Chapter 220: The Great Robbery Never Ceases
"This cloud is large enough, yet not large enough. This cloud and this snowstorm over the Yan Kingdom feel more like a warning."
In the western lands, Mount Sumeru rose majestic and towering, its Golden Summit Temple perched above the clouds. The Old Tathagata gazed across the entire Yan Kingdom, seeing the brilliant golden sunlight illuminating the sea of clouds with extraordinary brightness.
"Long ago, in the vast history of my Golden Summit Temple, I witnessed such celestial attacks as well."
Beneath the Old Tathagata stood numerous Bodhisattvas, Venerables, and Arhats. They listened as the Old Tathagata spoke: "That celestial attack was far more devastating than this one. It was also heavy snow, also dark clouds, plunging the people into misery, leading to years of calamity, and countless deaths. Bitter Venerable, go to the Sutra Library and retrieve the *Annals of Sorrowful Emperor's Empty Era*, and turn to page one thousand three hundred and sixty-seven."
A monk with a furrowed brow rose and departed. After a moment, this Bitter Venerable returned, holding a thick sutra scroll. He opened it to the page the Old Tathagata had mentioned and read aloud: "Empty Era, year six thousand four hundred and twenty of the Sorrowful Emperor. The celestial phenomena changed; snow fell for thirty days, clouds sealed off eight hundred thousand miles, and the sun was unseen. Corpses littered the fields, bandits rose everywhere. The Sorrowful Emperor commanded the gods and dragon kings to eliminate them. Empty Era, year six thousand four hundred and thirty. Fire meteors fell from the sky, star rains surged like tides, volcanoes erupted by the thousands, the earth shook, crevasses a thousand zhang deep and ten thousand ravines appeared, rivers dried up. The seas emptied. The following year, the sun vanished, and day and night lost all light..."
Behind the Old Tathagata, Poor Master and others were shaken to their core. They blurted out, "Tathagata, this is..."
"The Great Ruins."
The Old Tathagata turned to look at the boundless, untamed wilderness behind Mount Sumeru. "This sutra records the final history of the divine kingdom within the Great Ruins. The heavy snow and dark clouds were merely the initial warning. However, this warning has come earlier than I expected—many years earlier—and it is much milder. It seems that the actions of the Yan Kingdom have caught the attention of those above."
Poor Master, Tian True Lord, and the others felt their minds explode. They murmured, "The Great Ruins..."
"If the Emperor wishes to quell this disaster, he must immediately halt the reforms, issue a self-critical edict, and beg forgiveness from the heavens and from the common people."
The Old Tathagata's gaze was profound. "Otherwise, this snowstorm is only the beginning. More terrifying celestial phenomena will follow. Those phenomena will not just be snow and clouds, but star rains, volcanoes, rivers and lakes drying up, the seas evaporating, and the sun and moon vanishing entirely. This is divine retribution. Heaven's wrath descends, yet it is the common people who must bear it. That seems excessive..."
"Your report, Tathagata. The Yan Kingdom's Crown Prince has sent an envoy requesting an audience."
The Old Tathagata was slightly startled, then smiled. "This prince has come to see this old monk after all. Invite him up."
"As you command."
The Old Tathagata said to the surrounding monks, "The Crown Prince is quite extraordinary. He may well be a savior. The Emperor is stubborn, but the prince is not. His envoy is worth meeting."
At the Dao Sect, on Mount Kunlun's Jade Void Mountain.
This place was known as the Jade Void Cave Heaven, seemingly a world unto itself, with eternal spring, a divine paradise rivaling Mount Sumeru.
"The clouds sealing the Yan Kingdom are merely a light warning, far milder than the warning that preceded the Great Ruins' destruction."
The Old Dao Master spoke unhurriedly to the many Dao cultivators: "The Yan Kingdom's National Teacher pushed for reforms, and our Dao Sect opposed him—not for personal gain, but for the sake of the Dao. This reform has already broken many rules and many principles. It is doomed to fail. It is a pity that the Yan Kingdom's National Teacher is too shortsighted to understand the terrible outcome that awaits."
His gaze was deep, but his aura was perfectly calm. He continued slowly, "Years ago, when the Yan Kingdom's National Teacher was still young, he came to the Dao Sect to see me. I recognized his extraordinary potential and held great expectations for him. I allowed him to read our sect's foundational scriptures, hoping he would achieve great things in the future. I set aside sectarian biases, believing that such talent should be nurtured without reservation. Later, when he became the National Teacher, my expectations turned to disappointment. Why? Because the Dao follows nature."
The many Daoist masters listened in silence.
"The Dao follows nature means that the Dao and its methods arise from nature. We cultivators can summon wind and rain, but we do not alter the wind and rain. We do not change nature, nor do we change the Great Dao. I actually hold no prejudice against the Heavenly Demon Sect. On the contrary, I admire some of their practices. But our paths differ. Why?"
The Dao Master shook his head. "The Dao arises from nature, but the Heavenly Demon Sect uses the Dao to change nature. This is the greatest difference between our Dao Sect and the Heavenly Demon Sect, and the reason the Heavenly Demon Sect is called demonic."
The Daoists present were inwardly shaken. Cinnabar Son said, "I have observed disciples of the Heavenly Demon Sect. Some use cloud-summoning and rain-making techniques to bring rain during droughts and charge farmers for it. Others use drilling spells to dig wells and solve drinking water problems. Some use true fire to smelt ores, extract mystic metals, and make farming tools for sale. Still others have farmers pay them to hunt demon beasts. The Heavenly Demon Sect indeed violates the principle of the Dao following nature—they are changing nature."
The Dao Master said, "Using Dao techniques and supernatural powers for the daily needs of the common people is changing nature and destroying nature. Changing and destroying nature is changing and destroying the Great Dao. The Heavenly Demon Sect's doctrine is wrong, so it has degenerated into the demonic path. Add to that their sect's general principle—'Act according to your nature, follow nature purely'—this is indulging one's desires, doing whatever one pleases. If this is not demonic, what is?"
He sighed. "The National Teacher has been too deeply influenced by the Heavenly Demon Sect, to the point of using their ideology to govern the state. Thus, the disasters that once befell the Great Ruins will now appear in the Yan Kingdom. This is divine punishment, a heavenly tribulation, a calamity sent from above. That said, the common people are innocent."
The Dao Master's tone softened. "Go down the mountain. The divine punishment provoked by the Emperor and the National Teacher should not be borne by the world. Help those suffering common people—save as many as you can. Travel and rescue, and seek out youths with good foundations to continue our Dao Sect's legacy."
"As you command."
One by one, the Daoist masters descended the mountain.
The Dao Master looked at the clouds shrouding the Yan Kingdom and sighed. "This should not be borne by these people... If the National Teacher and the Emperor remain obstinate, our Dao Sect will have no choice but to enter the mortal world."
Qin Mu contacted the Left and Right Protector Envoys and transmitted the Holy Lord's decree. He said, "Help the Emperor with disaster relief, gather the dark clouds from the sky, and then send our sect's disciples to the south to assist the farmers in removing the frozen crops and replanting. This snowstorm will kill many. Do your best, save as many as you can. Also, warn our disciples to be careful. In times of disaster, there will inevitably be chaos. The world will not be peaceful."
"As you command."
The Left Protector Envoy, Ning Daochi, hesitated for a moment and asked, "Holy Lord, under what identity should we help the Emperor? If the Emperor offers us official positions, should we accept or refuse?"
Qin Mu thought for a moment and said, "Act as individuals, using the full strength of the Holy Sect, and do your utmost. If the Emperor offers official positions, accept them. The Emperor can tolerate the National Teacher, and he can tolerate us as well. The Yan Kingdom is the Heavenly Saint Sect—do not doubt this."
He paused and continued, "The world is unstable now. Those with supernatural powers are accustomed to being above others. Having them serve mortals like our Heavenly Saint Sect does will not sit well with them. The National Teacher once said he killed a group of 'pure officials,' but you cannot kill them all—kill one batch, and another appears. I thought he was joking, but now I see it's true."
Qin Mu looked up at the dark clouds in the sky and smiled faintly. "This snowstorm and these clouds have created a disaster that could destroy a nation. Yet they still dwell on whether something is demonic or not, rather than thinking of helping the people. They are probably used to being above others and consider serving those beneath them as an insult, as demonic behavior."
He shook his head. "There are many such people, and some extremists may even rebel or target our Heavenly Saint Sect. You must be careful!"
"Rest assured, Holy Lord. The Holy Sect has stood firm until now, never defeated by so-called righteous paths—and that is no empty reputation!"
The two Protector Envoys bowed and departed.
Qin Mu steadied himself, looked up again at the cloud covering the Yan Kingdom, shook his head, and returned to the Imperial Academy. Fox Ling'er, Dragon Qilin, and Capital Heaven Demon King were already waiting on the ship.
Qin Mu said, "We are returning to the village this time. Let's buy some New Year supplies along the way. Inlaid Dragon City probably has none left. This year, the Yan Kingdom's situation is dire. I suspect many merchants will be absent from Inlaid Dragon City."
Capital Heaven Demon King looked up at the sky and chuckled darkly. "Your world is in for trouble. This heavy snow and these clouds probably cover the entire Yan Kingdom, don't they?"
Qin Mu was intrigued and asked politely, "Demon King, do you have any insights?"
"Kneel and lick my toes, and I'll tell you!" Capital Heaven Demon King said arrogantly.
Qin Mu glanced at Fox Ling'er. She opened the mechanism on the eight-armed divine statue's chest, sat inside, and manipulated Capital Heaven Demon King to kneel and stretch out his tongue toward Qin Mu's shoe.
Capital Heaven Demon King quickly shouted, "A demon can be killed but not humiliated! Stop! Stop... I'll talk, I'll talk!"
Qin Mu raised his hand.
Fox Ling'er stopped manipulating. Capital Heaven Demon King jumped up, spat a few times, and dared not act out again.
These days, Fox Ling'er, with her mischievous tricks, had brought him to heel. Capital Heaven Demon King, adhering to the principle that a good demon doesn't suffer immediate losses, had no choice but to cooperate with this fox demon.
Capital Heaven Demon King wiped his mouth and sneered, "This is the work of a god, and not an ordinary one. If my true body descended, I could also use such means—attacking with celestial phenomena, wiping out all humans, making you extinct, and turning this world into a new Capital Heaven. However, the god using this celestial attack seems relatively gentle, not striking lethally. This snow and these clouds are probably just a mild warning."
"A warning?"
Qin Mu was stunned. Just a mild warning?
This mild warning would likely cause millions of common people to perish before winter's end!
He stared blankly, thinking of the Great Ruins. Wasn't it the same there? By the will of gods and demons, the people of the Great Ruins had become outcasts, hunted by all.
"Until gods and demons die, the great robbery never ceases!" Qin Mu suddenly said coldly.
"My lady, until gods and demons die, the great robbery never ceases." The Yan Kingdom's National Teacher stood atop the clouds high in the sky, gazing at the immense cloud covering the Yan Kingdom, and sighed to the woman beside him.
The woman beside him was of average appearance—neither beautiful nor ugly, with pleasant features. She was a palace maid who had become the National Teacher's wife.
This woman had a clear mind and said, "Husband, you didn't return this time because you believe the Emperor can resolve this disaster?"
"Even if the Emperor cannot resolve it, someone will help him. There's no need for me to go back."
The Yan Kingdom's National Teacher smiled. "We are going to the Little Jade Capital in the sky."
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