The immortal is beside me

Chapter 101 One person here is equivalent to an army of thousands!

Ganzhou Branch of the Environmental Sanitation Bureau.

In front of the branch office gate, Commissioner Wu Yangchun fastened the belt of his combat uniform and hurried to the large square outside the bureau to gather.

At this time, thousands of specialists had gathered on the scene. Each of them had dabbled in cultivation, and each of them was equipped with the latest soul-breaking equipment developed by the Super Research Institute. They almost concentrated most of the manpower of the Ganzhou Branch.

Wu Yangchun squeezed into the team and saw that the commander on the field had not yet fully arrived, so he bumped his shoulder into his colleague next to him.

"What's going on? Why did the bureau suddenly enter a state of emergency?"

"I heard that something happened in the Buddhist community." The colleague answered in a low voice.

"Buddhism?" Wu Yangchun was stunned. "Weren't they just discussing the Dao with the Jiuli Sect in Liangzhou? I heard they even lost the battle."

Just a few hours ago, he was discussing this news with many colleagues in the Environmental Sanitation Bureau WeChat group. At that time, everyone in the group felt as if the Chinese national football team had entered the World Cup, and everyone was talking about it with relish.

They are not the leadership. Although they know rationally that the game between the major forces in the world of cultivation is closely related to the secular society, they do not have much sense of involvement emotionally. Watching the discussion is almost like watching the US election. The greatest sense of participation comes from the bets initiated in the group before the discussion. The Buddhist side bet on 10 to , and the Jiuli side bet on to . He bet on the former with a playful mentality and lost yuan.

"Discussion is discussion, strength is strength. Jiuli's victory in the discussion is impressive, but you don't think that means they are stronger than the entire Buddhist sect, do you?"

A colleague whispered, "I heard there's a long history of grievances between these two factions. Perhaps because they lost the debate, the Buddhist sect is furious and plans to send more people to overthrow the Jiuli. We were urgently summoned this time, perhaps to intervene."

"That one's a little hard to pull."

As they were joking around, the noise in the crowd suddenly died down.

All the commissioners stood still, watching a commander wearing epaulettes approaching slowly. He walked to the front of the team with his hands behind his back, holding a megaphone, and his powerful voice echoed throughout the crowd.

"Just now, the monitoring station suddenly received news that a strong spiritual power reaction suddenly began to appear within a radius of 100 miles, centered on Tianzhu, and the range is still expanding. The higher-ups believe that this is some kind of large-scale magic released by the Buddhist sect."

He surveyed the entire room, his eyes solemn. "This technique is extremely special. Wherever it touches, time and space are distorted to a certain extent, and it can even affect people's souls. We've already sent a letter to the Buddhist sect to inquire, but have received no response."

"It has been determined that the Buddhist sect has violated the provisions of the Monk Management Law by releasing illegal magic without authorization. I have called you all here today to take action. If the situation escalates further, it is not ruled out that it will develop into..."

He looked around the whole place and uttered two words: "Destroy Buddhism."

The two words were so resounding that everyone in the audience was speechless.

The word "destroy Buddhism" has appeared several times in the history of the Central Plains, but when it appeared in this scene, everyone still couldn't help but shudder.

Ganzhou is currently the region with the strongest Buddhist influence within China. As a local unit, they are the group that deals most with Buddhism among the many branches, and naturally they are well aware of the profound heritage of Buddhism.

Thousands of years of development history, a network of influence spread across the world, and the heritage left by the Buddha. All of these together make up the huge monster that is Buddhism, whose strength is by no means comparable to that of ordinary sects.

Throughout history, any dynasty that was able to carry out the policy of destroying Buddhism had to obtain the support of the strongest immortal sect in the Central Plains cultivation world at that time, and could only achieve this by devoting all their efforts.

The commander's words proved that in today's extraordinary system, countless forces were being mobilized, and countless undercurrents were rolling beneath the seemingly calm surface.

But why is this happening?

Countless questions arose in everyone's mind, but the current situation was an emergency and no unnecessary doubts could be raised.

Under the coordination of the commander, the people on the field were divided into two groups. One group went to the heart of Tianzhu to investigate the situation of Buddhism, and the other group took soul-destroying equipment and went to various areas of Ganzhou to deal with the chaos caused by "magic".

Wu Yangchun was assigned to the second group. He and his colleagues boarded the bureau's helicopter. Just over ten minutes later, they arrived at the target location of this mission.

".Mogao Grottoes."

After jumping down from the helicopter's ladder, Wu Yangchun looked up at the rocky mountain in front of him and muttered, "How could someone actually cast a spell in this place?"

The Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, a Buddhist holy site that houses countless Buddhist scriptures, is also a famous tourist attraction.

The scenic area was deserted at this time, with a large sign at the entrance proclaiming "Currently Closed." Looking inside, a faint golden light seemed to be rolling in the sky, and wherever it passed, the space seemed to ripple like flowing water.

"According to intelligence, Buddhist magic has caused a distortion in time and space near the Mogao Grottoes, and nine tourists have become lost. Our mission is to extract them and, at the same time, use spirit-destroying equipment to eliminate the Buddhist spiritual energy in this area."

The team leader looked around and said, "Any further questions? If not, take precautions, guard the spirit platform, and follow me in."

Tactical boots stepped on the ground together, and Wu Yangchun followed closely behind the crowd and jogged straight into the Mogao Grottoes.

As soon as I stepped in, a strange feeling entered my mind. My brain seemed to be washed by warm running water, which made my tense mood relax unconsciously. I felt drowsy as if I was about to fall asleep.

Is this the effect of Buddhism?
Wu Yangchun reacted and quickly adjusted his breathing, concentrating his spiritual power on defending the spiritual platform.

While doing all this, his eyes were still staring at the surroundings. In a trance, the modern signboards and scenic area shops seemed to have disappeared, replaced by the natural dangers of huge peaks and the yellow sand of the desert. A stone tablet was half buried in the loess, with the two words "Anxi" faintly visible.

"Anxi." A low murmur came from beside him. Wu Yangchun turned around and saw his colleague whispering with his eyes fixed on the matter, obviously seeing the same thing as him.

"Don't be fooled. This is a time-space distortion phenomenon," the leader whispered. "We don't yet understand the principles of this Buddhist teaching, but it seems we'll be recreating the historical scene here. Follow closely and don't get lost in it."

This statement was merely speculation. In reality, if the Cang Tian Sect members who were communicating with Old Monk Hongyuan were present, they would have noticed that the "time and space distortion" before them was very similar to the technique used by Hongyuan in the Pure Land.

It's not about distortion and loss of control, but about using the media to reproduce the cause and effect of many years ago.

The leading captain suddenly raised his hand and gestured "stop," halting the movement of those behind him. Looking in the direction he was heading, several figures could be seen wandering in the distorted space.

Are these the tourists who need to be rescued?
This thought flashed through Wu Yangchun's mind, because the next moment after this thought came to his mind, the figures turned their heads.

They stood in the illusory desert, wearing the leather blankets and felt coats unique to the plateau people, holding bows and arrows, clearly not the style of modern people. Looking closely, a faint swastika pattern flickered on their foreheads, a sign of receiving the Buddha's favor.

Is this also a historical illusion?
Everyone immediately had a guess. Over 1,200 years ago, the Ganzhou region was once ruled by the Tubo Kingdom, a nation that revered Buddhism. The people before them, wearing the felt furs unique to the plateau peoples and bearing the swastika, were likely former Tubo people, or perhaps even monks.

While I was thinking about it, the projection suddenly changed.

The Tibetan monks suddenly raised their heads and chattered in a language they couldn't understand. As they spoke, a giant swastika illuminated beneath their feet, and a golden lotus blossomed in the center. For a moment, golden light filled the sky, and the desert beneath them stirred up dust.

The unreal flying sand and rocks passed by their eyes. Even though they knew it was just a projection, the commissioners still couldn't help but tense up.

As extraordinary people, they could see that the cultivation base of these Tibetan monks was definitely not low, and the weakest among them must have reached the Golden Core stage. If they were not phantoms but real people, this wave of attacks alone would have wiped out half of the team in front of them.

Why did they suddenly attack?
Before they could figure out the answer to this question, they saw the sky suddenly brighten and a red-gold flame descended from the sky, instantly igniting the figures of those people.

In just a few breaths, the swastika seal went out and the golden lotus withered. By the time everyone reacted, the figures in front of them had disappeared. Only a few piles of black ashes were left on the ground, buried by the flying yellow sand.

The breathing sounds around suddenly stopped for a moment, and everyone raised their heads at the same time and looked towards the source of the fire.

In the sky filled with yellow sand, a man in a red Taoist robe was floating there. The wind blew against his face, pulling open his robe, revealing a special mark inside.

"Is this the Jiuli Sect?" Someone recognized the symbol. "Is it the Jiuli symbol? Is he from the Jiuli people from a thousand years ago?"

This was a remarkable discovery. The team of specialists immediately perked up.

I hadn't expected to see historical scenes related to the Jiuli Sect here, and it looked like precious historical materials from a thousand years ago. Although it was an unexpected find, its value was immeasurable.

"Don't be distracted, or you might get lost in the distorted space and time. Don't forget we're here to find someone."

The captain issued a timely warning. But in reality, this wasn't just a reminder to the team, it was also a reminder to himself. With one strike, he instantly killed the Tibetan monks, annihilating them before they could even offer any resistance. In reality, such a powerful being would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and even as a projection, his power remained undiminished.

As the voice faded, the surrounding scene changed again. The red shadow in the sky lowered its altitude and slowly flew towards the depths of the desert, as if looking for something.

"Focus, focus on finding that person," the captain kept reminding, trying his best to suppress the throbbing in his heart. His eyes swept across the desert in front of him. While searching with all his might, he quietly watched the red shadow and took in everything he saw.

Endless yellow sand hits your face, and all you see is the desolate desert.

Zhou Wuqing turned his eyes and his gaze passed over the stone tablet with the word "Anxi" written on it at his feet.

This is a boundary marker, proving that he has indeed crossed the Hexi Corridor and entered the Anxi territory.

Now this place has been occupied by the Tibetan forces. He encountered many Tibetan monks along the way, but none of them could withstand more than two blows from him, so it did not affect his speed much.

He expanded his spiritual sense to the maximum, sweeping across the yellow sand of the desert in front of him. The scene of thousands of miles entered his sea of ​​consciousness, but he still could not find the breath of the Central Plains cultivator.

Perhaps, as previously speculated, eighty years had passed, and the four Anxi clans that had originally garrisoned this place had long since ceased to exist. He knew this speculation was likely correct, but he didn't want to retreat just yet.

The prosperous Chang'an has become a thing of the past, but countless people are trying to preserve the once glorious Tang Dynasty, and he is one of them.

None of them want to give up.

While concentrating, he suddenly opened his eyes, and a special breath appeared in his consciousness.

It seemed to be a large formation, with a stone mountain as its center. It covered a large area, including most of the valley.

The formation looked depleted, and the spiritual energy contained within it was already very weak. Even so, he still recognized it as a mountain protection formation unique to the Central Plains, a common method used by the Jiuli Immortal Alliance to build defenses in various places.

Is it possible?
He stepped on the wind and accelerated again. In a moment, he had flown to the place where the spiritual power was.

It was indeed a mountain protection formation, and its condition was just as he had detected. The spiritual power had become extremely weak, like a candle in the wind, which seemed to be blown out by the wind and sand at any time, but it never went out.

There is a large formation in the Central Plains, but why can't we see any cultivators in it?
He concentrated his consciousness and explored carefully. When his mind and soul were working to the limit, he could barely detect the human breath contained in the formation.

There were about hundreds of auras, thinner than the formation itself, mixed in the spiritual power of the formation like ink dripping into the sea. Such weak spiritual power could actually cover up their auras.

Zhou Wuqing lowered his body, landed on the edge of the mountain protection formation, and looked up.

Then he saw a series of sculptures.

A series of human-shaped sculptures.

They stood at the centers of the formation, maintaining a cross-legged posture. The desert wind swept around them, covering them with layers of yellow sand and blurring the facial features of the "sculptures".

If the large formation under his seat was not still running and drawing spiritual power from the "sculptures", even Zhou Wuqing would almost think that these were just some formation stones used to suppress the formation.

How long had they sat there in this position? Months? Years?
It didn't matter anymore. He could see that these were the living dead, their spiritual energy drained away.

They were using their bodies as the center of the formation, gathering all their spiritual power in one place to barely maintain the mountain protection formation. This formation was draining their lives and also maintaining their last bit of life.

As long as the troops are there, the formation will be there. If the formation is broken, the troops will die.

He took a step forward, crossing the endless yellow sand step by step, until he reached the side of the formation. A "sculpture" next to him suddenly moved, and layers of yellow sand fell from its face, revealing a grayish-white eye.

"Your Excellency"

The "sculpture" spoke tremblingly: "Your Excellency Wuqing, is that you?"

Zhou Wuqing looked into the distracted eyes and slowly squatted down to let him see his appearance clearly.

"it's me."

This action was like thunder, causing the figure in the yellow sand to tremble. The yellow sand flowed down from his body, and the tattered Taoist robe inside was printed with the logo of the Jiuli Immortal Alliance.

Judging from the pattern on his Taoist robe, this is one of the leaders of the Four Anxi Sects, and should also be the one with the highest cultivation level among them.

“Haha. Hahaha.”

The Immortal Alliance monk opened his mouth and laughed, his face twitching as if he was about to cry, but his eyes were already dry and he could no longer shed tears.

"You are here, my lord, you are here"

He said with a mixture of tears and laughter, "They all said that no one from the Central Plains would come to find us. But I didn't believe it. I never believed it. I always believed that you would come."

"Your Majesty, we have never betrayed the Central Plains."

Zhou Wuqing lowered his eyes and looked at the formation pattern under his seat.

Eighty years. Ever since the Hexi Corridor was severed, Anxi had lost contact with the Central Plains. Those living on this isolated island had no idea what was happening in the Central Plains, or even if the Immortal Alliance still existed. Yet, they continued to fulfill their duties and defend Anxi.

When the laughter and crying subsided, Zhou Wuqing asked in a low voice, "Why did you risk your lives to support the battle?"

“We have no other options.”

The Immortal Alliance cultivator murmured, "Ever since Tubo occupied Anxi, the people of the Central Plains have been enslaved by them. We lost men from three sects before we saved the people of the Central Plains from them. Tubo is always trying to capture that city, and the people in that city haven't given up their resistance yet. We have to keep the city."

"But we really have no other options. We've used up all our spiritual artifacts, mined all our spiritual stones, and can't even find any spiritual herbs. We can't find anything else to use, so this is the only way."

Zhou Wuqing listened to him and released his spiritual sense to explore inside. There was indeed an isolated city less than ten miles away from the formation. Judging from the aura, there were indeed at least tens of thousands of mortals inside.

The voice in his ear grew fainter, as if it had exhausted all his strength. His head slowly drooped, and the words he spoke became unclear.

"Your Majesty, we are too tired. We really can't hold on any longer."

His lips trembled as he asked, "Can you, with your boundless magical powers, bring the people of that city home for us?"

Zhou Wuqing squatted there quietly, gazing at the sculptures in the formation. After a while, he suddenly raised his hand and touched them. Suddenly, a strong wind blew, wiping away the yellow sand on the sculptures, revealing their true appearance.

"Your mission has been accomplished."

He spoke softly, slowly stood up and looked towards the lonely city in the distance.

"I'll walk the rest of the way for you."

The figure behind him twitched his lips, but it seemed that he no longer had the strength to smile. He just tried to raise his eyes, and stared at the figure in red in front of him with his last glance.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty," the muttered words were blown away by the wind, "We no longer have anyone to protect you."

"Why do we need horses?"

The endless wind and sand blew his red robe, he raised his hand and a longbow appeared in his palm.

"I am here alone, and I am like an army of thousands!"

(End of this chapter)