Chapter 405: Luofu Daoist Methods

Inside Ganzhou City, the chief official, assistant officials, military officers, heads of great clans, and two Immortal Truths from Luofu Mountain gathered in one hall.

"The rebel army already shows signs of rising within the Jiangnan West Circuit. In the lands of Jiujiang, there were Immortals of Mount Lu who tried to stop them, but they ended up losing their lives one after another. Beyond their advanced military equipment, they are also skilled in demonic arts. In essence, they are birds of a feather with the former Yellow Heaven Sect. The Longevity Sect that once poisoned Jiangnan is merely a minor skin ailment compared to them."

"What do those few from Mount Lu count for?"

The two Immortal Truths who descended from Luofu Mountain sneered: "We are the Taiyi Profound Gate lineage from the Shangjie; they are nothing but the Witch Sect's spirit arts, a difference of more than just a little. Moreover, the five of them were merely at the Earth Immortal cultivation level. Have you not heard of that Slaying Dragon Spirit Treasure Celestial Master? Since he could slay the Long Life Sect Leader and slay the two dragons of Poyang, he is no nameless nobody. Relying on just one grand array, how could they possibly stop him?"

The Ganzhou Prefect believed he had already achieved Equal Field and that internal rebellion would not arise; what was missing was this kind of "God Immortal art." Speaking of God Immortal arts, the great clans were no strangers to them. When the Daheng Dynasty was first established, everyone under heaven could cultivate. It was only later that the imperial court destroyed and banned it. As the largest sect, they exterminated all sects under heaven to weaken the people's strength, lower the people's wisdom, exhaust the people's bodies, and impoverish the people's wealth to maintain their rule.

After the Great Heng Dynasty perished, the Great Ning Dynasty continued to do the same, but great clans still preserved cultivation methods, though it gradually became difficult to achieve great success. Thus, some continued to walk the secular path, while others went up the mountains to cultivate.

The Ganzhou Prefect once had a clansman who entered Luofu Mountain to cultivate, and among these two cultivators, one was that clansman's Ancestor.

"Two Immortal Truths, what exactly is the difference between this Taiyi Profound Gate and ordinary practitioners?"

"Naturally, there is a difference. My lineage originates from the Taiyi Dao Fruit; it was the Luofu Great Dao Lord who bestowed the lineage, and only then did we have our Luofu Sect. The methods of cultivation within our sect point directly to ascension. Once ascended to the Shangjie, there is also the Luofu Immortal Sect of the Shangjie to receive us. Our lineage stretches across immeasurable kalpas."

The two Daoists were incredibly arrogant, though in truth, they were simply bragging.

Xu Jia always said he was in the Desire Realm, at most a village official, and ascending to the Form Realm was merely being transferred to a county; his own sect was still the Great Luo Orthodox lineage.

As for how much of a connection there really was, he knew it in his own heart. Did he really think that just because he tied on a red scarf, he was a successor?

These two, one was Luofu Ye Zhenren and the other was Luofu Zhang Zhenren, both were in the God Immortal Realm.

They said: "Our Luofu boasts five Great Celestial Immortal Great Daos, sixty gates of Divine Immortal Great Daos, three hundred gates of Earth Immortal Great Daos, and eight hundred side door minor arts. In the lands of Minyue, we have one hundred thousand disciples and followers."

They were very proud: "Just watch us sit in command here; disasters will not descend, the winds and rains will be favorable, and we will make their cannons fail to explode upon landing and their firearms graze past without effect!"

"What Immortal art is this?"

"It is the Avoidance of Blades and Thunder Fire Talisman." The two Daoists pulled at the air, and a yellow ribbon fell down with a Register written upon it: "As long as the camp troops and horses tie on this ribbon, they will have no fear of the wounds of blades and weapons, and no dread of the might of thunder and fire."

"This... is this truly so?"

"Why not put it to the test!"

Immediately, a squad of armored soldiers stepped out, each tied on a yellow ribbon, covered their eyes, and turned their backs to the crowd.

A row of riflemen behind them hesitated, unable to bear pulling the trigger.

"Fire!"

At the order, they still fired their bullets at their former brothers.

But unexpectedly, they only heard the sounds of "bang, bang, bang," yet no one fell; the pellets all bypassed them.

"Is it truly so powerful? Then why not promote it to the three armies? Prepare it in abundance?" "The great calamity of life and death consumes the fortune of one's remaining life. Avoiding blades, weapons, and firearms—although it is said that one who survives a great disaster will surely have later blessings, this is, after all, just to comfort people. Life is full of impermanent events; how can they be avoided? This talisman also has a limited number of uses. Each time it blocks blades, weapons, or thunder fire, it consumes one ji, or twelve years, of fortune. Once it is used up, one must consider how to die. One might trip and die, might choke to death while drinking water, might die from a mosquito bite while relieving oneself..."

Ye Zhenren said: "This talisman ultimately goes against the harmony of heaven and cannot be used too much. It must be used in critical battles to break the opponent's momentum and curb their southward advance into the sea. Otherwise, if the dragon swims into the vast sea, the Great Ning Dynasty will have no possibility of suppressing the rebellion and forcing submission."

"Twelve years of fortune to withstand one death-calamity is still a profit. After all, if one is hit by a bullet, one truly dies. These soldiers were originally meant to charge and break through lines for the country; now, having a few extra lives is already an extra grace."

"Hahaha!"

"If it is only this, I fear it is still difficult." Zhang Zhenren said: "This is defense, not offense. I have another item here; it is one of our Luofu's eight hundred side door minor arts, a secret technique of artifact refining."

"What is this victory-securing magic treasure?"

"The Luofu Flame Cart."

"This treasure was originally a magic treasure of the Heavenly Court Fire Department, later left behind in the human world. Our Luofu obtained it and improved it, so that even ordinary vessels can be refined."

In his hand, he revealed a magic treasure, which looked like a single-wheeled cart with two flags inserted on it, bearing flame patterns. There was a bucket on the cart, in which liquid could be faintly seen, and a nozzle outside the bucket.

"This is the magic treasure refined by this poor Daoist, capable of releasing fire dragons, fire phoenixes, fire qilin..."

"Refined from ordinary goods, it only requires craftsmen to put in the effort, forging it from wood and iron, and adding a bellows device to spray fire oil. Once the fire oil is ignited, it becomes a fire dragon of over ten zhang. If these carts are arranged into a grand array, the oil sparks will ignite upon contact and be difficult to extinguish once they stick to the bones."

"It is just that it harms the harmony of heaven; those who use this device will also have shortened lifespans and cut off their descendants."

"As long as we can win, what is there to fear about that?"

The Prefect praised it repeatedly: "Quickly go to the Craftsman Directorate, bring those Household Officials over. If they cannot make this cart within three days, have them bring their heads!"

On the other side, at Chen Gongming's location, he had already dispatched people to scatter firearms among the homes of the common people. Not for anything else, but so that the people would have guns in their hands to ignite the spirit of resistance.

They were all tenant farmers, without land or property, and even without wives or parents. Most were poor and wretched into old age, barely putting together a shack to live in, not even as good as the conditions of the landlord's cowshed—the landlord's cowshed at least had rammed-earth walls and a tiled roof.

"Their strength is weak, and their heart-Qi is mediocre. We are all people of cultivation, and our courage-Qi is sufficient; why must we unite with them? What if someone among them informs?"

"The other side thinks the same way. They possess power and think they can sit securely on the throne. But you must understand where our power comes from, who your father and mother were in the beginning, and who you are. After climbing up, do you look down on them now?"

"Furthermore, they also possess power that cannot be ignored; they also possess the potential to grow into you and me. We have walked to this day, to this moment, always to do one thing: fairness, fairness, and still, damn it, fairness."

"They also have the right to bleed and sweat to win merit; it is not just the right to bury their heads in farming for a lifetime and be exploited by others."

"Think about it, everything we eat and use every day, isn't it all provided by them? The more we waste, the less they eat. These grains, these vegetables, we cannot eat them for nothing. To be a person, one cannot forget one's roots."

(End of chapter)