buddhist Sect watched the scene before them with delight, realizing that with the Buddha’s figure descending into their midst, the hostile forces of Mankind against them seemed greatly reduced.

"This is..." the crowd exclaimed in amazement.

No one had anticipated such a turn of events; the Buddhist Sect had become one of the principles of this land. With this, the Buddhist Sect would not disappear no matter what.

There will always be people who inherit the knowledge of the Buddhist Sect, comprehend Buddhist Law, and illuminate the Buddhist Sect.

"Amitabha, my Buddha is merciful!" Maitreya sighed quietly.

What was thought to be a dead end turned out to be a new path. Tathagata, the Buddha, rightly deserves the reputation as the most talented in the Buddhist Sect. Only such a figure could bring forth novelty, replacing Theravada Buddhism with Mahayana Buddhism. Although he was known as the Future Buddha, he admitted he was indeed behind Tathagata of the present.

Nevertheless, the Buddhist Sect had, after all, lost this round. Even though Tathagata’s maneuvers prevented it from reaching a dead end, at least for this century, there was no possibility for the Buddhist Sect to cross eastward.

The Supreme one had achieved his objective, significantly weakening the Buddhist Sect.

"Let’s go back. We shall not enter the Eastern Land for a hundred years," Maitreya’s voice slowly echoed in everyone’s ears.

It made everyone realize that they could not alter the current situation; they could only swallow this bitter pill in silence.

"We will heed the Law!"

The Various Buddhas returned to Mount Ling; the dazzling Buddha’s Light bathed the entire Heaven and Earth in gold, and even the clouds in the sky turned a golden hue. This marvelous spectacle immediately drew the attention of All Living Beings of the Three Realms.

Countless commoners witnessing this scene quickly fell to their knees and silently prayed.

Many practitioners in the Three Realms, however, furrowed their brows. They were not ordinary mortals and could clearly see what hid behind the clouds.

This was the Buddhist Sect flexing its power. Even if weakened, it remained one of the foremost forces in the Three Realms. Those wishing to take advantage of the turmoil had better weigh their capacity carefully before acting.

Above in the Nine Heavens, within the Lingxiao Treasured Palace, the Jade Emperor watched the Buddhist Sect’s every move with a smile. Upon witnessing their show of force, he said, "It is indeed the Buddhist Sect, still rich in heritage."

He had thought the Buddhist Sect would be greatly weakened this time. Unexpectedly, Tathagata had such a contingency in place, silently binding the fate of the Buddhist Sect with Mankind, making it impossible to target the Buddhist Sect through Mankind in the future.

Although the Buddhist Sect lost much of its core strength, the top tier remained intact. Under Maitreya’s leadership, they still stood united.

"However, without these young people, the strength of the Buddhist Sect will greatly diminish. Having offended the Great Tang Dynasty, the faith will also waver. This is a tremendous blow to the Buddhist Sect, which depends heavily on the faith of all living beings," the Divine Exorcist Great Saint said with a smile.

He was also sufficiently proud, for this entire scheme was of his own devising. It was he who had covertly contacted Demon King Mara, so that at the perfect moment, they could strike against the Buddhist Sect.

Had it not been for the Demon King diverting Maitreya and using his own mana to influence the people of Mount Ling, the Jade Emperor’s plans could never have come to fruition.

"Very well, it seems the next step in our plan must now commence. Do not allow the Buddhist Sect a moment’s respite. This century is their weakest, and we must press on following our victory," said the Jade Emperor in a grave tone.

In his view, the Buddhist Sect’s show of force was nothing but bluster, and if Maitreya could see it, naturally, so could he. Once the Buddhist Sect weathered this century, when Buddhist Law once again flourished in Dongsheng Shenzhou, their power would greatly increase. Such was the way of yin and yang, the mandate of the Dao.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, this time we will definitely deal the Buddhist Sect a severe blow," confidently said the Divine Exorcist Great Saint.

He was very confident in his forthcoming plans. Should they succeed, the Buddhist Sect would surely be greatly weakened, unable to ever again compete with the Heavenly Court.

"Then I shall wait and see."

In Dongsheng Shenzhou, as the persecution of Buddhists unfolded, countless monks suffered, innumerable temples were burned to the ground, Buddhist statues were toppled, and people vents their inner flames recklessly, subjecting the disciples of the Buddhist Sect to unprecedented suffering.

In these times, it wasn’t just about being kind-hearted—a bald head walking down the street could easily be captured.

In such an environment, Juexing was making his solitary way towards Mount Ling at a slow pace.

Because of the manhunt, he dared not enter cities or walk on main roads; he could only take mountain paths as he headed west.

Today, he was no longer the Arhat, resplendent atop Mount Ling with wide-reaching divine skills. He was just a mortal with slightly superior physical strength. Places once reachable in an instant now presented grueling challenges to him.

Yet he could not give up. He still needed to bring the situation here back to Mount Ling, and also to confront the myriad Buddhas in person, asking why they had abandoned their followers in the Eastern Land.

A shadow had unwittingly fallen over his soul, nourishing the negative emotions in his heart. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Resentment and hatred burned in his heart like a raging fire. Yet, in the face of survival, he could not manage his own state of mind and was slowly sinking into despair.

The road to Mount Ling was not easy to travel, for many monks shared his thoughts. After all, Xiniu Continent was the stronghold of the Buddhist Sect. There, any of its disciples would be well-treated, with no worries about food or clothing.

Why should one linger in this Demon Land, filled with greed and violence, and air thick with the enthralling mundane world filled with desires and distractions, relentlessly eroding the spirit?

For Juexing, coming to the Great Tang Dynasty was the most foolish decision of his life. He must have been blinded by lard to think that merit was easily earned here.

In his heart, he vowed never to come to this place again, never to set foot on this land.

The air faintly carried the smell of charred wood. Juexing looked up to see a temple burned to ruins not far away, the source of the scent.

"Has this place also not escaped calamity?" Juexing murmured to himself.

Even in the depths of the forest, in a temple ignored by the world, such destruction had come to pass, and a chill ran through his heart.