txolops Chapter 181 Chechi Kingdom
Chapter 181 Chechi Kingdom
But Li Fa's thunderbolt was truly earth-shattering and awe-inspiring.
You might wonder why he possesses such great power? It turns out that after using the Thunder Pearl that day, he had a sudden realization and thus his mastery of the Five Thunders' supernatural abilities improved considerably.
He unleashed five thunderbolts simultaneously, causing rocks to rain down on Fulong Ridge, ancient trees to break, and the mountain peaks within a radius of several miles to be leveled by several feet.
The three demons, Tiger Power, Deer Power, and Sheep Power, stood a hundred feet away, their faces turning ashen as they were swept by the thunder and wind.
After the thunder subsided and the smoke cleared, the three of them looked again.
Despite being injured, Li Famo's hair was perfectly styled.
The rocks surrounding the altar had been melted by lightning and fire into a piece of crystal, shimmering with precious light under the sunlight.
The three of them looked at each other and then fell to the ground together.
Tiger Power Immortal kowtowed and said, "Immortal Master, your supernatural powers are unparalleled and your magic is boundless! We disciples were blind to your greatness and have offended you greatly. Please forgive us!"
The Great Immortal Lu Li also kowtowed and said, "We disciples have cultivated for hundreds of years, thinking we have received the true teachings of the Great Dao, but today we realize we are nothing more than frogs at the bottom of a well. Your thunderbolt, Immortal, is truly a magnificent display of heavenly power!"
The Great Immortal Yang Li kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "Immortal Master! This disciple is convinced! Completely convinced!"
Li Fa finished his incantation, stepped down from the altar, and came before the three men. He gestured for them to rise and said with a smile, "Please rise, gentlemen. I have come not to humiliate you, but because you have rendered meritorious service to the people, yet due to a momentary lapse in judgment, you have fallen into delusion. If you do not awaken soon, I fear you will find it difficult to attain enlightenment."
The three of them then stood up tremblingly, with their hands at their sides, not daring to look up.
Tiger Power Immortal composed himself, cupped his hands, and asked, "May I ask your esteemed title, Immortal Master? And which True Person did you study under? We disciples have cultivated for many years and consider ourselves to have some knowledge, but we have never heard of such a person as you, Immortal Master."
Li Fa said, "I won't talk about my lineage yet. Let's ask about yours first."
Tiger Power Immortal said, "My disciples and I were originally a tiger, a deer, and a sheep on Zhongnan Mountain, all ordinary wild animals. In the second year of Yongxing, the Great Perfection Master Yin Gui descended upon Louguantai on Zhongnan Mountain, and we sensed the true energy, thus gaining spiritual intelligence."
Later, the Great Perfection Master Taihe transmitted to Master Liang the secret methods of Qi Refining and Invisibility, and the Elixir of Water and Stone, thus enabling him to cultivate the Great Dao. Later still, Master Liang preached and expounded the Dao, and we eavesdropped outside, thus entering the Dao. In this sense, I, his disciple, belong to the Louguantai lineage.”
Upon hearing this, Li Fa burst into laughter and said, "In that sense, I am your grandmaster uncle."
The three demons were taken aback, exchanging bewildered glances. Tiger Power Immortal asked, "What do you mean by that, Immortal Master?"
Li Fa asked, "Do you know who the founder of Louguantai was?"
Tiger Power Immortal said, "Of course I know. The first ancestor was Wen Shi Zhenren Yin Xi, the second ancestor was Tai He Zhenren Yin Gui, and the third ancestor was Tai Ji Zhenren Du Chong."
Li Fa said, "That's right. I am a disciple of Laozi. When Laozi went west out of Hangu Pass, your Louguantai's ancestor, the True Man Wenshi Yin Xi, observed the celestial phenomena at night and knew that a sage was coming. So he earnestly asked Laozi to write a book to spread the Tao."
Laozi then bestowed upon him the five thousand words of the *Tao Te Ching*, along with a jade scroll and golden inscription, and granted him the titles "Master Wenshi" and "Supreme True Man." True Man Yin Xi thus founded the Louguan lineage and propagated his teachings in Zhongnan Mountain. I, this humble Daoist, am a fellow disciple of True Man Yin Xi, having both received teachings from Laozi. In a sense, wouldn't I be your grand-uncle?"
Upon hearing this, the three demons seemed to awaken from a dream, repeatedly kowtowing and crying out, "Grandmaster Uncle! We disciples were blind and did not recognize your greatness, offending you unjustly. We deserve to die!"
Li Fa reached out to help them up, and said with a smile, "Get up. Ignorance is no excuse. Although you secretly learned from Louguantai, you have still received the true transmission of the Daoist lineage, so you can be considered members of my Daoist sect."
"Your excessive devotion to Taoism and suppression of Buddhism has led you astray, causing you to lose sight of the true essence of spiritual practice. From now on, you should prioritize compassion and use skillful means as your guide, and cease making things difficult for those monks."
Tiger Power Immortal said in a panic, "We will keep our Grandmaster Uncle's teachings in mind. However... that king has long been devoted to Taoism. If we suddenly change our ways, I'm afraid the king will not comply."
Li Fa said, "That's not difficult. In my opinion, you just need to let the king see that monks are not entirely useless, and that will be enough."
Upon hearing this, Tiger Power Immortal nodded in agreement, but then asked, "Grandmaster Uncle, it's not that I'm complaining, but the key point is that these monks are truly useless. They only know how to chant scriptures and pray to Buddha, and are of no practical use!"
Li Fa said, "Foolish! Even if those monks are completely useless, you can't say that, much less bully them!"
Tiger Power Immortal asked, "Why?"
Li Fa said, "This place is not like my Eastern Land. It is the territory of Buddhism. You are carrying out large-scale destruction of Buddhism here. Aren't you disrespecting the Tathagata?"
Moreover, your Taoist arts are all learned by stealing; only the Five Thunder Orthodox Method is orthodox, and you only know a little bit of it.
The rest are even more unorthodox and heretical, therefore the Xuanmen (Taoist sect) will not protect you. Don't you understand your own situation?
Li Fa's words struck like a thunderclap, leaving the three demons dumbfounded and drenched in cold sweat.
Tiger Power Immortal's face turned deathly pale, and he said in a trembling voice, "Grandmaster Uncle... we disciples never considered this possibility! We only thought that promoting Taoism and suppressing Buddhism was to spread the orthodox teachings of the Xuanmen, but we never knew we were in a tiger's den, courting death!"
Even the Great Immortal Deer Power panicked, repeatedly kowtowing: "Grandmaster Uncle! Although we disciples possess some meager cultivation, if the Buddhist sect truly punishes us, we will die without a burial place! Please, Grandmaster Uncle, guide us!"
The Great Immortal Yang Li burst into tears, pleading, "My disciple has absolutely no intention of harming anyone or doing anything evil. I beg my grandmaster uncle to save me!"
Seeing their genuine fear, Li Fa softened his tone and said, "Stand up and speak. You need not be too afraid. You have spent twenty years in Chechi Kingdom praying for rain to save the people and saving countless lives. This is a great merit. Even if you have made mistakes, they do not warrant death. I have come down to the mortal realm for this very reason."
Upon hearing this, Tiger Power Immortal hurriedly replied, "Please enlighten me, Grandmaster Uncle!"
Li Fa said, "I recently heard that in our Great Tang Dynasty of the East, there is a young man named Sanzang, the younger brother of the Tang Emperor, who has been ordered to go to the Western Paradise to obtain Buddhist scriptures. He will soon pass through Chechi Kingdom, and he will definitely come to the court to exchange his travel documents."
He had three disciples: the Great Sage Equaling Heaven who had caused havoc in the Heavenly Palace five hundred years ago, Marshal Tianpeng who once commanded 80,000 naval troops in the Milky Way, and General Rolling Curtain, the Jade Emperor's personal bodyguard; all of them possessed supernatural powers.
Especially the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong, whose supernatural powers are immense; even 100,000 heavenly soldiers couldn't subdue him. You only need to wait for them to arrive, stop them, and engage them in some magical combat. You don't need to win; just fight to a draw, and this situation will resolve itself.”
The Great Immortal Deer asked in confusion, "Grandmaster Uncle, if what you say is true, then Sun Wukong is incredibly powerful, and we disciples are probably no match for him. How can we possibly achieve a draw?"
Li Fa said, "Don't worry, I will help you during the battle. But first, I will be introduced to the king so that we can have a legitimate reason to fight."
The three demons were overjoyed upon hearing this.
Li Fa continued, "After the contest, regardless of victory or defeat, you must proactively propose to the King that Chechi Kingdom should value both Buddhism and Taoism equally, without neglecting either. I will then impart to you the true Five Thunder Technique. From now on, you should diligently cultivate yourselves in Chechi Kingdom, protect the country and its people, and refrain from causing further conflict."
The three demons bowed and said, "We disciples will humbly obey our Grandmaster's decree!"