The seductive woman on the right replied,
“Elder Yeji went to Nanfa Temple last night to gather intelligence and make a final confirmation. Who would have thought she would return severely wounded? She fell into a coma and has not woken since.”
The beautiful woman on the left added,
“Elder Yeji’s injury is very strange, with a power in her body continuously eroding her vitality. We cannot remove it. We do not know whether she can hold on until tomorrow, and can only wait for Protector Qingmu to arrive.”
The bird Yao named “Hongying” frowned deeply. Suddenly, a piercing ape’s cry shook the land. Following the sound, they saw a white ape standing atop a southern peak, howling at the moon.
“Why is this loathsome monkey here too…?”
Hongying spat in disgust, but swiftly put on a smile as he watched the ape leaping through the treetops, before finally crashing into the valley with a “boom”.
“Protector Yuan, we have been hoping for your arrival.”
Hongying gave a warm smile. As one of Elder Yeji’s three great protectors, he had always valued harmony among his “colleagues”.
After landing, the white ape quickly transformed into a tall, thin man with a broad forehead and thick lips. At first glance, his appearance was somewhere between that of a human and a monkey.
Despite his unattractive looks, the white ape had a pair of deep blue eyes, so clear they seemed to reflect all things in the world.
The white ape glanced at Hongying, whose face was wreathed in smiles. His azure eyes seemed to pierce the heart, and he spoke in a bland tone:
“Your heart tells me: What rotten luck, why hasn’t this wretched, loathsome monkey died yet…”
Hongying’s expression froze, and he gave an awkward laugh. Before he could respond, the trees in the valley suddenly shook violently.
The dense forest swayed as if a host of awakened giants were stretching and clawing.
Among the swaying trees, emerald lights scattered and gathered in the sky, forming what looked like a river of stars made of dancing fireflies.
Eventually, these lights coalesced into the phantom of a towering tree.
The tree’s branches and leaves spread outward in cascading layers like clouds, covering the entire valley beneath its canopy.
From the giant tree’s phantom, a beam of green light fell and condensed into an old man with green hair, green beard, and green eyebrows, leaning on a cane entwined with vines.
“Protector Qingmu!”
The ape, the red bird, and the two seductive women all saluted in unison.
The old man, his whole body radiant with green light, nodded slightly, his voice both aged and gentle:
“Elder Yeji is inside?”
Hongying quickly replied,
“We’ve been waiting for you. Elder Yeji had an accident while investigating Nanfa Temple, the situation is critical.”
He then relayed what the two female Yao had said.
A power that cannot be extracted… Protector Qingmu’s heart sank, and he said,
“Take me inside to have a look.”
The female Yao on the left performed a graceful salute: “Please, Protectors, come inside!”
The three Protectors followed her into the cave. The passageway was spacious, with torches set in the stone walls. Every twenty paces there was a beautiful woman standing in waiting.
As expected of the Fox clan, each one is an outstanding beauty… thought Hongying, admiring the Yao’s stunning looks.
“As expected of the Fox clan, every one of them is a true beauty.” Protector White Ape said in a deep voice.
Hongying’s expression froze and he laughed,
“Protector Yuan, you truly say what’s on your mind.”
The white ape glanced at him, “I was speaking your inner thoughts.”
“…”
After traversing the passage more than a hundred feet deep, they emerged into a vast stone chamber. The floor was covered with animal hides, with round tables and stools, screens, potted plants, and other furnishings, resembling a woman’s boudoir.
The most striking thing was a large bed draped with fine curtains, exquisitely made and carved with lifelike foxes.
A female Yao standing by the bed immediately drew aside the curtain, anxiously urging,
“Protector Qingmu, please, do take a look.”
Protector Qingmu was the master healer of the Wanyao Kingdom, skilled at alchemy and cultivating herbs. When he had devoted himself to healing, the arcanist system had not even appeared.
On the bed lay a graceful woman, sleeping with no sign of waking.
She had a sharp, delicate face, long straight brows, and exquisitely enchanting features. Yet now, her alluring, seductive face was bloodless and pale, her brows faintly furrowed in sleep, as if suffering great pain.
Protector Qingmu approached the bed, reached into his light robe, grasped the woman’s snowy wrist and checked her pulse, transferring a soft green energy into her.
Pop~
A golden light leapt from Yeji’s body, knocking Protector Qingmu back. His body rapidly disintegrated into green motes of light.
Moments later, the motes of green light reformed into the old man’s body.
“The Executioner Phala!”
Protector Qingmu’s expression was grave.
“What?”
The bird Yao Hongying’s face changed and he exclaimed in shock. Now he finally understood the cause of the “irremovable” power that was “continuously eroding her vitality”.
As a new generation protector of the Wanyao Kingdom, he had not experienced the war between Buddha and Yao in days gone by, but he had fought in the Battle of Shanhai Pass twenty years prior.
The Executioner Phala had the most offensive power of the three Arhat phala, said to be the most ruthless technique beneath Bodhisattva level in the entire Buddhist sect.
Its greatest trait, never letting go until death!
“There is nothing even I can do.”
Protector Qingmu shook his head. “Only the Princess can handle this.”
The power of The Executioner Phala could not be cured with medicine or sorcery, only a power of equal standing could counter it.
“But the Princess has gone overseas and is no longer in Jiuzhou… The only Living Arhat with The Executioner Phala in the Buddhist Sect is Du’e. Why has he come to the Southern Marches? Has the dispute between Greater and Lesser Vehicle Buddhism been resolved?”
Hongying’s face soured. “If the Princess cannot make it back in time, what will become of Elder Yeji?”
No one answered for a while. The white ape and Qingmu both wore sombre expressions.
Qingmu spoke in a low voice,
“She only has two days left. In two days, the power of The Executioner Phala will destroy her body and soul.”
At that moment a soft murmur sounded as the beauty on the bed was roused by all the commotion, and slowly opened her eyes.
A pair of enchanting, fox-like eyes.
“Elder Yeji.”
The others gathered round.
Yeji’s gaze swept across the group. Her voice was weak, yet calm:
“You’re all here…”
Elder Qingmu nodded and asked gravely, “Elder Yeji, was it Arhat Du’e who wounded you?”
Yeji gently shook her head. “It was al-Asura.”
Al-Asura? The two young Protectors, White Ape and Hongying, exchanged glances, both seeing confusion in the other’s eyes.
It was a name neither had heard before.
Elder Qingmu, who had lived for countless years, suddenly changed colour:
“Al-Asura, the young son of the Asura King? Did he not perish long ago?”
Yeji looked equally puzzled, unable to reply.
Hongying asked, “Protector Qingmu, who is al-Asura?”
Elder Qingmu’s expression shifted several times before he slowly spoke:
“Al-Asura is a title, a title that only the strongest warriors of the Asura clan may bear.
“The previous al-Asura was the Asura King himself. After the Asura King was nailed beneath Mount Ananda by the Buddha with the Demon-Sealing Nails and died, his youngest son became the next al-Asura.
“He witnessed his father and elder brother die tragically for the sake of their race, and took the lead in converting to Buddhism, eventually becoming an Arhat.
“He was incredibly powerful, in those days, deemed number one in the Buddhist sect below the Bodhisattva.
“Al-Asura himself was already a mighty warrior. After joining the Buddhist sect, he diligently cultivated the Vajra techniques and forged a diamond body. Later, having failed to cultivate the Vajra Dharma Aspect, he devoted himself to the Zen Master path and attained The Executioner Phala.”
An Arhat state combined with the diamond body… Just hearing this, Protector Hongying could imagine how powerful and fearsome this al-Asura must have been.
Protector White Ape asked, “Did he die in the end?”
Elder Qingmu nodded,
“During the war between the Buddhists and the Yao back then, he was personally slain by her Highness.”
At this point, the green-bodied elder, glanced at Yeji and said,
“Who would have thought that he had not actually died? This is much trickier than the case with the Arhat Du’e. Whatever her Highness had planned will probably be difficult to continue.”
The previous Highness was the Queen of the Wwanyao Kingdom back then.
The next Highness was the current sovereign, the Princess.
Yeji looked at Hongying and said, “Protector Hongying, have you seen King Bear? Did you manage to ask him to come out of seclusion?”
As everyone looked over, Hongying gave a wry smile and shook her head,
“King Bear wants to sleep, he’s unwilling to trek across mountains and rivers. I couldn’t persuade him. In fact, I didn’t even dare get close to him…”
Another piece of news that only made things worse.
Protector Qingmu sighed. “For now, we must find a way to remove the power inside Elder Yeji’s body, saving her life is our first priority.”
Yeji propped herself up and said, “You all leave for now, I need to contact Her Highness.”
Protector Hongying and the others breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew from the cave.
Yeji lifted her light robe and dragged a wooden box out from under the bed. She took out a small bronze incense burner in the shape of a fox’s head, along with a stick of black incense.
She lit the black incense and placed it in the burner.
As wisps of smoke curled up, Yeji took a deep breath, inhaling the smoke through her nose.
A moment later, a powerful will awakened inside her body, clear light overflowed in her left eye, while her right eye remained as normal.
“The Executioner of Evil Phala…”
A charmingly seductive voice drifted from her red lips, “Who did you encounter?”
Yeji replied softly,
“Your Highness, I encountered al-Asura at Nanfa Temple. He has not perished after all.
“Last night I snuck into Nanfa Temple to investigate the formation’s location, to make a final confirmation, and I saw al-Asura outside the formation.
“I was very far from him at the time, but with just a cold snort, he injured me. If not for my skilled escape techniques, I probably wouldn’t have made it back.”
The Nine-tailed Celestial Fox was silent for a moment, then tutted,
“So mother didn’t kill him back then? I see, it was Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, controlling the Great Samsara Dharma Aspect, who saved him and sent him to be reincarnated and cultivate anew. Only thus did he have a sliver of hope back then.
“Five hundred years later, he returns to his place.”
Yeji frowned anxiously,
“Please, Your Highness, save me.
“Our plan to unseal Shenshu is likely impossible now, unless you return yourself.”
The Nine-tailed Celestial Fox chuckled,
“I cannot save you. My will can suppress the Executioner Phala, but you cannot endure my will possessing your body for long. After two days, you will certainly die.
“As for our plan, well, the traitors of Yunzhou have already declared themselves Emperor, the struggle for legitimacy in the Central Plains is about to erupt, and Agaruka Bodhisattva will surely come forth. Meanwhile, the Buddhist sect has lost Vajra Dun’an, Vajra Dufan, and Arhat Duqing.
“Vaidurya Bodhisattva has been wounded by the Jianzheng, Samantabhadra and Duqing are both guarding Ananda, and at this time the Buddhist kingdom in the Southern Marches is empty. If we do not break the seal now, when will we?”
Yeji replied bitterly, “This humble servant’s death matters little. Only—only King Bear hasn’t come as agreed, and with our meagre abilities, even if we die trying, we cannot accomplish what Your Highness asked of us.”
The Nine-tailed Celestial Fox said mischievously,
“You don’t want to die. Right now, you still fear for your own life.”
Yeji’s expression changed a little.
The Celestial Fox continued, “If that lazy bear won’t come, then so be it. I’ve arranged another helper for you, who will arrive soon, just wait patiently. Serve him well, and you might yet be saved.”
Yeji asked warily, “Who?”
The Nine-tailed Celestial Fox said playfully, “You’ll know when the time comes. Tsk tsk, with such beauty, I’ve long since arranged for you to fetch a good price, just wait calmly.”
The clear light in Yeji’s left eye receded and the black incense went out.
She sat cross-legged at the table, remaining silent for a long while, her expression somewhat heavy as she carefully put away the incense burner and incense.
Then she instructed the Yao women standing outside the cave to summon the three Protectors.
When Hongying and the others returned, Yeji sat cross-legged on her bed and said coldly,
“Her Highness said that someone will come to help us soon. You all are to wait patiently.”
The three Protectors looked delighted. Hongying quickly asked,
“Who is it?”
Yeji’s expression grew colder, and she replied flatly, “I don’t know.”
Hmm, Elder Yeji doesn’t seem very happy… Hongying keenly noticed her change in attitude.
The White Ape glanced at her and said,
“Elder Yeji, Hongying is asking, why aren’t you in a good mood?”
Yeji frowned, looked at Hongying, and said with displeasure, “Busybody!”
”…”
The bird Yao opened its mouth, but was at a loss for words.
…
Inside the Stupa tower.
Baiji was leaning at the window of the third floor, her two little paws gripping the sill tightly, half her body hanging down.
She turned her head excitedly, “Down there is the edge of the Hundred Thousand Mountains!”
As she spoke, her back feet scratched at the wall several times, begging,
“Xu Qi’an, pick me up. I’m so tired…”
Xu Qi’an was always considerate, so he grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and picked her up, dangling her in midair.
“Not like this, not like this, it’s uncomfortable…”
Baiji flailed her limbs helplessly.
Xu Qi’an ignored the little fox’s protests and looked down at the landscape below.
For a moment, he suspected he had arrived in a primeval forest, the mountains stretched endlessly, dense woodlands covering almost all the ground below.
A vast network of rivers and streams interlaced the mountains like meridians.
These should be foothills, right? But it’s so huge, mountains everywhere, and all of it ancient forest…
The climate is pleasant, not too hot or cold. If the commonfolk of the Great Feng could flee here, they’d be spared from the scourge of cold disasters. Unfortunately, the Hundred Thousand Mountains of the Southern Marches lie too far from the borders of the Great Feng, and in this era, transport is underdeveloped, no refugees could possibly walk all the way here…
Xu Qi’an was filled with emotion and lamented, “So this is the Hundred Thousand Mountains, home of your southern Yao for generations?”
It truly was a blessed land, its abundance of resources unimaginable.
If the Great Feng could conquer this land, just the timber alone would be inexhaustible.
“Fu…”
Xu Qi’an glanced back at Mu Nanzhi, who was seeking Buddhist teachings from the tower spirit, the old monk, and lowered his voice:
“Hurry up, where is your big sister Yeji?”
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