Chapter 821: Overturning the Three Teachings, I Alone Am Supreme

"My Lord!"

A team of people escorted Aaron, emerging from the dense forest via another mountain path.

Zhan Da came to report: "The sentries we dispatched have returned; they found no signs of encirclement... We are safe for the time being. Furthermore... the dry rations carried by the subordinates will last for another three days..."

"Hmm!"

Aaron was protected in the center by dozens of soldiers, looking like a traveling Young Master or a high-ranking military general.

Upon hearing this, he fell into deep thought.

With a toss at this moment, it exploded in mid-air.

"Master?" The young Daoist, seeing his Master's ferocious expression, asked fearfully: "What has happened?"

After calculating for a while, Aaron began to contemplate his plans for the future once more.

A body of water.

Being able to lay out a plan to this extent had always been a point of pride for Gongsun Luo.

"Not so. The way of Contending for the Dragon is: succeed or die; each relies on their own ability." Zilei Daoren pinched a seal with both hands, and electric arcs seemed to flicker around his body: "In consideration of us both being of the Daoist Gate, if you immediately swear a Daoist oath to no longer participate in the affairs of either side, we shall respectfully see you off, and that will be the end of it!"

Historically, no matter whose Hidden Dragon sat upon the world, they all had to cooperate with them in order to extend their rule into the counties and villages.

Gongsun Luo gritted his teeth and took out a Dharma Treasure passed down through the Zixu Temple lineage; this treasure was a bright pearl, which seemed to contain a Talisman, emitting Mysterious Light.

Gongsun Luo's eyes were splitting with rage; after he pointed out the Dragon Cave, his Zixu Temple's support for Song Gongbao could be described as having exhausted their heart and blood—could it be that all of this was about to be snatched away by others?

Ziyao Zhenren wore a Daoist robe, his complexion slightly pale; this was the Backlash and sequelae brought about by the last change in the Heavenly Mandate of Great Song.

Gongsun Luo's expression turned cold: "I just don't know if this fog is a coincidence of Heavenly Numbers, or man-made?"

Once the sovereign dies, the Heavenly Mandate of Great Song becomes precarious; that is the logic of it!

'It seems... I still have to intervene in this game of Contending for the Dragon. Since I have been branded an evil Daoist, I cannot suffer this grievance in vain!'

What Gongsun Luo found most strange was how Song Gongbao's inexplicable idea of accepting amnesty came about?

"Calculating it, raising fifty soldiers costs fifteen taels a month just for food, not counting other expenses... The army is truly a gold-swallowing beast. And once it reaches a certain scale, the sources of goods, transportation, and logistics all become major problems."

Just at this moment, a voice sounded from the side, and Ziyu Zhenren, wearing a Daoist robe, stepped out: "Greetings, fellow Daoist!"

"Is it so easy for a rebel to accept amnesty? And... will the other side also gladly comply and attack other rebels?" The abbot was somewhat uneasy.

'This Song Gongbao, like Zhang Ye, is a Flood Dragon pre-calculated by the Grandmasters, which can be used to extend the life of Great Song...'

Zilei Zhenren placed his hands in his sleeves: "Even if you can't endure it, you must! Since the Daoist oath has been sworn, you must no longer participate in this Contending for the Dragon... otherwise, the destruction of the Daoist Lineage is no joke! I must thank my junior sister for selecting such a critical Node."

"How are the four hundred thousand Imperial Guard?"

"Could it be... that there is a problem with the Dragon Vein of Liangshan Bo?"

This Daoist had a burly figure, a dignified appearance, and a majestic air; his face was strangely ancient, and he could be considered to have an unusual physiognomy.

"Too bullying! Simply too bullying!"

Song Gongbao did not fail expectations; although he started his momentum a bit early, he was invincible in attack and battle, and was even better at recruiting talent. He had gained great momentum early on, and occupied the Xiaohuang Mountain Stronghold, which was easy to defend and hard to attack. It could be said that he had both geographical and human advantages, just waiting for the right timing.

Ziyao Zhenren's expression suddenly became mysterious: "There actually is... Song Gongbao, the master of Xiaohuang Mountain Stronghold, previously had intentions of accepting amnesty... You must mobilize our people and ensure this matter proceeds smoothly!"

A Daoist can observe the Qi Number, but it is also easy to be deluded by the Qi Number!

But the dividing line in this is a question of whether or not one has thought of it.

The reed clusters drifted, and not far away was a lake island with a small mountain on it; wild birds often flew over, and the mountain was covered in unknown flowers, which formed a scene of its own.

Once the sovereign dies, the master is young and the country is suspicious, and many people begin to have ideas.

Of course, he could forcibly order them to drink thin porridge, or even eat grass or dirt! They would absolutely not resist and would even comply with solemnity.

Alas... they were truly unable to move!

Ziyao Zhenren also understood military affairs and said decisively: "The Imperial Guard cannot move at this time. If they move and suffer a defeat, or if there is a mutiny during the march, that would be truly irreparable... The key at this moment is to stabilize through stillness; just one or two years will be enough."

'Scholars control the public opinion of the world, and naturally, they can control the hearts of the people... To compete for the hearts of the people is a huge project. But starting from this aspect, the harvest of Qi Points is also very large...'

Gao Qiu was also from a background of Civil Officials, but he had served as a military protector for a period of time, so he could be considered to understand military affairs.

In the Song system, one shi equals one hundred jin.

"Zhenren!"

Even the Six Jia Divine Soldiers still need to eat.

"Move the graves quickly at this time; if you repent and return from the wrong path, it may still be in time."

Jingcheng.

"But if this is the case, then it makes sense... Song Gongbao's capital for starting his career relied on the support of the Great Song Dragon Vein, which created a karmic debt. Therefore, his heart leans toward Great Song, and he developed the idea of accepting amnesty! He cannot even bear to attack Great Song; after all, they are two sides of the same coin, and attacking Great Song is like cutting off one's own arm!"

Ziyao Zhenren gasped, then his expression turned firm: "My Dao is tied too deeply to Great Song; at this time, I must plan for it!"

The Daoist school emphasizes that the highest good is like water, and one must also support the Dragon early.

Gongsun Luo was so angry he cursed: "Look at my Daoism!"

"The three great Zhenren of the Chongming Dao have all come out; so it was you! Good... very good!"

During previous interactions and investigations, he had never seen the other party be so loyal to the Imperial Court!

Gongsun Luo's fingers were trembling: "So it was you who were plotting against my Daoist Lineage!"

"It's fine, let us quickly go to see Leader Song and persuade him to move his ancestral graves!" Gongsun Luo gritted his teeth.

This Daoist was named 'Gongsun Luo', from the Zixu Temple lineage. He had chosen Song Gongbao as a Hidden Dragon early on, determined his destiny, presided over the relocation of his ancestral graves, and made many investments.

"Being an Emperor is too simple; there is no challenge in it..."

The chaotic world is coming, and military power will become increasingly important!

For Great Song, this army of four hundred thousand is the greatest capital for maintaining the Imperial Court and the Heavenly Mandate!

Once it cannot be grasped, or is not grasped well, a major problem will immediately arise!

But it just so happens that they have been accustomed to valuing civil affairs over military ones; civil officials generally look down on military officers, and an eighth-rank minor official would dare to scold a fifth-rank guerrilla general at will—it had almost become the norm!

Previously, Tong Jing could barely be considered someone who understood military affairs, and having served as Privy Commissioner for many years, he was still able to barely suppress those unruly military commanders.

But the recent premature arrival of the heavenly timing caused him, while observing the stars at night, to discover something was wrong.

"To hell with your 'good'!"

He scrutinized the lake and the small hills, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter: "This is truly strange... The atmosphere around the ancestral grave of Song Gongbao has not changed, so why is his Dragon Qi faintly leaning toward the Great Song Dragon Vein, even showing signs of actively submitting? This is wrong!!"

While it was fine when the Founding Ancestor was alive, once the Founding Ancestor passed away, no matter what the later Emperors were like, their power would be gradually eroded, and they might even be ridden over!

"What's more critical is... the hearts of the people!"

"It is not very good; there was another mutiny among the Imperial Guard, and it was only suppressed after cutting off quite a few heads..." The Abbot of this Taoist temple also had a poor complexion.

"But the direction of this Dragon Vein is very problematic... It did not come from nowhere; it is actually... actually a branch of the Great Song Dragon Vein?!"

"Sigh... the Heavenly Secret is changing too fast; I have no choice but to play this trump card early..."

"However, I really don't know much about this business of Contending for the Dragon; I must find someone who understands it to ask. I wonder where Dulongzi is?"

"As for the karmic debts owed? At worst, after seizing this world, I will repay them!"

Prestige is a very mysterious thing; it looks invisible and intangible, but at critical moments, one truly cannot do without it!

It is just that in terms of prestige, strategy, and seniority... he is far inferior to Tong Jing, so whether he can manage the four hundred thousand Imperial Guard is truly an unknown.

Ziyao Zhenren nodded slightly.

At this moment, a Taoist was leading a young boy, currently gazing at the Qi along the lake.

Gongsun Luo suddenly felt a surge of clear Qi enter his body, a flash of bright light appearing in his eyes, and with the help of a Dharma Treasure, he saw through the layers of the dark earth, reaching straight to the Dragon Vein in the deepest depths.

Thinking of this, he looked at the Qi Number of this Liangshan Bo again, and suddenly felt that everything was wrong!

"Since it concerns the lifeblood of a Hidden Dragon, I cannot worry about the Dharma Treasure."

"I wonder how he is doing?"

Once this thought occurred, it was as if the fog before Gongsun Luo's eyes had been pushed aside, and his heart was greatly alarmed.

"How is this possible? Why didn't I see it before?"

But in this way, combat effectiveness cannot be guaranteed.

"Master!"

As for grain prices, in peaceful times, one shi of rice costs one guan of money, which is one tael of silver.

The True Dragon that his own Daoist Lineage invested in... actually seems to be... seemingly intent on seeking amnesty?

Above the lake, a cold wind seemed to sweep through, manifesting one Array gate after another.

The young Taoist beside him exclaimed, his face involuntarily covered in tears.

Beside him, Zilei and Ziyin, two Zhenren, were also following.

"To gain more Qi Points and influence more people, there is nothing better than breaking the original Personal Attachment, or even destroying faith... First, set a simple little goal, for example—topple the three religions of Buddhism, Taoism, and the others?"

The Abbot of the Taoist temple immediately bowed respectfully and invited Ziyao Zhenren into a secret chamber.

"The Zhenren also knows that after Privy Commissioner Tong died, the two Gu Ming Ministers competed over military power, and only recently did they jointly push forward a candidate—Lord Gao Qiu, to serve as Privy Commissioner!"

"May I ask the Zhenren, what is your plan?"

But he saw that within the thick Earth Qi, an earthy-yellow Dragon Vein was spreading, with some water ripples around it.

"The chaotic world is coming, and dragons and snakes are rising together."

"Like a dragon getting water, its Qi naturally grows... The power of this Dragon Vein is very strong, and after my Point Acupuncture, it is best at gathering people... Therefore, Song Gongbao has a gathering of military talent and strategists under him, this is all correct..."

After all, the Imperial Court still holds the moral high ground. As the Privy Commissioner appointed by the Imperial Court, Gao Qiu only needs to be steady and follow the rules, and he will slowly be able to subdue the thorns in the army and then master the entire force, but it will take time!

"I fear there may not be another year or two..." The Abbot of the Taoist temple said with a bitter mouth: "The Imperial Guard in Jingshi cannot move, and civil unrest is rising everywhere... There are also the regional military governors, all of whom are restless."

At this time, the most important thing is not to let this investment go down the drain.

"If it weren't for the Emperor's rewards, I wouldn't be able to support many people, but just sitting and eating away at my savings won't work either..."

And now, with the southern rotation of rice and wheat, there are two harvests a year; wheat can yield one shi per mu, and rice can yield two shi per mu.

"It is nothing more than a plan to draw the firewood from under the cauldron," said Ziyao Zhenren. "Now, rebels are rising everywhere in Zhongyuan, and among them, many dragons and snakes are mixed. It is necessary to select the largest one to grant amnesty, then send them to attack other rebels, causing them to consume each other... perhaps this can prolong the state for a few more years!"

Gongsun Luo's face turned ashen, and he spat out a mouthful of essence blood.

A moment later, looking at the back of the young boy supporting the stumbling Gongsun Luo as they left, Ziyu Zhenren sighed: "If it weren't for the heavenly timing arriving early, with a Grandmaster shielding the Heavenly Secret, the Zixu Temple might not have discovered it, and we wouldn't have had to tear off the mask... Can this person really endure this?"

"Fifty people means fifty catties a day, one thousand five hundred catties a month, which is fifteen shi!"

Ziyao Zhenren sat down, not even having time to drink tea, and asked this in his first sentence.

"I must find a place to resupply as soon as possible... uh, a soldier in the army needs to consume at least one catty of rice a day; if there is meat, it can be a little less, and at the same time, they need to supplement vitamins..."

"If the Heavenly Secret is still okay, but if it is man-made... this is truly terrifying and fearful; it must be the work of a Great Daoist Lineage, specifically calculating for our Zixu Temple to take the blame! Truly damnable!"

For example, the nobles secretly seizing military power, or those military commanders holding the army for ransom... these are all factors of instability!

That Gao Qiu is already working very hard to suppress them and keep the four hundred thousand Imperial Guard from collapsing.

"Flood dragons are all heroes of a generation, and some even have the hope of becoming a True Dragon; under normal circumstances, it might not be possible to persuade them... but they are not in normal circumstances; the Grandmaster has already made arrangements in secret!"

Although he has already received this Dragon Qi, moving the ancestral grave might not be useful, but it is better than not moving it!

"As expected of Zixu Temple, they discovered it after all."

This task is not easy.

"The flood dragons and snakes on all sides are restless, but the Imperial Guard cannot move, so I can only let them kill each other, allowing the Imperial Court to find peace in a corner..."

At this time, with his large sleeves fluttering, looking quite like an immortal, he arrived at a Taoist temple.

But the next moment, Thunder and Electric light flashed by.

"Senior brother is too kind," Ziyin Zhenren said indifferently. "That young Taoist is naturally intelligent, and he is Gongsun Luo's own son; inheriting the Daoist Lineage in the future will depend on him. With this child present, Gongsun Luo will definitely not dare to fight to the death!"

Boom—!

The Array Flag was instantly broken, transforming into individual small banners that fell to the ground.

"Fellow Daoist... the Great Song remains the orthodoxy; we come bearing the Heavenly Mandate, and you have no possibility of stopping us." Ziyin Zhenren's voice was slow and steady, like a spring breeze brushing against one's face, dissolving the hostility: "It would be better for both sides to cease hostilities and reconcile."

In reality, he had deeper secrets he had not spoken of.

Both Buddhism and Taoism have their own divine powers and strange arts, while the Confucian school is spread throughout the world, represented by the group of bureaucrats, landlords, and scholars.

After all, rebels being fickle and capricious is the norm; unwavering loyalty is, in fact, extremely rare.

"If one's power was weak before, lying low for a time would not have been unacceptable... but now, accepting amnesty would do more harm than good. Once you submit, you lower yourself from the status of a sovereign to that of a subject. To say nothing of anything else, would those subordinates remain loyal to you or to the Imperial Court? The hearts of the people would scatter by more than half in an instant... that is a path to self-destruction!"

Some Taoist lineages do not forbid marriage, so it is a common occurrence for Gongsun Luo to have a son.

Furthermore, regarding such power and assets as Daoism and Taoist temples, unless there is no other choice, what father would not wish to pass them on to his son, instead choosing to pass them on to other Disciples?

The Chongming Dao choosing to show its hand at this moment is also because they have set their sights on Gongsun Luo's love for his son!

(End of this chapter)