Chapter 1 The Beginning

The great sun rose in the east, its golden rays dyeing the long sky, chasing away the darkness and descending upon the world.

The Imperial City in the depths of winter was at its coldest, and at this time, the sky was barely lit, the time when the chill of the day was at its peak.

However, on Jingyuan Street in the 73rd district of the Imperial City, there was a weaving crowd of people. Some were dancing with lion and tiger puppets, some were beating gongs and drums, and colorful ribbons were hung everywhere, making it exceptionally lively.

"With a god in the house, external demons will not invade!"

The noisy crowd patrolled street after street, breaking the silence of the early morning.

In the 'Phoenix Cry Pavilion,' wisps of cooking smoke rose, a Confucian scholar in a green robe pushed open the window on the third floor, looked down at the noisy street, his eyes deep and gloomy: "Inviting a new god again?"

The Confucian scholar frowned.

He had seen such scenes many times in the past eighteen years, and the residents and cultivators in the Imperial City were also accustomed to them.

Not only in the Imperial City, but in Lingquan Dao, and even in various Daos, prefectures, and cities throughout the world, there were similar rituals.

This ritual was also known as 'Inviting a God'.

Bringing 'gods' from the 'Yuanyang God Temple' back home to protect the whole family.

"May I ask this brother, where did this inviting god ritual originate from?"

The window next door was also pushed open, a gaunt middle-aged man looked at the Confucian scholar with a solemn expression, cupped his fist and asked: "I have come from afar, and in the states and prefectures I have visited, there are widespread rumors about 'with a god in the house, external demons will not invade'..."

"Brother, you are too polite."

The Confucian scholar returned the greeting before saying, "This is not a secret. This 'inviting god' ritual is promoted by the Imperial Dynasty. Otherwise, it would never have spread so widely in just eighteen years.

I heard that eighteen years ago, the Crown Prince ascended the throne and reformed the old system. This 'inviting god' is said to be learned from the previous dynasty's so-called 'Earth Deity'. In recent years, it has been very popular among some common people and even low-level cultivators.

Whenever a new god is introduced, it quickly spreads throughout the world."

"Earth Deity..."

The middle-aged man's expression sank, then he forced a smile and said, "I see, thank you for clearing up my confusion..."

With that, the middle-aged man closed the window.

Looking back at the black-robed teenager in the room who was pondering silently, he bowed slightly and said, "God Lord, many evil gods and heretical paths are indeed spreading from the Great Zhou Dynasty... Perhaps the rumors are true, that Long Xingyi really obtained that person's inheritance and wants to recast the 'Earth Deity'."

"It won't be recasting the 'Earth Deity'."

The black-robed teenager's face was as heavy as iron, his tone sonorous like the clang of metal, as if an iron-blooded aura was overflowing as he spoke: "Along the way, you have only seen these 'false gods' protecting ordinary people, but you have overlooked a more important point!"

"God Lord?"

The middle-aged man was puzzled.

"Cultivators!"

The black-robed teenager flicked his sleeves, and with the fluctuation of an invisible strange force, a young man with a dazed and sluggish expression fell between the two of them.

"What method do you cultivate? Which Dao? Who is your master, from which sect, and which school?"

As the black-robed teenager asked in a deep voice, the young man with the dazed expression raised his head and said blankly: "I, I cultivate the 'Giant Spirit Suppressing the World Dao'. I have no master. I comprehended it from the divine seat of the Giant Spirit God..."

Before the young man could finish speaking, the middle-aged man's expression had changed drastically several times, and a look of horror flashed in his eyes: "Someone, someone is using the name of a god to spread new methods in the world?!"

Whoosh!

The black-robed teenager waved his hand casually, sending the young man into the void, before pinching his fingers, a wisp of aura different from any spiritual energy in this world was pinched between his fingertips.

"This, this..."

The middle-aged man took a deep breath, a slight chill rising on his back: "Could it be those few God Emperors? Wanting to take the opportunity to..."

"This aura, it resembles both Buddhism and Daoism, yet it is neither Buddhist nor Daoist. It seems to combine the strengths of various Daos, yet it has an indescribable and inexplicable strangeness..."

The black-robed teenager muttered to himself, his eyes constantly changing:

"What's even stranger is that these 'false gods' methods are not written down, nor are they passed down orally. It seems that as long as someone worships the statue, they can naturally obtain it...

Such a method of spreading the Dao is similar to the Buddhist mind-to-mind transmission, but it is much more terrifying!"

The black-robed teenager's eyes were obscure, and there was a sense of沉凝, even shock, in his heart.

Since ancient times, there have been many who wanted to spread their methods in the world, and although there were not many successful ones like the Confucian masters, there were still some.

But there had never been such a large-scale one.

Along the way, they had seen no less than a thousand kinds of 'false gods', their footprints covering various Daos, states, and prefectures, and under the promotion of the imperial court, they had spread to thousands of households.

And yet, the transmission of these 'false gods' did not require writing, did not require oral instruction, did not require knowledge of cultivation, did not require literacy. Even a deaf-mute and blind person could obtain the method of cultivation in the process of worshiping the statue!

Because of this, in just eighteen years, this method had spread widely in the world, and although there had not yet been any real masters, it vaguely had a tendency to shake Daoism and Buddhism.

There was no other reason, it spread too widely, and there were too many cultivators.

This was especially terrifying for him, who knew the true intention of 'gods and demons spreading the Dao'.

"Then, then the person behind this..."

The middle-aged man felt his scalp tingle and couldn't help but ask: "What, what should we do?"

"Hoo!"

The black-robed teenager slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air: "Someone is coming."

Da da da!

As soon as the black-robed teenager's voice fell, someone knocked on the door.

"Who?"

The middle-aged man was startled. Before the knock on the door, he hadn't even noticed anyone approaching.

Bang!

The door was opened, and a red figure stepped into the room, palms together, looking at the black-robed teenager with a smile that was not a smile: "Zhulong Traveler, do you still remember an old friend?"

"You?! Old... no."

The black-robed teenager's pupils shrank, and his whole body leaned back violently for a moment. He was startled at first, then reacted. He stood up in a flustered manner: "You are, Red Child Great Vajra!"

The Zhulong Traveler's heart was shaking wildly, and he was almost afraid to look at that familiar face.

Mount Sumeru Buddha was honored by the three Great Buddhas, followed by the Four Great Bodhisattvas, the Five Great Vajras, the Eight Great Garudas, and the Eighteen Arhats. The person in front of him was not among them, but his status was extremely special.

There was no other reason. This Red Child Great Vajra was the 'monster' formed by the First Person under that Eternal Saint, the Old Buddha of Sumeru, using his supreme great divine power to transform that ball of 'karma fire'.

Karma fire was the fire of sin and evil of the heaven and earth. This fire could burn Buddhas to ashes, could destroy all the gods in the world, could burn everything, could destroy everything, and was terrifying beyond compare.

"We met once seventy thousand years ago, it's hard for the Zhulong Traveler to still remember this humble monk."

The Red Child made a gesture of reverence, and the Zhulong Traveler repeatedly said that he dared not.

Then he smiled slightly and explained his intention: "This humble monk has come here this time to borrow the Traveler's 'Zhuzhao' for a moment."

The Zhulong Traveler was born from the blood of Zhulong's death, ranked among the five great Travelers of the Imperial Heaven. His strength was a notch inferior to the Eight Divisions of Heaven and the Ten Directions of Heavenly Beings, whose status was not as high as his.

But his status was extremely high, even ranked first among the five great Travelers of the Divine Court.

It was because of 'Zhuzhao'.

Zhuzhao illuminates all the realms, and no escape from the Dharma Eye!

"Zhuzhao?!"

The Zhulong Traveler's expression changed slightly, then he calmed his shock and said in a deep voice: "Great Vajra should know what the use of this divine power means to this god."

Zhuzhao was a Saint-level divine power!

It was the divine power possessed by the ancient Zhulong. With this divine power, one could even glimpse the mysteries of the Saints.

When Zhulong was reborn after its death, it even lost this divine power!

In his lifetime, this divine power could only be used ten times, and this limitation would not even be restored with his rebirth!

"This humble monk naturally understands."

The Red Child smiled and nodded, looking at the Zhulong Traveler who was full of wariness and vigilance, and slowly spread his palms, a tender and tiny branch slowly rising: "What does the Traveler think of exchanging it for this?"

This branch had seven colors, and the branch was tender, as if it would break with a light touch.

But the moment this branch appeared, the Zhulong Traveler and the middle-aged man couldn't help but be mesmerized, their souls seemed to be immersed in it, and they were shocked beyond compare.

After a long, long time, the Zhulong Traveler came back to his senses from the shock, his voice hoarse: "Seed of the Seven Treasures Mystical Tree!"

"Seven Treasures Mystical Tree!"

The middle-aged man's body trembled like a sieve, his eyes were terrified and greedy, and he couldn't wait to swallow the seed.

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The Seven Treasures Mystical Tree was the number one divine power since ancient times.

There was no dispute!

This was not only because in that turmoil, that Old Buddha used this tree to brush away the 'Universe in the Sleeves', the 'Five-Colored Divine Light', and the 'Ding Yi Dragon Form Thirty-Three Styles' and other peerless great divine powers.

It was also because, at the beginning of this divine power's birth, it had attracted the descent of the Saints, and some Saints had said directly that the exquisiteness of this divine power was no less than Saint-level!

"I..."

The Zhulong Traveler opened his mouth to speak, but stopped again, feeling a tickle in his throat and unable to speak.

Even though the temptation of the Seven Treasures Mystical Tree was unparalleled, he was absolutely unwilling to use 'Zhuzhao'!

Because, Zhuzhao was not only a divine power, but also his life!

Ten Zhuzhaos were ten lives.

He wanted to refuse, but looking at the hazy, small, and cute Seven Treasures Mystical Tree, his heart trembled, and he nodded heavily, exhaling like a cow: "...Being able to serve the Buddha is Zhulong's good fortune for three lifetimes, how dare I ask for divine power?"

The Zhulong Traveler's heart was bleeding.

But he still had to squeeze out a smile and refuse the Seven Treasures Mystical Tree that was offered to him. Divine power was good, but how dare he want it?

"The Traveler is so polite, the Buddha will know and will certainly approve it in his heart."

The Red Child nodded slightly, and in the extremely complex gazes of the two, he put away the seed of divine power before saying: "I wonder when the Traveler can take out 'Zhuzhao'?"

"...Right away."

The Zhulong Traveler's face was as black as the bottom of a pot. He turned his back abruptly and no longer looked at the red-robed monk. His heart was filled with gnashing of teeth, and he still raised his hand, and the five fingers emitting a brilliant light suddenly inserted into his chest.

"Ah!"

In a scream that was suppressed as much as possible but still made people shudder, the Zhulong Traveler fell to the ground, sweating like漿, his face as white as paper.

He spread out his blood-stained palm and handed a black-gold mixed vertical pupil as big as a fist to the Red Child, his voice hoarse and weak: "I am not the Zhulong Divine Beast, Zhuzhao can only observe the 'present', unable to see the 'past' or 'future'..."

"Great Vajra must remember that he must be sure that person is in the world, otherwise..."

"Good, good!"

The Red Child bowed deeply, and the rolling power of Buddha poured into the huge wound in the Zhulong Traveler's chest.

When the Zhulong Traveler exhaled and stood up, he had disappeared inside the restaurant.

Hoo!

In the void, the Red Child put his palms together and sandwiched the 'eyeball' between his palms, reciting in his heart:

"...The Buddha is the only heart... Supreme, Awakened One!"