The immortal is beside me

Chapter 100 Is he now in the upper third realm?
After leaving the side hall, the two of them crossed the mountains and headed towards the inner side of the green mountain.

As soon as you cross the back mountain, you will be greeted by a chilling aura. Following that aura, you can see a huge formation with a flickering spiritual light lying across the junction of the mountains. Surrounding the formation, five cave-like mountains and rivers are pressed on all sides, and traces of spiritual patterns can be vaguely seen on the mountain - this is actually a formation that uses the entire mountain as a medium.

"This is where the Buddha's relics are sealed."

This was the highest-level sealing formation commanded by the Jiuli, a legacy from the Immortal Alliance era 1,200 years ago. Through the continuous refinement of dozens of Jiuli disciples, the formation was as solid as the mythical Five Finger Mountain, impossible to break even with the full force of a Divine Transformation cultivator.

Of course, this wasn't a problem for Zhou Qing; if he wanted to, he could just push the lock open. But since he had someone with the key, there was no need to pick the lock.

Yan Guoyun stepped forward, extending a hand. A unique spiritual pattern shone upon his palm. As the spiritual light danced, the vast formation before him illuminated. The spiritual patterns covering the mountains began to circulate, and unparalleled momentum surged from them, soaring into the sky like a volcanic eruption.

Waves of vibrations spread out, and an invisible aura transformed into a violent wind, sweeping in all directions. In the distant sect, a disciple who was about to draw a sword had his hand shaken and dropped it. Someone who was about to enter a state of meditation woke up in a startled state from their dying dream. Everyone raised their heads simultaneously, looking towards the mountain behind with a hint of fear.

At this time, in the large formation in the back mountain, the glowing formation pattern was slowly fading away, and a huge golden sphere was emerging from it.

The Buddha's relic is the most precious treasure of Buddhism and a relic of the chaotic battle between the Immortal Alliance.

The relic seemed to be halfway up the mountain, with a faint swastika shimmering within it. Staring at it for even a moment would evoke a sense of trance, as if a giant Buddha, towering over the heavens, stood before them, gazing down upon all living things from above. Under that invisible gaze, all distracting thoughts would be instantly extinguished.

As the Buddha's light approached, Yan Guoyun, who was standing beside the formation, frowned slightly.

As a cultivator at the Spirit Transformation Realm, he naturally would not be overwhelmed by the aura of a relic. Even so, he still felt the astonishing Buddhist meaning contained therein.

It was a kind of pressure from a higher-level being. When he faced the relic, it was like the Nascent Soul Golden Elixir facing him. Just getting close to it made people feel that their mind was being restrained.

This is the true meaning from the Buddha
While he was thinking secretly, the relic in front of him suddenly shook. Zhou Qing, who was beside him, stretched out two fingers and pointed at the relic in the air.

Like a gentle touch on the surface of a lake, scattering fleeting shadows, the illusory Buddha image was dispersed by a single finger, and the Buddha's will within it immediately subsided. The immense pressure that enveloped the entire sect dissipated without a trace.

The Buddha's light faded, and the huge relic began to tremble, as if it was shaking.

As it shook, the relic, which was half the size of a mountain, shrank rapidly, and as it shrank, it slowly floated towards Zhou Qing. The latter stretched out his hand and waited. When the relic fell into his palm, it had turned into a golden bead the size of a lychee, without a trace of breath leaking out.

All this fell into the eyes of Yan Guoyun who was beside him, and a rare hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

Zhou Qing didn't emit a single ounce of spiritual energy; with his own aura alone, he completely suppressed the Buddha's will within the relic. Even with his Divine Transformation cultivation and twelve hundred years of experience, such a method was unheard of.

"Your Majesty, allow me to ask a question."

He thought for a moment and finally asked the question that had been weighing on his mind.

"Have you already broken through to the upper three realms?"

"You can say that." Zhou Qing answered while playing with the relic. The treasure that embodied the true meaning of the Buddha was like a wooden walnut used to move his fingers in his hand.

This answer was within Yan Guoyun's expectations, but even though he had guessed it long ago, it still did not shock him in the least.

To witness a living cultivator of the Upper Three Realms with one's own eyes was like witnessing history for those in the world of cultivation, an honor that might not come around once in hundreds or even thousands of years, not to mention that this person was inextricably linked to their own faction.

"So, by retrieving this relic, are you trying to influence the Buddhist tradition?"

Due to the small number of samples, there have always been only fragmentary records about the upper three realms, but the most important one is the connection between heaven and earth. It is no longer like the previous realms that borrow the spiritual energy of the world for one's own use, but directly influences the laws of nature and even becomes a part of the laws.

No one could clearly explain the true meaning of this method of exerting influence, but looking at Zhou Qing's posture, Yan Guoyun guessed that he must be using a method unique to the upper three realms.

"That's not the case." Zhou Qing shook his head. "The Buddhist tradition was left by Sakyamuni. It is the law constructed by the Dao. Each law is unique. Even I cannot change it at will."

He weighed the relic in his hand and continued, "However, since he happened to have left a few traces of his true intentions in the human world, let's use this to point the way and find the foundation he left behind."

"." Yan Guoyun was silent.

It had been many years since he left his disciple status and hadn't felt that he "couldn't understand what the other person was saying." Now this senior made him relive the feeling of his youth, as if he had suddenly become a thousand years younger.

As he stood there in deep thought, a special inspiration suddenly rushed into his consciousness. Yan Guoyun raised his head, his gaze piercing through the cave and into the sky.

"Your Majesty, the world seems to be changing."

Yan Guoyun activated his spiritual sense, and the look in his eyes changed slightly.

He could feel a huge Buddhist force awakening between heaven and earth, and its might shook the area thousands of miles around. If the Buddhist will he faced when discussing the Tao was like a river, then this vibration was a tsunami.

Did Buddhism complete the Pure Land tradition? But without the Buddha's relics, how did they do it?
It was with the power of the Pure Land that Buddhism conquered the various kingdoms in less than a hundred years, ultimately provoking the Sakya Rebellion. If the present-day tradition were to return, wouldn't that mean the century-long turmoil would reappear in the Central Plains?
Moreover, if you feel it carefully, the aura that permeates the heaven and earth, although revealing the Buddhist spirit, appears deep and violent, like an abyss with undercurrents surging, which is completely different from the Buddhist style of using softness to overcome hardness.

What is this
Beside him, Zhou Qing also raised his head. His senses were naturally more accurate than Yan Guoyun's, and he could detect the hidden information in the changes at a glance.

It's not the law itself that has been changed, but other laws that have been mixed in?

He stared at the relic in his hand. At this moment, the Buddha's spirit contained in this treasure was restless, as if it was growing vigorously, or as if it was fighting with something.

He could feel the aggressiveness contained in it. If it was allowed to erupt, it would inevitably bring about a disaster more severe than the Sakya Rebellion.

Zhou Qing closed his eyes, his consciousness resonating with the relic, carefully feeling the source of the breath, and opened his eyes again after a moment.

The source of the change was 300 miles to the northeast, in the present-day Ganzhou area.

Twelve hundred years ago, the area known as Anxi marked the end of the Hexi Corridor. Initially, it was home to the Anxi Protectorate established by the Tang Dynasty. Following the An-Shi Rebellion (also known as the Shakya Rebellion), the Buddhist-led Tubo Kingdom severed the Hexi Corridor and annexed the Anxi region, planting countless seeds of Buddhism there.

Does Buddhism want to revive there now? This involves the inheritance of Sakyamuni, and it is indeed no longer a problem that the younger generation can solve.

"Boy, coordinate everyone here." Zhou Qing casually put the relic into his pocket, "I have to go to Ganzhou this time."

When Yan Guoyun heard this, he immediately realized the senior's goal.

"Your Majesty, are you going to the heart of Buddhism in person?" Yan Guoyun asked in a low voice, "How are you going to deal with them?" "The Buddhist heritage has begun to revive, and this doesn't look like a normal revival method. It's impossible to interfere with it with ordinary means."

Zhou Qing said: "Since we can't interfere, then we can just erase the entire inheritance."

Even Yan Guoyun was stunned when he heard this.

Erase the inheritance? That is the Buddha's legacy, the foundation of Buddhism that has stood for thousands of years. Is Your Majesty going to single-handedly fight against the entire Buddhist tradition of thousands of years?
He wants to... destroy Buddhism single-handedly?
Even for Yan Guoyun, the content of these words was still incredible. However, when Zhou Qing said this, his tone was as if he was discussing what to eat tonight. It was so calm that there was no room for questioning, so he had no choice but to agree.

The conversation ended here, and the last stop of his revisit to the old place was also completed. A moment later, Zhou Qing walked out of the cave alone, standing on the top of the towering Zhongnan Mountain, looking northeast towards Ganzhou.

Twelve hundred years ago, he had also gone there alone and washed the land with blood.

That was the last sixty years of the Tang Dynasty, and at that time the place was still called Anxi.

Now, in order to prevent the history of the Sakya Rebellion from repeating itself, he wants to let the history of Ganzhou and Anxi repeat itself.

His feet swayed slightly, and his figure disappeared in an instant, going straight into the distance.

In 848 AD, Jiuli Xuanji Pavilion.

This was the sect's headquarters for the transmission of messages and the exchange of intelligence. After a century of war, the attic's piles of messages and ultimatums had become as chaotic as a garbage dump.

At this time, the remaining elders of Jiuli gathered in the attic. One letter after another floated up from the ground, flew in front of their eyes, and were read quickly.

The Immortal Alliance collapsed, the Tang Dynasty was about to fall, and now the Central Plains once again showed signs of chaos.

Conquering the world is difficult, ruling it is even harder. A powerful individual can single-handedly pacify a powerful enemy, but they cannot single-handedly govern the vast world of cultivation. To restore order across the four corners of the world, there is only one way: to gather a sufficient number of cultivators and regain control of all regions of the Central Plains.

Before the Sakya Rebellion, the various sects under the Immortal Alliance were scattered throughout the Tang Dynasty, and they only communicated through Feixun on weekdays.

After the turmoil, nearly half of the sects were destroyed, and many of the remaining sects broke away from the Central Plains and joined the arms of foreign forces. Now the territory controlled by the immortal sects in the Central Plains is less than half of its peak period. Everyone present knows that restoring the former glory is an impossible task.

Yet, people still held onto a glimmer of hope. Perhaps beneath the vast sea of ​​corpses, there were still a few scattered remnants of the enemy. If only a few more men could be recovered, the Central Plains cultivation world would find a new lease of life, and the crumbling Tang Dynasty might be able to hold out for a few more days.

"The Eight Clans of Hanoi have been completely annihilated."

"Of the four sects in Youzhou, three were destroyed, and one became independent."

"All five factions of the former Blackwater Governorate have defected to the grassland tribe."

Zhou Wuqing stood beside the scattered Fei letters, watching one Fei letter after another being turned out in front of him, but there were very few good news among them.

As the hill of Fetion gradually became lower, the expressions of the people in the room became increasingly gloomy. Perhaps they should have known that all these efforts were in vain.

"Wait! This is a Fei letter."

A sudden cry of surprise rang out, attracting the attention of everyone in the Xuanji Pavilion. An elder was seen holding a dusty letter in his hand, with a hint of surprise in his voice.

"This letter came from the Three Anxi Sects! They are asking for help from the Immortal Alliance!"

The elder raised his hand and threw it, and the words on the flying letter appeared in front of everyone.

[The Tibetans have invaded, the Hexi Corridor has been cut off, Anxi is in danger, please come to our aid as soon as possible]

The three sects in Anxi are still asking for help from the Immortal Alliance, which proves that they have not left the Immortal Alliance and are still fulfilling their ally duties to guard the Anxi area, which perfectly meets the requirements of gathering manpower.

But the atmosphere in the room did not change much. People stared at the words in the corner of the letter and fell into silence.

"The letter is dated from the Xu Yi year of the Jiuli era," one of the elders said with some difficulty. "This letter was sent eighty years ago."

Eighty years ago, the Sakya Rebellion was at its most intense. At that time, the various sects in the Central Plains were already exhausted just fighting against Buddhism, and of course they had no manpower to rescue the distant Anxi. It was for this reason that Tubo took the opportunity to cut off the Hexi Corridor and annex the Anxi area.

To date, it has been eighty years since the Hexi Corridor was cut off, which means that Anxi has lost contact with the Central Plains for eighty years.

No one knows what happened during these eighty years, but the most likely possibility is that the Four Anxi Sects had already been destroyed by Tubo, or even if they had not perished, they must have surrendered to the enemy.

After all, who would persist in defending a place for eighty years in the desperate situation where no reinforcements could be received?
".forget it."

The elder holding the letter whispered, "The Anxi region is still under the control of Tubo, and it's teeming with foreign cultivators. If we try to force our way in, we'll lose countless men. Furthermore, even if we manage to penetrate Anxi, the four sects stationed there are likely long gone."

As he spoke, the Fetion floating in the air lost its luster and slowly fell from the sky.

Before the letter hit the ground, a hand grabbed it.

"I go."

Everyone in the room raised their eyes and looked at the Taoist in red who spoke.

"A few barbarians from the highlands can't do anything to me."

Zhou Wuqing looked at the Feixin in his hand and said, "You continue to search for the sects in the Central Plains. I will go to Anxi alone. If all four sects are wiped out, that's fine. If there are still people left, I will bring them back to the Central Plains."

No one objected. After searching for several days, Anxi was the only place they had found where there was still hope, and only the man before them had the strength to enter.

The road ahead is uncertain, hope is dim, but the spark of fire still exists.

Under the gaze of everyone, he strode out of the cave, soared into the sky from the top of Mount Zhongnan, and flew towards Anxi in the distance.

(End of this chapter)