Looking back, it was all like a fairyland.

While it felt a bit strange, it wasn't a major problem. The two nations had been fighting each other for years, and aside from some financial strain, they'd generally been able to live and work in peace. This oddity wasn't anything to worry about.

As the waiter brought out the dishes, Cao Chen casually asked, "Are there so many Buddhists here?"

Upon hearing this question, the waiter thought for a moment and replied, "Sir, you may not know this, but while there are many believers, it's not as many as you might imagine. Most people worship a Buddha statue simply to find peace of mind."

"Feeling at ease?" Several people wondered.

"Yes, the Four Buddha Temple is the state religion, and His Majesty often goes there to worship. So gradually, the court officials also adopted this habit, and it spread. It's said that the Four Buddha Temple is very efficacious; as long as you have a Buddha statue in your home, even without genuine faith, it can protect you and bring you peace and good fortune. So whether you believe or not, there's nothing wrong with having a clay or wooden Buddha statue; most people just want peace of mind."

Su Mu and the others nodded. It's probably because the emperor believed in this, so the ministers, wanting to please him, naturally followed suit, creating a trend. What the nobility liked, the common people eagerly imitated, and this developed into something akin to missionary work.

Although this development seems rapid, it is much more difficult than developing ordinary people. After all, the emperor is not a fool. Why should he trust you if you don't have real ability? From this point of view, this Four Buddhas Temple is really something.

After the waiter finished speaking, Cao Chen gave him some silver as a reward and left happily.

"This Buddha light is so rich and pure, it doesn't seem like anything evil." The old goat noticed Cao Chen's strange expression and remarked.

"At least on the surface, this is orthodox," Cao Chen replied.

The mirage dragon glanced at it and then fell silent. The term "surface" was used well, but temples so deeply entangled with secular dynasties, no matter how extraordinary, were never truly pure; they must have ulterior motives. Otherwise, they wouldn't have gone so far.

A state religion isn't that simple; it's deeply bound to a nation. It thrives when the nation prospers; it perishes when the nation fails, and all suffer together. Its current glory could vanish in a century. Therefore, ordinary immortal sects and spiritual abodes wouldn't be so deeply bound to a nation. Furthermore, according to the waiter, this Four Buddhas Temple only recently emerged and doesn't have much connection to this country, which is even more puzzling.

This was also the reason for Cao Chen's strange expression. However, he didn't dwell on it too much. These matters didn't matter to them. They were just a group of passers-by, a brief encounter. When Xuan Mo returned, they would leave. If this were Yan State, perhaps they would intervene or investigate. But this was not the case. It was just an unfamiliar dynasty, so they wouldn't meddle in other people's affairs.

Cao Chen's expression also eased a little. These were the choices of this country, and they had no need to interfere.

After enjoying their meal and drinks, the group quickly moved on from the minor incident and began discussing Xuan Mo. Xuan Mo had been fusing with the water veins for nearly several years, and it was now nearing completion. Once fully integrated, his strength would surge, and he would truly become the "Dragon King," ruling over the aquatic tribes of his domain.

"Speaking of which, Xuanmo really is lucky."

"What incredible luck! How many creatures in this world have such an opportunity? Born with authority and divinity, then receiving a painting of profound meaning tailor-made for him by Shen Qiu, later becoming a dragon from the essence of a true dragon, and finally merging with the water veins nurtured within the painting, thus becoming the Dragon King who rules over a vast aquatic realm. And all this happened in just a hundred years!"

The old goat sighed. Speaking of resources, even he couldn't help but marvel at Xuan Mo's incredible luck. In less than a hundred years, he'd already covered the same distance that other creatures would have covered in hundreds or even thousands of years. As someone who had watched him all along, the old goat sighed deeply.

The Mirage Dragon sighed. His first encounter with Su Mu was in the desert, preparing for Xuan Mo's transformation. Although he and Xuan Mo didn't have many interactions, their fate was deep. Without Xuan Mo, he wouldn't have met Su Mu. And without meeting Su Mu, he wouldn't have had the subsequent series of opportunities; perhaps he would still be huddled in the white jade palace in the desert, waiting for the world to recover, and then continuing to drift outside the war between the primordial gods and the beings of this era, just like in ancient times.

It wasn't like the current situation, where he had restored his authority in the Ghost Market of the Netherworld and snatched a cave heaven from Di Jun. He had evaluated this cave heaven and found it to be of the highest quality among Di Jun's nine cave heavens. While all nine cave heavens were complete, there were still differences among them: some were larger, some had more complete systems. These differences were related to the quality of the cave heaven. Just like Shen Qiu, even if he restored the cave heaven, its quality and system would not be as good as the one in Mirage Dragon's hands; it would inevitably be lacking.

Thinking back, Shenlong suddenly felt that he should prepare a gift or something.

Cao Chen, the only one who had no previous experience with Xuan Mo, listened to the old goat's introduction as if he were listening to a divine scripture. Could such a being of great fortune really exist in this world? And yet, in fact, it did. This made Cao Chen eager to witness it.

Su Mu listened to the old goat's flattery and shook her head. Xuan Mo's luck was truly incredible. His predecessor was the Ink-Scaled Dragon Carp, a demon and water deity in his own right. Though he fell, he left behind an incomparably powerful foundation. And then, meeting Su Mu was perhaps a manifestation of great luck. If he hadn't met Su Mu, even his transformation would have been questionable, let alone the resources that would have followed.

If we really want to talk about great fortune, we have to look at Su Mu. As long as anyone around Su Mu, without exception, has received gifts.

The Mirage Dragon joked, "I've heard that Heaven and Earth choose specific beings in each era to guide and drive the world's development, just like Li Shu. If I didn't know that Heaven and Earth can't do anything to you, and that you've already reached a level of power beyond the Three Realms and outside the Five Elements, becoming a self-contained entity, I would have thought you were the 'protagonist' of this era."

Su Mu thought for a moment: "Maybe not? At least before I reached my current strength, I might have been the 'protagonist.' I wasn't born a god."

After hearing Su Mu's answer, Shenlong thought about it carefully. It was really possible. Although he didn't know how old Su Mu was now, it was at least within a thousand years. To reach such strength within a thousand years...