Tao and Heaven

Chapter 106: All Below Immortals Are Mayflies
The True Lords gathered below gradually retreated, and some of the sect's guardians found a tavern nearby to chat.

The composition of the True Lords is more complicated than that of the Heavenly Pride. They are divided into two categories: one is the guardian of the sect, and the other is those who enter the immortal land to complete their Tao foundation in the hope of breaking through to a higher level. The latter is divided into those who make good connections, snatch opportunities, take over bodies, etc.

They have connections with each other in the outside world, but the powerful are all shrewd people. When it comes to benefits, they never look at relationships. When they make enemies, they will kill them directly. They have already fought, chatted a few times, and become brothers after they have a common understanding.

Therefore, the Tianjiao monopolizing the opportunity will not lead to the alliance of the Zhenjun. Tianjiao beating them is just childish and ignorant, and if it gets out, the high-ranking officials of the sect might be happy. They will have no excuse for beating their own Tianjiao.

Their existence itself does not make sense in the land of immortals.

In the restaurant, Gu Wen returned to the restaurant. Everyone was silent. Some were surprised, some admired, and some admired him. There was no doubt that he had won the recognition of most people. The geniuses were all proud, and those who were too ostentatious would easily arouse dissatisfaction.

Because everyone thinks they can do it, and a person who is too ostentatious will appear pretentious.

But when Gu Wen said that he was flamboyant, it was too "low-key", and to say that he was arrogant was not enough, there was an indescribable madness in him.

Especially for the few people in the top five of the three lists who were asked for advice, recalling how they were frequently asked for advice, it became even more interesting.

Is this crazy? It seems not. A truly crazy person will not humbly ask for advice from others.

He was more like a seeker of truth, and he would do anything to seek it. But unlike the seekers of truth in most people's perception, Gu Wen would not hide himself, so he looked very crazy.

The Jade Sword Buddha is actually even more arrogant and intolerant, just like the heir of three religions.

"What's going on, everyone?"

Gu Wen scratched his head and put on a harmless look.

"You are really good at pretending. You just acted like you were invincible, but now you are pretending?"

Akabane couldn't hold it in any longer and wanted to tear off the face to see what was inside.

Gu Wen said: "You are all better than me. Your Taoism and methods are all worth learning."

You will need to ask for help from others in the future. Who will teach you if you act so arrogantly? The recent consultation and learning also made Gu Wen realize that Tianjiao is also a gold mine, especially when the level of the skills is very low, these people are much more useful than Tiansui.

After all, elixirs are not available at all times, and he can't just grab them wherever he goes.

Everyone was in awe, and their eyes towards Gu Wen softened for a moment. At least except for Jade Sword Buddha and Jun Yan, everyone else was pleased with Gu Wen's flattery.

It depends on who is flattering. Moreover, who wouldn’t like it if the genius who just overwhelmed many True Lords with his power outside turned around and praised them?

Wen Jianlan Yongning, who was dressed like a teacher, said, "Brother Hongchen, I still have some tips on Dharma. You can find me later."

"Thank you, Brother Ning."

"I have some insights into the sword art, sword energy, sword intent, and sword gods, which may be useful to Brother Hongchen."

"Hiss, thank you very much, fellow Taoist. May I ask your name?"

"Eighth on the Earth Ranking, Li Rongyun from the Qi Transformation Sect. Although he is not from a sword sect, he has some accomplishments in swordsmanship."

One of the great benefits of showing your strength is that you will be taken seriously and people will give you gifts to please you. For a moment, Gu Wen felt that countless spiritual energy belonging to the sword was rushing towards him.

When everyone calmed down, Jun Yan stepped forward and asked everyone to take their seats. The Three Religions Sword-Questioning Conference, which gathered one-third of the geniuses on the top three lists, officially began.

Gu Wen sat on Yu Hua's right. Yu Hua seemed to be a nobody from the beginning to the end. She never spoke a word, and no one dared to talk to her.

On her left is the Jade Sword Buddha. The little nun is an extremely taciturn person and only Yu Hua can talk to her.

"Let's let Fellow Daoist Xiao say a few words about the matter at Tianquan Mountain."

Jun Yan took the initiative to give the right to speak to Xiao Yunyi, who, as the Shandong Daoist master of Tianquan Mountain, did not refuse and said:

"There is no limit on the number of participants in the Tianquan Mountain Ten Thousand Swords this time. The number of Dao soldiers that can be bred may be more than one, but the number of treasures that can be refined in the sword pool is not unlimited. Only those with talent can participate in the Dao soldiers, and everyone has a share in the sword pool."

This is the basis of their union. The sword pool can refine treasures and take their own magic weapons to a higher level.
But if the older generation of True Lords also follow in, then even the sword pool will become a place where "those with virtue reside".

Not allowing the older generation to come in and share the cake not only guarantees the basic interests of ordinary geniuses, but also guarantees the chances of Xiao Yunyi and others obtaining Dao soldiers.

"Is everyone satisfied?"

Many geniuses nodded, and no one objected.

Even their own fathers have to give in to the interests, not to mention the conflicts between the new and old generations. The Dharma protectors are not necessarily their masters or close relatives, because the True Lords are still rare outside, and their close elders may not necessarily have this qualification.

Xiao Yunyi handed the right of speech back to Jun Yan who was standing beside him. He said with his usual cynicism, "Now everyone knows the situation clearly. The old man should give up his position. If you are afraid that you will not be able to explain to the sect after you leave, you can follow me to join the Demon Sect. We in the Demon Sect teach everyone."

"Of course, you don't need to express it now, but you should know that when you are truly desperate, the Demon Sect will be your destination."

Faced with this blatant act of recruiting people, many geniuses were not tempted.

Just as Jun Yan said, they would not go to the Demon Sect unless they were desperate or their brains were stuck. They were all trained to be the sect leaders, and perhaps they could become the Heavenly Lords and Buddhas in the future.

If you join the Demon Sect and lose your legitimacy, unless you are strong enough to establish your own sect, it will not be easy. On the contrary, if you can reach this point, just like the Sword Master did in the past, someone will come to ask you to recognize your ancestry and return to your sect.

"The second is about the elixir of immortality."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere suddenly became much more solemn, and the True Lords who were still stationed outside pricked up their ears.

"Everyone already knows that the elixir of immortality may be in Tianquan Mountain, so I won't hide it. As a favor to invite the goddess, I must warn everyone not to rush into the fire for a one in ten million chance."

Jun Yan paused slightly and looked around at everyone's expressions, especially Yu Hua and Gu Wen.

The former's true face could not be seen, while the latter looked calm, as if it had nothing to do with him.

The breathing of all the remaining people inevitably changed a little, with curiosity and greed, which is human nature. The ultimate goal of cultivation is to become an immortal, and a large part of becoming an immortal is to live forever, and the immortal medicine can make people ascend to heaven in one step.

"After Tianquan Mountain is opened, the sword formation will only leave the Wanjian Dao. You can ask someone to lead you up, or you can find another way. But the True Lord is not allowed to enter. Those who enter will be attacked in groups. Can you beat so many of us by yourself?"

"Can we, with so few people, defeat the goddess?"

In an instant, the curiosity and greed of the Tianjiao were all put away. They didn't necessarily want to rob, but Jun Yan's warning made them stay rational at all times.

Without the help of the sect elders and interference from outside True Lords, they should think about how to escape from Yu Hua.

"That's about it. Do you have anything else to add?"

Jun Yan looked at the other people, namely Chi Yuzi, Xiao Yunyi, Yu Jianfo, Lan Yongning, Yu Hua and others.

Most of these people were silent, but Akabane asked, "Can each person only take one Dao Soldier, or is there no limit?"

"Oh? Fellow Daoist Chiyuzi, do you want to take more?" Jun Yan narrowed his eyes slightly. He could read the other party's subtext.

Chi Yuzi said calmly: "I can control at least six Dao weapons, but the sect can only provide me with three. I took them all this time. If you join forces, I may not be able to defeat you."

Jun Yan said with a smile: "I am not as good as Daoist Chi Yuzi in flying a sword, but I am not necessarily weak in fighting. It's just right that I will wait for you to fish it out before taking it, so that I don't have to worry and work hard."

I've taken them all, and I'll grab them when you fish them out.

Gu Wen curled the corner of his mouth. He felt that he was not crazy at all, because everyone else was extremely crazy.

After that, no one raised any objections, and they agreed to gather fourteen days later, which was the day before Tianquan Mountain opened.

When Gu Wen was about to leave, Xiao Yunyi's voice came into his ears.

"Come find me tomorrow at three o'clock."
-
Gu Wen and Yu Hua returned to the inn. The latter glanced at the nun following behind her, flicked her bald head twice and said, "If you can't find your destiny, just find a place to sit."

"Ah."

The Jade Sword Buddha came directly to the corner of the inn and sat down. His platinum-colored cassock was out of place with the wooden chairs around him.

Gu Wen asked curiously, "What is fate?"

Yu Hua replied, "There are three schools in Buddhism: Buddha Vehicle, Arhat Vehicle, and Pratyekabuddha Vehicle. Buddha Vehicle is divided into Mahayana and Hinayana. Mahayana is about saving countless sentient beings to the other shore, while Hinayana is about pursuing self-enlightenment. Jade Sword Buddha practices both Mahayana and Hinayana."

"Both?"

"No, it's just a kind of self-consumption. If you see her talking, it's Mahayana, otherwise it's Hinayana. No matter which one it is, it's just an appearance."

Yu Hua shook his head and walked up to the second floor. Before entering the room, he warned her, "You can learn swordsmanship from her, but don't get involved with her too much. She is a natural Buddha, but also a natural devil."

Only with fate does the Jade Sword Buddha act like a human being. Just like she was looking for herself for the magic sword in the beginning, but if she loses fate, she will become a wooden fish.

Gu Wen still didn't quite understand, and said, "She didn't seem like this when I first met her."

"For some reason, I have a connection with her, and since you are related to me, I will naturally let you go. But this memory of you will disappear completely after the connection disappears."

Yu Hua paused for a moment, pointed at his temple, and tried to explain with something Gu Wen could understand: "She is a Buddhist. What you see is just the externalization of the Buddha's heart. She can be lively and cheerful as long as you have the affinity with her. But once you lose the affinity, she who was born because of you will be swallowed up by the Buddha's heart."

"You don't have to treat her as a human being. All the emotions, ethics and morals are false to her."

Gu Wen understood and decided not to look for Jade Sword Buddha anymore, as there was basically no reward for trying to please her.

Looking back through the stairs, you can see the Jade Sword Buddha sitting in the corner of the first floor of the inn. He sits upright, his head reflecting slightly under the candlelight, with an inexplicable holiness.

As holy as a jade Buddha, as cold as a devil.

"What kind of fate is she looking for?"

Returning to the first question, Yu Hua walked into the room and said without turning his head, "Once upon a time, the Buddha cut off his flesh to feed the demon. The demon was not moved and ate the Buddha and died. Then she was born."

"She wanted to cleanse herself of the sin of killing the Buddha, so she practiced Mahayana Buddhism. But she was not a demon, she was just born from the demon, so she sought the Hinayana teachings to save herself."

Gu Wen became more and more interested. He followed her into the room and sat down next to Yu Hua. He asked, "Can the karma of sins be inherited? But since the Buddhist sect is training her as a successor, they probably don't intend to hold her accountable, right?"

"Of course not. On the contrary, they hope to follow the will of the Buddha and convert the great demon." Yu Hua shook his head and said with a chill in his voice, "The Buddha who practiced Mahayana Buddhism returned, and the great demon who practiced Hinayana Buddhism became a Buddha. What does the Jade Sword Buddha have to do with it in the end?"

Gu Wen's eyes widened slightly, his breathing paused for a moment, and he asked, "Neither the Buddha nor the devil are dead?"

He realized that the Jade Sword Buddha might just be a part of the struggle between Buddha and the devil. She had no initiative at all, and even her self-awareness was just a fleeting firework.

On that day, the little nun who taught him the Buddhist sword and made him bump into the wall when walking might have died.

Although they were not familiar with each other, he was still afraid that the Jade Sword Buddha, who was more than ten times more powerful than himself, was just a puppet of the Buddha Demon.

It is both a fear of the immeasurable and unknown power of Buddha and demons, and a fear of this incomprehensible way of death.

"Those who have achieved immortality have transcended life and death. For them, there is only the difference between existence and non-existence."

"So she asked me to take advantage of her situation and practice the Buddha Sword, hoping to slay demons and monsters until her sins were weakened enough to pay with her life, and then end her life with a single sword. This is already the most dignified way for her to die in the face of Buddha and monsters, so you must complete the ninth level of the Dao foundation."

Yu Hua held Gu Wen's cold hand and said, as if to comfort him or to warn him, "Only when the ninth level of the Dao foundation is perfected can one become an immortal. Otherwise, he will only be a mayfly in the vast ocean."

"Whether you are a True Lord or a Heavenly Lord, they are all mayflies. Only by becoming an immortal can one be free and unfettered."

(End of this chapter)