"Beep Beep Beep."
"Beep Beep Beep."
In the various prefectures of the Great Tang Dynasty where the Government Offices of the Demon Subduing Division were located, at some unknown point, high towers of seven or eight zhang tall had been erected within each Government Office. At the top of these stone towers, translucent orbs, about a meter square, pulsed with golden light as if breathing.
Each time these orbs pulsed, they would devour the power of faith and incense that permeated the sky above the prefectures like a vortex. After the power of faith and incense permeating the sky above the prefectures was absorbed by these orbs, jade slips were expelled from within the orbs with each inhale and exhale.
Beside the stone towers, Patrolling Deities and Ghost Messengers from the City God Temple were already waiting with carriages. Once a certain number of these jade slips accumulated, they would be escorted to the City God Temple.
Under the night sky, the City God Temple gained a touch of eeriness. The clay sculptures and wooden carvings seemed to come alive within the City God Divine Realms, which existed between the Mortal Realm and the Underworld.
Hundreds of Ghost Messengers sat at desks, reviewing unjust cases from within the prefecture under the watchful eyes of the Judge. These unjust cases either originated from the Government Offices in the Mortal World or were handled by the Ghost Messengers of the Underworld Administration.
Those with heinous crimes were handed over to the Judge for adjudication, who could even directly dispatch Ghost Messengers to their homes to hook souls and seize spirits.
Under the night sky, many night watchmen could often hear the sound of chains grinding. They all knew that it was the Ghost Messengers under the City God coming to take people away.
This was the Great Tang Dynasty of today! Deities interfered with the Current World, and the Heavenly Emperor and the Human Emperor ruled together!
"Your Majesty! Report from the front! The rebels have all been subdued and executed! The road ahead is clear!"
A scout from the Xuanjia Army rode his horse to the front of the Dragon Carriage, dismounted, and knelt on one knee.
"Tell Yuchi Jingde to continue the journey! Reach Mount Zhongnan before dawn!" A low, majestic voice came from within the Dragon Carriage.
"Understood!"
Accompanied by a low bugle call, the neat and uniform sound of hoofbeats once again resounded on the Imperial Highway. The massive Heaven Worship Sacrifice team set off on their journey again.
Dozens of fighter jets circling at high altitude were scattered four or five li ahead and behind the team, providing lighting and keeping watch.
On the brocade couch in the corner of the Dragon Carriage compartment, a little milk doll of three or four years old was sleeping soundly, hugging a plush bear toy twice her size.
The little one was very restless in her sleep. A snot bubble would occasionally blow from her little nose, and her little legs would sometimes kick off the thin quilt covering her.
Beside the little one, two Elderly Maids and a Female Daoist dressed in Daoist attire were kneeling, occasionally pulling up the quilt that the little milk doll had kicked off.
A chessboard was placed across the center of the carriage. Two men were playing chess. The Middle-aged Man holding the black pieces was the current Emperor, the Heavenly Khan Li Shimin.
Opposite him, holding the white pieces, was Tang Song, dressed in luxurious clothes. However, compared to when he wore a Daoist robe, Tang Song at this moment was not only much more majestic in demeanor, but his age also seemed to have become that of a Middle-aged Man of over forty.
Li Shimin sat opposite this Uncle Tang, hesitating over a move. He felt that this Uncle Tang before him had an imperial presence a hundred times more intense than his own.
"Uncle Tang, that Bodhisattva won't dare to come, will he?"
"Whether they come or not, it doesn't matter. The longer time drags on, the more advantageous it is for us. We are not the ones in a hurry!"
Tang Song held a black piece and placed it on a corner of the chessboard, his complexion calm.
Buzz buzz buzz~~~~ Streaks of golden light flickered around his entire body. His acupoints within his body slowly opened, and countless pure faith power continuously poured into this body.
"Great Blue Heaven Lord, please bless this old man's daughter-in-law and child to be safe!"
"Heavenly Father, that bully beat my old father to death and insulted my wife and daughter. Heavenly Father, open your eyes and send down thunder to strike that beast dead!"
"Heavenly Emperor above, I beg you to bless this humble student to get first place this time. If this humble student can ride a horse through the streets, I will definitely sculpt a golden statue for you to fulfill my vow..."
"Heavenly Father, this is a small token of my sincerity. Please bless this humble person to win every gamble..."
As the incense offerings entered his body, they were accompanied by thought after thought. Every second, tens of thousands of pictures surfaced in Tang Song's mind. Faces, some pious, some greedy, seemed to surround his ears.
This body of Tang Song was a Deity's thought/will generated by the fusion of mortal fortune and faith power, which is an Incense/Faith Deity.
After the Great Tang Emperor officially sanctioned it with dynastic fortune, a Deity representing the Heavenly Emperor's Authority was produced in this World.
Tang Song entered this body with a wisp of divine sense, thus becoming the Heavenly Father in the perception of the People of the World.
The pious prayer of hundreds of millions of commoners in the Great Tang Dynasty's Territory converged into a river of incense/faith. After being filtered by the Incense/Faith Information Extractor developed by Vegapunk, faith power continuously converged upon him every moment. With the endless Incense/Faith Divine Power empowering his body, deep in Tang Song's eyes, black and white flames seemed to rise. This flame, seemingly illusory, was transformed by Tang Song's will.
The mixed desires within those thoughts were continuously burned by the flame of will.
Sizzle sizzle sizzle~~~ Immeasurable incense offerings burned, emitting a huge white radiance.
The intense flame of will burned, but this process was brief. In an instant, it dissipated into the void. All white radiance gradually faded, leaving only colorless and transparent energy sealed within the divine sense, like infants washed clean of lead and glamour, pure and primitive.
With the various impurities removed, the remaining essence of thought, as clear as crystal, slowly flowed.
These thoughts transformed into a streak of pure, jade-colored streaking light, shooting back into Tang Song's Between the Eyebrows and residing in his Sea of Consciousness.
The incense offerings that hadn't been refined in time even formed a faint golden halo behind his head.
Tang Song's aura was increasing at a terrifying speed every moment. Every instant, his cultivation base increased more than an ordinary person's entire life.
"They're here!"
Halfway through the game, Tang Song's finger suddenly stopped on the chessboard. He turned his head and looked towards the front, seemingly looking at someone from afar through the Dragon Carriage curtains.
"Halt!"
At this moment, the Xuanjia Army scouts at the front of the team took down the firearms beside their horses' backs, raised their guns, and aimed at the fat monk who had suddenly appeared on the Imperial Highway.
This monk wore a yellow robe, straw sandals, and was very fat. His big belly stuck out, his chest was bare, his large ears hung to his shoulders, and he had a round face. Both his eyes shimmered with light waves, full of smiles.
"The Son of Heaven's carriage is here! Sundry Personnel, quickly leave!" An armored soldier from the Xuanjia Army shouted sternly, while reaching behind his back and making a gesture of warning.
The entire Xuanjia Army quickly formed a formation to charge and meet the enemy. The armored soldiers at the forefront held up their lances to meet the enemy, while the armored soldiers in the rear raised their firearms and aimed at the fat monk.
In the front army team, several cannons were even rolled out!
"Esteemed Benefactors, do not misunderstand. This poor monk has come this time to form a good karma connection with His Majesty the Emperor!"
The fat monk seemed completely unconcerned about the black muzzles of the guns aimed at him. He put his palms together and said with a cheerful smile.
Several armored soldiers looked at each other, then turned their heads to look at the Middle-aged Military General riding his horse over from behind.
The tall Middle-aged Military General wore Mingguang armor, held a long lance, and had a golden whip hanging on his horse's back. He coldly stared at the fat monk. The man was eight chi tall, had a stern complexion, and beneath his black armor was a body full of explosive great strength.
It was none other than Wuhou Great General, the Duke of E, Yuchi Jingde. However, his appearance here was not unexpected, as he was Li Shimin's Confidant and the commander of this Xuanjia Army.
Yuchi Jingde came to about ten zhang in front of the monk, raised his long lance, and pointed it directly at the fat monk.
"Monk, how audacious of you to dare to block the imperial carriage! This general suspects you are an accomplice of those rebels! Men, tie up this monk!"
Yuchi Jingde's personality was not the type to beat around the bush. Seeing the monk, he was too lazy to talk nonsense and directly ordered his men to go forward and tie up the monk first.
He knew very well that just now, a group of monks had conspired to assassinate the king and kill the carriage driver. This monk, with his fat head and big ears, clearly wasn't a good person at first glance.
Better to kill the wrong person than let a guilty one go.
Several armored soldiers from the Xuanjia Army drew their swords, dismounted, and walked towards the fat monk.
The fat monk shook his head, extended his fat large hand, and pointed behind Yuchi Jingde: "This poor monk is just a wild man from the mountains, but having received Buddhist blessings, the person in that carriage has a connection with Buddha. May this poor monk take them to an ancient temple for cultivation, so they may quickly ascend to the Pure Land of Bliss!"
Hearing the fat monk's words, Yuchi Jingde followed the direction of his finger and looked. It was none other than where His Majesty's carriage in the Central Army was located. His complexion instantly fell.
"Audacious Bald Donkey (derogatory)! Capture him and hand him over to His Majesty to deal with!"
Several Xuanjia Army soldiers had already drawn their swords. Holding the chilling Zhanmadao, they stepped forward quickly. The monk was only a dozen zhang away.
For some reason, the several armored soldiers only felt that the further they walked, the further away the distance became. By the time they raised their heads, they were startled to discover that clusters of five-colored lotuses had emerged in the void at some unknown point. A strange fragrance assailed them, covering the entire sky for ten thousand li around.
Radiance emitted from the colorful lotuses, and picture after picture appeared within them. There were Heavenly Maidens scattering flowers, and the Lapis Lazuli Pure Land.
In the sky, pairs of colorful phoenixes and Qingluan immortal birds spread their wings. On the ground, golden dragons rolled in the Merit Pond, and auspicious qi and purple clouds drifted ethereally. On the high mountains and spiritual platforms, ancient pines coiled like dragons, and above them were immortal cranes carrying Lingzhi mushrooms.
In the Thunder Sound Treasure Temple, sarira were suspended in the high altitude, illuminating the Great Thousand World. Golden Body Arhats put their palms together and performed Sanskrit chanting. The sounds transmitted out, causing worldly thoughts to completely vanish.
Upon a golden lotus platform, the huge monk lowered his head and looked down upon them like gods and buddhas.
"Kill!"
Those selected into the Xuanjia Army were warriors of a hundred battles. Under a military order, even if gods and buddhas were before them, they still dared to draw their swords and fight against them.
Although the several armored soldiers were startled into a daze by this scene, after recovering their senses, they gritted their teeth. Holding their swords, they pounced towards the Buddha seated in the Thunder Sound Treasure Temple.
Seeing the actions of these armored soldiers, the Buddha seated upon the golden lotus couldn't help but show a hint of surprise on his face.
However, the closer they got to the Thunder Sound Treasure Temple, the more lost the expressions on the faces of these armored soldiers became. By the time they entered the Thunder Sound Treasure Temple, the figures of the several armored soldiers suddenly disappeared. Instead, several Novice Buddhist Monks chanting sutras appeared within the Thunder Sound Treasure Temple.
Yuchi Jingde only felt his vision blur, and several soldiers disappeared before his eyes. He frowned, shook his long lance, and shouted, "Monk, what kind of fiendish arts are you using? Hand over the men to this general!"
The fat monk put his palms together: "Amitabha Buddha. In this poor monk's Buddha Kingdom, the Eight Virtues Pond, the Seven Treasures Forest, and the Lapis Lazuli Realm are all Buddhist Sect territory, peaceful and blissful. Furthermore, they are guarded by the Eight Legions of Heavenly Dragons, and the Five Direction Revealing Deities always accompany them. It is boundless and immeasurable.
For these young friends to convert to my Buddha and escape demonic obstruction is boundless merit!"
As the fat monk spoke, his tone contained much temptation. The crowd of Xuanjia Army soldiers, including Yuchi Jingde, only felt as if they were in the Buddha Kingdom he described, as if they were personally there, and could even see the coming and going Arhats slightly nodding at them.
Some armored soldiers, accompanying ministers, guards, and palace maids whose minds were not firm couldn't help but directly perform the Great Kowtow Ceremony towards the fat monk.
"Hmph! Deceptive words misleading the masses!"
Yuchi Jingde had followed Li Shimin in campaigns south and north, stepping out from mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Not to mention his firm willpower, his entire martial arts cultivation was at the peak of the Mortal World.
He was only momentarily dazed before breaking free from the temptation of the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.
He looked around at his subordinate armored soldiers who had sunk, and let out a muffled snort. His Tiger-Leopard Thunder Sound snorting exploded beside everyone's ears like dry thunder on a clear day.
The crowd of Xuanjia Army soldiers who had fallen into the Buddhist chanting were instantly startled awake by the thunderclap.
"Deceptive words misleading the masses! You deserve to be killed!"
Yuchi Jingde swung his long lance. At the tip of the spear, a streak of qi energy, unmatched in strength and fierceness, stabbed directly at the fat monk's face, intending to poke a hole in his head.
"Bang bang bang—"
Having witnessed this monk's fiendish arts, these Xuanjia Army soldiers did not dare to be careless anymore. They directly aimed at this monk and pulled the trigger.
As Li Shimin's Confidants, the Xuanjia Army naturally did not hold ordinary flintlock guns, but real semi-automatic repeating rifles.
As the crowd of Xuanjia Army soldiers pulled the trigger, dense bullets shot directly at the fat monk.
"Amitabha Buddha!"
The fat monk smiled amiably. Seeing Yuchi Jingde and the Xuanjia Army soldiers make a move, he did not resist. He allowed Yuchi Jingde's attack and the bullets to reach his body. For some reason, these bullets disappeared out of thin air after approaching within three zhang of the fat monk.
"Bang bang bang bang—"
A team of Xuanjia Army soldiers emptied two magazines, but could not injure the monk in the slightest, not even forcing him to retreat half a step.
The fat monk looked leisurely towards the direction of the Central Army's Dragon Carriage and said, "His Majesty killed three thousand Buddhist Sect disciples. He needs to cultivate ascetically for thirty thousand years under this poor monk. Only when all disciples cultivate to attain enlightenment can they attain Bodhi. This is destiny."
Inside the carriage, Li Shimin was so angry upon hearing the fat monk's words that he grabbed the chess piece in his hand and threw it into the chess box. He angrily looked at Tang Song: "Uncle Tang, this fellow is bullying me too much!"
Looking at Li Shimin, who was like a child complaining, Tang Song let out a light chuckle: "He's bullying you? Then slaughter him!"
The fat monk looked smilingly at the crowd of Xuanjia Army. Suddenly, his mind stirred. He used his hand to calculate for a moment, and the smile on his face subsided slightly.
The next second, buzzing sounds rang out in the sky. Dozens of blinding searchlights simultaneously fell upon the fat monk. Along with these dazzling searchlights, there was also a torrent of bullets.
The autocannons on dozens of fighter jets simultaneously aimed at the fat monk and opened fire. The missiles hanging on the fighter jets separated and shot out, blasting towards the fat monk.
Facing the incoming torrent of bullets and missiles, the fat monk still remained completely still. Behind him, however, walked out a fierce Monkey (Sun Wukong) with a hairy-faced Thunder God beak, short stature, and a fierce look on his face, holding a staff.
The Monkey (Sun Wukong) looked at the circling fighter jets, threw away the banana peel in his hand, fiercely grinned, and let out a roar.
"Roar!"
(end of chapter)