A meeting on a narrow road

"We've been here for three days, but outside... a month has passed?"

The Nine-Tailed Fox spoke as she slowly sliced through space while watching Xu Qi'an.

The two were not moving fast, but compared to Huang, who was advancing step by step, they already had a clear advantage.

"I guess so"

Xu Qi'an paused for a moment and said:

"A question suddenly occurred to me."

The Nine-Tailed Fox patiently waited for him to finish speaking before replying:

"What's the problem? And why aren't you looking at me?"

"Turning my head takes forever, it's too tiring," Xu Qi'an gave a simple and straightforward reason, then said:

"Unbelievable! How could Gods and Devils with such powerful Spiritual Essence die?"

Spatial transformation requires complete concentration and is closely related to what he can see. Xu Qi'an can only transform into a space if he sees it with his own eyes.

If you turn your head to look at the Nine-Tailed Fox, the space you'll see is in her direction, which will deviate from her trajectory.

The Nine-Tailed Fox thought for a moment and replied:

"The power possessed by each of the Transcendent Rank is unfathomable. This Gods and Devils who controls the laws of the world may not be that strong. If Huang were to fall into such a realm and unleash his innate divine power to devour everything, do you think the time-slowing law of this space could still be maintained?"

Xu Qi'an remained silent, agreeing with the Nine-Tailed Fox's statement.

The latter, out of boredom, became interested in conversation and whispered:

"The Superintendent said that the key to the first great calamity lies at the center of Gods and Devils Island. Do you think the purpose of this island's existence is to store that thing?"

Xu Qi'an immediately corrected her:

"The word 'store' is used incorrectly. Who stores it?"

Seeing the Silver-Haired Enchantress lost in thought, he dispersed his thoughts and continued:

"However, your thoughts are worth pondering. Why is this island located in the Ruins of Return? Where did the thing on the island come from? Why did it cause Gods and Devils to kill each other? Also, why were the first and second great calamities different?"

What changed between the two great calamities?

The Nine-Tailed Fox shook her head:

"Perhaps we'll only understand everything once we see that thing. The Superintendent seeing it will allow us to comprehend it."

Xu Qi'an changed the subject, and while teleporting with the Nine-Tailed Fox, he said:

I've been feeling unsettled lately! I don't know if it's just my imagination, but I keep having auditory hallucinations.

"Audio hallucination?" The Nine-Tailed Fox was startled.

"The chanting of Buddhist hymns fills my ears, and people keep calling me the Supreme Buddha," Xu Qi'an said in a deep voice.

The Silver-Haired Enchantress thought he was lying again.

The capital city, the Righteous Qi Tower.

It's midsummer.

With slightly graying temples and a handsome face, Wei Yuan sat behind the desk, glanced at the elderly man in crimson robes opposite him, and smiled:

"It's time to close the net."

Dressed in a scarlet robe, Zhao Shou stood ramrod straight, wearing an official hat. Gone was his former unruly appearance with his hair hanging down. He nodded and said:

"Message transmission and personnel organization both take time. Closing the net now is just in time to weaken the Buddha's Fate before the Dharma Assembly! How many believers has the Mahayana Dharma Church in the Western Regions gathered?"

Wei Yuan openly shared confidential information:

"According to the intelligence sent back last time, the number of people among the lower classes in the Western Regions who secretly practice Mahayana Dharma Church has exceeded 300,000."

As for now, there will only be more.

Three hundred thousand. Zhao Shou gasped, "How could there be so much?"

Wei Yuan shook his head and said:

"If His Majesty were to hear this, he would invite you to visit the Ministry of Revenue's treasury."

Zhao Shou frowned, not quite understanding.

Wei Yuan immediately told Zhao Shou about the plan of "giving money to those who convert to religion" and "getting money back by recruiting relatives and friends to convert to religion." To keep it a secret, neither he nor Huaiqing knew about it, not even the Minister of Ministry of Revenue and the Vice Minister.

Because the silver did not pass through the Ministry of Revenue, but through the customs and markets in the north and south.

Of course, this excludes those who handle the tasks at lower levels.

"No wonder the Ministry of Revenue privately complained about the lack of silver collection and wrote memorials impeaching the officials in charge of the three customs and markets, but His Majesty always suppressed them." Zhao Shou suddenly realized.

Wei Yuan took a sip of tea:

"The most powerful force in the world is always money. Even with the efforts of the Arhat Du'e over the past two years, 300,000 followers isn't a large number."

In addition to the two reasons mentioned above, the characteristics of Mahayana Dharma that make it suitable for preaching and propagation are also crucial.

It is more easily accepted by ordinary people at the grassroots level.

Zhao Shou was both delighted and frowning:

"Have we underestimated the power of Mahayana Dharma to spread? If Mahayana Buddhism were established as the state religion, given time, Mahayana Buddhism would flourish throughout the Central Plains and be difficult to contain."

Wei Yuan remained completely calm and smiled:

"Mahayana Buddhism differs from the Buddhist Order of the Western Regions; it does not produce powerful beings at the level of Bodhisattva or Buddha. Furthermore, Mahayana Buddhism worships those who Du'e and the supreme Buddha, Xu Ningyan."

After a moment's thought, Zhao Shou was relieved.

The lack of top-tier leaders means that development can be suppressed, contained, and restricted.

If the faith is in Xu Ningyan, then Mahayana Buddhism can be kept under control, preventing it from becoming a dangerous threat.

Wei Yuan continued:

"The reason I sought out Scholar Zhao here is to discuss with you how to relocate those 300,000, or even more, Western Regions to the Central Plains."

This was a massive undertaking; the escort and subsequent arrangements alone were beyond the capabilities of ordinary forces. Only a dynasty like the Great Feng possessed the necessary national strength.

Zhao Shou held his teacup and said slowly:

"Last year's cold disaster and the rebellion in Yunzhou had a great impact. The Central Plains have not yet recovered. The population has decreased sharply and the fields have been abandoned. Although this is regrettable, it is precisely an opportunity at this time."

"Great Feng has enough land to settle Mahayana Buddhism believers."

"But a large-scale migration will inevitably cause a disturbance, so it's best to move eastward in batches. As for food, midsummer has arrived, and the autumn harvest is not far off, so there's no need to worry about not being able to feed these people."

In addition, the Western Regions who migrated to the Central Plains could become an important source of labor, which was exactly what the Great Feng needed at that time.

Wei Yuan added:

"We must migrate to the Central Plains before the Dharma Assembly."

Next, the two discussed in detail the areas where Mahayana Buddhism would be settled, how to send them eastward in batches, how many people would be needed to escort them, and the planning of the routes, etc.

Finally, Zhao Shou suggested:

"Tell Wang Zhenwen about this later. Your vision for the big picture is unmatched, but when it comes to details, Wang Zhenwen is far superior."

Wei Yuan smiled and nodded, then suddenly asked:

"Is the Fate of Mahayana Buddhism now in Xu Qi'an's hands?"

Zhao Shou pondered for a moment and said:

"Since it is the state religion, Great Feng receive one-tenth, Du'e will receive one-tenth, Xu Ningyan will receive eight-tenths alone."

The dean sighed, and said with some envy:

When you were training that little Copper Gong, did you ever imagine things would turn out this way?

Upon hearing this, Wei Yuan immediately put down his teacup, tucked his hands into his wide sleeves, and said calmly:

Li Miaozhen once said:

Do good deeds and don't worry about the future.

"The same applies to me."

His smile was calm, and his gaze was gentle, but Zhao Shou could clearly sense the smugness hidden in Wei Qingyi's eyes and tone.

Look at you, Zhao Shou, so smug about being a teacher. He took a sip of tea, expressionless, and hissed.

"This is old tea, isn't it?"

Wei Yuan was taken aback, looked down at the teacup, and corrected him:

"This is the first batch of new tea grown by Mu Nanzhi this year, specially delivered by Xu Ningyan set sail."

Zhao Shou showed a puzzled expression:

"But I remember that after Xu Ningyan married Prince Lin'an, the Flower God stopped planting tea. Erlang mentioned this to tease his elder brother when we were chatting. Oh, maybe I remembered it wrong."

Wei Yuan: "."

In the Western Regions, the sky is a breathtaking blue, with white clouds hanging quietly on the horizon.

The towering and majestic Aranda Mountain Range stand tall beneath the blue sky and white clouds, as if they have existed since time immemorial.

At the foot of Mount Aranda, believers from various city-states and capitals of the Western Regions prostrated themselves every three steps toward the holy mountain.

They were incredibly devout; their faith was above all else, including family ties and reverence for the king.

In the Western Regions, theocracy was supreme, emperors were merely puppets, and nobles were servants under divine authority.

The people living in the Western Regions may disrespect the king and be disloyal to the nobles, but they cannot be without faith.

Their faith is solely devoted to the supreme and eternally unique Buddha.

Especially when they looked into the distance and saw that tall and majestic sacred mountain, their hearts were filled with even greater awe and piety.

According to the local people near Aranda, not long ago, the sacred mountain was attacked by a joint force of Demon Race from the Southern Frontier and Great Feng from the Central Plains. The commotion was so great that it could be heard clearly from dozens of miles away.

Mount Aranda was almost completely razed to the ground.

But what they saw with their own eyes was that the sacred mountain was intact, standing silently between heaven and earth.

The only evidence is that the summit of Mount Kailash is no longer covered in snow and is no longer a white-haired old man.

On a plain far from Aranda, under a Bodhi Tree, Du'e, dressed in a red and yellow robe, sat cross-legged with his hands clasped together, gazing at Aranda in the distance.

A middle-aged monk stood beside him, his hands clasped together in prayer.

The middle-aged monk had the typical features of Western Regions, with a round face. If Xu Qi'an were here, he would recognize him as the Jingchen, with whom he had clashed during the Buddhist Order duel.

"Master, a message has arrived from the Great Feng Dynasty."

Du'e nodded slightly.

Jingchen continued:

"The Great Feng plans to separate two thousand li of territory in northern Leizhou and northern Chu Prefecture for our Mahayana Buddhism to reside in, and will provide a year's worth of food. Two Transcendent, Asuro and Earth Sect Jinlian, will be stationed in the Mahayana Dharma Church Sect to guard against the Bodhisattva ' retaliation."

"Furthermore, on the day of the Dharma Assembly, the Empress agreed to issue an edict officially recognizing Mahayana Dharma Church as the state religion."

The designation of Mahayana Buddhism as the state religion was tantamount to giving Mahayana Dharma Church a formal status, which would allow it to consolidate its Fate and separate itself from Buddhist Order in the Western Regions.

Arhat Du'e nodded slightly, quite satisfied.

Jingchen paused for a moment, then said, "But Great Feng has one condition: the migration must be completed before the Dharma Assembly."

Arhat Du'e pondered for a moment, then nodded:

Just do as they ask.

Jingchen responded with a slight smile:

"Mahayana Buddhism was able to flourish right under the noses of the Bodhisattva. The Great Feng Dynasty did its best. Master, you are right. We may not believe in the Great Feng, but we can believe in Silver Gong Xu."

"No, it is the Supreme Buddha."

Without the support of the Great Feng Dynasty, which provided funds at all costs, Mahayana Buddhism would have found it difficult to develop rapidly in a short period of time, spread among the impoverished lower classes, and develop into a wildfire.

Du'e said calmly:

"The gaze of Bodhisattva is never upon the dust of the world."

The dust refers to the common people at the bottom of society.

"Xu Ningyan has not returned yet?" he asked immediately.

"No news." Jingchen shook his head.

Arhat Du'e frowned slightly and sighed:

"Hopefully, when he returns, he will already be Half-Step Martial God."

Having finished discussing the important matters, Jingchen gazed at Aranda in the distance, unconsciously lowering his voice:

"Master, wasn't the Holy Mountain destroyed?!"

Upon hearing this, the Arhat Du'e's expression became complicated, and he said:

"The Buddha is the sacred mountain, and the sacred mountain is the Buddha."

What does this mean? The Buddha turned into a mountain? Jingchen frowned.

After several days of spatial transformation, Xu Qi'an and the Nine-Tailed Fox saw a huge monster ahead. Its body was comparable to a mountain, its fur was black, it had a body similar to a goat, and six long, curved horns on its head were like thorns.

Shortage!

They finally caught up with the wasteland.

In a place even more distant than the wilderness, a pillar of light shot into the sky.

The thing the Superintendent spoke of symbolized a great calamity. Xu Qi'an and the Nine-Tailed Fox were invigorated, their hearts racing.

At the same time, Huang, who was walking slowly ahead, suddenly stopped, and then "slowly" turned his head.

A human, a fox, a Gods and Devils, and a demon—six eyes locked.

Huang's expression changed visibly, like someone who had discovered a treasure and suddenly realized that two people were trying to snatch it from his grasp.

Just then, Xu Qi'an slowly completed a short-distance teleportation right in front of Him.

The golden eyes of the spatial artifact Huang suddenly contracted.

PS: There was a bug in the time setting; it has been fixed. The ratio of the area inside to the outside world is now 10:1.