“What is it?”
The ethereal voice of Shen Shu echoed in Xu Qi An’s ears. He saw dense mists swirling and dispersing, passed through the floating haze, and beheld a dilapidated temple with the handsome monk Shen Shu sitting cross-legged at its entrance.
“Master, it’s nothing important… I just witnessed a grand scene and wanted to come to share the gossip with you,” Xu Qi An said sincerely.
“Don’t call out my name in your mind when in the presence of Buddhist experts,” Shen Shu warned.
“Understood, Master. I won’t hold you back.”
Xu Qi An recounted the scenes that had unfolded in the night sky over the capital, marveling, “The Supervising Censor’s technique for obscuring the workings of fate is truly formidable.”
“As a Tier 1 expert, of course, it’s formidable,” Monk Shen Shu said gently. “However, perhaps due to my fragmented memories, I don’t recall any information about Spirit Masters.”
Ah… The Spirit Master system only appeared in the hundred years before Shen Shu was sealed, right? Normally, he doesn’t know about it.
Xu Qi An said, “Master, a few days ago, I probed the monks who came from the Western Regions and gained some insight into your identity.”
Shen Shu’s serene face grew solemn as he stared intently at Xu Qi An. “What did you find out?”
Xu Qi An replied, “The Buddhist monks said that you’re a traitor to Buddhism. Because they couldn’t kill you, they sealed you away instead.”
“A traitor to Buddhism…”
Shen Shu murmured, his expression gradually changing. Sorrow and anger flashed in the depths of his eyes.
The mists of this hidden world trembled in response, flowing like rivers.
“You’ve done well. I’ve recalled some past events,” Shen Shu nodded after a long while, having composed himself.
What past events, great master? Can you share them with me? Xu Qi’an thought to himself.
As soon as the thought arose, the mists before him converged, obscuring the dilapidated temple and Shen Shu. Then the entire world began to fade.
The scenery changed, and the furnishings of his room came into view. He had emerged from Shen Shu’s mysterious world.
“That old lady has some connection to me. I’ll ask Daoist Jin Lian later about the exact nature of our relationship. Otherwise, it’ll keep bothering me…
“I don’t know when the Buddhist delegation will leave. During this time, I should keep a low profile. Venerable Du E is stronger than I imagined.
“My spiritual power has reached a peak now. I could try to break through, but after witnessing the wonders of the Buddhist Vajra Body technique, I’m not too impressed with the bronze skin and iron bones of martial artists…
“Master Shen Shu’s memories are incomplete, so he doesn’t have this skill. Heng Yuan is an outsider, so he can’t learn such profound abilities. It’s difficult.”
As he lay in bed, letting his thoughts wander, the familiar feeling of heart palpitations suddenly washed over him.
Xu Qi An reached under his pillow to retrieve the fragment of the Book of Earth while getting up to light an oil lamp. He sat at the table to check the message.
[One: Daoist, what tier is Venerable Du E, the leader of the Western Regions delegation?]
It was rare for the lurking Number One to actively send a message.
[Nine: Du E is a Tier 2 Arhat, with the Killer of Bandits fruition.]
Tier 2 Arhat, that matches my guess… but what’s the Killer of Bandits fruition? Xu Qi An thought briefly, confirming that the archives of the Night Watchmen’s Office had no record of “fruition.”
[Four: The so-called fruition is a Buddhist term. Arhats have three major fruitions: Killer of Bandits, Non-Returner, and Arhat. Among them, the Arhat fruition is the highest, while “Killer of Bandits” and “Non-Returner” are equal.]
I see… Although I don’t fully understand, it sounds impressive! Xu Qi An nodded slowly.
After the explanation, Number Four continued: [However, I feel the second Dharma Body that appeared tonight was unusually powerful.]
The first Dharma Body was condensed from the Killer of Bandits fruition, representing Venerable Du E’s power. The aura of the second Dharma Body was even more majestic and profound.
[Nine: That was the Vajra Wrathful Eye Dharma Body, one of the nine great Dharma Bodies of Buddhism.]
[Four: No wonder. So a Bodhisattva intervened.]
A Bodhisattva? A Tier 1 Bodhisattva?! Xu Qi An drew in a sharp breath. He instinctively looked around, a chill running down his spine, feeling the anxiety of a thief hearing police sirens.
If a Tier 1 expert had come to the capital, Xu Qi An felt he might be in danger again.
Stay calm, stay calm. Every system has its specialties. Obscuring the workings of fate is the Spirit Masters’ forte. I must trust in the Supervising Censor’s strength… He could only comfort himself this way.
At this moment, Li Miao Zhen chimed in: [What are you all talking about? What do you mean by Dharma Bodies appearing tonight?]
Number One had always been at odds with Number Two. Number Four was “avoiding suspicion” due to the conflict between humans and celestials. Daoist Jin Lian hadn’t appeared yet. After an awkward silence, it was Number Six, Heng Yuan, who explained:
[The Buddhist delegation has entered the capital, causing some commotion. Dharma Bodies manifested in the sky above the capital tonight.]
A few seconds later, Li Miao Zhen messaged again: [Is this about the Sang Po case?]
The sealed object beneath Sang Po involved Buddhism. Number Three had previously disclosed this within the Tian Di Society. Thinking that Xu Qi An had already perished, she felt a sudden sense of melancholy.
[Six: Yes.]
Li Miao Zhen sent a message of admiration: [Buddhism is indeed powerful, worthy of being the number one religion in the Nine Provinces.]
Is Buddhism the largest force in the Nine Provinces? … I hadn’t thought about that before. I’ll go to the office tomorrow to check some records.
[Four: Li Miao Zhen, why haven’t you reached the capital yet?]
[Two: Huh, isn’t it good to let you live a few more days?]
Hey, hey, young lady, don’t be so aggressive. You should win people over with virtue! Xu Qi An complained inwardly.
[Two: I chose to travel to the capital by land. Along the way, I can root out evil and kill a few corrupt officials and local tyrants.]
No one in the Book of Earth group spoke for a while. Then Daoist Jin Lian appeared: [By the way, how has Number Five been lately?]
Number Five didn’t respond.
[Two: Daoist, you should send her a private message. I think that girl has gotten into trouble again.]
Daoist Jin Lian replied resignedly: [Alright.]
Number Five’s experiences could probably be written into books like “The Wanderings of Number Five” or “The Bizarre Adventure of Number Five”… Thinking of this, the corners of Xu Qi An’s mouth curled up slightly.
After sleeping until dawn, Xu Qi An rode his mare to the Night Watchmen’s Office.
He went straight to the archives, entering the “Bing” section, and instructed the clerk managing the archives: “Bring me all the records related to Buddhism.”
“And a cup of tea as well,” he added.
The materials related to Buddhism were vast, piled on the table higher than a person’s. After some selection, Xu Qi An excluded some accounts of extraordinary people and events, as well as “legends,” focusing on books related to geography such as “The Geographic Records of the Nine Provinces” and “The Geographic Records of the Western Regions.”
About an hour later, he had found what he wanted.
“Indeed, in terms of territory, Buddhism ranks first in the Nine Provinces. Buddhist countries are everywhere in the Western Regions, and the land of the Western Regions is twice that of Great Feng, three times that of the North, and three to five times that of the Northeast.
“Of course, the Western Regions are sparsely populated and not fertile land. However, if we include the territory of the Ten Thousand Mountains in the South, which was the land of the former Beast Kingdom, the ‘domain’ of Buddhism becomes terrifyingly large.”
Then, he asked the clerk to bring brush, ink, paper, and inkstone and began to write down words like “Sang Po,” “state religion,” and “suppression of Buddhism” on a piece of paper.
He recalled a piece of history that Daoist Jin Lian had told him about the founding emperor.
Back then, to overthrow the corrupt Central Plains dynasty, the founding emperor of Great Feng had borrowed troops from the Northeastern Shamanic Religion, in exchange for making the Shamanic Religion the state religion.
According to the records in “The Geographic Records of the Western Regions,” Buddhism was also a state religion.
“Based on the information Princess Huai Qing and I uncovered, 400 years ago, Buddhism was flourishing all over the Central Plains, clearly trending towards becoming the state religion. However, at that time, Confucianism was at its peak of ‘Excuse me, but everyone present is trash.’
“When they directly pushed for the suppression of Buddhism, the Buddhist community surprisingly didn’t react drastically and withdrew from the Central Plains. I have two guesses here: One, Confucianism was indeed overwhelmingly powerful at that time. Two, Buddhism didn’t dare to directly confront Great Feng because they still needed to rely on Great Feng to seal Shen Shu.
“If Confucianism hadn’t weakened, with the combined strength of Confucianism and the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, Great Feng’s national power would undoubtedly be the greatest in the Nine Provinces.”
Xu Qi An used his spiritual energy to disintegrate the paper, left the archives, and headed to the Tower of Righteousness.
After being announced, he ascended to the seventh floor. Not hearing Wei Yuan’s voice in the tea room, he habitually looked towards the observation deck and indeed saw Wei Yuan there.
The gray-haired grand eunuch, with his hair loose, wore a cyan robe and reclined on a lounge chair, leisurely basking in the sun.
“Did you kneel last night?” the grand eunuch asked with a smile.
“My legs didn’t even tremble,” Xu Qi An replied disdainfully.
“Come over and massage my head,” Wei Yuan beckoned.
Xu Qi An first looked around to confirm that Nan Gong Qian Rou wasn’t present, then approached confidently. As if possessed by a masseuse, he began massaging the acupoints on Wei Yuan’s head.
“The sealed object in Sang Po breaking free is, after all, Great Feng’s negligence. The high monks from Buddhism are just throwing a tantrum, don’t worry about it,” Wei Yuan comforted him.
He thinks I’m here because I’m worried about yesterday’s events… Lord Wei, you think I’m on the first level, but actually, I’m on the eighteenth level! Not only do I know that a Bodhisattva intervened yesterday, but I also know the whereabouts of Monk Shen Shu… Xu Qi An asked straightforwardly:
“Why did Great Feng help Buddhism seal the evil object?”
By now, he was Wei Yuan’s confidant, and many secrets that couldn’t be disclosed to others could be openly discussed.
“Did you uncover something?” Wei Yuan was slightly startled.
“When investigating the Sang Po case, I accidentally discovered a piece of history. Five hundred years ago, the Crown Prince was playing at Sang Po, accidentally fell into the water, and then suffered from hysteria, passing away shortly after.
“Five hundred years ago, Emperor Wu Zong seized the throne. Five hundred years ago, Buddhism from the Western Regions suddenly began preaching in the Central Plains, and within a hundred years, Buddhist temples were everywhere, until Confucianism pushed for the suppression of Buddhism a hundred years later.
“The array beneath Sang Po is inscribed with Buddhist texts. Based on these clues, I deduced that the evil object was also sealed five hundred years ago, right?”
Wei Yuan pondered for a long time before slowly nodding: “Correct. The sealed object beneath Sang Po originated from a deal between Buddhism and Emperor Wu Zong.
“Back then, Emperor Wu Zong was skilled in both civil and military affairs, with numerous elite soldiers and generals under his command. However, in his bid to seize the throne and become emperor, there was one obstacle he could never overcome. That obstacle could even have caused his grand ambitions to vanish into thin air.”
A figure appeared in Xu Qi An’s mind: the first Supervising Censor!
“The first Supervising Censor of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, a Tier 1 expert of the Spirit Master system. With the Supervising Censor present, as long as Great Feng’s dynastic fate hadn’t ended, no one could shake the imperial throne. Faced with such a formidable and unavoidable obstacle, Emperor Wu Zong chose to cooperate with Buddhism from the Western Regions.
“That was the beginning of the alliance between Western Buddhism and Great Feng. Buddhism helped Emperor Wu Zong kill the first Supervising Censor, and in return, Emperor Wu Zong agreed to allow Buddhism to preach in the Central Plains and help seal an evil object for them. That old bastard of a Supervising Censor turning a blind eye to Sang Po being destroyed is already considered a breach of contract.”
Holy shit!!
So that’s what happened. I was wondering why Emperor Wu Zong successfully seized the throne and what happened to the first Supervising Censor… Buddhism was involved in the power struggle back then. Buddhism has the Buddha, an existence beyond tiers. Taking down a peak Tier 1 Spirit Master Supervising Censor makes sense now.
Wait a minute, what role did the current old Supervising Censor play in all this?
Thinking of this, Xu Qi An trembled slightly, somewhat regretting asking Wei Yuan.
“The Supervising Censor, why did he… why did he turn a blind eye to the evil object breaking free…” After hesitating for a long time, Xu Qi An still asked this puzzling question.
Because this question was highly likely to involve himself.
The Supervising Censor knew about the remnants of the Beast Kingdom’s plot, yet chose to turn a blind eye; the Supervising Censor knew that the remnants of the Beast Kingdom had implanted Monk Shen Shu’s severed arm in him, yet chose to turn a blind eye; the Supervising Censor even secretly helped him!
What exactly was the Supervising Censor’s purpose? What was he plotting?
Wasn’t he afraid of Buddha showing up at his doorstep, wielding the great Buddha root for a frenzied assault?
Wei Yuan chuckled: “Who knows?”
He narrowed his eyes, enjoying the service of his trusted Night Watchman, and said, “In today’s morning court session, Venerable Du E appeared. He proposed to have a debate and contest of skills with the Supervising Censor, with the Cosmic Board and the Diamond Sutra as stakes. He hopes His Majesty will agree.
“His Majesty sent someone to inquire with the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, and the Supervising Censor agreed. This afternoon, a yellow edict will be issued to announce it to the entire capital. There will be quite a spectacle to watch.”
For some reason, Xu Qi An’s heart suddenly sank, and he felt a chill run down his spine. He cautiously asked:
“How will they compete?”
Wei Yuan shook his head: “We’ll know today.”