Chapter 186: Sky curtain

The suppressive power of an Eighth Rank over a Ninth Rank is unquestionable, but that layer of golden body was truly a headache.

Li Qi thought about it repeatedly, always feeling that the layer of golden body was too familiar, but he couldn't recall what it was.

After a while.

Zhang Lan was seen repeatedly slamming Zhang Dailu, making thudding sounds like a bell.

Li Qi shivered; he remembered why the sound was familiar!

Wasn't this the sound of a bell ringing that he heard at Tianning Temple?

Li Qi shivered! Cold sweat immediately broke out, and many things in his mind connected, a flash of inspiration striking him like lightning!

"Brother Zhang! I remember now! Buddha-light! This thing is Buddha-light!"

"I heard that the Six-Tusked White Elephant carries Sakyamuni in the Void Realm, golden plates and spiritual stupas, shaping the body of a Shamen, washing away all dust and defilement, with every pore and orifice sensing spiritual fragrance. One only needs to concentrate on guarding the Dao, and one's existence in the world will never change, remaining immortal and indestructible!"

"This golden body should be the Buddha-light of a Shamen's Physical Body! What's going on? This should be something only found in Buddhism, right? And isn't this a characteristic of the Seventh Rank?!"

Li Qi shouted in astonishment.

It was once said that the human body is a boat, carrying the Spirit Soul to roam between heaven and earth, enduring the wind and waves from the outside world. When the boat is hit by wind and waves, it will be damaged. When the boat breaks, the Spirit Soul leaks out, either killed by the wind and waves, resulting in Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, or it falls back into Reincarnation, washing away everything and boarding a new boat.

Cultivators prolong their lives by continuously reinforcing this boat. The Ninth Rank and Eighth Rank are both processes of reinforcement, and gradually, methods for replacing parts are acquired.

These external wind and waves are called the "Sea of Suffering" by some Dao Orthodoxy, where the body is the boat to cross the Sea of Suffering. Some Dao Orthodoxy call it the "Long River of Time," believing that decay is caused by the erosion of the waters of time.

Upon reaching the Seventh Rank, this boat can exist for a long time under normal circumstances. The damage caused by external wind and waves can no longer keep up with the speed of repair, and there are no longer any limitations on lifespan.

There are many ways to reinforce and repair this boat. Shen Shuibi's Immaculate Body is one such method. Another is when a Seventh Rank Shaman's inner body spirits achieve Perfection, and the human body's miniature heaven and earth becomes completely independent.

And now, what they faced was one of the Seventh Rank methods.

The Buddhist Seventh Rank, the Shamen's Physical Body, by following this Dao, one can eventually condense different fruits according to one's situation: Anagami, Sakadagami, Srotapanna, and Arhat. This is the path to becoming an Arhat.

Being able to condense the Shamen's Physical Body means that one's Physical Body has been cleansed of all defilement, becoming immortal and indestructible, and is no longer subject to lifespan limitations. Normally, only those above the Buddhist Seventh Rank possess such power.

Zhang Lan heard Li Qi's words, turned his head in astonishment, incredibly surprised.

He didn't understand anything about the Shamen's Physical Body, but he heard "Seventh Rank."

He shouted, "This thing? It's a Seventh Rank item? Then how could it be on a Ninth Rank grunt? Even if it's a Spiritual Artifact, he wouldn't be able to activate it, right?"

A Ninth Rank individual's limit is to activate an Eighth Rank Spiritual Artifact, and even then, it requires picking the right person. If the attributes don't match, they can't even activate an Eighth Rank one.

Li Qi's Eighth Rank Jin Qi (Metal Energy) is still not mastered by him, and he is waiting to perfectly control it after condensing his Nascent Soul.

A Ninth Rank activating a Seventh Rank Spiritual Artifact, is that even possible?

This is completely beyond the Ninth Rank's capabilities.

Zhang Lan looked puzzled.

And Li Qi, in that instant, suddenly understood everything.

The sudden appearance of Buddhism, the Mountain and River Grand Formation, and the Rat Soil Mound that Shen Shuibi had told him about earlier.

Adding to that all the previous oddities, including why Bailin Kingdom gave up resistance and retreated to defend the pass, and why he was targeted.

And Li Qi understood one more thing.

Why Wang Baiyan helped him. He couldn't figure it out before, but now that he saw the Buddha-light on the envoy under the Sima, he immediately understood.

"It's not a Spiritual Artifact, but a blessing! Tianning Temple, it's that Chan Zhi monk from Tianning Temple. That golden plaque was a cover; this person appeared here to deliver a message!"

"Brother Zhang! Let him go, let's escape quickly!"

Li Qi roared loudly, then he urged his old horse and galloped directly towards Shen Shuibi.

He had already warned Zhang Lan, believing that this Eighth Rank older brother would definitely run faster than him.

Now, getting entangled with Zhang Dailu was meaningless; he wasn't here to deliver orders at all, or rather, delivering orders was just a side task!

Do you remember the legend of the Rat Soil Mound?

The king of a small country devoutly worshipped the Rat Soil Mound. When a large country sent troops to attack, the Rat Soil Mound intervened and helped the small country defeat the invasion of the large country.

However, if there was no sacrifice, the Rat Soil Mound would not move. (See Chapter 168 for details)

The Rat Soil Mound is a cluster of exotic beasts from the Western Regions.

In the entire Guangyang Prefecture, and even the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest ahead, who came from the Western Regions?

The ascetic monk, Chan Zhi!

Only Chan Zhi could bring the Rat Soil Mound from the Western Regions here!

And then, there's the blood sacrifice that Li Qi had heard so much about, to whom was it sacrificed?

To the Mountain and River Grand Formation? Li Qi had seen the components of Huangshan Lord's Mountain and River Grand Formation, and blood sacrifice was not needed at all.

Then who else could use it?

Nonsense, of course, it's still the Rat Soil Mound! As long as offerings are made to the Rat Soil Mound, it will intervene to protect this place, cooperating with the Mountain and River Grand Formation to resist the demons.

And the original sacrifice process, which was when the three Eighth Rank demons from the Rat Soil Mound were collecting their offerings, was blocked by the passing Zhang Lan and Li Qi.

Li Qi and Zhang Lan, these two busybodies, prevented the original sacrifice process!

This directly led to the Guangyang City side being caught off guard, not even having time to react.

That Sima Lord of Guangyang, he wasn't ignoring military affairs. In fact, he probably knew about not supplying military rations and even detaining the commander of the White Rhinoceros Army. He just didn't expect that passersby would save these ten thousand people!

Then, the identity of Wang Baiyan, who helped Li Qi, is also obvious.

Who would come to help Li Qi?

What did Li Qi do that would warrant a stranger coming to help?

What Li Qi did was oppose the Guangyang City government. It's clear, considering the matter of the Rat Soil Mound and Wang Baiyan's actions and influence, that he is also an enemy of the Guangyang City government.

He helped Li Qi because he perceived what Li Qi was doing at that moment, and so, he also wanted to save these ten thousand people.

Li Qi now recalled, could this person truly not produce 300,000 piculs at once? He controlled the entrance to that miniature heaven and earth! Even if he wasn't favored by the Heavenly Dao and couldn't grow or cultivate grain there, if he was truly willing to pay some price, enduring the Heavenly Dao's punishment in that miniature heaven and earth, he could surely snatch 300,000 piculs for Li Qi, right?

But none of that happened. He had Li Qi communicate with the Heavenly Dao for him, obtained permission for that world, and then gave Li Qi the grain.

What does all this indicate?

His Dao!

His Dao did not allow him to do such a thing, otherwise, there would be no reason for him not to do it.

Combine this with the subtle sense of restraint around Wang Baiyan.

Li Qi suddenly had a breakthrough.

Human Dao! Wang Baiyan is a Ninth Rank of the Human Dao! He is a person of the Human Dao, and he probably knows about the existence of Shaman God Mountain, otherwise, he wouldn't have repeatedly emphasized "true Shaman" to him.

This so-called emphasis was actually an implicit hint to Li Qi!

Because he believed that only direct descendants of Shaman God Mountain could be considered 'true Shamanes.'

Then, inferring from the motive, what would be the outcome if he helped Li Qi save these ten thousand people?

The Rat Soil Mound did not receive offerings and chose to stand by, unwilling to act. Guangyang City would then have to face the power of the Swallowing Heaven Demon Nest directly.

And Wang Baiyan, in such a confrontation, must also have his own schemes, though Li Qi didn't know them. But just that Human Dao background was enough to make one realize what it was.

Previously, various fragmented clues, such as Guangyang Situ's devout belief in Buddha, the Jinlang Sect's miniature heaven and earth, the special situation of the Mountain and River Grand Formation he encountered on the road, and the three Buddha statues on that Five-Tiered Pagoda.

The one in the middle, resembling a ghost king, was terrifying and inexplicable. (Chapter 171)

Thinking further, what does this mean? Connecting it with many things he heard in his previous world, for example... Buddha is divided into three ages: past, present, and future.

The Buddha statue in the middle, which is the present Buddha, resembles a ghost king.

What kind of Buddha statue would be deliberately designed like this? And he also saw the many Treasure Artifacts placed below, and even things like Kapala bowls.

Before, Li Qi had almost forgotten about things from his other world, because many of them couldn't hold true here. Numerous fallacies made them unusable here.

However, if one applied the concept of the Three World Buddhas and connected it with the current scene...

Now, under this golden body Buddha-light, all the clues connected, forming an indistinct shadow submerged beneath the water, still blurry, but allowing one to perceive the shadow beneath the surface.

The moment Li Qi perceived this shadow, he immediately chose to retreat.

Yes, he had a backup plan, but escaping was the priority at this moment.

A wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall; at least, he cannot stay here!

When one is in the game, to break out, the first thing is to step outside the game.

Li Qi didn't want to play chess with others; if he could use an out-of-game move, he would never play against someone.

And Zhang Lan, who was by his side, heard these words. Although he didn't know what Li Qi had thought of, upon careful consideration, that scoundrel just now said he was waiting for himself to die, and Li Qi said it was a characteristic of Seventh Rank Buddha-light.

Even though he still didn't know what Buddha-light was, or what Buddha was, he understood the words "Seventh Rank."

Perhaps there was a Seventh Rank existence standing behind this?

Zhang Lan also immediately felt a headache. He didn't linger either; he exerted force again, slammed Zhang Dailu into the ground, and quickly retreated.

Since he had decided to leave the battlefield, he didn't waste time. An Eighth Rank Martial Artist's speed was even faster than the old horse. He instantly burst backward, rapidly withdrawing.

However, just as he left the battlefield, the moment he felt safe.

A Martial Artist's instinct and sixth sense made him stop immediately.

A sense of dread swept through his mind, causing Zhang Lan to halt at once and then shout towards the distant Li Qi: "Stop! Stop!"

Unfortunately, the sound couldn't travel that fast.

This made Zhang Lan anxious. He directly swung his sword, unleashing a flash of sword light to transmit a message.

The sword light was dazzling, shining with a brilliant blue even in broad daylight.

Li Qi also saw the sword light.

He immediately realized that Zhang Lan was warning him, but he didn't know what the warning was about.

Someone's coming?

Or something else?

However, Li Qi soon knew what Zhang Lan was warning him about.

Because he saw that after Zhang Lan left, countless Qi suddenly rose from all around.

These Qi... were extremely mixed: Demon Qi, human Qi, mountain Qi, water Qi, Five Elements Qi, Eight Winds Qi, Earth Meridian Qi, Four Seasons Qi, Heaven and Earth Qi, and so on and so forth.

Heaven and Earth Qi intertwine, myriad Qi blend in harmony!

Myriad Qi float above, a thousand lights merge into the Grand Supreme. There is a canopy between the clouds, and a cloak of mist in the Void Realm. A layer of light curtain composed of many Qi rose from all directions, like a mosquito net, or a canopy, or even more like... a fishing net.

It covered a very wide area, roughly ten li in radius.

Coincidentally, Zhang Lan had just stepped outside this fishing net. After he stepped out, it seemed to trigger a switch, causing the sky curtain that enveloped the surroundings to rise.

But Zhang Lan stepped out, while the White Rhinoceros Army, the ten thousand common people, and Li Qi, the old horse, etc., were all covered inside.

At this moment, a voice sounded out of thin air.

"Orthodox Sword Palace has always been on good terms with Bailin Kingdom, so I will grant you a path to life. I hope you will conduct yourself well in the future and never again commit such lawless acts."

Clearly, these words were for Zhang Lan.

Zhang Lan came from Orthodox Sword Palace, and this sudden, unknown existence seemed to have chosen to let him go precisely because of his background.

Therefore, after Zhang Lan voluntarily walked out, the owner of this sky curtain activated everything.

And Li Qi, who was inside it, raised his head.

He was riding the old horse, flying in the air, looking up at the sky curtain.

He had heard that voice before.

Inside that Five-Tiered Pagoda, he had communicated with this voice.

A Seventh Rank mighty figure, Guangyang Sima!

This bastard, wasn't he obsessed with Buddha-Dharma?!

How did he end up here!?

The White Rhinoceros Army, which had just finished reorganizing, heard this voice and immediately became flustered.

The vice-general immediately saluted in military fashion, then shouted towards the sky: "Sima Lord! Where is General Lie? Is he in Guangyang City? Before he left, he issued military orders to us to protect the common people during their retreat. What is the meaning of this sight now?!"

In the sky, the voice said coldly:

"Lie Kedi is rebellious and disloyal, he falsely issued military orders and defied commands. I have already stripped him of his position and imprisoned him, awaiting his sentence. Now the White Rhinoceros Army is under my command. All troops, heed my order: turn around, the rear guard becomes the vanguard, the vanguard becomes the rear guard, advance southeast, return to the Guangyang City military camp, and await further instructions."

The vice-general heard these words and froze.

His revered superior, Lie Kedi, the true commander of the White Rhinoceros Army, was indeed imprisoned just as Mr. Li had said, on the grounds of insubordination?

The voice in the sky saw the vice-general stunned and urged: "Why are you standing still? Execute the order quickly. After returning to the army, rewards will be given based on merit, and the next commander of the White Rhinoceros Army will undoubtedly be you."

But the vice-general did not move. Instead, he raised his head and asked through gritted teeth: "Sima Lord, why?"