He has been reincarnated through countless worlds, adorned with billions of mythological terms!

After the golden light faded, only the old monk and twelve ascetic monks remained on the ruins.

They stood on the edge of the ancient city ruins, looking at the devastated battlefield—the earth cracked, the sand dunes flattened, and the scorch marks left by the Demon Buddha stretched from their feet all the way to the horizon.

The old monk remained silent for a long time, then turned around and said to the twelve ascetics:

"Let's go."

The ascetics looked up at him, their eyes glistening with tears, but none of them cried out.

They blew out the flame in the copper lamp and carefully tucked the wick into their clothes.

Those were no ordinary lamp wicks—each wick contained a wisp of Buddhist and Taoist wisdom that the old man holding the lamp had given them before he died.

Buddhism may perish, but its traditions must not be broken.

"Go to Xianyang."

The old monk said, his voice so hoarse it was almost inaudible, "Tell Emperor Qin the news of the abbot's death."

"Tell him that the Demon Buddha has gone east."

Old Jiang sat under the ginkgo tree, his wine gourd resting on his lap, the stopper still in place.

He sensed it—in the direction of the endless desert, a Buddhist or Taoist law, after burning to its limit, suddenly went out, like a meteor burning out its last bit of light and falling into boundless darkness.

That feeling was very familiar to him.

In the previous era, when the large world collapsed, he sensed such an extinction many times—each ray of light going out meant that a person who had fought alongside him had disappeared forever.

The moment the old man holding the lamp completely dissipated into the world, Old Jiang did not move. He simply placed the gourd on his knee and unconsciously stroked its surface with his fingers.

Most of the golden leaves of the ginkgo tree had fallen, and a few leaves drifted onto his shoulder, but he didn't brush them away.

Over the past thousand years, he has seen many people pass by, so many that he himself has lost count.

Some died in battle, some died of old age, and some, like the old man holding a lamp, lit themselves up, leaving a lamp for future generations before turning to ashes.

"One less."

Old Jiang muttered to himself, his voice so soft it was almost audible in the wind.

He uncorked the gourd, poured some wine onto the ground, and then took a sip himself.

The wine dripped down his chin onto his clothes, but he didn't wipe it away.

Then he stood up, tucked the wine gourd back into his waistband, and walked toward Xianyang Palace—he had more important things to do.

Xianyang Palace, the Hall of Unification of the Four Seas.

Ying Ji sat behind his desk, with the celestial map formed by the power of destiny spread out in front of him.

The gray-gold light spot representing the Demon Buddha on the western line of the map has crossed the edge of the endless desert and is moving towards the Hexi Corridor. The speed of movement is faster than before. The Demon Buddha did not slow down after being injured. On the contrary, the burning of the Buddha's flame by the old man holding the lamp aroused the evil energy sealed in its body for thousands of years. Like an enraged trapped beast, it finally broke free of the last chain.

When Lao Jiang pushed the door open, Ying Ji was writing the character "守" (guard) on a military report from the western front.

As he put down his pen, he heard Old Jiang's footsteps. The footsteps were a bit heavier than usual—Old Jiang always walked haphazardly, making a shuffling sound, but today every step he took was solid.

Ying Ji put his pen on the pen mountain, pushed aside the military report, and watched as Old Jiang sat down opposite him.

He noticed the still-wet wine stain on Lao Jiang's clothes, and also noticed that the corners of Lao Jiang's eyes were redder than usual.

"The lamp-bearer is dead."

Ying Ji said.

Old Jiang nodded.

"He's dead."

"The lamp exploded, the people are gone, and the last twelve ascetic monks of Buddhism are heading towards Xianyang."

"The Demon Buddha was badly burned. He has now crossed the Hexi Corridor, and Liangzhou is just ahead."

Liangzhou is the last gateway to the west of Xianyang. Once Liangzhou falls, the dark golden light of the Demon Buddha can shine on the walls of Xianyang.

Old Jiang placed the wine gourd on the imperial table, the bronze bottom of the gourd hitting the gilded table surface with a dull thud.

"I'll go."

"I'll go alone and intercept them outside Liangzhou City."

His tone was calm, not like he was asking for battle, but like he was stating a pre-determined arrangement: "You know the strength of the Demon Buddha."

"If one person could burn the lamp like that, I, an old man, could at least hold it back."

"With a little effort, we can render it incapacitated for a hundred years."

Ying Ji did not answer immediately.

He pushed aside the military report on his desk that had the character "守" (guard) written on it, making room in the center of the desk, and then took out two jade slips from his sleeve and placed them side by side on the table.

One was a secret report sent by Miao Zu yesterday, and the other was the latest battle report from the eastern front.

"The Miao Ancestor brought A-Chong with him to Xianyang," Ying Ji said. "His submission is real, and the Miao people's desire for the protection of the Celestial Dynasty's fortune is also real."

"But Ah Chong is a reincarnator—he could turn against us at any time while he's in Xianyang."

He pushed the second jade slip forward. "Over in the East China Sea, that man in white has been holding Ji Canghai back for a long time on the outskirts. The main force of the Qin Dynasty on the eastern front has been assembled."

"But Ji Canghai is still on Penglai Island, the sea god has not yet been worn down, and the three-headed sea beast is still roaming the east coast."

"If you go to Liangzhou alone and don't come back, I'll be left alone in Xianyang to face these two."

Old Jiang remained silent for a moment.

What do you mean?

Ying Ji stood up, walked to the palace entrance, and pushed open the door.

The ginkgo trees outside the palace rustled in the autumn wind. The roots of the trees were connected to the entire network of fortune of Xianyang City. The golden pillar of light that pierced the heavens and the earth above the tree crown was much fainter than when the Immortal Dynasty first rose—a sign that fortune was being constantly consumed in the ongoing war. With each point consumed, the foundation of the Immortal Dynasty was weakened.

He stood at the entrance of the hall, his back to Old Jiang, and remained silent for a long time, as if he were making an extremely difficult decision.

Then he turned around, walked back to the imperial desk, and flipped the map of fortune on it over—the back of the map was covered with densely packed runes. It was a map of fortune circulation that he had carved with his own Dao Realm power when the Immortal Dynasty was upgraded. Each rune was a channel of fortune, and all the channels pointed to the same location:

The emperor himself.

This is the Celestial Dynasty's last trump card, using the power of destiny as a guide to forcibly pull his cultivation back to its peak temporarily.

The cost is that the consumption of fortune will double, and the fortune foundation that originally required a hundred years to accumulate will be forced to be delayed by at least two hundred years—and the Immortal Dynasty will even be in a weak period for ten years.

"I'll go."

Ying Ji spoke those two words in a very calm tone.

"I forcibly restored myself to my peak condition using the power of destiny, and I can maintain it for an hour."

"Within an hour, I can defeat the Demon Buddha so that he will not dare to offend me again for at least a thousand years."

He paused, then looked up at Old Jiang, "But there's one condition."

"During the hour I went into battle, the defenses of Xianyang were empty."

"Miao Zu and A Chong are in Xianyang. I am not at ease entrusting my back to them."

"When I go to war, you will stay behind to guard Xianyang—I entrust it to you."

"You are the only one I can trust."

Old Jiang remained silent for a long time.

He knew that Ying Ji was right.

Whether Miao Zu's submission was genuine is hard to say, but Ah Chong was ultimately a demon from beyond the heavens.

Having dealt with extraterrestrial demons before, he naturally knew how valuable a destiny was to them.

And Xianyang, the Great Qin Dynasty, was the foundation of the Mandate of Heaven.

Once the luck is destroyed and the formation of fortune fails, not only will the destiny be downgraded, but the entire process will have to start all over again.

Ah Chong was like a firecracker in Xianyang City, ready to explode at any moment.

Old Jiang stayed in Xianyang, and those extraterrestrial demons died one by one when they came;

Once he leaves, Ying Ji, who has not yet fully matured, will face the extraterrestrial demons that may attack at any moment.

Even if it's Miao Zu's betrayal, either way, it's a significant loss.

"Alright, I will guard Xianyang."

Old Jiang picked up the wine gourd from the imperial table, uncorked it, and took a swig. "Go ahead and do your work with peace of mind."

"To the Great Qin Dynasty, I will guard it for you."