Wife, you didn't really drug me, did you?

Chapter 626 A Plan to Seize an Opportunity Beyond the Pass
"Amitabha!"

Peng Yingyu strode over and looked at Yuan Sanjia's raised hand, saying, "Hehe, those who enter the calamity are no longer within the fate of heaven. Even if Mr. Yuan has extraordinary abilities, I'm afraid he can hardly calculate the entire situation of the world."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Sanjia looked at Peng Yingyu and said, "What you say is very true, Master. Under the laws of Heaven, my calculations are nothing more than this."

Peng Yingyu continued, "Since it's impossible to calculate everything, then let's not calculate it at all. Otherwise, it will only make people feel anxious and uneasy, and they will be hesitant and indecisive in their work."

Yuan Sanjia then put down the tortoise shell and looked at Chen Jie, asking, "What is my lord's opinion?"

Chen Jie frowned slightly, looked at Yuan Sanjia and then at Peng Yingyu. Peng Yingyu said, "If we believe in fate, then the Ziwei Star is the image of an emperor. Fourth brother, you should already be a ghost under the blade!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie nodded and said, "What Second Brother said is very true. If we believe in fate, it is better not to believe. If we don't believe, we can act freely. If we believe, fate is already predetermined, so why bother with useless things?"

Once Chen Jie understood all this, he looked at Yuan Sanjia and said, "Sir, you should not open it. Fate is predetermined. We, who are under the mandate of heaven, should just do our best."

Yuan Sanjia glanced at Chen Jie, then laughed and said, "Alright, since that's the case, then let's forget about it."

After saying that, he grabbed the tortoise shell and held the copper coin in his hand. Peng Yingyu glanced at him and then said, "You two have come all the way to my Maitreya Temple. Please come inside."

After saying a few words, Peng Yingyu took the lead and walked straight into the Buddhist temple.

Chen Jie gestured to Yuan Sanjia, who smiled and nodded, then gestured for Chen Jie to go first. Chen Jie looked at him and then stepped into the temple.

At this moment, Yuan Sanjia took the copper coin in his hand and glanced at it. The hexagram indicated that there was safety amidst danger.

After reading the divination, Yuan Sanjia put down the copper coins in his hand and went into the temple.

"Host!"

"Host!"

The three of them headed into the temple. The monks they encountered along the way all bowed to Peng Yingyu, and Peng Yingyu returned their bows one by one. Soon they arrived in front of a meditation room.

Upon arriving at the meditation room, they found a yellow prayer cushion inside. At that moment, Peng Yingyu reached out, and a young monk came in and placed two more yellow prayer cushions inside, in front of Chen Jie and Yuan Sanjia.

Peng Yingyu said, "Please sit down, Yuantong, please serve tea."

Upon hearing this, the young monk immediately went to brew tea, and soon the tea was served. Peng Yingyu poured tea for Chen Jie and Yuan Sanjia, asking, "What brings you here?"

Yuan Sanjia took a sip of tea and said, "I'm fine. I accepted this kid's things, and recently I heard him say he wanted to come and see the master, so I came along."

Peng Yingyu looked at Chen Jie and asked, "Fourth brother, what brings you here?"

Chen Jie said, "It's nothing serious. Firstly, I haven't come to see the Maitreya Temple since it was built because I'm not feeling well. Since Mr. Yuan is here today, I'd like to ask him to take a look at the feng shui of the Maitreya Temple!"

"Pfft~"

Upon hearing Chen Jie's words, Yuan Sanjia, who was enjoying his tea, spat out his tea and coughed violently, looking at Chen Jie and saying, "Cough cough, Chen Jiu Si, you're really something! You found a fortune teller to do feng shui for a monk, hahaha..."

Peng Yingyu shook her head helplessly; the reason she came up with was really far-fetched.

Seeing this, Chen Jie laughed and said, "Oh dear, it was my oversight, it was my oversight. Now, let me tell you the second thing."

Upon hearing this, Peng Yingyu's expression turned serious, and she said, "Speak."

Yuan Sanjia nodded and said, "I've been waiting for your second matter!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie laughed and said, "Then I'll be frank. How much do you two know about the dragon vein of Mount Taibai outside the pass?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Sanjia and Peng Yingyu exchanged a glance, and then Yuan Sanjia said, "Taibai Mountain outside the pass? That should be considered the dragon that escaped."

Hearing this, Peng Yingyu nodded and said, "That's right. He is not among the three major dragon veins of China, and is considered one of the unpredictable ones, but his power is not small. He is a major force in influencing the rise and fall of foreign races."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked at Peng Yingyu and asked, "The rise and fall of foreign tribes?"

Peng Yingyu said, "That's right. Since the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors of ancient times ascended the throne, the land of China has been occupied by three major dragon veins, namely the Northern Dragon, the Central Dragon, and the Southern Dragon, the Three Dragon Veins."

"Of course, if we want to break it down further, we can divide the three dragons into several smaller dragons, but I won't go into details about that."

“Speaking of these three major dragon veins alone, the northern dragon vein starts from the Kunlun Mountains in the west, goes north through the Qilian Mountains, Helan Mountains, and Yin Mountains, and flows eastward into the sea.”

“The Zhonglong River also starts from the Kunlun Mountains in the west, passes through the Qinling Mountains and Dabie Mountains in the east, extends to the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas and enters the sea, radiating to the Central Plains region.”

"Finally, there is the Nanlong, which also originates from the Kunlun Mountains, extends to Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan, and finally enters the sea from the Wuyi Mountains in Fujian."

"These are the three major dragon veins."

"But outside the three major dragon veins, there is another branch that was originally not taken seriously by the people of the Central Plains, but in recent years, it has gradually shown signs of rising."

"This dragon vein is the Taebaek Mountains. It starts at Taebaek and extends to the Baekdu Mountain in Goguryeo before flowing into the sea. This is the Taebaek Mountains outside the pass that you asked about."

“This vein is very small, and we didn’t pay much attention to it before, but as time goes by, the dragon energy here is becoming stronger and stronger.”

"Many foreign tribes originated here and eventually invaded the Central Plains. They can be traced back to the Quanrong and Yuezhi during the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, and later to the Xiongnu during the Han dynasty, the Turks during the Tang dynasty, the Liao and Jin dynasties during the Song dynasty, and the Mulan people today. They all originated from the Taibai Mountain dragon vein outside the pass."

"The three dragon veins of China have been suppressed for hundreds of years. Only the dragon vein outside the pass is rising and falling. Today we are raising an army to overthrow the rule of the Mulan tribe. Therefore, this great calamity is also due to the dragon vein of Mount Taibai."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked at Peng Yingyu and said, "The Taibai Mountain dragon vein is so powerful, how come I've never heard of it before?"

Peng Yingyu said, "Mount Taibai is also known as Mount Taibai Sacred Mountain in the Mulan tribe, and no one is allowed to set foot there at will."

"Above it lies a vast Heavenly Pool, said to cleanse the soul of those who enter, preventing impurity! Therefore, the Mulan army guards the foot of Mount Taibai." Chen Jie nodded slightly upon hearing this, realizing the explanation. He then looked at Peng Yingyu and asked, "And what do you know about the Taibai Mountain dragon vein?"

Peng Yingyu said, "According to legend, this dragon vein is located beneath the Heavenly Pool. However, you must not underestimate the Heavenly Pool, as it is said to be inhabited by a water monster that preys on people and animals that enter the water."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie exclaimed, "Heavenly Pool, a water monster."

Chen Jie murmured to himself, and a place came to mind: Tianchi Lake on Mount Taibai. Could this Mount Taibai be the Changbai Mountain of later generations?

Chen Jie thought of a possibility. First, it was outside the pass. Yes, Changbai Mountain is located in Jilin Province, so it must be outside the pass. Moreover, there is a Heavenly Lake and legends of a lake monster in this place. These things immediately matched the Heavenly Lake of Changbai Mountain in Chen Jie's mind.

Chen Jie had also visited Changbai Mountain Tianchi once before. The geography there was indeed different. Moreover, according to legend, the Manchu Qing dynasty originated from the area between the white mountains and the black waters. The white mountains refer to Changbai Mountain, and the black waters refer to the Heilongjiang River.

The mountains and rivers that nurtured the Later Jin Jurchens also gave rise to the Manchu Qing dynasty, a dynasty that caused endless harm.

That makes sense. Chen Jie had once read in unofficial history that after Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he feared that the influence of the dragon vein might lead to another uprising and the usurpation of his dynasty. Therefore, he ordered Liu Bowen, the Master of Qingtian, to sever the dragon vein.

After years of hard work, Liu Bowen severed all the dragon veins except for the Changbai Mountain dragon vein in the north, which is the reason for the rise of the Manchu Qing dynasty in later generations.

Having figured these things out, Chen Jie had a basic understanding of the Taibai Mountain dragon vein. Taibai Mountain should be what later generations called Changbai Mountain.

Thinking this, Chen Jie asked, "Then what exactly are we going to plunder in this dragon vein land?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Sanjia said, "Opportunity, an opportunity that leads to enlightenment."

Chen Jie asked, "What is that opportunity?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Sanjia said, "It can be anything—a stone, a leaf, a drop of water, a breath. In short, at that moment, you might experience what it means to be enlightened and instantly comprehend some of the profound truths of the universe."

At this point, Yuan Sanjia said, "And this ultimate principle of heaven and earth can help you quickly integrate the Dao Fruit and improve your strength."

Peng Yingyu said, "Mr. Yuan is right. In fact, after we reach the Fusion God Realm, our progress is not very significant. It is more about understanding the ultimate principles of heaven and earth. The strength we exert later comes from the transmission of this innate Dao Fruit."

"Instead of exerting the power of our bodies."

Chen Jie nodded slightly upon hearing this. Peng Yingyu said, "However, the absorption of Dao Fruit often represents how thoroughly you understand the Dao of Heaven. If it is very thorough, you can even enter the realm of a terrestrial immortal in a single day. For example, the official named Huang Shang from the previous dynasty, who was a Daoist priest, attained enlightenment in a single day and directly became a terrestrial immortal, killing so many people in the world that no one dared to disobey him."

"He also passed down the divine book Nine Yin Manual, which enabled countless people to learn his Nine Yin Skill. Later, it even created the new and old Five Greats, such amazing talents."

Thinking of this, Peng Yingyu said, "So the reason you have been unable to enter the third stage of the Fusion God realm is not because you don't have enough Dao Fruits, but because you cannot understand the higher Heavenly Dao, which makes it difficult for you to integrate more Dao Fruits. The opportunity you are seeking this time is a fragment that has been separated from the Heavenly Dao. By learning and improving your knowledge, you can integrate more Dao Fruits. This is the opportunity you need to seize in the Taibai Mountain Dragon Vein this time."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie nodded slightly and said, "I've learned something!"

Peng Yingyu said to Yuan Sanjia, "The struggle for the dragon vein is inherently dangerous, and this time, with so many old monsters gathered, it is even more difficult. Moreover, the internal environment of the dragon vein is often unpredictable. Some are unbearably hot, some are icy and snowy, some suppress the qi, and some weaken the body. They are all kinds of strange and wonderful things."

"Therefore, this struggle may be more dangerous than we imagine."

Hearing this, Chen Jie looked at Yuan Sanjia and said, "Mr. Yuan said it's dangerous, so it must be very dangerous. But even if it's dangerous, I have to try. I won't be satisfied if I don't try."

Peng Yingyu said, "I know you. Since you've made up your mind, it's probably no use trying to persuade you. So let's not try to persuade you anymore. When do you plan to set off? Getting to Mount Taibai isn't something that can be done in a day."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked at Yuan Sanjia beside him and asked, "Mr. Yuan, do you know when the dragon vein of Mount Taibai will collapse?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Sanjia paused slightly before continuing, "I feel that the divination indicates an earthquake on the eighth day of next month, which should be around this time."

Chen Jie frowned slightly upon hearing this. By the eighth day of next month, his body should have fully recovered its strength by the sixth day of next month, which is two days later. However, the journey from here to the border is a long one. Even if he travels through the night, it will probably take him five days to barely make it there.

If there are delays or the journey is slow, it could take up to a month.

"No, we can't delay!"

Chen Jie muttered to himself, "It seems I really can't wait until I'm fully recovered before leaving Huangzhou Prefecture, or I'll be in no time."

Upon hearing this, Peng Yingyu said, "With so many dangers along the way, how are you going to move forward?"

Thinking this, Chen Jie frowned slightly, looked at Yuan Sanjia beside him and said, "I can accompany you, but if I leave, aren't you afraid that someone will launch a surprise attack on your Huangzhou Prefecture? After all, Master Peng doesn't have much fighting power."

Chen Jie pondered for a moment, then looked at Peng Yingyu beside him. Peng Yingyu said, "Don't look at me. At most, I can only recover to the Dragon Realm. If I go with you, I'll definitely die."

Thinking this, Chen Jie said, "Well, I'll figure something out. By the way, since you two are so knowledgeable about the world, do you know who's currently the most sought-after person out there?"

Who?
After hearing this, everyone thought for a moment and said, "Then it must be one of the neutral forces, such as Zhu Chongba of Xuzhou City. He is quite shrewd and cunning."

This is not untrue. Zhu Chongba has been making waves recently. After Chen Jie killed Boluo, the Great Qian Dynasty immediately ordered the pacification of the whole country. Zhu Chongba was directly assigned the position of Pingzhang Zhengshi of Anhui Road, which he accepted without hesitation.

Later, when faced with attempts to win over and form alliances with Zhang Shicheng, the Zoroastrians, and even the Tang Clan, Zhu Chongba readily accepted them. In fact, to lull them into a false sense of security, Zhu Chongba's replies to these warlords were quite humble, subtly showing their subservience. As a result, these people greatly praised Zhu Chongba, saying that he was pragmatic. Therefore, while others were fighting each other, Zhu Chongba's trade developed the best, and he was the most adept at navigating social situations, so everyone treated him as one of their own.

Hearing this, Chen Jie had a vague idea. He then patted his stomach and said to Peng Yingyu, "How about we have a vegetarian meal today, Master, at your esteemed place?"

Peng Yingyu said, "If you don't mind, then come and eat. Anyway, I'm really a vegetarian now."

Yuan Sanjia laughed and said, "Shouldn't monks be vegetarians by nature?"

As they were talking, Chen Jie turned and left the meditation room, saying to Du Xiong, who was with him, "Immediately arrange for someone to investigate whether any of Zhu Chongba's caravans or escort teams have recently traveled to the north."

"Yes, I'll go right away."

Du Xiong said something and left in a hurry.

(End of this chapter)