Chapter 249: Buddha and demon are two sides of the same coin
Crazy!
Regardless of whether they were in the top ten or not, everyone who knew of Du Ge's role as an Alien Star warrior couldn't help but curse.
Then,
Those who should lie low did so, and those who should cause a fuss did just that.
The ones who jumped out believed that Wang Chong's dominance was established, and if they didn't fight now, it would be over;
Those who lay low insisted that with Wang Chong jumping around like this, someone would eventually be unable to resist dealing with him, be it an Alien Star warrior or a native;
The saying goes, "It's not the early fat that makes you fat, it's the later fat that crushes the bed."
Many, drawing on the experience of their predecessors, firmly believed that the Alien Star Battlefield would not end within a mere two or three years, and that Wang Chong was merely a shooting star, shining his last light in life.
Of course,
It could also be because he started off as number one and decided to throw in the towel.No one believed that one person could stand against the whole world...
...
Over a month's time,
Many talented individuals broke through realms one after another, with Chen Da, Ouyang Ting, Zheng Tingwen and others from the supervisory institution breaking through to the Body Fusion Realm;
Li Anjiang, Yao Liang and others from the Medicine Immortal Sect broke through to the Void Refinement Realm, and the seventh junior brother broke through to the Divine Transformation Realm;
Hundreds broke through Foundation Establishment and Golden Elixir...
This was all thanks to the "Wisdom" character bestowed upon them by Dan Cong. The "Wisdom" character seemed to unlock their enlightenment, allowing them to break through realms rapidly.
Otherwise,
Based on their usual time to break through realms, it was common to spend months in seclusion, even years, to achieve a breakthrough.
Unfortunately, Dan Cong's output was too low; the "Wisdom" character was even harder to produce than seals and the like...
Regardless,
With Du Ge and Dan Cong working together, the strength of the Spiritual Power Mutual Aid Alliance as a whole took a leap forward.
Everyone who had received Du Ge's grace was grateful, treating him like a deity and sparing no effort in completing the tasks he assigned.
...
"Junior brother, there's a new newspaper that's recently emerged among the common folk called 'The Warning Record.' It's filled with little stories that have attracted public attention, and after gaining interest, it started to talk down the stocks of the Seven Stars Sect, claiming that one day, all investors will lose everything, citing many examples..."
Li Anjiang reported various pieces of intelligence to Du Ge.
"Don't bother with them. As long as people are making money, they won't give up on stocks," Du Ge said with an indifferent smile. His keyword was plundering, not genuine trade.
If that bunch really went after his foundation, then there would be quite a show to watch.
Appropriately disguising the keyword.
Du Ge recalled the phrase from the teaching guidelines and felt smug. Who else in this world could disguise a keyword better than him?
"Mhm." Li Anjiang nodded, quickly moving past the topic. He was in pursuit of immortality, satisfied as long as he could advance his realm. To be honest, he didn't care about the wealth or poverty of the common people.
His concern for the matter was solely because it was his junior brother's doing.
"By the way, find out who's behind 'The Warning Record'? Once you find out, don't act rashly, wait for me to handle it." Du Ge said. With keywords like dissemination, public opinion, and information, it was indeed possible to ride on his coattails and boost their own attributes, so he had to be cautious.
"Mhm." Li Anjiang nodded again.
"Any movements from the sects?" Du Ge asked.
"No news has come back yet," Li Anjiang replied.
The patients that Du Ge had previously released, after enjoying the benefits of the Spiritual Power Mutual Aid Alliance, resolutely joined the ranks of recruiters.
These people were involved with various sects and naturally took on the role of spies.
But Du Ge had given them too little time.
Even the pyramid scheme business couldn't keep up with Du Ge's own development, let alone gather intelligence.
Du Ge was advancing rapidly, not only were his enemies unable to keep up with his pace, but even his own people and the enterprises he created were left far behind, unable to keep up with his rhythm.
Although no intelligence had come in, Du Ge knew that those Alien Star warriors would not stay idle...
Strike first to gain the upper hand; he who acts later suffers.
No news was the best news. Du Ge turned to Li Anjiang and ordered, "Brother Li, notify Principal Liu and the others to gather people. We will attack Lan Ning Temple tomorrow."
"Yes." Li Anjiang's tone rose eight degrees, extremely excited.
After advancing to the Void Refinement Realm, Du Ge no longer transferred spiritual power to him. Accustomed to receiving handouts, they couldn't possibly go back to hard cultivation. During this time, everyone was sharpening their knives, waiting to invite higher realm individuals to join the Spiritual Power Mutual Aid Alliance.
...
More than ten in the Body Fusion Realm, over fifty in the Void Refinement Realm, and over a hundred in the Divine Transformation Realm...
Du Ge gathered all the experts of the Spiritual Power Mutual Aid Alliance, and after bestowing attributes like "Agility" and "Strength" on them, they marched mightily towards Lan Ning Temple.
Lan Ning Temple was a major sect of the current age. By scale, it should rank ninth among the many sects.
It was said that within the temple, there were two Mahayana Realm masters, nearly thirty in the Body Fusion Realm, and their high-end combat power was enough to crush the supervisory institution, which only had one Body Fusion Realm master. This was also why the prestigious sects couldn't be bothered with the supervisory institution.
However,
The number of disciples in Lan Ning Temple was not large; the total number of outer and inner disciples was only around a thousand.
Due to the reason of spiritual power, most sects controlled the number of disciples to ensure that each one who entered had access to abundant cultivation resources. They valued quality over quantity.
The current abbot of Lan Ning Temple was called Hui Xing, a mid-stage Body Fusion Realm powerhouse.
In this world, the affairs of the various major sects were generally managed by mid-stage Body Fusion Realm masters. Those at the peak of Body Fusion Realm were in seclusion to break through to the Mahayana Realm, and those in the Mahayana Realm were preparing for ascension, rarely showing themselves.
...
"Master, to be precise, I am indeed not a man of this age."
Zuo Zhonghou sat cross-legged in front of Master Hui Xing, his expression serene, "Naturally, I am not a man of chaos either. To be accurate, I am the reincarnation of a high monk from another world, who has lived in confusion for over thirty years. However, three months ago, I unlocked my past wisdom, which led to my achievements today..."
"How is the Buddhist dharma in that other world?" Master Hui Xing seemed to have anticipated this answer, smiling gently, unmovable as a mountain.
"The Buddhist dharma is boundless." Zuo Zhonghou brought his hands together in prayer, his face full of longing, "In the previous world, the Buddha foresaw five thousand years into the future and five thousand years into the past. Mount Sumeru could be contained within a mustard seed, and with a single glance, one could see all three thousand worlds..."
Looking at the old fellow before him, Zuo Zhonghou felt an immense sense of grievance. If it weren't for this guy, he wouldn't have inexplicably broken into the top ten.
Initially, he had possessed a menial worker and randomly received the keyword "Enlightenment." In Lan Ning Temple, he had intended to lie low for a while before slowly revealing himself.
To protect himself, while working, he muttered some Buddhist verses he had learned from watching replays of the Alien Star Battlefield:
Verses like "To see one's nature is to achieve enlightenment, where words fail and mental activities cease," "To level the earth, first level your mind. When the mind is calm, the earth will naturally be calm," and so on...
Unfortunately, Master Hui Xing overheard him.
And to make matters worse, Master Hui Xing and a group of monks actually gained enlightenment from it, significantly boosting Lan Ning Temple's combat power. The impact was substantial, and he was pushed into the top ten.
After becoming a disciple and learning the truth, he nearly spat out blood on the spot.
What is an undeserved calamity?
This was an undeserved calamity!
Luckily, "Enlightenment" was very compatible with the cultivation of the monks at Lan Ning Temple. His cultivation speed was fast, and with Lan Ning Temple's development, he could protect himself in this world. The Buddhist scripture he remembered even helped him secure his footing in the temple.
But damn Wang Chong, with one list of men of chaos, pushed him into the limelight again.
And after hearing about Wang Chong's madness from the foot of the mountain, Zuo Zhonghou couldn't be more depressed and went straight to Master Hui Xing to expose himself.
He had to use the power of Lan Ning Temple to eliminate that bastard before Wang Chong targeted him.
At this moment,
His only advantage over Wang Chong was that Lan Ning Temple's strength was countless times higher than that of the supervisory institution.
That was enough.
Zuo Zhonghou didn't believe that an economic keyword could withstand the assault of the Body Fusion Realm.
"Three thousand worlds?" Master Hui Xing, after hearing about the Buddha's abilities, longed for it, "Fa Zhao, is that where the Buddha's land is?"
"No." Zuo Zhonghou replied, "The Buddha's land is the Pure Land, only by cultivating Buddhist supernatural powers can one go to the Pure Land."
"Do you possess the Buddhist supernatural powers?" Master Hui Xing asked.
"Master, my past wisdom is not yet fully awakened." Zuo Zhonghou shook his head, "When my past wisdom is fully awakened, perhaps I can pass down the supernatural powers of the Buddha in this world, helping the monks here to reach the Pure Land."
"Very good." Master Hui Xing brought his hands together and bowed slightly to Zuo Zhonghou.
"But before that, Master, you must eliminate the evil demons." Having laid the groundwork, Zuo Zhonghou changed the subject, "Buddha and demon are two sides of the same coin. When Buddhism thrives, there will surely be demons to obstruct it. When demons prosper, Buddhism weakens. When Buddhism prospers, demons vanish. This cycle continues endlessly through the ages.
That day, the list of men of chaos sent by the supervisory institution is the basis for the demons. Wang Chong is the great demon of this age, causing trouble in the world. Eliminating him will ensure peace for Buddhism for the next ten years..."
Master Hui Xing furrowed his brows, "What about the other eight..."
Before he could finish,
A disciple burst in, "Master, it's terrible! The supervisory institution has attacked us. The disciples in the temple have been stripped of their clothes, their limbs dismembered, and pinned to the ground..."
The two conversing in the room were both stunned.
A bad premonition suddenly rose in Zuo Zhonghou's heart, and a series of questions emerged.
What the hell? They've actually attacked? Who gave them the courage?
Stripping people's clothes, dismembering limbs, what kind of skill is that?
Or did Wang Chong, aside from Dan Cong, find a new ally?
Master Hui Xing frowned, "Truly a demonic outsider. Fa Zhao, wait here for me. I will go and cut down the demon head, then return to discuss Buddhism with you..."
With that,
He vanished from the room in a flash.
Zuo Zhonghou hesitated for a moment, then changed out of the inner disciple's robes into those of an ordinary disciple and also left the room.
He wanted to see what Wang Chong was relying on to dare to attack Lan Ning Temple with the supervisory institution's meager strength.
After all,
Lan Ning Temple was a major sect of the current age.
Whether he won or lost, it meant standing against all the prestigious sects.