Taoist Master Xuanhuang

When the timeline returned to normal, twenty years had passed in a flash.

The split and strategic maneuvering between the Martial Arts Alliance and the Confucian School were perceived by those unaware of the situation as a 'double defeat for both the martial and literary factions'.

Their limited perspective only saw that the two major forces, civil and military, were weakening, without seeing the strategic plans of both sides.

On the contrary, their opponents, the Taoist and Buddhist sects, were very nervous. They saw the plans of the Confucian and Martial Arts Alliance, which were preparing for their future return.

On the contrary, due to their divine and sacred nature, their own two families are unable to achieve the same layout as the Confucian School and the Martial Arts Alliance.

However, they did not fail to make efforts; their efforts were seen by the world as a revival, and were known as the "revival of Taoism and Buddhism."

Simply put, it means convergence: the convergence of Taoism with various Taoist sects, and the convergence of Buddhism with Buddhist sects in various regions.

It merged the sacred Buddhist sect with the Buddhist sect of monks.

Of course, it's not that simple.

Because of their divine and sacred nature, and because these sacred beings are still somewhat unwilling to accept their fate, or perhaps because they haven't undergone the iron fist education of Xuanhuang, they always think they are not inferior.

This has led to a great deal of conflict, as some sacred realms do not want to merge with Buddhism.

Even if it's a fusion, it's a fusion in which they are in control. How could they possibly listen to a mere second-tier Minghui?

Neither Minghui nor Jiutong of the Daoist sect would agree to this.

Fortunately, many wise and virtuous people who saw reality clearly stood firmly on their side and actively integrated into the Buddhist and Taoist traditions of the main world.

If the ratio is 70/30, then 70% of the Taoist, Buddhist, and sacred beings are very intelligent. They have accepted the power of Xuanhuang and also accepted that true cultivation is the future, and that the future is definitely not for so-called sacred beings like themselves.

Therefore, they actively integrated into both Buddhism and Taoism.

The remaining 30% strongly disagreed and have been labeled as heretics and demonic monks.

It's a very real problem. Since you're unwilling to integrate and contribute, you can only be heretical and wicked.

Jiutong and Minghui were very decisive. No matter what kind of saint you were, if you didn't integrate, you were considered a heretical monk.

The realms represented by these heretical monks have been completely sealed off, and all incense offerings and religious rites have been cut off.

This angered a group of 'evil monks' who clamored that the moment the seal on heaven and earth would be lifted would be the time for their revenge.

But Jiutong and Minghui are not afraid. You lifted the lockdown, as if the 70% who actively integrated into our group were not.
If you lift the lockdown, we will lift it too.

Faced with such immense pressure from the Confucian School and the Martial Arts Alliance, Jiutong and Minghui are starting to go a little crazy.

The "madness" here doesn't mean true madness, but rather a more decisive and ruthless approach.

All those who hinder the development of Buddhism and Taoism are heretical monks and must be eliminated.

In order to support each other and help each other, Minghui and Jiutong have held many separate meetings over the past twenty years.

The main issue is that the two of them are facing a lot of pressure.

The Martial Arts Alliance began to scatter, vying for famous mountains and rivers, as well as some special, huge, and extraordinary places, regardless of the cost.

The Taoist and Buddhist schools don't understand, but precisely because they don't understand, based on their understanding of the Martial Alliance, they know that these martial artists are fighting so recklessly that something big must be going on.

They knew each other too well, so in a moment of stress, the two families also had a fight.

On the Confucian side, it seems that everything is fine now that a third of them have split off, but they are very worried about where they will settle down. Why did these Confucian cultivators choose to settle in Mount Ni?

This made both Buddhism and Taoism even more nervous.

Each stimulus spurred both families to unleash tremendous motivation.

The first meeting between the two churches took place in the seventh year.

This occurred after the Confucian School and the Martial Arts Alliance began to take major actions.

The two sides looked troubled at their first meeting, but they agreed on a plan that would have a profound impact: to merge.

That's right, the merger of Taoism and Sacred Taoism, and the merger of Buddhism and Sacred Buddhism, were the results of this discussion.

Unlike the civil and military sects, their more purely religious and sacred sects are not so easy to communicate with.

He's also a bit arrogant and unruly, always thinking that the tide is in his hands. He admits that Xuanhuang is very strong, but Xuanhuang is Xuanhuang, and he has a lot of troubles of his own. How can he have time to manage the cultivators under his tutelage?

Therefore, his competition with the cultivators under Xuanhuang's tutelage is not a competition with the Xuanhuang Dao Master.

Once the competitor isn't the Xuanhuang Dao Master, then it's time to show off.

Just like those other realms' holy beings who were unwilling to accept defeat, they joined forces with sects from other worlds.

Everyone saw Xuanhuang's retreat and transcendence, a retreat and transcendence born of helplessness, which gave him a chance to catch his breath.

Unless things go too far, the Xuanhuang Dao Master will not intervene.

This is their general prediction.

There was also interference from the origin of the realm, which clearly conveyed to them that the human world is the human world, and the Dao Lord is the Dao Lord.

With this premise in mind, it's natural to give it your all.

Relying on others and having to watch their faces is never as good as being in charge of your own life.
There's no need to go too far; just plan for enough territory, and you can make the decisions within that territory.

For example, you can set your own rules within your territory and raise some creatures to provide faith and offerings. You should at least be able to ask for that, right?

As long as the territory I control isn't too outrageous, and as long as my actions within that territory aren't too outrageous, the Dao Lord won't interfere, right?

These are some sacred goals with a purpose.

Some, even more radically, are planning to move.

Once the heavens and earth are completely unsealed, we will work together to move the realm to a place where the Xuanhuang Dao Lord doesn't care.

Many small and medium-sized enterprises have this plan.

The Xia Kingdom may be wonderful, but it is not my homeland!
This place is wonderful in every way: it has the most living beings, the most faiths, the purest incense offerings, and the most good fortune... In short, it's wonderful in every way.

The only downside is that this place already has its own space.

If one were a large realm, it would be better, as one would have some leverage to compete.

Unfortunately, it is not a large realm, but only a small or medium-sized realm. Such a place where powerful dragons live together is not suitable for the survival of small or medium-sized realms like its own.

Wars between realms are inevitable.

What should I do if those large or top-level realms target me?
Therefore, some realms plan to relocate after the seal on heaven and earth is lifted.

Even if you don't move, you still need to find a reliable backer. You need to take action now, instead of waiting until the world is unsealed before looking for a backer.

By then it would be too late.

In the past, the Holy Ones of the Realms always mocked the True Cultivators for being too cunning and lacking the demeanor of carefree cultivators, being dragged around like stray dogs.

Now, stop laughing at others; you're about to embark on the same path as everyone else.

Living in the world of the Xuanhuang Dao Master seems to be an inevitable thing.

And you're laughing at others? Think about your own future.

If you don't participate, you'll be eliminated. Choose one?

This is an era where even the most sacred are exhausted, constantly striving for survival.

This is still the chaos of the Four Supers, the Sacred, and the Realms.

There are also spirit beasts, the Eight Greats, various forces large and small across the world, and all sorts of creatures and sects from other worlds.

And what about the ever-rising subordinate cultivators?

In short, in the Xia Kingdom, due to the split of the four superpowers and the birth of subordinate cultivators, a period of turmoil and chaos began for twenty years.

In such chaos, the higher up one's position, the stronger the feeling.

This is how the madness of Taoism and Buddhism arose. The first time they agreed to join forces was by banding together for mutual support; those who refused to join were considered heretical and wicked monks.

These are unrecognized Taoist immortals and Buddhist Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

Both Buddhism and Taoism do indeed turn the knife inward.

Seven years later, in the fourteenth year, the Buddhist and Taoist sects, led by Jiutong Minghui, held their second meeting.

This meeting was adjusted based on changes made over the past fourteen years.

They clearly sensed that although the Confucian school was still splitting, it had not been weakened by a third as it had been the first time.

This kind of division is normal, and they finally feel much more at ease.

Over the course of seven years, the Martial Arts Alliance has gained almost complete control over various fields and famous mountains and rivers within the Xia Kingdom.

Many famous mountains and rivers mark the boundaries between the Taoist and Buddhist communities, leading to numerous conflicts.

Several major battles also took place there.

Judging from the intensity of the Martial Arts Alliance's attacks, it's clear that these famous mountains and rivers are very important to them; otherwise, they wouldn't be fighting so fiercely with their own two families.

Peng Yue was still leading the team, and the Zhenwu army arrived.

Fortunately, the famous mountains and rivers of Buddhism and Taoism were well protected, and even if they were not, a ceasefire agreement was reached with the Martial Arts Alliance.

In general, the Martial Arts Alliance doesn't want all the famous mountains and rivers, but rather some special and key locations, which are non-negotiable.

Furthermore, they will not target the boundaries of famous mountains and rivers; they only want the famous mountains and rivers, not the boundaries within them.

This concession is something that neither Buddhism nor Taoism understands, but at least it leaves some room for maneuver.

Famous mountains and rivers that are not associated with Buddhism or Taoism are doomed.

After all, many famous mountains and rivers had been occupied before, and some forces had already established their power and families here.

There are also many places occupied by smaller world forces, and some occupied by the eight major powers.

They were the most unlucky ones; they were all violently expelled by the Martial Arts Alliance.

You don't have to leave, but you have to promise not to take it for yourself, and just to develop your career here.

Only in this way can we avoid being kicked out.

Countless forces are filled with resentment, but what can they do?

Once these martial artists from the Martial Arts Alliance are determined, even if they unite, they are no match for them.

Mr. Chair, one of the three special creatures, appeared in a single instance and transformed into a chair that blotted out the sky, causing a cataclysmic upheaval that directly suppressed a giant mountain.

Once is enough; all the dissatisfaction and resistance are gone.

The chair was only sealed and suppressed this time. If it continues to disobey, it will not only be sealed and suppressed, but also destroyed.

It's useless in the face of overwhelming power.

To be honest, many of these forces that were driven out were the ones who had previously spread rumors that the split of the four superpowers would lead to a golden age.

They intended to reap the benefits without lifting a finger, hoping to profit from the chaos.

Unexpectedly, we were the ones who suffered the most.

When the Four Greats go mad, even gods and ghosts avoid them.

The subordinate cultivators all became much more low-key, startled by the sudden outburst of the Four Superpowers. The ghost ship served as a reminder to them to behave themselves.

First, develop your power in the realms pioneered by the various gods and lords; don't be too conspicuous in the main world.

The title "God Lord" was adopted by all the supreme treasures in the tenth year after the subordinate cultivators had reached a certain scale.

Simply put, each of these supreme treasures is a god-lord, and their subordinate cultivators call them god-lords, such as the White Bone God-lord, the Void God-lord, the Ghost God-lord, the Azure Cloud God-lord, and the Dream God-lord.

This is a title borrowed from the three major divine entities of Xuanhuang.

These treasures adopted the same name after listening to the advice of the all-knowing scholar of the Listening Pavilion.

The three of them, namely True Self and Lord, were defined as the three supreme gods.

In short, the supreme god of heaven and earth, the supreme god of all living beings, and the supreme god of the true self.

It was also published after the All-Knowing Scholar Listening Pavilion obtained the opinions of the three great gods.

No wonder the Listening Pavilion likes turmoil; this is the reason. The definitions of these gods and supreme gods have brought them unimaginable fortune and merit.

The subordinate cultivators, under the instructions of their respective divine lords, avoided direct confrontation.

The Four Superpowers once again demonstrated their domineering power, causing even the most powerful beings, ghosts, and demons to flee in terror.

However, Kong Yiji exists everywhere, even in the world of cultivation.

What should I do if I can't beat them, can't argue with them, or even dare not fight or argue with them, and still feel very frustrated?
They could only console themselves that this was the last madness before the four superpowers split up; after all, how could a century-old hegemon be willing to accept the end of its reign?

So let's not feel resentful or depressed. We should let the old hegemon have one last dance.

We just need to be patient. Before long, they'll fall like whales, and that will be our feast.

[Martial arts fanatics scramble for famous mountains, impoverished scholars weep, Taoist priests and bald Buddhist monks eliminate dissidents—the world has finally changed!]

This was a satirical poem that circulated widely during that period, mocking the Four Supers because of dissatisfaction but the inability to defeat them.

There are many more such mocking doggerel poems.

It's not fair to say they're completely wrong.

Despite the eruption and frenzy of the four superpowers, the division has been a constant.

Over the past two decades, there has been a constant split, with different factions emerging from the four superpowers. This is a major trend.

Even a united force like the Martial Arts Alliance is no exception.

After completing Jiang Shang's plan, the group began to split.

There's no need to search for a place; the many famous mountains and rivers that are being fought over are the best places to go.

This place is very important. In the future, these places and famous mountains and rivers will nurture the saints who will be reincarnated in the Martial Temple, and we will also have the opportunity to be reincarnated in the Martial Temple.

Is there a better place than this? Let's just stay here and not leave.

From now on, this will be the headquarters for my group of like-minded people.

This is a split within the Martial Arts Alliance, and it looks quite casual, leaving onlookers dumbfounded.

Are you seizing territory to cause division?
You should have said so earlier! We strongly support you. The sooner you split up, the better. We'll just move to another place so you can split up.

Everyone was very excited to see this.

The Taoist and Buddhist sects were the only ones who couldn't be happy. They didn't believe that the Martial Alliance was just trying to seize territory and split up; if only it were that simple.

Therefore, in the nineteenth year, a third meeting was held.

The reason it's this year, unlike the previous seven years, is because next year will bring about a great change in the world, and a saint will be born, allowing a fourth-order saint to leave the realm.

In order to unite as a group and to discuss the sacred birth of the twentieth year.

“Brother Dao, this humble monk thinks we should inform the other two families about this meeting. This may be the last time our Four Superpowers meet like this. From now on…”

Minghui said with emotion.

“Good!” Jiutong nodded.

...(End of chapter)