The Emperor Reigns Them All-Chapter 398 - The Scheme of the White Deer Sect (2)
Chapter 398 The Scheme of the White Deer Sect (2)
As his eyes flickered, Li Ye was no longer in a trance.
The sky was a vast expanse of blue. Li Ye stopped frowning. The sharp light that penetrated into his eyes, turned into two pools of clear water.
At the empty altar, Chu Nanhuai and Li Xian stood before him. Feihong Bodhisattva was sitting on the white jade railing, and she tilted her head to look at the distant sky. Her pure white sleeves fluttered, along with her black hair in the wind. No one knew what was on her mind.
Several arhats stood behind her, secretly protecting her, and suddenly confronted the crowd across the air.
The Son of God, the Holy Child, Nangong Diyi, Su Emei, and the others surrounded Li Ye and listened intently. The demon rested in front of the altar. The breeze was gentle and there was nothing unusual in the field.
Li Ye looked at Chu Nanhuai, who was dressed in a well-worn robe, and said, “So I ask again, what is the layout of White Deer Sect?”
He said this in a harsh tone filled with hidden anger at being deceived.
Chu Nanhuai had a bitter look on his face and sighed helplessly. He did not answer immediately, but signaled to everyone to sit down.
When the crowds sat around in a circle, Chu Nanhuai looked at Li Ye and said slowly, “Your Highness, do you have any doubts about what I did? Wind damages the flourishing trees in the forest. Now, you are more powerful than those feudal princes. If there is any plan for an attack from a sect, they will likely be targeted at you. In addition, the Buddha Realm and the Immortal Court have a deep hatred for you, so they will never stop. ”
Li Ye nodded lightly, “That’s true.”
Chu Nanhuai managed to curb his usual disrespectful manner, and said severely to Li Ye, “Your Highness, I’d like to ask you some questions. Without the Battle of Hedong, will you be able to compete with Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Militarism? How difficult is it to be concerned only for yourself? Without the will to help the world, will you join the world’s great struggles? Since you decided to do something in these troubled times and intend to achieve great accomplishments, Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Militarism, which are part of the world’s great struggle, are all enemies, and you will meet them sooner or later. How can we avoid fighting each other?
“If you want to seek stability and survival, you should not squash the Huang Chao Uprising, achieve great accomplishments, and establish your prestige in front of others. Since you want to collect artifacts, you must develop and grow your own power. Sooner or later, you’ll become the most influential person in the world. Only in this way can you remove the confusion in the world and achieve great achievements! How can those who want to gain great achievements be afraid of being coveted by others? How can they accomplish great achievements without sweeping them away?”
Hearing that, Li Ye was stunned for a moment. Then, he fell silent, and was lost in thought.
“Without the courage to be the enemy of the world, without preparation for being the enemy of the world, you are not qualified to participate in the disputes of the chaotic world, and you are not eligible to be the ultimate victor!
Chu Nanhuai whispered, “While the feudal princes of all parties envy the powerful people, the heroes from all sides will come to offer their services. They will depend on each other for the rise and fall. One either forges ahead or gradually falls behind.”
Li Ye could not refute this statement and suddenly cupped his hands. “I’m enlightened.”
Chu Nanhuai waved his hand to signal that there was no harm done, and then said, “Your Highness, since you know the layout of the White Deer Cave, why not? In fact, even if you did not ask, I also think it is time to tell you everything after the battle ended. You’re my master, and I’m your subordinate. I will never conceal the various plans from you. ”
Li Ye said expectantly, “I would like to hear the details.”
Everyone was curious and could not wait to know, including Li Xian. Red Boy was already scratching his head, and wanted to cut open Chu Nanhuai’s head in his impatience.
Chu Nanhuai said evenly, “Your Highness, without my help, you might have already failed, whether it is the battle of Fengqi Mountain, or the battle of Hedong. Therefore, you think that White Deer Cave and I are too… weird? ”
Li Ye said frankly, “It’s not weird, but it’s too strong.”
Chu Nanhuai said with a smile, “If you knew the origin of White Deer Sect, you would not think so.”
Li Ye looked at Li Xian curiously and thought. “What is the origin of White Deer Sect? Is it possible that he does not know? Even if he knows, what role did he play in this series of events?”
Facing Li Ye’s eyes, Li Xian said, “The White Deer Cave originated from Guiguzi, so the disciples are good at conquering and conspiracy, and they also learned the best from every school.”
Li Ye nodded slightly.
But in fact, he was not satisfied with this explanation. There were only seven disciples from each generation in the White Deer Sect. They were weak. If they wanted to stir up a big commotion and fight against the Taoist sect, the Immortal Court would not turn a blind eye.
For thousands of years, the White Deer Sect had stayed clear of troubled times, but the Immortal Court seemed to have not done anything to them.
Chu Nanhuai said, “Your Highness, you don’t need to look among my junior fellow apprentices. Only the head of each generation knows the secret. This secret is no big deal. You have mentioned it before – We do have people in the Immortal Court. ”
Li Ye felt relieved.
This explanation was reasonable. Instead of saying that the White Deer Sect had people in the Immortal Court, it was better to say that the White Deer Sect was originally a fairy agent in the secular world, which was supported by some fairies of the Immortal Court.
Su Emei had mentioned more than once before, that the Immortal Court was not a monolith, but it also had factional disputes. After all, that was due to everyone having a different philosophy. Just as politicians had different political views, there was also political contention. So too were the internal sections of the Immortal Court.
Obviously, the faction of Guanghan Fairy and God of Giant Spirit were different from the mainstream idea of the Immortal Court – that is, they were not in a group with the Immortal Emperor. Otherwise, they would not have descended to the world to help Li Ye, the Immortal Emperor’s enemy.
The fact was that the Quanzhen Temple, which was established by Wei Xiaozhuang at Li Ye’s behest, was indeed completely different from the Penglai Taoist sect. The Penglai Taoist sect had many worshippers. It regarded itself as the immortal’s sect and stood high above the masses. The Quanzhen Temple went deep into the countryside, helping people to eliminate disasters and heal diseases.
Under the gazes of curious eyes, Chu Nanhuai continued, “Do you still remember the battle where King Wu conquered King Zhou?
No one could remember this. Red Boy said impatiently, “Why are you bringing up something that happened so long ago? Were you alive at that time and participated in that war?”
Chu Nanhuai smiled, “Holy-child King, you’re half right. I did not participate personally, but the leader and other disciples did.
“Leader?” Li Ye was stunned. With a flash of inspiration, he suddenly thought, “Isn’t the leader called Tongtian?”
Chu Nanhuai gave a big smile, “Your Highness, you have wide knowledge and a retentive powerful memory. This is indeed true.”
However, the smile on his face soon disappeared and was replaced with a long sigh, “After the leader lost the war, he changed his name to “Taoist Dust.” It means that the world is full of filth. In the final analysis, he scolded the Emperor and his subordinates for their selfishness. They did not consider the common people and governed the world in utter disorder. They do not deserve to be called immortals!”
Li Ye opened his mouth, but he was speechless.
According to the saying on earth, King Wu’s conquest over King Zhou, also known as “the Investiture of the Gods,” was a battle between Jie Denomination and Chan Denomination. As the head of the Jie Denomination, Sect Leader Tongtian suffered a defeat. The reason was that he went against the general trend and helped King Zhou, who was profligate and devoid of principles.
It was clear that King Wu’s conquest over King Zhou from Chu Nanhuai’s statement was quite different from the version that Li Zhi was familiar with. However, this was nothing to be surprised at. Li Ye was long used to the differences between the human world and the immortal one.
When Li Ye’s mind was in a whirl, Chu Nanhuai continued, “At that time, King Zhou of Shang had rare gifts and a bold strategy, and he refused to accept the Immortal Court’s rule over the human world. After he succeeded in taking over the reign, he wanted to recreate the Yellow Emperor’s Government. He intended to make a clean break with the Immortal Court, let people in the world be their own masters, stop the incense offerings of all living beings to the Immortal Court, and reshape the order of the mortal world.
“For this reason, King Zhou of Shang demolished the statues, destroyed the Taoist temple, and often spoke openly and rebelliously against the Immortal Court. After hearing that, the Immortal Emperor was very angry. He sent the immortal officials to descend to the world, holding the “oracle” to reproach King Zhou, and ordered him to immediately “return from his lost way.” King Zhou would not obey, tore up the “oracle” in public in the court, and drove away the immortal officials. Afterwards, King Zhou began beheading those ministers who were dedicated to serve the Immortal Court. The Immortal Court was enraged, so it ordered King Wen of Zhou to draw the main forces together, unite the feudal princes, and launched an attack against the Shang Dynasty.
“The Sect Leader did not always agree with the Immortal Emperor, so he called on his disciples to help King Zhou and fight against the Immortal Court. This was King Wu’s victory over King Zhou. The final result is known to everyone. The Sect Leader was defeated and was imprisoned, and his disciples were seriously injured.”
When Chu Nanhuai related these past events, Red Baby, You Daxiao and all the others listened with pleasure, and had no doubts at all. Obviously, they all thought he was telling the truth.
Seeing this, Li Ye had to keep listening.
The version of King Wu’s conquest over King Zhou that Li Ye knew before the transmigration was that, because King Zhou was profligate and devoid of principles, people rose in a mass to attack him. However, the historical records were written by the victors because the winner takes it all. The truth about history was not significant.
Li Ye thought casually. After all, it was not the earth, so the version of the story was likely to be different.
According to Chu Nanhuai’s statements, the Sect Leader Tongtian in this world seemed to be different from that on the earth. He was an immortal in the Immortal Court, who did not agree with the Immortal Emperor’s politics.
Chu Nanhuai said, “After the Sect Leader was imprisoned, his sect declined, and he could only choose to live in seclusion. At the end of the Zhou Dynasty, the feudal princes rose and fought against each other. The royal majesty did not exist, and the world fell into chaos again. So, all schools of thought contended for attention and challenged the Immortal Court’s government. It was the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Guiguzi, a wise man of our sect, descended to the world and founded a sect. He accepted disciples to perpetuate the sect and participate in the world war. It was the origin of the White Deer Sect.”
By this point, things were generally clear.
Chu Nanhuai looked at Li Ye, “In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there was no confrontation among Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Militarism, but a contention of a hundred schools of thought. The world was in a tumult, so our sect could get on in the world. We only accepted seven disciples in every generation, so that the Immortal Court would not fear that we were too powerful.”
“It’s difficult for the seven people to compete for the world. Naturally, they could not stick to one subject. Since its establishment, the White Deer Sect has been known for its maneuvers and conspiracy skills, with a hundred schools of thought. Therefore, the members of the White Deer Sect always make a great coup!
After speaking, Chu Nanhuai pointed Li Xian out to everyone. He meant to show that Li Xian was a model disciple of the White Deer Sect.
His story made the Son of God, Holy Child, and others, spellbound. They enjoyed themselves to the fullest, their faces showing their satisfied expressions.
…
After leaving the altar, all the demons went to rest. Li Ye ‘took over’ Li Keyong’s mansion. Except for Su Emei and Nangong Diyi, his companions included Li Xian and others.
After a big battle, Su Emei and others went to rest and practice. Li Ye sat silently in the room for a while and felt a little uncomfortable, so he went to look for Li Xian.
“What happened at the Battle of Bagong Mountain that year?” Li Ye asked Li Xian directly, after he sat down.
At the altar, before Chu Nanhuai answered his question, he had figured out about the layout of the White Deer Sect, in his mind. In his imagination, that was another story. In that story, Li Ye was the target set by the White Deer Sect, to attract all enemies.
Li Ye believed that his reasoning was the truth. However, there were still many doubts about it. So, after he came to his senses, he did not deal with Chu Nanhuai.
The biggest doubt was, in fact, the biggest argument for Li Ye’s conclusion: the Battle of Fengqi Mountain and the Battle of Hedong. In these two battles, the White Deer Sect helped Li Ye to defeat powerful enemies and achieve considerable growth, and also attracted hatred from the Immortal Court and Land Buddhism.
These two battles were perilous. Li Ye was able to become the final winner, partly because of Chu Nanhuai’s help. More importantly, his strength was beyond common belief.
There were many variables that Chu Nanhuai could not predict. For example, Li Ye was able to kill so many experts from the King Kong Realms in Fengqi Mountain. He could cooperate with Feihong Bodhisattva in the secret region, and eventually “convert the enemy into a friend.”
In other words, Chu Nanhuai had no way of knowing in advance whether Li Ye would win. The reason why he won was that all parties were risking their lives. In this case, it was impossible to predict whether Li Ye would become a target
Actually, it was highly unlikely.
If the plan of the White Deer Sect was to pin their hopes on an event with such a small probability, the White Deer Sect would not be “the well-known master’s sect”.
On the contrary, Chu Nanhuai’s behavior could not be explained, unless the White Deer Sect sincerely assisted Li Ye and determined to co-exist with him. Even so, it would be not necessarily successful.
Things that were not necessarily successful could not be used as a prerequisite, but as a goal.
The only doubt left in Li Ye’s mind was how Li Xian suffered from his own scheme in the Battle of Bagong Mountain.
Li Xian’s answer was extremely short, “Because of the imperial order.”
Li Ye was stupefied.
This answer was beyond his expectation. It could not be simpler, but it was so true.
“When the battle was about to be won, the eunuch Liu Xingshen brought his majesty’s order. He ordered me to bring back Pang Xun’s head in any case.” Li Xian added.
Li Ye became silent.
For Li Xian, who devoted his life to assisting Tang Dynasty, the emperor’s will could not be violated.
It also explained how Li Xian managed to survive and reach the Spiritual Master Realm. After returning to Chang’an, he was willing to help Li Ye “plot treason” and assist Li Yan to ascend the throne.
Realizing this, Li Ye could only shake his head with a bitter smile. He should have thought that with Li Xian’s ability and wisdom, if Chu Nanhuai had led him to the Bakung Mountain, he would not have been unaware, and he would not have got along with Chu Nanhuai until now.
Li Xian suddenly asked Li Ye, “What do you think of the layout of the White Deer Sect?”
