Heart Defies Thought, Qi Connects with Ghosts

Puff!

He spat out another mouthful of blood, Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio to the ground, his face deathly pale. Yet, he still stared wide-eyed at Qiu Yan, his mouth agape, uttering weak words. "My... my enlightenment... my Dao..."

The person was already barely breathing.

The change came so suddenly that no one could react in time!

Qiu Yan, who was standing nearby, was receiving many insights and feeling the slowly descending Force of Order; his thoughts seemed to take flight.

This Order, ethereal as the wind, has a sense of being unrestrained by the world. Just being there broadened Qiu Yan's State of Mind considerably, but since it did not align with his intentions, there was still a barrier. Many of its wonders were like scratching an itch through a boot—he could perceive them but could not touch or understand them.

"This Force of Order must be the one formed from the thoughts of the Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio, which descended upon me due to Karma entanglements!"

Thinking this, he had a sudden thought and looked closely. He discovered that the Karmic Thread that he and Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio had each held were almost gone, but they had not disappeared. Instead, due to Qiu Yan's forceful actions, they had been completely pulled back.

Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio failed to grasp the last point, causing the Karma to become unbalanced. The insights he had gained were also transmitted through this Karma and effect!

Originally, with the two forces at odds and Qiu Yan distracted, Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio had gained the upper hand. However, Qiu Yan then used his divine Incense Faith and Divine Spirit Body power to analyze the Buddhist light and Confucian words. The information flowed into his heart like a torrent, allowing his understanding of Buddhism to grow from nothing to something, from shallow to deeper. Gradually, his understanding harmonized with the surrounding temples, and his Fortune naturally increased.

In this way, the advantage that Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio had wholeheartedly gained was instantly lost, and both sides returned to the Qidian. However, Qiu Yan used tea to carry his thoughts and wrote down the sentence "The inner and outer ways can be combined and made clear," which made the future of this temple vaguely apparent, and the Fortune of the entire Buddhist Sect in Central Lands suddenly changed.

This fluctuation naturally affected Qiu Yan as well. Although it was not intentional, Qiu Yan regained the upper hand in terms of Karma and effect.

When the three monks returned from their pilgrimage to the West, although this branch in the Central Lands was still a small sect with only a handful of people, Buddhist Sect as a whole was a colossal entity spanning several Continent, with immeasurable Fortune and Karma.

The three monks' location was vaguely the foundation of Buddhism in the Central Plains. Their sudden thought, with the same intention, naturally involved many people, and they also placed their hopes for the development of Buddhism on Qiu Yan.

With favorable timing, location, and popular support, how could there be any reason for defeat?

Compared to this, the dedication and focus of Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio seemed insignificant, and the stalemate between the two sides came to an end. Qiu Yan achieved final victory through this Nonaction-in-Action.

Those who act justly will find many supporters; those who act unjustly will find few.

This defeat, coupled with the Karma vow he had made, not only severely injured the Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio, but also caused the Order he had cultivated to backfire, throwing his thoughts into chaos.

After the Thought-Convergent Order, the mind connects with the Source of Order. This backlash makes it difficult to even maintain State of Mind, causing thoughts to wander and many insights to flow out and be fed back into Qiu Yan's heart.

"Could a debate between Grand Confucian really yield such results? Hmm?"

Qiu Yan was puzzled, but the next moment, following his comprehension, even a fragment of the Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio's memory leaked out in the instant his mind was off guard. Karma and effect were connected, and in the hazy moment, Qiu Yan noticed a thought in the other party's heart.

"Hmm? Stealing my Sage Spirit? Establishing Sage Worthies Hall? My time is almost up?"

As this information flowed in, Qiu Yan, following the Karma and effect, vaguely touched upon the past experiences of the Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio. These fragments of memory, analyzed by the Incense Faith within the Divine Spirit Body, were quickly reassembled into a complete form.

"This man was indeed a seeker of the Dao, toiling for half his life, Thought-Convergent Order, achieving the reputation of Grand Confucian, and then finding solace in nature. After returning home, he opened a school and taught students, not concerning himself with politics or strife, living a carefree life. However, the human heart is fickle, and one's thoughts can differ from one moment to the next, let alone from one's past life to the next. In his later years, this man developed the idea of spreading his Dao to future generations."

Qiu Yan could understand this idea. In his previous life, there were many people who were open-minded throughout their lives, but could not see through life and death, and their temperament changed drastically in their later years.

"Unfortunately, this idea contradicts the Order he aligns with, causing his thoughts to increasingly conflict with himself, which in turn shortens his lifespan!"

Qiu Yan was somewhat surprised to learn this.

"Even after Thought-Convergent Order, such things still occur. However, it makes sense. The flowers shed tears at the passing of time, and birds startle at the sorrow of parting; emotions have a profound impact on the human heart, capable of distorting the senses. When the pursuit of Order is fulfilled, one naturally experiences physical and mental well-being. But if one's own thoughts conflict with Order, causing inner turmoil, over time, this will naturally affect one's physical health. Order is vast; how can it be changed by the thoughts of one person? Ultimately, it can only lead to increasing contradictions, a more chaotic mind, and a vicious cycle."

"Strictly speaking, the Dao of Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio is not entirely Confucianism. His involvement in the world may have an impact, but it is unknown whether his State of Mind will regress if he continues to defy the Order. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why he is so eager to achieve quick results and seize the Sage Spirit."

As they talked, Qiu Yan shook his head. The other party was plotting against him. Although his life was regrettable, he would not be like the Mr. Dongguo who was deceived.

"Without a firm will, it is impossible to achieve Thought-Convergent Order. Not all Grandmaster are Confucianism, and the interpretation of classic texts is not uniform. Perhaps some people have poor personal morality, but in the face of Order, all things are the same. As long as one understands the Great Dao, one will receive rewards. This Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio harbors hostility towards me, and is the most dangerous person. This person's time is coming to an end, and he is willing to create Karma to gamble everything. His decisiveness is evident, and we must be wary of him."

Qiu Yan was confident that he could educate ordinary people, but he was not so arrogant as to think that he could distort the will of a Grandmaster.

These thoughts flashed through his mind like lightning. The Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio opposite him fell to the ground, but his eyes were firm and his whole person exuded a resolute aura, which was completely different from the previous ethereal mood.

"I... truly underestimated you, but... my perception and Order cannot..." As he spoke, his eyes slowly filled with blood, as if flames were burning within them!

"You're the one who started this conflict, why would you hold a grudge against me, Qiu? That's far too domineering!"

Qiu Yan shook his head, his heart blazing with Heart Fire. His Heart Ape leaped out, following the flow of enlightenment and cause and Karma, and surged upstream, rushing into Nine Rhymes's heart!

At this moment, the Grand Confucian was filled with rage and was completely unprepared. He never expected that Qiu Yan would suddenly make a move!

With a scream, the renowned Grandmaster of Prosperity Capital rolled his eyes and fainted.

"Qiu Sheng! What are you doing?" Senior Chen noticed something amiss and shouted sternly.

Qiu Yan glanced at the group and said, "A senior once told me that seizing someone else's fortuitous opportunity is not something that can be easily accomplished. I wonder if Master of Nine-Rhyme Studio knows this principle?" After speaking, he bowed and walked towards the palace gate.

As he stepped out the door, Heart Ape returned, carrying with him an invisible radiance, surrounded by a large number of popular figures!

Call!

The People's Wishes are like the wind, yet they cannot stir one's clothes; they may seem intangible, but they can support the world.

"I wonder how many ripples this debate will cause. However, the matter of the three monks is a headache for the Grand Confucian. I need to take some time to reflect."

Lost in thought, Qiu Yan walked out of the temple gate. Suddenly, he stopped, looked at a patch of earth, and blew out a breath.

The air fell to the ground, causing a sudden drop in temperature. A chilling aura emerged from the soil, swirled in mid-air, and transformed into a scholar—none other than Xi Muyuan.

He was a talented man in life, but now he is sinister and gloomy, his hair disheveled, covering half of his face, and his eyes are filled with Chaos.

"Unwilling..." He opened his mouth and unconsciously uttered two words. His voice was so light that it was almost indistinguishable unless you listened carefully.

"What a pity. What a pity..." Qiu Yan shook his head, blew another breath, and in this breath was a hint of the philosophy of Way of Knowledge and Action.

As his spirit returned to its peak, Xi Muyuan shuddered violently, and numerous swastikas fell down. He then stretched and looked around in a daze. Upon seeing Qiu Yan, he suddenly snapped out of his daze, opened his mouth to call out, but then, as if remembering something, fell silent.

After a few breaths, he suddenly said, "I am already dead."

"That's right, you're dead, but your soul remains," Qiu Yan nodded. "If you have any last wishes, you can speak them. If it's within my power, I will do my best to fulfill them."

When Xi Muyuan was alive, he was very concerned about Qiu Yan's affairs. After he died, his expression was not very natural when he saw Qiu Yan, but after thinking for a while, he shook his head. "Life is short, and there are too many things I want to do, but what's the use of entrusting them to others? In the end, it's not my own doing."

"Oh?" Qiu Yan was slightly surprised, then carefully examined the other person, catching a glimpse of a magnanimous spirit in his soul. "Indeed, he has experienced life and death, the great terror and profound understanding between life and death, which is invaluable."

He then said, "Your life and death are intertwined with Karma. Although it is related to me, the root cause of your demise lies with someone else. Would you like to investigate?"

"It's pointless to say all this now," Xi Muyuan shook his head and said seriously, "However, there is something I need to remind you of, and I hope you can pass it on to my master. There are people from other Continent lurking in that Scholar Forest. In my previous life, I was blinded by greed and actually wanted to conspire with a tiger, so I pretended to befriend demons and evil spirits. Now that I think about it, it was clearly like inviting a wolf into the house."

Qiu Yan nodded, unsurprised, then waved his sleeve. "Since you have no wishes, I, Qiu, will send you to the underworld."

"Wait a minute!" Xi Muyuan said unexpectedly, "It would be a lie to say that my wish has been fulfilled. It's just that other things are no longer possible, but there is one thing that I want to clarify."

"What's up?"

Xi Muyuan looked at Qiu Yan and said, word by word, "I want to see where I fall short compared to you."

Qiu Yan was taken aback upon hearing this, then sighed.

Meanwhile, in the Imperial Palace, the emperor and his ministers were still conversing. After a while, Li Kun let out a long sigh and said, "Then it's settled. Let Qiu Yan go to Luo Li County for training first."

He and Wang Fu finally reached an agreement, but just as they were making their decision, news reached the ears of the old man with the white face. This caused the emperor's chief attendant to change his expression. He disregarded everything else and stepped forward to say to Li Kun, "Your Majesty, I have just received news. This old servant thinks you should listen to it first."

Meeting the emperor's questioning gaze, the white-faced old man continued, "This matter is related to Qiu Yan."

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