Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Four: Different Aspirations

In the mural, there are pavilions and towers, graceful beauties beckoning, fields with farmers toiling, bustling marketplaces with streams of vehicles, diverse scenes in temples and courts, under the Bodhi tree with Shakyamuni in enlightenment, and blooming Longhua with Maitreya teaching. All are exquisitely crafted and vividly lifelike.
Su Wen and Qiao Daoqing stepped forward, glanced at the mural, then turned to Long Xiang: “What mysteries does this mural hold?”
Long Xiang smiled and replied, “Aren't you already immersed in its mysteries, benefactor?”
"Oh?"
Su Wen raised an eyebrow and glanced around, only to see everything dissolve like a bubble; no longer visible were the Bailong Temple and the Longhua Tree, and even Qiao Daoqing beside him had disappeared, replaced by a pavilion and a series of buildings, where several young ladies dressed in crimson were gracefully dancing around him.
Su Wen remained unmoved, his expression indifferent.
The young girls were unconcerned, continuing their dance; their clothing gradually diminished, and in the blink of an eye, they were left with nothing but their intimate garments. The fragrant and soft beauty surged forth, only to reveal in the moment of proximity, decayed flesh and exposed white bones, presenting a scene of skeletal remains draped in red and pink.
Su Wen remained motionless, allowing the skeleton to encircle him.
At this moment, he heard a chanting sound by his ear, which was neither completely righteous nor entirely evil, and the Brahmanical melody echoed: "Shakyamuni, the Tathagata and World Honored One, Maitreya teaching the Dharma, the Dragon Flower blooms, Amitabha, thus I have heard...!!!!!!”
The Buddhist chants sound profound, yet they seem unrelated, almost like nonsensical ramblings or fabrications, but they carry an inexplicable sense of transcendence.
Su stood frozen in place, his body trembling, and then he transformed into a wisp of black mist that drifted away, disappearing amidst the waves of Buddhist chant.
……
Outside the White Dragon Temple, by the Anyang River.
Su Wen opened his eyes and turned to look beside him, only to see Dai Zong and Fan Rui guarding him; Qiao Daoqing was enveloped in the surging dark currents, with the Three Marvels Divine Water boiling fiercely.
After a moment...
*Splash!*
The dark currents scattered, the divine water spun back, revealing Qiao Daoqing's figure as he slowly opened his eyes.
Su Wen asked, "How is it?"
“好厉害的邪术！”
Qiao Daoqing shook his head and said solemnly, "It actually broke my Samadhi True Water in an instant!"
Hearing this, Su Wen also frowned: "It seems to be a big trouble."
Knowing that Bailong Temple is a den of danger, Su Wen naturally wouldn't risk himself. The two earlier figures were not the true forms of him and Qiao Daoqing, but rather illusory avatars created by Qiao Daoqing using the Illusory Demon True Method combined with the Samadhi True Water.
Although it is a phantom illusion, the Illusion Demon Lord has utilized false cultivation, along with the Three Mysteries Divine Water as a foundational support, to form a phantom illusion that is nearly indistinguishable from the true body. It can also carry the true body's consciousness, allowing it to exert a portion of its battle power.
Originally thought that these two illusion avatars could sneak into the White Dragon Temple to investigate, but unexpectedly, they were detected as soon as they entered.
The abbot of White Dragon Temple, Long Xiang, brought them to the back courtyard of Longhua and, using some unknown method, pulled them into the painted wall. Then, he began that sacred yet oddly unsettling chanting of the sutras, and in just a moment, he broke the two illusion avatars.
It is essential to know that this illusionary avatar is Qiao Daoqing's signature skill, formed by the combination of the Illusion Magic True Method and the Threefold Divine Water. Ordinary post-natal cultivators can hardly discern between reality and illusion, let alone break the Illusion Magic True Method and the Threefold Divine Water.
Is that dragon’s power really so formidable?
Or does the White Dragon Temple have some special means?
Su Wen is more inclined to the latter.
Qiao Daoqing also thought similarly, and said solemnly, “To so easily break my Illusion Demon True Law and Three Burnt Divine Water, it is either innate power or Kingly Qi. But only the Five Lotus True Monarch of the Five Lotus Sect has innate power; the White Lotus Sect's White Dragon Temple can't have another innate being. There must be some method set up that can only be used within the temple, not to kill enemies outside.”
Suwen nodded and said, "They’ve noticed our probing; they may act quickly next. Let’s head back."
"Yes!"
苏问与乔道清站起身来，连同一旁的戴宗樊瑞，四人运起神行之法，化作遁光远去。
Is the technique of form applicable to all four people?
That's right, all four can do it!
Su Wen has been settled in Dongping County for over two months. Although the business isn't great, he has managed to accumulate a sum of spiritual energy.
Su Wen used this ethereal essence to first exchange for Dai Zong's Heavenly Speed Star Command and the method of Godly Walk. Then, through storytelling modifications, he also implanted the Godly Walk technique into the three "mages," Fan Rui, Li Zhu, and Qiao Daoqing. As a result, all four of them can now use the Godly Walk technique, though their speeds vary.
The fastest are Su Wen and Dai Zong, both of whom are empowered by the speed of the Celestial Star, and when fully utilizing the Divine Movement Technique, they can travel seven thousand five hundred miles in a day and night.
Next is Qiao Daoqing; although he does not have the speed of the Celestial Star, his profound cultivation and abundant magical power allow him to perform the Divine Movement Technique at a reasonably fast pace.
In the end, only Fan Rui was left, whose cultivation and magical power were inferior to Qiao Daoqing's, and without the support of the Heavenly Speed Star Force, he became the weakest in the movement technique.
Fortunately, Donghe County and Dongping County are only three hundred miles apart, so the four of them did not need to rush and could return together leisurely.
……
In the White Dragon Temple, in the back courtyard of Longhua, the Dragon Monk, dressed in a white robe and kasaya, stands before the painted wall, his expression serious and Ning Qing is solemn.
Beside the Dragon Monk stands a young boy, with red lips and white teeth, youthful and adorable, who is none other than the White Buddha, the grand master of the White Lotus Sect stationed in Anyang Prefecture, who was defeated by Qiao Daoqing not long ago.
"Senior Brother!"
Seeing the Dragon's Manifestation stay silent for a long time, the White Buddha Child hesitated for a moment and still asked, "What's wrong?"
“Two avatars.”
The Dragon's Manifestation shook its head and looked towards the outside of the temple: “What a wonderful Illusory Demon Lord, with two illusionary avatars that could hold their ground for a moment during the Dragon Hua Gathering; such ability is hard to find even among those of innate origin!”
白佛子双眉紧皱：“此人如此厉害，到这东平怕是来者不善，是否能请真君前来？”
龙相摇了摇头：“真君坐镇总坛，岂能轻易抽身，如今又是非常时期，若是出现什么差错，让我五莲教宗千年苦工，千年心血付诸东流，谁人担待得起？”
Bai Fozi hesitated and said, “What about the Illusion Demon Lord...”
“Don't worry about him!”
Long Xiang's expression was indifferent: “Today he came to test us and learned a lesson. He should now behave himself. As long as he stays out of Dongping County and does not offend our Bai Lian Sect again, let him be. After the big matter is accomplished, we can settle the scores. Before that, we should also hold back a bit and not provoke him again!”
"Yes!"
“……”
Dongping County, Jinlin Gate.
The opera troupe is about to start, it's already noon.
Amid eager anticipation, a person arrives in a blue robe.
"Mr. Su!"
"Finally, it's your turn to go on stage?"
"Hurry, hurry! What will you be talking about today?"
“Speaking of Bai Niangzi, who is that old monk, and what is he doing with Xu Xian?”
“Forget about Bai Niangzi, let's talk about Water Margin. What happened to Wu Song after he spilled blood in the Mandarin Duck Tower?”
The audience below was buzzing with conversation, all eagerly waiting for Su Wen to speak.
Su Wen smiled and clasped his hands together, saying: "I am the humble Su Wen. Today on stage, I would like to share some stories of gods and ghosts, tales from the chat of the night!"
"Stories of gods and ghosts?"
"Tales from the chat of the night?"
```html"It sounds... a bit spooky!"
"It won't involve any demons or ghosts, right?"
The audience was suddenly tense.
Su Wen, however, was undeterred. With a loud bang of the wooden block:
"When the wind and thunder rise from the earth, the essence gives birth to piles of white bones."```
“Monks are foolish but can still be taught; demons become disasters.”
“今日的故事，就要从一处妖魔盘踞的鬼蜮说起……”