Mount Mile, one of the three sacred lands of the Bliss Continent.
To say there were three sacred lands was to imply a ranking.
The beings of the Bliss Continent all knew that Mount Dongxu ranked last among the three. Mount Mile, due to its Buddhist temple, was ranked second.
As for Mount Ling, ranked first, it was said that a single day of cultivation there was equivalent to a month of cultivation in the outside world. Moreover, the spiritual energy within Mount Ling was extremely pure, and even without consciously cultivating, one's strength could be enhanced.
However, ordinary people naturally could not enter Mount Ling. The beings of the Bliss Continent were well aware that Mount Ling was the abode of Shakyamuni, the Buddha. Apart from him, only powerful Buddhist cultivators who had attained the status of a Buddha Lord were qualified to cultivate on Mount Ling.
The fact that the finals of the selection competition for Buddha sons were moved to Mount Mile demonstrated the importance of this competition.
On this day, a resonant bell chime suddenly rang out on Mount Mile, where Buddhist chants usually lingered. After exactly nine chimes, Mount Mile, previously obscured by clouds and mist, seemed to shed its veil and became clearly visible to all.
"This is Mount Mile?"
Li Xuan's eyes were filled with profound shock as he gazed at the appearing mountain. Even Jiang Shang, at this moment, held a trace of reverence in his gaze.
After half a day's journey, Li Xuan and his companions finally arrived at the edge of Mount Mile. Following an extremely rigorous review and inspection, they were permitted to enter the barrier of Mount Mile. This process consumed time until the fifth day.
A moment later, the shock in Li Xuan's eyes gradually subsided, and his heart was filled with emotion.
Although Mount Mile before them was not exceptionally vast, the unique sense of pressure it exuded was extremely palpable. Furthermore, only the portion from the midpoint upwards of the entire mountain was visible. Below the foot of the mountain, spiritual energy manifested as soaring dragons, almost impossible to discern with the naked eye.
Beyond this, Li Xuan could feel that within Mount Mile, there seemed to be dormant wills. Should these wills awaken, they would likely stir up immense chaos.
Mount Mile continuously emitted an extremely pure aura, imbuing the air with a warmth. Moreover, looking at Mount Mile, there seemed to be no sign of depletion.
Li Xuan simply took a deep breath, and a stream of pure spiritual energy was drawn into his body. In an instant, it transformed into potent spiritual power and merged into his physique.
"As expected of one of the three sacred lands. An ordinary person staying here for a day might even prolong their life," Li Xuan said with sincere admiration, feeling the change within him.
"Ordinary people, how would they ever have the opportunity to come here? Young friend Li, you may not know, but even Mount Dongxu floats in mid-air. For common folk, let alone entering these three sacred lands, they would struggle to even reach the outskirts in their entire lives," Jiang Shang said with a wry smile, shaking his head.
Li Xuan was momentarily speechless. The chasm between spiritual cultivators and ordinary mortals had existed since ancient times.
If the treatment of mortals and spiritual cultivators were the same, there would be no distinction between them. And considering that even ordinary spiritual cultivators found it difficult to enter the three sacred lands, one could imagine the preciousness of these places.
"Currently, the spiritual cultivators who can come here are, apart from the leaders of our thirty-six factions, you contestants. I wonder what changes the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord has made to the rules of the finals. Judging by the looks of it, everyone present seems unaware," Jiang Shang said, then shifted his gaze around.
Li Xuan followed Jiang Shang's gaze and looked around. On everyone's faces, there was a trace of excitement, more or less. However, amidst this excitement, the look of bewilderment was also very evident. Clearly, they did not understand why the finals had been moved to Mount Mile.
*Dong.*
As another resonant bell chime sounded, the figure of the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord suddenly appeared.
"Many of you may have questions as to why we have suddenly moved from Mount Dongxu to Mount Mile. This year's selection competition for Buddha sons has, in my observation, produced far more prodigies than previous years."
"To select the most suitable Buddha son, after deliberation with me and other Buddha Lords such as Guanyin Buddha Lord, we have specially moved it here. As you all know, Mount Mile is renowned for its Buddhist temple. And this finals is indeed related to this temple."
The Golden Wheel Buddha Lord finished speaking and slowly surveyed his surroundings. Seeing the expectant looks on everyone's faces, he continued, "The content of this finals will be: The Trial of Comprehension!"
"The Trial of Comprehension?"
"Does this mean the content of the finals will be judged based on our comprehension for promotion?"
"Could this Trial of Comprehension be conducted within the Buddhist temple? If so, it would be a great blessing for us."
"..."
As soon as the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord's words fell, the many contestants standing around them began to discuss animatedly. For a time, their faces were filled with great interest, clearly aware of the preciousness of Mount Mile's Buddhist temple.
"It seems you have all guessed the general idea. Indeed, this finals will determine the top one thousand Buddha sons. All contestants who have passed the preliminaries will now enter the Buddhist temple to comprehend the Buddha."
"Only those who comprehend a Buddha image will be considered to have met the basic requirement of comprehension. Anyone who fails to comprehend a Buddha image within a month will be forcibly teleported out and eliminated from the competition."
The Golden Wheel Buddha Lord paused for a moment after speaking, then continued, "Historically, the top thousand Buddha sons in each generation have their own dharma body Buddha images. The higher the ranking, the more solidified their personal Buddha images become. Therefore, to enter the top thousand, simply comprehending a Buddha image is not enough."
"As for how to strengthen the solidification of your own Buddha images, that will depend on each of your comprehensions."
As the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord's voice faded, a figure emerged from one of the eleven golden light screens behind him.
Observing her appearance, it was a woman.
Li Xuan recognized her at a glance as Guanyin Buddha Lord, the only female among the twelve supreme powerhouses.
However, Li Xuan's eyes held a trace of surprise. Guanyin Buddha Lord was dressed in a simple, plain robe. Perhaps on the street, it would be difficult to identify her as a being of terrifying power.
Guanyin Buddha Lord walked up to the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord. After they exchanged glances, they nodded in unison. Then, they simultaneously formed hand seals, and two colossal spiritual energy fluctuations shot straight into the sky.
In an instant, the scenery around Mount Mile rapidly shifted, and a light curtain hundreds of feet tall appeared before them.
Following this, two gates within the light curtain, appearing as substantial as reality, slowly opened.
"The Buddhist temple is now open. Contestants, the competition begins!"
As the two gates fully opened, the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord clasped his hands in greeting to Guanyin, then stood up and shouted.
*Whoosh!*
As the Golden Wheel Buddha Lord's words fell, the assembled crowd, who had been poised for action, immediately shot towards the opened gates.
"Fellow Daoist Shuqian, shall we go as well?" Li Xuan said, turning to He Shuqian beside him as he watched everyone enter the gates.
"Please, Fellow Daoist Li," He Shuqian replied with a hasty bow.
Li Xuan nodded. With a movement, he and He Shuqian, both holding the contestant tokens provided by the Buddha son selection competition, vanished through the gates.
A moment later, after all the contestants had entered the gates, the two gates slammed shut.
On the light curtain above the gates, the name of each contestant appeared in an instant.
In addition to this, behind each name was a figure shaped like a walking person. At a glance, everyone's was the same. Clearly, this figure-shaped pattern was a symbol to judge the strength of each person's comprehended Buddha image.
"Comprehending Buddha images will take quite some time. Within a month, I wonder how young friend Li and young friend Shuqian will perform," Jiang Shang said, looking at the light curtain with a hint of nervousness in his expression. However, this trace of nervousness soon subsided, and Jiang Shang smiled slightly.
"Young friend Shumíng, do not waste this month's time," Jiang Shang said, then looked at He Shumíng.
He Shumíng nodded. With a thought, he sat down on the spot, along with the accompanying individuals from the various factions.