"Supreme Elder! With you here, my mind is at ease. Please, kill that monk first!"
Gongsun Xin’s voice rang out as he pointed at the second monk.
This particular monk was blind in one eye. His earlier attacks had been incredibly ruthless, claiming the lives of many clan members. Although Gongsun Xin hadn’t fought him directly, he knew he was no match for this monk.
Seeing Gongsun Xin point at him, the monk pressed his palms together and chanted.
"Amitabha Buddha, if I do not descend into hell, who will?"
As soon as he spoke, the Supreme Elder replied, "Then descend into hell you shall."
With that said, the Supreme Elder launched another attack. He flicked his fishing rod, causing the surrounding air to solidify. The tip of the line vanished into the void on his end, only to suddenly materialize right in front of the monk’s face.
But the monk seemed prepared for this.
"Amitabha Buddha, the vajra is me, and I am the vajra!"
Pressing his palms together, the monk’s body erupted with radiant Buddhist light. In that moment, he seemed to transform into a Vajra Ancient Buddha, brimming with supreme divine might.
CLANG!
With a sharp ring, the fishhook aimed at his head was actually deflected. The immense rebounding force shattered the hook into fine powder.
"Hmm?" The Supreme Elder’s pupils shrank.
He had specially commissioned the crafting of this fishhook; its hardness and durability were on par with a low-tier Earth-grade weapon. Yet, it had been pulverized. This monk was incredibly strong! His strength was likely no less than the Supreme Elder’s own.
The Supreme Elder didn’t say another word, simply turning to give Gongsun Xin a meaningful look. Gongsun Xin’s eyes widened slightly as he instantly understood the silent message. He immediately reappeared in front of Gongsun Yanran.
"Yanran, take Ye Xuan, Gongsun Po, Gongsun Hao, and the others, and leave through the secret passage at once."
"Xin, what do you mean?"
Gongsun Xin answered honestly, "We might not be able to hold them off."
"What! Xin, I’m not leaving. I will live and die with the Gongsun family."
"This is an order. You must protect the younger generation of the Gongsun family. You have to keep our bloodline alive."
"Xin, the Supreme Elder is so powerful; we won’t necessarily lose. He can win!"
Gongsun Xin wanted to say more, but a terrifying explosion erupted behind him.
After blocking the Supreme Elder’s attack, the monk took the offensive. A Demon Buddha manifested behind him. This entity bore a grotesque, ferocious visage, sporting three heads and six arms. Looking like the reincarnation of the Demon Buddha itself, the monk charged at the Supreme Elder, leaving a blurring shadow in his wake.
The Supreme Elder unleashed his Beast Soul Transformation, granting him tremendous power, yet the monk’s relentless assault forced him to retreat step after step. The turtle shell on his back even began to crack.
"You are nothing more than this... Then allow me to send you straight to the Western Heaven Paradise. Great Compassion Palm!"
The Great Compassion Palm. It was a Buddhist Orthodox Ultimate Skill.
As the palm thrust forward, a colossal image of Buddha materialized in the sky. The Buddha’s expression was solemn, its eyes filled with profound compassion for the world. All around, the ethereal chanting of myriad Buddhas suddenly echoed. The area seemed to transform into an absolute utopia.
In the next moment, the Buddha pressed its massive palm downward.
The terrifying coercion made it impossible for Sun Zhenwu and the others to even stand straight. The sheer might of this palm strike felt like the true descent of the Buddha.
Hua, who had been guarding Ye Xuan’s side the entire time, began to tremble violently. She looked up, her beautiful eyes reflecting nothing but the Great Compassion Palm descending from the heavens. Memories buried deep within her soul suddenly awakened.
She would never forget that day when a Golden Buddha had appeared in the sky above the Hua family. That Golden Buddha had been ten times larger than the one before her now. Its palm had felt like the sky itself collapsing upon them.
The Great Compassion Palm... She was witnessing the Great Compassion Palm once again.
This was a paramount Buddhist technique, its power no less than that of Divine Secret Techniques. But how could the Great Compassion Palm appear in the Moyue Kingdom? This was the ultimate skill of the Great Buddha Temple.
"Hua..." Ye Xuan suddenly reached out and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
He had noticed her trembling body, but he assumed she was merely overwhelmed by the terrifying pressure of the palm strike.
BOOM.
A deafening explosion immediately followed. The stone paving of the Gongsun family’s compound was incredibly tough, yet the attack blasted a deep crater into the ground. The power of this palm strike was simply too overwhelming.
"Supreme Elder!" Gongsun Xin cried out in shock.
Struck by the massive palm, the Supreme Elder had been smashed into the ground, his fate unknown. He lay sprawled in the dirt, the turtle shell on his back shattered into pieces.
"Cough, cough." Suddenly, the Supreme Elder began to cough. He planted his hands on the ground, still possessing enough strength to move.
"Amitabha Buddha, you actually survived."
"The Buddha teaches that all living beings suffer, and that life is a heavier burden than death. Allow me to send you to Paradise."
The monk extended his palm once more. The Golden Buddha reappeared, towering high in the void above. The Great Compassion Palm descended once again.
"Supreme Elder!" Gongsun Ancient Formula and several other Elders unleashed powerful Martial Techniques in quick succession, desperately trying to destroy the incoming palm.
But it was useless. The giant palm slammed down anyway.
BOOM!
With a thunderous crash, blood splattered in every direction. Gongsun Ancient Formula, who was closest to the Supreme Elder, was drenched in blood.
The Supreme Elder was dead. His body had been blown to pieces.
GULP... GULP...
Everyone present secretly swallowed hard, Sun Zhenwu included. He shot Sun Juguang an astonished look and muttered, "Juguang, did you know he was this powerful?"
These two monks had actually been brought back by Sun Juguang.
Sun Juguang mirrored his shock as he replied, "These two were recommended to me by an Elder. He assured me they would be of immense help to the Sun family. I had no idea either."
While the two conversed, Gongsun Ancient Formula suddenly let out a low roar. "Gongsun Xin, what are you standing there for? Hurry! All Elders, with me! We must hold him off!
"Eight Harmonies Swordsmanship!"
Eight Elders suddenly materialized around the monk, each wielding a longsword.
"Not good! It’s the Gongsun family’s Combined Martial Techniques!" Sun Zhenwu’s expression shifted drastically, clearly highly wary of the Gongsun family’s signature joint attack.
At that moment, the eight Elders transformed into eight blurs of motion as they lunged at the monk. Even if they were no match for him, they had to buy time.
"Ye Xuan, all you youngsters, come with me immediately!" Gongsun Xin roared. As his words fell, he turned and sprinted toward a distant building.
Inside that building lay the secret underground passage that led straight to the southern city gates. If the Gongsun family truly couldn’t hold their ground, their only choice was to let the younger generation escape. The Gongsun family had to keep their bloodline alive.
"Damn it, they’re trying to escape. Kill them!" Recognizing Gongsun Xin’s intentions, Sun Zhenwu immediately led the Sun family experts in hot pursuit.
Just then, Gongsun Qingyue let out a fierce roar. His eyes were bloodshot, giving him a terrifying appearance. "All clan members, stop them! Even if we have to build a great wall out of our own flesh and blood, we cannot let them pass!"
Gongsun Qingyue’s cultivation wasn’t particularly high; he was only at the eighth level of the Demon Spirit Realm. Yet, he unflinchingly threw himself to the very front of the defensive line. After all, he was facing experts in the Earth Spirit Realm.
SLASH!
The moment his voice faded, a head rolled across the ground. Sun Zhenwu had decapitated him with a single sword strike.
"Mr. Qingyue!" beside him, Yun Kong and Yun Lei roared in agony. They clenched their hands, triggering explosions in the distant air.
But it was futile! The gap in cultivation was simply too massive; they couldn’t even scratch these Earth Spirit Realm experts. One after another, both men had their heads blown apart.
Although they had died, the Side Branches’ members and the Direct Lineage Elders surged forward in endless waves. Using their own flesh and blood, they completely sealed off the path ahead. If the enemies wanted to pass, they would have to trample over their corpses.