Chapter 792: The Situation Shifts Again

East Continent, Heshui Slope.

This was merely an unremarkable small dojo under the control of East Xumishan, and the one stationed here was only a Bodhisattva of Huang Liuliu's transformations, called Heming.

At this moment, the old monk, dressed in a yellow robe with a massive string of prayer beads hanging on his chest, was stumbling and rushing toward the back of the temple under the escort of several Arhats.

And on the opposite side of Heshui Slope, a Sanxian Sect female disciple covered in bloodstains, her shell-like teeth clenched tight, eyes brimming with hatred, stepped on a jade ruyi scepter, chasing after him with all her might.

"Hah!"

Bodhisattva Heming looked back in panic. What he feared was not this defeated subordinate, but the few figures unhurriedly following behind the woman.

After the Sanxian Sect had quietly sent disciples to raid the East Continent last time, it had taken considerable effort during this period of counterattack to finally show signs of driving these people out. Yet before they could even catch their breath, the Sanxian Sect had resorted to the same trick again — and this time with even greater fury, the scale of their force far exceeding the previous one!

This is going too far…

"Bald donkey, where do you think you're escaping to!" The female disciple reached above the Buddhist temple in an instant, her right foot suddenly lashing out. The jade ruyi scepter swelled violently and slammed toward the mountainside.

"Hah!"

Bodhisattva Heming, seeing there was no retreat, had no choice in his desperation but to tear off the prayer beads from his neck and hurl them out, colliding heavily with the jade ruyi scepter and sending it flying back.

"Heh."

A cold laugh rang out in the sky. The few figures behind the woman slowly stepped forward. The leader caught the jade ruyi scepter with one hand and looked down coldly at the monk below: "You still dare to fight back? What nerve."

"Zhu Shixiong Haoming, it's him who led a pack of bald donkeys, using numbers to bully the few, forcibly seizing my dojo. If not for the magic treasure bestowed by Master, I would have long died at their hands."

The female disciple caught the ruyi scepter her senior brother tossed back, and recalling the bullying and injustice she had suffered, a note of grievance crept into her voice.

"Nonsense—"

Bodhisattva Heming, seeing her aggrieved look, was instantly enraged: "Your Sanxian Sect disciples came to the East Continent to fight for dojos without so much as a word of warning — that would be one thing. But your strikes were so vicious that in just a few days you wounded over ten of my Puti Sect fellow disciples, and now you dare to play the victim!"

If the Sanxian Sect hadn't been so excessive and broken the rules, the Great Freedom Bodhisattvas in the mountain wouldn't have had to meddle in mortal affairs.

Hearing these words, the disciples who had come from Beizhou all wore a similarly grim look.

"Playing… the victim?"

Even Haoming Zhenren, who was relatively shrewd, couldn't help but laugh in anger.

They really should ask properly — the slaughtered Brother Mao Feng of Elder Chi Yun Cave, and Sister Ling Su of Lingxu Cave — just who exactly was the villain.

Everyone knew those monks' heads were still hanging on Tashan to this day. With evidence both living and material, and they still want to deny it?

After all these years of cultivation, this pack of bald donkeys hadn't made much progress in their cultivation, but their skin had grown considerably thicker.

"Zhu Shixiong Haoming, no need to waste words on him."

The female disciple gripped the jade ruyi scepter tightly once more and said sharply: "When they ganged up on me back then, they didn't speak a single word of fairness!"

As her words fell, the disciples all took out their magic treasures.

Under the surging turbulence of tribulation power, the few Arhats before the temple went pale. Even Bodhisattva Heming, who had wanted to argue further, trembled slightly all over, his chest heaving violently for a moment, and could only grit his teeth and swallow this bitter fruit.

A wise man doesn't fight when outmatched. The Sanxian Sect had gathered the strength of an entire sect to bully a single East Sumeru — the elders of the other two Mount Sumerus would absolutely not stand idly by.

Thinking of this, he ordered the monks to lay down their weapons and said hoarsely: "This humble monk concedes defeat. This dojo is yours!"

At these words, the many novice monks and Arhats all wore desolate expressions. Under the Buddha's very eyes, their own monks were actually bowing their heads to these immortal cultivators — what a humiliation.

"That's more like it."

The Sanxian Sect disciples looked on mockingly and taunted: "When you get back to East Sumeru, remember to tell your elders that if they want more incense offerings, they should teach you proper skills. Relying on those dirty tricks, you'll sooner or later incur heavenly retribution!"

The female disciple pressed her lips together. Though she still felt it wasn't quite enough to vent her anger, the other side had already dropped their weapons and surrendered, so it wouldn't do to press them further.

"…"

Bodhisattva Heming swept a hateful glance at these immortal cultivators and flung his sleeve in fury: "We're leaving!"

Just then, Haoming Zhenren's eyes flickered. He subtly glanced at the fellow disciples beside him.

They had just arrived at the East Continent and indeed weren't very familiar with the place. The sect elders hadn't given any specific instructions. In this situation, the disciples would instinctively follow those senior brothers with prestige.

True Person Qixian remained hidden and out of sight, and Zhu Shixiong Li Shan had no news either.

But there was one fellow disciple who, the moment he arrived at the East Continent, had set an example for everyone with his actual actions.

The soaring sword light in Nanping Prefecture, and the lingering stench of blood, all spoke of the Sanxian Sect's attitude.

Taixu Zhenjun, as the chief disciple of the great sect, must have received instructions from the elders. If they didn't hurry to follow suit now, by the time the dust settled they might not even get a sip of soup.

Thinking of this, Haoming Zhenren quietly clenched his hand.

In an instant, thick vines burst from the ground, intertwining with each other like an indestructible wall of trees, brazenly blocking the monks' path.

"Hm?!"

Bodhisattva Heming sensed something was wrong and suddenly summoned his majestic Golden Body dharma form. Bathed in golden light, his eyes bulged as he turned to glare back and growled: "What do you mean by this? This is a dispute over incense offerings — don't you dare break the rules!"

"Rules."

Haoming Zhenren looked on coldly, a savage smile tugging at the corner of his mouth: "Now you remember the rules. Go down and argue them over slowly with Zhu Shixiong Chu Xi."

Though the other disciples were somewhat startled, they quickly caught on — following the senior brother's lead was never wrong.

In an instant, under Bodhisattva Heming's incredulous gaze, seven or eight magic treasures, carrying blinding light, slammed toward him without mercy!

"You—"

His shrill, anguished rebuke cut off abruptly. Two fists couldn't match four hands, let alone six people ganging up on one.

The majestic Golden Body was quickly torn to shreds by the magic treasures, and along with all the novice monks and Arhats, not a single one was left alive.

"Thank you, Zhu Shixiong Haoming!"

Looking at the corpses littering the ground, the female disciple gratefully cupped her fists and bowed to Haoming Zhenren.

"No need to thank me." Haoming didn't dare put on airs and said calmly: "If you want to thank someone, thank Zhu Shixiong Taixu. He is the chief disciple of our Sanxian Sect, and this trip to the East Continent is also led by this senior brother."

He had offended the other party before, and now that he saw how things stood, he naturally had to quickly attach himself.

The other disciples, though they saw through Haoming Zhenren's fawning face, didn't mock him for it — after all, it was indeed the truth. If not for Zhu Shixiong Taixu stepping forward to break the deadlock, the elders would have been deliberating who knows how long, and the junior sister before them might not have held out until then.

"I see."

The female disciple paused for a moment, but she had no impression of this Zhu Shixiong Taixu and could only wait to meet him in person to express her thanks.

She withdrew her gaze, her mood clearly much better than before, and said with a smile, "Senior brothers have avenged me. Please, senior brothers, enjoy this blessed ground."

"No rush."

True Person Haoming looked back toward the distant, filthy, foul-smelling refugee heap and waved his hand lightly.

As the first "neighbor" of the Taixu senior brother, he was the one who understood best the power of that senior brother's methods.

"Build houses, distribute water and grain. First let them look a little human before we talk further."

"Ah?" Compared to the female disciple's incomprehension, the rest of the disciples caught on immediately, a mischievous grin spreading across their faces.

Using this method in Beizhou would naturally breed discontent, but now they were in Dongzhou, and it was time to let those monks taste what it felt like to have their own incense offerings quietly stolen away.

……

The Sanxian Sect is different from the Puti Sect.

Compared to Mount Xumi's control over Sanzhou, immortals of similar stature all stayed in Beizhou, hoping to be closer to the Sect Masters, which made things seem far too crowded.

Now that all the immortals had poured out in full force, a single East Xumi was no match for the Sanxian Sect.

After numerous disciples descended upon this place and made contact with those fellow disciples who had long been bullied, they launched their counterattack with thunderous momentum.

Haoming True Person was not the only cultivator with brains.

Among them, the battle at Nanping Prefecture, with the greatest momentum, became the model everyone scrambled to imitate.

The immortals had already come bearing grievance and fury; now that someone had taken the lead, they no longer feared rebuke from their elders, so each strike was more vicious than the last—those who could be slain were never spared, and those who could not be killed were still sought to be gravely wounded.

Soon, of the twenty-six prefectures in Dongzhou, a full seventeen fell into the hands of the Sanxian Sect.

These extra blessed grounds let the cultivators feast to their hearts' content, and only now did they realize how vast the world was. If not for the fact that Dongzhou's matters were not yet fully resolved, they would have even begun casting their eyes toward the remaining two continents.

What kind of miserable days had they lived before!

One house after another began to rise rapidly, gradually forming villages and small towns. With the immortals giving their all, those ruined prefectures began to take shape once more.

By the time the news swept through Dongzhou like a mountain wind.

The Puti Sect had already been forced to dispatch warrior monks to guard the borders of the great prefectures—not to stop the Sanxian Sect's invasion, but to intercept those wandering incense offerings.

Finally, the Buddhist temples, long accustomed to using great demons to seize imperial qi, opened their granaries without restriction for the first time, drawing refugees who packed the white jade steps, their pitch-black footprints trampling all over the resplendent great hall.

And meanwhile, in Nanping Prefecture.

In the newly built great hall, besides enshrining the Three Pure Ones, a new statue of Taixu Zhenjun had been added.

"Senior brother, I've heard those bald donkeys have all been rushing toward Yongxin Prefecture lately… That's Master Chu Xi's blessed ground. You're at the height of your fame now, so be careful."

Xiang Ming followed beside Shen Yi with some worry: "Master Chu Xi may not be the strongest among the younger generation of East Xumi, but his master is definitely the most protective."

A single East Xumi could not possibly produce three great prodigies like those of Beizhou, who could keep the entire situation firmly under control.

Beneath them, factions were tangled and disorderly, and the atmosphere of forming cliques far surpassed that of the Sanxian Sect.

In such circumstances, the strong did not necessarily outmatch those with hard backing. That Great Self-Lotus Bead Bodhisattva, who could even cast aside his own face, had truly accumulated quite a bit of prestige for his disciple.

"Originally, because of Zhu Shixiong Chu Xi's matter, East Xumi probably wanted him to keep a low profile for a while. Now this bald donkey has started gathering monks again—he likely wants to use this opportunity with you to step back into the spotlight."

The Sanxian Sect was pressing step by step. Knowing East Xumi's nature, even if those older-generation Great Self monks didn't personally act, they absolutely could not sit by and watch the likes of them grow unchecked. At the very least, they had to hold onto these last blessed grounds until the Xumi Mountains of the other two continents came to reinforce.

In such circumstances, there was an urgent need for someone to step forward and temporarily suppress the Sanxian Sect's momentum.

There was no method more effective than defeating Taixu Zhenjun.

"Understood."

Shen Yi gave a slight nod of his chin and strolled through the prefecture city.

He lowered his gaze to look at the newly laid bluestone path beneath his feet. Though it could not compare to the Divine Dynasty's former appearance, it was gradually improving.

After establishing his grand vow, Shen Yi had already ascended to the ranks of second-grade top-tier. Perhaps he still lacked in magic treasures, but in terms of realm alone, he was only one step—completing the grand vow—away from those True Buddhas and Emperor Lords.

Of course, this strength gained so swiftly came with equally severe costs.

Each day that passed, the tribulation power throughout his body would diminish by a fraction. It didn't seem like much, but accumulated over time, there would come a day when it all dissipated. When that time came, even a Sect Master's intervention could not save him from perishing.

Clearly, Wan Yao Dian, just as before, could only serve to blind the prying eyes, and could not block the Heavenly Dao's punishment for unfulfilled oaths.

But Shen Yi did not feel unwell; on the contrary, his heart felt somewhat at ease.

The things he had wanted to use this power to accomplish were already mostly done, far more smoothly than he had anticipated.

The common folk had taken on a human appearance; the younger generation of both sects had suffered heavy casualties.

In another stretch of time, the situation the Human Emperor desired would arrive many years ahead of schedule.

Thinking of this, Shen Yi turned his head to look toward the direction of the imperial city.

The only thing he now wanted to know was whether the thing that man had been secretly preparing truly had the effect of changing the world's situation and fighting for a bright future for the mortal beings of the red dust.

If it turned out to be all thunder and no rain, he would truly be angered to death.

Just then, Shen Yi's gaze slowly came to rest on a figure—a woman with disheveled hair, wearing plain clothes.

Of course, this plain attire was nothing remarkable; after all, this was Nanping Prefecture city, and the former refugees had nearly all changed into new clothes—not of the finest quality, but at least clean.

What truly made Shen Yi pause was the familiar scent on that person.

"Immortal Lord…"

Seeing Dao Lord Xuanshang approach, the woman did not try to avoid him.

She raised her head slightly; though her face was haggard, it could not conceal her former beauty.

After a moment's hesitation, the woman took out a piece of sweet peach pastry and held it out: "Thank you, Immortal Lord Taixu."

"……"

Shen Yi casually took the peach pastry, said nothing more, turned and left the place.

Gu Li silently watched the other depart.

Even she herself did not know why she had risked danger and gone to the trouble of sneaking into Nanping Prefecture city to catch a glimpse of this Taixu Zhenjun's appearance.

As the Divine Dynasty's Grand General, Gu Li had seen countless cultivators, but rarely had she seen a young man like this.

Though their stances differed, regardless of what the other's purpose was.

But at least... the entire Beizhou and East Continent had undergone earth-shaking changes because of this person.

Her thanks just now were also sincere.

A moment later, Gu Li turned and left the East Continent, heading toward the imperial city — it was time to let Your Majesty know this good news.

And on the other side.

Shen Yi strode quickly to an empty spot and stepped into the Grand Void in a single stride.

His brow tip faintly furrowed, and a bone-chilling cold surged in his eyes.

The deliberately concealed aura on that woman just now — perhaps others wouldn't notice, but he was more familiar with it than anyone.

It was precisely the Incense and Imperial Qi that all the gods and Buddhas in the heavens had fought over endlessly.

Something had happened over at the imperial city — they no longer even used jade slips, nor routed it through Ye Lan's hands, but had switched to this method to deliver the message.

He rubbed hard between his fingertips, easily crushing that piece of peach pastry.

Yet after rummaging for a long time, his hands full of crumbs, he still couldn't find anything inside it.

Shen Yi raised his head, his face full of bewilderment: "?"

(End of chapter)