On the Path to the Great Dao

Zhang Xian and the others had already begun packing up their belongings, preparing to return to the Celestial Court. Xiao Dulu and the others, fearing that the Earth God and Chu Xiangxiu might escape, had begged the Thunder Ministry deities for all kinds of seals, binding the two inside and out to restrict their Dao techniques.

Zhong Lin revealed his identity as the Tianji Scholar to the Thunder Ministry warriors and requested that the Thunder Ministry assist in escorting the Earth God and Chu Xiangxiu to the Celestial Court.

This return to the Celestial Court was bound to be a great merit. Their heavenly soldier battalion, having cracked the Clay Bodhisattva case, would certainly be rewarded handsomely. Each month, their medicinal pills and immortal qi liquid would increase substantially, and they might even receive promotions.

The Thunder Ministry's divine generals were also quite enthusiastic toward them, entertaining them warmly.

Master Ge had emerged from seclusion at some point and personally received Chen Shi and the others, encouraging them, saying, "Thanks to all you fellow cultivators, the people of Thunderclap Mystic Province were spared disaster. A small token of appreciation, please accept it."

Thunder Ministry warriors stepped forward and handed each heavenly soldier of the Fire Battalion a small cloth pouch. When everyone opened them, they found few items inside: two three-inch tall jade bottles, one milky white and one jujube red. There were also several Five Thunder Talismans personally empowered by Thunder Ministry divine generals, extremely powerful.

"Of the two jade bottles, one contains Thunder-Infused Nectar, which is also immortal qi liquid, of somewhat better quality than the liquid from Yaoguang Pool. The other contains Heavenly Yang Pills refined by my Thunder Ministry's alchemists, which help cultivate pure-yang energy and refine pure-yang thunder pills."

Master Ge smiled, saying, "Just a little local specialty, please accept it."

Zhang Xian hurriedly told everyone to accept the gifts and bowed in thanks to Master Ge.

Master Ge kept Chen Shi behind and said, "Fellow Daoist Chen is a young hero. Solving the Clay Bodhisattva case and saving the people of Thunderclap Mystic Province from fire and flood is a boundless merit. This act also saved me, for otherwise, with this Thunderclap Mystic Province matter, I might not have been able to remain in my seat. Ge Hong has nothing to offer in return, but I have prepared a small gift. Please accept it."

A divine general at his side presented a jade pendant. Master Ge said, "This treasure is called the Danyang Mystic Altar. I refined it from a piece of ancient precious jade I obtained from the Dark Sea. This precious jade was born in an earth-vein wind aperture, where violent winds have blown for eons without cease, forging the ancient jade into a wondrous treasure. I refined this treasure into a mystic altar. When raised and stood upon, it renders one impervious to all techniques. I took an immediate liking to Fellow Daoist Chen, so I gift this item to you, to help you weather this calamity."

"A heavy treasure to weather calamities?" The Fire Battalion warriors were all shaken, casting envious glances his way.

Chen Shi didn't think it was all that precious. In Qianyang Mountain on Western Ox New Continent, there were hundreds of treasures no inferior to the Danyang Mystic Altar, all stolen by his own hands.

"Except for the mulberry tree, which Wu Qi stole. Hmm, and Godmother also stole two items." He thought to himself.

He accepted the Danyang Mystic Altar and handed it to Black Pot, saying, "Master, this Clay Bodhisattva incident is full of suspicious points. We haven't even caught the one who cast the spell to summon rain. How can the case be closed? That person must still be in Feng'an Commandery."

Master Ge said meaningfully, "For the Thunder Ministry, the Clay Bodhisattva case is already concluded. This time, the Thunder Ministry has achieved a great victory - capturing the culprit while also driving away the Bodhisattva of Great Strength, a double blessing. As for who cast the spell to summon rain, is that really so important to the Thunder Ministry?"

"But hundreds of thousands of people died!"

Chen Shi remembered the countless clay figures being beaten into mud by the rain, and the clay figures pushing wooden carts to dump the non-living clay figures into deep pits, and he couldn't help but grow angry, saying, "Are the lives and deaths of these people not important?"

Master Ge looked at him with some surprise and asked, "How old is Fellow Daoist Chen this year?"

"Thirty-six."

Master Ge said in astonishment, "Thirty-six years old, having cultivated to Celestial Immortal - truly a young hero. Your talent is extremely high, rare even in the Earth Immortal Realm. But it's no wonder you think this way. When you live to five hundred years old, your mindset toward mortals will change somewhat. You'll find that common mortals have short lifespans - by five hundred years, more than twenty generations have passed."

He said softly, "When you live to five thousand years, your mindset changes again. You'll see mortals as mayflies, born at dawn and dead by dusk, feeling that you are no longer of the same kind as them. When you live to thirty thousand years, worldly people are just ants to you, no different from any other creatures. The Clay Bodhisattva case, with hundreds of thousands dead in Feng'an Commandery - indeed, that's a lot. But who cares? Does the Thunder Ministry truly care? Does the Celestial Court truly care?"

Chen Shi was silent for a moment, then said, "Master, back then, you and I were also ants like them. When we were ants, did we care?"

Master Ge's heart trembled slightly, as if remembering some stories from his youth. Then he shook his head and laughed, "Fellow Daoist Chen is still young. When you reach my age and have weathered several calamities, you won't think this way anymore."

He clasped his hands in farewell, saying, "You all still need to return to the Celestial Court to report your mission, so I won't see you off."

Chen Shi looked toward Feng'an Commandery. In many parts of the county, white banners were hung and funerals were being held - the survivors mourning the dead.

"This Earth Immortal Realm is nothing but a larger version of Western Ox New Continent."

A sense of absurdity rose in his heart, and he muttered softly, "The entire Earth Immortal Realm has not a single real man."

Heavenly River ferry crossing.

Thunder Ministry Military Affairs Assistant Wu Xie came to see them off. The Fire Battalion warriors boarded the star raft one by one. Someone cheered, "Our Fire Battalion didn't lose a single person this time!"

Everyone laughed at this. When heavenly soldier battalions went into action, people always died - of course, the dead were the heavenly soldiers of the battalion, and entire battalion wipeouts weren't uncommon. The fact that they hadn't lost a single person this time was a miracle since the establishment of the heavenly soldier camps.

Bai Fangfang laughed, "Not only did we not lose anyone, everyone got rewards. After returning to the Celestial Court, there will definitely be more rewards!"

Regional Commander Zhang Xian laughed, "This time we have Fellow Daoist Chen to thank! Without Fellow Daoist Chen, we probably would have suffered heavy casualties."

Everyone chimed in, praising Chen Shi. Chen Shi smiled modestly for a few words, his gaze falling on the Earth God and Chu Xiangxiu.

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Just then, a voice said, "Donor Chen!"

Chen Shi turned to look. It was the Golden Body of the Bodhisattva of Great Strength arriving at the ferry crossing, with thousands of disciples of the Mahāsthāma Monastery behind him. He immediately jumped off the star raft and greeted him, saying, "In this case, Chen Shi has caused much offense. I hope the Bodhisattva will forgive me."

The Bodhisattva of Great Strength returned the greeting, saying, "Donor Chen was simply doing his duty, no need for courtesy. I will also be leaving Thunderclap Mystic Province, taking all my disciples and consorts with me. No doctrines will be left behind."

Chen Shi looked behind him and indeed saw many women among the Mahāsthāma Monastery followers, who should be the consorts.

The Bodhisattva of Great Strength said to the Earth God on the star raft, "The monks and consorts who framed you back then - I have identified them. The people have been brought here."

He waved his hand, and monks escorted several monks forward, along with an old man and a beautiful, charming woman.

The Bodhisattva of Great Strength said, "I wanted to spread the Dharma in Thunderclap Mystic Province and glorify Buddhism. These people are my disciples. They gave in to greed, thinking that to glorify Buddhism, they must eliminate you. That's why they schemed to harm you. Today, since Thunderclap Mystic Province no longer has my Western Paradise's Dao field, I will execute these people according to the Celestial Court's heavenly laws."

He raised a finger, and thunder immediately gathered in the sky. With crackling sounds, bolts of lightning descended from above, striking these people.

That thunder was Extinction Immortal Thunder. When the lightning struck them, it immediately turned their physical bodies to ash, shattered their Primordial Spirits, and erased their cultivation achievements, leaving only wisps of yin souls that were swept away by the underworld.

The Bodhisattva of Great Strength pressed his palms together and bowed to the Earth God and Chu Xiangxiu, saying, "I ask both of you donors to understand."

The Earth God and Chu Xiangxiu were bound tightly, unable to move, and had been placed under silence spells, unable to speak.

The Bodhisattva of Great Strength only sought peace of mind for himself, and didn't require their forgiveness. He said to Chen Shi, "Donor Chen, the Celestial Court is not a good place. You may not know this, but the conflict between the Celestial Court and the immortals is growing increasingly fierce. The contradictions between the two sides are at swords' points. This Clay Bodhisattva case is merely a prelude. If the Celestial Court's path proves unworkable, you might consider coming to the West. My Western Paradise of Ultimate Bliss has both the longevity of the immortal path and the prosperity of the divine path, without forsaking the mortal world."

Chen Shi smiled, "Thank you for the Bodhisattva's advice. Since the Bodhisattva knows full well that an immortal is secretly stirring up trouble, using you to sow discord between the Celestial Court and the Western Paradise, why allow yourself to be humiliated and not root out that person?"

The Bodhisattva of Great Strength gently shook his head, "This is karma between the Celestial Court and the immortals. Why should my Western Paradise court trouble for itself? I take my leave."

With a slight movement of his mind, he activated the Eighteen Right Mindfulness prayer beads, drawing all his disciples into the paradise of ultimate bliss within them, then boarded another star raft.

The boatman of that star raft had thought a big business opportunity had arrived, but upon seeing this, cursed under his breath about being stuck with a bunch of poor folk.

Chen Shi waved in farewell, saying to Black Pot, "This Bodhisattva of Great Strength may not necessarily be a good person, but he is upright enough."

Their star raft was also about to set sail when Long Huang came rushing over, calling from a distance, "Boatman, please stop!"

The star raft paused in the star gate. Long Huang came to their side and said to Chen Shi, "Master Ge needs to enter seclusion and cannot come to see you off personally, so he ordered me to deliver a letter to you."

He took out a letter. As Chen Shi opened it, Long Huang said, "The Master said that the names of the immortals in Feng'an Commandery during the outbreak of the Clay Bodhisattva case are all in the letter. These are all that survived."

Chen Shi was briefly taken aback, then read the letter. Written in it were the names and cultivation realms of various immortals.

Most of the immortals were only at the Celestial Immortal Realm, but the Celestial Immortal Realm couldn't resist the pollution of the Great Dao, unable to use even a shred of their magical power.

"Among all the immortals, only two possess the kind of strength in question." Master Ge wrote in the letter.

Chen Shi continued reading.

The first was the city lord of Feng'an Commandery's main city, surnamed Chao, named Huang. Chen Shi had seen him before. Back in the immortal city, when the Clay Bodhisattva of Great Strength was restoring his magical power, Chao Huang had knelt and bowed to him, helping the Bodhisattva recover his strength.

The second was a disciple of Golden Turtle Island, surnamed Jiang, named Guo. This person's master was highly accomplished. He left the island to travel and came to Feng'an Commandery, where he was caught up in the Clay Bodhisattva case. Even when transformed into a clay figure, he had the ability to preserve a portion of his cultivation.

Chen Shi flipped the letter over and saw Master Ge had written: "May my younger brother, thirty thousand years from now, still uphold this heart."

Chen Shi folded the letter and leapt off the star raft, waving his hand, "Everyone, go back to the Celestial Court and report your mission first. I'll leave in a few days."

Everyone was puzzled and looked over.

Black Pot said, "Woof?"

"That's right!"

Everyone said in unison, "The case is already closed. Why stay behind?"

Chen Shi laughed, "The Clay Bodhisattva case is closed as far as the Thunder Ministry is concerned, and it's closed as far as the Western Paradise is concerned. But for me, this case isn't closed yet. You all go back to the Celestial Court first. I'm going to close the case."

"Going to commit a crime?"

Bai Fangfang got excited and was about to jump off the star raft, saying, "We'll come with you!"

Chen Shi shot her a glare and said, "To do what? Break the heavenly laws?"

Bai Fangfang was startled and didn't dare mention going together again. The other immortals also hesitated, not daring to disembark.

Black Pot jumped down and stood with Chen Shi.

Zhang Xian quickly sent a voice transmission, "Young Master, the one who cast the spell to summon rain might well be one of our own people!"

Chen Shi lifted his foot and kicked the star raft, sending it sailing into the star gate, thinking, "One of our own? Old Black and I are the only 'our own' around here!"

The star raft was propelled by the starlight within the gate, accelerating rapidly, and soon disappeared into the radiance of the star gate.

Chen Shi turned around and smiled, "Black Pot, let's go close the case!"

Black Pot followed him, heading toward that immortal city.

Long Huang hurried to catch up, lowering his voice to warn him, "This kind of matter, without evidence, is a violation of the heavenly laws, a crime punishable by death!"

Chen Shi looked at this crooked-faced dragon god and said, "Brother Long Huang, your Thunder Ministry upholds thunder law, acting in accordance with heaven's will. Above you are the Thunder Ancestor, the Four Northern Saints, and the Five Great Heavenly Palaces. Below you are the Five Great Marshals, the Five Directional Thunder Kings, and the Five Directional Thunder Emperors, with soldiers and horses in the hundreds of millions. You govern the Earth Immortal Realm according to the Celestial Way. Tell me, what is the Celestial Way?"

Long Huang was briefly stunned, then shook his head and laughed, "The Celestial Way? That's far too complex. How could one possibly explain it clearly?"

Chen Shi said, "Murder must be repaid with life, debts must be repaid with money - that is the Celestial Way! Enforcing justice on behalf of heaven - that is the Celestial Way! Why need it be explained clearly? Just do it!"

Long Huang was startled.

Chen Shi left him behind and drifted away, muttering softly, "I wanted to give the heavenly laws a chance, but it turns out the heavenly laws are useless. Since the heavenly laws don't work, then I'll do it myself!"

Feng'an Commandery, Changyi.

Chen Shi and Black Pot came to an immortal mountain in Changyi. According to Master Ge's letter, the disciple of Golden Turtle Island, Jiang Guo, had settled here after traveling to this place.

This immortal mountain wasn't large, only about four or five li in circumference, floating in the sky. Immortal spiritual energy naturally seeped from the void within the mountain, forming a spiritual spring. The spring wasn't enough to establish a sect, but was sufficient for one or two immortals to cultivate.

Master Ge had placed this immortal mountain under the Thunder Ministry's control, using it daily to entertain immortal visitors passing through.

Chen Shi entered the immortal mountain and immediately felt the air within transform into fierce winds, howling past him, then suddenly reversing direction and blowing from behind. The wind was extremely violent.

When he walked out of the mountain valley, he saw from a distance a young man sitting beside the spiritual spring, breathing and circulating his qi.

The fierce winds that had been blowing back and forth were the result of this person's breathing.

Chen Shi watched silently. With each breath the young man took, streams of sword qi flew out from between his lips. The sword qi was sharp and overbearing, its killing intent even more formidable than the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade's murderous aura, sending chills down one's spine.

"It's not him."

Chen Shi carefully sensed this killing intent, made his judgment, turned and walked away, thinking, "If it were this person, why would he need to sow discord between the Western Paradise and the Celestial Court?"

That young man was Jiang Guo. He suddenly sensed something and opened his eyes. Beams of sword qi shot toward Chen Shi from his eyes, incredibly powerful!

Chen Shi didn't hesitate. He turned and swung his blade, both hands unleashing invisible blade qi that swelled into a hundred-zhang blade radiance, meeting those streams of sword qi. It was the blade technique from the Blood-Transforming Divine Blade!

Blade light and sword qi annihilated each other, dissipating into nothingness.

Chen Shi continued walking out.

The young man Jiang Guo looked over in surprise, saying, "The Tianluo Blood-Transforming Divine Blade! You're one of my sect brothers!"