Chapter 610

Liu Junyan still had Hui Moqiong not act rashly; as long as he guards the gate of the Chenghuang Temple and keeps these people from entering, that will suffice.

The situation on Fang Chuanzong's side is far worse than Hui Moqiong's; at the checkpoint, someone actually used force.

Fortunately, we live in a rule‑of‑law society, and Fang Chuanzong still has enough influence in this part of Jiangcheng to temporarily stabilize the situation.

But he also worries: "Xiao Jiu, Seventh Lord, although I have some influence, I can't block the sky with one hand; there will always be people I can't stop. What should I do then?"

Liu Junyan said: "Stop whoever you can; for those you truly can't stop, notify me in advance and then let them through."

Fang Chuanzong repeatedly agreed.

Having done this, Liu Junyan still felt it wasn't enough; he frowned tightly, still calculating something.

Li Qingying looked on anxiously from the side, several times signaling me with her eyes to ask, but I shook my head at her.

Actually, when Hui Moqiong described the condition of those incense‑visitors in the sub‑temple, and Liu Junyan uttered the words "believer" and "life‑saving talisman," I already had a sense of what was going on.

From the very beginning of this incident, I had already thought of the word "faith."

Because the existence of the City God is quite special.

In the Daoist system, the City God is the guardian deity who protects the city moat.

He is both a nature god and a personified god.

Put simply, he comes into being in response to the people's faith.

Each region's Chénghuáng Lǎoyé is both the guardian deity of the living populace and the overseer of the souls of the city's deceased residents.

One could say that the people's faith is the foundation of every Chénghuáng Miào.

When we previously investigated Zhuyou Sanren, we found that over the years of his wandering abroad he had amassed far too many merits, and the people had built dozens of small shrines in his honor.

Not to mention the achievements of his disciples and grand‑disciples.

We have always taken it for granted that Zhuyou Sanren reached this stature not only because of his own profound cultivation but also because of an even more important reason: to prop up Wang Fantian.

Only today did we suddenly realize that we had thought of Zhuyou Sanren as too noble.

He did all this probably to guard against the arrival of this day.

Water can carry a boat, yet it can also capsize it.

Zhuyou Sanren once could lift Wang Fantian aloft; now he can trample him into the dust.

He has always possessed this ability.

For all those previous years he didn't show it, simply because Wang Fantian was still under his control; but now Wang Fantian has dragged us into the water.

From the moment the Líxīn Suǒ lock of Wang Fantian and Yu Nian was melted, the situation had already spiraled out of control.

Zhuyou Sanren originally wanted to suppress it, but it's clearly beyond his ability to contain.

Therefore, he could only rally his followers and go all‑in.

This matter will inevitably involve great repercussions; the first to be implicated is Wang Fantian.

I guess what Liu Junyan is most worried about right now is probably this.

I thought it over, walked over, took Liu Junyan's hand, and said: "Āyàn, since ancient times it's hard to have a perfect solution; our abilities are limited, and doing what we can is already no easy feat."

"Many will die." Liu Junyan's voice sounded hoarse: "Xiao Jiu, I really can't think of a way to save so many lives at once."

I understand him.

We must enter the Chénghuáng Miào, but once we do, we will bring slaughter.

At least those already inside the Chénghuáng Miào are all in peril of their lives.

If we bear such heavy karmic consequences, no one can absolve us.

We are caught between a rock and a hard place.

"Let me take the lead," I said calmly. "It's a debt of gratitude I owe; what Wang Fantian initially valued was also my identity as a Nirvana Phoenix. I will shoulder the karmic burden; as for how many people we can save and how much burden is lifted, Āyàn, that's up to you."

Liu Junyan clasped my hand in return, opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word of rebuttal.

If he could spew Nirvana flames, he would have rushed to the front long ago; there's no way he'd let me risk my life.

Silence.

It was still a prolonged silence.

The more Liu Junyan acted this way, the more uneasy I became.

I don't know what he's calculating in his mind, but I fear this state of his, because he's mostly thinking of ways to help me avoid most of the karmic consequences.

Such methods are usually risky shortcuts.

I began to urge: "Āyàn, no matter what, let's first meet up with Fifth Lord Hui and the others, then we'll assess the situation there."

Liu Junyan only replied with one sentence: "Wait a bit longer."

I asked what we were waiting for, but he didn't say.

I was so anxious I wanted to stamp my foot.

Until Fang Chuanzong's call came through: "Xiao Jiu, Seventh Lord, a retired big shot from outside the province has arrived; I really can't stop him, so I can only let him through."

Fang Chuanzong gave a detailed description of that person's family background.

He is an elderly man who will turn a hundred in a week, with children and grandchildren filling his home, and his whole family wields great influence locally.

Over the years, they have been on very close terms with Zhuyou Sanren.

They have even cast a golden statue for Zhuyou Sanren!

After hearing this, Liu Junyan only replied: "Thank you for your trouble, Director Fang; I understand."

After hanging up, Liu Junyan stood up and said: "Xiao Jiu, we can set out now."

But I instinctively grabbed Liu Junyan's hand and pressed: "Āyàn, what do you intend to do? Could you first tell me your plan?"

This time Liu Junyan replied succinctly: "To greet the old longevity star and his golden statue on behalf of Zhuyou Sanren."

While saying that, he pulled my hand toward the door, and Li Qingying also followed up, saying: "I'll go with you."

Li Qingying drove, we two sat in the back, Liu Junyan kept holding my hand, and his whole demeanor was much more relaxed than before the call.

I also, following along, inexplicably relaxed.

I was thinking, does the faith of a centenarian, plus the blessing of the Golden Body's Merit, outweigh that of hundreds of ordinary people?

Liu Junyan probably wanted to personally halt this troop; would that also be considered to have disrupted the movement rhythm of the Bamboo Seclusion Recluse and his group?

By the time we arrived at Jūnzhú Shān, that troop had already reached the foot of the mountain.

Outside Chénghuáng Miào, the vehicles that had been completely jammed were now cleared a path through the middle.

I had just steadied myself when I saw, in Fang Chuanzong's words, the centenarian about to celebrate his hundredth birthday, being supported as he walked at the very front of the crowd.

With each step forward, he would stop, kneel on the ground, and kowtow once toward the gate of Chénghuáng Miào.

As soon as he knelt, the over a hundred people behind him also followed suit, kneeling down in unison.

Even the eight sturdy men carrying the Golden Body of the Bamboo Seclusion Recluse in the middle likewise knelt steadily.

Walking and kneeling every few steps, they took a long time to cover just a few hundred meters.

Their devotion moved everyone present; as they gazed upon that Golden Body, their eyes also gleamed with the light of faith.

I don't know if it's my imagination, but the moment I looked at the Golden Body again, I actually felt its facial expression shift slightly, as if it were truly about to come alive…