Unparalleled Evildoer

Chapter 334: Fighting in front of the palace
Facing the guards and archers surrounding him, Shilifang remained dignified and unafraid. He stared at Ying Zheng and asked, "Is this the Qin way of entertaining guests?"

With Xu Shi and Wuzhan in the hall, Ying Zheng was naturally relieved and laughed, "If an envoy came to visit my Great Qin, my Great Qin would naturally do its best to be a good host. However, the envoy used Buddhism to despise my Great Qin's laws and slander my Great Qin's monarch and ministers. If I don't kill an envoy like you, how can the dignity of my Great Qin exist!"

Sri Prabhu said, "I have come to your country from afar to resolve the crisis at the order of King Ashoka, to save all living beings with the Dharma and free the people from suffering. But Your Majesty is stubborn and has no compassion. You don't know when the disaster is coming."

How could Ying Zheng listen to this? He flew into a rage and said, "How can the laws of my great Qin allow you small western countries to dictate things? The people of my great Qin have never been afraid of war. If you are not satisfied, you can come and fight. I will make sure that the army of Magadha will never return!"

Sri Fang said: "I have never seen a king as warlike and tyrannical as you. There is a saying in your country: those who love war will perish!"

Ying Zheng said: "That is true, but there is another sentence behind it: forgetting to fight will lead to danger."

Sri Fang smiled bitterly and said, "It seems that this war is irreconcilable."

Ying Zheng shouted, "Shoot this arrogant envoy to death with arrows!"

"Swoosh..." Dozens of arrows shot towards Sri Lanka from all directions. These archers were carefully selected from thousands of people to protect Ying Zheng's safety and had accurate archery skills.

"Om..." Sri Fang did not dodge. He put his hands together, and suddenly golden light shone all over his body. All the arrows that were shot at him stopped when they hit the golden light, and could not move forward even a bit.

Then the guards stepped forward and stabbed Sriracha with their swords, but were blocked by the golden light. Everyone was shocked. They had never seen such a magical skill. Wouldn't this mean that he was invulnerable to swords and spears? Some people looked at Xu Shi and Wuzhan. Perhaps only these two people could control Sriracha. They also understood why His Majesty summoned these two people into the palace.

Sri Fang laughed coldly and said, "This is the Buddha's light. Since you don't believe in Buddhism, I have no choice but to take my leave!" As he said that, he walked out of the hall.

Wuzhan looked at Xu Shi who was sitting firmly, and smiled: "Doesn't the Imperial Master want to take action yet, and let him leave the palace so easily?"

Xu Shi also smiled and said, "I want to give this opportunity to you, sir."

"The national teacher is the teacher of a country. If he were to walk away in such a swagger, not only the Xiandao Academy, but also our Great Qin would be laughed at. How dare I take such an opportunity?"

Xu Shi snorted coldly, and his figure disappeared from the chair. The next moment, he suddenly appeared behind Shi Lifang who was about to walk out of the hall, waved his left arm, and roared out with the phantom of the Qilin.

Shilifang sensed the powerful fluctuation of true energy behind him, turned around and greeted it with his palm, 'Bang...' Fists and palms collided, golden light and true energy burst out violently, and Shilifang was directly blasted out of the hall, stood firm more than ten feet away, and spat out a mouthful of blood. Although he knew that Xu Shi was a national teacher with profound Taoism, he did not expect that his cultivation was so domineering and powerful.

Although Xu Shi did not retreat, he was equally shocked. He had just used all his strength to attack the opponent when the opponent was completely unprepared, trying to inflict a heavy blow, but he did not expect that the monk would take it.

Seeing that the first attack did not achieve the desired effect, Xu Shi jumped out of the hall and punched Sri Fang again. At this time Sri Fang was well prepared, he stood firm and swung his palm to meet the attack.

"Boom..." There was another loud noise, and the Qilin phantom was held up by a giant golden palm, and it was stuck in the air. The ground under Sri Lanka's feet cracked, and strong winds raged in all directions.

Only at this moment did Xu Shi witness Shi Lifang's true strength. If he failed to defeat him today, he would be laughed at by the entire court. More importantly, Wuzhan was in his prime, and letting him take action would be just waiting to see him make a fool of himself.

Of course Mayor Xu would not let these people laugh at him, so he raised the Hunyuan Yuxu Furnace, and a bright green light shone as he headed towards the Sri Lankan defense shield.

When Sri Fang saw the round furnace coming, he knew it must be a divine weapon and did not dare to neglect it. He chanted a Buddhist name, shook off the Qilin's arm, stepped back a few steps, and at the same time, his other hand struck out, turning into a giant golden palm that stopped the round furnace in mid-air, making a sharp metallic sound.

Shi Lifang groaned, and the ground beneath his feet was immediately lifted up, and the green light enveloped him. However, he did not have much true energy in his body, and the magic power of the Hunyuan Yuxu furnace had little effect on him. He was still able to move freely. He shook the round furnace open with all his strength, jumped ten feet away, and shouted to Xu Shi in a deep voice: "As a national teacher, you don't distinguish between right and wrong, deceive the monarch, and act so viciously."

The ministers in the hall were very happy when they heard this. This was something they dared not say, but today the foreign envoy said it for them. They couldn't help but have a little good impression of this foreign envoy.

Xu Shi said: "My Great Qin's affairs do not need your Magadha to interfere. If you can surrender and kneel before His Majesty to apologize, I will say a word to His Majesty to spare your life and return home. Otherwise, you will never leave Xianyang alive."

Sri Fang knew that Xu Shi had hidden his strength, and he might not be Xu Shi's opponent. If he escaped, it might be possible, but the 18 followers he brought with him might not be able to do it. After a moment of silence, he asked, "Are you serious?"

Xu Shi said: "Sir, don't joke!"

Sri Fang raised his arms and said, "Okay, I will believe the Imperial Master!"

Xu Shi ordered his men to tie up Shi Li Fang with chains and bring him back to the palace. Shi Li Fang knelt in the palace and said to Ying Zheng: "I was offended by my words just now. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me!"

Ying Zheng's anger disappeared at this time, and he said proudly: "What you said and did just now is a capital crime. Even if you repent and make amends now, it is too late. In my Great Qin, we only believe in the law."

Shi Lifang heard that Ying Zheng had no intention of forgiving him, and looked at Xu Shi. Xu Shi understood this and said, "It is not easy for him to come to our Great Qin from afar. Your Majesty, please treat this Western envoy leniently and let him go back to his country." Ying Zheng said, "Since the national teacher has given advice, how to deal with it will be decided by the national teacher. Do you have any questions?"

None of the ministers raised any doubts, but Wuzhe stood up and said, "This matter involves the diplomacy of the two countries. Although they are thousands of miles apart, if it is not handled properly, it is very likely to cause a war. After all, we don't know much about the Western Kingdom of Magadha."

Wang Ben sneered, "Are you also worried about making enemies with Magadha?"

Wuzhan smiled and said, "War is not a good thing. We should avoid it if possible. Especially this kind of meaningless war. We won't gain any benefit at all."

Xu Shi smiled and said, "I would like to hear how you will deal with the Western envoys, sir?"

Wuzhan said: "I am just reminding the Imperial Master that this is not a small matter. Of course, the man was subdued by the Imperial Master, so he should be in control."

Mayor Xu secretly cursed Wuzhan for being cunning, which undoubtedly pushed all the responsibilities for the future onto him. Wuzhan just watched the fun from the side, made sarcastic remarks, and said with a sullen face: "Why don't we hand it over to you, sir, to handle it?"

Wuzhan said: "I don't have the ability to subdue him, and I am powerless to use the Buddhist Dharma he uses. However, I am somewhat interested. If the Imperial Master allows, I really want to explore the essence of this Buddhist Dharma."

When Xu Shi heard this, he immediately stopped talking. In fact, he also wanted to study Western Buddhism, and Sri Lanka was a perfect opportunity in his hands.

Seeing that no one among the ministers raised any doubts, Ying Zheng immediately announced the adjournment of the court. Xu Shi came to Shi Lifang and said, "Master, please bring your followers with you to the Immortal Dao Temple for a chat. I will then send you away at an appropriate time."

Sri Fang said: "Didn't the Imperial Master promise to let me return home?"

Xu Shi laughed and said, "Master, you have come all the way to our Great Qin. If you don't stay for a few more days, it would be a waste of your trip."

Wuzhan walked up to the two and said, "It seems that the Imperial Master has also developed an interest in Western Buddhism and wants to keep the Master for a few more days. However, I have a request. The Master and I have met once before. When the Master leaves, if you notify me, I will definitely see him off."

Shilifang sighed and said, "I will tell you when I leave." In fact, he has always regretted not getting to know Wuzhan, an important person, in Huangshan. As a result, when he came to Xianyang, no one spoke for him. Not only did he have no chance to spread Buddhism, but now he had to act according to Xu Shi's mood.

Wuzhan said: "Then I will wait for the master's news." He left with Meng Yi calmly.

……

Meng Yi followed Wuzhan back to the mansion. On the way, Meng Yi asked, "What do you think about this matter, brother?"

Wuzhan said: "Although Sri Fang's way of speaking is different from ours, he never lies. What he said is very likely to happen. From what I know, the Western Magadha Kingdom has also annexed many powerful countries and risen in the West. Its territory is no less than that of our Qin. If they come to the East to conquer, it is hard to predict who will win and who will lose in this war."

Meng Yi was puzzled and said, "The two countries are so far apart, and there are deserts and dangerous mountains blocking the way. If this war were to start, it would be very difficult to happen because it would be a long-distance battle and would consume huge resources."

Wuzhan smiled and said, "We think about problems from our current perspective. There are many things we cannot think of. Since Sri Lanka threatened war, it must represent the intention of Ashoka of Magadha."

Meng Yi said: "This Ashoka is really arrogant. He dares to interfere with the laws of my Great Qin."

Wuzhan said: "When a monarch becomes arrogant, he will think that the whole world belongs to him. As long as there is a place to conquer, how can he miss it?"

Meng Yi smiled without saying anything, thinking that it was not an exaggeration to use this sentence to describe His Majesty. If possible, His Majesty would definitely march west.

Wuzhan continued, "They are in the name of saving people, but in fact they are accumulating merit for themselves. The more people learn Buddhism, the greater the merit. If Magadha invades our Great Qin, this war will be a war of faith."

Meng Yi asked in confusion: "A war of faith?"

Wuzhan said: "Such a war is terrible. Soldiers with faith will not be afraid of death. They believe that dying for faith is glorious and their souls will return to the holy land after death. They will also regard us as ignorant barbarians. You can tell from Sri Lanka's eyes."

"The soldiers of our Great Qin will not fear death."

Wuzhan said: "The reasons why our Qin soldiers are not afraid of death are a little more complicated than theirs, but the result is the same. Although our Chinese people do not have the same beliefs as them, they have a sense of national survival. We believe in our ancestors."

Meng Yi sighed: "If a war really breaks out, it will inevitably bring huge losses to our Great Qin. It is best not to have such a war."

(End of this chapter)