Chapter 1 Facts

From Huojun's words, Ji Xiang learned three facts.

First, there was a misalignment of information. Although he didn't know where the problem was, it seemed that the Milong Casino and Jinshan Water Mansion incidents were mistakenly attributed to Huojun's father, Zen Master Huyan.

Second, many sects in the world were agitated because of the previous incident and were searching for Zen Master Huyan everywhere.

"I didn't expect that when I, Ji Xiang, beat people, I never concealed my name, but after a major event, I let a dead man take the blame for me.... Oh well, let him continue to take the blame then."

It seemed that famous sects were infiltrated even more deeply than he had thought. Many of the cultivators who came to Yingtian Prefecture to participate in the Dengxian (Ascension) Assembly were famous elders from various sects, with cultivation levels above the Yuanshen (Nascent Soul) stage, making it an impressive display of power.

Third, and most importantly, there was the "real-time update" of the blank divine tablet.

It turned out that the Huangtian (Yellow Heaven) Teachings incantation that he used at Milong Casino, according to the words given by the blank divine tablet, was a new technique that Huojun had only recently figured out, and hadn't even completely written down the scripture name.

This shocked Ji Xiang greatly.

Not because of Huojun's creativity. These kinds of harmful spells weren't difficult to write. After all, the White Lotus Teachings and its various differently named branches all had similar methods. As long as one focused on writing against a certain scripture or technique, even someone without a foundation in cultivation could randomly make up an incantation and practice it haphazardly, and it might even work....

It was like how some half-baked sorcerers who were new to the path of cultivation would usually learn the easiest summoning techniques. However, because they were not skilled enough, they could draw talismans and cast spells, but the things they summoned were not necessarily gods.

Therefore, this method was not worth mentioning.

What was impressive was the blank divine tablet.

The fact that it could know a technique as soon as it was written down and deemed usable was beyond common sense and reached the level of heavenly law. For him, this was great news.

This also meant that even if he encountered unfamiliar spells in the future, as long as a new method targeting that spell appeared, the blank divine tablet could immediately record it and let him know!

This was equivalent to "getting the jump" on others. Perhaps the other party had just developed a new spell and didn't know its effect yet, but he could already use it freely. If this spell was used for ascension, or something else, as long as the other party revealed it, then....

Your spell is quite good!

The next second, it will be mine!

"I understand. These things are all small matters."

Ji Xiang agreed indifferently. Huojun was unwilling to speak to Ji Xiang in a subservient manner any longer. Maintaining a smile, he retreated to the back. Mr. Yao glanced at Huojun and Liejie, the Crown Prince, and told them:

"Those students will not leave once they enter the Da Bao'en (Great Repaying Kindness) Temple until the Dengxian (Ascension) Assembly begins tonight. You must come to meet them then. By then, all the arrangements in Yingtian Prefecture will be complete, and the famous cultivators of the major sects will gather to offer treasures to the Prince to congratulate him on his ascension."

Huojun exhaled at this moment.

After being under the command of the Prince of Lu for so long, he was finally about to get to the main topic.

Jinglun Tiangong (Silent Wheel Heavenly Palace) was providing some support to the Prince of Lu, cooperating with him through himself, the proxy, although the cooperation didn't seem to be very smooth....

At the same time, when the Prince of Lu ascended to immortality and entered the Southern Forbidden City, the Huangtian (Yellow Heaven) Teachings would be officially recognized and become the orthodox lineage of the New Celestial Master Dao in the human realm.

........

A monk holding prayer beads came forward, met the Prince of Lu, and called out a Buddhist chant.

"Has that Shen Xue Zheng (Academic Director) of the Imperial Academy given any guidance to his students?"

"For example, telling them to leave here quickly?"

The monk holding the prayer beads shook his head: "No, not only did he not, but he also expressed that he wanted them to serve the Prince and gave them some encouragement. He also spoke with a few of them alone, telling them to show their talents now, as this was the only chance for a meteoric rise."

The Prince of Lu frowned slightly:

"That is somewhat beyond my expectation."

"To be honest."

"I do not trust the Arctic True Man."

The Prince of Lu shook his head at the monk: "In the end, we are all observing each other, determining whether the other party has interests that we can cooperate with. However, the Arctic True Man has a good relationship with True Man Zhang. I still can't figure out whether he is sincerely surrendering, forced to cooperate, or has other motives."

"I was the one who took the initiative to invite him, and he was just going along with the tide. Maybe he wants to take advantage of this assembly to find out my background or to disrupt and sabotage it. At that time, please do not leave his side and keep a close eye on him."

The monk holding prayer beads recited a Buddhist chant: "It should be so. We cannot let him ruin the Prince's ascension to immortality."

"With this poor monk here, the Prince need not worry about the Arctic True Man having second thoughts at a critical moment."

"Speaking of the Arctic True Man...."

The Prince of Lu's eyes moved: "What is it?"

The monk pondered for a moment: "This poor monk secretly observed the Arctic True Man. There were no abnormalities. His mana is strong and his aura is as vast as the sea. Although his external appearance is that of an Earth Immortal, his true strength is far beyond what his current realm can describe. Immortals reincarnating and rebuilding themselves are like this. Their Dao is still retained, and what needs to be rebuilt is only the physical body's mana realm."

"However...."

"There is always a sense of disharmony. This poor monk cannot explain it clearly. If I were to describe it, it would be... far removed from the world."

"Perhaps the Arctic True Man is hiding part of his strength and not showing it externally, so this poor monk always feels that he is slightly out of place with the surrounding environment."

The Prince of Lu nodded slightly: "Perhaps it is because of the form and spirit. According to my information, the Arctic True Man's body is not his own, nor was it created for him by someone. Instead, like the ancient immortal Tie Guai Li, he possessed a corpse to return his soul, so the form and spirit do not correspond. He should not have been able to solve this problem yet."

The monk was thoughtful but could not understand it either, so he could only nod: "Perhaps... that is so."

The Prince of Lu nodded and stopped talking about Ji Xiang: "As for that demonic tribulation cultivator, he is a disciple of the Xishan (Western Mountain) Daoist Academy, right? Go see him and ask him if he is willing to follow me... I mean, completely follow me."

"Instead of following behind the Arctic True Man. If he is willing, I don't mind giving him some benefits."

"As for that little girl, since Shen Xue Zheng (Academic Director) has not made any excessive moves, I will not bother with her. The Shen family, father and daughter, possess righteousness, but they cannot be used as the foundation stones for my ascension. It is a pity. I don't know if they are doing these things now because they are really afraid of me, or if they have other plans. However, as a mortal, he has no ability to influence me. As long as you keep an eye on the Arctic True Man, everything will be stable."

"However, since two people are missing, we still need to find a few more people to fill in."

"Please recommend some. Among the officials of the Six Ministries of Yingtian, which ones can I use?"

"The higher-ups of these Six Ministries of Yingtian are all old bureaucrats, and the lower-level ones are young officials who are just building their reputation and preparing to be transferred back to Shuntian. Those old court officials who have a good relationship with you must have told you about many useful people."

The monk holding prayer beads was silent for a moment, seemingly thinking. After a while, he said to the Prince of Lu:

"I do know one person, but this person is not in the Six Ministries. He was demoted from the Six Ministries of Yingtian a few years ago. When he was demoted, I had several encounters with him. He came to the Da Bao'en (Great Repaying Kindness) Temple to express his dissatisfaction, so he was inspired by me and gained some Buddhist nature...."

"When the night watch starts, this poor monk can use Buddhist techniques to use the power of the Dharmadhatu to lead him here, so that he can enter the Pure Land Temple to worship. However, the art of entering dreams is ultimately not a method of detaining people, so only his soul will come, and the soul in the dream, participating in the Dharmadhatu, will not be disturbed by Yin demons and ghosts, nor will it be harmed in any way."

The Prince of Lu smiled: "The manifestation of the soul is enough. The things in dreams are absurd and bizarre. What I need is not that physical body. Righteousness exists in the heart and is a force that is emitted. When the soul is present, the spirit is present, and the righteousness is present. It is just that his soul is used as a sacrifice."

"However...."

The Prince of Lu said, but then expressed his doubts: "You are saying that there is only one person?"

The monk holding prayer beads nodded: "One person is enough."

"When I first met him in the past, the aura of righteousness he possessed was already more than ten times that of the Shen family's patriarch. Compared to him, it was like fireflies and the bright moon, incomparable!"

"Moreover, the origin of the Shen family patriarch's righteousness comes from this person."

The Prince of Lu was surprised: "Yingtian once had such a figure?"

"My knowledge is too shallow."

.........

As night fell, the world became dark, and on the Qinhuai River, the lanterns lit up again, like the Milky Way falling from the nine heavens, and the light of countless stars came to the human world to drift and sink.

Bewildering and lingering, beauties like jade, literati and poets came by boat. Compared to the Qinhuai River in the past few days, tonight was the time with the most boats on the river, almost to the point of..... one fire could burn and kill eight hundred miles of continuous camp.

"What truly prosperous scenery."

The Prince of Lu's royal ship was huge. The water in the river was as black as ink. Demons were ready to move in places where the lights did not shine, wandering in the darkness, and could not restrain their desire to steal food. But if they ate people randomly at this time and ruined the Prince of Lu's ascension, they would be punished more terribly than death.

The suffering of the five fatigues and seven injuries was the means by which the Prince of Lu controlled the demons and some of the divine generals. Its origin was the Prince of Lu's own "Thousand Natures," the fire Bodhi curse planted by Vajrapani. Since it could be dispersed with the help of the Thousand Natures, it could also be dispersed into the bodies of his subordinates.

That was pure Buddhist fire, which no ordinary demon could resist. If it touched even a little, the Buddhist fire would instantly kill the five internal organs and ignite the seven emotions, which could not be extinguished. After a while, both the body and spirit would be destroyed, not even leaving ashes, leaving no trace of filth.

Therefore, only the 1,300 demons selected by the Prince of Lu had the opportunity to eat those who possessed righteousness.

"Don't be too hasty."

The Prince of Lu looked at the demons emerging from the river who had been selected by him. They were bowing to him and gradually turning into smoke, gathering in some ships and turning into human form.

"Only when the time comes can you feast. This is also your last meal. Those with great righteousness, even those who have been contaminated, are a rare delicacy for you. Moreover, righteousness is favored by heaven and earth and is a manifestation of the power of the dynasty. Eating those with righteousness will be resented by heaven and earth and fall into the evil path...."

"Only when you become great evils can I become a high immortal."

Ji Xiang, listening to the words of the Prince of Lu, could not help but sigh: "Demons have always been the targets of beheading, but it is rare to see them being deceived so miserably."

The Prince of Lu laughed: "Demons are consumables. For me, they are like pets at home, the cats, dogs, parrots, crickets, and grasshoppers you raise. When they reach the end of their natural lives, they will die. For humans, it is a very short time, the longest is ten years, and the shortest is only a few months."

"Although there is some affection, if it involves one's own major affairs, one must be willing to abandon them. There are substitutes everywhere. Moreover, demons are objects that should be killed. Does the True Man feel pity and compassion for these demons?"

"In the present world, there is no future in being a demon. Some demons with abilities either gather in unknown secret places, or protect the people and become land gods and family guardians, taking the right path; or they erect statues in the White Lotus Teachings to seek incense and manifest their holiness...."

"Eating people? Using eating people to cultivate was a popular practice long, long ago. Those who can truly be called great demons and fierce devils could still be seen a few decades ago, but later I heard that Emperor Jiajing swept them away, and they were gone."

Ji Xiang was curious: "Emperor Jiajing swept them away?"

The Prince of Lu said: "I just heard people say it. After all, how could I know what my grandfather did? When my imperial brother was a few years old, my grandfather had already abdicated, and soon after, he said that he had died. However, later, I heard that my imperial grandfather faked his death and went to clear out a group of great demons and fierce devils before entering the Hidden Mountains and Rivers. As for why he went to clear them out and what he gained, I do not know."

"That was already thirty years ago."

Ji Xiang fell silent. At this moment, he was playing chess in the royal ship. The opponent was a middle-aged monk holding prayer beads.

His aura was surging, although it was suppressed to the limit, he was indeed a master of the pure Yang level, who could be called a quasi-immortal.

"Namo Avidyā Darkness Bodhisattva, High Immortal, it is your turn."

The monk recited his Bodhisattva title, and Ji Xiang's eyes were playful.

The Buddhist term "Avidyā Darkness" refers to the "darkness of ignorance," which means being lost in the cycle of life and death, losing light, and not knowing the past or future lives.

As the chess piece fell, outside the royal ship, cultivators came stepping through the air on clouds, mighty and grand, to present the treasure of ascension to the Prince of Lu.

The monk turned his prayer beads and muttered a mantra, using the Avidyā Darkness to entangle someone's dream, allowing the Buddhist Dharmadhatu to guide their soul here.

......

Night fell with thunder and rain, and Buddhist light suddenly appeared in a dream.

In the land of Suichang, the population has prospered in recent years, arable land has increased, and shooting halls and academies have also begun to open, and people have gradually developed from a poor rural situation, and clothing and food have been guaranteed.

In the home of the county magistrate, Buddhist light appeared in the world of beautiful dreams, and the power of the Dharmadhatu enveloped this land.

In front of his desk, the county magistrate, who was writing a manuscript, suddenly felt a little dizzy. A huge drowsiness swept over him, causing him to fall asleep without writing the next manuscript.

The manuscripts were scattered, but their name can be seen as *The Return of the Soul*.

In that dream, the voice of the Dharma came, and it was the Master Bao Ying he had seen in the past, with a solemn face.

"Tang Xianzu, come here....."