Chapter 787

Shangguan Wan also found this reasonable and nodded in agreement.

"As for the Pusi Qu Snake and Mu Honglian, I think we should just ignore them!"

Speaking of the final matter, Wu Zetian turned toward the west and said,

"Ying Zheng is utterly tyrannical.

Though the Liusha appears to be at odds with the Qin Ting, it still lies within the Great Qin Realm.

If we move against Mu Honglian, this Qin Huang will surely fly into a rage!"

"Good!"

Shangguan Wan nodded, her brow relaxing.

Though many affairs of the Great Tang were within her authority to decide,

matters of this magnitude still required the Empress Dowager's personal decision.

Now that the decision had been made, Shangguan Wan would simply carry it out.

Great Yuan, Imperial Court.

Before the Heavenly Dao Hundred Flowers List had been released, Tie Muzhen was listening to a report from a Gao Seng of Mingwang Temple.

"You mean? The Right Dharma Master is a demon?"

This Gao Seng of Mingwang Temple clearly had lost his sanity.

Trembling, he repeatedly spoke of demons, horrors, and other such things—his actual description matched the scene of Pudu Cihang's possession.

Tie Muzhen listened to his fragmented account and realized the possession was indeed terrifyingly strange.

First, a vast meditation chamber had been prepared, where a thousand priceless spiritual children sat in silence, waiting.

Then Wanchan, exuding irresistible allure, entered the chamber.

Though strange sounds occurred during this time, overall it remained relatively calm.

But when Wanchan emerged, she was visibly exhausted.

She then demanded to rest, without waiting for Pudu Cihang's possession to complete.

She ordered all present Mingwang Temple monks, Great Yuan guards, and others not to disturb her under any circumstances.

Everyone present knew this demon emissary held an exalted status in the Great Yuan.

She had even stormed the Imperial Court to secure cooperation.

Thus, no monk or guard dared defy Wanchan's command.

What followed grew increasingly bizarre.

This meditation chamber had originally been used by Mingwang Temple monks for morning rituals—spacious and bright, naturally.

It was also steeped in Buddhist aura, serene and tranquil beyond measure.

Yet less than an hour after Wanchan exited,

wild screams erupted from within.

The screams left those outside utterly bewildered.

Every person who heard them felt their hair stand on end.

Even Gao Seng from Mingwang Temple emerged to chant sutras, hoping to dispel the fear in their hearts.

But the screams grew more agonizing, as if the chamber had become a hell on earth.

The novice monks and guards surrounding it felt an inexplicable terror, even as they bathed in the chanting—unable to resist the sound.

Finally, with no other option, everyone retreated a great distance.

Yet by midday, the screams had spread throughout the entire Mingwang Temple.

Countless monks were disturbed, unable to cultivate in peace,

and some low-level novices with shallow Buddhist cultivation even committed suicide publicly.

Some gouged out their hearts, others set themselves ablaze, still others slit their throats…

Various gruesome self-destruction scenes abounded.

Even monks of higher cultivation, upon seeing them, felt their scalps tighten.

Yet this demonic sound, like a cursed chant, left everyone utterly helpless.

A single misstep could lead to self-destruction.

Know that Mingwang Temple, though called a temple, covered an enormous area.

Within the Great Yuan's imperial city, it was only slightly smaller than the Imperial Court.

Yet the demonic screams had now permeated every corner—these monks, guards, and novices could only evacuate, taking the spiritual children and other assets with them.

This demonic sound persisted for a full day and night.

On the second morning, someone discovered the screams had ceased.

Led by their abbot, the monks rushed back into Mingwang Temple.

Upon returning, they found the once-sacred Fomen temple now transformed into a hell on earth.

The monks who had killed themselves the day before now looked even more horrific.

When they reached the chamber where the possession had occurred and opened the door, a foul stench surged out.

Just as the monks feared this place too had become a hell, they saw the thousand spiritual children still seated exactly where they had been.

The Gao Seng reporting to Tie Muzhen, curious, stepped forward to examine them.

He did not realize—until he looked—that he was horrified.

The spiritual children appeared intact on the outside.

But inside, all bones, flesh, organs, and more had been devoured clean by an unknown presence.

Everything inside—the spine, the flesh and blood, the organs, and so on—had almost all been gnawed clean by some unknown existence.

The others who saw the gruesome sight, including the abbot, felt their scalps go numb, and one after another they all vomited.

Only that Gao Seng managed with great difficulty to steady himself somewhat.

At that moment, a gaunt Gao Seng appeared, styling himself Pudu Cihang.

After exchanging Gao Jianli with the group of monks, he paid them no further heed and vanished in a flash.

That Gao Seng, trembling all over, then came to find Tie Muzhen to report.

Listening to this Gao Seng finish his rambling account, Tie Muzhen too felt his scalp go numb.

The reincarnation method used by Wang Si — or rather, hosted by the Great Yuan Golden Family — was in fact a special Famen that took the martial artist's spirit body.

And transferred it into the Ling Tong, then observed whether it would merge.

Although it was quite wondrous, it still ultimately remained within the Fan Chou of the martial Dao.

But in Wang Si, regarding Pudu Cihang's Demon Infusion, every detail was indeed unspeakably bizarre.

Just hearing the demonic sound flood the ears, those whose cultivation was insufficient would commit suicide.

A thousand Ling Tong were gnawed down to nothing but empty skin.

All these things, though Tie Muzhen had not witnessed them with his own eyes, still made his hair stand on end.

He was pondering whether he should summon Pudu Cihang or Wan Wan to come and question them clearly.

At that moment, the Heavenly Dao Hundred Flowers List appeared at the right time.

This Heavenly Dao Hundred Flowers List and the Heavenly Dao Golden List were now must-sees for the people of the Nine Provinces.

Even Tie Muzhen watched it through with great interest.

Seeing the key secrets of the Great Qing mentioned, as well as the cultivation method for Mu Honglian's Bashe Serpent within the Great Qin Realm.

How could Tie Muzhen still remember anything about Pudu Cihang? He only thought of sending people to the Great Qin and the Great Qing to obtain these two things separately.

But just as he was about to give the order, he recalled that now nearly all of Great Yuan's experts had already gone out.

Pudu Cihang, who had just succeeded in the Demon Infusion, had also already quietly departed.

Tie Muzhen felt miserable at heart, only feeling that although he sat ruling Great Yuan, he did not have enough experts at his disposal.

He immediately stopped thinking about the bizarre origins of Pudu Cihang, and only wondered whether to once again open the Thirteen Wings, to add more experts to Great Yuan.

Just at that moment, a Buddhist invocation rang out.

He saw that, at some unknown time, a child-like little Monk had suddenly appeared beside Tie Muzhen.

"National Preceptor? (Living Buddha?)"

At the sight of the newcomer, although the appearance had somewhat changed, Tie Muzhen and this Gao Seng of Wang Si immediately recognized him.

In Tie Muzhen's heart, although he had already enshrined the God of Immortality as Left National Preceptor, and enshrined Zi Yi Jing Wang as Right National Preceptor.