Emperor’s Domination

The Buddhist lights became denser as he delved deeper into this land. After reaching a particular threshold, the light became a layer on the ground.

It was as if a treasure bottle had broken and the Buddhist serum inside had spilled out. This golden serum looked quite magical.

Moreover, the summoning force became stronger. The supreme Buddha was virtually standing in front of him now for the enlightenment process. Others would suddenly want to join Buddhism.

Fewer bodies were seen in this area. Judging by their appearance and clothes, these beings were far more powerful than the ones in the outer area.

Monks' corpses could be seen now. They had a reverent expression and wore an old-styled robe. It was abundantly clear that they were from an older age. The ravage of time didn't destroy their body.

They certainly didn't belong to this epoch. Their hands were still clasped together to form a mudra. It seemed that during their last moment, they continued to chant Buddhist mantras in an attempt to prove their belief to the heaven.

There was a clear difference between these monks and the corpses outside given the various clues. The latter were outsiders, forced to come in and die by the summoning force.

As for the monks, they were natives that have reached the height of Buddhism. They gave everything - their powerful Buddhist affinity and ultimate faith for this land.

"Buddhist Funeral Plateau." Li Qiye sighed while looking at the monk: "One of the twelve burial grounds, gone."

Yes, it turned out that the so-called abandoned land was the Buddhist Funeral Plateau from the previous epoch.

Though it was considered a burial ground, it was still a place of worship - a holy land in the mind of many.

Alas, something happened during the great disaster unbeknown to outsiders. The place suffered destruction and numerous wise monks died.

Remember, this area has survived an entire epoch and gathered the power of faith from trillions of living beings. This resulted in immense Buddhist affinity seeping into each inch of the land and every blade of grass.

This affinity remained till the present day. Anyone who came here would be affected by this summoning call. The longer the stay, the stronger the calling.

Eventually, they became prey to the affinity and were forced to stay here till death. They turned into part of the land, another brick for its foundation.

This didn't apply to Li Qiye who still had a natural expression. During his previous visit to this place, even Di Shi couldn't affect his dao heart, let alone this remnant affinity.

He started seeing cracks and holes. Something seemed to have torn the ground apart - truly a shocking scene.

He looked up and noticed that even the sky vault was torn apart with numerous jaw-like black holes meant for devouring.

Further up were stars that have been dragged down or were completely broken. One was split in two, another tough one had a hole from one side to the other. Another star made of ice became reduced to continental masses of glaciers…

The sun itself seemed tilted and its flames ravaged this area, heralding an apocalypse.

Old shrines and temples were still floating in the air despite being damaged beyond repair. Nonetheless, they still exuded Buddhist affinity. Some had wise monks sitting in the meditative pose. Of course, they were already dead.

The destruction took one back to the monstrous event of the great disaster. All living beings wailed in lamentation.

If someone from the Nine Worlds Epoch were to see this, they would be left aghast. Buddhist Funeral Plateau, one of the twelve, was definitely among the strongest domains. Even an Immortal Emperor couldn't touch it.

Alas, the entire place was finished now. Its old prosperity was no more. The great Buddhist Lords and their followers have disappeared.

No one could come up with a good explanation for this result.

"Di Shi… what happened?" Li Qiye murmured.

Few had a better grasp on the true might of Buddhist Funeral Plateau than him. It has existed for countless years, always refining Buddhist power and faith. Moreover, it had someone like Di Shi as well. In addition, one of the nine Heavenly Treasures was here - Myriad Thoughts Pot.

Li Qiye marched silently onward and saw untold destruction, enough to frighten the most courageous men.

He didn't support Di Shi's actions back in the previous epoch. He believed that this path wasn't possible but it could still be considered a worthwhile experiment.

Numerous supreme overlords have tried things like this in the past. No one could be sure of the result.

However, they haven't even embarked on the journey and already faced destruction. Thousands of possibilities popped up in Li Qiye's mind but he didn't come to a conclusion.

He eventually reached the deepest area of this forsaken place - the core of the plateau. It contained the power of faith and Buddhist affinity. These two things manifested into a supreme ocean of Buddhism.

The ocean had shattered. Its light leaked onto the fragmented ground like a golden serum. After more time, perhaps golden lotus flowers could bloom from the serum. This place would be considered a holy ground once more.

Above was a large black hole with cracks emanating from it. The Buddhist serum was oozing through all of these cracks.

Li Qiye carefully observed the scene. It could have been a shocking battle or a plundering contest. Something tore apart the sky and dragged up everything.

It must have been a destructive process. Other cultivators were nothing more than ants.

He squatted down and touched the soil, trying to sense this broken land for a full scout.

"Myriad Thoughts Pot…" He frowned because this treasure wasn't here any longer.

The plateau should have been untouchable with this pot but they have lost.