Chapter 18 Robbery and Development

The White Lotus Sect leader wanted to say that their scriptures were all valuable. What was this immortal saying? Look at those believers; they would give up everything to pay for their scriptures!

If you don't buy, and I don't buy, how can the leader get rich? Wealth, companionship, methods, and land—how can you cultivate without money?

Ji Xiang said, "You speak well; the next second, your words are mine."

Based on the noble principle of robbery being robbery, and absolutely no killing, one thing at a time, Ji Xiang took all the scriptures and books from this White Lotus Sect. He read them all in front of them and could even use some of the spells they had been practicing for a long time without success.

Sometimes, when the magic you can't cultivate is cultivated by your enemy, it's a kind of cuckoldry.

The next day, the local magistrate was standing at the gate of the county government when he suddenly saw on the street not far away a local "Dharma sect" with relatively strong incense, from the leader to the followers, all wearing loincloths, running around the street scattering money, with wooden signs on their heads that read, "I am a cult; I am a harmful spirit."

The first White Lotus Sect den was ransacked, but Ji Xiang didn't stop there.

If he wanted to use the Three Teachings True Meaning at any time, he had to have high-level spells for one-on-one sacrifice. Most of the scriptures and books in this White Lotus Sect were made up, and only a small part could be used. However, the level of the scriptures was too low to replace advanced spells.

However, as the saying goes, for a religion to develop, there must be a source of development. If the scriptures of the branch are not qualified, they can naturally get the location of the headquarters and other branches from their mouths.

The world changed color.

The second victimized White Lotus Sect branch appeared.

Ji Xiang went to rob as usual. He smashed the statue of the god at the entrance, then grabbed the leader's head and slammed it to the ground, only stopping when the local White Lotus Sect leader cried and begged for mercy.

To be fair, Ji Xiang thought he was a very kind person.

He not only strictly followed the principle of "robbery with a purpose," but also didn't seek wealth or harm lives. He just wanted some worthless scriptures. How could this be considered troublesome? Good spells should be shared with everyone. How could it be okay to become immortal secretly without him?

Didn't you know I was the examiner? So you want to chant scriptures to become immortal without passing the demon king's exam?

Do you understand that such a celestial title is not recognized by the Heavenly Court? No Heavenly Court department will accept you then.

The second White Lotus Sect branch was looted, followed by the third and fourth.

The world was surging.

"One, two, three, four, five, eight, nine, ten flowers... I've probably robbed ten White Lotus Sect branches. I should go to the headquarters now."

"There are no useful scriptures. Most of them are things that the leaders made up themselves without derivation. However, the good thing is that although they are made up, they are not without basis. Most of them are based on Taoist and Buddhist scriptures, so some sentences in them can be used...."

"Hmm... why is there even Christian stitching?"

Due to the activities of missionaries such as Matteo Ricci in the Ming Dynasty, Christian Dharma was relatively widely spread in the southern regions. Although it was still a niche circle, with the release of the first volume of the Lord's Prayer translation, some White Lotus Sects had begun to use some of the higher-sounding sentences in the Lord's Prayer.

Taoism, Buddhism, and Christianity.

"What the hell, the Eternal Venerable Mother studied under Sakyamuni and later gave birth to Adam... This is truly the Three Teachings True Meaning."

"Can this cultivation method be practiced? Which family's is it? You're bound to go crazy if you practice it."

After appraisal, not to mention, the grade is quite high. After all, many true methods are stitched into it. It can be practiced, but who knows if the person will die in the end.

It's like there are two ways to go to the Western Paradise: one way is to cultivate Buddhism, and the other way is to commit suicide. The former takes a lifetime to cultivate, while the latter only takes a second. Whether you can become a Buddha is unknown, but it's true that you can get to the Western Paradise.

The White Lotus Sect headquarters is near Yingtian Prefecture, relying on the prosperous metropolis, mainly because the printing factories in big cities have higher production capacity. Ji Xiang was not surprised by this.

Two days before the fifteenth of August, the Qinhuai River was already decorated with lanterns and streamers. Scholars and poets were composing poems in painted boats, and the dancing girls twisted their water-snake-like willow waists, attracting the eyes of many gentlemen.

Among these dancing girls, one woman had a beautiful face that made many people fall for her, but when she glanced casually, her whole body suddenly stiffened.

Ji Xiang appeared in the crowd. Although it was just a fleeting glimpse and far from the painted boat, only showing his head in the riverside market, it still made the woman's eyes show fear.

Fire Lord was shocked, and cold sweat began to break out.

How could Ji Xiang, that bastard, be here!

Fire Lord immediately stopped dancing and apologized to the scholars, using the excuse of ill health to return to the depths of the painted boat, and then woke up Lie Jie, the crown prince, who was meditating.

Hearing that Fire Lord's nemesis had appeared, a fierce light flashed in Lie Jie's eyes.

"Want to... kill him?"

"Don't!"

Fire Lord stopped Lie Jie's thought, her expression slightly nervous: "I only caught a fleeting glimpse just now and didn't see it clearly, but the aura on his body seems to be on par with mine."

"I only entered the Earth Immortal realm half a month ago. Normally speaking, there is no way he could have cultivated his body to the Earth Immortal level in such a short time!"

Lie Jie was puzzled: "A mere Earth Immortal. You are an Earth Immortal, and I am an Earth Immortal. No matter how strong he is, he is still just one person. Prince Lu is going to hold the Ascension Ceremony on the fifteenth of August here. Many Earth Immortals will appear here at that time. Why fear him?"

"Yingtian Prefecture is our territory."

"Two months ago, you weren't an Earth Immortal, and you dared to rush into the Forbidden City to set a fire. Now he's just one person here, and you're still afraid? Has your courage been scared out of you?"

Fire Lord glared, her face becoming ferocious:

"If I had known he was a Reincarnated Ascension Realm cultivator, I wouldn't have set fire to the Forbidden City!"

Lie Jie was expressionless, even when Fire Lord grabbed his collar, he still had a dead face: "If you hadn't set that fire, he wouldn't have been resurrected. In the end, it was all your fault. So this person is the tribulation of your evil deeds. If you don't kill him, you won't be able to overcome this tribulation, and he will appear from time to time in some place."

Fire Lord took a few deep breaths. She said that she wanted to talk to the great power behind her in Li Shanhe.

Let Lie Jie inform Prince Lu that there might be changes on the fifteenth of August, and he should be wary of Ji Xiang causing trouble here.

Unexpectedly, Prince Lu was very interested in Ji Xiang when he heard about this.

"So that expert has come here. Interesting. I've always wanted an Ascension Realm expert as my right-hand man. I didn't expect him to actually come...."

Lie Jie was strange: "You know him?"

Prince Lu sent a message through the spiritual talisman: "Something happened in Dingjia City that caused me to lose a celestial artifact. It is said that the Grand Ming Dao Lord went to cause trouble. I thought about it, and although I didn't see what happened in the Forbidden City, I only heard about it, but aside from those useless people, the one I haven't seen should be him."

"He didn't seem to stay until the end of the Dingjia City incident... Speaking of which, that damn Biyou Palace even destroyed my celestial artifact...."

"If this immortal had been on our side back then, my celestial artifact should have been preserved."

"Try to recruit him, tell him that I have excellent Celestial Marrow here that can help him quickly recover his strength and stabilize his immortal form. He can pick and choose the Moon Essence and Sun Radiance as he pleases. Don't be ungrateful. Although he has Ascension Realm cultivation, his external manifestation is just an Earth Immortal. I could crush him with one hand twenty years ago."

Prince Lu wanted to fight against the imperial court, so of course, he had to recruit those cultivators with superb skills. The Ascension Ceremony on the fifteenth of August was organized by him, and even a heavenly general who had betrayed the Ming Dynasty would appear at that time.

To recruit cultivators, it was nothing more than offering higher wages and benefits. What the Ming court couldn't give you, this Prince can give you; what the Ming court can give you, this Prince can also give you.

At the same time, on the fifteenth of August, many demons and monsters would gather. Prince Lu's arrangement was not only to recruit those cultivators but also to prepare to use the power of the people's wishes to advance to the Ascension Realm.

Prince Lu did not yet know about what had transpired previously, namely that the King of Zhenjiang incited the demons to break away from Prince Lu and cleverly rebelled. At that time, Prince Lu was just immersed in the grief of eating the King of Zhenjiang's funeral feast.

But at least one point, the King of Zhenjiang's guess was correct at the time.

These monsters gathered on the fifteenth of August were indeed going to be used as sacrifices for Prince Lu's ascension.

One thousand three hundred acts of good, weren't they all here, alive and active?

One thousand three hundred demons and monsters, kill one thousand three hundred mortals, commit one thousand three hundred evil deeds.

Use evil to nourish good, ascend and become immortal, easily.

Nurture the demons and monsters for a thousand days; the time needed is just this once.

"Well, speaking of which, the leaders of some White Lotus Sect branches have recently become unreachable. Perhaps they were wiped out by the government. I must recruit more cultivators. The spells of these White Lotus Sects are too inferior and can't be used at all."

"As the head of the sect, I can't have a bunch of trash under my command. The White Lotus Sect has a large momentum, but it is ultimately a rabble."

Prince Lu's spiritual talisman hung up.

Lie Jie restrained his killing intent and prepared to contact Ji Xiang, so he needed Fire Lord to help identify the other party.

But Fire Lord was nervously contacting the great power behind her.

"Silent Wheel Heavenly Palace, I am in trouble now, you must help me solve it! You promised me that when I meet him again, I will definitely obtain the power to kill him!"

"But now I have not gained powerful power, and he has become stronger than me!"

Fire Lord said what attack events she might encounter now, and the immortals in the Silent Wheel Heavenly Palace remembered.

"It's the one in the Forbidden City."

"This matter is a bit troublesome, Fire Lord. Originally, we planned to help you. After all, he killed General Nuogao Dayin, which is a feud, but after our discussion, we believe that there is still a need to win over this person."

"After all, the overall situation is important. Soon the immortals will begin to descend into the world. If you dare not contact him, then pretend he doesn't exist. We will apply a spell to you so that he will not be able to sense your existence. In his, and even in the perception of other cultivators, you will become a mortal."

The immortals in the Silent Wheel Heavenly Palace were very realistic.

The previous help to Fire Lord, and the promise of various benefits, was just because they valued Fire Lord's courage to burn the Forbidden City. After all, on the path of cultivation, a brave heart is extremely important, and they also wanted to find an agent.

Now it seems that Fire Lord's courage is at least not as good as that person's. After being defeated once, when she saw the other party again, she no longer had the courage to act, but instead came to the Heavenly Palace for help. This is a typical sign of being scared out of her wits.

The brave heart should already have irreparable cracks. To repair this crack, you can only kill this person and break through the inner demon.

"Your inner demons are a bit deep. If this continues, be careful. Suddenly, the demon tribulation begins. Your ten demons and nine disasters have not been eliminated. Sometimes, you must calm your mind, be cautious in your words and deeds."

"Giving you strength immediately is also possible, but this kind of realm that is pulled up by the roots is like duckweed without roots, and it will collapse at the first touch. What's more, the other party has Ascension Realm methods. Even if you are raised to the Pure Yang Realm, you may not be his opponent. Besides, we have no way to raise you to the Pure Yang Realm."

"Cultivation still has to come step by step."

Fire Lord laughed in anger.

Wasn't it because she burned the Forbidden City that you valued her? Now that you see a better choice, you are ready to throw her aside? This is really the style of Li Shanhe. Use it when it's useful, and throw it away when it's not!

"You will descend into the world soon. How soon?"

"About twenty years, or if you're fast, you can make it in twelve years."

Fire Lord gritted her teeth: "Don't you have elixirs! Weren't there many elixirs of the kind that could ascend to immortality on the spot in the past!"

"You want me to be your agent. Haven't you ever thought that if I die and you can't recruit him, then who can help you? At least my talent is okay!"

Silent Wheel Heavenly Palace Immortal: "Elixir of immortality on the spot... Indeed, there were some in the past, but the Grand Supreme Elderly Lord's position was stolen by Emperor Jiajing, and the Eight Trigrams Furnace in the Great Scarlet Sky Palace has been extinguished. Now, not only can we not get the elixir, but now the entire Li Shanhe cannot refine the elixir."

"Therefore, the remaining elixirs in each Heavenly Palace are very precious and cannot be given to you just because you want them. You must show corresponding value."

Fire Lord took a deep breath.

For her, this was bad news.

"The emperors of the Ming court, none of them are willing to die obediently."

She had hatred flashing in her eyes. Originally, she could have obtained the elixir. There was no need to prove any broken value at this time.

The Silent Wheel Heavenly Palace immortals immediately gave Fire Lord an endowment, changing her state to that of a mortal. This was an extremely clever disguise that could deceive even the existence of the immortal level.

"I'll give you some benefits for now."

Then, several immortal figures suddenly descended from the other world. They had no faces, and they manifested from nothingness like wandering souls. Although they could not use real mana, there was no problem in possessing Fire Lord to provide remote assistance.

"This is...!"