A flash of resentment crossed Lao Ruanzu's face, and he said cautiously, "Father, I have never held any resentment."
Lao Xianglong shook his head and said, "You have great ambitions, but you can't realize them. You feel frustrated and unfulfilled. I understand this feeling very well. Do you know why I don't teach you advanced martial arts?"
Lao Ruanzu and remained silent, while Lao Xianglong said in a loud voice:
"Simply because you and I are both unparalleled martial arts prodigies among the Pandaren."
Lao Ruanzu a puzzled expression, and Lao Xianglong sighed deeply:
"Back then, I studied martial arts at Niuzao Temple for ten years, always keeping a low profile. Although I possessed superb martial arts skills, I never showed them to my disciples, all for the sake of soaring to the top and becoming the sect leader. When the time finally came to compete for the position of sect leader, the sect leader's son couldn't even withstand a single punch from me, and there was no one in the temple who could match me. Yet, the old sect leader still passed the position to his son."
"Of course I was not convinced. All the masters in the temple joined forces to challenge me, but I still defeated Flowing Water. Unexpectedly, I encountered Niuzao, one of the August Celestials. Only then did I realize that the martial arts geniuses of the Pandaren had all been crippled by the August Celestials. In order to retain my skills, I had no choice but to kneel on the ground and beg for mercy, becoming the lackey of the August Celestials."
Lao Xianglong's eyes filled with tears. "Over the years, I've risked my life for the August Celestials Gods and suffered countless hardships. I don't want this tragic Destiny to be repeated in your life."
Lao Ruanzu gritted his teeth and asked, "Father, you betrayed nearly a million of your people, sending them to the Orcs as military rations. I still don't understand."
Lao Xianglong sighed, "Child, the Pandaren are arrogant and conceited, lacking the courage to rebel against the August Celestials. They will only perish little by little in mediocrity. Rather than that, let's take a gamble. As long as the August Celestials are destroyed, we Pandaren will still have a bright future."
Pointing to the beautiful Vale of Eternal Blossoms and the lush green farmland, Lao Xianglong proudly said, "Over the years, I have gathered more than 100,000 followers, all for one plan."
Lao Ruanzu was eager to find out what was going on when someone suddenly reported that Sun Rouxin had returned, bringing with them an countless Horde army that was now challenging them at the entrance of Vale of Eternal Blossoms.
Lao Xianglong was slightly surprised, then smiled and said:
"I didn't expect my plan to succeed so quickly. Softfoot, go tell our followers that the Orcs need military rations. Those willing to be Orcs food should go to the gates of the Vale of Eternal Blossoms; those unwilling should seek refuge in the Mogu'shan Palace. I'll be there soon."
Lao Ruanzu looked puzzled. Deceiving one's people into going to their deaths wouldn't be so straightforward. The most common methods were various deceptions and lies, since no one wanted to be food for the Orcs.
Lao Xianglong reminded them, "Just do as I instruct, and never deceive the followers."
After Lao Ruanzu left with doubts, Lao Xianglong, the leader of the Golden Lotus, came alone to the entrance of Vale of Eternal Blossoms and slowly climbed the city wall.
A coalition of five thousand Kor'kron Orcs and five thousand Darkspear Tribe gathered outside the gate. When Lao Xianglong saw that there were only Sun Rouxin and two others, he quickly understood.
"Sun Rouxin!" Lao Xianglong shouted, "Have the others been eaten by the Orcs?"
Lao Xianglong seemed completely unconcerned, as if it were all expected. Sun Rouxin was quite surprised and, as agreed with Rokhan, loudly responded:
"Although you are my master, for the sake of Azeroth, I have no choice but to betray you. The Horde already knows that you colluded with Thrall, the Destroyer, in a plot to destroy Azeroth."
Lao Xianglong smiled and clapped his hands, praising, "A good excuse. So this is the truth behind the Orcs saving Azeroth time and time again. Sun Rouxin, there are no other cult members present today. I want to hear you speak the truth. Do you harbor resentment towards me?"
Having already torn off all pretense of civility, Sun Rouxin didn't care about anything anymore and blurted out:
"I'll call you 'Master' one last time only because you were so insidious and vicious, deceiving us about upholding the Dao Heart, Dao Follows Nature, and achieving harmony Unity of Heaven and Humanity. I wasted countless hours meditating to cultivate my Dao Heart. It wasn't until many years later that I realized that the so-called 'Dao Follows Nature' and 'Unity of Heaven and Humanity' were nothing but lies. I wasted over a decade of my prime years pursuing this Void goal."
Lao Xianglong chuckled:
"That's right, I've been deceiving you all along. I have no Dao Heart, no Dao Follows Nature, and no Unity of Heaven and Humanity. The pursuit of power is simple yet ultimate, like climbing a mountain peak, requiring the efforts of generation after generation, constant summarization and accumulation. Unfortunately, you always want to take shortcuts, hoping to find answers from the experience of your ancestors, not knowing that even your ancestors were just groping in the dark."
"Absurd! The great Emperor Shaohao sacrificed himself to save Pandaria, is that also a lie?" Sun Rouxin retorted instinctively.
Lao Xianglong snorted coldly, "Sun Rouxin, I'll teach you one last time. A so-called martial arts prodigy must first have a skeptical mind, but unfortunately, you don't possess that quality."
Sun Rouxin stared stubbornly at Lao Xianglong, her eyes wide, and said, "You still want to deceive me?"
Lao Xianglong waved his sleeves, and golden lotus flowers appeared in the air. Lao Xianglong stepped on the lotus flowers and drifted away, his voice echoing in the distance:
Come find me at the Mogu'shan Palace.
Sun Rouxin was stunned. Rokhan asked in confusion, "Why do you have that expression?"
The thief, He Ruanzu, explained, "This is the Legendary Golden Lotus Dao Heart. Master didn't deceive us; the Dao Heart truly exists."
The honest-looking Lu Ke Shizhi and said:
"Years ago, the leaders of the five holy lands joined forces to fight against Master. Master was beaten so badly that he vomited blood. Fortunately, he was saved by Chi-Ji. Who would have thought that in just a few years, Master would actually comprehend the Golden Lotus Dao Heart."
As a Darkspear Trolls, Rokhan didn't understand what the Golden Lotus Dao Heart was, so he asked, "Can the Golden Lotus Dao Heart defeat the August Celestials?"
Sun Rouxin was slightly taken aback, then shook her head.
Rokhan scoffed, "He can't even defeat the August Celestials, he's nothing but trash. Warriors of the Horde, charge into Shadowmoon Valley and wipe out the Golden Lotus!"
Generals are the backbone of the army. The elite of the Golden Lotus all perished in the Orcs camp, leaving only the sect leader and ordinary followers, who were no longer able to resist the Orcs.
A dense Pandaren had gathered at the entrance to the Mogu'shan Palace.
When they learned that the Orcs had invaded the Vale of Eternal Blossoms and intended to use the Golden Lotus followers as food, most of the followers obeyed their leader's orders and fled to the Mogu'shan Palace.
The Mogu'shan Palace is a forbidden area of Golden Lotus, shrouded in mist year-round. Occasionally, when the mist thins, the magnificent palace can be vaguely seen. Legendary has it that this is the sacred site of the ancient Mogu.
Lao Xianglong arrived riding on a lotus flower, standing high in the sky and smiling down at his followers.
"If the Pandaren want to change, they must first learn to face history squarely and abandon lies. History has always told us that the Pandaren sealed away the Mogu and became the masters of Pandaria. Unfortunately, this is a flimsy lie. The true history is much crueler; the Mogu voluntarily relinquished this land. They were far more powerful than us."
Lao Xianglong's words provoked opposition from the Pandaren, with many proud Pandaren lodging protests.
Facing the murmuring crowd, Lao Xianglong calmly said:
"The Orcs are coming soon and will turn you into rations. Only by praying to the sleeping Mogu can you be saved. What choice will you make? Face history and be saved, or cling to your pathetic pride and be eaten by the Orcs, leading to your demise."