The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 341 Perhaps it's better to do it myself? (4k)

At that moment, Wang Chengsi felt as if something was tightly blocking his throat, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Whether it was Qingzhou or the Southwest, he not only didn't have any fond memories of either place, but he also encountered two things he never wanted to think about again.

In fact, it would be fine if you just stumbled upon it, and you could even brag about it, saying that you saw the legendary treasure with your own eyes.

But the key point is that such a treasure, in such circumstances, falling into the hands of such people, inherently contained a deadly trick—a trick that could truly cost a person their life!
Every time he thinks about it, he feels a chill run down his spine and his heart turns cold.

Even now, with the determination to re-establish the Great Dao, this fear has not diminished in the slightest. After all, before it was about avoiding cause and effect, now it is about avoiding calamity. They seem different, but in reality, they are both living on the edge of a knife, with little essential difference.

But to his utter surprise, after all the trouble he had gone through to come all the way to Kyoto, he still ended up hearing those words.

Furthermore, this gentleman before them clearly knows both the Buddha and the Taoist priest.
Wang Chengsi swallowed hard, his back already soaked with cold sweat. He forced a stiff smile:

"Senior, I have something I'd like to tell you! Please don't be offended after you hear it!"

Du Yuan smiled and said in a relaxed tone, "What can I blame you for? Just say it!"

Seeing the master's stance, Wang Chengsi mustered his courage slightly, though his tongue still trembled incessantly:
"Um, senior, to be honest, I've only recently realized that my eyesight is actually far from perfect! Of course, it's not that it's completely useless, but mainly... mainly these kinds of seals and knobs, I'm afraid I can't tell them apart! After all, I can't just be a half-baked expert and embarrass myself before I've really mastered the skills, right?"

No one knew that his greatest skill was identifying seals. There wasn't a single seal from any region in the world that he didn't recognize.

Even his ancestor was inferior to him in this respect.

Furthermore, there are swords. In this respect, even his uncles admit their inferiority, with only his grandmaster surpassing him. It's not that he doesn't recognize those supreme weapons, but he needs to carefully examine them to confirm their authenticity, while his grandmaster can discern their essence with just a glance.

After all, in terms of things to conquer, the ancestors who lived longer and saw higher heavens naturally had a better understanding than those of later generations.

The treasures you've only seen in various ancient books and jade tablets may have been seen by others in person, or even experienced firsthand!
But ever since he saw those two gentlemen and the seals in their hands, he has never dared to show these things to anyone again—he was really afraid that his bad luck would lead him to encounter some deadly objects again.

But after thinking about it, he felt that perhaps there was no need to be so worried, since there didn't seem to be any other seal that could compare.
perhaps?

Seeing his appearance, Du Yuan knew that he had been traumatized by her previous two encounters.

This made Du Yuan feel a little ashamed, and she planned to make it up to him later.

The kitten has a lot of wine hidden away; I'll get him another jar later.

As she thought about it, Du Yuan said:
"Oh, don't worry, don't worry, it's not a seal! It's a sword!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Chengsi's cold sweat vanished, and his heart instantly warmed.

I was already thankful it wasn't a seal, but I never expected it to be the second thing I'm best at recognizing!
Thinking about this, I couldn't help but straighten my back.

"Senior, to be honest, I am second to none. No, I am most skilled at identifying all weapons in the world, especially swords and sabers! I dare not say that I am the best in this category, but I am definitely among the top. There are only a handful of people in the world who can surpass me!"

Seeing his expression, Du Yuan became hopeful.

"Since Young Master Wang is so skilled, then I can rest assured!"

"That's right, Senior, you can rest assured. But I wonder what exactly you want me to see?"

At this moment, Wang Chengsi was extremely curious about what kind of divine weapon could be wielded by such a master, and he didn't even know its origin.

Thinking about this, Wang Chengsi suddenly had a bad feeling.

Because he remembered that this scene still seemed familiar.

But Du Yuan did more than just save him; she was like a second life to him. In fact, she even helped him bring back Tian Qing, the lineage of novelists!
He couldn't imagine what would have happened to him and his lineage of novelists without Du Yuan.

Therefore, he could not and should not refuse.

He could only keep reassuring himself that among all the famous swords, there shouldn't be any that made his heart race as much as those two wielded.

Then Du Yuan untied the old sword from his waist, placed it on the table, and said:

"That senior said he actually knew my sword, but he felt he still had to let you see it, saying it was his last test of you."

"So, I wonder if Young Master Wang recognizes what this sword is?"

The origin of her own ash was one of the questions Du Yuan was most curious about.

As for the identities of the two girls, Xiao Mao and the others, Du Yuan couldn't confirm them, but after experiencing so much, she had already vaguely guessed them.

At this point, Du Yuan said with great anticipation:

"This sword of mine must have a very distinguished origin, so please take a good look at it, Young Master Wang!"

Although the quality of his own ash does not affect his fondness for it, as a transmigrator and a young man, Du Yuan naturally hopes that his things are of the highest quality!

Upon hearing this, Wang Chengsi became even more alert and began to carefully examine the rusty sword.

It was completely corroded and looked nothing like a divine weapon.

Logically speaking, this alone is enough to show that this sword is by no means a divine weapon.

It's a joke that divine weapons can rust!
But he dared not make any rash judgments.

Firstly, all the senior figures who have attained high positions in the three religions have praised this sword as extraordinary, so there is no possibility that they have misjudged it; secondly, the world is vast and full of wonders, and the only thing that is impossible is "impossible" itself.

But what kind of sword could be so bizarre?

Although he was skilled at identifying weapons, he had not yet reached the pinnacle of his ability.

He recognized almost all the famous artifacts in the world, but he couldn't see through their essence at a glance like his grandmaster!

At this moment, he was deep in thought, his mind racing through what he had learned and seen in the past, trying to find a clue.

It was quite different from when I recognized those two seals at a glance before.

Is that the Emperor's Sword? No, the design is wrong! And the Emperor's Sword seems to be broken?
Could that be the sword of the Dao Ancestor? No, no, no, that's impossible. First of all, the Dao Ancestor's sword should be hanging in the ancestral temple of the Daoist school, guarded by several sect leaders and masters.

Even if they are truly scattered and lost, they cannot be allowed to remain in a high-ranking Confucian position while their power is rusted!
That's not how you slap someone in the face!
What kind of sword is this? I hope this won't happen again, but my boast is about to be proven wrong, isn't it?

Wang Chengsi was extremely anxious as he racked his brains and rejected almost every famous sword.

But it was at this moment that he suddenly thought of a possibility—if it was such a powerful weapon, why was it in such a state?
They must be facing a great change or even a great calamity!
Therefore, I should think about those famous swords with unknown histories, and given their rusty condition, I might have to look back to ancient times or even prehistoric times.

After having a few ideas, Wang Chengsi did indeed come up with several options.

But in the end, they were all rejected.

For a moment, Wang Chengsi was filled with regret. Was he really that worthless?
Forget about repaying this great kindness, why are you even exposing your buttocks?

When he caught a glimpse of the old tree outside the courtyard out of the corner of his eye, Wang Chengsi suddenly had a flash of inspiration and asked Du Yuan a question:
"Senior, is there an inscription on this sword?" Du Yuan then turned the old sword on the table over, revealing an ancient inscription that was identical to the seals given to him by his two friends.

The moment I saw the inscription on the sword.

Wang Chengsi's eyes widened suddenly, then his expression changed.

'It really is ash?!'

In ancient times, there was a tree that stretched straight to the heavens. It was called the Ash Tree, and climbing it could make one a god!

This was the first and only path to heaven in the world.

After the ash tree, the Jianmu and Xunmu trees arose and were used to build the Heavenly Road, but they were all burned down by the Sun God, leaving only Zhou Mountain.

But these aren't the most important things. What's really important is this. How is this different from those two seals?
However, it's no wonder it has turned out this way, after all, this is a catastrophe that predates even the war between water and fire.

In that battle, all ancient texts contained only four words: "The Eight Desolations and the Land Submerged!"
After a long period of stunned silence, Wang Chengsi finally came to his senses.

It has to be said that this time, he was much better than the previous two times.

After a brief moment of shock, she recovered quickly and even managed to sit down beside him, suppressing her fear.

The moment you go down, instead of using your legs to pull yourself up, you just collapse onto the ground.

After barely managing to steady himself on the chair, Wang Chengsi, who was thinking about how to explain things to Du Yuan, turned to look at her.

In a daze, he felt as if the three gentlemen were overlapping each other.

The Buddha is, the Taoist priest is, and the master is also.

Although the three gradually became clearer and separated after a short while, this moment of confusion suddenly jolted him awake!
Then, he woke up realizing he was facing the wrong direction.
No, these three gentlemen know each other and have a close relationship. Now, the Buddha is in the mountains, the Taoist is by the water, and the Master is holding up an ash tree to the sky.
Given their unique identities and previous apparent attempts to establish their own businesses, this is especially relevant.

Is it really not a matter of dissatisfaction with the current state of the three religions and a desire for reform?

If not, then it is.
Wang Chengsi looked at Du Yuan blankly, then his mouth dropped open—that meant he was going to replace the three founders of the religion?!

Even if they are truly dissatisfied with the current state of the three religions, given their status and position, reform should start from within, from top to bottom.

Where can one set up their own business like this?

He declared himself the Western Paradise and established a separate palace. This gentleman is also suspected of re-establishing the literary tradition.

The first two could be considered as diversions, but if the last one is true, then it's really a direct confrontation.

At that moment, Wang Chengsi felt his tongue spinning desperately around his mouth, but he couldn't utter a single word.

After struggling and hesitating for a long time, he ultimately didn't dare to ask Du Yuan if she had any grievances against the Sage Master that would lead her to act in this way.

First, I'm afraid of being beaten to death if I'm wrong; second, I'm afraid of being beaten to death if I'm right.

But he dared not simply stand there with his large family, waiting aimlessly, letting the world's storms rage and pound them, until he died in some unknown wave.

With his lips trembling violently, he finally managed to utter a question that was not too radical, yet perfectly appropriate:

"May I ask, senior, what is your opinion on the Buddha?"

Tathagata is an honorific title in Buddhism for an enlightened being, meaning "one who has attained perfect enlightenment by following the true path." It does not refer to a specific individual, but is one of the ten titles of all Buddhas.

However, this is only a term used in Buddhist scriptures. In reality, Tathagata generally refers to the first enlightened being in Buddhism, that is, the Buddha.
Du Yuan was momentarily lost in thought when asked about this question.

It feels like I've traveled back to Xiaoxitian in a dream!
Then he heard Huang Mei, while wearing a merit wheel, shouting to himself, "What bullshit Buddha? I'll do it myself!"

Then I told myself to kill myself with a stick.

After sitting upright for a long time, Du Yuan finally smiled knowingly and then said:
"Perhaps it's better to do it myself?!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Chengsi:
Believing in the Buddha is not as good as doing it yourself?
At this moment, Wang Chengsi felt as if the mountains were roaring and the sea was crashing, and the sky was falling and the earth was splitting apart.
In his dizzying state, he could hardly believe he was hearing such treasonous words!

But that's not scary. Throughout history, there have been countless madmen who ultimately became the laughingstock of others.

But today is different!

Those who speak of this today might actually have that possibility!
If that's the case, what does my current card status mean? And what should I do?
The next moment, Du Yuan saw Wang Chengsi, the young master, stand up straight from his seat, just like the previous two times.

After staring at himself with wide eyes, he exclaimed "Eek—!" and collapsed straight down.

Looking at the young master Wang lying on the ground, Du Yuan gave a bitter smile, utterly helpless:
Why is it always like this?

After rubbing her temples in exasperation, Du Yuan fastened the old sword strap and then called Cui Shilu, who was waiting outside, in.

Upon entering, he exclaimed in surprise:
"Cousin? Cousin, what's wrong?!"

As Du Yuan helped Wang Chengsi to a chair, she instructed Cui Shilu:

"Don't worry, he's fine. He's probably just scared. Once he wakes up, that's it. I won't give him any more instructions this time. Just remember to tell him that he should go to the tavern in front of Baiyu Bridge."

Last time I gave a brief explanation, but things seemed to go off-topic, so let's not say anything this time.

"There's an elder here, he should meet him, but of course, he doesn't have to. As for the specifics, it's entirely up to him. Just say it's their private matter, and we outsiders can only interfere so far!"

Cui Shilu looked bewildered, but since it was Du Yuan's order, he quickly cupped his hands and said:

"Rest assured, Immortal Master, I will definitely tell my cousin everything exactly as it is!"

Seeing that he had taken it all in, Du Yuan nodded and said:
"In that case, I shall take my leave now."

"Please take care, Immortal Master. I'll see you off."

They led one immortal away.

Wang Chengsi, who remained where he was, felt as if he had returned to his own mountain gate.

Looking at everything so familiar, he groggily headed towards the Ancestral Hall.

Here, he saw neither the memorial tablets of past sect leaders, nor any of his fellow disciples, nor his master.
There was only his grandmaster here.

When he stepped into the Ancestral Hall, his grandmaster looked at him with a complicated expression.

As the two stared at each other in silence, a loud crash was heard outside the hall, and the ancestral tablet in his family's ancestral hall fell down and smashed to pieces.

From this point on, the two became even more silent.

(End of this chapter)