Chapter 256: Lifting the Tripod
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
As the Freedom Meditation operated, Ye Futian no longer saw simple images. Instead, he saw shocking demonic intent. The images seemed to come to life like various demons. They enveloped him and the horrible power descended. His mind was surrounded by demons.
Boom! An extremely frightening demonic intent descended. It seemed that the stronger his intent was, the stronger the demonic intent released would be.
Ye Futian grunted and retracted the Freedom Meditation. He couldn't continue.
Everything went back to normal. The Demonic Tripod was still just the Demonic Tripod. What he had seen was like a hallucination—nonexistent. But now he understood that no matter what plane someone was in, they would be unable to take the Demonic Tripod away. This demonic intent could overwhelm any strong cultivator.
"What's wrong?" Ye Wuchen asked. Liu Feiyang and Liu Chenyu looked at Ye Futian too. The grunt had been soft but they still heard it.
"This Demonic Tripod truly is a precious and powerful treasure," Ye Futian said. He wanted to try himself but just then, another person walked out of the crowd. He moved towards the tripod, attracting shocked cries.
He was a monk. He wore clothes of plain cloth and cloth shoes, seemingly poor. However, his temperament was extraordinary. Looking at him made one feel at peace as if he was from another world.
This monk was from the Qianqiu Temple. He had a string of Buddhist beads around his neck and in his hands. He chanted the name of the Buddha as well.
Everyone already knew his identity. He was the Arhat of the Qianqiu Temple.
In the Eastern Barren Territory, extraordinary figures in the younger generation had titles. Kingdoms had the Crown Prince and Princes. The Witch Clan had the Warlock and the Fuyun Sword Clan had the Swordmaster. These were all symbols of status. The Qianqiu Temple, then, had the Arhat.
The title of Arhat had a mysterious history too. It was especially scary.
Whether you were from the College or Donghua Clan, anyone who saw the Arhat would be unable to say they were better than him. Even the Cottage was the same. The Arhat was mysterious and his power was undeniable. Now, the Arhat walked from the Qianqiu Temple group towards the Demonic Tripod.
"Arhat, you wish to lift the tripod too?" someone walked to the Arhat and asked. This man wore an elegant robe and spoke politely. Everyone had to respect the Qianqiu Temple's Arhat. The speaker was a youth from the Yin Family. This region belonged to them.
The Arhat nodded lightly.
"The tripod has an evil reputation. Arhat, please be careful," the youth said before retreating.
The Arhat walked to the tripod. Unlike the others, he didn't go under it. Instead, he stood before it. His eyes turned gold and a vertical light flashed between his eyebrows. It was like the eye of the Buddha. At that moment, gold light encased the Demonic Tripod.
He chanted in Sanskrit, and the syllables spiraled up, floating to the Demonic Tripod. They transformed into various words that formed the Buddhist symbol of spirituality, Buddhist swastika. The words converged and enveloped the Demonic Tripod.
He continued speaking. Gradually, more and more Buddhist swastikas appeared, practically covering the entire tripod. They released horrible power from above the tripod that swept through. A windstorm of the Buddha and demon appeared in the sky.
So powerful. Everyone's hearts trembled. This power wasn't because of how high his plane was. Instead, it was the power of Buddhist sorcery.
At this time, Sanskrit words snaked into people's ears. The entire world seemed to be resonating with him, transforming into the power of Buddha. People kept coming from the distance. They were curious after hearing that the Arhat was lifting the tripod.
Could the Arhat lift the Demonic Tripod?
Many people from top figures appeared, staring at him.
The Buddha's name resonated with the skies and land. Gold Spiritual Qi went wild. Buddhist swastika covered the entire tripod. Apparitions of Buddhas appeared around the tripod, towering over. The Buddhist swastikas flashed horribly. Then they lifted the Demonic Tripod. It rose bit by bit above the ground. The Arhat raised it with his sorcery rather than his physical power.
One inch, two inches…one foot. Soon, the Demonic Tripod had surpassed what Kua Shan had done and it was still going.
Then horrible power fell upon the Arhat. Not only his own body, the Buddha apparitions around him also suffered the power from the tripod. The tripod spun as it rose, releasing shocking light that suppressed everything.
It was now two feet in the air. Many people were impressed. As expected of the Arhat; he was so powerful. Even more terrifying, this didn't seem to be the limit. The Demonic Tripod was still rising.
Even the strong cultivators of the Yin Family were shaken. Many strong cultivators had come in the past, including those of the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan. Three feet had been the limit.
Now, the Arhat was about to go past that.
Apparently, that powerful crown prince of Qin years back had been at the pinnacle of the Noble Plane when lifting the tripod eight feet high. He had shaken the entire world and the skies changed but he still didn't give up. He called himself the descendant of the heavens. When he lifted this national treasure, many had been impressed by his will. His abilities were also extremely powerful too. It was such a pity that he was killed.
The Demonic Tripod rose three feet and the demonic images could no longer be repressed. They were about to burst free. The Arhat tried to use the Buddhist swastikas to seal the images but then, one broke. It melted into gold light and disappeared.
Sanskrit words filled the air. The tripod was still rotating and rising, however, Buddhist swastikas kept shattering. Gradually, they all disappeared. Beams of horrible light pressed down on those Buddha apparitions, killing them. At the same time, the horrible light charged towards the Arhat. He kept chanting the Buddha's name and a huge Buddhist swastika appeared behind him. It spun wildly, forming a shield.
Crack! The Buddhist swastika shattered and the Arhat was forced back. The Demonic Tripod landed heavily with a huge boom. Even the ground shook. Even so, everyone still looked to him in respect. For many of them, it was a miracle to raise the tripod more than three feet. It was practically impossible.
The youth from the Yin Family bowed. "Arhat, you opened my eyes today. I'm afraid no one will be able to break this record in the near future." Strong cultivators from the Qin Dynasty and Donghua Clan had all tried. Three feet had been the limit. It was difficult to break the record. The Arhat, though, had lifted it more than three feet.
"How high can it be lifted?" Ye Futian asked curiously. Yin Mo's gaze landed on him. Looking at Liu Feiyang, Liu Chenyu, and Yu Sheng beside him, Yin Mo had a vague guess as to who he was. If he was this close to the prince and princess of the Liu Kingdom, it must be him.
"Why are you asking?" Yin Mo asked. There was none of the respect shown to the Arhat. Ye Futian was from the Cottage but everyone knew the relationship between the Cottage and the Qin Dynasty. Since the Yin Family was under the Qin Dynasty, there was no need to be polite to Ye Futian.
"I'm just curious. How high do you have to raise it before you can take it away?" Ye Futian asked. It was a waste to leave it here.
Yin Mo was confused. No one could do it through all these years. Why did he have such a laughable idea? Even if he was from the Cottage, he had a low plane. He'd clearly overestimated himself if he spoke like that.
"I do not know. I heard that Ye Futian of the Cottage broke many records at the Ancient Barren World. Why don't you try to break through the limit and take the Demonic Tripod away?" Yin Mo said, chuckling. His tone was slightly mocking. His family's treasured tripod couldn't be compared with those relics in the Ancient Barren World.
"I can take it?" Ye Futian was surprised.
"If you can, then do it." Yin Mo reached out in a welcoming gesture. He smiled happily as if he could give the tripod away at any time. No one in all these years could do it but Ye Futian thought he could succeed in the Dharma Plane? He wanted Ye Futian to try and have a very resilient intent. That way, he would die on the spot from the tripod's backlash. The crown prince of the Qin Dynasty had been killed by it. It would be interesting if a Cottage disciple died too. Even the Cottage wouldn't be able to blame anyone.
"The Yin Family is so generous but I was just saying. I guess I can try too," Ye Futian said, pretending he couldn't tell the mockery. With that, he started walking towards the Demonic Tripod.
Countless gazes from the surroundings fell on him. Other than those in the top forces, many didn't know his status. They only knew that he was Ye Futian from the Cottage after Yin Mo said so. He had come to lift the tripod too.
Ye Futian walked under the Demonic Tripod. He didn't plan on using sorcery to lift the tripod like the Arhat. Buddhism was its own sect. It was mysterious and had endless power. He couldn't do it.
Thus, he did what most people did. Activating his techniques, his body roared like a dragon. His body was like a true dragon. At the same time, a horrible apparition was released, transforming into a Divine Ape.
"Up!" Ye Futian roared. The Divine Ape instantly released horrible power and lifted the Demonic Tripod. In a moment, terrible power fell upon his body!