Fairy, please don't do this!

"I'll give it a thorough inspection when I get back."

Yu Fengzhi picked up the red lotus, gave it a few words of advice, and turned to leave.

However, just as he was about to step out of the cave, he paused slightly.

The image of Gu Jinzhao drawing the Red Lotus Sword after he got drunk that day involuntarily surfaced in her mind, along with his words, "From now on, you will be my destined one." She asked, almost as if possessed,:

"Is there anything else you... want to say to me?"

Why does this scene seem so familiar?

Gu Jinzhao was stunned for a moment. He actually wanted to say something like, "Have a safe journey and return soon," but when the words came to his lips, he felt that it was too dry.

He hesitated for a moment, then reached into his robes, fumbled around for a moment, and took out the coarse cloth sachet that the little girl from Yunhe Town had given him.

"This sachet was given to me by a rescued child after I accompanied my junior sister to Yunhe Town to complete a trial mission. He said it would ensure my safety."

"Uncle, your journey is long and arduous, so take it with you. It will bring you good luck."

My uncle has gone down the mountain and will definitely not return to the sect anytime soon.

In this way, one will gradually forget about the "person one loves".

Well... if there are no surprises, my martial uncle's marriage line is stable.

Yu Fengzhi's gaze fell on the inconspicuous sachet. She paused for a moment, then reached out and took it.

When you touch the texture of the coarse cloth with your fingertips, you can also smell a faint floral fragrance.

Thank you.

She uttered two words in a low voice, clutched the sachet in her palm, said no more, and with a swift movement, she rode up on her sword and disappeared from sight in an instant.

The sword light pierced through the clouds and mist at an extremely fast speed.

During the flight, the inexplicable ripples in Yu Fengzhi's heart had not completely subsided.

She subconsciously looked down at the sachet in her hand.

Curious about what was inside, I untied the knot.

Besides some dried, unidentified herb leaves, there was also a small, neatly folded piece of paper inside.

She pulled out the slip of paper and slowly unfolded it.

A line of small print read: "May we find one heart to share, and stay together until our hair turns white!"

Yu Fengzhi felt a buzzing in her head, and the Red Lotus Sword beneath her feet swayed involuntarily in the air before regaining its balance.

The whistling wind seemed to disappear in an instant, leaving only the sound of my heart pounding violently in my chest like a drum.

Could it be that the strange and unusual novels he sent before, especially the one called "The Return of the Condor Heroes," had all the unconventional plots in them, which he did intentionally?

Was this a prelude to today's declaration of love?

Does Gu Jinchao really like me?

But I'm his senior martial uncle!

How can this be?

Countless chaotic thoughts and embarrassing guesses surged and churned in Yu Fengzhi's heart like boiling water.

A blush appeared on her flawless face, spreading from her cheeks to her ears, making her breathtakingly beautiful.

……

After Yu Fengzhi left, Gu Jinzhao did not delay and went straight to the sect's contribution pavilion. Relying on his luck and speed, he snatched several demon-slaying missions.

The goal was clear: to sacrifice the evil cultivator in order to cultivate the "Six Elements True Demon Technique" and increase their strength as quickly as possible.

He must advance his divine cultivation to the seventh rank and his martial arts to the ninth rank before the Six Sects Heroes Gathering officially begins.

The urgency is naturally because Mu Yiren and Lin Qingci, who are in their second playthrough, will meet.

He needs sufficient strength to deal with this chaotic situation.

Besides this, he needs to do one thing at this gathering of six outstanding figures: to gain the attention of Empress Dowager Xiao Qingyi.

According to past practice, the so-called Six Sects Heroes Gathering, although nominally covering the six top sects.

However, the Zen realm, which is on par with the Dao realm, never participates.

Why?

Because Zen was the state religion of the former Great Xia Dynasty.

When the Cangyue Emperor raised his army and overthrew the world, the Chan Realm, due to its deep ties with the previous dynasty, was expelled from the core of the Central Plains and forced to relocate to the remote and desolate western Leizhou.

Daojing, on the other hand, took over the position of the state religion and settled in Zhongzhou, enjoying the imperial dynasty's fortune and resources.

Leizhou is located on the western border of the imperial capital, where yellow sand obscures the sun, the environment is harsh, and the population is sparse.

Even those demonic forces that thrive on chaos are unwilling to expand their business there.

The reason is simple: finding someone to do evil might require traveling thousands of miles, which is simply not worth the effort.

After the Zen community moved to Leizhou, it lost a large number of followers, and its resources for spiritual practice plummeted.

Centuries of hardship and disparity have deepened the obsession with returning to the Central Plains.

This gathering of six outstanding individuals is an opportunity.

As long as we can suppress the younger generation of the five sects with absolute strength, the reputation of Zen Realm will surely resound throughout Cangyue once again, attracting the attention of the court and the public.

The current situation is favorable for Zen practice.

In the five states under the imperial rule, evil cults and heretical cultivators are becoming increasingly rampant, stirring up waves of bloodshed and terror, leaving the people in a state of panic and the region in turmoil.

Unfortunately, Daojing, the state religion, and many other Daoist sects failed to effectively eliminate demons, drawing criticism from both the court and the public.

The Cangyue Dynasty had long been dissatisfied with this, believing that Daojing had been occupying the position of the state religion for too long and had gradually become complacent, forgetting its duty to eliminate demons and protect the righteous path.

Therefore, in the imperial court, the voice advocating the return of Zen Buddhism to the Central Plains grew louder day by day.

Many court officials believed that allowing the Zen realm to return would not only help eliminate the demonic threat, but also create a situation where Buddhism and Taoism coexist and check each other, preventing the Taoist realm from becoming too dominant, which would be more beneficial to the stability of imperial power.

An Wanxi sat sideways on the back of the mare in front of Gu Jinzhao, her slender arms gently encircling his waist.

Beneath her skirt, her long, jade-like legs were slightly bent, and her soft satin shoes embroidered with twin lotus blossoms swayed gently with the horse's light steps.

"If the Zen realm can return and suppress the demonic path, wouldn't that be a good thing?"

Gu Jinzhao shook his head, looking at the winding mountain road ahead, his tone serious: "It's just an appearance."

"What Zen Realm is after is probably bigger and more dangerous than those demonic sects that stir up trouble."

An Wanxi rested her chin on Gu Jinzhao's shoulder, her warm breath brushing against his ear, her tone tinged with a hint of confusion: "What do you mean by that?"

Gu Jinzhao did not answer directly, but said: "Zen Realm is the contemporary Zen Master. His cultivation has reached the first-grade perfection, and he has already touched the barrier of the super grade."

"If he wants to truly take that step and reach the pinnacle, he must fulfill the grand ambition he made in his early years."

An Wanxi tilted her head slightly, her red lips almost touching his neck: "What grand ambition?"

"All sentient beings are Buddhas."

"Are all sentient beings Buddhas?"

Although she did not practice Buddhism, she was well aware of the difficulty of attaining Buddhahood.

That requires breaking through ignorance and delusion, transcending the cycle of birth and death, and attaining the supreme state of great liberation and freedom.

Throughout history, apart from the legendary Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, who is said to have reached this level, no other person has been heard of.

But he was a peerless master from the same era as the Sword Ancestor, whose talent was unparalleled throughout history.

Gu Jinzhao narrowed his eyes, his voice carrying a hint of coldness: "This is the Zen Master's grand vision and aspiration."

"For this purpose, he intended to construct a world that is perpetually trapped in a cycle of reincarnation."

"What is meant by eternal damnation?"

"It is to ensure that all living beings do not enter the netherworld or return to heaven and earth after death."

"Thus, they are constantly reborn and re-enter the human world, experiencing birth, old age, sickness, death, separation from loved ones, encountering those they hate, and not getting what they want... This cycle repeats endlessly."

"Only those who, through their own enlightenment, transcend this endless sea of ​​suffering in samsara can attain Buddhahood."

This sounds almost like turning the entire world into a vast ocean of suffering, allowing people to understand their true nature through these hardships.

But upon closer examination, it is chilling, for it would be an endless cycle of suffering.

At first, one may feel lucky to be reborn, but with repeated cycles of birth, aging, sickness, and death just like in the previous life, humanity will inevitably be extinguished, gradually becoming numb and indifferent, turning one into a walking corpse.

It is like a cruel cage, imprisoning billions of lives forever, from which even death cannot bring escape.

An Wanxi had clearly also realized this terrifying truth, her delicate brows furrowing tightly: "Has this Zen Master fallen into obsession and gone mad?"

"You could say that."

Gu Jinzhao raised his hand and gently patted the back of her hand that was wrapped around his waist, indicating that she should not hug him so tightly.

"The most crucial step to realizing this mad ambition of making all beings Buddhas is to return to the Central Plains and take control of the five dragon veins upon which the Cangyue Dynasty is founded."

A dragon vein is a manifestation of the convergence of the vital energy of a place and a dynasty.

Each of the five states of the Cangyue Dynasty has a dragon vein, which together support the prosperity of the dynasty.

The portion of his destiny was formed from the dragon vein of Qingzhou.

An Wanxi was still puzzled: "Such a grand ambition, which goes against human ethics and morality and is almost like that of a demonic sect, can anyone really believe it?"

Gu Jinzhao scoffed: "Those in and out of the Zen realm firmly believe in this."

"The Yongxing Emperor who is currently sitting on the dragon throne is the same."

In the storyline of the game "Above the Sky", after entering the core of power of the Cangyue Dynasty, players must choose to side with either the powerful Empress Dowager Xiao Qingyi or the Emperor Yongxing, who is eager to take over the reins of power.

Choosing the Empress Dowager means the subsequent plot will require helping her consolidate her power, and may even involve deposing the emperor.

Choosing an emperor requires maneuvering against the Empress Dowager's faction, with the goal of deposing her.

Emperor Yongxing was confident enough to challenge Xiao Qingyi, who had controlled the court for many years, because he had reached a cooperation agreement with Chanjing, who was far away in Leizhou.

One side wanted to gain control of the government with the help of outsiders, while the other wanted to return to power with the help of insiders; the two sides hit it off immediately.

An Wanxi asked softly, "Then how does my little husband plan to deal with this?"

Gu Jinzhao grinned: "It's simple, defeat Zen Master at the Six Sects' Gathering of Heroes!"

Chapter 64, The Inner Demon Xiao Qingyi? (3K)

Who should be chosen, the Empress Dowager or the Emperor?

Is there even a question?

Of course, I'd choose Xiao Qingyi!

Regardless of the grand schemes behind Emperor Yongxing's collusion with the Chanjing, Gu Jinchao's only option to obtain the [Heavenly Stems Mirror] is to side with the Empress Dowager.

This gathering of six outstanding figures serves as a springboard for the return of Zen to the Central Plains.

For Gu Jinzhao, this was also a crucial opportunity.

This was an excellent opportunity to make a name for oneself in front of the Empress Dowager and to catch her eye.

According to the original storyline of the game, as long as you perform well at the Heroes' Gathering and attract the attention of Empress Xiao, you can join the Demon Suppression Division, make some contributions, and soon enter the core and gradually become her confidant.

This was originally the standard approach to winning over this powerful empress dowager.

Although Gu Jinzhao has no intention of winning her over, his goal of gaining her trust and appreciation and then seizing the opportunity to obtain the [Heavenly Stem Mirror] is exactly the same as hers.

An Wanxi frowned slightly: "Zen Master's strength is probably at least at the sixth rank, or even higher than your Qingmei's cultivation."

"With my husband's current strength, how could he possibly defeat him?"

To suppress the other five sects, Zen Master's cultivation level must be extremely high, possibly even far surpassing all his peers.

Gu Jinzhao smiled and said, "Zen Master is at the late stage of the sixth rank, and he is also a dual cultivator of divine and martial arts!"

"With my abilities, it would indeed be difficult to win."

At the gathering of the Six Heroes, ritual implements cannot be used.

In other words, he cannot use the semi-divine artifact [Crimson Sky].