The Eternal Way-Chapter 189: Mahākāla

Upon hearing this, Monk Chan Zhi nodded and then continued to ask, "So you are an outstanding disciple of Wu Deity Mountain. Which sect of Wu Deity Mountain do you belong to?"

"Zhu Ren, the Earth Spirit lineage," Li Qi replied.

Clearly, Chan Zhi was probing Li Qi.

Although he didn't react like those who were awestruck by the mere mention of Wu Deity Mountain, it was evident that he still approached the name with caution. He neither spoke disrespectfully nor accused Li Qi of lying.

Faced with a power equivalent to the Western Buddhist Kingdom, Chan Zhi needed to maintain respect.

Hearing Li Qi's response about being from the Zhu Ren Earth Spirit lineage, Chan Zhi nodded: "I see. I have a similar background. I come from under the seat of Mahākāla, with teachings from Dakini Heaven, which holds a position comparable to the Earth Spirit lineage."

Li Qi, upon hearing this, broke out in a cold sweat.

Damn, no wonder this demonic monk was so ruthless, even resorting to blood sacrifices without hesitation!

Mahakala, even he had heard of it!

For now, let's hear what he has to say.

Li Qi continued listening.

Monk Chan Zhi seemed oblivious to Li Qi's startled mental activities and continued speaking gently: "Dakini Heaven originally referred to a malevolent Yaksha who enjoyed eating human hearts. The Dakini Heavenly Honored One is the manifestation of this great malevolent spirit."

"Volume Ten of the 'Commentary on the Mahavairocana Sutra' records: 'Dakini belongs to Mahakala's retinue, one of the Yaksha ghosts; possessing supreme divine powers, they can know a person's death six months in advance, pre-emptively consume their heart, and replace it with another object until the person's destined time of death arrives, causing their demise; practitioners of this method can achieve divine powers and great accomplishments; Vairocana Buddha, to subdue them, used the Dharma gate of conquering the three realms, transforming into Mahakala to subjugate them, making them submit to the Buddha.'"

"With this origin, the cultivation of Dakini Heaven requires one to first enter the demonic state and then become a Buddha, akin to how Dakini Heaven once served as a demon god and was subdued by Mahakala."

"I have subdued one hundred and eight demons and consumed their hearts. Now deeply entrenched in demonic thoughts, this remains the foundation of my cultivation, which I cannot abandon but only suppress."

"Originally, as you said, I used the Heart Hunter Divine Power from the Dakini Heaven method to seize the hearts of Guangyang Situ and Guangyang Sima, consuming their hearts and replacing them with other objects, turning them into my puppets. Through this means, I sought to comprehend the natural laws of Wu Dao, harmonizing Buddhahood and demonic thoughts to break through the influence of these demonic thoughts."

As Li Qi listened to Chan Zhi recount all this, he was also contemplating his own matters.

The Heart Hunter Divine Power should be the self-sovereign divine power Chan Zhi mentioned earlier.

In the books of spells given by Grand Invoker, there was corresponding information. After some searching, Li Qi found the relevant description.

The Heart Hunter Divine Power was a divine ability to foresee others' death dates, replace their hearts with substitute objects, and consume them.

Dakini Heaven enjoyed eating human hearts. After consuming a heart, she would replace it with a corrupted object, allowing the victim's heart to continue beating. The affected person usually wouldn't notice any abnormalities and could live normally.

However, in reality, the moment Dakini Heaven consumed their heart, the person was already as good as dead. Within six months, or at Dakini Heaven's whim, the person would immediately die.

Later, this divine power evolved into other versions. It seemed the version currently used by Chan Zhi involved changing the filler material to create his own puppets.

Chan Zhi had used this technique to bring Guangyang City under his control.

The real Guangyang Situ and Guangyang Sima had long been dead. Their hearts, wisdom, and memories had been consumed by Chan Zhi.

Those currently walking the earth were merely empty shells.

This confirmed most of his speculations, except for underestimating the extent of Chan Zhi's madness. Otherwise, he had guessed correctly.

Thus, Chan Zhi's ultimate goal was to rid himself of the influence of demonic thoughts.

Li Qi also needed to achieve this to escape from here.

While Li Qi pondered, Chan Zhi continued explaining, describing the foundation of his cultivation and the issues he needed to resolve.

Clearly, he genuinely intended to seek Li Qi's help.

Although Li Qi didn't know why the monk chose not to eat him directly but instead went through such elaborate procedures, it didn't matter.

The fact that he wasn't eaten was good. Why dwell on it? Pondering endlessly wouldn't yield results. It was better to accept this outcome and make decisions based on it.

Perhaps it was due to the backing of Wu Deity Mountain.

Two hours passed, and Chan Zhi finally finished explaining the essence of his cultivation thoroughly—completely thoroughly.

Initially, he just mentioned some common things, like origins.

At this point, Li Qi could remain calm.

An hour later, he began discussing specific cultivation methods, including which type of Qi to use and how to enhance it.

By this point, Li Qi started feeling uneasy.

After two hours, he had explained his cultivation method thoroughly, candidly enough that Li Qi felt he could collaborate with a Rank Seven powerhouse right away to devise a strategy against him and kill him on the spot.

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Hearing this, Li Qi was chilled to the bone.

This demonic monk...

Exposed his roots so clearly.

Wouldn't he eliminate the helper after using him?

"The specifics are these. It's your turn to speak, how do you plan to resolve my predicament? You promised me earlier on the battlefield." Monk Chan Zhi smiled amiably at Li Qi.

Li Qi immediately responded, "Master, don't worry. I must have confidence to say so. Let me explain."

He spoke quickly, fearing that a delayed response might lead Chan Zhi to behead him and turn his skull into a kapala bowl.

"This pagoda, is the manifestation of Master Chan Zhi's Dao Resonance and cultivation, personally bestowed by the Dakini Heavenly Honored One, correct?" Li Qi asked.

Chan Zhi nodded and replied, "Exactly so. My master once said that when the pagoda reaches the seventh level, it will mark my advancement to the sixth rank. To this day, four levels have been completed. I've used the breath of ten thousand people and their karma to construct the framework of the fifth level, intending to balance the Buddha and the demon here. However, this fifth level is still seventy percent incomplete."

"I want to visit the first level to see the hundred demonic thoughts. Will it hinder you, Master?" Li Qi asked again.

"It won't. Please proceed, benefactor. But you haven't yet explained how you intend to handle it," Chan Zhi kindly reminded.

"To harmonize all things, one must understand them. To dissolve demonic thoughts, I need to see what they look like," Li Qi stated.

"Then please go ahead. I will wait here for you," Chan Zhi nodded, palms together, eyes closed, letting Li Qi leave without worrying about his escape.

Of course, Li Qi certainly wouldn't run.

The other party was a Rank Seven expert. Only a fool would try to escape. Where could he run? Even to the ends of the earth, there'd be no escape.

He quickly descended the stairs to the first level of the five-level pagoda.

Here, there was no one, only 108 Arhat statues placed, each accompanied by a small, ferocious-looking head, suppressed by the Arhat statues.

Li Qi took a deep breath and activated his Dao Resonance.

'True Knowledge' Dao Resonance, its ability was to analyze everything.

These demonic thoughts were a part of Chan Zhi's inner self.

Thus, it was equivalent to Li Qi now touching Chan Zhi's most vulnerable spot.

Li Qi had never been one to sit idle. Even facing someone like a living god or Buddha of Rank Seven, he wouldn't hesitate.