I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 915 - 440: The General’s Stratagem, Victory in a Single Battle (Part 2)

Chapter 915: Chapter 440: The General’s Stratagem, Victory in a Single Battle (Part 2)

Zhu Yi murmured: "Grandfather Taizu had foreseen today long ago, no wonder Grandfather Emperor wanted to become a monk. Before he became a monk, he said that the Zhu family’s world is not a blessing but a curse..."

"..."

Xu Qing immediately retorted, not pleased: "Did Zhu Qian become a monk to dispel karma? If your Grandfather Taizu had not been ambitious, the Zhu family lineage would have ended long ago!"

"Don’t get too comfortable and hypocritical!"

"As for your grandfather..." Xu Qing recalled Zhu Qian hiding in Gujue Temple, spending his days eating vegetarian and reciting Buddhist scriptures, praying for Buddha’s protection, and said bluntly: "He’s just afraid of death!"

When Zhu Qian was still Emperor, he once asked about the Zhu family’s divine retribution at Gujue Temple’s Chen Liu’Er.

At that time, Chen Liu’Er, a great mage of the nation, pointed Zhu Qian to a non-solution: abandoning everything to become a monk to dissolve karmic obstacles and prolong life.

Now, with the Zhu family retreating at the right time, perhaps that Zhu Qian who became a monk would soon return to secular life as a wealthy man.

These are all uncertain things.

"Sir, you are an immortal god on earth, dare I ask when the chaos of the world will settle? Who will sit on the throne in the next dynasty?"

Xu Qing glanced at the questioner, Eunuch Li, and said: "Heaven reveals its killing intent, destined for the era of chaos. The coming decades will continue to be turbulent; the calamity’s scope will not just be limited to Dayan."

"All four corners of the world, even foreign lands, will be troubled by this calamity."

"If you ask who can sit on the throne..."

Xu Qing chuckled lightly and replied: "Perhaps there will be an emperor crowned as king among the straw baskets, but the true emperor might be hard to find!"

The great dragon of Dayan’s national fate is lost, the dragon veins of the world severed. Henceforth, even those who have learned dragon-slaying techniques will face a situation of having no dragon to slay.

Xu Qing and his party had just left the Capital City when a troop from the northern lands, bearing a flag with the character Yuan, rushed towards the Capital City.

"Which army is this?"

The group dodged to the side of the road as Eunuch Li watched the army distinct from Dayan’s soldiers, momentarily dazed.

Xu Qing used divination and displayed a curious expression.

The mysteries of fate are indeed profound.

Despite the volatile times, those destined to appear in such chaos will still appear.

Xu Qing looked at the Capital City coiled by the grass snake, and outside the city, people wielding big knives prepared to slay the snake had already started to approach.

"In just half a month, there have been three changes for those desiring the throne. How has the secular military disaster suddenly become so intense?"

Xu Qing once again delved into the divination, and this time, he saw the root cause prompting the rapid spread of the military disaster.

"The leader of the Yin River Gate?"

Xu Qing crossed the divide between yin and yang and saw the source of all killing intentions—a figure with a copper head, iron forehead, resembling a fierce beast from ancient times.

Besides the anomalous being, Xu Qing also saw the remaining four leaders from Shu Region, Cangzhou, and Beiyan gathered in one place.

And that ancient anomaly was the leader of the first seat among the twelve leaders of Yin River, the General.

Although Xu Qing knew the secular calamity was related to the Yin River leaders, he did not expect the first-seated leader to possess the capability to mobilize armies and incite chaos among all races.

"After the military disaster, only one in ten will survive. The expansion of demons and the decline of Dao will inevitably strengthen greatly..."

Xu Qing suddenly realized.

The extermination of the majority of Yin River’s leaders had alarmed the remaining independent demons, who knew they could not oppose the numerous disciples of Da Luo Sect alone, and naturally chose to band together for warmth and mutual resistance.

Previously, the Bone Bodhisattva and Corpse Body Buddha were the harbingers, and even after the two demons gathered, they were still forcefully eradicated by Da Luo Sect, thoroughly stirring the survival instincts of the remaining demons.

With nearly half of the Yin River leaders remaining, including the first-seated General, this battle does not look easy!

For the first time, Xu Qing felt faced with a tangled mess.

Five or six leaders, even if he could truly eliminate them, he would still need to gather five or six real people of Primordial Spirit level to host the rebounding formation.

"Xinyuan, Master Jingxu..."

Though Xu Qing calculated, even with pulling in Master Jingxu to Da Luo Sect, he was still three short.

"The affairs of Da Luo Sect cannot rely on Cat Immortal Hall to support."

While Xu Qing managed three sects, he never allowed their affairs to directly intertwine.

Unless necessary, he wouldn’t easily dispatch Xuan Yu and Bai Qiuyu, among other immortals.

In times of turmoil, one must reserve some strength for backup. If all powers are exhausted at once, how will the three sect disciples face future changes?

After considering, Xu Qing decided to lead the existing altar masters to visit possible hidden realanimates in various places, even if they had to coerce them into joining!

In chaotic times, it’s up to Da Luo Sect to decide whether the world remains chaotic!

Xu Qing was unwilling to leave fate in the hands of others; he only trusted his own decisions.

To save the world, one must first stop the conflict.

The General wages strategy, achieving victory in one battle.

In a short moment, Xu Qing had already formulated his plan.

The disaster of blades and soldiers lies not in the dynasty’s succession but in the calamity itself.

If he does not resolve the General who controls the authority of arms, the secular world will forever be engulfed in the flames of war until it exhausts all races of mankind.

Bao Sheng Temple governs the prosperity of marriage and offspring, Cat Immortal Hall protects thousands of families, ensuring harmonious weather and fruitful years.

And Da Luo Sect was founded initially to mitigate heaven and earth’s calamities, preventing any crisis that could overturn the secular world.

...

In the seventh year of Yongning, Dayan’s national fate quickly toppled in one dynasty.

In the same year, remnants of the Yong dynasty attempted to rely on foreign barbarians to restore Dayong’s dominion.

The following year, General Duen Hongchang of Dayan joined forces with the Beiyang army to completely clear out the remnants of the Yong dynasty, then proceeded to Gujue Temple, intending to use the Emperor to rebuild Dayan’s dominion.

However, when Duen Hongchang arrived at Gujue Temple, the vast temple had vanished into thin air, leaving only a clean, bare patch of ground!

Duen Hongchang’s plans fell through, and as he prepared to leave, his soldiers found a wooden plaque at the ancient tree beneath the mountain gate.

It was inscribed with a few lines of Zen verse:

Carrying water in a bamboo basket, though the water does not remain, the basket is pure;

Worldly affairs flow, those who cling suffer, those who let go are clear.

This suggests: Being king and ancestor becomes an illusion, the bamboo basket holds water with no trace.

Duen Hongchang looked at the flat and clean ruins of Gujue Temple, knowing what the other party meant?

It was telling him that he would not find the person, nor would his calculations to become emperor succeed.

Furious, Duen Hongchang immediately smashed the wooden plaque with his palm and ordered his men to set fire to the temple.

"General, there’s no temple, how to burn it?"

Duen Hongchang angrily replied: "There’s no temple, then burn the mountain, burn it all for me!"

Meanwhile, in Jinmen Prefecture.

Within Da Luo Sect, Chen Liu’Er who was consulting Xu Qing on the physics of Buddhist teachings suddenly uttered a Buddhist mantra.

"Sin, sin."

"What’s the matter?"

With a bitter smile, Chen Liu’Er said: "The student violated the precept of speaking too much, only because of the military turmoil in the Capital City that compelled the poor monk to leave the temple and live secluded. Feeling indignant, the poor monk left a Zen verse at the mountain gate in the name of enlightenment."

"But unexpectedly, it was precisely this Zen verse that sparked disaster, causing all living things in the mountain to suffer misfortune, which is a great sin."

Xu Qing shook his head, not taking Chen Liu’Er’s words to heart. Although Xu Zombie carried out the path of virtue, he would not feel guilt over the grass, wood, insects, or mice.

With millions of corpses he had sent off, he had long passed the point of being overly sentimental.

Even if an old friend were to pass away, he would at most perform an exorcism ceremony to fulfill their last wishes, but wanting him to shed tears was impossible.

"Chen Liu’Er, the divine techniques of Buddhism I taught you should be thoroughly studied. You must understand that merely chanting sutras and praying won’t save the people; only with divine techniques can one see injustice and rescue others with compassion."

Chen Liu’Er nodded, saying: "Student will remember the master’s teachings."

Having secured the Zhu family lineage and taught Chen Liu’Er the divine techniques, Xu Qing led Xinyuan and others to Shu Region, Cangzhou, and other places to find more like-minded fellows.

Xu Qing shook his head, not taking Chen Liu’Er’s words to heart. Although Xu Zombie carried out the path of virtue, he would not feel guilt over the grass, wood, insects, or mice.

With millions of corpses he had sent off, he had long passed the point of being overly sentimental.

Even if an old friend were to pass away, he would at most perform an exorcism ceremony to fulfill their last wishes, but wanting him to shed tears was impossible.

"Chen Liu’Er, the divine techniques of Buddhism I taught you should be thoroughly studied. You must understand that merely chanting sutras and praying won’t save the people; only with divine techniques can one see injustice and rescue others with compassion."

Chen Liu’Er nodded, saying: "Student will remember the master’s teachings."

Having secured the Zhu family lineage and taught Chen Liu’Er the divine techniques, Xu Qing led Xinyuan and others to Shu Region, Cangzhou, and other places to find more like-minded fellows.