The candle flame treated the Great Compassion Buddhist qi as fuel. Before long, it burned it away completely, then vanished like the moon reflected in water or flowers reflected in a mirror.
The flame represented the Heavenly Dao of Buddhism. There was no way it could be eradicated so easily.
Ren Qing could sense that the flame had likely already returned to Dipankara Buddha. As for where the latter existed, it was beyond the imagination of mortals.
What puzzled him was whether Dipankara Buddha's bizarre appearance was the result of a deepening Heavenly Dao transformation, or because he had not yet completely become a "monster" like the Three Dao Ancestors.
Ren Qing continued dismantling Sitting-Deer Arhat and stripping away the souls contained within the Buddhist qi.
The Fruit Position was like a candy ball wrapped in countless layers. If he wanted to uncover the secret at its core, he had to remove every soul one by one.
The souls were rooted within the Buddhist qi, and the relationship between the two resembled fish swimming in water.
Water could exist without fish, but fish would die if separated from water.
Ren Qing had come into contact with the Buddhist qi of Laughing Lion Arhat and Great Compassion Maitreya Bodhisattva before, so he knew that ordinary Buddhist qi contained no souls. Buddhist qi that contained souls was the most crucial part.
The Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi he was stripping this time all contained enormous numbers of souls. If the Sitting-Deer Fruit Position possessed intelligence, it would probably kill him immediately.
What Ren Qing was doing was already somewhat akin to stealing the foundation of Sitting-Deer Arhat.
He felt no concern over it. Since the Sitting-Deer Fruit Position had fallen into his hands, there was no chance it would ever see the light of day again before he squeezed every last benefit out of it.
He calmly conducted research inside the cave residence for several months. As Dreamflowers absorbed Buddhist qi, they gradually showed signs of metamorphosis. Dozens of golden beetles were scattered around the area.
After absorbing enough foreign energy, Dreamflowers would likely undergo another transformation. One of the golden beetles was already showing subtle differences.
During that period, Ren Qing tried several methods to strip away the souls, but none produced obvious results.
There were gains as well. The Sitting-Deer Fruit Position originally emitted the aura of the Heavenly Aberration realm, but now it was gradually falling toward the Yang God realm.
Of course, the essence of a Buddhist Fruit Position was the generations of cultivators it had devoured.
If Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi could find a group of mortals to worship it, it would recover very quickly. To Buddhism, several tens of thousands of souls amounted to nothing.
Ren Qing had also examined the information flow of Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi.
**Sitting-Deer Arhat**
**Age:** 7,385
**Lifespan:** None
**Technique:**
**Immovable Scripture (Ninety-Eight Buddhas)**
The Immovable Scripture was created by Sitting-Deer Arhat. Cultivation requires obtaining the recognition of Buddhist qi. After mastering it, one temporarily gains the wisdom of ten lifetimes, and Buddhist disciples may reincarnate through ten lives.
Although Sitting-Deer Arhat was 7,385 years old, that did not mean he had been in such a bizarre state for thousands of years. It was very likely that some event had triggered the dramatic transformation of Buddhism.
The more Ren Qing came into contact with immortals and Buddhas, the more he felt the undercurrents surging beneath this world.
Becoming an immortal or becoming a Buddha might be a trap, but if one wanted the right to control one's own fate, this path truly had to be walked.
Holding a strand of Buddhist qi in his hand, Ren Qing slowly eroded it with Yin qi, causing the souls mixed within to endure indescribable agony.
The souls twisted into grotesque shapes, and faint miserable screams could be heard.
Ren Qing eventually stopped channeling Yin qi and frowned as he examined the Buddhist qi.
If he chose to wear away the Buddhist qi with Yin qi, even if he managed to separate the souls, their complete three souls and seven spirits would probably be reduced to mush.
Ren Qing sighed and brought the Buddhist qi into the Underworld of Stomach World.
The Buddhist qi floated above the Yellow Springs. Dense death qi wrapped around it, immediately producing crackling sounds and tremendous commotion.
The zombie cultivators had long grown accustomed to it. Similar incidents had happened before. Realizing it was Ren Qing's doing, they did not dare interfere.
Death qi could protect souls. The effect was indeed somewhat better than Yin qi.
As the death qi wore away the Buddhist qi, the souls immediately escaped and eagerly plunged into the Yellow Springs, where they were gradually nourished and strengthened.
Ren Qing felt somewhat helpless, because once souls entered the Yellow Springs, retrieving them would damage them. They were simply too fragile.
Moreover, death qi was extremely limited. It would take an unknown number of years to strip away all the souls.
Ren Qing had enough time, but if Song Zongwu was delayed any longer, he might lose his intelligence.
How exactly was he supposed to find Song Zongwu among tens of thousands of souls...
Wait. Nameless Ascetic's plan should have been discussed with Song Zongwu beforehand. He would certainly have anticipated such difficulties.
As a disciple of Ratnasambhava Buddha, Nameless Ascetic could not possibly have had no means of dealing with Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi.
After thinking for a moment, Ren Qing took the risk of bringing out Song Zongwu's body. He then slowly moved the wooden box toward the head that housed the Heavenly Soul, while Yin qi stood ready nearby to cut off any encroachment from the Buddhist qi.
The Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi reacted exactly as expected.
"To you, the venerable elders and acharyas, who act on behalf of the Buddha in this world, foremost among the great disciples..."
Chanting in praise of Sitting-Deer Arhat emerged from within the wooden box, as if a miniature world existed inside, filled with monks seated in discussion and cultivation.
The murmuring abruptly ceased, and the candle flame suddenly burned far more fiercely.
Even the wooden box caught fire and was reduced to ashes in the blink of an eye. The intense heat melted the stone walls, turning them into slowly flowing magma-like liquid.
Protected by the Human Skin Book's abilities and tempered by decades of cultivation, Ren Qing's resistance to heat far surpassed others at the same realm.
Yet he still felt piercing pain in his eyes. The scorching heat spread from flesh and blood into his internal organs, while his spine resembled the wick at the center of a candle.
As the flame burned brighter and brighter, every crackling sound he heard and every pungent scent of burning he smelled affected both body and soul.
Ren Qing immediately realized that Buddhism's Heavenly Dao transformation was linked to the five senses. It could neither truly be seen nor heard. Any interaction with the candle flame would deepen the Heavenly Dao transformation.
The Heavenly Dao Crack on the tortoise shell silently expanded slightly.
Ren Qing stepped back several paces. The current degree of Heavenly Dao transformation was still within acceptable limits, equivalent to losing several decades or a century of lifespan.
"Song Zongwu!!!"
A familiar voice shouted from within the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi, as though questioning itself and simultaneously reminding Ren Qing beside it.
Ren Qing immediately pressed a finger against the center of Song Zongwu's brow and drew the Heavenly Soul into the outside world. A soul with glaring eyes appeared within the Buddhist qi.
Several dozen beetle-form Dreamflowers increased their absorption speed. The steadily weakening Buddhist qi could no longer resist the power of Zhili Technique.
The Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi consequently fell to the Yang God realm. Dreamflowers absorbed it with increasing speed, fearing that the Fruit Position might interfere with Song Zongwu.
Song Zongwu's soul struggled desperately. The candle flame actually gathered into his soul, greatly reducing the Heavenly Dao transformation within the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi.
Ren Qing watched as Song Zongwu voluntarily accepted the Heavenly Dao transformation, yet he did not intervene.
Several golden beetles, having become full, began transforming. Their size increased noticeably, and mysterious golden patterns spread across their surfaces.
The Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi grew increasingly thin. However, once it reached the Yin Difference realm, further separation became impossible, indicating that the souls of generations of Buddhas were deeply rooted within it.
After nearly half a month, Song Zongwu's soul finally detached from the Buddhist qi.
The Heavenly Dao-transformed soul entered the Mud Pellet Palace of his body. The moment his soul became complete, his flesh and bones took on the texture of melted wax.
Just as Ren Qing was about to examine Song Zongwu's condition, the latter spoke in a deep voice.
"Ren Qing, don't touch me. Only by letting karmic fire burn my body can I avoid being noticed by Buddhism."
Buddhism apparently referred to Heavenly Dao transformation as karmic fire burning the body. In essence, they were the same thing, both being the process of body and soul drawing closer to the Heavenly Dao.
The Three Dao Ancestors and Dipankara Buddha all possessed different appearances, and the forms of their Heavenly Dao transformations differed as well.
Seeing this, Ren Qing brought Song Zongwu into Stomach World and placed him beside the Yellow Springs in the Underworld, using death qi to suppress the Heavenly Dao transformation.
Song Zongwu's condition was relatively stable. Most of the karmic fire had already dissipated. The amount he absorbed should not be enough to make him lose control completely.
The Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi no longer posed a threat. What he feared was definitely other Buddhist entities, perhaps even Ratnasambhava Buddha himself.
Ren Qing narrowed his eyes. Could it be that Nameless Ascetic had already escaped from Sitting-Deer Arhat back then, only to be immediately targeted by Ratnasambhava Buddha?
There was definitely some connection between the various Fruit Positions...
After the Heavenly Dao transformation disappeared, the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi lost its restraints and became a colorless, formless gaseous mass, attempting to escape the cave residence.
Naturally, Ren Qing had no intention of letting the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi go. Besides, a Yin Difference realm entity was easy enough to suppress.
He transferred the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi into the Longevity Forbidden Zone, then released all restrictions on it and used the Disaster-Dispelling Method to erase his own presence.
Even the intelligence of Great Compassion Buddhist qi only considered the benefits and drawbacks of things. Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi, which was merely at the Yin Difference realm, was even simpler.
After confirming it could not escape the Longevity Forbidden Zone, Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi immediately headed toward the Little Thunderclap Temple.
Inside the temple, the fake Tathagata was preaching twisted distortions of Buddhist doctrine. The monks of Lingshan Temple sat in the corners, piously contemplating the meaning of the scriptures.
The Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi circled the temple once before entering Liaoshan's body.
Liaoshan only felt dense Buddhist qi emerge within his dantian. His flesh and bones turned bronze-colored, while dozens of Buddha images appeared across his back.
From this moment onward, even if Liaoshan stopped cultivating, his Buddhist qi would continue increasing until, after reaching perfection, he would be devoured by the Fruit Position.
Of course, the process might take several hundred years, and the slightest mistake could cause him to perish ahead of time.
The fake Tathagata spoke.
"Liaoshan, you have become a Buddha..."
Liaoshan nodded without joy or sorrow. The prayer cushion beneath him transformed under Ren Qing's control into a five-colored lotus Throne of Skulls and rose to the same level as the Bodhisattvas.
The Sitting-Deer Fruit Position wanted to use Liaoshan's body to recover its cultivation, but the fake Tathagata would continuously steal Buddhist qi, rendering the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi's efforts meaningless.
As long as the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi could not return to the Heavenly Aberration realm, it posed no threat whatsoever.
Even if Liaoshan died, there were still plenty of Buddhist disciples within the Little Thunderclap Temple. He could harvest them indefinitely, and the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi had no way to resist.
Ren Qing planned to focus all his efforts on separating the tens of thousands of souls while researching Sitting-Deer Arhat along the way. It would likely take quite a long time.
What tempted him most was the Buddhist Fruit Position's ability to transfer Heavenly Dao transformation.
If Buddhist Fruit Positions were easier to control, Ren Qing would not mind becoming an Arhat or Bodhisattva himself. He could simply leave the Heavenly Dao transformation for Dipankara Buddha to handle.
Ren Qing swallowed hard. He seemed to see many opportunities hidden within the Buddhist Fruit Position.
If there were a way to solve the problem of True Immortals undergoing Heavenly Dao transformation, this world would not be so chaotic. Of course, Buddhism only treated the symptoms rather than the cause.
The karmic fire accumulated on Dipankara Buddha's body would eventually erupt like a volcano.
Ren Qing suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind. He had not even attained immortality yet. Thinking about the Heavenly Dao of immortals and Buddhas was indeed premature.
While squeezing every benefit from the Sitting-Deer Buddhist qi, he exiled the souls contained within the Buddhist qi into the Yellow Springs.