Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Six

The head of the Zhang family on Mount Emei was essentially nothing more than a traitorous dog.

"However, the head of the Zhang family met his retribution. The supreme deities of the Heavenly Court descended to the mortal realm, expelled Samantabhadra and numerous other Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Buddhist faith, and established new rules with the Buddha of the Western Paradise. It was decreed that the Buddhist faith could no longer interfere in the affairs of the Eastern Lands, and that the Western Paradise must submit as a vassal to the Heavenly Court, falling under its direct jurisdiction. Furthermore, two of the five positions of the Five Elders were to be ceded to the West," Zhang He continued.

Chen Jin frowned upon hearing this. The Heavenly Court intended to forcibly incorporate the Buddhist faith into its own hierarchy—this was incredibly overbearing. Moreover, it was questionable whether the Buddhist faith would even agree to such terms.

"Did the Buddhist faith... agree?" Chen Jin asked.

To be honest, in his later life, Chen Jin had never heard of the Buddhist faith being subordinate to the Heavenly Court. On the contrary, the Buddhist faith had grown increasingly powerful, squeezing the Taoist schools out of their mountains and making them look pathetic.

Then again, perhaps it was not that simple. The Buddhist faith, the Taoist schools, and the Heavenly Court were three distinct powers, yet they all intersected at the Heavenly Court. Could it be that the Buddhist faith truly belonged to the Heavenly Court after all?

"They agreed. They had no choice but to agree. With the Heavenly Emperors taking action, no matter how powerful the Buddhist faith was in the West, they could not withstand the wrath of the Emperors, especially with the great powers of the Taoist schools standing ready to back them up. Besides, the Western Buddhists were already in the wrong, so the Heavenly Emperors naturally had no reason to show them any courtesy," Zhang He replied.

"However, the Eastern Lands were opened up to Buddhist proselytization, and the four blessed grotto-heavens previously seized by the Buddhists could be returned to their control. But the Bodhisattvas and Buddhas of the West are forbidden from entering the Eastern Lands without a decree from the Heavenly Court, whether in their true forms or as manifestations."

"As for the head of the Zhang family on Mount Emei, his primordial spirit was shattered, his soul cast into the underworld to suffer punishment, and the cultivation aptitude of all his direct relatives was completely destroyed," Zhang He added at the end.

Chen Jin listened to Zhang He's words and processed them in his mind.

He did not immediately doubt Zhang He, though he had already begun to guess at his identity. If everything he said was true, and he possessed such insider knowledge, it meant his identity was far from simple. It was highly likely that he was the incarnation of some great power from the Heavenly Court... though that seemed somewhat unlikely.

Chen Jin looked at Zhang He’s enigmatic, half-smiling face and decided against dwelling too deeply on his identity. Who knew if he possessed mind-reading abilities?

"This... situation... is quite deep," Chen Jin said with a bitter expression.

"Hahaha, it is a bit deep," Zhang He laughed aloud.

"I’m afraid of drowning," Chen Jin continued.

"I am Zhang Daoling," Zhang He suddenly said, his expression turning solemn.

"..." Chen Jin’s expression froze instantly.

This legendary figure did not play by the rules. Chen Jin had assumed this person would never reveal his true identity so directly, without the slightest bit of subtlety.

"Rest assured, you are considered a descendant of the Zhang family. Although I do not know why you claim to be the reincarnation of a disciple of Ge Hong, the blood and bone in your body belong to the Zhang lineage, so I will not harm you," Zhang Daoling continued.

*Just because you say you won’t harm me doesn't mean I should believe you,* Chen Jin muttered to himself.

Chen Jin was, after all, a modern man with a mind full of conspiracy theories. As his intellect sharpened, he could draw more and more connections from a single event.

For instance, in the case of the Mount Emei Zhang family, the losers in the end were the Buddhist faith and the Zhang family, while the beneficiaries appeared to be the Heavenly Court and the Central Plains. Chen Jin could not help but suspect that this was the Heavenly Court’s way of "fishing"—using the current manifestation sites of the four great Bodhisattvas as bait and the head of the Zhang family as the hook to catch the big fish that was the Buddhist faith.

As for the Celestial Master before him, it was unclear what role he had played. After all, in legend, he was a disciple of the Supreme Elder Lord. Chen Jin had to suspect that leaving the divine seal of the Mount Emei grotto-heaven to the Zhang family had been intentional.

However...

"Do you have any instructions for me?" Chen Jin did not have the strength to oppose this Celestial Master, so he had no choice but to humble himself.

Furthermore, Chen Jin gathered from his words that he had not truly pierced through to Chen Jin's actual identity, merely speculating that he was the reincarnation of Zhang Junbao or a disciple of Ge Hong.

"It is simple. Recover the relic hidden by the Zhang family," Zhang Daoling said flatly.

"There really is a relic?" Chen Jin asked, surprised.

"It is not that man's, but one left behind by Samantabhadra as a form of compensation. If that man obtains it, the Buddhist faith will gain a resident Arhat in the Central Plains, which would be extremely unfavorable for the Taoist landscape," Zhang Daoling explained.

The "that man" he referred to was clearly the head of the Mount Emei Zhang family.

"Wasn't he cast into the underworld?" Chen Jin asked.

"Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva entered the underworld a thousand years ago to assist Emperor Fengdu in opening the eighteen layers of hell, incorporating the Western underworld into the Eastern ghostly realm. Because of this, Ksitigarbha will be granted a share of the authority over the cycle of reincarnation. Thus, it is highly likely that Ksitigarbha will send that man back into the cycle of reincarnation, returning him to the mortal world," Zhang Daoling replied.

"..." This was truly a twisted and bizarre affair.

Perhaps because the great powers of the Heavenly Court had already achieved their goals, they had no interest in the fate of small pawns like the Zhang family. The great ones would never concern themselves with the life or death of such minions—at most, they might ask, "Are you dead yet?"

But why was Zhang Daoling personally intervening now? Why not act like the others and pull the strings from the shadows, or remain detached from the vortex of events as he had done before?

Wait—perhaps he was preparing to push Chen Jin into the vortex so that he himself could withdraw.

*What an insidious man,* Chen Jin thought to himself.

Chen Jin’s inner thoughts were turbulent, but his face remained wreathed in smiles—a look he had maintained ever since Zhang Daoling revealed his identity.

"I will bestow a method upon you," Zhang Daoling suddenly said, reaching out to tap Chen Jin on the forehead.

Chen Jin wanted to dodge, but he found he could not move. He had no choice but to stand stiffly and let the finger touch him.

The moment the finger made contact, a surge of information flooded Chen Jin’s memory—knowledge of a secret technique.

"The Orthodox Law of Thunder; it is both a technique and a path. Take this as a gift," Zhang Daoling said with a smile.

"..." Chen Jin did not know what to say—or rather, he could not speak.

After delivering these words, Zhang Daoling vanished into thin air, as if a figure in a painting had suddenly faded away, leaving nothing behind.

"This..." Chen Jin felt the information in his mind, at a loss for words.

Helpless, he could only drink a bowl of wine to steady himself.