Buddhist Sect

After returning to Yun Province, the first thing Gu Mo did was have the zither master set up a formation to seal Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul within it.

Forging the Dragon Scale Blade was not something that could be done overnight. Though Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul had been stripped of its consciousness by Gu Mo, it remained intact and could be rejected by the rules of the human realm at any time, eventually returning to nothingness and dissipating.

Gu Mo was currently using demonic qi to restrain it, so it would not be rejected from the human realm. However, he could not carry around this unconscious Nascent Soul forever. Once he left, the Nascent Soul's instincts might react on their own and cause trouble.

Therefore,

Gu Mo trapped it within the formation, both to ensure its safety and to prevent the Nascent Soul from returning to nothingness and dissipating.

After that,

Gu Mo began studying Heavenly Craft Exquisite and familiarizing himself with the traits of the Seven-Colored Peacock.

Meanwhile, Gu Chundong spent every day tinkering with Gu Family Manor.

Time flashed by, and winter arrived.

After winter set in, an incident that shocked the entire country occurred in Yun Province: someone had actually rebelled.

The rebel was a martial arts expert, a renowned First-rate Master from Dongping County. He gathered over a thousand people and attacked a county town, successfully killing the county magistrate and proclaiming himself the Cloud King.

However,

This "Cloud King" did not create any further commotion. The Prefecture Government Office of Dongping County urgently mobilized the County Soldiers from two nearby counties and wiped out this seemingly magnificent rebel army. The "Cloud King" himself was captured alive while fleeing by Yang Qingtong, the leader of Dongping County's Martial Arts Alliance.

Although the matter was swiftly settled, its consequences were extremely severe, even alarming the Imperial Court.

Gan Country's situation was very poor at present. Although the frontline had gained some upper hand after Emperor Gan personally led the expedition, the domestic economy was on the verge of collapse, and the pressure of survival upon ordinary people was growing ever heavier.

Under such circumstances, what the Imperial Court feared most was unrest breaking out within the country while the frontline was still raging like fire. Thus, local government offices had always kept watch over such matters, yet turmoil had emerged in the end.

In all things, the most frightening part was someone taking the lead.

The Cloud King's rebellion had not been especially large, but its nature was far too serious.

For a time, government offices everywhere were as startled as birds at the mere sound of wind, seeing enemies in every tree and bush.

Linjiang City, Gu Manor.

Heavy snow drifted outside. Chu Yuan, the Six Doors inspector of Linjiang City, held a cup of warm wine, his face filled with worry.

In previous years, this snowy season was a refined time for warming wine and chatting. But this year was different. Watching the falling snowflakes, Chu Yuan could not feel the slightest hint of elegance, because all he saw beneath this snow were bones frozen to death.

"Jiang Kingdom is bitterly cold, and the fighting at the frontline has already been forced to stop," Chu Yuan said. "For the soldiers at the frontline, this gives them a brief chance to catch their breath. But for the people at home, this snow will kill them. This winter will not be easy!"

Gu Mo sighed.

Since ancient times, it had always been this way. So long as there was war, the unluckiest people were forever the common folk at the bottom.

"Brother Gu, when do you think this war will end?" Chu Yuan asked.

Gu Mo considered it, then said, "I fear this war will not end until peace is restored under heaven. Whether Chu Kingdom wins or Gan Country wins, the war will not stop, because the other countries will not sit still and await death. They will not give the victorious country time to recover and will join the battlefield as well. Therefore, it can only end after one country defeats all the others and unifies the world."

After speaking, Gu Mo paused for a moment and said, "Rather than worrying about the frontline, you should think carefully about how to maintain public order in Linjiang County. The Cloud King rebellion in Dongping County may very well become the beginning. If large-scale rebellions break out within the country, the frontline will collapse without even needing to be attacked!"

Chu Yuan fell silent for a while, then said, "That is also what all the gentlemen of the Imperial Court are most worried about. War, war—what war consumes is lives and money. Lives are piled into the frontline, while the lives of the people in the rear grow harder and harder.

"So long as they are not starving to death, few people would risk having nine generations of their clan exterminated to rebel. This snow may become the final straw that breaks some people's backs. And if Chu Kingdom's spies secretly guide them, rebellions will arise.

"What happened in Dongping County this time was orchestrated behind the scenes by several Chu Kingdom spies. For now, as long as this snow does not last several months at a stretch, it should still be controllable. But what worries me is what comes afterward. The longer the frontline drags on, the weaker the people in the rear will become. Should they encounter even one natural disaster, it may truly become a spark that sets the prairie ablaze. Then it will be beyond control!"

Gu Mo frowned. "Then this is a gamble on national fortune."

Chu Yuan said solemnly, "In truth, Chu Kingdom is gambling as well. Though Chu Kingdom is slightly stronger than Gan Country economically, Emperor of Chu Xiao Zhaolin is warlike and has opened two battlefronts at once. Their expenditures far exceed those of Gan Country.

"If Chu Kingdom encounters a great natural disaster, they will not be able to endure either. So, Brother Gu, calling it a gamble on national fortune is not wrong. Though most factors lie at the frontline, the rear can also play a decisive role."

Gu Mo took a sip of wine and said, "I wonder how Ji Wusuan's progress is going now."

Chu Yuan asked in confusion, "Ji Wusuan? The Ji Wusuan known throughout the martial world as the greatest Diviner under heaven?"

"Indeed," Gu Mo said. "The emperor formed a team for him specifically to search for the legendary Human Realm Dragon Vein."

Chu Yuan said in astonishment, "The Human Realm Dragon Vein from the legends, said to grant heavenly destiny to whoever obtains it? Was that not just a legend?"

Gu Mo said, "It truly exists, but whether it really has such powerful effects is unknown."

Jiang Kingdom, Pingnan City.

Emperor Gan had personally led the expedition. After the winter truce began, his Temporary Palace was established here.

At this moment, Emperor Gan was reviewing memorials in his room when a guard reported outside the door, "Your Majesty, General Ye requests an audience."

"Send him in."

Very soon,

Ye Jinglan, clad in armor, entered the study.

Emperor Gan immediately rose to stop Ye Jinglan from saluting. He pulled him to sit beside the brazier and asked, "My esteemed minister, you have worked hard these past days inspecting the military camps."

Ye Jinglan hurriedly said, "It was no hardship. I returned today specifically to report on military affairs..."

Then,

Ye Jinglan briefly described the current state of the military camps.

After hearing him out, Emperor Gan's expression turned grave. "We lack firewood, clothing, and grain. We truly lack everything. But my esteemed minister, rest assured. I sent an edict back to the country long ago ordering the Crown Prince to gather military supplies. We need only hold on for another half a month."

Ye Jinglan nodded and said, "In truth, Your Majesty, the shortage of supplies is merely a surface issue. The most important matter is Tianma Pass. So long as we do not breach Tianma Pass, the army will remain tied down here, forever facing the predicament of requiring an endless stream of logistical supplies. This general suspects that Chu Kingdom intends to fight a war of attrition and drag us down."

Emperor Gan's brows drew tightly together. After a long silence, he suddenly raised his head to look at Ye Jinglan and said, "My esteemed minister, wait until spring. If Ji Wusuan still has no clues concerning the Human Realm Dragon Vein after spring arrives, then I will carry out that plan of using myself as bait."

"Your Majesty..."

Emperor Gan waved his hand. "My esteemed minister, if I spoke of the Human Realm Dragon Vein to others, they would think I had gone mad. But you are different. You know that thing is very likely real. If Gan Country obtains the Human Realm Dragon Vein, then we will have obtained heavenly destiny. If we cannot find it after so long, that indirectly proves that heavenly destiny is not with me. Then I must take a gamble. Why should I begrudge this life?"

Ye Jinglan was silent for a long time before saying, "Since Brother Gu advocated this matter, this general absolutely believes in it. I wonder, how far has Ji Wusuan progressed now?"

Emperor Gan said, "I do not know either. His last letter came before I personally led the expedition. He had already led people across the Eastern Sea into another great ocean!"

Early twelfth month.

Gu Chundong finally finished renovating Gu Family Manor, then set out with Gu Mo for Chu Kingdom.

For this journey, Gu Mo did not bring Red Clothes, because he had entered seclusion.

Over the past few months, Gu Mo, Red Clothes, and the zither master had spent much time discussing matters. Combining the martial arts manuals from Penglai Island with Gu Mo's concept of ascending through the physical body, Red Clothes had finally found a path that might allow the physical body to reach the Ascension Realm.

The zither master's talent was far inferior to Red Clothes's. Though Gu Mo guided her in the same manner, she simply could not comprehend it. She could only remain behind to guard the home, especially to suppress Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul, lest something go wrong if Gu Mo left.

Setting out from Linjiang City, the closest route to Chu Kingdom was through the northern desert, then across the great desert and into Chu Kingdom, following the route Crown Prince Li Zhongqing had taken when he fled back from Chu Kingdom.

Gu Mo and Gu Chundong traveled extremely quickly.

Although the siblings stopped and started along the way to admire the scenery, they were flying whenever they traveled. Thus, in merely ten days, they reached Tongzhou Nanling County, where Great Bright Light Temple was located.

On this day,

Gu Mo and Gu Chundong arrived at a market town.

The market town was bustling, and Buddhist culture flourished everywhere. Monks could be seen walking throughout the streets. Even the shops lining the roads hung Buddhist banners, while stalls displayed gleaming Bodhi Seed bracelets and wooden plaques carved with scriptures. Elderly women fingered prayer beads, quietly counting Buddhist chants.

However,

Neither Gu Mo nor Gu Chundong found this strange. Ever since entering Tongzhou, they had felt the rich Buddhist culture, and the closer they came to Great Bright Light Temple, the stronger that Buddhist aura became.

This was normal. Just as Taoist culture flourished in Lu Province, where Dragon Tiger Mountain was located in Gan Country, with everyone from aristocratic clans down to ordinary people believing in Taoism, Tongzhou of Chu Kingdom believed in Buddhist culture.

Great Bright Light Temple held the same status in Buddhism as Dragon Tiger Mountain held in Taoism. Both were leading sects with thousand-year inheritances, and their local influence was even stronger than that of the Imperial Court.

"Brother, where is Ye Chen?" Gu Chundong asked.

Gu Mo shook his head. "His earlier letter only said that we would meet in this market town. After we set out, we could not exchange letters anymore, so I do not know whether he has arrived. But it does not matter. We can walk around town. If he is here, he will certainly find us."

When Gu Mo had parted from Ye Chen in Northern Zhou Kingdom, they had agreed that Gu Mo would contact Ye Chen when he came to Chu Kingdom. Thus, after determining roughly when he would depart, Gu Mo had sent Ye Chen a letter. Ye Chen later replied, arranging to meet at this market town before going to Great Bright Light Temple together.

"Ye Chen kept telling me that he was very well-connected in Chu Kingdom," Gu Chundong said. "He said that once I came to Chu Kingdom, he would definitely arrange everything perfectly for me. As the famous Chosen One of the martial world and Chu Kingdom's Third Master, he should not have been boasting, right?"

Gu Mo chuckled. "It is hard to say about anything else, but with his resources and reputation, eating, drinking, and enjoying ourselves in Chu Kingdom should not be a problem..."

"Big Brother!"

Before Gu Mo could finish, a filthy, disheveled Beggar suddenly sprang out from the side and blocked his path.

"This... Beggar brother..."

Under the puzzled gazes of Gu Mo and Gu Chundong, the Beggar swept aside his hair, revealing himself to be Ye Chen.

"Wuwuwu... Big Brother... it's me! You finally came! If you had come any later, I would have died here!"

Ye Chen wept bitterly, tears and snot streaming down his face, looking utterly miserable.

Gu Chundong asked blankly, "Ye Chen, did your family... go bankrupt?"

"No," Ye Chen said. "Oh, Sister Gu, how could I possibly go bankrupt? Money is what I lack least, all right?"

Gu Chundong looked him up and down, her face full of suspicion. "You really do not look like it."

"Alas," Ye Chen sighed mournfully. "Looking like this was truly forced upon me!" As he spoke, he looked around before beckoning in a low voice, "Come, come, come. Big Brother, Sister Gu, follow me."

Then,

Ye Chen led Gu Mo and Gu Chundong into a mountain outside town.

He impatiently dug out a roasted chicken wrapped in lotus leaves from a pile of mud. Drool nearly streamed from his mouth. Fighting down his reluctance, he tore off two drumsticks and handed them to Gu Mo and Gu Chundong. "Eat, Big Brother, Sister!"

Gu Chundong asked doubtfully, "Ye Chen, did this chicken grow up eating Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure?"

"No, it is just an ordinary chicken," Ye Chen said.

"Then why do you look as though you are cutting flesh from your own body? Did you really go bankrupt and become unable to afford even chicken?" Gu Chundong said. "If you truly went bankrupt, just say so. That way, I can prepare myself and hide my purse better!"

Ye Chen: "..."

Gu Mo smiled and said, "All right, enough joking. Ye Chen, what exactly happened?"

Ye Chen sighed. "After arranging to meet you, Big Brother, I hurried to this market town to wait for you. But I never imagined that the people of Nanling County had become so crazed in their Buddhist faith that no one was allowed to eat meat."

While eating the roasted chicken, Ye Chen said, "Eating even one bite of meat in Nanling County now is like violating the Heavenly Law. Those people will beat you to death."

Gu Mo asked in confusion, "Surely not? Believing in Buddhism does not mean entering the monastic life. Besides, even monks would not forbid others from eating meat, would they?"

"Exactly," Ye Chen said. "But Nanling County is this insane now. Not only does every household eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist scriptures, they do not allow anyone else to eat meat either. From government offices to ordinary commoners, everyone is like this. And you absolutely cannot speak badly of Buddhism, or you will certainly provoke public wrath.

"Big Brother, you know I cannot live without meat. I cannot go a single meal without it. Would I not be driven mad here? I had arranged to meet you here, and the nearest market town is dozens of li away. That place still seems to allow meat for now, or at least it did when I arrived.

"I was afraid that if I went too far away for meat, I would miss you. So I had no choice but to stay in this town. To eat meat, I could only disguise myself as a Beggar. Otherwise, if people recognized that I, Ye Chen, was stealing chickens and dogs, would I not be laughed to death by my martial world peers? To preserve my reputation while still eating meat, I could only look like this.

"Every time I steal a chicken, I get beaten. Even offering money does not work. Those people simply forbid killing living creatures. So long as someone shouts, they will swarm forward and attack!"

As he spoke,

Ye Chen swallowed, then still handed the drumstick to Gu Mo. "Big Brother, eat some. You are going to Great Bright Light Temple now. The closer you get to Great Bright Light Temple, the less chance you will have to eat meat!"

Gu Mo frowned and asked, "Has Nanling County always been like this?"

Ye Chen shook his head. "No. Though Buddhist culture has always flourished in Nanling County, at most there were many believers and more Buddhist temples. It was never this insane.

"Nanling County now is no longer a matter of whether one believes or not. It is faith. Everyone has a fanatical faith in Great Bright Light Temple and Buddhism. I feel that if Great Bright Light Temple wanted to rebel and raised its arm in a call to action, the people and officials of Nanling County would follow them into rebellion without hesitation.

"I heard many martial world friends say earlier that Great Bright Light Temple was expanding madly and might stir up a martial world conflict. I did not pay much attention at the time, but looking at it now, this is far more than a martial world conflict. If no one pays attention, I fear it may bring about a change of dynasty."

Gu Mo asked doubtfully, "Does Chu Kingdom's Imperial Court not care?"

Ye Chen said, "That is the strange part. Such enormous changes in Nanling County seem to have drawn no reaction from the Imperial Court at all. And it is not just the Imperial Court. At first, there were some rumors in the martial world, but gradually, even those disappeared.

"Logically speaking, when Great Bright Light Temple first made its moves, people in the martial world became wary. Now that it has nearly gained control over all of Nanling County, it should have created an even greater stir in the martial world. Yet instead, no one mentions it anymore.

"If I had not personally come here, I would never have realized that Nanling County had become like this!"

"When did it begin?" Gu Mo asked.

"Last year... in the latter half of the year," Ye Chen said.

"Brother," Gu Chundong said, "is there anything abnormal about those people? Could they have been controlled by a Spiritual Secret Technique?"

Gu Mo shook his head. "If they were controlled by a Spiritual Secret Technique, I could not possibly fail to notice it. Besides, whose Spiritual Secret Technique could be powerful enough to control an entire county?"

"Pure brainwashing?" Gu Chundong asked in surprise.

Gu Mo nodded. "For now, it seems so."

"Then what does Great Bright Light Temple want?" Gu Chundong asked.

"We can only ask Dharma Master Liansheng," Gu Mo said. "From what I know of Dharma Master Liansheng, he should not do this for personal gain."

"Probably not," Ye Chen said. "Other than persuading the people to believe in Buddhism and Great Bright Light Temple, I have found nothing else unusual. Those people are no different from normal; they simply have an additional rule forbidding meat.

"Great Bright Light Temple has not used this chance to amass wealth or exploit the people. Instead, it has opened its granaries and distributed grain in large quantities, providing relief to the people. Especially this year, with the Imperial Court levying taxes madly for the war and this year of heavy snow, many people in Nanling County survived only because of Great Bright Light Temple's aid."

Gu Mo said solemnly, "Then let us go ask."

At once, Ye Chen quickly finished the chicken, then ran into the woods to change into a fresh set of clothes. Afterward, the three of them headed for Great Bright Light Temple.