Chapter 156 Great Retribution Temple

Ji Xiang had wondered where this audacious prince would reside, perhaps even within the Forbidden City of Yingtian Prefecture, to flaunt his status. If the Wanli Emperor in the north sought to be the sun of the realm, then he would become its moon.

Sun and moon, both represent brightness.

However, it seemed the Prince of Lu did not possess such brazenness. Or perhaps, as a prince seeking to divide the empire, he needed to follow certain procedures, a sense of ceremony.

"I thought the prince would be in the Southern Forbidden City."

Crown Prince Lie Jie glanced towards the Southern Forbidden City. "That city...it makes no difference whether the prince is there or not."

"Not entering the city is merely because he has not yet fully ascended to immortality."

"Within Yingtian Prefecture, the divine seat above the Southern Forbidden City prohibits the Dragon Qi of feudal princes from entering. Once sensed, it will be expelled. Of course, the prince possesses more than just the Dragon Qi of a feudal prince. Using the collective wishes of the people can obscure that divine seat."

"So, entering is still possible, but deceiving a divine seat without self-awareness is simple. However, sitting upon the Golden Throne under the watchful eyes of the many officials of the Six Ministries of Yingtian is temporarily impossible."

"This impossibility refers to a lack of legitimacy."

Ji Xiang chuckled.

They were already rebelling; why care about legitimacy?

Crown Prince Lie Jie clearly understood Ji Xiang's thoughts and smiled as well. "This legitimacy isn't about the legitimacy of dividing the empire, but rather that even with the influence of the people's wishes, the masses and the officials still know that there is only one emperor."

"A feudal prince appearing in Yingtian can be rationalized, but if a feudal prince becomes emperor in Yingtian, it is neither rational nor legal."

"Even if people are influenced by the power of wishes, they will still recognize that having two emperors is an act of rebellion. So, entering the Southern Forbidden City too early would expose him prematurely, an unexpected event the prince wishes to avoid before the Ascension Assembly."

"But after becoming an immortal, the control over the power of wishes can be deepened. Then, things will be different. At that time, sitting upon the empty Dragon Throne in Yingtian will not seem problematic to anyone."

Ji Xiang gave an "oh" sound. "I see."

The Qinhuai River was brightly lit.

But the road ahead of Crown Prince Lie Jie seemed to blur.

"The road is blurring. I have seen similar tricks before."

Ji Xiang's eyes narrowed slightly.

When the Fire Lord entered the Forbidden City, it was like this, one step like a hundred or a thousand, a special method of travel, combining illusion and deception.

"This is a Weitu, a path of fear, a method of travel used by the gods. Weitu refers to a road of hardship and danger, where mortals dare not tread. Hence, only gods can learn it, signifying that life and death are only a moment apart, to describe the speed of this method."

"The road opened using this technique can greatly shorten the return time."

"But alas, Weitu is a fixed route. Once constructed, it cannot be changed at will. While there is a way to enter this road at any time, it cannot change the location of the road. To go to a new place, you must construct a new Weitu. Therefore, this technique can only be used to return, not to advance."

The blurred road was surrounded by an illusion formed of incense, with various aspects of the mortal world floating within it like bubbles. All that was seen were distorted external scenes. After entering the Weitu, mortals could no longer see anyone else. In the eyes of onlookers, these people seemed to vanish into thin air....

"Thus, mortals fear this change, and leave this place. This is also the reason for the name Weitu."

Soon, Ji Xiang led the other three out of the Weitu. Crown Prince Lie Jie guided them, and the place they appeared was a magnificent temple, but the name of the temple gave one pause.

Da Bao Ying Temple (Great Retribution Temple).

"Are we in the realm of the earth?"

Ji Xiang raised an eyebrow. Crown Prince Lie Jie was about to answer when Shen Chong, one of the three behind Ji Xiang, spoke up, "This Great Retribution Temple is the largest Buddhist temple in Yingtian Prefecture."

"Who is the Great Buddha enshrined here?"

"The Six Paths Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and the Achalanatha Vidyaraja (Fudo Myoo)."

Shen Chong looked at the plaque of the Great Retribution Temple. "Especially this Vidyaraja, said to be the wrathful transformation of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva."

Crown Prince Lie Jie smiled. "Correct. Lord Xuezheng is right. During the day, the Six Paths Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is enshrined, the six transformations of Ksitigarbha, which are Tantra, Precious Pearl, Earth Holder, Precious Seal, Sunlight, and Remover of Obstacles. At night, the Achalanatha Vidyaraja must be enshrined. However, regardless of which one, they are all transformations of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, representing Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's good intentions, and....retribution."

As Crown Prince Lie Jie spoke, he led everyone inside. The temple gate slowly opened, revealing incense-filled courtyards. In the Great Retribution Temple, in front of the main hall, the second plaque, right before the main hall, bore four incomparably black characters: "Five Turbid Ages."

The characters were written with ink, so of course they were black, but Ji Xiang discovered that this black substance was not ink.

It was dried blood.

There were no monks in the temple. The monks had already rested after nightfall. The aura of Buddhism was very strong in all directions, and countless Buddhist sounds echoed in chants, filling every corner of this place.

Just entering here could calm the mind and dispel all anger, to the point that even the Jade Purity demonic energy within Ji Xiang himself was somewhat affected.

This place was like a solemn Pure Land, a Buddhist holy site.

In the main hall, statues of the Six Paths Ksitigarbha were arranged on both sides, with a huge statue of the Vidyaraja in the middle. The person waiting here was not the Prince of Lu.

"Lord Yao, I have brought the Upper Immortal."

"Ah, good."

Mr. Yao, who had been waiting in the main hall, looked at Ji Xiang and the others. He was covered in copper coins, wearing festive golden-red clothes. Although his appearance was average, his eyes were as bright as torches, and an aura of wealth shot straight into the sky from his head, appearing even more dazzling in this Buddhist holy land.

"To have the Upper Immortal grace us with their presence, the Great Retribution Temple is honored."

"It's just that the prince has some matters to attend to and cannot leave for the time being, so he has sent me to discuss the matter of cooperation with you."

"My surname is Yao, as for my name, it is not worth mentioning. The divine seat I hold, as you can see, is the Lishi Immortal Official, a member of the God of Wealth lineage."

Mr. Yao gave a simple self-introduction.

"The Lishi Immortal Official is the North Road God of Wealth among the Five Gods of Wealth. No wonder this Great Retribution Temple can become the largest temple in Yingtian; it turns out there is a god of wealth attracting treasures."

Ji Xiang and the others entered the hall and got straight to the point. "Let me be blunt."

"If you want to cooperate with me, you must have sincere intentions and not just make empty promises. Otherwise, I will not agree."

"Also, you must not cause any more trouble for the people around me."

Mr. Yao smiled. "That is only natural. I am the Lishi Immortal Official, specializing in buying and selling. If I want to find companions, I must first treat them with sincerity."

"The Rihua (Solar Essence) is already prepared and is right here. Please inspect it, Upper Immortal!"

Mr. Yao took out a small bronze box containing a crystal bottle, crystal clear, with a thick and vast solar energy rolling inside, condensed into a liquid form, looking to be only about ten drops.

"This is the Rihua, also known as the Essence of the Sun. Without the help of a Dew-Collecting Plate, it would take one hundred and twenty years to naturally condense one or two drops in a place with strong yang energy."

"As for the other requests of the Upper Immortal, we can also satisfy them. However, we here also have a small request, and we hope the Upper Immortal can listen to it."

Ji Xiang looked at Mr. Yao, who respectfully said, "We ask that the Upper Immortal take this Rihua publicly at the Ascension Assembly."

"I see."

"You want to use my consumption of the Rihua to create momentum for this Ascension Assembly?"

Ji Xiang laughed. Mr. Yao also laughed. "The Upper Immortal is wise; that is precisely the case."

"This Essence of the Sun can rejuvenate, bring the dead back to life, and raise the Immortal Bone Talent to another level, which is 'Ascension.'"

"The Ten Types of Insects dare to ascend and fly under the sun. If they encounter cloudy weather, their wings will not be able to spread, and they risk dying prematurely. Cultivation is like the Ten Types of Insects completing their transformation. However, when taking it, one will feel great pain during the Ascension process, just like the Ten Types of Insects. But once the Ascension process is over, one will witness the prelude to immortality."

"However, it is difficult to completely complete the transformation by taking the Tiansui (Heavenly Marrow) once or twice. With the Upper Immortal's talent, I think you will need at least thirty drops of Rihua to complete the transformation of Ascension."