Chapter 414: Xu Lei's Nirvana

Chapter 414: Chapter 168: Xu Lei’s Nirvana

With that, she flicked her wrist and threw out a Necklace Magical Artifact. The magical artifact grew larger in mid-air, swooping down to envelop Bai Ling.

Bai Ling retreated swiftly, trying to dodge it, but found she couldn’t escape.

She was completely unable to resist and was ensnared instantly.

The Necklace Magical Artifact fastened directly around Bai Ling’s neck.

Bai Ling wanted to say something more, but her mouth clamped shut on its own, and her palms pressed together.

“Come to my side.”

Bodhisattva Guan Yun then said, raising a hand, “Rest assured, I will not harm you.”

Bai Ling immediately flew up respectfully. With her palms pressed together and her gaze lowered in submission, she stood obediently by Bodhisattva Guan Yun’s side.

“Return to the Celestial Palace at once. After this, there will be no more mischief.”

Then, Bodhisattva Guan Yun turned to the Fat Buddha. “You expended considerable power by taking action this time. I do not wish for such an event to occur again!”

The Fat Buddha hurriedly and respectfully agreed.

After that, the three of them flew high into the sky, their figures vanishing from sight.

All that remained was Xu Lei, safe within the Ten Thousand Lives Book, the surrounding shattered islands, the surging, churning seawater, and the thick banks of mist hanging over it all.

‘Just how strong is Bodhisattva Guan Yun?’

Xu Lei’s pupils contracted. ‘Bai Ling is a Ninth Realm powerhouse. She hasn’t reached Perfection yet, but she’s just a step away from the Perfection required for Crossing Tribulation and Ascending. And yet, she couldn’t resist in the slightest and was collared just like that! I hope she really won’t harm Ling’er!’

With these thoughts, Xu Lei waited in silence for a while. Only when he was sure that Bodhisattva Guan Yun and the Fat Buddha were not returning did he activate the Ten Thousand Lives Book to begin his resurrection.

HUMMM.

The Ten Thousand Lives Book began to glow, emitting a mysterious energy.

It gathered the scattered fragments of Xu Lei’s body that had fallen into the sea—those that hadn’t been devoured—and re-formed them into a whole, unblemished body, instantly healing all his injuries!

An incredibly powerful ability!

He rematerialized in a clear spot on what was left of the island.

Of course, his age remained the same as before; he still looked like a mortal man in his thirties. He hadn’t reverted to a younger age, as resurrection couldn’t turn back the clock.

Without lingering, Xu Lei used his Magical Power to walk on water, sprinting across the surface of the sea. Before long, he arrived back at the location of the boat he had rented.

He leaped back onto the deck.

The crew members on the boat all turned to look at Xu Lei, their faces filled with awe and admiration.

“Sir, you’ve returned?”

The old captain approached and asked, “What was that huge noise earlier? Did something happen? And the young lady? Why have you returned alone?”

“Let’s head back.”

Xu Lei didn’t want to say more, simply stating, “Set sail. Return to shore.”

Hearing this, the crew members understood that she wasn’t coming back.

Although they thought it was a pity for such a beautiful woman to be gone just like that, they didn’t dare say anything more to Xu Lei.

They quickly set sail and returned to the coast.

Once ashore, Xu Lei parted ways with the crew.

He went to the location where he had hidden his treasures and retrieved all of his Magical Artifacts and other belongings.

This time, he encountered no trouble and successfully retrieved all his treasures.

This included several Inner Cores he had not yet finished refining.

‘I’m alone again,’ Xu Lei sighed to himself.

In this life, Qing Lian and Bai Ling had been different. With their extraordinary talent, they had been able to walk the path of cultivation alongside him, unlike the other women he had known in past lives, who had simply grown old and died before his eyes.

But now, both were gone. Qing Lian had undergone Nirvana Ascension, and Bai Ling had been taken by Bodhisattva Guan Yun as a Child Girl.

‘I’m only at Tier Two of the True Bodhisattva Realm. I still have to advance another seven Small Realms before I can attempt Nirvana Ascension!’

Xu Lei muttered to himself, ‘That could take fifty or sixty years. How am I supposed to spend that time? And there’s another problem: if I attempt Nirvana Ascension, that Fat Buddha has already seen my face!

He clearly killed me, so if I succeed in ascending, will he see me? How would I handle that? Should I just wait for the next life to ascend? But if I don’t try in this lifetime, I’ll be wasting an opportunity. Besides, Ascension isn’t always successful.

And I still don’t know how Bai Ling is doing as Bodhisattva Guan Yun’s Child Girl. Regardless, I must cultivate with all my might and ascend as soon as possible. I’ll just find a place to become a Hidden Cultivator and focus on nothing but my cultivation until I reach the Ninth Realm.’

Having made up his mind, Xu Lei acted on it.

After all, Bai Ling was in this situation because of him. If it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t have been attacked by the Fat Buddha, much less taken away by Bodhisattva Guan Yun to be a Child Girl.

Furthermore, Xu Lei had lived for several lifetimes, and as he thought back, he realized he’d never spent a long period of time in focused, secluded cultivation. He had always been surrounded by the company of charming women.

So, Xu Lei wanted to give it a try. What would his state of mind and progress be like if he cultivated with a pure heart and few desires, without a woman by his side, just like many other Cultivators?

Xu Lei sold the house he had been living in and dismissed his hired servants, making sure to give them ample compensation, of course.

Then, Xu Lei returned to his cave in the Great Xing Mountain Range, re-established the Spirit Gathering Array, and began to cultivate alone.

He even tilled a small plot on the mountainside to grow his own fruits and vegetables, truly beginning the carefree, reclusive life of a hermit cultivator.

At first, Xu Lei was indeed a little unaccustomed to having no women around.

But after a few days, he found he had grown used to it.

He found it quite peaceful and pleasant.

Moreover, when he cultivated, his state of mind seemed calmer, and his progress was quite good.

Day after day, year after year.

Time flowed like a river, passing in the blink of an eye.

「More than sixty years passed in the blink of an eye.」

To Xu Lei’s surprise, in all his years of focused cultivation here, he had truly encountered no special events, nor had anyone come looking for trouble. It was as if he had become completely disconnected from the world.

He had truly managed to sever his ties with the mortal world, remaining untouched by karma.

Sixty-odd years had passed in the simple, uneventful daily routine of a hermit cultivator. Looking back now, it all felt a bit surreal to Xu Lei.

On this day, Xu Lei sat cross-legged on the edge of a cliff. With every breath, the Qi surging from his body was immense.

‘The Ninth Realm… finally, Perfection.’

Then, Xu Lei retracted his Magical Power, opened his eyes, and stood up with a smile.

That’s right. In over sixty years of focused cultivation, Xu Lei had broken through seven Small Realms in succession. These were the seven Small Realms of the Ninth Realm, each one harder to cultivate than those of any previous Realm. But in the face of so many years, under the great power of time, all difficulties had been overcome, dissolved into nothing.

‘I’ve finally reached the Realm of Perfection. I can undergo Nirvana Ascension!’

Following this, Xu Lei did not leave the Great Xing Mountain Range. He decided to use it as his Tribulation Crossing Land.

Unlike others who had to seek out a special location, he had lived here for over sixty years without being disturbed.

So, he figured, why bother with the extra hassle?

He would just undergo his Nirvana Tribulation right here.

And so, on this day, Xu Lei ascended to the summit of the very mountain he had once climbed with Qi Yang and Miao Ying.

‘I wonder how Hui Ming, Xin’er, Qing Lian, and Ling’er are doing up there?’

Xu Lei sat cross-legged on the summit. ‘And I wonder how that Fat Buddha is doing. That old bastard cost me one of my lives. I’ll never forgive him for that.’

With these thoughts, Xu Lei closed his eyes.

He directly activated his Magical Power to trigger the Tribulation of Nirvana. Before long, some presence high in the heavens sensed him. Brilliant lights appeared in the sky, and then, just as they had during Hui Ming’s and Qing Lian’s Nirvana, rays of multi-colored light shone down upon him.

WHOOM.

Eerie flames erupted around Xu Lei, completely engulfing him.

Hot. Incomparably hot!

These were no ordinary flames!

“AHH!”

Xu Lei’s face contorted in a pained grimace, for he could feel his entire body being scorched from head to toe!