“The ancient corpse in Yong Province was killed by the Emotion-Comprehending Arhat?!”
Li Miaozhen and Elder Jinlian turned their heads in surprise, looking at Xu Qi’an beside them.
They were the most familiar with the ancient corpse in the underground palace, knowing that the being who had existed for thousands of years had recently “died an unnatural death.” But they never imagined that the corpse’s “death” would be connected to the Emotion-Comprehending Arhat.
Asura and Zhao Shou, along with Sun Xuanji, didn’t know much about this matter, so their expressions remained unchanged as they listened silently, wanting to know why Xu Qi’an brought this up.
In the prison cell, the lamp light was dim, casting a yellowish tint. The Emotion-Comprehending Arhat sat cross-legged, responding with silence.
“A Buddhist monk doesn’t tell lies, so your silence is a tacit admission, isn’t it?” Xu Qi’an smiled. “Among the transcendent experts in Yong Province at that time, besides you and the two Vajras, there were only the two Yang-spirit masters from the Celestial Sect, plus myself and the Imperial Mentor. The latter two can now be ruled out, so who else besides you could have killed the ancient corpse?”
At that time, the ancient corpse was in a sealed state. While it wouldn’t have been difficult for a third-rank Vajra to kill it, it would have certainly caused a commotion. Yet when Xu Qi’an returned to the underground tomb, he only found the ancient corpse with its spiritual consciousness erased, with no signs of intense battle.
To accomplish this would require overwhelming strength. A second-rank Arhat perfectly fits the criteria.
Li Miaozhen frowned and said, “But didn’t you say before that it was the tomb’s owner who returned? Also, why would the Emotion-Comprehending Arhat want to kill the ancient corpse?”
Lanyan’s interest in deductive reasoning was piqued.
Everyone turned to look at Xu Qi’an.
And now comes the much-anticipated deduction segment from Detective Xu… Xu Qi’an joked internally, then exhaled and explained quietly:
“That was indeed my initial thought, which is why I didn’t suspect the Buddhist sect. But if the tomb’s owner was the one who killed the ancient corpse, given his level and cultivation, why didn’t he target me directly?”
“Instead, he eliminated the ancient corpse as if destroying evidence?”
Regarding this point, his thinking at the time was that the tomb’s owner was wary of the karmic connections surrounding Officer Xu and didn’t act rashly.
This reasoning was logical, and coupled with his limited cultivation at the time and the fact that his greatest enemies were the Buddhist sect and Xu Pingfeng, Xu Qi’an hadn’t focused on the tomb’s owner. He had adopted a “cross that bridge when we come to it” attitude rather than racking his brains trying to investigate.
“Later, when I went to the Celestial Sect to retrieve Miaozhen, I learned from the Celestial Venerable that the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar might still be alive. I started wondering then: if the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar wasn’t dead, who could they be? Where had they gone throughout the endless years?”
“What exactly are you trying to say?” Asura frowned. “Stop beating around the bush.”
Ignoring him, Xu Qi’an said with a grin, “Actually, we’ve met the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar before.”
Elder Jinlian’s eyes flashed, his tone slightly urgent: “The tomb’s owner is the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar!”
With these words, all the transcendent beings present were startled.
For Asura, Sun Xuanji, and Zhao Shou, it felt like they had stumbled upon major gossip and uncovered an ancient secret.
Meanwhile, Li Miaozhen’s mind flashed through various details about the tomb—after leaving the underground palace, Xu Qi’an and others had described its conditions in detail at the Tianxia Association.
Now, comparing the two, everything matched remarkably well.
Elder Jinlian sighed: “I always found it strange. Throughout history, those who failed their tribulation never survived. Yet that Human Realm senior not only lived but shed their physical form and gained new life.”
“Throughout history, in the Dao sect, perhaps only the Dao Sovereign could achieve such brilliance.”
Xu Qi’an added: “The timeline matches too. Remember how Chu Yuanzhen had gone through historical records? Based on the clothing of the figures in the murals, and the scale and implements of the sacrificial ceremonies, he deduced that it was from at least two thousand years ago, or even earlier.”
“And one of the murals depicted that Human Realm senior slaying a great serpent and being revered as the Imperial Mentor, which suggests it was during the era when descendants of gods and demons ran rampant.”
Sun Xuanji frowned and coughed forcefully.
Guardian Yuan, understanding the cue, used mind-reading to ask on his behalf: “But what does this have to do with the Buddhist sect?”
Xu Qi’an looked around at everyone and said: “Some of you may not be clear about this, but that ancient corpse slept in the underground palace for thousands of years, guarding the imperial seal that carried fate. It waited for its master’s return, but its master had been gone for thousands of years, never returning.”
“Until Lina accidentally entered the underground palace, it finally awakened from its slumber.”
“By now, we all know how important fate is to transcendent beings, but why did the underground palace’s owner never return to claim something so important?”
Asura pondered: “Perhaps the time wasn’t right, or perhaps something unexpected happened…”
Xu Qi’an grinned: “Such as being sealed!”
At this point, everyone present understood, their expressions showing shock and disbelief.
Xu Qi’an’s implications pointed to only one conclusion—the Buddha was the underground palace’s owner, that Human Realm Daoist.
The Emotion-Comprehending Arhat’s white eyebrows twitched, his ancient and weathered face no longer able to maintain composure, his eyes showing both confusion and understanding.
After a long silence, with only the oil lamp burning quietly.
Asura broke the silence with a sigh, saying softly: “The Dao Sovereign is the Buddha… what’s your evidence?”
If this news spread, it would certainly cause an uproar throughout the Nine Provinces.
The others remained silent, still digesting this news and trying to find holes in Xu Qi’an’s deduction.
For something this significant, they needed to be one hundred percent certain—not even a hint of “uncertainty” could remain.
Zhao Shou, who had been silent until now, shook his head and said: “This doesn’t add up. If that were the case, He wouldn’t have needed to have Shen Shu subjugate the Myriad Beasts Nation; He could have simply sneaked into the Central Plains and retrieved the fate from the ancient tomb. Even if that portion of fate wasn’t enough, it would still have been better to secure it. If the Buddha were the tomb’s owner, there would have been many ways to send someone to retrieve the imperial seal.”
Li Miaozhen found Zhao Shou’s reasoning sound and frowned: “But if the Buddha isn’t the tomb’s owner, why would He send the Emotion-Comprehending Arhat to kill the ancient corpse?”
The Emotion-Comprehending Arhat couldn’t help but speak up: “This monk hasn’t admitted to anything!”
This female Daoist was too subjective, directly assuming he was the one who killed the ancient corpse…
Xu Qi’an looked at the white-browed Arhat and smiled: “Don’t be hasty, let me explain it to you slowly.”
He then turned to Zhao Shou, addressing his doubts: “That’s the second possibility—the time wasn’t right. We can now determine that transcendent beings have the goal of seizing fate. They’re even fighting for fate. So, the Buddha hiding this fate, well, the purpose is quite obvious.”
Keeping it as a trump card… Everyone nodded slightly, accepting Xu Qi’an’s explanation.
“There’s another piece of evidence,” he asked. “Do you remember when the Buddhist sect first showed interest in converting me?”
“During the Buddhist Dharma battle!” Li Miaozhen answered without hesitation.
“But it was also after I obtained the imperial seal from the underground palace. After that, the Buddhist sect became almost obsessed with converting me. Was it just because of the Mahayana Buddhist dharma?”
Ah, so on the surface it was for the Mahayana Buddhist dharma, but in reality, it was to reclaim the fate within Xu Ningyan’s body… Li Miaozhen pressed her lips together and secretly glanced at Xu Qi’an with some admiration.
This man had thought about and considered so much behind the scenes.
She had assumed the flirtatious Officer Xu only thought about different ways to sleep with the Flower Goddess and the Imperial Mentor, and well, Lin’an too.
“But this alone isn’t enough to prove that the Buddha is the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar. I only became completely certain tonight,” Xu Qi’an said.
At this point, Elder Jinlian sighed: “You became truly certain that the Buddha is the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar after hearing Shen Shu’s story tonight, right?”
Xu Qi’an nodded with a smile.
What does this mean… everyone was startled.
But Asura’s pupils contracted as he blurted out: “The Three Clarity Transformation!?”
He had practiced this technique.
Elder Jinlian nodded: “The Buddha’s method of separating Shen Shu is identical to how the tomb’s owner created the ancient corpse, and these are simplified applications of the Three Clarity Transformation technique.”
Zhao Shou shook his head while sighing: “Impressive, impressive. To use transcendent-level insight to reverse-engineer a cultivation system and create an entirely new path—though relatively simple, the Dao Sovereign’s talent truly deserves to be called unparalleled throughout history.”
Next, you’re probably going to say, ‘But so what, he was still suppressed by our Confucian Sage’… Xu Qi’an thought sarcastically.
“Cough cough cough!”
Sun Xuanji coughed violently, reminding Guardian Yuan, who had become dumbfounded from hearing too many secrets.
He also wanted to actively participate in the brainstorming.
The latter took a deep breath and managed to mind-read: “There’s one thing I still don’t understand—what was the purpose of the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar doing all this?”
In Sun Xuanji’s view, this avatar of the Dao Sovereign seemed completely unnecessary.
The Dao Sovereign was already a transcendent being, so why go to the trouble of creating a new system and abandoning their previous identity?
Xu Qi’an and Elder Jinlian exchanged glances, and the former smiled: “I have my guesses, but I can’t be certain. This is a matter of the Dao sect, so let Elder Jinlian explain.”
If this were Yang Qianxian, he would be jumping up and down with his hand raised, saying: “Let me! Let me!”
But Elder Jinlian just sighed wistfully and slowly said: “Lanyan, remember what we discussed about the tribulation scene in the murals?”
“Elder, please call me Miaozhen instead.” The Flying Swallow Heroine protested, then answered: “After becoming Imperial Mentor, that Human Realm Daoist usurped the throne and ascended it, gathering fate to attempt passing the tribulation using fate, but later failed.”
Elder Jinlian made an affirmative sound and said: “Looking at it now, that guess was wrong. Since he was the Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar, gathering fate couldn’t have been for passing the tribulation. His usurpation of the throne had another purpose, but later he discovered that those who obtain great fate cannot achieve longevity.”
“So he had to use the heavenly tribulation to kill himself, shedding his original body. The fate was probably separated at that time as well.”
This… Li Miaozhen was stunned for a moment, somewhat disbelieving: “How could the mighty Dao Sovereign not know that those with great fate cannot achieve longevity?”
Zhao Shou, as a scholar, said: “You can’t view ancient matters through modern eyes. In the Dao Sovereign’s era, humanity had just risen, and descendants of gods and demons plagued the Nine Provinces. At that time, the Nine Provinces continent was filled with tribes and various states; it was impossible to gather the vast national fate like today’s Central Plains dynasty.”
“The Dao Sovereign was essentially feeling his way forward, so not knowing this law of heaven and earth is understandable.”
Li Miaozhen nodded slightly, accepting his explanation, then asked: “Then what was his purpose in usurping the throne and gathering fate?”
As soon as she finished speaking, she already knew the answer: “It’s related to the Gatekeeper?”
In his later period, the Dao Sovereign had always been planning and striving for the Gatekeeper. Both his Heaven and Earth avatars did so, so his Human Realm avatar must have done the same.
“This doesn’t make sense,” Asura frowned, looking at Elder Jinlian. “Isn’t the Gatekeeper related to the Divine Fire Path and theSorcerer system? How does it involve mortal emperors?”
The Dao Sovereign’s Earth avatar destroyed the Divine Fire Path and seized the Mountain River Seal for the sake of the Gatekeeper.
The Sorcerer system was inherited from the Divine Fire Path, with the Supervisor confirmed to be the Gatekeeper.
The connection between the Gatekeeper and the Sorcerer system was a fact.
Xu Qi’an waved his hand: “Didn’t we just say that he took the wrong path? This also explains why he traveled west and created Buddhism. Perhaps this time, he finally found the right path.”
However, the Dao Sovereign’s method of separating fate is something I could learn, then I could escape the limitation of a short life span.
Xu Qi’an immediately made a final summary: “The Dao Sovereign’s Human Realm avatar usurped the throne back then, but discovered that those who obtain fate cannot achieve longevity. So he used the heavenly tribulation to kill himself, achieving rebirth through death, successfully shedding his old shell, and traveling west to establish Buddhism. He originally intended to keep the imperial seal’s fate as a trump card, but unexpectedly, I got to it first. So under the name of converting Buddhist disciples, he repeatedly sent transcendent experts to capture me.”
“Emotion-Comprehending Arhat, if I’m not mistaken, your journey to the Central Plains wasn’t just to capture me—killing the ancient corpse to silence it was also one of your objectives, right?”
The Emotion-Comprehending Arhat’s expression was solemn. With nothing to say, he joined his palms and softly chanted: “Amitabha.”
“Why kill the ancient corpse to silence it?” Li Miaozhen pressed with raised eyebrows.
The Buddha, or one of the three Bodhisattvas, sent the Emotion-Comprehending Arhat to silence it definitely wasn’t just to keep the Buddha’s secret.
This kind of thing, even if outsiders knew about it, what could they do? It wouldn’t harm Buddhism in the slightest.
There was no need to kill to maintain silence.
The Emotion-Comprehending Arhat lowered his eyes and remained silent.
Xu Qi’an said flatly: “No need to ask. A mere second rank doesn’t qualify to know these matters.”
Mere second-rank… Elder Jinlian and Asura silently glanced at him.
What a crude warrior.
The Emotion-Comprehending Arhat sighed: “I’ve long heard that Officer Xu’s deductive abilities are godlike. This monk has learned his lesson.”
The implication was that he acknowledged being commissioned by the Buddhist sect to kill the ancient corpse and silence it.
“There must be a reason for killing the ancient corpse to silence it, but what’s done is done, no need to dwell on it further,” Zhao Shou said.
They’ve completely stripped away his disguise… Xu Qi’an said: “Elder Jinlian, do you know how the tomb’s owner separated the fate?”