Buddhism Comes by Two Roads

That sound was like the roar of a tiger and the cry of a dragon!

The Marshfolk scout jumped up, covered his ears, and his face contorted in pain.

However, the Grand Imperial Preceptor's voice was deliberately restrained. Although it was deafening, it generally impacted in one direction. The scout, whose cultivation was insufficient and whose body was weak, was thus affected.

"Hmm? My black mist is extremely thin, barely emitting any fluctuations, yet this person still managed to detect it! However, Heart Demons are not suited for aerial probing; they must find a gap in the mind and attach themselves to it."

As the thought crossed his mind, the Heart Demon smoke twisted for a moment, then a sonic wave arrived, and after the bombardment, not a trace of black mist remained.

"Hmm?" The sound that shattered the Heart Demon smoke rang out softly, "So easily? There wasn't even the slightest counterattack?"

At that moment, a deep, magnetic voice came—

"Imperial Preceptor, what's going on?"

The one who spoke was the man whose nameplate was adorned with a jewel.

"Reporting to the Second Prince," the Tibetan monk turned around, "I sensed a powerful presence nearby, someone is using their mind or Divine Sense to spy on us, but it is exceptionally weak."

The man known as the Second Prince asked in surprise, "Oh? Even with the Holy Buddha Relic isolating the surroundings, someone was still able to transmit their thoughts in. This person is no ordinary individual. Has the Imperial Preceptor discovered anything unusual?"

"It's hard to say who it is," the Tibetan monk said calmly, "But we can't stay here any longer; we need to move as soon as possible."

"The Grand Imperial Preceptor's words are absolutely right." The colorfully dressed Marshfolk stood up. "There is another stronghold in the north of the city where we can relocate. I will go and make the arrangements first."

"Thank you for your trouble." The Tibetan monk nodded.

After saying this, the Marshfolk and the scout left first.

After the two left, the second prince said, "Imperial Preceptor, Biaoxin has great ambitions. He says he will submit, but he may rebel again in the end."

"I know this matter well," the Tibetan monk said calmly. "This alliance with the Marshfolk is not intended to force them to submit to the Zanpu. Rather, it is to use this opportunity to spread the glory of Buddhism, and then use it as a stepping stone to infiltrate the Central Plains. Once the Great Rui reveres Buddhism, the Zanpu will be able to seize power without bloodshed!"

"That's true," the second prince said, a barely perceptible glint in his eyes. "However, I've heard that some people from the Central Lands went to the Buddhist kingdom to obtain scriptures, and now they've returned and have built temples and erected Buddha statues in Central Passes."

"Hmph!" the Tibetan monk sneered. "They're nothing but a bunch of opportunists, completely ignorant of the profound meaning of Buddhism."

"I see. In that case, I can rest assured." The second prince smiled slightly and said nothing more, though his mind was racing with various thoughts.

Then, the two of them walked away.

"The Barbarians want to proselytize? This is no small matter. The military town that has always guarded the west and resisted the Barbarians is the Yongping Army. The military governor of the Yongping Army seems to have been in contact with Pan Xiang and wants to lend him his elite troops. If this happens, there is a danger that the Barbarians will take advantage of the situation."

Outside, Qiu Yan, who was hiding somewhere, felt that the situation was complicated and complex.

"However, if I were to remind Pan Xiang, he would become suspicious. It would be better to inform Wen Anguo about these matters and let him make the decision and adjust the plan."

Having made up his mind, and after holding his breath and remaining still for a while, Qiu Yan finally left. He first returned to the Liu Household's old residence to tidy up, and then went to the Zhang Residence to pick up his package.

During the meal, Master Zhang warmly entertained Qiu Yan with a banquet. Many gentlemen thanked Qiu Yan together. After they had eaten and drunk their fill, some people offered to give him silver, but Qiu Yan declined them all.

After the excitement subsided, accompanied by Zhang Zhen, Qiu Yan rode in the Zhang Family's sedan chair and was taken to the Liu Household's old residence.

The sedan chair was so luxurious that it attracted the attention of Liu Household's neighbors, who all came out to inquire.

When they saw Qiu Yan emerge from the sedan chair, the group suddenly realized what was going on.

"It's Qiu Sheng!"

"I heard from traveling merchants that this Qiu Sheng is a talented scholar from Jiannan, and is as famous as Fang Ziyan and Gu Yanzhi!"

"The other day at the tavern, I heard a storyteller talking about him. They all said that this man's handwriting was exceptional! It was truly the best in Jiannan Circuit!"

"Not only that, didn't the Pan Household bring Liu Huai's sister and niece back a while ago? I heard they originally wanted to bring Old Liu back too, but he's stubborn and didn't agree."

Even the Pan Household has to give Qiu Sheng face.

"Huh? That person next to Qiu Yan looks familiar! I remember now! That's the eldest son of the Zhang Family patriarch!"

Whispers rose and fell.

As early as when the results of the Dao Examination were announced, Qiu Yan's name had already spread throughout the Liu Household area. In recent days, news of events in Wuxin City has also reached them. It is precisely because it involves veteran talents like Fang Ziyan and Gu Yanzhi that it is more likely to arouse the interest of others.

As time went on, Qiu Yan's reputation grew, which made the Liu Household's neighbors even more alarmed. They remembered that when the Liu Household was in trouble, not only did they not lend a helping hand, but some people even mocked and ridiculed them, almost kicking them when they were down.

Now, the Liu Household's fortunes are turning around, and it seems they are about to prosper, so these people are all a little scared.

Those with quick minds were considering whether to go over and get closer to Qiu Yan, but before they could make up their minds, Qiu Yan had already bid farewell to Zhang Zhen, entered the house, and closed the courtyard gate.

"Huh? Qiu Yan, your cultivation seems to have improved quite a bit."

Back in his room, he put down his package, and the Eight-Character Ancient Seal Inscription flowed from it. He opened his senses, enveloped Qiu Yan, and felt a sense of the unusual.

"Its aura is smooth and refined, as if its soul has been purified." It said somewhat uncertainly.

On the other side, a longsword flew up, shook, and made a clanging sound, "Wrong! Qiu Yan's Life Cultivation has progressed; his flesh and blood are subtly taut, clearly indicating that he has practiced some kind of method to temper his flesh and blood."

As he spoke, he moved closer and said to himself, "Not bad, not bad. If you keep training like this, you can internalize your skills into your muscles, bones, skin, flesh, blood, and internal organs. Before, you took too many shortcuts, and your foundation was unstable, like a castle in the air. You may seem powerful, but when you encounter a true master, you will pale in comparison."

These words immediately provoked Ancient Seal Script's dissatisfaction. "What do you know? Cultivating one's spirit is fundamental, while Life Cultivation's Life Cultivation is merely an aid. There's nothing wrong with taking shortcuts in cultivating one's destiny, because ultimately, when combined with the Soul Dao, one forms a Yin Spirit. Even if the foundation is unstable, there's no need to fear, since it's just a physical shell anyway."

Soon, the words and the sword were arguing again.

Qiu Yan listened with great interest, and even took out paper and pen from his package, ground the paper, and wrote down some of the content of their conversation.

As he wrote, the paper instantly pulsated with Qi and Blood, and characters, full of sinews and flesh, appeared, faintly pulsating as if they had come alive, attracting the attention of the Ancient Seal Script and the longsword.

Then, the package shook again, and the Ginseng Baby crawled out, wriggled to Qiu Yan's hand, twitched a couple of times, as if sniffing something, revealing a satisfied emotional fluctuation.

The Ancient Seal Script turned and landed in Qiu Yan's hand, swirling around the brush handle, and asked, "Qiu Yan, where did you learn these characters?" His childish voice trembled slightly.

The longsword descended, emitting a perceptive wave that enveloped Qiu Yan entirely. Feeling the trembling flesh and blood on his body, the sword's clear, resonant voice revealed a hint of surprise. "What a fine Cultivation Method for trembling flesh and blood! This Cultivation Method can mobilize minute forces, penetrating the body and stirring the flesh and blood. With perseverance, it can quickly draw out and refine the Central Pivot Soul! Where did you learn this?"

The two questions seem different, but they are asking the same thing.

Qiu Yan's calligraphy style originated from his previous calligraphy practice, but it was only when he truly took shape at Sun Xingming's School of Names that it was fully revealed in the main hall of the Zhang Residence.

Qiu Yan and Zhang Zhen rushed through the city, but instead visited the Sun Household. Qiu Yan did not bring the Ancient Seal Script and longsword with him; instead, they were taken to the backyard by the Zhang Family's servants. Although the two had sensed each other during the fierce battle at the Zhang Residence, they did not intervene and thus missed their chance. Now, seeing the Qi and Blood emanating from Qiu Yan's brush, they were astonished.

Qiu Yan didn't intend to hide anything from him, and said, "This brushwork technique wasn't taught to me by anyone else; I developed it myself. Because it's not yet perfect, it doesn't have a name yet."

"You summarized it yourself? That means you created it yourself?" Ancient Seal Script and Chang Jian were both taken aback when they heard this.

Then the Ancient Seal Script asked, "You said this character is not yet perfect? Or do you already have an idea?"

Qiu Yan nodded and said, "The muscles, bones, skin and flesh are the surface of the characters, their form and physique. But the spirit within the characters is merely the expression of emotions, not their soul. Naturally, there is room for improvement. Even the form of the characters has room for enhancement. Only by experiencing the myriad aspects of human life and understanding the changes in Human Path can the characters be continuously enriched, expressing the heart through the characters and refining the soul."

After hearing this, Ancient Seal Script remained silent for a long time, finally saying, "If the old man knew you, he might consider you a close friend."

Qiu Yan seized the opportunity to ask, "May I ask which wise man you speak of?"

Ancient Seal Script immediately retorted, "If you want to know, you must pay a thousand gold pieces! And you must also negotiate with that Min Yuan to share a bit of the Fire of Human Culture."

Qiu Yan shook his head and had no choice but to give up. He quickly packed up his brush and ink, washed up, blew out the lamp, and went to sleep.

After a night, Qiu Yan calmly went out the next morning. On the way, he clearly sensed that someone was carefully following him again.

This time, however, Qiu Yan didn't intend to shake them off. Instead, she walked slowly, had breakfast at a tavern, strolled around the market, picked up a couple of old books, and finally arrived at her destination.

The Sun Household owns a detached house.

The same old Granny Li opened the door, but she was much warmer than before. She invited Qiu Yan in, served him tea, praised Qiu Yan a couple of times, and then hurried away, presumably because she hadn't finished her business.

"Brother Qiu, please wait a moment. My father is still at the prefectural government Yamen and will not be back for a while." Sun Wei who entertained Qiu Yan, and he was warm and attentive, with a hint of flattery.

Not long after, Sun Xingming returned to the courtyard and, upon learning that Qiu Yan had arrived, immediately came looking for him.

"Nephew, you've come at the perfect time. Just now at the prefectural government Yamen, the officials mentioned you, and Lord Qi, the chief examiner for this year's Provincial Examination, spoke highly of you."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan Outer Dao, "The chief examiner, Lord Qi? Could it be that expert in water management, Qi Zhengyuan?"

"It is indeed this person," Sun Xingming said, his smile fading. "The Provincial Examination is only a few days away, and the imperial court has finally appointed the chief examiner for Jiannan Circuit. However, you should be prepared; his praise of you now may not necessarily be a good thing."

P. S.: Thanks to "Observer" for the monthly vote!